cottages4you blog: inspiration for your cottage or villa holiday in UK, Ireland and Europe

Friday 28th – Trying to stay aware from booze so I went for a 12 mile bike ride whilst Mark went to the bar – lovely evening and I felt proud of myself for avoiding having a drink!

Sunday 30th – 8 mile walk with friends, 2 pubs and 3 pints of Guinness, then a little more to quench my thirst when I got home…will suffer tomorrow.

Monday 31st - Solo bike ride – read an article about Bradley Wiggins not having had a drink since New Year so I am in trouble!  15 mile bike ride – average 13.1mph, definitely suffering a little from overindulgence!

Tuesday 1st - 3 mile jog and average is back to 10 minute miles, oh dear I seem to be going backwards…   Wednesday 2nd 12 mile bike ride 1st thing – still at 13mph but a bit windy – yes in my face again and if I get to hot and bothered before work I look like a tomato for the 1st hour!

Thursday 3rd - Nothing today – T.V. was actually free for once so I caught up on what I had Sky+!

Friday 4th - Again I thought I’d go out on the bike instead of the bar! OMG!  The rain came down so hard it felt like a million rubber bands twanging on my skin!  It was bouncing off the floor and my glasses flogged up, the silt off the lanes was all up my legs and down the back of my shorts, I had to peel off my clothes….please can everyone pray for a mild, dry, wind free cool day on the 26th?

Jackie is training for the National Cyclo-Sportive at this month’s Pendle Cycle Festival. Find more info on the event website.

Fri 28th May - 1.5 hours.

Absolutely nothing to report about this ride.

Mon 31st May - 2.5 hours.

Should have been 3 hours but held up by another mechanical problem. If you’re riding in the event, don’t come too close to me or you may catch my bad Ju Ju.

Wed 2nd June

20 minutes to work, 70 minutes back from work (no mechanical problems, just went the long way ’round) and then 60 minutes after my boy had gone to bed. A strange way of doing it but thems the breaks.

Thu 3rd June

To and from work then back out later for an hour. Cycling to work is pretty good, I’m already planning to do it in the next School Holidays.

Fri 4th June

To and from work again.

Sat 5th June

Family party in London. Possibly undid all the good work of the last month. Prosecco and beer, not the choice of the athlete.

Ben is training for the National Cyclo-Sportive at this month’s Pendle Cycle Festival. Find more info on the event website.

The unconventional starting formation is apparently being "worked on."

Ladies and gentlemen may we proudly present the cottages4you team for the National Cyclo-Sportive at this month’s Pendle Cycle Festival. The event, which is also being sponsored by cottages4you, will take place on the 26 and 27 June.

As well as being a fit and willing bunch, one team member, Matthew Harvey, actually created the delighful tops you can see in the picture above.

With that level of talent we suspect they’ll be the team to beat on the day (although accusations of bias wouldn’t be completely unfounded!)

The team, including managing director Geoff Cowley, will probably be too busy climbing the steep inclines of Pendle to appreciate the stunning views on the day but at least they will be doing it for a good cause, the local Pendleside Hospice.

Geoff said:

“cottages4you has sponsored several major bike races in the North West over recent years and we are delighted to be supporting the 2010 Pendle Cycle Festival.

“The team has been in training over the last few months and we hope to raise lots of money for the hospice. It’s a great cause and should be a fantastic weekend for all the family.”

Now that we’ve got pictures of them in lycra there’ll be no backing down, so good luck to the team and everyone else taking part in the weekend’s events!

You can find more info on the Pendle Cycle Fest website.

Two of the cottages4you team have been blogging about their training regimes. You can find out which team member looks like “Nora Batty’s lycra clad grandson” (their words) on the cottages4you cycling blog.

Posted by Ben Webster, cottages4you

Sunday 23rd

Set off at 10.30am with Mark, no sun cream and what huge mistake!  I managed to get as red as a tomato due to the pace he made me go and also got lovely red sunburn round my arms and thighs, back home at 12 and the temperature was 28 degrees – mad dogs and Englishmen comes to mind!

We went from Barnoldswick to Rylstone via the main roads, very busy on the A59 (past the Race for Life at Broughton Hall) and B6265, back home via Hetton and Bank Newton 25.5miles – most cars gave us a wide berth but the odd one seemed to want to get a better view!  I had 3 phrases – ‘watch out car’, ‘I’m alright I’ll catch you’ and one I can’t repeat. Managed to spit out 2 flies whilst gasping for breath but swallowed one!  Mark seemed to think I should improve my average mph from 12.5 and although I was still suffering with my cold I finished on 13.9 mph, struggled to get off the bike though, can’t seem to swing my leg round and get off smoothly so think I’ll need to be lifted off on the 26th June!

Monday 24th
12 mile solo ride, tried to take my own videos but sound like I have emphysema and don’t think you’d find it interesting!  Average back to 12.5mph.

Tuesday 25th
Feeling energetic so up at 6.30 for a 3 mile run before work!  Wow it’s cooler today.

