2013 Week 10

Week 10 (w/e 10 March 2013) 
Miles: 110.6

After a promising start, the weather turned dank and drizzly so this was one of those attritional weeks where you have to take your chances when they are presented to you and battle your way to 100.

Monday afternoon was clear, sunny and very pleasant. I managed 16.5 miles in two spurts that afternoon. This became 25 miles once I'd been out and come back in the evening. Tuesday was similarly pleasant, so I went out with my camera first to see if I could find any snaps for this blog. Taking the camera back home, I set off again and then rolled home at teatime with almost 43 miles on the clock. I was back out in the evening, closing the day with 51 miles. Come Wednesday, the weather had worsened and it was grey and drizzly. That chilly eastern Russian wind was back. I still got myself out for an hour, pushing on to 65 miles. This also meant that I sailed through the 1000 mark for the year. I was back out again later that evening, arriving home with 73 miles. A three-day 73? That should have been the platform for a big score, surely?

On Thursday afternoon I got distracted by having to make several phonecalls to Sky TV, so didn't get out on the bike. Come the evening, light rain had arrived. So that was that. Friday was grey and cold. The rain radar told me that there was a band of slow-moving rain heading this way from the south west. It had almost arrived by the time I got out on the bike. Spots became light rain before too long and it was just starting to get firmer when I came home 40 minutes later with 82 miles. There was still misty drizzle in the air later in the evening, but I went out again anyway and arrived home with 90 miles. Only 10 more required and all weekend to do it.

Saturday was again grey and cold. Rain started to fall at the time when I'd usually cycle into town, so I didn't go. The rain was around until late in the evening, but I had an appointment at the pub anyway so no miles were added to the overnight score. At least Sunday afternoon was fine. The bitterly cold eastern wind was a blustery factor I could have done without. Having been delayed by football on TV, I only squeezed in half an hour of cycling in late afternoon, moving on to almost 97 miles. I was back out there at 9:30 pm though, eventually coming back with 110 for the week.

The stats:
Time taken to get 100: Not recorded.
Total for 2013: 1051.8
2013 average weekly mileage: 105.18
Consecutive 100s:6
Miles needed for 6000: 4948.2
Percentage of target reached: 17.53%
Required average weekly mileage: 117.81

Meanwhile, back in 2012...
I did 137.1 miles which took me to a total of 1113 exactly. So 2012's lead is now 61.2 miles, up 26.5 miles on last week.

2013 Week 9

Week 9 (w/e 3 March 2013) 
Miles: 155.8

A week of fine weather enabled me to post a decent score this week.

Monday afternoon? 17 miles. I was back out in the evening to finish the day on 25 miles. Tuesday was clear but pleasant. I went out a little earlier that afternoon and took the photo of the snowdrops you see above. Then it was time for a bike ride. 45 minutes worth took me to 36.5 miles and another half an hour in the evening pushed things along to 44. An hour on Wednesday afternoon landed me on 57 miles and then the usual loop on a misty, cold evening saw me reach 64 miles. An excellent start.

More clear blue skies greeted me on Thursday. This was the last day of February and... it felt warm! 55 minutes of afternoon cycling pushed me along to 79 miles. This became 87 miles by the end of the evening. Friday 1st March was cloudy but fine. I went out for just under an hour in the afternoon and rolled home with the 100 sorted. Always a good feeling to get it done on a Friday. Naturally I headed out again in the evening for half an hour, finishing the day with 108 miles. I cycled to town on Saturday afternoon. I think this was the first Saturday of the year when I made it home in daylight without needing to put my lights on. It's a landmark I always look out for with some pleasure as it means lighter evenings are on their way. As is my way, I nipped out again 45 minutes after coming home, rolling back with 124 miles. I wasn't finished there either, as the third ride of the day later that evening through freezing mist took the total to 132. Sunday was cloudy but fine again. I went out for an hour in the late afternoon, coming home with 146 miles. The final ride of the week took place at 9:30 that evening, when I came gliding home with 155 miles in the bag.

The stats:
Time taken to get 100: 6 hrs 46 mins
Total for 2013: 941.2
2013 average weekly mileage: 104.5
Consecutive 100s: 5
Miles needed for 6000: 5058.8
Percentage of target reached: 15.68%
Required average weekly mileage: 117.65

My weekly average bursts through the 100 mile mark at last! I managed that in week 6 last year. The biggest total of the week so far should have closed the gap on 2012... unfortunately, this time last year I also enjoyed a bumper week with a very similar score of 152.5. So the gap is 34.7.

