Countdown to Alpe d'Heuz - 11 weeks to go

Week Ending - April 20th 2008 ........................................................................... Miles to date:- 3790

Monday Morning Stats:- Weight 11 stone 2 pounds ................................................. Resting Heart Rate 48

Not a good start to being 68, 2 punctures in the first 3 miles put paid to a decent training session. So it was a return journey home to repair my punctures and get my bike ready for tomorrow. I lost a lot of weight during last week and so ate a lot over the weekend, probably too much as this morning my weight was 2 pounds heavier than a week ago!

A good Tuesday morning at the circuit, I felt strong and kept up a good pace throughout. Seven riders there today although Brian Tadman was struggling a lot, he needs to get back on his diet.

Very pleased to get two donations today, clubmate Terry Forrest who currently is suffering from poorly knees and Paul Crowe who now lives in Sydney. Paul worked for me as a temp and in 1992 I took him out to Australia and he liked it so much he decided to settle down there. He has a lovely Aussie wife Vanessa and two great children. We will have to visit him there soon. The sponsorship total reached £300 today, another landmark. So being 68 years old feels a lot better today!

My first Audax event of the season run by Rocco. A hilly 105k course through the Chilterns but even more difficult for me as my drinks bottle escaped from it's cage after 3 miles and it took a lot of finding. A hard chase to try and catch my group, I went off course and finally caught them at the lunch stop at 40 miles, I had covered 46 miles by then. No more mishaps and taking into account the ride from home to Ruislip and back I covered 81 miles.

Another donation, this time from Dave and Cynthia Green, they were work colleagues at King and Hutchings way back in the 1950's and 60's. I remember spotting them out together in West Wycombe while out on my bike one Sunday afternoon. At that time they were trying to keep their courting secret but before 9:00am on Monday morning all the company knew! Well it was Hot News and we were a newspaper publisher!

A very pleasant ride in the sunshine this afternoon with my 13 year old grand daughter Jess. She was very good company and we cycled over 10 miles, a record for her. I have not included these miles in my total but I did get to the training session at the circuit in the evening. It was very windy but our group moved well throughout and I got in another 30 miles.

A very windy Friday morning and the circuit is windy even on still days so it was very hard work. Just five of us, Rocco, Brian Tad, Bob and Brian Moon, but Bob was the one who did not seem to notice the wind, he sure made us all suffer especially up the hill into the teeth of the gale! Just about managed 40 miles by the time I arrived home.

More good news my sponsorship has now reached £500, a big thankyou to my Mother in Law, Betty's colleagues at her Gym:- Derek, Pat, Anne, Robert and Paul and Simon Ginsburg my contact at my supporters St George PLC.

Saturday I ventured out with the Denham Nurseries riders but only three others turned up in the windy and damp conditions. I started up front with a very fast Paul Crook and struggled to keep up abreast of him on the flat and was roared off on the slight hill up to Beaconsfield. I managed to keep the group in sight for the next 10 miles but I got caught by the traffic lights at Cookham Bridge and that was the last I saw of them. I completed the circuit although the ride home was into the wind and very hard. Finally recorded another 43 miles.

Weekly Totals:- Miles:- 242.7 Time:- 14 hrs 19 mins 20 secs