One Loose Nut

“Two rides in one week” I hear you shout. Well yes. Somehow I managed to build up enough motivation to drag the bike out in the dark, put on some layers and a silly hat for under my helmet, and headed of for another hour of zone two riding. A good ride and nothing really to report. I rode out north of Dunstable and headed along the A505 to Leighton Buzzard where I hit 28 minutes and turned around to come back up the hill for home. As with Sunday the Garmin bleeped to tell me in a Brucey-esq kind of way that I need to go “higher” or “lower” but no Dolly Dealers to be seen anywhere.

I also had the pleasure of the Dunstable Massive as they shouted something out of their Mum’s old Corsa (MkI). As is the norm you can’t hear what they are saying.

Back home and happy Garmin tells me that the leaving temperature was 19c (just out of the house) and it hit a 2c low just before coming back into Dunstable. Nearly bootie weather.

This post could have had so many titles: “Back in the Saddle”, “First Goal Achieved”, “Five o’clock in Leverstock Green”, “In the Zone”, but alas “Flat Battery” it is to be.

The pre-ride preparations on Saturday were the usual: drink beer, drink wine, eat peanuts, channel hop, moan that there’s nothing on TV, go to bed late. Sunday morning comes, and as expected the only movement is from the bedroom to the sofa. Post breakfast I dress in Lycra… and return to the sofa (the theory being that if I’m in Lycra I will eventually succumb to the bike. And by two o’clock a miracle happens – the bike is brought out of the house.

Not only is it out, but I have now mastered heart rate zones and I am going to do a Garmin workout in zone 2 – improving endurance. For me this is to keep the heart rate between 140 and 153 bpm throughout the whole ride. Furthermore, I am going to cross off the first of this year’s goals – ride in a five ‘o’clock direction for ten miles (i.e. Leverstock Green in Hemel Hempstead). So off I set, three layers keeping me warm and a smile on my face.

I set off down the A5 and keeping in zone 2 is a doddle. The road is flat and not many reasons to stop. Once in Markyate things change as I head towards Gaddesden Row I get a short, sharp 120ft climb and the heart rate rises above 153 and the Garmin starts bleeping. Eventually, even with granny gear engaged, I still can’t get the heart rate back down until the top where I start a downward run and the heart rate falls below 140 and starts beeping again. I peddle faster, and the heart rate goes back into zone, but my speed is now greater than I would usually desire. And so the journey continues in the same vein: slow granny gear up-hills and mad descents. Regardless, working with the zones takes the focus and pressure of riding speed, and most of my time is spent listening to bleeps and riding faster or slow as Garmin commands.

Pleased to be in Leverstock Green I find that my front light hasn’t been flashing and the battery has died. I have a spare so change it, before a quick slurp and the ride back home – mostly covering the same roads that I came on. By far the steepest hill is the one in Markyate, and the return downhill was plain bonkers. Anyone watching from their house must have thought that there was an emergency for me to attend.

Back home I am happy that at long last I have been for a ride that was longer than around the block, and feel that I have had a long workout. Hell, I have even done 30% of the #12×100. Everything is put away but when I go for the battery pack for a recharge, it’s not there. Instantly I have a feeling that I have left it at the post where I changed it over. I jump in the car and make my way back, now in the dark, to Leverstock Green. I get there, and it’s not there. I re-trace my route back to the road and there in the road are the remains of my battery, now flat in more than one way. Now you may think it is odd to travel all that way for a battery, but this is a Hope Vision 2 Li-on Battery. A sealed (well, it was) unit with a princely price of £53 to replace. Not the smartest thing that I have done whilst on the bike. Per mile, this has cost me a little under £2. Hopefully I will learn from my mistake.

Finishing on a positive, the five o’clock ride and ten-mile distance has now been done and can be crossed off the list.

Well I would be, if it was open.

January 1 was not so much of a “no cycle” day, but more of a “no anything” day after celebrations ended at about 5am. So come the 2nd the bikes are out and ready for the year’s first ride. But with the whole family in tow (the youngest quiet literally) we head into town with the idea – not shared with any of the other family members – that we’ll pass two play areas and head down route 6 to a new play area in Houghton Regis. All was going well until we get to Grove Gardens and find that the NCR6 between Dunstable and Houghton Regis is closed due to work on the new guided bus way. Bum!

