Date
|
Route
Distance,
Time, Week Total, Total
|
08/03/13
|
Caldy – Montgomery Hill
– Mill Hill – Irby - 32 4hrs 56 170.3
Heswall – Neston –
Caldy – West Kirby – Hoylake – Leasowe – Moreton – Greasby - Irby - West Kirby
|
Grey,
overcast, slightly damp, 9’c. Okay so after
the sweaty effort of Tuesday I left the thermal and fleece layers off and was
too cold which meant an 18 mile loop back home to retrieve an extra layer for
my top half and an extra pair of socks for my poor toes plus a quick
coffee to thaw out the inside bits too!
The first
loop covered a multitude of hills – from the lowest point of Heswall on the
shore line to the highest point of Heswall next to a radio transmitter. The only point to this being to
endure some hills. Going up and down
hills is an essential part of this training exercise but I can’t say I’m
exactly enjoying it. In one respect I’ll
be glad when I’ve achieved the goal so I can go back to riding the off road
muddy, bumpy stuff that is so much more enjoyable.
The second
loop was about packing in a bit more distance rather than gratuitous hill
climbing so a blast along the front to leasowe lighthouse then a ride back
through various housing estates finishing with Montgomery Hill and straight up
the main road from Caldy crossroads West Kirby.
Pleased
that none of the hills provided too much of a challenge and no walking was called
for. Felt my legs for the first time
after this ride and I don’t really know why.
Just hope as the weeks go on the training does become easier and less
of a drag. I think the weather is
probably playing a part. I’m fed up of having cold toes. Is it too much to
ask to be comfortably warm on a ride???
(I may regret this statement come August if the C2C ends up being
tackled in a heatwave!!!!)
|
Janet's Coast to Coast Training Record
A blow by blow account of my training for the Coast to Coast bike ride I plan to undertake in August 2013. I am hoping to raise oodles of sponsorship money for Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital.
Saturday 9 March 2013
A ride of two halves.
Tuesday 5 March 2013
A sweaty 200m vertical gain day!
Date
|
Route
Distance,
Time, Week Total, Total
|
05/03/13
|
Home – Heswall – Neston
– Home 24
2hrs
50 24 138.3
|
Clear blue sky, very
little wind, 10’c. Spring has sprung!
Storming start
straight up the hill to Thurstaston along the main road – wasn’t as bad as I
had anticipated. Big surprise at the gradient on Heswall bends -
you think you have climbed to the highest point when you reach Thurstaston
but you haven’t!
Interesting unadopted
road route down to Lower Heswall. Must
try it going upwards! Along to Neston
and across the Chester High Road then down onto the Wirral way all the way
back to Caldy. A final climb up the
millionaires road, Kings Drive, actually was OK! Am quite pleased I was able to get to the
top without stopping and it meant a glorious cruise back home.
So not a bad ride but
really need to start picking up the pace and upping the mileage as well as
trying to fit in longer rides on consecutive days. Not much work left to do then!!! Scary thought that the mileage grand total
as it stands is only 10% of the recommended preparation mileage of 1400
miles. Eeek!
Learnt some
interesting stuff on this ride –
·
Its
not a good idea to scream round a gravelly bend in top gear no matter how
much fun you’re having zooming along – even nobbly off road tyres don’t grip
well on loose gravel.
·
It
is possible to have sweaty cold feet! Really must try and sort that out!
·
A
thermal, a long sleeved bike top, a short sleeved bike top, a fleece and a
rain jacket is waaaaaay too many layers when the temperature is 10’c and
there is no wind!!
|
Wednesday 27 February 2013
Half terms over - back to it!
Date
|
Route Distance,
Time, Week Total, Total
|
27/02/13
|
Home – Caldy – Hoylake
– Leasowe 17 2hrs 17 114.3
Moreton – Saughall – Black
Horse Hill
|
Grey sky to start, blue
sky to finish, very little wind, 3’c.
Having a week off
training due to half term was a bit of a killer and having toothache on the
first day the winks were back at school was even more frustrating. Today was about fitting in a shorter ride
with some hills and other varied terrain.
The climb to Caldy is
always ‘fun’ and meant 2.5 miles plus some vertical gain had been achieved before the bike was even pointed in the direction of Leasowe which was the
ultimate plan for today!
Following the Wirral
Circular Loop signs once at Leasowe resulted in an ‘interesting’ (and I definitely
use the word advisedly) pedal alongside the Bidston golf course. The only place I’ve seen more rubbish is at
the tip and it was the sort of deserted place where you ride along fully
expecting to see a dead body at any moment!!!
Needless to say I shan’t be rushing back to repeat that particular
experience.
The final push to home
was along the lanes from Saughall Massie and straight up Black Horse
Hill. Happy to report no getting off
of the bike was required however at one point it did cross my mind that it
would be quicker to just walk up the hill pushing the bike!!!!
