Old Git On A Bike battles with the wind (2000 miles ridden)
Comments
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Just in from my night ride, I did the same loop as last night, I encountered some chav scum in a car tonight, they shouted something at me as I entered the Bexhill promenade, then drove off still shouting, I did my loop, was making my way back through Bexhill, I had got two thirds of the way up Galley Hill, when I saw the beam of headlights behind me, I thought to myself, surely it can't be them, so I braced my self as the car went past and it was loads of loud screams with their windows down, I got to the top of the hill, which is a dead end, and they slammed the car in to reverse as I hit the top and I veered towards them slightly, by now they had closed their windows, brave chavs :roll:, I gave them a popular hand sign and a few expletives and they shouted back from behind their closed window and drove off, I wish I had a light bike and some bike skills, I could have ridden over their bonnet and roof
. I got a new second bottle cage today, now I just need some non windy weather to get some long rides in, log for tonight:
Jul 14th
Top speed 26.2 mph (cycle path hill)
Avg speed = 14.3 mph
Distance = 15.43 miles
Time 01:04:33
Pulse before ride = 68 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 94 bpm's 11:15pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 88 bpm's 11:25pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 80 bpm's 11:35pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 76 bpm's 12:15am
Total miles ridden = 1350.11
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Age 39 years and 234 days old
July 13th
Morning Run: 5.0 Miles; time 41.05
Afternoon Cycle:
Top speed 25.2 mph
Avg speed = 16.0 mph
Distance = 45.03 miles
Time 02:45:020 -
Was it a bird, was it a plane, was it a ride by troll, again :roll:, try the Samaritans, they might listen to you.
I had another lousy nights sleep last night, went to bed around 2:00am, couldn't sleep, had to get up at 3:40am as my heart was continually missing beats again, eventually got to sleep some time after 5:00am, I think maybe I am getting too much nicotine as I was recently given 20 ounces of duty free tobacco, and I have been smoking a hell of a lot, just can't seem to cut down no matter how hard I try, I have will power to do a lot of things, but cutting smoking is always a dead loss when I try, anyway, I was too tired to ride during the day today, so it was my usual night loop, log for tonight:
Jul 15th
Top speed 26.3 mph (cycle path hill)
Avg speed = 14.1 mph
Distance = 15.70 miles
Time 01:06:28
Pulse before ride = 66 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 102 bpm's 11:08pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 86 bpm's 11:18pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 80 bpm's 11:28pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 76 bpm's 12:08am
Total miles ridden = 1365.810 -
The cycling gods blessed me with some good weather today, nice low winds for a change, I made the most of it and rode to the foot of the South Downs Way in Eastbourne, then back to Pevensey, did my loop around Hooe and back to Pevensey, then home to St Leonards, I think I'll give my usual night ride a miss tonight, log for today:
Jul 16th
Top speed 30.7 mph (cycle path hill)
Avg speed = 14.4 mph
Distance = 50.45 miles
Time 03:28:49
Pulse before ride = 78 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 100 bpm's 9:33pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 86 bpm's 9:43pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 88 bpm's 9:53pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 84 bpm's 10:33pm
Total miles ridden = 1416.260 -
hello Ogoab!
as you have been going this a for a while, fitness getting better, how do you feel? love the daily reports and the the total miles!
how is the bike doing?
regards
les Giant Trance X0 (08) Reverb, Hope Hoops 5.1D, XT brakes, RQ BC, Works Components headset 1.50 -
Are you riding off-road at all OGOAB or are the majority of your rides on cycle paths? The reason i ask is becuase i think youve reached a point in your cycling progress where you would really start to enjoy some off road riding.0
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Excellent thread, in a similar position at least in regards age, fitness keep it coming ignore the idiotsNicolai CC0
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It sounds like the majority of his rides are on flat cycle paths and at the level of fitness he is at now he would most certanly benefit from some off - road riding. Obviously continuing what he is doing now will continue to increase his fitness, i just think he would enjoy some off road riding now that he is alot fitter than when he started out.0
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@ Owen908, yeah, I'm not doing any off road stuff yet, about 90% of my riding is on road, and the rest on cycle paths before I get to the roads, this bike is not really suitable for any sort of serious off road riding, mainly because the shocks are not very good, they are the budget "Zoom" shocks, they are not very good even on a bit of rough tarmac road, you feel ever bit of roughness, so doing proper off road with them would be a nightmare.
