Four Miles Away Day

Yesterday one of us rode in a semi-competitive way while the other sat in the sun with some girls and relaxed. It was the first time I'd ridden in any event for 10 years, and it was a bit of a shock to the system.

The event was to promote the Garmin range of GPS systems designed for off road activities of all sorts. As such it was an orienteering event with the fastest time winning a bike, GPS and an afternoon drinking with a Yorkshireman. Whether I blame the virus I was off work with a week ago, or the limitations of navigating with just a GPS, or dropping the control card and having to ride a whole section again to go back and find it, it didn't go stunningly. My time was over double the time of the leading time as at the time I set out and I was buried by the end. This was despite the course suiting me quite well, with climbs all over the place and flowing singletrack. It was a fun event and it's only in my head that I'm an undiscovered mountain biking talent, just a good ride away from leaving my job for a life of travelling the world and riding at someone else's expense. The freebies afterwards were almost worth the pain, although reading through What Mountain Bike made me feel like I wanted a new bike, and watching the free DVD made me feel very inferior when compared to the top downhill riders who were featured.

Our trip also included the delights of the Reading park and bike scheme, advertised on the traffic information boards to encourage people to drive and then cycle in a park-and-ride style with secure bicycle parking at the Madejski Stadium. This seems like an excellent idea, as long as you're only wanting to use the bike for commuting. It would be annoying to have it stuck in a secure park on the outskirts of Reading if you wanted to pop to the shops from home.

All in all I'm on the bus this morning and I'm glad I have the excuse of drinking after work to rest my legs.

Sometimes a day off riding makes you appreciate it more. And tomorrow I'll get the thrill of rolling a bike out onto the road all over again. It's nice to make it less of a chore from time to time.

There was a time where I rode on nights I was going to drink, but day dreaming about chips on the way one night ended up with me in hospital with a broken collar bone so it seems prudent to let someone else take care of getting me home these days, especially when you also risk a telling off.

A