Headwind almost took my soul yesterday.

Bustacapp
Bustacapp Posts: 971
edited September 2012 in Road beginners
So I went out for a ride yesterday morning across the flats to Southport (20 miles from where I live). It was fine when I set off. My average speed was probably about 16mph. However almost as soon as I turned back the skies went grey and I was soon onto the lonely 'country roads with no shleter from trees, only farmers fields' and faced a headwind all the way back. What started off as a leisurely spin became a horribly unpleasant grind. I even had to pedal downhill over a railway bridge or I'd have come to a halt. I openly declare that there were times I shouted out loud and cursed the winds. Eventually I made it home and was utterly knackered.

Anyway, thought I'd share. Feel free to post your 'character building' headwind stories!

Comments

  • antfly
    antfly Posts: 3,276
    It's nearly always windy in Southport, you should have gone when it was a westerly and it would have blown you all the way home.
    Smarter than the average bear.
  • danowat
    danowat Posts: 2,877
    You'll get used to it, I actually quite like it now, gives a bit of resistance to push against :)
  • Bustacapp
    Bustacapp Posts: 971
    antfly wrote:
    It's nearly always windy in Southport, you should have gone when it was a westerly and it would have blown you all the way home.

    I probably wouldn't make it to Southport if it was in may face from the off!
  • Cleat Eastwood
    Cleat Eastwood Posts: 7,508
    i went to angelzarke yesterday - nice, lovely tail wind - then about an hour after leaving there there was a beastly head wind - i resorted to ducking off down a few lanes so i wasnt in it all the time.
    The dissenter is every human being at those moments of his life when he resigns
    momentarily from the herd and thinks for himself.
  • willow71uk
    willow71uk Posts: 114
    Same here i went Southport Sunday morning, all was fine upto the Marina then all the way back home the wind was terrible and i was cursing the wind also :).
  • Bustacapp
    Bustacapp Posts: 971
    willow71uk wrote:
    Same here i went Southport Sunday morning, all was fine upto the Marina then all the way back home the wind was terrible and i was cursing the wind also :).

    Did you go 'the back way' or the main route?
  • willow71uk
    willow71uk Posts: 114
    I went through Bickerstaffe, Aughton, Halsall and Birkdale, then back through Banks, Tarleton and Ormskirk.
  • Bustacapp
    Bustacapp Posts: 971
    willow71uk wrote:
    I went through Bickerstaffe, Aughton, Halsall and Birkdale, then back through Banks, Tarleton and Ormskirk.

    Your way in was my way in and out. Good chance we nodded to each other! :D
  • willow71uk
    willow71uk Posts: 114
    Bustacapp wrote:
    willow71uk wrote:
    I went through Bickerstaffe, Aughton, Halsall and Birkdale, then back through Banks, Tarleton and Ormskirk.

    Your way in was my way in and out. Good chance we nodded to each other! :D
    Maybe? I had a Sky jersey on riding a Merlin bike and was out between 8.30 and 11.45. Did you see the running event at Southport?
  • Bustacapp
    Bustacapp Posts: 971
    willow71uk wrote:
    Maybe? I had a Sky jersey on riding a Merlin bike and was out between 8.30 and 11.45. Did you see the running event at Southport?

    You were out at exactly the same times as me. I didn't see any event. Probably because I never went as far as the front. I got to Eastbourne/Cemetery/Liverpool road and was then going come back down New Cut Lane but got lost and ended up doubling back and back down the way I came (Birkdale Cop). It was then that the wind decided to make it's presence felt!
  • willow71uk
    willow71uk Posts: 114
    Yeah it was bad that wind, on the way to Southport i had a average speed of 31kph but coming back in the wind it dropped to 27kph.

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