Surprisingly Another "Ton Up"

Oast Houses in East Worldham.
A reminder that hops used to grown in this corner of Hampshire.

My week started badly when on Tuesday, after a sleepless night, I was not feeling too chipper, so I cancelled my ride with the Pedallers. However, after going back to bed for a couple of hours more sleep and a lazy day I felt much better. 

Then on Wednesday 22nd January, I went out on Txiki to test him after the freewheel replacement and also to check myself. We both came through with flying colours.

Orchard with apples lying on the ground.
Possibly too costly to pick

On Wednesday. lane near Cheriton Mill
still flooded with slush & ice.

Then on Thursday 23rd January, I rode again, this time to join the HCMF at the Three Horseshoes.

Saturday 25th January 2020.

Winchester CTC Easy Ride.

Stoke Charity Church.

Only a few miles ridden, no wonder they all look so fresh.

Carrie, three from the right, has successfully herded her cats at the bottom of Ashley Hill. 

If you are not in one picture maybe you are in the other!

Don't forget if you click on a picture you can see it screen size.

I was surprised to see that the highest point of the day was on the Old Sarum Road, just west of the junction with Kilham Lane.  I guess the gradual climbs through the outskirts of Winchester don't seem to register like some of the others.

I was very pleased to meet so many of my friends throughout the week to enjoy their company. Thank you all. I also managed to connect with my son in law Steve who was, quite by chance, at the cafe with his own group of cycling friends.

Total miles for the week 113.7, my first "Ton" of the year.

Gridironman.

What, No E-Power

With Txiki out of commission at the moment I have to rely on pedal power this week. I did miss his gentle assistance on the hills. The E-bike Shop informed me on Saturday that the necessary part had been tracked from Spain to Heathrow so should be with them shortly.

Wednesday 8th January 2020.

Part one of TeeTee's annual MOT, habitation check and service trip. I drove to Lower Upham with Posh on the rack and then rode home via Winchester to avoid the hills. Looking at the profile I see I managed to make it harder than necessary by following the NCR 25 via Winnall and Easton. Fortunately, the rush hour traffic had subsided by the time I was approaching Winchester and I made use of quieter roads through Colden Common. 

Thursday 9th January 2020.

Part two. A ride to Upham to collect TeeTee. It was a happy coincidence that the HCMF meet was at the Farmer's Home in Durley so I was able to combine lunch there with collecting TeeTee. As I left the pub it started to rain gently and then within a few minutes it turned into a proper downpour. I sped along Sceivers Lane, to get into the dry at Lower Upham, at fourteen miles an hour setting a new PB. So not missing the E-power here! I am pleased to say that TeeTee had passed the various checks with flying colours.

Was soon back home and in the warm shower while my damp clothes were getting a rinse too.

Sunday 12th January 2020.

Paddy conquers Riverdown

View towards Cheriton.& Hinton Ampner.

Hinton Ampner House glowing in the sunshine..

Only 56 miles ridden this week, but I am quite happy with that as each of my three rides has been enjoyable despite mixed weather and mucky wet roads.

Gridironman.

First Forrays of 2020.

A pretty good start to the year with two good rides, but then a minor problem on the third spoilt the run of luck.

Managed to get this lovely picture on my third ride in the village of Bentworth. 

Created by the guy who lives there whose previous "venison" creations included this one:

New Years Day January 1st 2020.

A reasonable day as regards weather so I thought why not take the roundabout road to the Flower Pots to celebrate the new year.

It turned out well so although I rode alone met plenty of friends and other customers to chat to.

1938 Alvis outside the Flower Pots.

Thursday 2nd January 2020.

First HCMF Meet of 2020. A good turnout of fifteen.

Saturday 4th January 2020.

Hope to get Yxiki mended soon, in the meantime I will have to ride Paris or Posh. As Posh has not been out this year perhaps it's his turn. I have been in touch with the bike shop and they have ordered the replacement part. Should not take long to fix it they told me.

Gridironman.

Late night final! Read all about it.

This is the last edition of my blog "On My BIke 2019". Will need a new title for next year.

Only one ride to report but I have added a new page for my Data 2019 and updated My Bikes page too.

Check them out! (See the link tabs below my heading picture.)

Here is today's ride:

Tuesday 31st December 2019.

My average weekly mileage for the year finished at 92.8 miles per week.

A Very Happy New Year to All My Readers.

Gridironman.

Festive Season Rides

Tuesday 24th December 2019.

Christmas Eve.

With none of the Pedallers being available to ride I decided to join the Winchester CTC's Tuesday ride led by Ian.

Friday December 27th 2019.

Paddy and I went for an easy ride to work of a few of the excess Christmas calories. We needed to get back before 2 p.m. so we shortened our planned route accordingly. Our first and second choice of cafe were both closed so we went into the Anvil which was pleasantly quiet with just a few other customers.  Unusual nice cakes too. We were amused when the young lady serving us checked whether we were clean to avoid dirtying the carpets and furniture. We passed muster! We made it home in plenty of time.

