North West Passage revisited...........

Last nights meal was everything and more than expected. The cuisine by El Duracell was the finest Chilli Con Carne ever cooked in the long history of Carbisdale Castle. It has to be said, he was ably assisted by Curlie from India, who we picked up just outside Inverness and was visiting the North of Scotland for her first time. Rarely has so much Chilli been consumed by so few in such a short space of time. Carbing up had commenced.

The dawn broke, day 1 had arrived. As a top up for the mammoth day ahead, we drilled into the porridge topped up with bacon slices in croissants. The Wingman was confident we would not be likely to suffer from the swine flu in such a healthy area. We followed the single track route through Strath Oykell crossing the baillie bridge with the water well below the 6ft flood warning. Curlie posed for photos as the Wingman set up the composition at the bridge crossing.

First coffee and scone stop was The Oykell Bridge Hotel. A warm and cheery welcome awaited the intrepid adventurers who had enjoyed a supportive tail wind. The Duracell was heard at one point to question whether the beast we were scaling was actually a hill. Definitely been reading too many of the epic tales of The Ironman!

It was a short 18 mile hop to the An Teallach nr Elphin. A hostelry that had once rescued The Fit One, The Duracell, and the Bigman on a previous North West Passage adventure when the weather had turned ferocious and previous lodges had turned us away at the door. We were due to repay, by enjoying the full bhuna of Scottish fayre. A carb building Venison Madras was the order of the day for Bigman and the Duracell. Wingman opted for a less demanding Tiger Prawns in recognition of the choice The Fit One would have chosen had he been with us.

As if written in the script, the weather closed in, the wind changed from East to West, and the Wingman ( experienced in such meterological matters) advised we were in for a bad afternoon. It was indeed the North West Passage re-visited. Manfully we completed the climbs and enjoyed some of the most spectacular scenery in the world, the clouds providing an atmospheric canvas to an awesome landscape.

The drop down into Ullapool was a welcome sight at the end of Day 1. Almost 60 miles completed, re-hydration was essential and we made our way to The Seaforth for just this purpose. The An Teallach clearly was the choice of Champions. You cannot visit Ullapool without sampling the locally imported Icelandic Haddock from The Chippie. We sat overlooking Loch Broom watching the sun go down without a ripple in the loch, the weather having calmed down since we dismouted our bikes.

The met office forecast for tomorrow is extreme wind with gusts of up to 65mph. I am left wondering how they found out about lunch.

The highland adventure begins.........

.......... and so as we enter the run in to the end of the beginning - the Caledonian Etape .......... the Highland Adventure begins.

350 miles across the most baron landscape in the world, okay Scotland, over 5 days, three men and their machines .......... two bikes and an Audi A6, the Bigman, Duracell, and The Wingman set off with one mind ( the question is whose turn is it today?)

Watch this space for daily updates on progress.

Target destination tonight Carbisdale Castle Youth Hostel and the world renowned Duracell Cilli Con Carne washed down by some apple juice.

To infinity and beyond ............................

A tale of two punctures

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times........

In my own tale of revolutionary nightmares I managed to pick up 2 punctures. The first was the rear wheel on my bike last weekend - the second was on the car yesterday.

I felt a judder in the steering wheel as I was about to cross the Forth Road Bridge and pop that was it rear wheel gone. Forced me to drive across the bridge and park up in a lay by on the Fife side. It took 3 and a half hours to get the car to the garage in dunfermline after myself and the AA had spend ages trying to get the thing off.

Anyway, car less today I had to cycle to Penicuik - 30 miles to a meeting. Of course, I still haven't fixed the puncture on my road bike so I needed to take my old road bike out. I got the bike off a pal who was going to bin it. It's a late 70's model (bit like my wife!) and a bit of a classic (again bit like my wife!!). I'll stop these comparisons as it will only lead to trouble!

So I set off into a bleak April morning. Another easterly wind in my face and followed my pre-planned route through Fife, back over the bridge, down into West Lothian, past the end of the airport and into Edinburgh. At this point I was down to one gear - effectively a fixie. It was a great fun - never had a single geared bike but today's experience tempted me to think about getting one. It was great struggling up hills and spinning crazily back down. Once I arrived at my meeting, a quick change and I was the consummate businessman!