I do hope to be getting a new bike in the very near future, I now have a grand total of £265 saved up, that should be up to about £350 by the end of next month, and I have about £50 coming to me from Google for the Google ads on my website that people have been clicking on, so that will be going towards my bike budget as well. I'm thinking about getting a "Mongoose Tyax Super" for £359, but I'm not completely sure about that yet, might be able to get something slightly better, anyone know how upgradeable the Mongoose would be, as I am planning to ride the South Downs Way over 2 days next year with the admin on my local forum, and I need something capable of doing it, I wouldn't mind saving up to get some proper shocks etc for it.
@ Holyzeus, welcome to the forum, mate, what sort of riding and distances are you doing? Plenty of good routes in your area? Let us know how you get on.
Back after a few days without a ride, I was a bit sore after doing the 50 miles on the 16th, so I took the next day off, the 2 days after that were pretty windy so I gave riding a miss. I'm not long in from a loop over to my 8 mile point on the Pevensey back road, I got quite a bit of pain in the inside of my thigh up towards the groin area, it seems to ease up after I have done several miles, comes back again after that but not as severe a pain and then eases again, I think it's a simple case of not doing any warming up before going for a ride, I'll see how it is now because as soon as I have posted this, I am going out to do my 14 mile night loop over to Coombe Beach and back, log for this evening:
Jul 17th to 19th: No riding, 1 rest day and 2 days off due to fairly strong winds
Jul 20th
Top speed 26.4 mph (cycle path hill)
Avg speed = 14.3 mph
Distance = 16.48 miles
Time 01:08:56
Pulse before ride = 62 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 102 bpm's 8:57pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 86 bpm's 9:07pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 80 bpm's 9:17pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 80 bpm's 9:57pm
Total miles ridden = 1432.74
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My leg felt fine on this second ride, there was only a slight twinge as I was going up an incline, apart from that, nothing much, log for tonight:
Jul 20th (2nd ride of the day)
Top speed 26.0 mph (cycle path hill)
Avg speed = 14.8 mph
Distance = 14.15 miles
Time 57:06:1
Pulse before ride = 78 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 100 bpm's 11:23pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 82 bpm's 11:33pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 78 bpm's 11:43pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 74 bpm's 12:23am
Total miles ridden today = 30.63
Total miles ridden = 1446.890 -
I did my loop over to Coombe Beach tonight, but compared to last night, I felt tired for some reason, even though I did it in roughly the same time, mind you, the wind feels just a little stronger than it did last night. Now then, over the next 2 days, the winds are supposed to be down to 5-6mph at times, so I think I'll go and ride the Cuckoo Trail either tomorrow or Wednesday, it's nearly a 60 mile round trip in total, 16 miles each way to the start of the trail in Polegate, and then 13 miles each way on the trail itself, there are 6 other circular routes that branch off the trail which I can do some other time, you can see those routes on a downloadable PDF here:
Cuckoo Trail PDF
Log for tonight:
Jul 21st
Top speed 26.0 mph (cycle path hill)
Avg speed = 14.5 mph
Distance = 14.17 miles
Time 58:23:0
Pulse before ride = 68 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 96 bpm's 11:05pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 82 bpm's 11:15pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 76 bpm's 11:25pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 74 bpm's 12:05am
Total miles ridden = 1461.060 -
hey! hows it going?
i went to the Llandegla bike trails, did the Blue track, was very hard, showed me how unfit i am!
but i have an idea what i need to do now, more flat stuff, more climbing ( found that the nercwys forest has a good climb for that) and learn some mtb core skills!