 Sunday 29th December 2019.

Once again I was without riding pals so I set off without any clear destination, other than to go North. When I got to Dummer I decided to cut across to the B3046 and descend to the outskirts of Basingstoke and then head for Conkers. Exciting descent into Cliddesden topping 41 mph. Apart from getting lost on a cycle path through an estate near to the A30 I was soon at Conkers where I enjoyed a nice break before resuming my ride suitably fortified with Sussex Fruit Cake and a large coffee. Plenty of other cyclists about in groups both family and club, some on road bikes others on hybrids or mountain bikes. A fair size group from Alton, but no one I recognised.

Pleased that I have been able to top the "Ton" once more with a total of 116 Miles for the week. All of it on Txiki. The E-power has certainly helped me to keep going. My knee is back to normal aches & pains!

Still time for more rides in 2019, maybe with the Pedallers on Tuesday. 

Gridironman.

Sunshine with Flooded Roads & a Little Rain.

Just a few flints.
Did they all come off one field?

Reminds me of the story told by Eric Newby in his book "Love and War in the Apennines". Whilst escaping from the Germans during the war he was sheltered by an Italian family. He worked to pay for his keep clearing a field of stones. He thought "What a lazy bunch, why haven't they done this before". In the night it rained and the following morning the field was once more full of stones!

For my cycling friends:- "Where is the pile?"

Because of the very wet weather and other reasons I have only managed two rides this week.

Wednesday 18th December 2019.

Sunday 22nd December 2019.

Two more easy rides to aid recovery.

With the end of the year fast approaching I am a little disappointed that I will not achieve my aim to average 100 miles per week. However, I feel really blessed that I have managed my second-highest annual mileage already and have far outstripped my original target of 4,500 miles. This is partly due to my successful plan to combine Cycling with Motor-Caravanning during which I rode 777 miles over 8 away trips. I was not lucky with the weather on some of those trips or I would have done more. I did enjoy some good walks on those trips too and visited many National Trust properties. Apart from three weeks when I couldn't ride due to illness or injury I have ridden every week throughout the year.  Still over two weeks to go, hope the weather stays mild.

Wednesday 11th December 2019.

Saturday 14th December 2019.

Total miles this year to date: 4621.

Gridironman.

On the road to recovery.

Saturday 7th December 2019.

As my knee is much better I decided to test myself with a ride with Winchester CTC. I planned to ride into Winchester, with the option that I could, if necessary, abort at Kings Worthy and leave my bike there at my daughter's home. All went well and I made the rendezvous in good time to join Kate and six others. The ride was an easy one, with the help of E-power I lead the way a lot of the time. Our coffee stop was at The Village Cafe, Micheldever Station. Here we were joined by Ian and after our stop Clive and John left us. As we neared Alresford I was beginning to think I'd had enough and left the group to return home. No ill effects from the ride, after a warm bath and a pizza for lunch I was fully fit and ready to watch the UK Championship Snooker semi-finals.

I was very happy with my progress but I was glad of the help from the E-power as it kept any stress to the knee at a low level for even after just four weeks since my tumble my fitness was noticeably low. 

Sadly, I think I still need to take it easy a little longer and skip the Pedallers ride & lunch on Tuesday. 

On Thursday the HCMF meet is at The Brushmakers, Upham, so I think I will be OK for that.

Gridironman.

Face Plant & all that!

For those of you who haven't seen the news on FaceBook the reason I've not been active on my blog since 10th November is that on the 11th I tripped and fell flat on my face when walking up a neighbours path. The damage to my face was quite painful and I also knocked my knee badly. However, my "good looks" are almost back to normal whilst my knee is only slowly doing so.

It looked even more colourful the next day!

Fortunately I was able to get home with the help of my friend who brought me home in her car (100yds or so). She made me a cuppa and came back later to check I was OK. Thanks Angie.

On Thursday I drove for the first time since my tumble and took part in the HCMF Festive Lunch at the Cart & Horses. Kings Worthy. A most enjoyable day with 25 or so friends.

Then on Friday I tried a small bike ride. To the library just to check if I could still ride. My biggest problem was getting on and off the bike and getting started after temporary stops in traffic but on the whole it went well.

Today, I decided to try a little longer ride but avoided any hills. What better way to do this than to pop to the "Flower Pots".

Once more things have gone well but I am very careful not to overdo it. 

A big thanks to my many friends & family who have been so supportive and kept me from going stir-crazy when I could only hobble around at home. 

Looking forward to adding to my mileage for 2019, even though I will not be expecting to reach my target of 5,200 miles.

Gridironman.

Keeping the Pedals Turning.

