Clockwise or Anticlockwise?

Been thinkin. - yeah yeah i know two days running - dangerous huh?

So given the choice does one cycle clockwise or anticlockwise? For me there is only one answer - Anticlockwise wherever possible.

Why? I hear the masses cry

Obvious - all left hand turns therefore minimise slowing down / stopping time - keep the bike moving and therefore keep speed up.

Now isn't that just what everyone would do - or is it just me?

Commuting v. Training?

So there I was out on my bike this morning on a training ride, with time to ponder, contemplate and generally put the world at large to rights, when I began to consider the issue of commuting and asked myself the question:

What is the difference between commuting and training?

Now before you rush in with a gut reaction, consider my situation - most days I choose to take a circuitous route into work, I live about 2 miles from my place of work yet end up doing in excess of 25 miles most days on my commute. Now broadly speaking i would consider this to be a commute on the basis that the ride has a clearly defined beginning and end, and the main purpose of the ride is that i end up at work or conversely at home after completing my day's work. However considering the mileage clocked, I would put up an argument that it qualifies as training too (being the sad git that I am I time myself from A to B every time - wherever A and B might be!).

Training for me tends to be a home to home route, usually of 20 miles plus often way more, (again timed) and may take in varying terrain, or have a purpose eg maintaining cadence, hill climbing, tempo riding the list goes on. But whatever the definition of training is easier to nail than commuting.

Can they co-exist as per the first scenario above? Are they distinctly different, and therefore mutually exclusive? Or is there some magic point that is reached either mileage-wise or time-wise etc when one mutates into the other?

Answers on a postcard...

Training Update Week 3

180 days to go until L2P24...

Progress so far:
Mileage this week - 180
Mileage year to date - 331

Most mileage in one ride - 35
Most mileage in one day 55 (not the same day)
most seperate rides in a day - 3

Fundraising is at £180 - 10%  of the target already so thanks to all who have contributed so far

Interestingly for those of you who don't know i have cycled London to Paris before in the more conventional time frame of four days, in 2007 so just for fun and maybe as some kind of incentive or equally a beating stick i thought i mght compare my mileage back to the preparations then, and to date i am 50 miles or so ahead!

2 complaints this week - firstly why a month after the Winter solstice is it still so dark in the mornings? secondly it is also damn wet!

Have booked in to the Norwich 100 and have also got my eye on the Norfolk Huff and Puff both rides ideally positioned at the beginning and end of June respectively - 2 centuries back to back will be good for the training and an assessemnt of progress at that point.

In the TDU, Sky wrote the headlines at the beginning and the end, with Sutton and Henderson providing the places again on th last stage, but Andre Griepel and Columbia HTC stormed away with the title for the 2nd time. Good to see the boys from The Shack on the road too - early days though, way more to come.

Rest day today (the Pro's do it so why not me!?) but back into it again next week.

Enjoy!

Sky's the Limit?

First race = 1st and 2nd - bodes well for the future! Henderson and Sutton (Team Sky) lead home the field on Sunday in the TDU warm up race. TDU itself starts tomorrow.

94 miles completed personally this week, hopefully will increase again this week and gain some kind of momentum too?

L2P24 almost full only 5 team places left as at earlier today - hurry hurry hurry!

Just need to get a training programme together, plus invoke a few centuries / sportives.

New Year, New Challenge...

So following on from the new years resolutions:-
One long distance ride arranged - check. (see above graphic) - which actually lends itself to achieving the others too!

So the challenge teams of 2 cycling in relay from London to Paris in 24 hours! each team member will cycle around 200miles in total, metaphorically passing the baton from team mate to team mate along the route. Full details of challenge here
The ride is fully supported by Action Challenge and is in aid of Scope.

The sweetener is that the Sunday (which we get to spend in Paris) is the last day of Le Tour which we will get to experience - oh yes another one of thos 101 things to do before you die sorted then!

Again I have teamed up with Simon and our awe inspiring team name is the "Roaring Forties", the roaring bit could be down to our bravado or what our muscles will be doing come July, and the forties bit a reflection of our age!

So personal performance wise, the snow kinda tripped me up last week, but still did around 60 miles, although felt sluggish most days, Wii Fit impressed me this morning telling me it realised i was 39 so well done Nintendo - spot on! Weight came in at 75kg / 165lb so am still 4 lbs above target - that'll come. Hopefully the thaw will set in this week and mileage can consolidate / increase?

In other news TDU starts a next week - looking forward to Sky and the Shack et al performing for the first time.

Lots to write about now so keep checking back for updates.