Just bikes...

One way or another, cycling is slowly taking up more and more of my time. If I’m not riding one of my bikes I’m fixing or cleaning them. If it’s not my bikes then I’m out watching someone else. If I have to stay at home, I try and find cycling to watch on the TV! I think I may be getting the bug!

A couple of weeks ago Lynda and I went to the Moorways Sports Centre, which is just a short walk away, for the National Trophy Cyclo-cross racing. Riders from all over the UK took part in the day's racing as well as riders from Germany, Belgium and, I think, France. The weather wasn’t great but at least the light rain that fell for a time added to the excitement - if you were watching and not riding that is! The sharp, off-camber downhill turns caught many of the riders out and resulted in some rather impressive face plants. Luckily, everyone got straight back on their bikes and carried on as if nothing had happened.

This was only the second cyclo-cross event that I had been to, and the first big event, but I’m hooked. I already have other events pencilled in the diary that I’d like to attend. If anyone out there fancies sponsoring a total novice to the sum of around £3000 I’d be happy to take your money and spend it on the equipment needed for me to have a go!

And that was just the warm up!

The sprint away from the start line.

The transition from grass to tarmac.

The climb out of the sports arena.

Over the planks.

L to R... 3rd Jan van Dael. 1st Johannes Sickmueller. 2nd Paul Oldham.

My own cycling has been ticking along nicely each week and I’ve covered a total of 3,120 miles since the start of the year. Now my goal is to reach 3,500 miles this year - 1,000 more that I had initially hoped for. October was my best month of the year so far with just over 412 miles ridden. I also managed my longest single ride so far last month, a 70-mile hack around South Derbyshire! The ride should have been a 55 miler but I got carried away and just kept on adding extra bits to the pre-planned route I had in mind. In the end, the only reason I returned home when I did was because I knew that there was a roast dinner waiting for me! There was no way I was going to risk a burnt, or worse still, no dinner!

The past week has seen the run of warm, dry weather come to an end and I’ve had to contend with a number of wet rides to and from work. The Cannondale is now tucked away in the back of the garage and will be staying there until I can be sure that it’s not going to get a soaking on wet roads. If that’s not a good enough excuse then how about “I can’t ride it because it has no lights”?

Lynda and I are now off work for a week so I’ll start November with little or no cycling. I’ll just have to keep my fingers crossed that I can make up the mileage later in the month and hope I don’t have too many pub lunches over the next few days! Yeah, like that is going to stop me!

High days and holidays...

Last week Lynda and I took a few days off work. We had nothing really planned and just went with the flow. On Monday, after a couple of much needed extra hours in bed we headed into Derby. This was the only part of the break that was planned; we wanted to take a ride on the big wheel in Derby Market Place. Okay, so it’s not the London Eye but it was still well worth it! The wheel is 60 meters in height and gave us views much like the ones we had from the top of Derby Cathedral last summer. The information at the ticket office states that the ride lasts for around 15 minutes, we were on the first ride of the morning and it lasted for at least 25 minutes.

The Derby big wheel.

Lynda.

The Guildhall.

The Cathedral and the new Jury's Inn.

Me, with a load of steel work.

The new Cathedral Green.

The Guildhall tower and clock.

The Market Hall.

The Market Place.

After our big wheel adventure we spent the rest of the morning in Derby, shopping. The pain of this was eased, for me, by a stop at Muffin Break for elevenses - a slice of bacon and onion quiche and a mug of Cappuccino soon had me smiling again! I’m not a shopping fan but I do like coffee shops! Actually, that’s not quite true... Lynda took me to Costco on the way home and treated me to a mixed case of Wychwood Brewery beers. Now that IS my kind of shopping!

