Last summer was not good for riding and with a bit of lethargy coming in-Any Fine days were spent working on the house and garden and bike riding was put to the back of any list I might have. The winter has been even worse and I succumbed eventually to going down the gym to try and find the fitness I have lost.

A couple of years ago I was limited as to when I could ride as I was working and that only left the weekends to ride. Didn't matter what the weather was I had to get out there. I may not have felt like it with wind rain and cold but I used to get out and even if I was not happy about riding with cold hands or feet- or riding into strong headwinds- I still kept my fitness and I think I enjoyed it.

The weather is still not conducive to riding but today I had a commitment I had to keep. I had to go to my son-in-Laws work place to sort a few bikes for a ride taking place later in the year. Only 10 miles down there but along with my S-i-L and a neighbour- off we rode in 34F temp- a bit of a headwind and a black sky. Got to the office and it was a no show. None of the others wanted to ride as it was too cold. I had to agree with them as sleet was now falling and the temp had fallen to 31F. Time for lunch so off to my favourite cafe and scrambled eggs on toast. Still cold but it was about time we did some hills. First was a 1 mile long 8% that is just tiring and we were soon warmish. I let the other two disappear into the distance- they could always get cold waiting for me at the top. Got even colder as the next two miles were downhill and with a 20 mph tailwind. We were heading for the basket- a 16%er for about 3/4 mile and it is a narrow road that is full of traffic. I always struggle on this one but today seemed easier. That may be due to the 12/30 cassette in place of the 12/27 that I normally run but the hill was over without me realising it. So much so that I rode over the top and into the next two miles of steep downhill. Last time I did this hill I got to the top- got off the bike and lay down on the verge. I was giving my legs a rest as they were just about to fall apart and waiting for the lungs to arrive as I left them half way up the hill.

I have no idea why today was different. It was cold- It was windy and it was wet. The ideal day to watch the rugby on the TV and relax but for some reason I didn't. I enjoyed the ride- got in 1500 ft of climbing and still had legs and lungs at the end. Only downer was that I had two punctures. One in the brand new first time out rear tyre and the other was in the front and I walked the last 1/2 mile home as I couldn't be bothered to repair the tube.

Perhaps the lethargy is still there.

Glad you had a good day and good ride. Perhaps all those days to gym are helping after all?

Great story. It's these little slices of life that keep us all inspired.

Nice story, Stap. Reminds me of my youth in darkest Zummerzet. Cold, wind, rain, sleet, fog, snow and I still went riding, but nowadays we don't ride if the wind is over 20 mph or the temp is below 55F! Soft or what!

Thought it was just my Garmin playing up yesterday but Strava from my Son-in-Law reported wrong gradients and wrong timing aswell. I had it at 2 hrs 34 minutes and the Steepest gradient that I know is true is 16%. My Garmin had me at 2.5 mph and a gradient of 27% on one hill and I know that is wrong. But From Ross's Strava of yesterday shows I did a harder ride. Just in case you want to see our route from yesterday- this is his Strava report. That hill at 20 miles is a 16% and is the one on my Avatar

https://www.strava.com/activities/40288766

I think I would have stayed home!

Does England ever have nice weather? Ride while you can.

The other day I had a glitch with my Garmin as well. After I updated to Strava my upload converted to metric system. I opened Strava in my Iphone and all my rides were metric. (my first guess was that I was riding with several Canadian snow birds and they infected our electronics.) But by the next day I was back on imperial numbers.

If you like riding on flooded roads- Being blown off course by the winds and like wearing enough clothing to make the Michelin man look dyslexic- Then yes.

When the sun shines, it's one of the most idyllic places in the world! Unfortunately the sun doesn't shine much, especially in winter.

The only times I've been to England were some visits to the West Country in and around Bath --and the weather both times was excellent. It felt like a regular continental summer (mid 80's in the day and low 70's evenings). I spent days playing golf and late afternoons enjoying pints with new friends. We would laugh about the subtle differences in language and culture. Wonderful times --never been able to do that in France or Germany. I would love to spend a month every year right back there --maybe this time with a bike.