LesGiant Trance X0 (08) Reverb, Hope Hoops 5.1D, XT brakes, RQ BC, Works Components headset 1.50 -
Hi OGOAB,
Just read through this great thread. (Had to skim here and there – how long will this thread get? )
I’m a similar age to you and a new returnee to cycling to get fit. I’ve been using my old road bike I got when I was about 15. I’ve decided to go for a new mountain bike and maybe get a road bike later.
Thanks for keeping the thread going. There are some great ideas for staying motivated.I'm thinking about getting a "Mongoose Tyax Super" for £359, but I'm not completely sure about that yet, might be able to get something slightly better, anyone know how upgradeable the Mongoose would be, as I am planning to ride the South Downs Way over 2 days next year with the admin on my local forum, and I need something capable of doing it, I wouldn't mind saving up to get some proper shocks etc for it.
I’m also looking at the Mongoose Tyax Super. Seen it even cheaper than £359. Also looking at the Giant Terrago and GT Avalanche 3.0. Other threads suggest that 2008 models’ prices may get even lower over the coming weeks as manufacturers bring out 2009 models. I’ve seen movement on the Terrago but not the GT yet.
As for upgrades, having researched as a newbie, it seems it’s not really worth upgrading any bits on the above bikes because you’d probably want a better frame. But hopefully someone more knowledgeable will put me right on that one.
BTW, don’t change the O.G.O.A.B name as others have suggested. It’s brilliant. I think everyone here is a GOAB of some kind – whether that be Old/Thin/Daft/Clever/Skilful/Fit etc… or just AGOAB (average git on a bike).
Cheers,
Dave0 -
@ Lesz42, yeah, all going well here mate, glad you are enjoying your riding, I have no idea what the blue track at Llandegla is, I know they have different colours like red and black etc, what do you do on the blue route? Yeah, that climbing is a right git, I hate hills, seriously hate them, but there will always be a hill to climb somewhere, unfortunately
@ Loco020, welcome to the forum, cheers for the advice regarding the Mongoose, one of the reasons I liked that bike was because of the SRAM gears/shifters on it, they are what I have on my current bike, so I'm used to them and find them very good, but if as you say, the frame is not worth putting upgraded parts on it, I might have to look for something else.
I was up most of Monday night unable to get to sleep, so I was too tired to ride yesterday, the wind was quite strong anyway considering it was supposed to be 5mph, the average wind speed around here was actually 16.8mph, I avoided that anyway.
Today I did my longest ride yet, although I nearly didn't go out today either, as I was up again most of last night as well, I had about 3.5 hours sleep, and had bad stomach ulcers from excess acid this morning to add to it, so I didn't really feel like it, but the weather was too good to miss.
I did just over 60 miles at a sedate pace, which was my planned ride over to Polegate, that was 15.5 miles, then the 13 miles each way along the Cuckoo Trail, I also did a little detour off the trail to find some old priory that was signposted as being 3 miles away, but I couldn't find another sign telling me which way it was after that, so I headed back to the trail, got back to Polegate and then headed home.
As much as I don't fancy wearing a camelback, I think I do need to get one to stay properly hydrated, I took my usual 2 bottles of water with me, that was all gone after about 35 - 40 miles, I bought a can of coke about 7 miles from home as I was thirsty as hell, and they only sold coke in this particular ice cream van, despite having the water and the coke, I still lost 6 pounds in weight on the ride, thus I need a camelback pretty soon, log for today:
Jul 22nd: No riding, too tired as I was up most of the previous night
Jul 23rd
Top speed 24.5 mph (hilly road at Stone Cross)
Avg speed = 13.1 mph
Distance = 60.53 miles
Time 04:36:34
Pulse before ride = 78 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 110 bpm's 6:01pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 96 bpm's 6:11pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 82 bpm's 6:21pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 80 bpm's 7:01pm
Total miles ridden = 1521.590 -
on llandegla, blue means beginner, mind you, a fit beginner! the climb is common for all the routes,
was good fun, apart from having the wrong tyres, and not knowing the track
28 miles is the most i have done, and drank loads, i got a racksack with a camelback like bladder from tesco, for £10!