After stopping off at home to unload the shopping, and for me to change into my cycling clothes, we headed off to the bike shop to collect my Cannondale which had been in for it’s free 6-month check-up. All was pretty much as I expected with the bike, it had had a new chain fitted due to the original one having stretched but nothing else was needed - or so I thought. Before the chain was fitted the shop had told me that I really should be fitting a new gear cassette and front chain rings. Okay, so I’ve covered almost 1,000 miles on the bike but there was no way I was paying out almost a 3rd of the price of the bike after only 6 months! I told them to fit the chain and I’d see how things went. Needless to say, on the ride home a couple of the gears were skipping.

First thing Tuesday morning - well, okay, about 10:0AM - I went shopping for a new rear gear cassette for the bike. A little bit of internet research the night before had turned up a cassette that had a slightly wider set of gear ratios that would give me an extra 2 or 3 MPH for the same pedal effort. These were soon in my possession and, after a quick stop off at work to borrow a torque wrench, fitted to the Cannondale. After a short test ride to make sure everything was working as it should it was time to think about lunch - off to the pub we went! Lynda and I decided that we’d give The Bonnie Prince at Chellaston a try as we’d never been before. It turned out that the pub had only re-opened that day due to a complete refit. The pub was very nice, the food excellent - we’ll be back at some point in the future.

Wednesday, and it was shopping time again. This time it was a couple of garden centres that we visited. At the first we picked up a load of winter bedding plants that are now safely in the garden and at the second Lynda found a couple of Camellias that she instantly fell in love with and just HAD to have! The fact that they were priced as “two for one” just added to their appeal. The Camellias are also safely planted in the garden where we eagerly await them bursting into flower next spring! With all the plants we needed safely stowed away in the car there was nothing left to do but retire to the pub for lunch again. This time we finished up in another new to us hostelry, The Seven Wells at Etwall. The Seven Wells is part of the same chain as The Bonnie Prince so the menu was almost identical. Once again the food was excellent and we were left feeling full but not quite bursting - the Ruddles County ale was also very much to my liking! I can’t wait for our next time off work!

Autumn colour...

Okay, this post is late, very late, but here goes anyway!

A few weeks ago - September 20th! - I spent a very enjoyable few hours out birding in the Trent Valley, visiting both Ambaston and Barrow-on-Trent.

The birding at Ambaston was okay but nothing spectacular. A small number of summer migrants were still enjoying the early autumn sunshine with 8 Swallow, 1 Reed Warbler and 2 Chiffchaff being recorded. In contrast, 4 Wigeon were a sign that winter is just around the corner - these being my first of the autumn. Two Snipe were also probably birds that had returned to the area after breeding elsewhere. Other birds of note included 5 Little Grebe, 9 Mute Swan, a Lesser Black-backed Gull, 80 Black-headed Gull, 5 Stock Dove, 3 Grey Wagtail and a Jay.

As I had left the house before Lynda was awake I took the opportunity to borrow her camera and managed to capture a few shots of the autumn colours...

From Ambaston I moved on to Barrow-on-Trent where once again the birding on offer was okay but I didn’t turn up anything unexpected. As things were a little quiet I decided on a bit of counting - I tend to count birds quite a lot when it gets quiet! Some of the better numbers were... 34 Cormorant, 122 Tufted Duck, 170 Lesser Black-backed Gull and c1000 Black-headed Gull. The highlight of the morning though was the number of Common Buzzard, 15 of them soaring over the lake! This was by far the largest number of Buzzard I had ever seen together in the county and it is a sight that will stay with me for a long while. Some of the other birds seen included 2 Kingfisher, a handful of Swallow and House Martin, 2 Reed Warbler and 4 Yellowhammer.

Before heading home to Lynda, and my Sunday lunch, I rattled off another few photos on what had turned into a glorious autumn morning. I must try and sort out a new camera for myself at some point in the near future!

Another target met!

At the beginning of the year I set myself a little challenge, I wanted to try and cycle at least 2,500 miles this year. At the time, I thought it should be attainable if I didn’t chicken out of riding to work when the weather was bad and also threw in a few longer “fun” rides at weekends. Well, today I passed the 2,500 mile barrier!