I manage to coerce the family that we’ll do the route via the industrial estate, and somehow manage to get to our intended destination, albeit later than planned. So late that we have half an hour before needing to head back home again in time for our next appointment. But the return journey was slower (and up hill) and the cold from the wind was not pleasant. Our youngest on the tag-along is cold and we split so that I can get her home quicker.

Back home and warmed up I feel a little guilty on putting the family through this, but blame the Dunstable – Luton guided bus way for ruining what should have been a pleasant ride down NCR6.

Well somehow we made it through into 2012. The head is a little fuzzier and going to bed at 5am seemed such a good idea at the time, but will make the first day of 2012 a very tired and relaxing one (couch, TV, more nibbles).

As is traditional @lanzarote666 put forward a goal for this year, and as is the norm it’s a tough one. But this year it’s all about the bike. It is like this (listen up, I may ask questions later): Imagine a clock face. Put the centre of the face over Dunstable (UK, not USA). For each of the hours on the clock I must travel in that direction once throughout the year. Multiply each hour of the clockface by ten and you’ll then have a number of distances that need to be travelled (10, 20, 30, etc.) – all once. To help visualise this I have already planned the places that I will be riding to.

Each of the circles represents the distance ‘as the crow flies’ from Dunstable; the lines out each representing the hour of the clock and how far I will be travelling along this line. I have already picked out the places to visit. Some selected due to picking a further distance would put me in the sea, some selected to avoid hillier areas. Actually cycling them adds miles to the distance – around 10%. So Leverstock Green (5 o’clock 10 miles) is going to be 11 miles out, and 11 miles back. For longer journeys I may elect to stay overnight, travel back by train, or get collected by an obliging Mrs OLN.

Rides can be done in any order, although I think that I’ll be easing myself into the rides starting with Leverstock Green, but look forward to a trip to Scunthorpe later in the year.

Other goals exist: the weight target comes back as the scales today tell me that I am 13 stone 6 lb – higher than at any point I can recall (although I still have a belly-full of beer and curry from last night’s celebrations). And to eat healthier. Naturally I’ll be joining @phillconnell on his monthly 100 mile challenges, and #30daysofbiking in April. It should be a  good year.

What are your goals and resolutions for 2012?

As dull as it may be, the obligatory end-of-year roundup needs to be done. And as it’s been an odd one I’ll keep it as short as possible.

Looking for the positives the highs of 2011 are:

• Making it through to 2012 relatively unscathed.
• Cycling to Birmingham from Dunstable, 105 miles in one day.
• 1,237 miles cycled this year.
• 295 miles cycled where I could (or would) have used the car.
• #30daysofcycling
• #7days2live
• Movember – facial hair extravaganza

And the lows:

• Healthwise,  one of the worst ever.
• A complete blow-out of 2011 goals so kindly put together by @lanzarote666
• Weight gain in the last quarter of the year puts me back to square one.

2011 is one of those years that would be so easy to be down about, but in a strange way it’s been a journey, and one that I can look back at an find many positives that I will carry through to 2012 and beyond. So thanks to you both for following the blog through thick and thin and I raise a glass (or three) to 2012 and all that it holds for us all.

Wow. I look back to my posts and realise that it has been a month since the last time that I gave you an update. As I am sure that you can imagine the cycling miles have been somewhat lacklustre with only a few transport miles as I head into town. It’s not that I don’t want to cycle. Just that short days and long nights, accompanied with colder or wetter weather, a busy work life and a family to love and somehow cycling takes the back seat. And yet for those few miles into town and back the smile returns and I know that I need to man-up and put on three (or four) layers, booties (over-shoes) and thick gloves and clock me some miles in the saddle.

When you stop cycling a strange phenomenon happens: you’re exercise stops, yet your food intake remains high. This, as I am sure you will agree, is not a good combination. Throw in the cheer that is the festive season and even more calories are consumed than usual. Weight gain is as traditional as the big guy in the red suit himself. But unusually a visit to the bathroom scales confirms what my clothes were already yelling at me: fat is back! Now don’t get me wrong – I am not obese, or in any real life threatening position. Fat is relative (no, I am not saying my brother is fat). And I like to keep it somewhat in check. For me to be up before Christmas Day is worrying, as I am likely to put on even more over this week. But I know that I have control of this and the power to shed those pounds through pedal power. So the plans for 2012 are under way. The weight monitor will return to the blog. And expect to see some more miles and the obligatory inane rambling through the blog. I will tell you more at the end of the year, but for now I have a minced pie calling me… oh, and some Celebrations…