Post meeting, I was heading home when I noticed that my chain was not quite right so passing a bike shop I nipped in to discover that my chain was definetly not right. Now, I fitted that chain as well and there seems to be a link between bike maintenance incompetence and me - can't wait till I'm fixing my mtb in South Africa - many stories are yet to be written.....

The guy fixed the broken link, surprised it hadn't broken entirely and the bike worked a storm after. Bouyed by my fully operating bike I whimped out and took the train home!

So I did about 46 miles - mostly into a headwind on a single geared bike - another grand day out. I'm loving my biking at the moment.

If the weather holds I'll be doing the Etape route again on Friday.....

So despite my revolutionary challenges, I like Dickens, albeit with significantly less talent, have a tale to tell.

Another epic day out....

Yesterday was another cracking day to be out on the bike.

A few good memories include:

• The Route - a classic circular route with some good climbs but nothing too extreme
• The company - as ever the craic was excellent
• The scones in the cafe in Perth were huge and tasted great!
• The climb up Glenfarg with the bigman was stunning - as I began to slow down he powered past me on his Trek Madone gathered me up in his slipstream and took us to the top.
• The scenery - you wouldn't live anywhere else
  

The only bad thing was the slow puncture I picked up somewhere - a few stops to pump it up and it got me home.

I'm convinced that the bigman and I are going to make a good team in SA - we seem to be able to know when each other needs a rest intuitively and we make a harmonious team.

Santiago gets stronger and stronger every trip out and he looked comfortable speeding through Perthshire on his tri bars. The fit one keeps us honest with a turn of speed and strength that is awesome. He can glide along using a low cadence on the big ring (Chainring at the front where the pedals are!) while I'm struggling along on the small ring pedalling like fury.

The ride to Perth (Australia) will have to wait a few years!

Went out for a run today to test the achilles and it's aching a bit at the moment. The Edinburgh Marathon is in more doubt than ever - I don't think I'll be able to run that far given the state of my left foot. We'll see......

Ironman shocker ...........................

After a couple of hill climbs yesterday with Junior II to sweat out the corporate excesses of Twickenham conference centre over the last two days, today was to be the real deal.

The team - The Ironman, Bigman, The Fit One, and Santiago ( a new nom de plume who hales from Aberdour). The sun was up early, the wind was out of the North East however it was not too cold, and we were targetting new ground. A trip to Perth ( Scotland) via Dunning returning by Milnathort and The Cleish. 63 miles all in. The trip would be supplemented by a coffee stop at the Mustard Seed Restaurant in Perth for coffee and scones. The journey started well with the Ironman timing his convergence with the 'usual' meeting place perfectly.

The climb over Mont veKnockhill resembled a Cafe Claik with the chatter from the 'chasing pack' leading to a pedestrian plod at around 12mph. Hardly the stuff of sub 4 hour Etape times!

Up and through one of Scotland's best kept secret glens to Dunning. Beautiful, awesome, inspiring, these words can only half describe the scenery through this glen. Out of Dunning and across the River Earn and it is up the hill to a coffee stop in Perth.

With the North Easterly working in our favour on the return journey through Glenfarg, The Ironman was in awesome form. Pummeling up through Glenfarg for the first time ever, he would not accept we were travelling uphill. In a fit of humility, he declared 'it cant be uphill, I cannot cycle at 30kph uphill'. we breezed up to the summit in short order. At the summit he declared himself to be 'shocked' at how strong he was feeling. I shared some of my humility with him whilst we waited for the 'chasing pack'.

The trip back to Dunfermline was at breakneck speed and not even The Cleish could destroy the Ironman's confidence as he smashed his way across the tarmac, chest puffed out as he past two female walkers, to the tumultous applause of the swaying trees as he crested the summit arms aloft, punching the air with ecstacy ........... ok so now I am getiing carried away!

Today was just one of these days that make cycling in Scotland one of great wonders of the world.

Spin spin and more spin.....

A day of political and bike spin.

With the economy looking like it's about to shrink 3.5% I figure it's time to do some downsizing myself. Only problem is I need to shrink nearer 15%. The Bigman's been shedding weight quicker than Ricky Hatton before a championship fight and I struggle on losing a pound a week (and that's on a good week!).