On the whole it’s been an enjoyable experience so far if you ignore the five punctures I’ve picked up, the numerous soakings when I’ve been caught in the rain and the occasional close call with cars/vans/buses that treat cyclists as target practice! February 3 is one day that stands out above most this year; it was the day I lost the use of all but one of the 21 gears on my bike due to the whole of the gear mechanism freezing up! Conditions that day were not good!

The purchase of the Cannondale Bad Boy in April had a positive effect on my riding and I soon started to up the mileage I was riding. In early May I completed the 40-mile Vale of Belvoir sponsored ride for the British Heart Foundation, the following morning I rode for another 25 miles just to spin my legs out. There have also been Sunday morning rides of 30 miles, 40 miles (twice), and a 50 miler. I also got a little carried away on a rather nice Sunday morning in June and returned home with 60 miles under my belt! The plan is to work up to a 100-mile ride at some point next year. Well, that’s the plan!

At the end of Sunday’s birding blog I posted a couple of photos taken with my phone, that’s because I’ve killed my poor old digital camera! After being with me for more years than I can remember, and taking over 7,000 photos, the Kodak gave up the ghost on September 5. I’d cycled over to Allestree Park to watch the cyclo-cross racing and after taking just two photos the camera died. The last ever pictures from the camera are below!

Cyclo-cross at Allestree Park.

As for the racing, I don’t think I’ll be taking it up any time soon. The standard of riding in the senior’s race, and the quality of the bikes, was way above my level! I hope to attend more rounds of the race series over the next few months, hopefully with a fully operational camera!

"10-Mile" update...

Six weeks ago I was on a birding high after adding Bittern to my “10-Mile List” at Willington, I was also a little unsure as to whether or not I could reach last years total of 136 species within my recording zone. Well, all that is history. My total species count now stands at 137!

The five new species are...

Osprey. Whilst on a cycle ride on August 23 I was lucky enough to have an Osprey fly slowly over me as I headed into Mickleover. I managed to get very good views of the bird as it passed overhead and it was the highlight of a great, 52-mile, ride. I think I deserved that one, even if only for being crazy enough to be out riding for 52 miles on a Sunday morning!

Dunlin. I had to double-check all my records for the year before I added this one to the list - I couldn’t believe it had taken me until August 30 to see a Dunlin locally! Three Dunlin were seen at Willington Gravel Pits on a rather quiet Sunday morning when the only other notable sightings were of a single Hobby, 2 Green Sandpiper, and a Kingfisher. Things were so quiet that I even resorted to counting the Canada Geese! I recorded a total of 492, slightly less than the 500 Black-headed Gull. Well, I did say it was a quiet morning!

Shag. I had planned on a bike ride on the evening of September 6 but a quick check of the sightings on Birdguides had me heading off to Willington instead - a juvenile Shag had been located. Not only was this a new species for the “10-Mile List” it was also the first I’d ever seen inland. Other than the Shag it was yet another very quiet visit. A Buzzard showed well at the rear of Gull Pit and 23 Snipe were seen in flight. Summer lingered on in the form of Common Tern, Swallow, House Martin, Sedge Warbler and Reed Warbler.

Greenshank. A very brief visit to Aston-on-Trent Gravel Pits this morning resulted in species number 136 for the year. I had hoped for something a little bit special to match last year’s total, but I’ll take the Greenshank all the same! To be fair, it was a rather smart looking Greenshank and it did show very well - but it was still a Greenshank. Green Sandpiper, Dunlin and Chiffchaff were the other notable sightings.

Little Egret. This has always been a bit of a bogey bird for me in Derbyshire; I only saw my first in the county last summer. Today, at Barrow-on-Trent, I found 5 of the things and, in the process, moved my “10-Mile List” on to 137 species for the year. I’ve been trying to locate one of these little white herons all summer without any success so I was rather pleased that Little Egret was the species to take my total ahead of last year’s. Also at Barrow were 105 Cormorant, 17 Grey Heron, 100 Tufted Duck, 7 Buzzard, 2 Chiffchaff and 2 Jay.

