CYCLING LOG: 13-19 May 2013, or, Ramping Up The Miles, PLUS Ride Report Cambridge-to-Southend
218km this week!
After a long winter, I've come right up against a series of long rides on the calendar, so I'm doing my best to make up for lost time on building up the fitness! Last weekend, I rode part of Adam's "Tilting At Windmills" ride plus the ride out from home and back, for a total of about 70 miles (~115km). This weekend now gone, I did my first overnight ride, which came to nearly 100 miles (~153km). I am a lot stronger generally than I was last year, due to a ketogenic diet and Pilates twice a week, but time in the saddle is still the key and that's where I'm finding it a little tricky to accelerate the mileage while being careful not to get an injury or, in particular, over-stress my knees.
I still need to do a ride report on the Windmills ride. Meanwhile, however, the overnight ride will be reported in full below, as there were no photos so no real need for it to have its own post. The ride leader (aka Wowbagger on the YACF forum) has also written a lovely, more detailed report here.
The next long ride is the Friday's FNRttC to Burnham-on-Crouch next Friday -- a flat 55 miles and our tandem debut! A week later, we are off on a hilly 72 miles (~122km) to Whitstable. A week after that, Adam is running an unofficial Dunwich Dynamo of approx. 113 miles (~180km) -- all the goodness of the DunRun but with FNRttC rules (midnight start, pace of the slowest rider, no one left behind).
From mid-June onwards, the rides calendar lets up a bit but I'm keen to obtain and maintain as much cycling fitness as I can, perhaps rearranging my week so I can get out for a 20-30 mile loop 5 mornings a week.
After a long winter, I've come right up against a series of long rides on the calendar, so I'm doing my best to make up for lost time on building up the fitness! Last weekend, I rode part of Adam's "Tilting At Windmills" ride plus the ride out from home and back, for a total of about 70 miles (~115km). This weekend now gone, I did my first overnight ride, which came to nearly 100 miles (~153km). I am a lot stronger generally than I was last year, due to a ketogenic diet and Pilates twice a week, but time in the saddle is still the key and that's where I'm finding it a little tricky to accelerate the mileage while being careful not to get an injury or, in particular, over-stress my knees.
I still need to do a ride report on the Windmills ride. Meanwhile, however, the overnight ride will be reported in full below, as there were no photos so no real need for it to have its own post. The ride leader (aka Wowbagger on the YACF forum) has also written a lovely, more detailed report here.
The next long ride is the Friday's FNRttC to Burnham-on-Crouch next Friday -- a flat 55 miles and our tandem debut! A week later, we are off on a hilly 72 miles (~122km) to Whitstable. A week after that, Adam is running an unofficial Dunwich Dynamo of approx. 113 miles (~180km) -- all the goodness of the DunRun but with FNRttC rules (midnight start, pace of the slowest rider, no one left behind).
From mid-June onwards, the rides calendar lets up a bit but I'm keen to obtain and maintain as much cycling fitness as I can, perhaps rearranging my week so I can get out for a 20-30 mile loop 5 mornings a week.