2013 - Week 8 Graph

Graph for the performance over weeks 5 - 8:

After being passed by 2012 in week 4, the deficit nudged ahead by 54.9 miles in week 7 before being hauled back slightly to 38 miles exactly by week 8.

Totals figures after eight weeks:

2013 - 785.4
2012 - 823.4
1998 - 781.7

So I'm just ahead of 1998 so far.

2013 Week 8

Week 8 (w/e 24 February 2013) 
Miles: 120.4

The first three days of the week were clear and sunny, but cold in the evenings as a consequence. I got the week underway with a 12 mile ride on Monday afternoon and then pushed on to 20 in the evening. On Tuesday I actually had a day off cycling (shock!) but made up for this on Wednesday with another 12 miler in the afternoon (the bitter easterly wind that was probably blowing in from the Russian Steppes didn't help) and then advanced to 41 miles with another ride in the chilly evening. Roll on summer.

Thursday was cloudy but still bloomin' cold. I went out for an hour in the afternoon (57 miles the result) and added another 30 minutes in the evening to end the day on 64.5 miles. Friday afternoon was bitterly cold. My fingers were frozen despite double gloves. I went out for 40 minutes, moving on to 76 miles and then added 5 and a bit at 10 pm to close on 81.5 miles. Saturday felt very wintry. Sleet in the morning gave way to drizzly rain in the afternoon. Despite the conditions I cycled into town and then nipped out again for half an hour once I'd arrived home. I finished the day on 98.8 miles! Egg would most definitely be all over my face had I not bothered to clinch the 100 and Sunday proved to be  a washout... mind you, I would have gone out in lashing rain for just a mile to reach the landmark. As it happened, Sunday was mostly cloudy but fine, so I went out for an hour or so in the afternoon to reach 112 miles, then did another 30 minute loop in the evening to end the week with a comfortable 120 miles.

The stats:
Time taken to get 100: 6 hrs 56 mins
Total for 2013: 785.4
2013 average weekly mileage: 98.17
Consecutive 100s: 4
Miles needed for 6000: 5214.6
Percentage of target reached: 13.09%
Required average weekly mileage: 118.51

It was a disappointingly slow time for the 100 considering that this was my first full week on a newly-serviced bike. Over the next week or two it became obvious to me that over the course of a week my average speed was down on what it had been, by about half a mile I'd say despite the bike desperately needing a service. The comparison with 2012 was even bleaker: in the same week, my average speed was 15.1 mph as opposed to the 14.4 I managed this year. I had a new front tyre fitted as part of the service and my suspicion that I was given a slightly wider tyre than I'd previously had proved to be correct. It was difficult to find the figure because it was printed in very small letters right on the rim, but the new tyre is a 37 mm one as opposed to the 35 I had on previously. It's surprising how such a little thing can make such a big difference, to paraphrase Morrissey.

2013 Week 7

Week 7 (w/e 17 February 2013)
Miles: 112

I finally got my bike serviced this week! About time too.

Monday's weather was clear and sunny and best of all, there was no wind. Unfortunately I didn't get out on the bike. For one thing I was giving it a good clean ahead of taking it into the bike shop the next day so they could price up the service. The weather was fine on Tuesday, so after riding to the bike shop and back I went out into the countryside for a trip, coming home with 19 miles on the clock. I didn't add to that later in the evening, mostly because it was bitterly cold out. Wednesday morning saw some snow fall here, but this turned to rain by the afternoon, becoming heavier in the evening. So no miles were done. Thursday was sunny and felt mild. I took the bike to the shop in the morning and rode it home later, post-service. I then went for a test drive. What a difference it made! I came home at teatime with 36 miles and did another 8 later in the evening.

Friday was mostly clear and sunny. I did a 40 minute ride in late afternoon, advancing to 54 miles in the process. This became 62 miles later in the evening when I'd done the usual loop into the countryside and back. Saturday was cloudy but fine. I cycled into town, then did another half an hour's worth when I got back. Another ride in the evening closed the day with 86 miles. Sunday was sunny and felt quite warm for February, so I went out in the afternoon for an hour and came home with the ogligatory 100 in the bag. Another 30 minutes or so in the evening saw me finish the week with 112 miles exactly.