And now because I'm sure my dear readers are most interested in whether I was too hot or too cold a temperature report - My body and fingers were too warm - a thermal plus 4 additional layers was too much as were full fingered gloves - but my toes were a little chilly!!
|
Friday 15 February 2013
A great day!
Date
|
Route
Distance,
Time, Week Total, Total
|
15/02/13
|
Home – Montgomery Hill
– Irby – Heswall 31.4 4hrs 40.5 97.3
Landican – Port
Sunlight – Bebington – Eastham – Hooton - Caldy
|
Blue sky, light winds,
8’c. You could almost mistake today
for a summers day and in fact I finished the ride with a sun tanned
face!! This was a FUN FUN FUN ride
today and confirmed the fact that I much prefer off road riding, sploshing
through muddy puddles and scrambling for grip on claggy tracks to road
riding!!
A lot of ground was
covered and I have to say it’s a pleasure to ride during the week – the people
you meet are so polite and friendly and will happily exchange a greeting with
you!! One gentleman even held a gate
open which meant I didn’t even have to get off my bike at the bottom of a
super cool whizzy section!!
Mention must be made
of the little buttie shop in Eastham that made me a delicious cup of coffee
at midday – much appreciated to warm the slightly frozen, muddy and wet bits
of me!!
And now a confession –
I had to walk up part of the Caldy Hill section about a mile from home – my little
leggies had decided enough was enough!
But apart from that todays ride felt great!
|
Wednesday 13 February 2013
Swimming again.
A wet, snowy and windy day with a busy Thursday and Friday to come so the opportunity was seized to go and thrash up and down the swimming pool again.
1 hour 3 minutes and 76 lengths of Mummy breaststroke later and my jelly legs and achy shoulders think I've done enough for one day.
Just time to make myself look presentable before attending the school Ash Wednesday service in church. Don't think I'll be walking down there though given the monsoon conditions outside at the moment!!
1 hour 3 minutes and 76 lengths of Mummy breaststroke later and my jelly legs and achy shoulders think I've done enough for one day.
Just time to make myself look presentable before attending the school Ash Wednesday service in church. Don't think I'll be walking down there though given the monsoon conditions outside at the moment!!
Tuesday 12 February 2013
A Painful Reality.
Date
|
Route
Distance, Time, Week Total, Total
|
12/02/13
|
Home – Wetstone Lane
(hill) – Caldy 9.1 1hr 9.1 56.8
Crossroads (Hill) –
Montgomery Hill, Frankby – Hillside – Gorse Lane – Grange Road – prom –
Village Road (Hill)
|
Grey sky, light winds,
3’c. The name of todays game was to
pack a few hills in. Shame it took me
3 miles to get going. I was expecting to feel despondent and defeatist at
some point but I guess I didn’t expect it to happen so soon. Plodding along thinking - “what the hell am I doing thinking I can
cycle 140 miles in 4 days?? Theres no
way I’m ever going to be fit enough.”
So the question is how to get over this low patch? How do people find
motivation and inspiration? And actually – is there any way I’m ever going to
have done enough training to enable me to complete the challenge? Answers on a postcard please!!
Ok so there must be some positives from today’s
effort? Well I managed to clock 32mph on the whizz down Grange Road so that’s
good! And I didn’t have to get off and
push at all even though Montgomery Hill and Village Road are both quite
brutal ups. And hallelujah ..... my body and fingers were warm enough due to an extra thermal layer and full finger gloves. (We won't mention not being able to feel my feet when I got off my bike at home! No. Lets finish on a high!)
|
Saturday 9 February 2013
An adventure and an encounter!
Date
|
Route Distance, Time, Week Total, Total
|
08/02/13
|
Home - Hoylake -
Leasowe - New Brighton –23.6m 3hrs 40m 23.6 47.7
Woodside - Birkenhead
- Upton - Greasby - Hillside
|
Essential to get out
and get some miles in even though the weather wasn't great - cloudy and cold
- about 4'c. Once again I completely
underestimated the temperature and was COLD! From now on its full finger gloves, over
booties and 5 layers
The big excitement
came a mile from Woodside Ferry terminal with the discovery that my back tyre
was suspiciously squishy. The exciting
part was finding that the pump wouldn't fit my tyre valve! Argh
Now if you're going to
get stuck I recommend you get stuck just as an ex-boy scout happens to be
passing with a full tool kit including wet wipes and who succumbs to your
damsel in distress routine!!
Sorted.
After a fast 5 min
pedal to Woodside ferry terminal it was time for a nice hot coffee to allow
some bits to thaw out. The puncture
delay meant the planned route had to be curtailed (had to get back to do some
last minute birthday party preparations) so from there it was a grind up the
hills to Upton followed by a nice whizz down a muddy footpath followed by a
further grind up to Frankby and finally a grind up Hillside Road/Grammar
School Lane - WITHOUT STOPPING!!!! A
nice gentle coast back home allowed cold, tired muscles to be stretched. Shame about the puncture delay but I felt some
respectable miles and hills achieved!
|
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