Ride 24/07/2022

5 of us on the Sunday bun run today with a bit of a windy dull day. The forecast was stormy today but still very warm at 20 degree, so this meant we had a head wind all the way to the cafe stop and a tail wind home. Thankfully we missed the rain but the roads were wet so we couldn’t of missed it by much. Coffee and cake for today and then the run home with Ken and Paul Davies to Dalgety bay before the little stint back up to Crossgates, 54 miles clocked up at an avg speed of 16 mph.

Ride 23/07/2022

Well it was a busy day today with nearly 30 of us on the bun run this morning. More than what I was expecting given the weather, it was overcast but warm, but we were forecast for rain and it did clip it towards the end of my ride but nothing too drastic. So with so many today we split into 3 group with me in the second one. It was the usual cafe stop and given the light winds we were going quite fast today, this shows in my avg speed for today After the cafe stop we headed home the usual way but I was looking to get some extra done today so I parted ways at the usual point at Redgraigs and headed for Kelty. I decided I would go up over Knockhill twice today so headed for Cleish and Crook of Devon and around to Powmill for the full climb up Knockhil on the second attempt. It was then home via the usual route of Wellwood and Dunfermline with like I said a little shower of rain, which had stopped by the time I hit Crossgates and home. So I got the 65 miles I was after and at a good avg speed of 17 mph so happy with that on a good days ride

Ride 17/07/2022

Bit of a wet muggy day, it was starting to rain when I left the house this morning but didn’t come to much and it was quite warm too. There were 7 of us on the bun run today and although it was cloudy the rain really never came to much, very light indeed. It never really got that sunny even by the time I had finished but it did get quite warm towards the end of the ride. Anyway it was the usual coffee and cake at the cafe stop today before heading back to Dunfermline. I lost the group a little bit when they decided to go a different route to the norm but caught them up at Kincardine. I then followed the guys back to Dalgety Bay and the slit from them to get back up to Crossgates. I stopped at home for some lunch and then carried on for a further 20 miles to get some extra mileage and elevation. So 72 miles clocked up at an avg of 16 mph

Ride 16/07/2022

Today we decided to do a small group ride rather than the usual club bun run, that way we could get a few more miles in and some elevation. The route would take us over Cleish, along to Balado and on and up over the Ochil Hills via Stronachie, Path of Condie and down the Dragon into Dunning where we would stop for lunch. After lunch we would return by going up Dunning Common, along to Yetts and Powmill and return home the usual route over Knockhill and back to Dunfermline. I was looking to do at least 100 km so I followed Ken down to Dalgety Bay and then back up Crossgates. I decided at this point to get some more elevation in and try for 6000 feet of climbing so I went to Hill of Beath and did a few reps up this hill until I hit my mark and then went back home. So 77 miles clocked up at nearly 15 mph avg speed and over 6000 feet of climbing, not a bad days ride

Ride 10/07/2022

So today was the clubs Crieff Randonee around 85 miles in total, there was 11 of us doing it today and what a glorious day to do it on. Sunshine from the very start and it did get quite hot towards the afternoon, around 27 degree, even with factor 50 I still got burnt in a few places Anyhow we stopped in Creiff for our first pit stop before heading to Comrie and over the moors to Stirling. Ken and I decided to split from the group at this point as we were looking to do 100 miles today. We headed along the hillfoots to Tilly for our second pit stop for soup and sandwiches We then headed back to Cowdenbeath and down to Dalgety Bay for Kens finish. I had been riding at an easy pace all day today so I decided I would carry on and do some extra distance and hills. In the end I clocked up just over 130 miles and 6600 feet of climbing at an avg speed of 16 mph, my second longest ride ever but it was a long day in the saddle so my hands and feet are a bit sore but the rest of me is feeling ok bar the sun burn

Ride 9/07/2022

It’s a nice sunny day with a little bit of wind around but not as much as it was through the week. There were a lot of us today, over 20, so we split into 2 groups, with a few of us off today in preparation of tomorrows randonee. I just the normal router today with no extra since tomorrows randonee is 100 miles long. So 45 miles clocked up at 15 mph avg speed and that will do until tomorrow

Ride 3/07/2022

I was looking to do a longer ride than the usual 50 bun run so today Ken and I decided we would ride the Tak Ma Doon hill climb today which would give us a ride of about 75 miles. We were into a head wind for the first 35 miles out to Kilsyth which is where the hill climb starts but this would also mean we would have a head wind taking us back home again It’s been a good 3-4 years since I’ve gone up Tak Ma Doon so it was nice to climb it again. We headed for Stirling once we crested the hill and on to Coffee Bothy for lunch. After a bowl of soup, coffee and cake we headed back home along the coast to Dalgety Bay. I decided I wanted to do some extra on top of that to get to 90 miles as we have the 100 mile Ranonee next Sunday and I wanted to make sure I was fit enough for that after my 2 weeks absence from cycling. So 90 miles clocked up at an avg speed of 16 mph and 4400 feet of climbing