Two very poor photos of a Little Egret. These were taken with my mobile phone through my ‘scope - the reason why will become clear in my next blog post!

With just over 3 months still left of 2009, can I move the list on to 140 species? I really haven’t a clue!

132 - a lucky number?

Almost a year ago I posted a blog here about how I’d finally added Little Egret to my Derbyshire birding list and that the Egret was also species 132 on my 2008 “10-Mile List”. Well, 132 must be a lucky number for me, or Willington Gravel Pits is my lucky site!

Yesterday morning I had planned on getting up early and going out birding. In the end I stayed in bed until after 9:00AM and just couldn’t be bothered with the prospect of flooded paths, mud and a lack of birds! Staying at home and doing a bit of work on one of my bikes held much more of an attraction for me - that was until I received a next message from one of the county's most active birders. A Bittern had been seen at Willington Gravel Pits! It took me less than half an hour to gather together my telescope, bins and camera and drive to the reserve.

I had to wait for over an hour for the Bittern to show but when it did I was far from disappointed - the bird did two separate fly-pasts, high above the main pit, before deciding to settle in the reed bed. The views were by far the best I’d ever had of a Bittern and it was my first for Willington. It was also a new species for the “10-Mile List”, number 132. I was one happy chap.

By now it was approaching mid-day and I was starting to think of getting home so I could work on the bike - the Bittern had other ideas. Just as I was about to leave it climbed out of the reeds and started to walk about in the open! This was too good to be true! I’ve seen a few of these birds over the years but never before have I seen one show so well, it was more like watching a Grey Heron.

I did get a few photos but they didn’t turn out too well, I blame the strong breeze that was blowing for the blurred images. It had nothing to do with my hands shaking with excitement! Well, I don’t think it did!

At first it's just a head...

... then the whole bird!

Then it went walk-about!

The “10-Mile List” is now just 5 species short of beating last years total - maybe it can be done, maybe not. Oh, and the bike did get it’s chain, gears and rear mech. cleaned and serviced later in the afternoon too! Not a bad result all-in-all!

Good evening! Yes, it is I, the blog owner. I know it’s a little unusual but I am here to post an update - a brief one, but an update nonetheless! So, what’s been going on? Well, as you may have guessed by the lack of posts here dear reader, the answer to that is “not a lot”!

On the birding front a combination of work, bad weather and bad timing (on the birds behalf) has seen me miss a number of species that I would have loved to add to my “10-Mile List”. I have managed to add one more tick to the list since my last update - Spotted Flycatcher on June 28. The “10-Mile List” now stands at 131 species.

Last month I said that I’d try and post a few photos from around the garden, but I didn’t. Sorry Sarah! I did actually take the photos (using my phone) but never quite got around to uploading them. Here they are...

Despite the constant rain we’ve been getting the plants are surviving and have actually grown and continued to flower! If it ever stops raining we may be able to get out in the garden and enjoy them. Some hope!

Another victim of the rain was the Ashbourne Highland Gathering that should have taken place today; it was rained off. Luckily, the Saturday entertainment went ahead as scheduled and that meant we were able to see Clanadonia and also The Red Hot Chilli Pipers perform. Clanadonia played three “free shows” around the streets of Ashbourne during the afternoon before opening the main evening concert for the Chilli Pipers.

Clanadonia, on a rare visit south of the border, came to have fun and have fun they did! Their shows were full of the usual mix of great music and humour. Their antics when not performing had me smiling the whole day through. Quite what the sales girl in Costa coffee thought when a certain band member (in full tribal garb) tried to trade a Wombles CD for coffee I hate to think. When three of the band burst into the shop later in the afternoon and played a brief drum and pipe show the staff had their thoughts confirmed... crazy!

