Great meeting, good blog clinic and even better company (& beer).

Just recapping, Richard, Tim and Zoe to meet with all the support team to discuss route and suggest thoughts and plans to develop successful support to the cyclist.

We will then present initial thoughts and suggestions to all the team on 24th January.
This is to get the ball rolling.

May I suggest 7:30pm (not am) on Jan 17th at the Last post.
Looking forward to your reply.

Cheers

J

Riding to Paris next May will be special for me, as I shall be able to celebrate the 49th anniversary of my conception (Jersey was as close as my parents ever got to France!) That makes me the greybeard of the group I think. I was born into 1960 Bradford and have very early memories of bad weather stopping all cycling for much of winter 62/63; it was good for snowmen however-mine managed to make it from Boxing Day through to Easter!!

The first bike I fully recall was a white Triang with blue trim, solid rubber tyres and single front brake. Shortly after having removed its stabilisers, I was speeding along outside my house, when a “friend”decided it would be a good idea to shove a stick through the front spokes and catapult me over the handlebars.

Since then I’ve managed several other parabolic dismounts each with increasing pain and damage. Hit and run car, black ice, vicious lamp post-quite a list really. Will I make Paris in one piece?

Recently I have managed to cycle from Glasgow to Inverness (250 miles 4days) and Beeston to Glasgow (520miles 7days) without breaking anything, so I’m hopeful of safe passage to London, Newhaven and beyond. These trips showed me what little of your country you experience behind a car wheel; be it the glorious aroma of the Dalwhinnie Distillery having just conquered the Drumochter Pass, or the hideous stink of the roadkill badger after 50 miles of Cumbrian rain. These are experiences known only to the cyclist.

Despite undertaking long solo tours half the length of the country, I would still class myself very much one of the non-pro riders within the group. I view cycling as a very enjoyable form of exercise and a highly efficient mode of transport rather than an obsession. I leave that to the weather, maps (especially mountain ones,) selections from the racks of Selecta Disc,  black and white Kurosawa films and Scottish winter hillwalking.

In my younger days I worked and travelled extensively throughout Asia and the USA which lead to some unique cycling opportunities. Back in 1984 China had very few private cars thus cycling was the only way to go, whether out with peasants in the countryside carrying their wares to and from market, or in the Beijing rush hour along with 10’s of thousands of identically clad ‘Flying Pigeon’riding comrades. Like most trekkers in Nepal I took time out to ride to the”monkey temple” at Swayambhunath and around the Kathmandu Valley. Whilst cycle touring around the islands of Puget Sound (Washington State) I even found time and courage to propose to my darling wife on a rain sodden campsite, thankfully it was a yes!

Whilst the ride to Paris will have its moments of physical challenge for me, maintaining and nurturing the group through the months ahead with training, fundraising, route planning and everything else involved will, I think, be the biggest challenge of all. To successfully conclude this for the betterment of the community, school and all its pupils will be a truly great effort of not just spinning the pedals.

Just testing

Zoe has reminded you of Thursday’s meeting at 7pm ….

Saturday ,,,,, I am meeting with my mate Richard to map a 40 mile ride on Wednesday. If you have ideas then let me know.

I was wondering if people want to ride this Saturday as a ‘reliability’ ride. This is an old British Cycling club tradition where you name the time you think you will finish a distance and aim to stick to it.

So you should aim to get to Nero’s for 10.00 on Saturday having cycled 40 miles (following the route to be posted that will include a Breaston out and back). I will be on fixed and leaving Beeston to go just slightly faster than the last couple of rides for a finish at 7am … if you leave at 7.15 will you catch me? 7.30 …. really pushing it there …. 8am – have you bought a time trial bike from ‘The Hare’??? Remember groups go faster ….who will you link with???!

see http://www.thepeoples50million.org.uk/forum/people.php?PostBackAction=ApplyForm to register and vote where lottery money should go. Sustrans have a bid in to enable several areas to be linked by cycle routes … (Tim wants you to vote for them too!)

The magazine, Cycling Plus, is on the lookout for people undertaking a big cycling challenge next year. I am thinking all you new cyclists/triathlon converts/ marathon converts would make for a good story. Especially when combined with the aim to get kids cycling. See:

 http://www.bikeradar.com/blogs/article/get-fit-for-2008-with-cycling-plus-13157