Training - Week 1

So - January 12th, After fruitful all round discussions after dinner; we made plans to begin our training in the depths of winter. Plenty of time to ease the non-cyclists and cyclists alike into the sort of daily mileage we would need in May. Easy we think (well OK, I thought - you see I have already come back from Christmas, shunning the motorbike and riding 80 miles a week commuting to and from work, Rachel and Chris on the other hand have only their sessions on the spinning bikes at work, and a newly acquired exercise bike in their living room), we'll start with 20 mile FLAT (as you can get) rides, and work up to hillier, lengthier rides gradually. Great! Arrangements are made for them to come to mine around 9am, roll on Sunday morning.

Sunday morning;
8:15am : I rolled out of bed, get dressed and prepare myself - 3 degrees out, shit that's cold.
8:45am : Tea drunk, food eaten, I go get on some cycle gear; shorts, new warm tights, base layer, long sleeve jersey - won't be long now!
9:00am : Well. they're never gonna be on time are they! I'm sure they'll have at least left by now! give them another 20-25 mins
9:30am : feeling a bit of a plank now, obviously I'm too eager, they'd have phoned if they wanted to cancel, just gotta wait a bit more.
9:45am : is my clock broken maybe? I check 2 more, nope, definitely not me!
9:55am : My wife phones her mother for something unrelated, whilst on the phone, Chris and Rachel arrive there! collecting Chris' rogue hat. Still at least they have left
10:15am : The motley crew finally arrived! Thank heavens I was starting to look a little weird sitting around the house in tights whilst other visitors - non cycling - were arriving. I grabbed my gear, a few slices of malt loaf and headed out into the cold. BOY was it cold! Chris seemed his usual lively self and said hello with a customary aimless grumble about something (the cold obviously this morning!), Rachel looked frozen but had something about her that could of been mistaken for enthusiasm, it was probably wind - we set of on our first training ride.

The ride itself was fairly pleasant and uneventful, Rachel lost the lens to her sports glasses at the first traffic lights, my toes went numb, and Chris appeared to be ill rather than grumpy after all, or more likely; both. Particularly when he headed of ahead and missed a turning; causing a few hundred yards extra for himself and I. But the winter sun was doing its best to warm us, the wind was still (both varieties) and I at least enjoyed the ride tremendously; greeting and waving hello to the various other cyclists out and about this chilly winter morning. We all made it to the end of the ride alive and Rachel and I bid Chris farewell, sending him home to his much loved bed, whilst we set off once more for my house, my two children wanted their Aunt to stay for a visit. As we headed home We came across a rather large puddle - nonchalantly I headed straight in, figuring it to be only 1 or 2 inches deep. Oh how we laughed! It was only once we we're committed that we realised it was more like a foot deep! Our feet, once the dripping ceased, felt like they were now encased in a block of solid ice. We headed, more urgently now, the 2 miles or so home to warm ourselves by radiators with mugs of tea. I couldn't help but ponder what it would be like without the cosy radiators to run home to.

All in all I would say a successful first ride and hoped for more of the same, plus maybe a small temperature rise for the following week.

Ride Safe.