Ride 2/07/2022

So first full week back on the bike and I’m glad things are starting to get easier, performance is coming up and heart rate is starting to drop, I still got quite close to 200 bpm but didn’t hit it or break it, and I was doing some efforts today as well Weather forecast looked bleak, wind and rain but thankfully we actually managed to miss it but either way I was dressed for the occasion, I didn’t want to get soaked like I did Tuesday. 14 of us today on the bun run doing the usual route, I lead all the way to the cafe stop into a head wind but I didn’t mind as I was looking to keep my effort high to try and get my performance back. After some scrambled egg rolls and coffee it was back home again, still looking to get 50 miles done today but not any more, I just didn’t trust the weather to do some extra. Tomorrow is a better day so I’ll get the extra then For today I did 50 miles at an avg speed of 15 mph and I’m still in one piece after the ride so that suits me fine

Ride 12/06/2022 Club Glen Lyon Randonee

Well it’s been 2 weeks since my last ride due to my bike being in for a service, and boy did I feel that today! I started out early as I wanted to get some extra miles in today and the weather for this afternoon was rain along with the already windy day. I decided I would go along to Kelty and up the hill along to Saline before heading back to Dunfermline to meet up with the club run this morning at 10:00. I could tell from the get go that I was going to struggle as my power was down and my heart rate was higher that usual. Once I meet up with the guys we headed out via the usual route only I wasn’t expecting them to go quite so fast. By the time we got to the cafe stop I was averaging over 17 mph which is fast for a Sunday ride, although we did have a tail wind assist but this meant the ride back we would struggle against a head wind. Coffee and cake as per usual and it was back on the road, and again we were still going quite fast even for a head wind. I followed the guys who were heading for Dalgey Bay and by the time I got to the point we would part ways I was still averaging 16.9 mph :-o, suffice to say this was going to take a big hit by the time I started heading up hill back to Crossgates. I was knackered by this point so my speed and power took a nose dive and by the time I got back home my avg speed was down to 16.5 mph. But I had managed to get my 65 miles target so I was happy with that and now it’s time to relax

Ride 12/06/2022 Club Glen Lyon Randonee

Well today was the clubs Glen Lyon Randonee, starting at Aberfeldy and going over Ben Lawers hill and back around to Aberfeldy. It was a real mixed bag of weather today, rain, sun and wind plus a couple of mechanics including me as one of them. The ride started out ok with 11 of us doing the ride today but after about 20 odd miles one of the guys cracked his bike frame and so ended his ride there. We made it to the cafe stop at Killin ok where I had some soup, coffee and cake We then had the big climb of the day up and over Ben Lawers, having never climbed this hill, it was a great climb, up to about 1800 feet high. New tarmac had been laid so the ride was a smooth one up and over but once we hit our next stop, shutters, I was missing 3 gears and wondering why. On investigation it turned out to be a snapped gear cable which left me with only 1 gear after that Thankfully the route was flat all the way back so I was able to make it back to the start. So it was an eventful day with me clocking up 55 miles at an avg speed of 15 mph but still a nice ride to do

Ride 11/06/2022

Given after Thursday brutal ride I wasn’t in the mood to go fast today and given the crazy weather today I wasn’t going to be able to go fast. There were only 8 of us today and given the weather conditions I wasn’t surprised at all. It’s very windy today almost to the point of being dangerous. This would mean we would have a headwind all the way to the cafe stop and a tailwind back home again. It was very hard going to get to the cafe stop, lucky if I was riding at 10 mph at times plus there was a high risk of rain as well and we got a few spits and spots here and there but thankfully it held off. Thankfully it’s a warm day but the wind didn’t make it feel so until we were heading home again. After the cafe stop it was probably the easiest ride back home I’ve ever had Flying along and not having to put much power down makes for a fun ride. I decided I would head towards Kelty to get my 50 miles today so split from the group at Redcraigs. I would have a little bit of headwind again but not enough to bother me so by the time I got home I had clocked up my 50 miles at an avg speed of 15 mph and that will do me.

Ride 05/06/2022 Shotts

Well today was another glorious day to be cycling, it was sunny with a little bit of wind and warm. Rather than doing the usual bun run today we decided yesterday to do a longer different route and thus decided to ride out to Shotts. It’s been years since I’ve ridden out this way and after 4 days of continuous riding, although my legs were a little tired, I was still feeling good for a longer distance ride. We were lucky to have a tail wind most of the way there and we would be riding roads I’ve never cycled down, I’ve only even ridden to Shotts from Falkirk, but this would mean cycling back to Falkirk on our homeward leg. We stopped in Shotts for lunch before heading north to Falkirk. We didn’t have any big climbs but we did have a lot of little climbs which accounts for the nearly 5000 feet of climbing. There were 5 of us doing the ride today so I had some good company today. When we hit Falkirk we heading for the Kelpies for our second stop, basically for coffee and cake and then it would be our normal coastal route from Kincardine back to home. This did mean that we would have a head wind from this point but it wasn’t too strong and I lead most of the way since I was still feeling strong So it was a good days cycling with me clocking up 86 miles at an avg speed of 15 mph.