So with this in mind I rocked up to my local spin class. How do some folk finish spin classes looking better than I look at the start? Not a hair out of place and no obvious sign of sweat. Maybe they are trained athlete's or maybe not trying that hard?

So an hour of sweaty grunt later I emerged as if straight out of a sauna

I bumped into the guy who leads the run class who I think was amazed I'd finished the IM - he'd heard of the Cape Epic mtb race and seemed genuinely excited about it - he's a good guy and offered to help with my achilles problem which was great news.

Planning a route up to Perth on Saturday - hopefully the weather will hold..........

Duracell's Galaxy struggles at warp speed

After a focus yesterday on building upper body strength ( otherwise known as cutting the grass and weeding the clay patch in the garden), it was back to business as usual today....... at least for some of us. An hour in the gym followed by muscle relaxation in the sauna before dashing back to join TheDuracell and A N Other for a 40 mile circumvention of Loch Leven including a stop off at my favourite Perth and Kinross Cafe - Loch Leven's Larder. After an arduous climb over Mont VeKnockhill in a sweltering 18.5 degree heat, we swiftly shifted up a gear aand cruised around the loch gazelle like. The Duracell on his Dawes Galaxy breaks through the wind with all the finesse of a bull in a china shop.

Talking of breaking wind, I have to ask what is the Ironman doing dining out in Edinburgh restaurants when there is training to be done?

The silence of the Earl Grey and mixed berry pie on the veranda overlooking the lochside was only shattered by the sound of The Fit One calling to advise me to watch the Cape Epic Felt video on U-Tube and be afraid!!!!

It was good to get back out on the bike with the Duracell. I was reminded how long it had been when he expressed surprise to see the new Kinross High School almost finished. It had been a field when he had last cycled past this way.

I need have no fear about his commitment and fitness for our forthcoming Highland Adventure - 350 miles traversing the wild mountains of Scotland before heading south along the mountainous west coastline from Ullapool to Fort William and onto Killin befor returning to the Kingdom. ( More of our Highland Adventure to follow - don't miss next week's blogspot)

He climbed the Cleish as if it was a mere pimple in his way, before accelerating to warp speed on the downhill section. The rear mudgard did not cope well with re-entry to sub 1000ft and will need repairs by the Wingman before the Duracell takes once more to the air.

the guy in the restaurant.......

I was out with a colleague for lunch today in a wee restaurant in Edinburgh. The guy working in the place turned out to be from South Africa. I mentioned that I was taking part in the Cape Epic and he did a double take. He laughed as he turned and said he knew a few nutters that had done it before.

It wasn't the nutters comment that scared me - it was the laugh......

and his name shall be 'Bigman'

After much thought Derek's alias is 'bigman'......

Scotland is Awesome

What a cracking day yesterday. Scotland is an awesome country to see on a bike. The sky without a cloud, Loch Rannoch a shimmering deep blue, and the mountains multiple shades of green. There was a bit of an easterly wind however The Ironman 'enjoyed' a tailwind all day.

The primary purpose of the trip was to get personal with the two larger clims up to the Queen's View and also over the Schehallion Shoulder. They welcomed us back with open arms! The Queen's view was scaled with surprising ease. The sign indicating 100yds to go appeared in short order and the glide downhill with awesome views towards Schehallion ove the Loch Tummel were some of the best I have seen anywhere in Scotland. My plan to count the pedal strokes as we climbed Schehallion failed miserably as I lost count at about 536 with a significant chunk of the hill still to go. The Ironman blasted up the hillside and it would not have been wise to be on his wheel for that section. The Fit One was in good climbing form at this point and easily accelerated up Alpe de Schehallion, the mechanical challenges already consigned as a part of history and folklore.

At this point my back started to have a couple of twinges. It could have been the energy gel packed in the rear pocket which would have been better consumed if only I could have manage to break into the pocket. It will need to be fingerless mits for raceday if I expect to take on food. As you reach the watershed before you drop into Aberfeldy, the view is breathtaking. we are indeed fortunate to have such a beautiful landscape on our doorstep. Each of us felt we had failed in the eating department and so the last 20 miles was a bit of head down and grind it out. But not to the point of failing to enjoy the silvery Tay meandering alongside the road with white stoppers every now and again, as boulders sought to trip up the flow. Majestic.