http://direct.tesco.com/q/R.100-0611.aspx
just big enuff ,for , pump,tube,tool, some foods and stuff!Giant Trance X0 (08) Reverb, Hope Hoops 5.1D, XT brakes, RQ BC, Works Components headset 1.50 -
@ Loco020, welcome to the forum, cheers for the advice regarding the Mongoose, one of the reasons I liked that bike was because of the SRAM gears/shifters on it, they are what I have on my current bike, so I'm used to them and find them very good, but if as you say, the frame is not worth putting upgraded parts on it, I might have to look for something else.
I don't think it's so much that the frame's not worth putting on upgraded parts. It seems more that by the time the guys have got skilled enough to want better forks, they're also wanting lighter or stiffer frames as well. Still an excellent bike for the money from what I've read. Put it this way, after many hours of reading-up, it got on my short list of only 3 bikes in my price range. I think it's the only one of the three that has the remote option on the lockout. The only weak point on the Mongoose that I have found is that some people get problems with the Promax brakes. If it wasn't for that downside I'd have already bought one.
BTW 60 miles! Well done. I'm still on 15-20 milers.
Thanks for the welcome,
Dave0 -
Not long in from my night ride, if you can call it that, started of great, really strong wind behind me, flying along, got to 7 mile point of the loop where I then turn back for home and then there is a rumbling noise from the back of the bike, I get off it and the tyre is flat, spin the wheel and there is one of those large industrial type metal staples sticking out of the tyre, it had gone in over half an inch :x
I started the 7 mile walk home, got back on the bike and rode very slowly most of the way home, a bit of the rim tape started coming out, so I poked that back in, I'm just hoping I have not damaged the tyre by riding it, I can't see any visible splits where it has been in contact with the wheel rim, so it might be alright, back to Halfords I go tomorrow to get a new tube fitted and buy a spare one, I suppose I should think myself lucky it didn't happen during my 60 mile ride yesterday, that would have been a nightmare, anyway, diluted log for tonight:
Jul 24th
7 miles fast
7 miles slow
Total miles ridden = 1535.590 -
Time to get that camelbak
Then you can also carry a puncture repair kit - inner tube - and pump etc........
Riding a flat tyre is risky as it can buckle your rims as well as damage the tyre.0 -
Might be a god idea to learn how to change an inner tube old git ! Also go for a 3 litre pack if you can for those long rides.My Ride Stumpjumper Expert 20080
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I've not posted on your thread for a while but still follow your expolits with earnest. You noted that you lost 6ib in weight on one ride? that sounds alot. Have you lost much weight since you have been riding again. I think that information is just as interesting as how far you ridden etc. Have you just upped the riding or have you change d your diet as wellWhy use brakes? Falling off is a much quicker way to stop0
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@ CPS, luckily, the tyre and rim appear to be ok, perhaps a slight bit of buckle in the tyre, but that's about all.
@ Larok, yeah, I will get a camelback when funds permit, but due to ordering a new tyre, my PayPal funds are now down to about £3, and if I buy one now, that will have to come out of the funds saved for my new bike, my other half had a look for the £10 one given in the Tescos link further up the page, but she couldn't see any, maybe it's only available in Tesco Extra stores, our local one is just a normal store.
@ Bossangel, yeah, I was 12 stone 6 pounds before doing the 60 mile ride, I was exactly 12 stone when I got back, whilst I was out, I had 2 bottles of water, 2 bananas, a wagon wheel, 4 small wafer biscuits and a can of coke, despite that, I still lost 6 pounds through sweating, which isn't a good thing and can be dangerous to get too dehydrated, I drank loads when I got home and had some food, and was then back up to 12 stone 3 pounds the following morning.
