Not so glamorous

I got an interesting response to a Facebook post the other day that got me to thinking about the glamour of cycling and the lack of it in my version of the sport. For anyone who has watched the track and road cycling this year will have seen the fancy bikes, riders with immaculate kit and the support cars etc. And, above all, the riders look so comfortable on the bikes often riding along like it is the easiest thing in the world. Of course occasionally we see a long break or some serious effort on a hill, but again it still looks pretty good. Maybe it's all the sunshine they seem to get.

Compare this with my efforts. And perhaps yours especially if, like me, you are relatively new to this lark. I make my own flapjacks and prepare my own drinks. If I'm out for a long ride I have to carry replacement energy powder and find water supplies and more food (or carry it with me). The shopping cuts into the riding time I assure you. Comfort stops are ok, they are relatively short but shops take time. I carry tools and spares just in case I have a "mechanical". Or I find a bike shop as I had to when I broke a spoke.

And then there's the actual cycling. A mate of mine said he'd seen me the other weekend. Actually he said he'd seen me working hard. When I asked where he'd seen me I didn't remember working hard there at all. So goodness knows what I look like when I am working hard. I'm guessing it doesn't look good. Let's be honest looking good isn't easy when there's some spit dangling from your mouth as you put in a hard effort. And I bet my face is red too.

That brings me to the subject of food. Easy to carry. Less easy to eat. I'm fairly adept at getting it out of my pockets and unwrapping it. I can even rip the top off a gel and get the sickly liquid out. Not so skillful(and the subject of the above Facebook post) is my ability to breathe in what feels like large lumps of flapjack and then spend the next mile or so coughing until it pops out. Or doesn't as it goes. That probably makes my face go red too.

And at the end of it all, I come back home and have to clean my own bike, put it on the stand and fix it up as best as possible so I can do it all again. No racks of replacement bikes and parts with expert mechanics for me.

Definitely not glamorous, is it?

However, I was made to feel happier when I watched the excellent documentary about Bradley Wiggins, A Year in Yellow. He still has to get up and go out training on his own. He suffers away on the turbo trainer in his shed. It didn't look so glamorous either.

Fancy that, I may have something in common with Bradley Wiggins. I'll take that.

Disclaimer

I have to make it clear that I have excellent home support. My Significant Other much more often than not provides recovery drinks, food, clothes washing services and great, great encouragement. And I was humbled by the support she provided on my trek across Scotland earlier in the year. A couple of days when I did feel a little like a pro. The support car had just about everything I would ever need in it and even a spare bike on the roof. So I really can't complain on that front.

And I love being out... If you don't do it already, try it and find out if you can find your own love for a lack of glamour.

Post work ride

Generally I like to ride my bike in the morning. Often before work which, at this time of year, entails riding in the dark. I've found I quite like riding in the dark but I've always wondered if it is tempered by the fact that I know it is going to brighten up because by riding in the morning I have the promise of the dawn. Last night I got a chance to test this. A set of circumstances meant that if I wanted to get this week's mileage under way it would be best if I rode in the evening, after work.

As going home time arrived I began to get quite excited. I was looking forward to the new experience. It certainly was a very new experience as I arrived home (in the dark) and then got changed, put the batteries in my lights, grabbed some food and drinks and headed out. Normally this process is done straight from sleep and has become a bit a routine but there was less routine about this and more adventure.

As I cycled off it was still pretty similar to my early morning sojourns. But, of course, this didn't last long as there were more cars and people around in town which gave the start an unusual air. Despite being lit up like a Christmas tree (more about that later) three girls still managed to cross the road without looking and I had to swerve around them to keep us all safe. While ninja cyclists (no lights, black bikes dressed in black) are the bane of many motorists lives, ninja pedestrians are becoming the bane of mine. Please, please, look both ways before crossing the road.

Another pedestrian gave me a bit of a fright as I exited town and the comforting street lights. On a piece of road with no pavement suddenly this pedestrian loomed out of the darkness. At this point I thought it was going to be one of "those" rides. A little later on I realised why I had been caught so unawares; my front light has 4 settings and I had only set it on 2 for my trip round town; there's no need for much more light in town. Out of town this meant I was sadly deficient in the light down the road department. Once corrected I was pleased to see I had plenty of visibility.

Then the riding started in earnest. A headwind made for slow progress, but I didn't know how slow. This is part of the fun of riding in the dark. You ride on feel and not by the numbers. In the light I would be checking my cadence and my heart rate were ok for the terrain, and checking the speed to see if I could compete with the pros yet (it's never going to happen...). But in the dark, even with the computer on, you just ride. In general I think it makes going up hills slightly easier. There's less incentive to look up the road so less chance of being dispirited. I find I just ride the gradient. Downhill is a different matter. There's no doubt about the fact that you have less visibility so I find that I temper my speed on descents where I might otherwise really go for it. I don't find this a problem; I tend to freewheel or just keep the pedals turning over but with no real push to increase the speed. I just let the bike run and if I feel the need I can scrub some speed off using the brakes. It's all part of the fun.

Last night's ride brought another bonus. There seemed to be less traffic than I meet in the morning. And what there was treated me with such respect. I was genuinely surprised. In the morning I seem to get caught in traffic that's in a hurry, desperate to pass under, seemingly, any circumstances. Not so last night. lots of space, slower speeds. All good. The only traffic surprise was meeting another road cyclist going the other way. A nice bright light on the front of his bike so I suspect we saw each other's beams long before the realisation that we were two bicycles. I was glad to know I wasn't the only other idiot.

After riding roads punctuated by a good number of settlements, Strathkinness, Blebo, Pitcottie, Ceres, Cupar and back to Pitscottie, I headed away from civilisation towards Peat Inn and a trip across a very un-populated road. I have to say that this was the highlight (and where I met my friend the cyclist). The views of the stars and distant Edinburgh made such a change from how I normally perceive this bit of tarmac. Just fantastic. I think it also helped that by this time I had the wind at my back.

On my descent into St. Andrews I was treated to the sight of a fox bounding across the road and then jumping over the wall on the other side. Agile, graceful and the only bit of wildlife I saw all evening.

This ride was a serious amount of fun and I would really recommend lighting up and heading out into the night. Perhaps across Scotland at night next time?

The Ride

The Tech

In case you're interested, and even if you're not, here's my choice of lights.

• Front main - Hope Vision 1. With good spread and distance. I've just got another one and that should give me plenty of seeing power and some redundancy.
• Front backup - Cateye HL-EL220. I use this in both steady and flashing mode
• Front flasher - Small emergency flasher on the fork. Hopefully it helps people see the bike. It also lights the wheel up.
• Rear main - Cateye TL-LD1100 - double light. At night I used both strips in fixed mode, but there's all sorts of combinations. And it is seriously bright.
• Rear backup - Fibre Flash strip light. On the seat stay this lights up the entire rear of the bike.
• Rear emergency - Cateye TL-LD130/150 . Attached to me I have this in flashing mode.

I usually also carry my head torch which has both white and red modes in case of absolute emergencies. And also if I need to repair a puncture or the like.