BB FANS

As part of the 29th International Waendel Weekend I shall on the 10th of May 2008 taken part in a 25KM (16Miles) cycle ride with the aim of raising funds for Cancer Research UK.

The idea came due to the fact that my Cousin is currently under going intensive Chemotherapy to try and control / shrink the cancer she has.
I don't know the type of cancer she has but I'm told it's a rare form that doesn't respond to normal treatment. I'm told that she put herself forward for experiment drug treatment and is now receiving upto 16 hours a day Chemo'.

If you'd like to support me on my quest then please click HERE and make a donation. The Just Giving website will do the rest and the money less admin fees will be transferred directly to Cancer Research UK.

I hope to get a picture of me on the page soon.

If I can get more details of my Cousin's cancer and treatment and she'll agree I'll add those details as well.

Thank you for your time.

Good luck with that larry Hope it all goes well.

It's a very good cause. I shall make a small donation when I have more time.

Many thanks Christine.
Last night I completed the forms for Cancer Research UK.

I also took the bike out to make sure it and myself are still in good condition.
I think the bike could do with a little oil on the gear selector but apart from that the hills around the estate didn't prove any trouble ,in fact if anything they seemed a little too easy ! But then I only did around 2.5 miles. I need a bit more daylight really but I do have lights and unlike some of the cars I was using them as the light level fell.

Also assuming I can get my brother to take part I have a pair of 446MHz radios which'll be fitted with headsets and I'll have my Amateur Radio handheld so I'll be in touch with RAYNET (The Radio Amateurs' Emergency Network) who do the marshaling.

Not the best picture but it'll do.

The saying goes "Be seen ,Be safe" and nobody has an excuse for not seeing me !

And have just read in the local free paper that there is an extra badge being given out for those seen riding safely wearing Florescent jackets and cycle helmets.

Nice picture It looks good on the fundraising page.

All the best larry and hope you do really well xx

Thanks.

Tomorrow I plan to cycle in to work which is just under 4.5 miles each way.
Looking at the forecast it shouldn't be too bad. I'll be into the breeze on the way in but it'll be behind me on the way home which is always nice.

In that picture you don't get to see just how packed the handle-bars and adjacent areas are with things. But I finally managed to find room for a bell which all new bikes come fitted with.
One thing I have is a trip computer thing but it's set to display total mileage plus RPM which is better than speed. I can tell you that 27ish RPM coming down the hill into town is I'm fairly sure is over 30MPH as I can travel for about 1/2 mile without having to pedal on the hill.
The high street has had a makeover recently and along with some speed calming measures ,that I don't thing will be much fun on a bike ,it now has a 20MPH limit which I might have normally have matched so I'll have to be careful. But saying that with the reduced official parking the high street is reduced to a single file due to the way the cars are parking to use Tescos. So I don't think there's really much of a risk of speeding.

Anyway it's the first longer ride .I've been doing 2.5miles each night .Once you get about a mile out of town it's easy the rest of the way .But I've been training on the hilly roads of the estate anyway which should have helped. There's about a mile and a bit which is mainly up hill on the way out which as longs as you use your gears correctly isn't too bad. You land up using either 2nd or 3rd gear on the steepest parts but once off the up hill section you change up to the next set and sit in 12th the rest of the way. I've only ever used the last set of gears once but they are too direct and you need either very strong legs or the wind to help you plus you do go a lot faster than you really need to.

The trip by car takes around 10 minutes and by bike take between 20 minutes and 30 minutes depending on the wind direction and strength.

The first 10 mile ride is completed ,see details in 'Right Now'.
Plus the 8.5 mile trip to work and back. And in good time. Return was around 20 minutes and the out going was no more than 25 Minutes. Not sure of the times for todays rides but I paid a friend a visit on the other side of the valley and it must have been the longest route possible to get there whilst avoiding all the main roads.

I have the route for the main event and I can see at least one steep climb so today's trip was good practice .

I've created some sponsor forms so can try and get a few more signed up.
My brother and my parents have taken forms so hopefully we'll do well.

Many thanks again to those who have already made donations. Every bit helps.

I've now got a ultra light weight brilliant White cycle helmet. It must be half the weight of the old one but it adds to the visibility.

