Pre-Etape Metric

Distance: 100.3km
Time: 3:59:08
Avg Speed: 25.2km/h
Max Speed: 64.2km/h
Calories: 3667cal
Avg HR:136bpm
Max HR: 173bpm
Ascent: 1187m

I've had no time for blogging and little time for training. My weekends have been taken up with relatives and my weeks with the builders who are seeming destroying our home.

A couple of weeks ago I had a pleasant social around Stockbridge with DP. Neither of us had spare tubes, but we got around without incident. I went out on the same loop a few days later to do a fast couple of hours but had an unmitigated disaster. I punctured, cheerfully waived away assistance from a passing club ride, failed to clear the flinty spike that caused the puncture and immediately blew out the first spare. Feeling quite pleased with myself for being well prepared, I dug out a second spare which totally refused to inflate. I was stuffed. My wife would never find me out in the sticks, so I decided to call NH to recover me. No signal. I started to walk.

Thanks to the two cyclist who later passed an bailed me out with another spare. I rode home gingerly. All my lightweight Continental Supersonic tubes are consigned to the bin. I will never be seduced by low-weight again.

The metric was an attempt to get my training back on track. Most of the way I took it easy and just chilled as I rode. It's not too long ago this kind of thing wold have seemed like an event and I would have taken energy drinks, bars, bananas, anything to get me through. This time I just took some electrolyte and stopped for a coffee and toast. Maybe less is more.

June Metric at EveryTrailMap created by EveryTrail:GPS Geotagging