Skip to main content

Fresh Air Fix

It's been so long since I've been out on the bike.  I also had the perfect excuse for making it a bike outing rather than a hill one - I had a new bike to test out :-)  I was very fortunate to do a swap of mountain bikes with my dad.  He had treated himself to a Trek 6000 back in September but wasn't getting on with the geometry of it due to his arthritis in his spine.  So he got my old Alpine Bikes Ben More which has done a fair few miles and been my trusty commute to work bike for a few years and I got the shiny new Trek.  Think I did very well out of it.
Trek 6000 2011 Version
For this outing Steve decided he'd try out my Cube Nature as the GT has been playing up and we haven't got round to sorting it out yet.  As always, the weather man had quite got it right.  There were more showers than we had been promised (none) and the wind was a tad more fierce.  The route planned wasn't that ambitious anyway so off we set down the NCR 73 heading for Seamill, we knew where we were having lunch.  So off we went into the headwind.  As we reached the section which is sandwiched between the Firth of Clyde and  the railway the evidence from the recent storms was increasing.  There has been a lot of coverage of this section on the TV as it makes a good shot with the waves crashing over the trains.  Then came the fly in the ointment, ROAD CLOSED.  Fortunately for us, the storms had damaged the barriers so we were able to sneak through and saw what had caused the closure.




The lure of The Waterside was strong so on we pedaled.  Riding along the shore was certainly exhilarating and bloody hard work so we were more than ready for refuelling when we eventually got there.  Afternoon tea for two :-)


The Afternoon Tea For Two taken on an earlier visit with Craig
With 2/3rds of our feast eaten we asked for a doggy bag for our leftover cakes to take home for later.  Needless to say the journey back was a breeze, taking half the time to get back.  Verdict on the bikes.  Steve loved the Cube.  I'd better watch he doesn't try and acquire it!!  As it's been way too long since I've been on a MTB I did struggle with the geometry so will need to keep tweaking it.  Other than that it was a great ride for first time out.  Fingers crossed the weather stops being so naff so we can get more fresh air fixes.   

                     


Comments

  1. Is everything on the rack included in the Tea for 2 ??. If it is I may call to that establishment myself :o).

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yes Stephen ALL the food on the rack is for 2. This was the second time we've had it and both times we've come away with a doggy bag. Price is reasonable too at £14.95. The other plus is it's proper tea in the pot that gives you 2 big cups. Well worth the visit.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Nice day out.

    Can't wait to get back on my bike again when the weather gets better. Really can't be bothered getting up earlier in the morning to cycle in pouring rain and freezing temperatures, but gonna get back on it for my commute in Spring.

    That meal is even more impressive than the one we had in Yorkshire at that outlet place!

    "Steve loved the Cube. I'd better watch he doesn't try and acquire it!!" hee hee

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Creag Meagaidh MISSION ACCOMPLISHED

Creag Meagaidh has been on the to do list for so long. The past couple of years have seen us have to abort at least three attempts at the last minute because conditions weren't for us. So were we going to get it done this time................. YES  The weather bods said mostly dry with a risk of potential showers later in the day.  It was warm so even if it did rain it would be warm.  Off we set having smothered ourselves in factor 50 and Smidge. Warm they said.......... baking I said!!!! We had decided our ascent would be via Coire Ardair and The Window to ease us into the walk on a good path.  It felt more like a slow roasting.  It is a gorgeous walk out to Coire Ardair on a very good path but as soon as we were out of the forest the heat and humidity kicked in.  When we reached Lochan Coire Ardair there was only one thing on my mind, getting my boots off and getting in.  It was at this point I began having major doubts as to whether we woul...

Time Marches On .........

Life has changed considerably since my last entry to this blog. Steve's Parkinson's diagnosis in late 2018 may have meant resetting some goals but it hasn't stopped us having adventures in other ways.   Completing the West Highland Way when Steve retired in April 2022 was our last significant hillwalking challenge. The risk has just got so great. .  COVID lock down I discovered Zwift. Now I had my safe way of pushing my limits and even racing.  This opened a whole new world.  As we stepped back from the hills, Steve's table tennis sessions increased along with my cycling Through an aborted attempt to attend a table tennis event in September 2022, we found ourselves inadvertently setting up our new regime for time away - somewhere with stable weather where I can safely cycle which also has table tennis in the hotel and hopefully at a local club. We now have a few destinations on rotation Alcudia, Altea/Calpe, Lanzarote and Paphos.  Steve started entering tab...

Ben Lomond - 8th time lucky

This was my first Munro so many years ago I can't even remember when. It's my local hill. But until today I'd never had a view from on top. There have been days in the past when I knew on leaving the car park I wasn't going to see anything. That was fine, I just wanted out on the hill. It was the days with the promise that I'd get my view and didn't that fed my love hate relationship with this hill. January last year was the last time we visited just after a huge dump of snow. It was a mini epic due to leaving too late, loads of fantastically deep snow and coming down in the dark - fun :-D The forecast had said best south of the A85 with cloud base over 1000m, maybe today was the day I would get a view. The route was inevitable, via Ptarmagin Ridge. For me the tourist route is only ever for descent. One day however I will try out ptc* route as it looks like fun, just not this time. From the drive in we could see that there was still a good covering of snow. It...