Wednesday 26th.
12 mile ride again before 11am start at work, very cool today, sunburn fading!

Thursday 27th
Photo shoot at work – great to see everyone together in our lovely shirts – only 2 absent……

Lots of curious looks and questions from colleagues, quite a few looked at me like I was crazy though.
My mother-in-laws birthday so I rode to Nelson over ‘over the tops’, fantastic views, very windy though, why does the wind seem to always be in my face? Keep wondering if this is a sign to put me off but I am really loving it, honest. Average now 13mph!

Fri 21st May – 1.5 hours.

Inspired by the good weather I go out 2 nights in a row. Found a new hill to ride up near Cowling. Very nice all round.

Sun 23rd May – 3 hours.

Had planned a longer ride but my rear wheel had an EPIC FAIL and I was left turning the pedals without moving forward. Had to be rescued by my wife from what she described as the ‘middle of ******* nowhere.’ I also ran over a ferret / stoat which was carrying a mouse in its mouth at the time. I felt David Attenborough should have been narrating. Went to the top of Tatham Fell which is on the 100 mile sportive route, it’s nasty, brutish and long.

Mon 24th May – 1.5 hours.

Put the spare wheel on the bike and had a quick spin to get the miles in I missed yesterday. Broken wheel now in the shop. Expecting a hefty bill.

Tue 25th May

Wheel not repairable. Tears. Real tears. Replacement is £340. Sticking with the spare.

Wed 26th May – 1.5 hours.

Got soaked. A man in an ark passed by in the opposite direction. 10 minutes later it was sunny.

Thu 27th May 

Cycled to and from work. 25 minutes each way, so not too much of a stretch. We had a photo shoot of the team for the National Sportive. As we were riding the 5 minutes to get to the shoot in work time, it occurred to us that for just a few minutes we could think of ourselves as pro cyclists.

 Thought for the week: Would it be cheaper to take up golf?

Sun 16th May – 4 hours.
A small victory! 4 hours in the saddle without getting a sore backside! Rode the 60 mile route for the sportive (more or less, I didn’t have a map.) It’s got some lovely views, but you do have to cycle to the top of some big hills to see them. The descent of Waddington Fell is fantastic, very easy to do 45mph +.

Mon 17th May – 1 hour.
Easy ride to stop the legs from seizing up after the big ride.

Thu 29th May – 1.5 hours.
First ride if the year in really good weather, lots of cyclists on the roads, lots more sat outside pubs. I was a good boy and kept riding.

3 thoughts for the week:

1. Why is every cyclist I meet in the Ribble Valley called Dave?
2. Why does the Sun only seem to come out when I’m going up a long hill and not when I’m coming down the other side?
3. How many midges is it possible to eat in a one and a half hour ride and does it count as one of your five a day?

Great news – I now have a strap on gel saddle courtesy of my father-in-law Mick! Absolute bliss!  Highly recommended and appreciated!

Not been to well this week – full of cold so I haven’t been out since Monday but I now have the inspiration after watching an evening with Mark Beaumont  at the Burnley Mechanics – he cycled the world and also cycled from north to south America with saddle sores and 40 days of headwinds but didn’t give up! So now when I am feeling tired and sore I think of his journeys.

View Mark’s website here.

Only local rides last week  – 9 or 12 miles but on Monday 17th Wendy I did approximately 40 miles with my colleagues Wendy and Aaron.

We meet at the White Bear in Barrowford and cycled up to Barley, then round the first half of the route to Waddington Fell. We timed ourselves to see how long it would take to get the the summit – Aaron and I have done it before but Wendy was a first timer! Wow – the sun was shinning, wind in our face though but we all managed in one attempt to get to the top in 30 minutes – I now have a speedometer so could watch the distance ebb away.  Great feeling when we got to the top!

Aaron had a great idea to video us going back down (will upload soon) – so off we set and got carried away watching the speedometer that he couldn’t catch me – I got up to 45.4mph and decided I had better brake as I didn’t want to go
back up and start again!

Got our shirts on Wednesday – a little tight but we will all look fantastic on the day!

5 weeks this week-end!

I’m hoping to gain a couple of mph once I can go for a ride without 3 tonnes of winter clothes on. I’ve only done one ride this year in shorts. Of course when / if the shorts finally do come out, there’s the perennial question of ‘to shave or not shave?’

This is what I’ve been up recently:

Sun 2nd May – 2 x 2 hour rides. 2 hours to a children’s party, 2 hours back. Sore down below. After struggling over hills earlier in the week, I decided the best course of action was to avoid them. Got lost in Keighley.

Tue 4th May – 2 hours. Hilly. I used to like going up hills. Ironic moment of the week: Went over a ‘SLOW’ sign, I was doing 4mph.

Thu 6th May – 1.5 hours. Only one hill, still struggled up it. Confidence is not high.

Sat 8th May – 1.5 hours. While Bradley Wiggins was winning stage 1 of the Tour of Italy, I was struggling to get as far as Skipton.

