Is this cruel?

Convinced my brother to come on a 57 mile bike ride today, with me and a mate. Bless him... longest distance he has done before is about 8 miles to work. LOL
Well I was feeling pretty fucked on the way home, so he must have been dying. He did say that that last 15 miles he was seriously considering phoning our Dad to come and get him. He did really well though, he only dropped back during the last 15 miles.

The scenic route.

Took the scenic route home tonight. It was really warm when I left work and, to be honest, although there were very little clouds, the humidity had a definite feel of a storm brewing, but I still went for the scenic route. Glad I did. Fields of yellow rapeseed flowers and little lambs bouncing around. One of my favourite times of the year. Forgot that it was mostly uphill though... not a lot, just enough to put pressure on the legs most of the way. I didn't have my bike computer on me, but I think I probably did an extra few mile.

sick :(

Moral of the story... don't ride home on a niggly headache, even if you are taking it easy. Head was banging when I got back and I felt so sick I went straight to bed :( and then didn't bother to set my early alarm for today and it was lovely and sunny and the perfect day for riding :(
All spoilt because of a niggly headache. Dammit. O well, 20 degrees tomorrow and will be fresh as a daisy to ride in.

Who's counting.

Cycled in again today, and surprisingly didn't feel tired at my desk, although that could be coz my new job is a bit more interesting. I did eat a lot though. Mandarins and grapefruit for breakfast, which is quite healthy but I definitely had more than one portion. Banana. Orange Juice. Twix. Chicken/salad sandwich. Aero. Drench drink. Half a Twirl because Mo didn't want to eat one all to himself (well, it would be rude not to help out wouldn't it!?) and then a bag of chips when I got home (small bag tho!). I'm not sure how many calories are in that lot but who's counting anyway. Am now up to 500 miles, and all on the cross bike too. My search for a "gimp suit" for my open water swims is not going too well. So far have ordered 3 wetsuits and none of them fit. I'm too tall (".) At this rate I will have to buy the expensive one from the Tri shop :(

8mph on the flat!

That's how strong the headwind was all the way home. Have moved to the Warwick Office now but it was still 17 miles of hell tonight. First I forgot the first 5 miles out of Warwick is a long slow drag, which normally is ok but and then factor the wind in. At one point I was down to 8mph on the flat and then when I did get some shelter from the wind, I was too knackered to pick up any speed. O well, made up the calories with pizza when I got home (",) LOL totally deserved!

new shoos...

Tried out my new pink cycle shoes today :) they looked very summery to go with a very summery April day :) And another 20 on the clock. And a butterfly followed me along the country lane after I nearly ran it over.. phew, thankfully I didn't :)

First full commute to work in 2011...

... but not back! Wind picked up during the day so I opted for the train half way back, and I'm so glad I did! I swear, if I'd stopped pedalling the wind would have blown me backwards. It was hard work all the way and sometimes it literally nearly stopped me in my tracks. My legs are absolutely fooked. The ride in was great though, sun shining over the hills. That will be the last time I can commute to work in Hinckley now because I move back to the Warwick office next week. I don't mind though, shorter journey (17 miles instead of 25) and less hilly ... and don't get me wrong, Warwick is a nice journey, but the hills to Hinckley make for some great scenery which I will miss. Having said that, I can take different routes to Warwick so that will be nice. And I'll probably be able to cycle more often which will help with my target.

Gimp mask anyone?

Went to the Triathlon shop yesterday to try on a wetsuit. The guy told me to expect to take up to 20 mins to get into it, as I'd never worn one before. To be honest, getting in wasn't a problem at all, it was getting out of it that took longer. Had visions of me falling through the door half undressed trapped in the lower half of the wetsuit, arms stuck in fast LOL. Anyway, I got it on ok but they don't leave much to the imagination .... I had my knickers on underneath which gave me the worse VPL ever. I may have to wear my "no VPL" knickers underneath on the day. I came out the changing room and asked the guy if he had a gimp mask to go with it. I had to get the guy to unzip it and I thought he was just going to unzip the neck bit but he unzipped it all the way down! I wasn't really expecting that but, on reflection, there is something quite erotic about being unzipped out of rubber by the fit guy in the shop! Anyway, cheapest wetsuit in the shop was £220 which is a bit steep for me, so I came back and ordered one off t'internet. Now I know how it's supposed to fit, I'll be able to tell when it comes if it fits ok. Anyway I've been a lazy ass lately. Haven't been out on the bike since the pub crawl and I haven't been swimming either, which is quite bad considering my Great Swims start in May.