Men’s Olympic Cycling Road Race

The BEST day ever.

Yellow for Bradley Wiggins and The Tour de France

Today, because we were so thrilled by how Wiggins has put himself and the country into the annals of sporting history, yellow was the colour of our cycling apparel.

AND, the sun shone!!!

Olympic Relay Comes to Town

On Sunday I shall wear yellow

Read this great blog On Sunday I shall wear yellow. and thought I’d have a go. Dusted off my poetry skills, realised my kit was of pretty poor quality but thought I’d give it a go anyway.

Please comment on ideas for any alterations and amendments that might improve my rhetorical performance.

Here’s my Thursday tea-time effort.

The Gods were with us

Saturday was wet, windy and wild. Monday is proving to be wet, windy and wild. But… Sunday was almost summer-ish.

The Gods must have recognised the good cause that was being celebrated yesterday as we headed off to the beach for the annual 1066 swim-run. A 1.66 mile swim and 1.66 mile run is undertaken by a few hardy, local souls to raise money for CLIC Sargent in memory of a local lad who sadly died of cancer and this year a small, eclectic group of runners, swimmers and triathletes showed up to support this event – not counting the organisers and of course, the super kayakers who marshalled the swim.

1.66 miles, against tides and a gentle swell, in 1hour 7 seconds – the Gods were kept really busy. A yet another GREAT day.

 

The results are in.

Swim – Wha-hoo!!!

Bike – Yayy!!!

Run – Could have been so good if it weren’t for the typo – have to add 10 mins to make the numbers add up (and bring it into line with what I was expecting).

Out of the starting blocks

Hooray, at last. After two aborted attempts so far this year, my triathlon season has finally started. I had booked the Windfarmer but, due to cold water temperatures (in June), it became a run-bike-run and I’d booked the Bexhill Lions triathlon and that, due to high winds and choppy seas, also became a run-bike-run. Well, we’ve all seen my run times and what is the point at putting yourself at such a disadvantage so early on – I don’t mind the loneliness towards the end of a race but there’s no fun to be had in starting with such a handicap.

Yesterday evening we went out to the lake where Mike (Velocity Events) had laid on a free (yes, free, no charge, voluntary donations to Great Ormand Street Children’s Hospital) sprint triathlon for any one who had entered either the Windfarmer or the Marshman. Considering it was mid week, windy and mostly grey, there was a pretty good turn out – 40 entrants.

At 7pm we were all bobbing about, with lightening flashes in the near distance, waiting to be started. Not sure what my splits were as the results have yet to be posted; a pen, some paper and a stop watch may not be quite as efficient as timing chips but at least they always work. I hobbled in after 1h40 (I think) of which I’m guessing the run took more than 40mins.

I stayed right at the back for the swim start; I can’t be doing with all that frenzy which sends me into hyperventilation mode and I must have swam reasonably well as, by the time I got to the first buoy, I was contending for space amongst other swimmers. The out and back bike route, although flat, was into a strong head wind to start and I was keeping myself pushing on by imagining the easy ride home; how can it be that some days, the wind can feel as if it is blowing in two directions. Unusually, I was still in the race (normally coming out of the swim to an empty transition area) and before I knew it I was into a game of tag. Had it been any other day, I’m sure the girl I was vying with and myself would have been disqualified for drafting as neither of us could get away into that wind. We both arrived back in transition, her a couple of seconds before me, and that is where the race ended. I started the run slowly; the sole objective to finish it running and not walking. Everyone I had overtaken in the swim and on the bike came past but that was OK – I was still jogging along. Until…. crap, crap, CRAP!!! Sure enough, aroung the 4k mark my knee went. At least I had the victim of an asthma attack to keep me company; obviously a reasonable athlete, the poor guy kept running and stopping and running and stopping and it was really inspirational to see his determination. Taking a leaf from his book, I broke into a hobble, deciding that it couldn’t make things any worse and limped home to the coach in my life standing at the finish line.

Slightly frustrating but not as bad as not starting the race at all and at least I felt I had earnt the free barbecue afterwards.

Interrupted play

All this weather might be exciting and unexpected for the month of July but it sure plays havoc with all my good intentions for this month.

Beautiful Bosham

With the holidays just around the corner and no exotic getaway booked, it’s time to start thinking about how I can make the most of my precious weeks of freedom. Well, two weeks will be spent taking my mum to her house in France and a couple of days are ear-marked for catching the Olympic cycling and triathlon – if we can get anywhere near it. That leaves just under 4 weeks.

Not going abroad during the summer is more than just a reaction to the outrageous way the holiday companies inflate the prices during the school holidays, it is also because… I like my town and I like lots of different parts of my country. Especially if the sun shines.

And who knows when that might happen. Last year it was during the October break when we decided to chuck mountain bikes and sleeping bags into the back of the car and go. We didn’t go far and we didn’t go for long. But what a fantastic weekend we had.

We headed off to Bosham: a tiny little village which is about a 2 hour drive down the coast.

where we slept in the municipal car park (don’t tell the council) and breakfasted in the harbour (yes, ‘in’) at low tide.

I have seen images where unsuspecting tourists have parked on this hard-standing and come back 6 hours later, when the tide has come in, to find their cars submerged, to the roof, in water.

Tide out

Tide in

Having moved back to the ‘safe’ municipal car park (our camp site) and put another days ticket on the car we headed north with the bikes, over the A27 and into the countryside. We climbed up as far as Goodwood race course and circled back to Chichester harbour

where we had a picnic lunch before following the canal back towards Bosham. Ditching the bikes at the car, we wandered off into the village to watch the sun set over the East side of the harbour

 before heading off to the pub for some supper and bedding down in our unusual accommodation.

The following morning, after a surprisingly restful night, we headed back to the tidal basin for breakfast in the company of some of the locals,

and spent some time wandering and taking photos of the village

and more locals

before removing the car back to safety and setting off again on the bikes. This time we followed an eastbound coastal path (my favourite).

until we came to a dead end

not that is stopped some….

and (she says with glee) had to take the ferry

We stopped for lunch at the (in)famous Twitterings… I mean Witterings (a little over populated when the sun shines)

before turning for home.

The tide was in by the time we got back to the basin at Bosham and the road was closed so we made the most of out time by having a little swim amongst the weeds

before sitting, with a well earnt Cider, watching another glorious day sink over the horizon.

I wonder what adventures this summer holds.

Cyclist shot with airgun in Appledore

Cyclist shot with airgun in Appledore.

This local news story is a prime demonstration of the unbelievably poor attitude towards cyclists amongst some British motorists. How are they going to cope next month when cyclists from all over the world hit the streets of the South-East?

I wonder if white van drivers will be cutting up the Olympic athletes because they are out in the middle of the road, avoiding pot holes? Will they be pulling out of stop junctions, straight into the path of cyclists?

Taking a bike to France this summer. Can’t wait to experience cycling over there – apparently motorists recognise that cyclists are vulnerable, that they are doing something positive with their time and, apart from maybe causing motorists to touch the brake pedal for a few moments, they are not interferring in anyone else’s business.

Ahhh, I feel better for that little moan.