TRAINING CYCLE #1

"The purpose of training is to tighten up the slack, toughen the body, and polish the spirit." ~ Morihei Ueshiba

I rarely feel kindly towards the alarm clock; less so at 7.30am on a Sunday. But today I was due to put in some decent miles on the first of my long training rides. I was accompanied by my mate Ben - on foot, as he is training for several ultra-races over the summer (and is clearly a little out of his mind - probably a good motivator, I thought).

There's something magic about cycling through London when the majority of the population is in bed asleep. The streets and roads are devoid of crowds, and at that time of the morning the air even seems cleaner. I had plenty of space to ride my way along the South Bank, past the National Gallery, the Tate Modern, and pass under the London Eye. (Also, six years in London and I still get a thrill every time I pass Westminster...) 

Travelling under Westminster Bridge brings you through to "stage two" of the river route, following the Thames Path most of the way through to Battersea Park; only once or twice having to deal with roads (and once having to carry my bicycle down some steps). Love the wide green spaces in Battersea Park - I could cycle around there all day. From Battersea all the way through to Wandsworth Park, where some chaps were playing cricket, and this seemed like a good place to stop for an energy bar.

Did I bring my camera? Yes of course I did. Did I bring the battery for said camera? No.
So thanks to Ben for some iphone snaps.

Pushed on a little further to reach Putney then carried on along the river, past the rowing club, and crossed onto the wooded dirt path which follows the Thames all the way to Richmond. Even at this time of the morning there were a lot of walkers out. (Must only be the city folk who sleep in.)

Trundled past the gorgeous pubs and enticing icecream vans at Richmond, and eventually reached the edge of Kew Gardens, where I had to stop and rescue a family whose double-baby pram (complete with two gurgling babies) had a flat tire. Does pay to carry a pump. "All in a day's work, m'aam!" Everything aching, I pushed on further and eventually reached Teddington, where I parked my bicycle on the train for the return to Waterloo station.

I had cycled for 3.5 hours, and covered a total of 21.5 miles, plus the final stretch from Waterloo to home, which brings me to 24 miles all up! The last time I covered that kind of distance was when I did a cycling trip across the Czech Republic - and that was three years ago! So this was a big jump for me. By the time I had finished my legs hurt. My arms hurt. My derriere hurt. Yet if I'd had to carry on, I think I actually could have.

For me, the most important goal is not necessarily the distance covered, but the amount of time spent in the saddle, so to speak. I know I can cycle the distance to Paris, but can I spend 10 hours sitting on my bicycle? In my first day of training I have managed a third of the saddle time my first day of the London-Paris cycle will require, so baby, that's progress.