You're doing well larry

Having re-read my last post it looks like I'm doing 8.5 miles in around 20 minutes which I wish was true.
It should read that the round trip to work was 8.5 miles so it's 4.25 miles around 20 minutes which still isn't bad.
In my teens with my old racing bike the way it originally read might have been true but I'm not pushing myself that hard these days. If you think skater's thighs are big you should see was happens when your pushing everything to the limit on a racing bike everyday over an 11 mile route! I have to admit I was extremely fit and flexible but that was nearly 25 years ago and pre a few motorbike crashes. But still I haven't managed to break the bike yet which is a good sign that I'm taking things a lot easier these days.

I wouldn't worry too much about how fast you can go larry - just to do it will be an achievement - you don't want to risk having an accident.

I totally agree. That's why I don't have the computer displaying MPH. Instead it shows the speed of the front wheel in revs and I always aim to keep it around 13-14 which on level ground in the right gear is very easy to maintain .

In my teens the speedo would be over 20 MPH most of the time and it once showed me on the dual carriageway above 50MPH over a stretch of at least 2 miles. But when your in your teens you don't stop to think of things like stopping or the 'what if'.

I had to spend a small fortune bringing the racing bike upto race spec as standard components kept breaking.

But as I've said I'm a lot more sensible these days and don't push myself like I used to. But too many people in their 40's don't do regular exercise .I like that fit feeling and once I get there's no turning back so whether it's skating or cycling ,or as it should be both, I intend to keep on finding new challenges until I reach an age or a point where I can't do any more. Which shouldn't be reached for a few decades yet. And if I can put it to good use and raise money along the way I will. You won't catch me doing runs and that's the one thing I can't do anymore. I have ran the 1500M for a sports day and managed a sprint finish but do to the lack of proper training / teaching I was always breathless at the end. My school never taught you how to run properly or how to do it better they just put you on a track and told you to run. And I doubt it's changed these days ,in fact it's may well be worse.
I used to be able to do two legs of the 4x 200m relay faster than anybody else. But would have been good to be shown how to learn to improve to become better but those things never happened.
I did represent the school for one year at shot put but again nobody took the time to train you .

I think it is good that you want to keep fit, and to earn money for Charity as you go is also a good idea.

I only wish I had more time to do more exercise. I'm afraid a long walk at the weekend is about all I manage.

You'd surprised the distance you may be covering in a normal day. A step counter can be a eye opener.
Going up and down stairs whilst moving between departments or traveling between buildings soon add up.

Or even going round a large supermarket or running around all day after kids .

If your not stuck behind a desk at work you may well be getting some form of exercise .

My mother who's retired still covers around 18 miles a week just doing normal things and walking down to the shops ,sometimes 2 or 3 times a day.
Round here as I've already mentioned as there's a valley running through part of the town it's quite hilly so walking for more than 1/4 mile involves either walking down hill or up hill and most of them are quite steep. I think the High Street is one of the flattest places with hills at either end.

So your 20 minute a day exercise is probably already being covered. I know it's good to do something energetic to work the heart as part of the exercise but it's not always possible. But really any exercise is better than none.

I've known both sides from being extremely fit consuming 5000 calories a day and still weighing in at 9.5 Stone (at 6ft) to piling on the weight after a motorbike crash due to a lack of exercise so I had to join a slimming / aerobics class to shed about 2 stone which brought me to around 11st. With regular exercise I think the last time a got on scales ,some time ago ,I'm around 10st7lb. I don't bother checking as I know from the clothes that I'm not changing much. I know that as long as I don't go any lower I'm still in the healthy zone. When it was noticed that I was getting thinner I did increase the daily intake to cover the extra I was burning.

Apart from the skating most of the exercise is part of the daily routine. I'm up and down stairs a lot .I'm always moving things from one place to the next so covering quite a distance each day. Plus this time of the year the cycling is used more than the car.
I do have gym equipment in the loft which normally involves cycling ,stepper ,and abs. Whilst I'm getting exercise I don't both with the gym stuff as I don't want to over do things.

I'd love more time to go for long walks. The countryside around here is very good and you really can walk for miles without seeing another person or even a car all following the bridleways.
And there are groups that organise rambles if you prefer to be with other but I think most are at weekends.

Getting back to the cycling the next outing should pass the 500 recorded miles since fitting the computer in the summer of 2006. It would have been reached last year if it hadn't rained so much.