Made my day

[Fecn]

Picture the scene...

It's a beautiful sunny day and you decide to go out and get some healthy exercise. You slide into your lycra shorts and don your bright red lycra top.
You load up your most attractive bulging bum-bag, strap your helmet on and head for the roads on your racer.

An easy start through the centre of town gets your legs warmed up, then you head for a long steady 4-mile climb up to the top of the North Downs.
Rounding the roundabout at the foot of the hill, you pass some guy and his kid on the cycle path messing with their panniers, but you're on the road anyway as the cycle path is a bit too rough and ready, and it's a pain to stop at all the junctions.

The hill steepens and you're really working now, beads of sweat beginning to form on your brow and then you hear a child laugh to your left.
Before you even get to look round, you've been overtaken... by some guy on the cycle path... wearing jeans and a big wooly jumper, with two full panniers... and a child seat.. and a two year old.. riding one handed.

"Woah... Steady on there chap!!"

As you can probably guess... I was the one on the cycle path. I doubt the smile will be wiped off my face anytime this weekend.

 

[flecc]

Great fun Fecn! I suppose he had the usual grumpy thoughts about "cheating" though.

I thought of riding up there myself as the weather was so right, but I went walking in the countryside instead, my other interest. I did have a cycle ride later though on a utility trip.
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[Fecn]

Great fun Fecn! I suppose he had the usual grumpy thoughts about "cheating" though.

Almost certainly he did as I shouted back 'Don't feel bad, I'm cheating' and pointed to my battery.

However, having thought about it some more on the rest of my ride, I decided that I wasn't cheating at all, but merely had different objectives. He was out for some healthy exercise and that's just what he got. I was out to take my daughter to the park in Oxted, and that's exactly what I did. The ride down through the woods at Titsey is lovely right now, and my little 'un had a lovely time in the park. The ride back up the hill again was a bit more 'warming' but that's exactly the reason why I have power-assist.

 

[Vikki]

A lovely story

It leads me to ask: I wonder if he was out for some healthy exercise or whether his objective was something very different. I have no doubt some people take up cycling to gain some exercise (especially in this age of alleged obesity) but what other reason might he have had? I bet most are into the man and man powered machine blatting along and having a good time and seeing how fast and how far they can go - for free. Just themselves and their own limits and pushing those limits. Like cycle rides I used to go on as a kid with my friends. It was the fun of it all and not getting any exercise (at that time ).

Anymore? We have exercise, we have fun, we have commuting/utility. Ooo! Risk taking - mountain biking etc. Anymore?

I'm looking forward to the warmer weather so I can take a nice ride out to nowhere in particular. Take some sarnies and some pop with me and I'll be well away. Hayling I think as that's a nice run round from crossing on the ferry to up the Hayling Billy line and back round the long way

Vikki.

 

[flecc]

The ride down through the woods at Titsey is lovely right now, and my little 'un had a lovely time in the park. The ride back up the hill again was a bit more 'warming' but that's exactly the reason why I have power-assist.

Yes, I like that area very much and, newsworthy at present as it's his centenary, it's little wonder Charles Darwin settled at Downe House alongside there.

My days of tackling Titsey Hill on a normal bike are long gone, and sometimes I think I must have been mad doing it!
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