The climb out of Logierait is more of a challenge on raceday as a hundred or so riders who have enjoyed the full width of a closed road squeeze sardinelike into a single track road on an estimated 1 in 5 climb. I recall bleeting sheeplike last year to lighten the sense of humour failure of some of the more serious participants demonstrating some unfortunate bike rage.

75 miles done in an elapsed time on 4hr:15 and the body weight has now dropped to 13st 10lbs.

In summary yesterday reminded me of the camoradory of cycling. Chatting as you ride fast in the peleton. It is a sport about racing against yourself whilst encouraging all around to achieve everything they can on the day. Encouragement of others cost nothing however brings great reward to everyone. It was a great team to be in yesterday and everone was a winner in their own way.

PS Anyone got tips to get stains out of leather car seats? :-)

An epic day out...

Yesterday was a cracker. From start to finish a cracker.

The day started cool and cloudy in Pitlochry as we set off on the Caledonian Etape route. We had decided to skip the 6 mile loop at the Red Lion pub and complete 75 of the 81 miles.

There were 3 of us myself, the fit one and Derek (yet to be aliased!). It was pretty cold as we gilded out of Pitlochrie, well Derek and I glided, the fit one grinded and cracked as his bike gears crunched under pressure. The first climb was telling as, unknown to myself and Derek, the fit one's bike fell apart and became temporarily unrideable. He appeared at the top of the hill slightly frustrated at the gears on his bike as he had stopped to make emergency repairs. Being technically minded the patch up job did the business for the next 69 miles and got him round.

The climb to Queens View seemed easier than the last time which hopefully means that the training is paying off. My guts played up all day and I became aware that a few beers and a curry was not the 'food of champions' to fuel yourself up on for a strenuous ride. I suppose the tailwind was of benefit to me but might not of been so good for those behind when I took my turn at the front!

Once we'd climbed over Queens View we motored along to Loch Rannoch - quick loo stop (you can guess the culprit - didn't take my helmet off in case I bashed my head on the ceiling the way my stomach was churning!) and then we battered down to the end of the loch. We were flying. We paused briefly at the bridge to grab some food:



We turned into the cold easterly wind and headed for the big climb of the day. Schehallion (Sp?) is a long climb but nothing too extreme. We were buoyed, quite close to the bottom of the hill, when we saw a guy with a green Bianche walking - funny how other folk walking a bike up a hill spurs you on! Encouraged by a smile and hello we all blasted up the hill to the top.

The decent was exciting and demanded top concentration - put the wheel in the wrong place and you'd of been off quicker than you could imagine.

The rest of trip, to be honest, was a bit of a slog. We had all messed up our eating strategy and began to suffer from lack of food and the subsequent energy dropping. That wasn't the only thing I was dropping as my guts continued to churn....

We made the final turn, climbed the last climb and headed back into Pitlochrie knowing that we had done a good shift. The fit one had timed us at 4.15/20 on his elapsed time computer (ie without the bog stop!) so possibly not a bad speed over 75 undulating miles. The other two return to face the same route in the Etape in 4 weeks and I'm certain that they will both do really well and beat there times of last year.

A late lunch in Pitlochrie rounded off a grand day out and we all learned a wee bit more about ourselves and each other. We all flagged at different times, needed the support of each other and most importantly finished together. It's good to be in this team!

I had a day off today. I set off for a run but my achilles was playing up.

It will be interesting to get the other guys stories from yesterday. Derek developed a sore back, which was unusual for him so hopefully that will clear up quickly. Fortunately, for all those around me, my guts are back to normal and I have to say that on the trip home there were points that I was grateful that Derek's car has leather seats!

A fresh wind.....

Given that everyone else has an alias on the blog I've been pondering on a suitable one for our friend Derek. Any suggestions by email greatly appreciated.

We met for lunch today, preceded by a wee 50k in the wind. We went down to Culross and then back up the cycle path. It was windy and for once I have to say I was pretty grateful - you may be thinking that I'm so dedicated at this training malarky that I would happily thrash through hurricanes to train to a fitness peak. Sadly you're well off the mark.