The stats:
Time taken to get 100: 7 hrs 2 mins
Total for 2013: 665
2013 average weekly mileage: 95
Consecutive 100s: 3
Miles needed for 6000: 5335
Percentage of target reached: 11.08%
Required average weekly mileage: 118.56

10% of the way to 6k!

2013 Week 6

Week 6 (w/e 10 February 2013)
Miles: 102

Monday was a blustery washout, but I got underway on Tuesday afternoon for half an hour, then did another 30 minutes worth in the evening despite light drizzle. Wednesday was clear and cold so I nipped out for 45 minutes in the afternoon, advancing to 26 miles. An evening ride took me to 34 in total. Thursday afternoon was drizzly so that forced me to stay in. However, I got out in the evening for 8 miles, pushing on to 44 miles in the process. Friday's weather was much better, so I took myself out for a good hour and came home with 61 miles. Rain has started to arrive in the evening when I decided to get back out there, but I did another 8 anyway and finished the day on 69 miles.

Saturday was dank and drizzly but I cycled into town on my customary Saturday afternoon trip, then topped that up with half an hour's ride after I'd returned home. I had an appointment at the pub in the evening, so closed the day on 86 miles. It was raining when I got up on Sunday and didn't stop until 8 in the evening. There was also a ferocious gale blowing from the east to contend with. I finally dragged myself out at 9:30 in the evening and came home a bit later with 102 miles in the bag. Phew. Now that's dedication.

The stats:
Time taken to get 100: 7 hrs 19 mins
Total for 2013: 553
2013 average weekly mileage: 92.16
Consecutive 100s: 2
Miles needed for 6000: 5447
Percentage of target reached: 9.2%
Required average weekly mileage: 118.41

The second slowest 100 on record due my still creaking, knackered bike.

2013 Week 5

Week 5 (w/e 3 February 2013)
Miles: 103.5

Back to winning ways this week despite some unhelpful weather and an increasingly decrepit bike.

The week got underway with a wild and wet Monday afternoon. A 30 mph gale coming up from the south west really gave those squally showers an extra kick. Not surprisingly, no cycling was achieved. Things didn't improve much on Tuesday either, with rain for most of the afternoon and then the arrivial of another band of rain at 6, just when I was considering breaking my duck. The evening was fine but blustery. But I didn't fancy it. Wednesday afternoon saw more squally showers, buffeted by the gale that had been blowing all week. The rain at least stopped by about 4 pm so I managed to drag myself out for 9 miles before teatime. I topped this up in the evening to close with 19 miles.

After some heavy overnight rain, Thursday afternoon and evening were fine. The day was still menaced by that fierce SW gale though. I nipped out earlier in the afternoon to take a couple of photos for this blog, then did another half an hour's worth before tea. This took me to 36 miles. I did another 30 minutes worth later in the evening, rolling home with 44 on the clock. Friday saw some more heavy rain around lunchtime, but after that conditions were fine - although the clear skies sent the temperature tumbling. I went out for a 45 minute ride late in the afternoon (to 54 miles), then topped that up to 64 in the evening.

That left 36 miles to get over the weekend and thankfully, the weather was ok. Saturday afternoon was pleasantly sunny. I made my usual trip into town and back then did another half an hour's worth when I got home. That pushed me on to almost 80 miles. In the evening I went to the pub, so didn't add to the total. Sunday's weather was grey and dank, but it stayed fine. After watching Man City v Liverpool on TV I dragged myself out at 6 pm for half an hour, coming back with 86 miles. It was 9 pm before I got back out there to finish off the run chase. The wind had whipped up again in the meantime, which made things a little less pleasant. I got the 100 done but then nipped back home to check my figures. I noticed that if I managed 103 miles this week, my weekly average would rise to the more rounded figure of 90 miles, so I went back out for another 15 minutes to sort that out, rolling home with 103.5 for the week.

The stats:
Time taken to get 100: 7 hrs 30 mins
Total for 2013: 451
2013 average weekly mileage: 90.2
Consecutive 100s: 1
Miles needed for 6000: 5549
Percentage of target reached: 7.5%
Required average weekly mileage: 118.06

The slowest 100 on record due my creaking, knackered bike. You'd think this would push me into getting it serviced, wouldn't you?

Meanwhile, back in 2012...
I did 115.3 miles which took me to a total of 477.7. So the lead is now 26.7 miles, up 11.8 miles on last week.