40 miles total

I had a day off work yesterday so had an opportunity to get a couple of shortish, fast rides in. I went for a pair of contrasting rides – a singlespeed MTB ride in the morning and a punishing and “mostly uphill” road ride in the evening.

The day started early-doors on local trails that I’d not ridden for ages. In fact, the last time I rode some of this was on the “Farewell Garry” ride well over a year ago. Unlike the previous few days the weather was gorgeous in a wintery kind of way. Frosty, dry and clear. Lovely.

One trail that used to be a fun rocky downhill is now under water (probably a recent development due to the weather). In fact, it’s a fast-flowing stream, quite deep in parts. There’s a step halfway down the trail that is roll-able if you get your weight back a bit and keep the front end light to clean the roots and half bricks, but this time, just at the last second, I noticed that it looked a bit bigger and decided to dismount and have a good look. Hmmm. If I’d tried to roll this I’d have got wet at best, maybe I’d have lost some teeth. There’s now a 2 foot drop with a bloody big hole where my wheel would have gone.

The road ride last night was ok – the weather was dry when I left the house but once on the tops I was in the clouds and had to brave the sleet and lack of vision again. I started to hurt on the way home though; I need to pay more attention to my diet I think. I’ve no concerns over the types of food I’m eating, I just don’t think I’m eating enough to keep me going and I’m definitely not getting enough protein after a ride to help with recovery. Chocolate milk seems like an option. I’ll buy a few gallons of that. I’ve sent off my entry for the Radcliffe AC 12 mile trail run. No backing out now or it’s seven quid down the drain!