Snow, Cold Feet and Utag (s)

As the bad weather continues the and the chances of going out on the bikes is, frankly nil, I thought that I would tell you about a few products that I have found useful.
I have always had cold feet on the bike, even in summer, and I have tried everything to try and counteract and I have finally found somethings that help.

Firstly, there are Mycoal instant foot warmers , which my wife swears by and stick onto your sock, just under your toes and keep them warm for hours - good value too as you will see if you click the link.

Secondly, having read various forums, I decided to change saddles. I don't know whether it's just my shape but none of the Bontrager seats that I have come across are comfortable for me, so I decided to get fitted up for a Specialized Toupe Team BG (Body Geometry) 130mm saddle. Getting measured up was far less intimate than I had thought (you sit on a gel pad and the impression left by your sit bones is measured), but from the moment I I started using it, I could not believe how comfortable it was. Not only that, but the centre of the seat (running along the length) has a groove missing which is said to remove pressure on your femoral arteries allowing more blood to pass down your legs and to your feet. It has certainly worked wonders for me.
The second thing I would like to share is the UTAG, which I have no qualms about promoting to the full, as I have one myself, and I have bought one for Amanda, my Dad and John (my wife's Dad who has vascular dementia).
They are essentially a USB stick that you can have all your personal details on including Blood Group, Medication, Allergies etc. You can add a photo of yourself for recognition and it even has a password protected area where you can put scans of important documents that only you can see.
They come in a wrist band version (Black, Blue or Pink)  UTAG DIGITAL USB SPORTS BLUE WRIST BAND SMALL (BLISTER PACK) ,  which myself and Amanda have, a dogtag version,  UTAG In Case of Emergency USB Dogtag (which my Dad has) and a wallet version which is what John has,  UTAG Ice Card- Usb Safety Information card . Click these link to see them at Amazon. They are also sold by http://www.inmotionproducts.com/ in the U.K


The Wrist Version - also available in Pink

I originally got one because I cycle to work very early in the morning and wanted the assurance that if I had an accident an ambulance crew could find out all about me quickly (all ambulances have the facilities to read the UTAG). My Dad is a keen walker so the reasons were similar, but in the case of John, the reasons were slightly different. John has become anxious and concerned that his vascular dementia may cause him to not be able to explain who he is to people and the worry has increased that he may become lost and not be able to explain to someone who he was or where he lives.
His UTAG wallet card contains all this information as well as details of his condition and medication, and gives him some peace of mind when he is out and about, and he not mentioned this concern since.

Please note if you do purchase any of the items linked from anywhere on this page I will put the monies raised into the charities that I am riding for.

Thanks in advance

Hampshire Hilly Hundred - In December - Alone .........Why???

With all the bad weather that we have been having of late, the "big thaw" (has there ever been an average sized thaw??) is now in full swing, and I thought that it would be good to get out and really shake up my limbs.

I had the idea that I would do the Hampshire Hilly Hundred (normally done in May) route as I already had it in my Garmin Oregon 300 GPS, so I didn't have to do too much planning.

On the Saturday morning, I dragged myself (silently kicking and screaming) to get ready and although the freezing temperatures of recent days had gone, a grey sky loomed overhead. Not the end of the world as I have plenty of kit to keep me warm, but it left me with the common cycling problem of how much to wear so that you are warm enough, but not overly warm when you are climbing. Worse still - the Madone was in the corner looking at me and wanting to go out - really wanted to take him but decided not to because I didn't want to cover him in salt and mud.
So at 8.45am I set out on the Trek 1.2, complete with mud guards, two spare tubes and enough cereal bars to feed a small army and headed for Twyford which is the closest point to the route.

My support vehicle had decided not to join me and instead, headed for equally testing (so she keeps telling me) Gunwharf Quays for a day a of Christmas shopping - hardship indeed....

As I turned right off Hazeley Road, onto Mere Lane I come across Whites Hill, which is a nasty short hill with 17% gradient at one point. It's a road I know very well but was a bit slippy on this occasion, as water ran down the surface. Once safely negotiated, I turned through Owslebury and then right towards Corhampton Golf Course which I was surprised to see was still covered in snow with little sign of thawing.