Whilst I have no ambition to try and rival the gentleman who has cycled a million miles I too am a bit of a number cruncher. The tally for this week is 138.4 miles giving me a total so far this year of 4,543. Seven weeks still to go to get my total to 5,200. My best annual total over the last few years was 5,822 in 2016. That included my best ever tour across France which was about 800 miles.

However, the main point of cycling isn't to break records but to have fun and enjoy the countryside. This week has been good for that with three very different rides. The first with The Pedallers, the second with Simon to join the HCMF meet at the George, St. Mary Bourne, and the third a solo ride to the south of Alresford. The weather has been kind to us here in Hampshire. We shouldn't complain about the few spots of rain we have had when some folk in the north have been flooded out of their homes.

Today, with all the memorial events taking place I looked out for interesting sightings as I rode. This was the Lychgate at Swanmore.

Tuesday 5th November 2019.

Thursday 7th November 2019.

Chinook hiding in the woods.!

Sunday 10th November 2019.

My Lunch Break Spot.
Where is it?

Gridironman.

Loops

It has definitely been a more wintery week. I have been wearing four layers and gloves as well as tights over shorts and never got very sweaty except for on the return from Medstead on Thursday. When I peaked in South Town, Medstead my average speed (on Paris) was in single figures. I couldn't have that so went like the clappers on my way home. I managed to push the figure up to 11.2 mph, Result.

Travellers' Rest.

Wednesday 30th  October 2019.

Another of my make it up as I go rides. Decided to go south and had an idea to check out the cafe in the Manor Farm Country Park. There is a stretch of about 100 yards of gravel road to enter the Park from the Botley side but anyone with delicate tyres could easily walk that. Entrance to the Farm is subject to a fee but the cafe is outside that area. I discovered that it was not only open but very busy so I did not stop, also it was a bit early for a coffee break. The bad news is that from 1st November it will only be open at weekends. 

I carried on through the park enjoying the autumn colours in the trees. A couple of steep short pitches which needed bottom gear. Then I emerged onto Dodwell Lane, very close to the M27 junction for Burslem. I dived down a lane and joined the A27 to cross the River Hamble. Rode past NATS on my way through Swanwick. In Curbridge a massive housing development is taking place.

I returned to Botley for a coffee at Mrs. Potts by the River where I had taken the pedallers on a very hot day in the summer.

Not wanting to waste a perfectly nice afternoon I meandered some more, climbing over the shoulder of Old Winchester Hill to enjoy the very fast descent into East Meon. Rewarded myself with coffee & crumpets in Cuppacheeno in West Meon.

Footnote. HMS Mercury is a special place for me as I spent about a month there in 1953 when I was training as a Coder (E) in the Royal Navy. 

Thursday 31st October 2019.

Sunday 3rd November 2019.

A couple of photos taken with Simon's camera on Sunday.

Outside The Handlebar Cafe.

Now, what was the combination?

Gridironman.

Autumn Colours & Sunny Sunday.

Paddy Power.
At North Waltham.

Wednesday 23rd October 2019.

A somewhat dull day but at least it was dry. I found a somewhat lumpy route to and from the QE Country Park and was glad I had chosen Txiki for my mount of the day. 

The trees are really showing their autumn colours now and it was a shame there was not a sunnier day to show them to their best. Still a few odd flowers about and plenty of old man's beard to decorate the hedgerows. 

I even found a road I don't remember ever having ridden before, maybe I just forgot it. Will check with my maps.

Two red kites soaring over me as I climbed Wheeley Down. I think they had spotted a dead pheasant on the road. A little further on a buzzard took over the soaring duties.

I notice The Cricketers on Tichborne Down is still closed with some fencing round. I wonder if refurbishment is in progress or has it been bought by developers?

Thursday 24th October 2019.

With rain forecast over the next few days, I felt it would be good to ride to the HCMF meet at Easton despite the rain forecast for the middle of the day. As I rode the first few miles the roads were almost dry and apart from a spot or two of rain it was dry but just as I was riding out of Sutton Scotney it started to rain more. Fortunately not very heavily. When I got to the Cricketers I found Simon and Andrew on the doorstep so we went in together. It was good to meet up with them both as I'd not seen either for a while. The rain came heavily for the next couple of hours and it was gone 3 by the time it stopped and we headed home. So overall a good day out despite the weather.

Sunday 27thy October 2019.

A beautiful sunny day but rather chilly at around 6 deg C when we set off. Warmer in the sunshine. We had planned to go to Jolly Ollie's in Oakley but when I realised they were closed on Sunday we changed the plan and we stopped at the Old Barn Stores in North Waltham. We had to wait a while for our coffee and cake but it was well worth it as it was a lovely day to sit by the duck pond in the sunshine while other customers from the shop sat on a nearby bench and a lady and her two boys fed the ducks.

Many thanks Paddy, for making my day so enjoyable and for a post-ride dinner "en famille" with the entertainment of premier league football and "Strictly"!

Gridironman.