Riding a different way to work

MonkeyP

I was starting to get a bit bored of the usual route - even though I only do it a couple of times a week as it's a 40 mile round trip from Blakedown near Kidderminster to Hall Green in East Birmingham. However, I have just got into work after riding about 28 miles on my mountain bike taking in the Clent Hills Range, Calcott Hill and then a 15 mile road and Sustrans stretch along the canals.

I got into work caked in mud but smiling like a muppet.

I seriously recommend it!!

It also means I can get my offroad fix without missing too much time with my little boy and Mrs P AND it's great training for the enduro races I am doing soon. All in, a fantastic day. I may even do a longer ride on the way home if this weather holds out. The only problem was getting up at 5 in the morning!

Aidocp

Never did it to work I'm too lazy to get out of the bed early for work[:I].

I've got bored with my 3-4 mile commute home and turned that in to 10, 20, 30 miler a few times, it a nice relaxing therapy.

If I had a baby elephant, who would take it for walks?

Mosschops2

I'm not getting up so early in the morning as 5am (not most days anyway), but have recently turned my 3 mile commute into a 10-20 mile commute, mainly depending on how lost I get!!! I try to check things out on a map beforehand, (A-Z, not online), and invariably don't realise how far apart things really are! Then try shortcuts, to find that I've cycled 1.5 miles into a trading estate, that you can't get out of. Nice one!!! Enjoy the mornings though. Haven't the energy / inclination at the end of the day to put 15 miles in, and need to be home in time for tea - unless I want to eat alone, that is!!

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Tynancp

would any of you lot like some of the miles in my commute, I'd gladly let you have four or five, the long windy bit between Seven Sisters and Walthamstow ideally

MonkeyP

I think I have plenty of my own for now thanks - unless you have another nice downhill singletrack section I can have the loan of. Or I could swap you for the 2 mile-ish climb from Belbroughton to Romsley!

Tynancp

2 mile climb! yikes

got a couple of proper ones myself, the one from Seven Sisters to Manor Park is the hill of the day every day, 2 miles of that would be in the clouds, and a very short but very stern one to get to the lights on the Swiss Cottage one way

your mtb ride sounds cool, shags near me with Epping Forest, sadly none of it between me and work, that would be sweet

MonkeyP

it is more like a 2 mile stretch that starts off a shallow uphill drag and then you loose all of you height in a 'dip' only to be followed by a slightly steeper climb with an all out lung buster steep end to it. It's either that or the dual carriageway, but it gets me every time.

Coming home is good though - top speed so far (on the commuter bike) is 46.6mph on that same hill.

Off soon to do the ride home. The sun is still shining in Brum - yay! Just hope it's the same in Kiddi!

Tynancp

nasty

my one builds nicely, gets steep, rotten surface, lights at the crest and the killer is that it's then a mile odd of very gentle uphill, you wouldn't notice it normally but when Sir is knackered it's not really welcome

bit breezy here, fingers crossed it's blowing the right direction, it was lovely yesterday, home is good for sure, the uphills are generally long ans steady with steep descents

I'm only on week four so perhaps things will get better, suspect the hills will always be hard work though

(and your hill sounds much worse then my one btw [:)])

Keith Oates

I have a fairly steep 2K hill on the last part of my commute home and on the hot days, after punching a wind to get there, it can be pretty exhausting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Ride Daily, Keep Healthy

rgisme

Oh Tynan, Seven Sisters to Manor House, which I presume you mean, is already about a mile and another mile of that wouldn't get you more than another 50m higher than the first mile probably did at most. It's practically flat [:)]