Chasing old-me

Chasing down me from years gone by. At the end of April, I'd ridden the shortest distance for that point in the year since records began*.

It's the end of May and I've caught and passed me from 2007 (by 4 miles), 2009 (by 114 miles) and 2011 (by 113 miles). Take that past-me. I'm actually ahead of June-2011-me by 16 miles already.

2008-me is still 155 miles ahead and June 2008 is the only month I've every passed the 300 mile mark, so I'm not going to catch that me (this month). But 2010-me is only 99 miles ahead and I'm gonna get that me this month.

*2007 (I have spreadsheets)

Singlespeeding Sunny Swaledale Again

Same route as last time, but an hour faster and with added chicken and lentil dahl, an extra litre of apple juice. And swapping the scone for caramel shortcake at Dales Bike Centre.

Plus even hotter and sunnier, with a pig of a headwind all the way home, that wasn't there as a tailwind on the way in. Took some time off most of the Strava segments, partly by better planning of stops, but also by riding those bits harder.

I will take three minutes off my time for Great Pinseat (South Route) to get the KOM.

Distance: 108km (Strava - till Strava decided not to record anymore)
Surface: Road and off-road
Time: 8 hours
Weather: Very hot and sunny
Bike: Inbred SS (with 2.4″ rear tyre on 32:17)

Singlespeeding Sunny Swaledale

Not ridden since the start of April, why not try a big ride and hurt myself? Oh, go on then.

Add in hot weather and it being the first ride since I started on a slow carb diet and let's see what'll happen. Turns out, I can ride quite well on no breakfast, three mini pork pies and a litre of apple juice (water only for the first hour), and a scone at Dales Bike Centre.

Distance: 108km (Strava - till the phone battery died)
Surface: Road and off-road
Time: 9 hours
Weather: Hot and sunny
Bike: Inbred SS (with 2.4″ rear tyre on 32:17)

Chasing History

Totals at the end of April from previous years: 501, 710, 429, 602.5, 483. This year was 428 miles, so the lowest since I started recording in 2005. This is bad.

But, for the first May ever, I've got no coursework to mark and the weekends are looking reasonably unbooked. Time to take the slightly longer way home from work, squeeze in some extra miles and chase the old me of each of the last five years, to beat 'them' at the end of May.

May 2012 miles needed to catch the me from previous years:

• 2009 me - 154


• 2011 me - 155


• 2007 me - 264


• 2010 me - 366.5


• 2008 me - 422.5

Which Old Me will I catch?

Quick Darlington Fixietwat Spin

Snook out for a quick spin round the town - Barmpton Gravel, North Park, Black Path, Motorway Bridleway and Baydale Beck - on the Solitude.

• Fixed rooty singletrack is fun


• The subtle clip of pedal on root


• "Mister, your bars are on upside down"

Distance: 15 miles (Strava/map)
Surface: Road and off-road
Time: 1 hours 40 minutes
Weather: Warm and dry
Bike: Solitude Fixietwat (with 2.25" tyres, 34:16)

Ellie's contest-winning writing

Ellie, 8, is very excited about being one of the six stories chosen, from hundreds of entries, to be published in Weevil Weekly magazine. A 200 word story about the Enchanted Forest items:

"Down in the hollows of the willow pond, Hamley the elf, sat down on the red toadstool. I wonder what is inside that secret tree, he wondered. Just then he had an idea, he would wait until the dead of night. Then he would clearly see the creature that lived in this secret tree! So he waited until the dead of night that night, then he checked, there was nobody in. So he waited until the next morning,there was STILL nobody there! So he waited until the dead of, well, you get the idea! But there was still nobody there! So the next day he went for a walk. Then, at about 6 'o' clock he came back. Next he noticed something strange going on. The lights in the secret tree were on! Whilst he had been on his walk, whoever lived there had come back!!! So he never found out who lived in the tree!"