Race face

25km Thursday, 25km over same route Friday (5 minutes slower with Half Mile) and 40km Saturday have got me well and truly back in the saddle. Hopefully I'll get another 40km in today in the sunshine. Yesterday i was due to ride with Peaches and Half Mile, but some confusion meant we got separated about 200m into the ride. I ended up going solo, but that worked out OK because I was able to go at my own pace. I was pleased with 82 minutes in stunning sunshine.

I also finally got a refund from Winstanley's, after a call to trading standards and a threatening letter. They were very ungracious, but you live and learn. I won't buy from them again and if you're reading this I would advise you to avoid them. I got lucky and bought a Race Face jacket from reliable old Chainreactioncycles handily reduced to £31 (). The zip's better and I already have a Race Face jacket that I've been very pleased with, which I use every day for commuting. Should've stuck with what I know.

@last

At last I felt up to moving. It felt great to be out on the bike again. I'm not 100% still, but managed a respectable hour. Now to pick up where I left off before le depart on 17th June.

Duration 00:56:15
Calories 660 kcal
Distance 25.2 km
Average HR 138 bpm
Maximum HR 159 bpm

Gastric enteritis

It seems I have Gastric enteritis. There's a lot about apparently. 10 days now without training. With less than 3 weeks to go, that's quite worrying. Every day I think, tomorrow, I'll get out. But I'm not eating so I have no energy and would probably set myself back if I tried.

Winstanley's Bikes - shockingly bad service - avoid

I sent the jacket back to Winstanley's and received an email from them asking me to call (why didn't they ring me on either of the two contact numbers they have?) When I did ring they told me the jacket would have to go back to the manufacturer to be checked that the fault was their's and not mine.

Now, legal positions aside most shops and particularly on-line retailers offer no quibble returns these days. I wasn't after a refund only a replacement (partly because I felt guilty that I'd got it dirty). Winstanley's would rather take an assumption of guilt on my part, even though they agreed the product was faulty they seemed to think I had broken it. Now, how do you break a zip and even if I did, if it breaks on first wearing can that really be my fault?

Anyway they told me ten days before I'd hear anything, but they still have my money. terrible customer service. Avoid Winstanley's at all costs.

To further darken my mood, this stomach bug shows no signs of shifting so I'm still laid up off the bike and the weather is tortuously glorious. I have ridden vicariously though by catching up on old episodes of the Bike show on Resonance FM via their podcast. Check it out, it's cool . http://thebikeshow.net/

Still ill

Thursday I was struck down by an evil D&V bug which has knocked me off my feet completely and pretty much trashed my plans for training over the bank holiday. The way I feel at the moment I can't see me getting on a bike for a while, yet this was supposed to be my peak training weeekend before a slow tail to the off in 3 weeks.

Bugger

Sunday's Banbury ride in the Tempest:

Duration 02:45:05
Calories 1972 kcal
Distance 72.3 km
Average HR 139 bpm
Maximum HR 169 bpm
Duration 02:45:05
Calories 1972 kcal
Distance 72.3 km
Average HR
139 bpm
Maximum HR
169 bpm

Monday - missed spin, I seem to be so busy at work I'll be glad to take 4 days off to cycle 100 miles a day! did a session on the static bike anyway:

Duration 00:32:30
Calories 334 kcal
Average HR 128 bpm
Maximum HR 152 bpm

Burn rubber on me

No training this week due to work and other commitments so I have made an effort to cycle to work. Thursday I had to leave early to pick Imogen up from school and get her to the doctors for an appointment. Needless to say I got held up, charged out of work and jumped on the fixie to get me there. Now, of course, the fixie will only go as fast as your legs will turn the pedals and hence wheels. I steamed along Myton road, wearing my crisp new Castelli stowaway rain jacket against the light drizzle, only to hit a pot hole, stop pedalling (never a good idea on a fixed wheel bike), jump the chain off, wrap it round the crank which locked the pedals and thus the back wheel and hauled me to a spectacular stop outside Myton School, in a cloud of burning rubber. Much to the amusement of a waiting teenager. To make matters worse, in my haste to re-mount the chain and get to school on time, as I leant over my bag fell off my shoulder, I instinctively reached up to put it back on only to leave a big oily handprint on the shoulder. I reckon I’d worn it for 5 minutes before ruining it.

Friday I got a soaking on the way home which made for another high speed sprint. Saturday I managed an hour in the gym thanks to Beth finishing work early and Sunday I looked forward to a reasonably big ride.
The forecast was for a strong southerly wind, with heavy rain at 10:00 (I know but the Met really are that precise: http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/uk/wm/warwick_forecast_weather.html). Sure enough at 9:48 (I was travelling south towards it) the heavens opened. Imagine my smug face as I whipped out my castelli from my back pocket and snuck it on over the Rapha winter top. See how my face turned to despair as the showerproof nature of said top proved woefully inadequate for the raging tempest which followed. At one point I was desperate for shelter, the rain and wind hammering me, but just outside Banbury I was on open moorland with nothing in sight to hide behind, so onward I sped. Actually I thoroughly enjoyed the man against nature manner of the battle and although cold and soaked I didn’t mind although the warmth of the sun was welcome as I rode towards Stratford upon Avon. It was only as I stopped to take a bite to eat and put my feet down that I realised how cold. I’d not thought to put overshoes on and my feet were numb. To make matters worse the zip on the Castelli was stuck fast, to the extent that I pulled the tab off the zipper and had to struggle to get it over my head when I got home. So that’ll be going back to Winstanley’s. I hope they accept it with an oil stain and mud spatterings all over the back.

The deer didn't seem to mind