I'd say Derek's been training pretty hard this week. He had the air of a man who have been training hard all week. Sadly I had to share the same air......

It was a good quick blast today finishing off with the climb that leads back into the village. It's not a huge hill but pretty steep at the top. Derek's Heart Rate Monitor told him he'd gone through his maximum heart rate but that old calculation of 220 - your age is a bit iffy at the best of times.

So, we're fully sorted for tomorrow's practice run on the Etape course from Pitlochry. We're skipping a few miles but plan to do 75. Really looking forward to the run out. I'll take my usual energy food. I've done 2 ironman races on the same stuff and it works wonders - mum's cake! She made me a race cake for NZ - nothing artificial in it and packed full of energy. I got the strangest looks from 2 elite athletes in NZ when I tried to explain my strange food strategy.....They thought I was mad but then maybe I am.....

Ironman pummels the Aberdour Ascent ..... twice

Today we did 65km on the Aberdour circuit, 30k with the Ironman and a further 35Km when we were joined by 'The Fit One'. It was another cold north easterly. Even 'The Fit One' hardened to such climatic conditions and sporting fingerless mits, was heard to declare 'it's freezing'. However it did not deter the Ironman or 'The Fit One' from pummeling up the Aberdour Ascent as if the last pint of beer in Fife was waiting at the top. It was only a mirage in the fog that hung around the hill. There was no beer. Only the quiet reflection time whilst they waited for my arrival safe in the knowledge they had set new personal bests.

An impressive climb time of 04:35 minutes. I will need to up my game as the Caledonian Etape, otherwise known as the end of the begining, beckons 4 weeks on Sunday.

Whilst the Max HR was stable at 169, the average was down at 124. Conclusion on the school report card reads - could do better. To end on a positive the weigh in post cycle was 13st 13lb. A first for this year.

Stamina building on the Aberdour Ascent

I found some time today to re-visit one of my short stamina building runs including the Aberdour Ascent. It may not be a Dunning Hill gradient however you fail to show respect at your peril. Last year, my fastest circuit was 59mins and 56 seconds with the hill climb stretch conquered in 4mins 53 seconds. Today was never going to be a personal best with a cold and strong North Easterly, the wind was not going to be my friend today. I also made the mistake of choosing shorts over the longs. 'The Fit One' would relish the climatic conditions in shorts, however, for me it was not a good decision.

The traffic lights also conspired against me. I visualised every one green, and should have bet on everyone on red. Who would have given odds on that happening? Probably only someone planning an epic caper!

Against all the odds, the time was respectable at 1hr:04:59 over the 16.9 distance. The Aberdour Ascent section was climbed in 05:02 which was acceptable given the wind conditions and relatively early in the season. The Heart Rate monitor recorded an average HR of 141 with a max of 168 and so room for improvement there .................. even a bit of slacking evident! It can happen when the Ironman is not in your company :-)

With 48 weeks and 3 days remaining, as I pounded the pedals into the full force of the North Sea gale, I focused my mind on every mile completed as an investment in an experience of a lifetime.

Reaching new heights

Fresh from my altitude training in the French Alps, I returned with even greater strength in my legs. Many miles were covered during the six days intensive traning. One day we climbed to a height of 11,334ft. This gave a good indication of the oxygen level we can expect on the Table Mountain section of the climb next year. The days were supplemented with evening work in the gym followed by relaxation in the health spa.

Following John's expoits on his mountain bike on Saturday, we returned to the road bikes yesterday and had an uneventful yet satisfying 35 mile trip mostly on the flat. However, 'The Fit One' did throw in a short, sharp, climb to hone the lungs.

Today, being Bank Holiday, we did a bit of 'hill climb' work and sprint work over a 30 mile course. I found myself cresting The Cleish with gears to spare. It must have been the millionaire shortcake I had at the MilkBar cafe in Powmill. A tremendous array of energy re-juvenating cakes without the alpine prices.

I am convinced the alpine ski-ing last week was a worthwhile trip and has set me up well for the Caledonian Etape race in just over 4 weeks. We are planning a dry run of the 81 mile route this Saturday to measure the pedal strokes to the top of the big climbs, particularly over the Schehallion Shoulder. Bring it on!

Brokebike Mountain (biking).....