I was 14 stone when I started, but my weight has been sticking around 12 stone 5 pounds to 12 stone 7 pounds for a while now, most likely due to missing a lot of riding last month and eating a bit more than I usually do, my diet now is pretty normal again, I have a meal just about every day at tea time, it might be steamed/boiled chicken and some pasta, stuff like that, I eat quite a lot of bananas nowadays, at least 3 a day, low fat yogurts, and other healthy stuff, if I feel hungry, a banana does the trick, rather than something fattening, but if I fancy a bar of chocolate, I will have it and I'm not too bothered about it causing weight gain as I know I will lose it again, the mileage is also going up, I have ridden 407 miles so far this month, which is the most I have done in any month since the start, and still 5 days of the month left, so I should be getting close to 600 miles by the end of the month.
I went to Halfords today and got a new innertube fitted, I know, I should be fitting those myself, but I couldn't be bothered with the hassle, they do it so much quicker than I would, and the last time I changed an innertube, it was on a road bike in around 1980, so I'm a bit out of practice at bike stuff and don't feel as confident as I should do, having said that, I'll have to take the tyre off for myself soon anyway, because to try and lessen the chances of another rear wheel puncture, I ordered a Continental Travel Contact tyre from Chain Reaction Cycles this evening, it is a bit more puncture proof than my current Continental Double Fighter II tyre, also ordered a couple of spare innertubes, with a bit of luck they should be here on Monday or Tuesday.
I had a ride around my loop tonight, went past the puncture spot last night, you never know if chavs have deliberately put sharp/pointy things in the road or not, so I went by at snails pace, all was well this time. The weather looks great for the next few days, a bit of rain forecast, but the winds are supposed to be very low, I will probably go and do the Cuckoo Trail again and try and do a few more miles on top of the 60 I did the other day over there, anyway, log for tonight:
Jul 25th
Top speed 28.9 mph (cycle path hill)
Avg speed = 14.6 mph
Distance = 14.61 miles
Time 59:46:2
Pulse before ride = 70 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 94 bpm's 11:15pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 86 bpm's 11:25pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 80 bpm's 11:35pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 78 bpm's 12:15am
Total miles ridden = 1550.200 -
OGOAB they have the Tesco hydration bags in the Eastbourne store if you are interested, I got one this morning. You turn right at the Soveriegn centre and its about half a mile down on your left, if you wanted to have a look next time your cycling pastGiant Defy 4 2014
GT Avalanche Expert 2006
Specialized Hardrock 19890 -
Cheers Beski, but that would mean having to leave my bike outside Tescos while I went in there, I don't have a lock for my bike and some thieving scrote would have it away before I got back out. I would never leave my bike unnatended even if it was chained, chains these days are too easy to pick or crop 0
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Fair enough mate, I must admit I'm the same with my bike. I've got an old Spesh Hardrock which I use for a run around & commuting & that's ok to leave locked (or has been so far!). You know where they are if you are ever over that way without your bike.
What did you think of the Cuckoo trail?...I must admit that I have found it a little bit frustrating when I've cycled along there, you have to keep slowing down & stopping for roads, numerous people with dogs (especially ones off the lead :x ) etc
There is a track that goes beyond Heathfield over towards Mayfield I think, I tried to find it a couple of times but was unsuccessful.
The sustrans cycle route 2 is quite good, as you know it goes from over your way to the start of the Cuckoo trail. If you follow it further, taking a left at the start of the Cuckoo trail it goes up past Abbots Wood (part of the ride 1 circular rides you mentioned earlier) From Abbots wood it's not far to Michelam Priory, or you can follow cycle route 2 up through Arlington (which has a lovely church & pub), Berwick, & Alfriston, which are all worth a visit. Near Alfriston theres a place called Lullington, which has got the smallest church in the UK (only fitting a congregation of about 20 I think) Wilmington which is close by is also of interest with the Long Man cut into the side of the downs.
Hope you find my ramblings of interest, & maybe gives you a few more places to exploreGiant Defy 4 2014
GT Avalanche Expert 2006
Specialized Hardrock 19890 -
@ Beski, I didn't find stopping for the roads or those metal style things too be a problem, and didn't encounter many people with dogs, only a few, I let people hear me changing gear or shout out "mind your backs" and they usually look back and move out of the way.