The route then turns towards Broxbridge and on to the Bat and Ball Pub which signals the start of the climb up Old Winchester Hill, which although one of the highest points in the area,  is not a difficult climb at all from this direction (there are four other routes to the top all of which are tougher). Halfway up though, the bike seemed to be slow and heavy, and I was convinced that I had a puncture - this was a prelude to me hitting what was not "the wall" but was more of a waist high picket fence. I had eaten and drunk plenty but the cold conditions were sapping the strength from my legs and looking skywards, there was no sign that the sun was going to able to get through the cloud. Still, I kept going over the top and descended towards West Meon and over the main A32 and on towards the lovely village of Exton.
The route goes around the edge of Exton as this takes you to the bottom of Beacon Hill and it is the most testing climb in the area in my opinion, as it is fairly steep but also is long enough to mean that you cannot simply overpower it - you have to think your strategy a bit to climb it well.
At the top, fairly tired but pleased with my efforts I saw something that I had to stop and admire - a Red Kite, still fairly rare in England circling low almost directly over my head.

Picture from http://www.northernkites.org.uk/

He/she circled around for three minutes or so, then shot down behind the hedge and rose back up with a small kill in its' claws - truly awesome.

The next stretch of the ride is fairly unremarkable and is there essentially to get you to the North side of the M3, but I was becoming increasing cold and hungry and was starting to curse the small village Christmas fetes that advertised "Homemade Mince Pies" aplenty - but hadn't opened yet. Worse still, there are no more village shops anymore - Hampshire is littered with beautiful villages but none of them have a village shop - curse you Tesco!!

Arriving in Overton I at last found a CO-OP and having stocked up on bananas, snickers and lucozade and got back on and headed towards Hannington and a different White Hill which leads to the long fast descent into Kingsclere - the Gateway to Watership Down.....

....... one of the areas toughest climbs, nothing compared to what you can find elsewhere, but the fact that it arrives at just over sixty miles into the route make it testing enough. A very steep opening stretch relaxes to almost flat as the road sweeps through the tree-lined hill side, giving you just the breather that you need before the final ramp up, which is crippling to tired legs.

The descent of Watership Down is great - long, fast and not too twisting - the only shame is that the road surface is  not great, but it does mean virtually no cars. It also signifies that you only have one climb of note remaining - Farley Mount.

It was starting to dawn on me that, with around 25 miles remaining and the time approaching 3.30pm, I was still along way from home and I had not thought to bring any lights with me (it just didn't occur to me that I would be out that long). Fortunately, Amanda phoned, and although drained from her days' shopping, she offered to meet me on top of Farley Mount with my lights - good job too as by the time I got there it was nearly dark and the prospect of the last part of the ride amongst the traffic was not pretty .....my support vehicle had come through in fine style!

After nearly 6 hours 45 minutes in the saddle I finally arrived home and got stuck into homemade soup and sandwiches - pleased with the fact that I had completed my longest solo ride to date - well chuffed.

Tour du jardin des centres d'Eastleigh

Following the poor weather of late, Sunday 5th December 2010 turned into a grand tour of the local garden centres looking for Christmas presents.
With all the salt on the roads and still some snow and ice, Amanda and myself got on the trusty mountain bikes and headed off into the fog. While not too cold to start with, the thickening mist meant that by 2pm you could feel the air tearing strips of your face - too much even for Nivea For Men's most expensive "Q10" to protect against (cripes .... did I just admit to that?).
Only ended up cycling ten miles but it didn't look as though we would be cycling at all with how the weather has been this week.

I have started to see a dilemma looming - I really quite fancy doing the Fred Whitton Challenge but it falls on the same weekend as the Hampshire Hilly Hundred and it is also the following week from my "Fat Camp" (see previous post).
May have to look into Fred Whitton Four Seasons which I believe you can do at any time sounds like a cracking idea.

Going to Be a Tricky One This Weekend

I was hoping to go out on the bike this weekend but the outlook is pretty grim.

We woke up to 4-6 inches of snow this morning - more than was forecast I think, but undetered, I got the trusty Gary Fisher mountain bike out of the shed and set off, quite a bit earlier than ususal to cycle to work.
Bizarrely enough, once I had got off the side roads it wasn't too bad as there were hardly any cars about and those that had ventured out were being really considerate. 45 minutes later my trusty  Cateye EL530 Power Front Light had lit the way beautifully and I arrived at the driveway into work, to find 8 inches of snow. I had a go at riding through it but there was no chance. The bike quickly slide from under me and I was down - fortunately there was no one around. Got home fine and starting to build myself ready for more of the same tomorrow.
The weekend is forecast for rain so I may have to take the Trek 1.2 out with the guys from the Sotonia Cycle Club. Good guys and they know all the best tea rooms in the Southampton area. :-)