Day 162 - Rest Day

I'm taking a much needed rest day today. My leg muscles need some time to repair and a day or two out of the saddle will let other sensitive areas recover from the pounding I've given them these past few weeks; it does all start to mount up and there is no fun cycling when you know you can go faster and take steeper hills but the body just says no. Coincidentally, browsing through this week's Cyling Weekly, my eye caught a quote from Beth Crumpton in the Pro Rider fitness tip of the week .. "Rest is as good as training and afternoon naps can do you the world of good!". So there you go. If you're asking whois Beth? .. you can check out her blog here http://bethcrumpton.blogspot.co.uk/.

I did manage to get out for a ride yesterday morning, but it was a tough one. Avoiding the severe hills, there being no way to avoid them all together here in Devon, I completed a 10 mile loop of Colyton and the seafront. Amazingly, Strava, which has recently usurped Endomono as my favoured training 'buddy', logged me achieving PRs for two sectors: Cowhayne Lane to Boshill Cross (01:56) and the Seaton seafront stretch (57 sec) ... I think this is more because it only has a month's worth of data and not all160 days that I've been riding this route! It is still nice, however, to get these reports, it is like getting a virtual pat on the back and don't tell Andy, but he's only lying in 4th against my 2nd placing in the AVP club rankings - that's something at least to be pleased about!

I've been looking at what should be my challenge for 2014, now that, in spite of how I may be feeling today, I've started to reach an elementary level of cycling fitness. I've spoken of the club's 100 mile ride later in September which would really be a great achievement for my first year. While I've not done this yet, the question is then how to top this. Well, yesterday the ballot for the 2014 Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 opened and yes, I submitted my entry! There is no guarantee that I'll get a place, but it is this intent that is starting to shape my 2014 challenge and that is to ride in an organised distance event.

Vauxhall Corsa's ingenious built in bike rack

I have also been looking at the local cycling clubs and in addition to the Axe Valley Pedallers, who I am already riding with, I have been checking out the Sid Valley Cycle Club. Seaton lies between the river Sid and Axe, with the Axe flowing into the sea at Seaton and the Sid, some 10 miles west along the coast, at Sidmouth. The Sid Valley Club is affiliated with British Cycling and as such is more involved in organised events. They, for instance, are marshalling on the Tour of Britain in September and complete longer group rides at the weekend, something I'm thinking I'm going to need practice of before taking on my 100 mile challenge. What I also really need is a more suitable vehicle to transport my steed to these more distant venues. Believe it or not, this petrol head has even been eying up the Vauxhall Corsa's interesting built-in bike rack. Could my next car be a Corsa!