Yes, that IS me in the last picture! After years of avoiding being dragged up to “shake” with the band I finally got caught yesterday!

A brief rain shower interrupted a possible hunt for trolls, under a small bridge in the town, as the band did not want the drum skins getting too wet before the evening show. Seven tribal warriors then took over the local Boots chemists and stored their pipes and drums in the middle of the shop until the rain passed! No one seemed to object for some reason. As a thank you the band did play their final set of the afternoon outside the shop, and left them a free CD. Boots had been “tribalised”!

The Red Hot Chilli Pipers gig later in the evening was very well attended, close to 1000 people, and proved to be a great show. It was the first time I’d seen the band play live, having previously only seen them on TV and YouTube, but I’d love to see them again given the chance. The mix of bagpipes, drums, guitars and rock music may seem a strange combination but the Chilli Pipers carry it off to perfection.

So, there is my none too brief an update. I’ll be back again as and when something happens other than rain!

There are more photos from Ashbourne HERE!

Just a little quiet...

Okay, time for an update! I know it’s not like me to go for so long without blogging but there really hasn’t been anything to blog about plus, I’ve been way too busy! Sounds kind of daft that doesn’t it... nothing to blog, way too busy! Make your mind up Rich!

The cycling is becoming more and more enjoyable since I purchased the new bike and I’ve been steadily clocking up the miles each week. I’ve also taken up a keen interest in the weather forecasts since the Cannondale arrived - if there is even the smallest chance of rain the old bike is fetched out of the garage for the day! So far I’ve managed a total of 415 rain-free miles on the new Bad Boy! My total distance for the year has now reached 1455 miles, so I’m well on target to reach my goal of 2500 miles by the end of the year. As well as cycling to work and back each day I’ve also been out for three longer rides since my last blog post. The first ride was a steady 20 miles, the second a more respectable 30 miles and then, last Sunday, I got a bit carried away and rode for 60 miles! As you can tell, I’m getting on rather well with the Cannondale!

A couple of weeks ago Lynda and I decided at the last minute to go and see The Bad Shepherds play in Derby. I’d never seen them before, only heard one track of theirs (via the internet) and didn’t really know what to expect. What a choice of gig for a Friday night! In fact, a great choice for ANY night! The Bad Shepherds are Andy Dinan (fiddle), Troy Donockley (Uillean pipes, cittern, whistles, vocals), Maartin Allcock (twelve string guitar, bass, vocals) and Adrian Edmondson (vocals and “trash mandolin”). The first three may not be too well known to many readers of this blog but Adrian Edmondson most certainly will be, as the violent punk rocker Vyvian in the 1980’s comedy series The Young Ones.

The Young Ones.

The band play a set that is made up of cover songs, almost entirely 70’s and 80’s punk songs. The twist - they play them all in a “folk music” style! Yes, it sounds strange, crazy even, BUT it works! The gig was brilliant and I’m already making plans to go and see The Bad Shepherds again soon!

The Bad Shepherds.

My birding has run out of fuel somewhat and I’ve “hit the wall”! Since we returned from the RSPB long weekend away I’ve only been out with my ’bins and ’scope twice within my 10-mile zone. The dreaded “been there, done that” syndrome I suffered with a few years ago has returned. I just can’t seem to get excited about chasing around after birds at the moment. I have added five more ticks to the year list though... Common Scoter at Foremark Reservoir on May 1st. Garden Warbler and Turtle Dove, again at Foremark but on May 24th and then later on the same day I added Garganey and Hobby at Willington. The “10-Mile List” now stands at 130 species. All I need to do over the next 6 months is find another 7 new species and I’ll have bettered last year's total. Sounds easy when you look at it like that but I reckon it’s going to be rather more challenging!

Bempton cliffs.

Flamborough Head.

