out on the bike...

With one week to go before the Swinley "Forest" Adventure Race I have finally managed to put some mileage on my bike.

It turns out that Swinley Forest has another, more familiar (to me) name - Barossa; the training grounds out the back of Royal Military College, Sandhurst. A place I got to know very well back in 2002...

I did a 25km road route from home out to Richmond Park, around and back again. The weather was fantastic with clear skies and a light breeze and I found I could keep a good pace despite not having ridden regularly for well over a year, completing the route in 1hr 10mins. Not outstanding, but definitely not bad. I was also trying out my new 3 litre Camelbak which proved extremely comfortable and a blessing in this heat.
The roads from South Ealing to the Park are very straight forward and by keeping mostly off the main routes was not too heavy with traffic despite it being mid afternoon on a Saturday. The park is excellent for cyclists (of which there are many) as the speed limit is restricted to 20mph. The scenery is lovely too which helps to distract from some of the nastier hills which could best be described as 'emotional'! There were herds of wild Fallow Deer lying out in the open quite undisturbed by the passing cars and wheezing cyclists. Many of the bucks were 'in felt' with some very impressive antlers developing. I will have to go back with my camera when the rutting starts.
I'm slightly concerned that I haven't quite got my bike set up correctly yet as my lower back became very uncomfortable on several occasions and I actually had to pull over and stretch out for a bit. I suspect it's all down to saddle height - I will play with this over the next few days.
Anyway, all in all a lovely ride except for one small gripe - why is it car drivers believe that they have complete priority on the road and that bikes have to obey a different set of rules? I stopped at the last set of lights before home and a driver pulled up to the left of me, opened the window and cursed me for not 'indicating with my arm' when I pulled over to the right hand side of the lane. I'm sorry, but since when does moving across a lane (but staying in it) require indication? Not only that, but it's a steep uphill section, so if I am to remain in control of the bike I need both hands on the handle bars. It's not as if I ride in the gutter either, so the driver wouldn't have been able to 'overtake' me anyway. Bah. Anyway, I just gave a steely 'do I give a f*ck' stare and moved off when the lights changed.

In a final note, team Goldenoeuf have made it to Kazakhstan...