Cheers for the other info, it was the Michelam Priory that I was trying to find by road the other day, someone must have stolen the next road sign along because I couldn't find another one :? That small church sounds interesting, I'll have to take some photos of that.
Not long in from my night loop, my legs felt very heavy tonight to start with and I was quite chesty during the ride, struggling to get a proper breath in, eased up towards the end of the ride. I was thinking about a long ride tomorrow, but it just dawned on me that as it's going to be hot and it's a Sunday, there will be people swarming all over the Cuckoo Trail, so I think I'll leave that until Monday and just do 30 odd miles tomorrow instead, log for tonight:
Jul 26th
Top speed 27.5 mph (cycle path hill)
Avg speed = 14.0 mph
Distance = 14.61 miles
Time 01:02:36
Pulse before ride = 66 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 92 bpm's 11:03pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 82 bpm's 11:13pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 80 bpm's 11:23pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 74 bpm's 12:03am
Total miles ridden = 1564.810 -
So it seems as you have lost about a stone and a half through all this cycling? i'm presuming you are developing muscly legs
Are other areas being toned or is it just weight loss.
I was also thinking why dont you have some people join you on a ride when you are going to cross the 5000 miles ridden barrier or some other target set by you. You could be the forest gump of the cycling world with many people cycling behind youWhy use brakes? Falling off is a much quicker way to stop0 -
@ Bossangel, at the Forrest Gump comment, nutter . Yeah, I am currently 12 stone 3 pounds, so, very nearly 2 stone I have lost, I expect I will drop some more weight after tomorrows long ride, and hopefully within the next week I will have hit the 12 stone mark.
Just back from my ride, went over to the Pevensey roundabout, then back along the Bexhill/Hastings road towards Hooe, came down a steep hill, I knew I was going fairly fast, but was surprised when I got back to see I was going down it at over 40mph :shock:, back to Pevensey and then headed home, log for tonight:
Jul 27th
Top speed 40.4 mph (steep road near Hooe)
Avg speed = 14.7 mph
Distance = 30.18 miles
Time 02:02:39
Pulse before ride = 64 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 96 bpm's 9:34pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 80 bpm's 9:44pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 80 bpm's 9:54pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 72 bpm's 10:34pm
Total miles ridden = 1594.990 -
Not long back from my ride, just over 60 miles again today, the outward trip was great with a following wind, but coming home was hard on the already tired legs as the wind has really increased a lot since I left, still, I enjoyed it, if it wasn't so windy I would have ridden a bit further, I'll do that another day.
When I left I was 12 stone 3 pounds, I had drank my 2 bottles of water/juice by around 32 miles, I then bought 2 bottles of spring water from a shop near the start of the trail, finished those off and about a mile from home I bought an ice cold half litre bottle of coke, I was still very thirsty, I also ate 2 bananas, 2 penguin chocolate biscuits and 2 small bags of jelly babies during the ride, got back and my weight was down to 11 stone 13 pounds, it's nice to see the scales showing less than 12 stone for the first time, even though a lot of it will be water loss, I'll go out tonight and do another 14 miles to burn a few more calories, todays ride took me to 512 miles ridden for the month, log for today:
Jul 28th
Top speed 24.5 mph (cycle path hill)
Avg speed = 13.0 mph
Distance = 60.27 miles
Time 04:37:04
Pulse before ride = 68 bpm's
Pulse after ride = 96 bpm's 4:59pm
Pulse 10 minutes later = 82 bpm's 5:09pm
Pulse 20 minutes later = 76 bpm's 5:19pm
Pulse 60 minutes later = 74 bpm's 5:59pm
Total miles ridden = 1655.260 -
Wow this is great, well done. Very inspiring.
I'm thinking of getting into biking now, gonna get a bike when i can afford it and start training for coast 2 coast next year with my mates.
I'm not overweight in fact I'm apparently underweight according to most tests but I am quite unfit, get breathless when playing football/jogging etc.
Have you thought of trying the coast 2 coast?
Keep it up 0