Yesterday, Lynda and I went with the Derby RSPB Group to Bempton and also Flamborough. The number of birds seen wasn’t too impressive but I didn’t mind because I got to see Puffins! No matter what level you enjoy birds at Puffins can never fail to make your day better, they’re THE comics of the bird world I reckon. I just love ’em!

Puffins.

A combination of the excellent viewing facilities and also the use of my ’scope meant that photos of the sea birds were reasonably easy to obtain. The results could have been even better if the weather had been kinder to us. Cloud and occasional rain showers tried to dampen things down a little.

Razorbills.

Kittiwake.

Gannet.

Later in the week I’ll try and post a few photos from around the garden... just so Sarah can see what we’ve been up to out there so far this year! If I’m not too busy that is!

A week in Wales...

Around 20 years or so ago Lynda and I discovered a little holiday hideaway on the Welsh coast, the village of Aberporth. Since that first visit we’ve returned many times - we’ve lost count but it must be about 12 or 13 times. Last week, we spent yet another week relaxing at The Penrallt Hotel, this time in one of their self-catering cottages.

Our holiday cottage.

The weather wasn’t amazing but it wasn’t all that bad either. We hadn’t planned on doing much other than relaxing, eating, drinking and also going to a gig on the Thursday night. No break would be complete for me without a small amount of birding at some point so we spent a few hours at the Teifi Marshes Nature Reserve, Mwnt beach and also Aberporth beach. By the end of the week I’d recorded a total of 67 bird species. Most of these I could easily see here within my 10-mile zone but one or two were birds that would be considered as scare or unheard of in Derbyshire.

Sighting of the week was without doubt the two Chough that we saw at Mwnt, closely followed by the numerous Red Kites that we came across. Cetti’s Warblers were singing and showing well, for Cetti’s, at Teifi Marshes. Fulmar, Gannet, Shag, Kittiwake and Guillemot were the pick of the sea birds but waders were very thin on the ground with only Oystercatcher and Curlew being found. A couple of Wheatear were on Mwnt along with a Rock Pipit and a single Grey Wagtail was spotted in Cardigan town centre. Swift, Swallow and House Martin could all be seen from our cottage whilst Sand Martin were present at Teifi Marshes. As well as the Red Kites we also saw plenty of Buzzard, a couple of Kestrel and a Peregrine that was hunting over Aberporth village.

The indoor swimming pool, and also spa pool, at the hotel was put to good use on a couple of occasions but nothing like as often as we used the hotel's catering facilities! The Penrallt has always been very good when it comes to food but the standard was higher than ever this year. Even though we were in a self-catering cottage we found ourselves eating in the hotel every day - and also enjoying the delicious cappuccino coffee that they make too. The bar met with my approval the moment I spotted a bottle of Talisker whisky! The free WiFi connection available in the hotel lounge came in handy too - just how did we ever survive without the internet?

Before we set off on our holiday Lynda had been checking the internet for events in the Aberporth area, her searching came up with a gig in Cardigan by the Michael McGoldrick Band. I have to admit I wasn’t aware of this band before Lynda found them but I’ll now be keeping a look out for them in the future - the gig was great! Michael McGoldrick is a superb Uillean pipe player and also an amazing flute player. Checking out his past work on the internet revealed a huge list of names that he has performed with in the past - Kate Rusby, Eddi Reader, Sharon Shannon, John McCusker and also bands such as Capercaillie and Shooglenifty all appear. There was also an awesome Bodhran player in the band - John Joe Kelly - who kept me spellbound throughout the whole gig. His Bodhran solo was one of the highlights of the evening! The gig left me on such a high that it wasn’t until we set off back to the cottage that I realised just how hungry I was - a quick stop off at the local supermarket for supplies soon sorted that out. I was cooking myself a Chicken Jalfrazi a short while later!

As we spent much of the week doing very little I don’t have too many photos but here are a few of my favourites...

Aberporth.

Teifi Marshes.

Water Buffalo, in Wales?!

Poppit Sands.

Mwnt.

