20°C, blue skies and no wind. Cold mornings 5°C typically.
Wilson’s school bronze practice.
Cold mornings and some fog. Mornings were cold, as low as
Folly
A fine pine tree near a checkpoint.
DofE 3 Surrey Hills.
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DofE 3.0: South Downs (Surrey Hills)
19°C, clear , still and dry.
264 mile drive to get here straight from work. We’ll see whether it leaves me too tired next week. That will be 16 days work without a day off. The forecast is good. This, unfortunately, this is such a noisy campsite. There is another school’s expedition finishing in the next field. Only one other leader did the same is me and arrived the night before.
Day 2: Wilson’s School, from that london (a big city in the south). A very likeable group of lads who gelled together well. We ha a good day training and a couple of fine navigators shone out. As always, the day wore on and teased out those with stamina away from those without. At all times, they were polite and calm.
Three rides
15°C deep blue, light ÑW
I rode Paddy Wagon and Racelite (2 bikes) with MapMyRide+! Distance: 83.08km, time: 03:28:04, pace: 2:30min/km, speed: 23.96km/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/2882959417
And then I rode this bike for a few hours. I don’t recall riding two different bikes in the same day before. How interesting, the comparison I mean. The Racelite was the easiest, fast, smooth and comfortable. Perhaps it’s time to fit tne summer wheels to the fixed bike.
Recently, I have worried about loss of stamina on longer rides, but on the Racelite, I could have kept going. Today was a perfecr late-spring day.
First bike commute in 9 months.
8°C, sunny and fresh. Dry.
I rode jake with MapMyRide+! Distance: 28.25km, time: 01:15:27, pace: 2:40min/km, speed: 22.47km/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/2874199003
That hill is hard in every way. It didnt even pay back on the return home; rain began, traffic built up and potholes are scattered eveywhere. At the earliestmopportunity, I swung off the main road, even at the risk of greater milage. I got home hungry.
DofE 2.0 North Downs
24°C, cloudless and still
I led DofE Bronze with MapMyRide+! Distance: 18.27km, time: 08:35:00, pace: 28:11min/km, speed: 2.13km/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/2868937525
Each day started cold, Saturday was +4.5°C and Sunday morning colder. Here, the sun happens to shine down the inside of my tent, usefully. Later, we all became hotter as the sun climbed higher in thd cloudless blue.
This little scatty object is usually overlooked. There was a spider out on the limb, right, but when she saw me, she scurried into the nest.
The expedition: The North Downs are interesting; like the White Peak, there are dry valleys and dew ponds. Most of the wild plants we saw were the same too. There were, however, some magnificent Red Kites. They’re surprisingly large with long vee shaped tails, perhaps inspiration for Star Trek spaceships. I was impressed.
Flotsam.
The flotsam was useful to prop the bike up while I photograph it. Later, I returned to collect the net for the art room.
I don’t quite know what it’s for yet. Maybe a driftwood still life.
Onto the front.
I rode Paddy Wagon with MapMyRide+! Distance: 51.89km, time: 02:17:34, pace: 2:39min/km, speed: 22.63km/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/2851052539
A shorter ride today, but went on the machines on the front. I could easily use these every day.
Also, i quite fancy the idea of using Couch to 5K. In case you dont don’t know, its a running gps teacker. I have no proplem with stamina, but it would be great to build up core.
Early misty ride
6°C, sunny still and misty start.
I rode Paddy Wagon with MapMyRide+! Distance: 73.79km, time: 03:11:29, pace: 2:36min/km, speed: 23.12km/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/2848921645
And it was gorgeous; rolling mist especially over each stream and drainage ditch. As for wildlife; a buzzard, remarkable because there are so few here; two avocets; some oyster catchers and lapwings. Oh, and a very fast hare, all seen while riding.
I’m, still finding this hard, a winter of neglect is to blame. I can’t say for certain whether i have reached the 1,000 mile mark yet. To this end, i used the weignts machines on southport front.
Anyway, a grand day out and home by 10.00 am.
Stripped.
9°C rain all day until evening.
Decorating: finished stripping the wallpaper in the master bedroom. The aim is to get the walls perfect so wallpapering is a doddle. The plaster round the new electrics needs a skim then I’m ready to start pasting up.
The first layer is off in the small bedroom revealing this 50’s style paper beneath. Before I paper over the good walls, I’m tempted to draw something onto the plaster in pencil. Somebody will find the drawings in a decade or two. Watch this space.
Here the sun sets on a satisfying day.
Two rides today.
9C, Brisk W wind but dry and white cloud.
I rode Racelite with MapMyRide+! Distance: 29.02km, time: 01:14:59, pace: 2:35min/km, speed: 23.22km/h.
http://mapmyride.com/workout/2845558555
This crumbling restaurant has been abandoned for over 10 years. In it’s hay-day I can only imagine how kitsch it was. Some places deserve to fall down. I may revisit in the spirit of Urbex/HDR photographers. There is some scaffolding which suggests it may get some regeneration in the next year or so.
Micycle 