Sun 9th May – No idea how long. Ride on the Leeds and Liverpool canal towpath towing my 4 year old on his ‘trail-a-bike.’ ‘Look Daddy no hands!’ ‘That’s OK Felix, but not in traffic!’ It was good for practicing my balance if nothing else.

Tue 11th May – 1.5 hours on the coldest May night for 15 years. Got soaked, could barely hold the handlebars for shaking. This is meant to be fun.

Planning a long ride for this weekend to try and make up for the lack of miles this week. I’m moderately concerned about getting around the course now.

Ben Boardwell, cottages4you

Please click here to read part 1.

Click here to learn more about Pendle Cycle Fest.

Training going well – bits aren’t wobbling as much except for my legs when I get off my bike!

I am either cycling or jogging 5 days a week – I have done a couple of 30+ mile routes over the Bank Holiday weekend – managed 31.5 miles with Mark on Sunday to Settle via Paythorne and Rathmell – wind in our faces all the way there! Think I am going to need a gel saddle to cope with the uneven road surfaces - we all know the amount of potholes in our roads have increased over the winter, they are noticeable in a car but on a bike they are so hard to avoid as you can’t swerve to avoid them in case you have a  car closely behind you!  Also gravel makes you skid, flies affect your vision and birds are suicidal!

Monday – 12 mile bike ride, up Salterforth Drag, to Blacko, Brogden and home.

Tuesday – 9 mile – Greenberfield, top of Brogden and back

Wednesday – 3 mile jog, new PB 8.59 minute mile!

Thursday – 5 mile jog.

Friday – rest!  Bad headache – need to drink more water!

Saturday – 5.6 mile bike ride working today so rode to work and back.

Sunday – 31.5 mile bike ride to Settle with Mark – Barlick to Settle via Paythorne and Rathmell…and back!

Monday – Aaron (who’s also from sales and doing the 60 mile route) and I met at the White Bear in Barrowford and did part of the route – climbing into Roughlee, Barley, up the side of Pendle, Twiston, Downham, Grindleton, West Bradford to the top of Waddington Fell – all 1122 feet of it – I was cursing all the way up – again wind in our faces – we had to stop to compose ourselves at the Moorcock for the final ascent – then when we got to the top it hailed on us!  Great feeling riding back down though! Home a different routeand 36.5 miles, a lot of caravans testing our balance too!

My legs hurt but the feeling of completing these rides has made me determined to carry on!  My mum wonders why I am doing this but the support I am getting off colleagues,friends and family is brilliant!

Jackie Bonsall, cottages4you

Click here to read part 1.

Please click here to learn more about Pendle Cycle Fest.

When not working as a business analyst at cottages4you, Ben Boardwell is in training for the National Cycle-sportive event at Pendle Cycle Fest. In his first training diary he details his slightly unusual training regime, which has so far included watching cyclists on the French Riviera and renting a shopping bike.

We’d better let Ben explain this one himself…

I took up cycling 7 years ago after watching Lance Armstrong win the Tour De France for the 5th time, I realised that as long as you didn’t decide to ride over the Alps or Pyrenees, it was largely easier than walking. After a year or so of pottering around on an old mountain bike I bought a shiny Trek (it’s what Lance was riding at the time) racing bike and decided I’d like to have a go at the ‘Etape du tour’ sportive ride.

The Etape is an annual event where 8500 alarmingly fit, garishly attired, people ride a stage of the Tour De France. It was quite hard. It also cost a lot of money, but I loved it. Consequently I’ve tried to do at least one ‘challenge’ ride each year which have taken me back to France, to Scotland and most glamorous of all, Stoke-on-Trent.

I’ve put off riding the National Sportive course in previous years as the course looked too hard. It may well be too hard, but seeing as we’re sponsoring it…

In the last month I’ve been ill and then gone on holiday with my family, so riding has been at a minimum. I thought that a couple of weeks of the bike wouldn’t affect me too much, but it turned into 3 weeks when we got stuck in France due to the volcano. To make matters worse I had to watch 100’s of cyclists touring around the French Riviera each day. It got so bad I rented a shopping bike and took that out for a few hours. http://tinyurl.com/39b6c2l . The outfit comes with the bike.

My recent riding is a follows:

France:

Wed 21st April – 2 hours on a shopping bike in Nice, tried to catch 2 pro riders who were taking it easy and having a chat, I couldn’t get close, got odd looks from the tourists.

Britain:

Mon 26th April – 1.5 hours on shiny best bike. Felt surprisingly good. Wore my expensive new shorts which don’t fit properly, looked like Nora Batty’s lycra clad grandson.

Tue 27th April – 1.5 hours on not as nice bike. Felt OK. Vikki Haydock spotted me with a ‘light on my head.’ Which was in fact, a light on my head.

Wed 28th April – 1.5 hours shiny bike, not so shiny legs. Hilly. Tired.

Please click here for more information on Pendle Cycle Fest.

Click here for more information on Pendle Hospice, the dedicated charity for Pendle Cycle Fest.