We almost always see Dolphins whilst in the Aberporth area, this year this was as close as we came!

BHF ride...

Yesterday was my sponsored cycle ride in the Vale of Belvoir and I’m pleased to say I completed the 40 miles without any problems. The weather was good - dry and bright with only a steady breeze - the route superbly signed and marshalled and the sausage, bacon and egg sandwich I had after the ride was great! You can’t ask for much more!

Belvoir Castle.

Lynda and I arrived at Belvoir Castle at around 8:00AM giving me plenty of time to sign in and to get the bike out of the car and the front wheel back in place (I have to remove it to get it in the car!). I then went for a quick warm-up ride up and down the entrance road to the castle.

Ready for the off.

At just before 9:00AM the organisers called the riders to the start line and then began to release people in batches of around 30 at a time. I hung back a little and set off at the back of the 3rd group. The first mile or so was a bit slow going due to all the riders that were trying to get out of the park and onto the open road. After that, things settled down and I was able to pick up speed a little. I wanted to ride an average 16mph so that I could complete the ride in 2hrs 30min and that’s just how it worked out.

The riders gather...

Only 40 miles to go!

Much of the route was reasonably flat but there were also three or four punishing climbs too. Two of the hills saw many riders having to revert to the “pushbike” mode of transport and get off their machines and push. Somehow, I managed to spin my way to the top of all the climbs without having to get off my bike! The amount of cycling I do may have helped me up the hills but I think a lot of it was to do with riding the new Cannondale - it’s just so much lighter than my old bike!

The fastest part of the ride for me came at just after 30 miles when the route took a short but steep descent towards the village of Branston. The GPS tracker on my phone clocked me at 40.9mph down the narrow country lane. If only I’d been pedalling the bike I may have been able to push that speed up a little! As it happened, I was too busy looking out for potholes and gravel to have time for spinning the pedals as well!

At the end of the ride I felt much better than I’d expected I would. My legs felt good, I certainly wasn’t out of breath and my energy levels felt okay too. Although there were a number of refreshment stops on the route I chose to ignore them and instead carried my own energy drink and flapjack bars. I ate and drank at regular intervals, whilst on the move, and it certainly kept me from “hitting the wall” and running out of energy.

The end of the ride!

So, all in all, a great time was had. If this event is run again next year I’m pretty certain I’ll be taking part. The GPS tracker on my phone did highlight one little “issue” though... the ride is advertised as a 40-mile route. My GPS reckons I did 40.51 miles! Perhaps having to weave my way through the crowds and then up the steepest of the climbs accounts for the extra distance!

Thank you to the British Heart Foundation for organising a great event and THANK YOU to everyone that sponsored me!

Whilst I took part in the ride Lynda took a walk around the castle and grounds - you can see more photos HERE.

Today, I woke up feeling none the worse for the cycling yesterday so took the bike out again. I told Lynda I was going for a steady ride around the local roads and would be back within 20 minutes or so. An hour and a half later I returned home from a 25 mile ride! I sort of got carried away!

One last push...

In less than 12 hours I’ll be starting my sponsored bike ride for the British Heart Foundation. The weather isn’t looking too bad and I’m all set to go!

I’ve had quite a good day today raising sponsorship - my total stands at £220 at the moment - but I really would like to reach my £250 target. The Justgiving web page is still open so please consider making a donation. Every single pound can make a difference to someone's life.

http://www.justgiving.com/richardcrooks

BRITISH HEART FOUNDATION UPDATE...

There is now less than 36 hours until I take part in the Vale of Belvoir cycle ride in aid of the British Heart Foundation. My sponsorship drive is going okay, but it’s not going great! I really would appreciate more sponsors!

So far I have pledges totalling £155 and I’d like to thank everyone that has sponsored me so far.

Please, if you haven’t done so already, visit my Justgiving page and add your name to the list.

Thank you for your support everyone!

http://www.justgiving.com/richardcrooks