Well, having started the year with a focus on the road bike, I decided today was the day to drag out my hardtail (mountain bike with front suspension but no rear suspension). I bought my bike from the Edinburgh Bike Co-op place about 9 months ago and so far I seem to have fallen off it every time I've ridden it. I've broken a hand and badly bruised ribs from previous excursions.

So I quickly checked it, pumped the tyres, pedalled it round the garden, packed it in the car and set off to meet my pal Neil for some genteel biking along the Fife coast. Briefly, in the car I remember my last venture out on the mtb and the memory made me slightly judder as last time out I broke the chain. Rather spectacularly just after Christmas and in the depths of the Yorkshire Moors, if I remember correctly. A quick call to speed dial 001 sorted that as Danielle and my brother in law, Jaff, came to the rescue. I picked up another chain and fixed the problem but hadn't really ridden the bike since. Today was the day.....

It was a cracker, about 12 deg and sun shining as we set off from Inverkeithing Station. The clunking from my back cog was slightly un-nerving but I kept thinking, I can fix when we stop next....

The clunking got progressively worse and worse. No choice we had to stop. We both peered at the mechanical horse through a vacuum of shared bike intellect and poked various bits as if the poking would provide the miracle cure. Sadly, it turns out neither of us had the magic touch but it did cure the clunking. The clunking definitely had stopped, only to be replaced by a grinding. If it was a horror movie, the bad guy was about step out from behind the shower curtain, because the bike gave an oil curdling scream and stopped.

My co-biker, Neil, asked if he could have a quick go to aid diagnosis. Like a skilled surgeon with a blunt scalpel he jumped on my bike and pedalled off. The bike screamed and passed out - bits pulled off in many directions and my rear gear changer thingy (now lying at an odd angle) snapped from the frame. Neil rushed off for an ambulance while I nursed the patient back up to the road. Where were we? How would Neil find us? Questions raced through the red mist of my mind.

I wandered up through walkers and bikers pointing and deriding my bike and shame faced we found the local police station. The police station was very helpful, it was shut. Despite this set back, it held the key of an old black and white map which, with a quick call from Neil, led to my ultimate rescue. Although his car was making noises that I could only imagine my clunking bike would have been proud of.

The shop was great. They asked which clown had fitted the chain. I lied and said it was a bike shop, but I know the truth. It was me. I suspect they knew it was me as well. The link that I had used to join the chain when fitting had broken because it was badly fitted causing the chain to catch the derailleur and break it off the frame. He fixed it all for the cost of the parts which was fantastic. He also fixed all of the other dodgy things I done to it in the 9 months of my possession.

So my 2 hour bike trip turned in to 30 minutes with 4 hours to fix the bike!

Back on to the road bike tomorrow with Derek and Stuart. Home ground, safe territory and a bike I haven't touched!

I've had better training weeks.....

It's Friday night and I've not been on my bike since Saturday when we did a windy 50 miles - back out tomorrow with a couple of pals.

Off to a conference next week so hopefully the gym will have a decent spin bike so I can do some 'sufferfest' podcast sessions. Great podcast that gets the legs working, heart rate up and plays some great music - I love it.

We're thinking about supporting a charity as we both feel that this is a massive challenge. We hope some of our friends and colleagues may feel that they would like to support our charity and feel part of the trip. We'll pay all our expenses and so anything we do raise will go directly to benefit our selected charity. So which charity?

I can't believe that I'm so excited about a race that is still12 months away!

John

Day 3 - In the heat 353 days to go

With a scorching 18 degree heat ........ well it is for Scotland........... Derek and Stuart (hereinafter referred to as 'the fit one') took to the roads of Fife this afternoon for a small 40 mile outing, however a blistering blast around the Kingdom. We managed to find time for a coffee and scone at the finest coffee shop in Perth and Kinross - namely, Lochleven's Larder nr Scotlandwell where we both have loyalty cards demonstrating our commitment to serious training.

'The Fit One' has agreed to take on team management resonsibilities and made a commitment to pulling together a marketing plan to maximise publicity opportunities and develop a training schedule to make sure we peak next March.

On the calendar already is the Ring of Death around Ben Nevis mountain range. The Fit One means business!

Today was another small step to a massive challenge