A return to the saddle

Having taken a few weeks, or perhaps months, off from long rides, today I managed to motivate myself into a 33km ride north of Bristol.

Having not yet gone in a very Northerly direction I decided to plan my new regime based on this direction and a nice tidy third of a ton: I am aiming to build up to long rides on consecutive days, every weekend.

I was particularly worried that this northerly route through the city would be busy and uninteresting. Not a lot exists North of Bristol, save for large industrial sites, shopping malls and a motorway. But as I had been in every other direction, North it would be.

Happily, Komoot did not let me down, and I followed the directions (somewhat) as I winded my way through the city center, up the hills to Cotham, Clifton and across the downs.

Then I plunged down to Henbury, through a lovely park (it was sunny and warm!) and up towards a strange place called “catbrain”. Made infamous recently for a hotel that caught fire and collapsed onto the main road. No such dramas today and it was here I stopped for breakfast (I set off with an empty stomach!)

After a delicious chicken samosa, I set off up the hill, underneath the M5 motorway and down a lovely country lane. Back in my cycling nirvana, quiet county lanes, plunging descents and steep climbs! Unfortunately I was nearing the turn-around point for this ride and I headed out of Easter Compton with the monstrous cathedral to capitalism that is the behemoth of an Amazon warehouse just to my left.

Here, I turned around and came back the way I came. An excellent 33km ride that I completed in a sedately 1hr 47mins. It was good to return to the saddle after a break from long rides. This was also the first long ride for my new shoes and they felt great!

Next I plan to tackle 2x 33km rides on consecutive days to get the legs used to waking up from their post ride stiffness. Then 3x 33km rides on my next long weekend.

Upon successfully completing this little regime, I will up the distance to 3x 50km rides on consecutive days. Hopefully I will be well prepared for multi-day long journeys, such as the North Coast 500…