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Blog
Pico Veleta 1, Continental Cycle Climb Challenge 0
Made it to Granada yesterday after a grinding climb up from the Costa del Sol. The first day of the trip was a truly awful experience; There is no way to get across a huge section either side of Malaga without going on dual carriageway.
At one point, I ended up on a Motorway. There just wasn´t any choice – except for a 800-900 mile detour via Madrid. I have no license plate on my bike so I don´t expect to be receiving a non-speeding fine.
East of Malaga the roads were beautiful, and more than made up for the previous day. A climb of 1200 metres (from sea-level) was a sharp reminder of what lay ahead, and served as a reminder to keep the evening libations to the absolute minimum.
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A home from home
Landed safely in Gibraltar today. Thankfully bike survived the trip and was reassembled outside the airport within 30 mins.
Ever the skinflint, I thought I’d bypass a taxi fare to the hotel and walk instead. Had to strap the bike-box to the bike which was totally ridiculous. Being concerned about your appearance and people’s perception of you is the first casualty of any cycle tour.
After an eternity of pushing along bike and box, arrived at the hotel.
Had a little nap at the hotel (was up at 3.30 this morning) and then headed out on Scotty to shake a few cobwebs off. Climbed up the Rock which at over 400m was actually quite tough. Took several wrong turns on the way, so probably climbed quite a bit more than necessary.
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It’s the Final Countdown…
Last post before heading off at stupid-o-clock tomorrow morning. Final preparations are now thankfully complete. I always forget the complications that taking a bike on a plane introduce; it’s time consuming to clean & pack the bike, as well as remember all of the small but vitally important bits and pieces to take with.
Something that I had overlooked was that we no longer had access to the Jeep, and that Fiat Cinquecento’s are little bigger than a mouses’ earhole. Needed to buy a roof rack for the car which has doubled both the value and weight of the little Italian stallion. Bike box fits on snugly enough; I only hope that we don’t take off when accelerating onto the M20.
“I’m desperately trying to figure out why kamikaze pilots wore helmets” – Dave Edison
Economics can sometimes be a much greater agent of social change than almost anything else. It certainly influenced me today as I found myself parting with nearly 25 earth pounds for something that I think is unnecessary, overrated and possibly dangerous.
The European Leg of the ‘Continental Cycle Climb Challenge’, as hopefully you are already aware, is to take place in Spain this month. In 2004, ‘Espana’ decided to make the wearing of cycle helmets compulsory – a fine of 90 Euros payable by those poor unfortunates refusing to comply. Strangely, there are several exceptions in which a rider does not by law need to wear a helmet; if it is hot, if the rider is in a built up area or if he or she is climbing up a hill.
Erm… anyone who has ever been to Spain would know that a UK equivalent list of exceptions would include: – if it was raining, if it was dull and miserable, if there was a steady flow of aggressive and impatient motorists trying to get past, if the kids on the estate were trying to happy-slap you, or launch a stick between your spokes…
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“It takes a long time to become young” – Pablo Picasso
Well, I’m impressed. Hugely impressed. At 35 years old, I was the youngest member of a truly lovely bunch of 19 ladies and gents who turned out in full force for the 75th Anniversary ride this week. A 75 mile ride along the canals and through the lanes of Staffordshire and Cheshire; I’d half expected the distance to be too much and for the pace to have slowed considerably as the day progressed and the tea-breaks got longer.
But these Golden Oldies are made of much mightier stuff, and the peleton moved swiftly and purposefully all day, despite some poor weather and minor mechanical issues.
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“When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race.” – H.G. Wells
Well old ‘Herbert George’ couldn’t have been more on the money. Why is it that nearly all of us ride bikes as children – enjoying the freedom, empowerment and sheer joy of riding – only to abandon cycling at the end of adolescence? What a shame that so many adults forget the simple pleasures of riding a bike. My guess is that pressure to conform and the pressure to consume (cars) serves to undermine cycling as an ‘adult’ pasttime.
Luckily, not everyone feels the same way: There’s a bunch of ‘kidults’ that I’m going to have the pleasure of riding with on the 17th August. My dad and some of his friends are planning a celebratory 75 mile bike ride around Staffordshire. 1 mile for every year of their lives.
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