It’s training, but not as we know it

I cycled a total distance of 28 miles this week, but it has given me confidence that I will get round Scotland. Let me explain…

tandemDenise and I went to Porto Pollensa for our holiday this year, and on the one overcast day decided to hire a tandem. By sheer chance, and unbeknown to us at the time, we managed to hire the worst tandem in Mallorca! Seven gears at the back and a single chainwheel at the front, it may have been cutting edge once, but no longer. Continue reading

Countdown…

In three weeks’ time I will be on the boat over to Cairnryan! With a week in Mallorca and a week in Devon between now and then, the time is going to fly in.

Hayfever is making me feel tired at the moment, but a short ride on Monday confirmed that I am strong enough for the hills that await me in Scotland. My bike is now ready for the trip, with the standard chainset swapped for a compact one (giving me lower gearing), and mudguards and rack fitted. I will inspect the condition of the tyres in the next day or two, and will probably swap them over for new ones, for maximum puncture protection. Continue reading

Route quandry

I have just been looking at a relief map of Scotland on the Strava web site, and am now wondering about my choice of route once back on the mainland at Ullapool. The shorter, more direct route to Durness looks the more interesting topographically, and about as remote as it gets, with virtually no villages that I can see between the start and the finish of the day. Continue reading

Doubts

Almost as soon as I had booked the accommodation, I started wondering if I was fit enough to complete the route that I had set out for myself.

This year has not been great as far as getting out on the bike is concerned. The long winter, with ice on the roads, kept me inside, and picking up a cold in February didn’t help. Just as I was getting into my stride in April I got another cold, which turned into bronchitis, lasting three and a half weeks, just when I should have been ramping up my distances. Continue reading