30 Aug - 4 Sept Palamos & over to Hendaye

Thu: caught 830 flight to Barcelona, picked up car and drove straight to Palamos Harbour in rain for Mo's  per-birthday lunch on La Bosca boat in the old fishing harbour, we got there at 2pm just in time for the first course.  Lots of wine and excellent food, we left at 5pm to drive to Hotel Rosa del Vents.

Popped to La Traviata for an light evening snack and more wine.  I don't remember anymore of the evening.

Fri: up early for morning swim.  Went to Decathlon in Platja d'Aro to buy car bike rack - failed but bought 2 folding bikes for the apartment.  Assembled my bike.  Out to birthday dinner at the meat  restaurant at the top of the hill.  Lots of food and wine, walked back around midnight.

Sat: up early and cycled up to Romanya, lovely views,

20km round trip, legs felt Ok.  Then went round to appartment and went for swim in sea.  Left at 1 to drive up to Adrian and Di's place outside Calonge for Mo's surprise lunch.  Full waiter service with marquee on lawn, lovely old restored Mas, Great food, I didn't drink because I was driving.  Left at 5 and got to the Vic Parador at 7, overlooking lake but rather lacking in character.

Sun: Great breakfast.  Went to the Decathlon at Vic, to find it shut on a Sunday, stupid me.  Then over to the Parador at Sos de Reyes Catholica via nice tapas lunch in Huesca.  Walked around disney like cobbled town on hill side.  Pre-dinner drinks and lovely meal.

Mon: Great breakfast again.  Via Pamplona Decathlon to buy rear bike carrier, plus usual extra goodies.  Sea food lunch overlooking San Sebastian fishing harbour.

Then to very friendly hotel Biriatou just outside Hendaye where we met up with the others and had an excellent but slow service dinner.

Tue: Lazy morning. Took car back to airport and cycled back, only 6km!   Drove to Decathlon with Keith & Frank for more goodies, then found raciones for lunch in Harriabia near to sea front - very typico.  Cherry walked up to the village in Biriatou and found a super ethnic auberge with pelota court where we all went for dinner - great food and unlike the previous night great service.

25 - 29 Aug: Final prep for the Raid

Sat: Coffee in vill with G&N, then I drove off to Hay-on-Wye.  Decided on way that I needed better tyres so nipped off at Witney and found a bike shop and bought 2 puncture resistant 700x24C with some tread.  When got to Hay, parked at bottom of hill and changed tyres, then rode up to top of Gospel Pass, it wasn't too bad for one of the '100 Greatest Cycle Climbs' in the UK.

view over over side down to Abergaveny

17km in 1:10hr with 461m of climbing.
Straight back down to car, then off to Bala!  Found campsite, cycled into town for a lamb stew dinner and 1 pint, then down to sleep in back of Rav4 (v. comfy and cosy) at 9:30pm.

Sun: Woke at just before 6, up at 7, off to start - very crowded over 600 entrants.  Off at 8:40.  First hill was Hirnant Pass (another one of the 100) which was long but not too steep, so went well.

Almost at the top of the Hirnant

Had a word with the legendary Frank Kinlan (his weightloss and Garmin blog http://frank.kinlan.co.uk/ was inspirational to me in Bahrain) who was struggling and bailed out on a couple of steep bits - I lost track of him for the rest of the day.  Very busy at controls and feed stations, but I had my own supplies.

queue was for food, not control, but you didn't find this out till you got to the head of it

My lunch stop

Up we go again!

Lots of ups and downs, some very steep sections (17 and 20%) to finish with Bwlch-Y-Groes, the highest tarmac pass in Wales.  And it was.  To quote: "arguably the hardest section of relentless steep tarmac in Britain".  I walked some of it, as did most others, even the cycling club peletons broke up and many walked - people saying "dig deep" didn't work for me, I dug as deep as I could.

Near the top, only a short push to go!

Looking back down, notice people pushing

Then a glorious fast 10 miles downhill and along the lake back to Bala.  134km in 7:50hr moving with 3,100m of climbing.  This was the hardest day of cycling I have ever done.

Straight back home via A5, M54,M6 and M1 in 3:30hr, no probs with traffic.

Mon: Enough is enough.  No exercise today.

Tue:  Cycled to Watford along Ebury Way, back along roads through Croxley, with Mrs M, managed to squeeze all the shopping in my backpack.  Only 15miles.

Wed: 45mins spin @ William Penn, good session of intervals.  Then out to Hit or Miss pub at Penn Street for lunch, which was a Miss as they had a full house with a wake, so went to the low key Squirrel round the corner - nice fish and chips.  Bromptoned up to Victoria to see John to plan Pyrenee walks at the Cask pub.  Too many pints consumed today!

18 - 24 August

Sat: Up to London with Nigel to see C&L's new flat in Caledonian Road.  Lots of trains!

Sun: Cycled to C&L's for afternoon tea and back.  Hot day, but not as sunny as forecast.  108km in 5:21 but only 1150m climbing:

Mon: G duties, relax with Jon then take him to the airport at 6pm.
 Nice lunch
Tue: Tour of Surry Hills, the route of the Audax last Sunday that I couldn't do.  Drove to Shere leaving at 7am.  116km in 6:20hr on bike with 2,200m climbing, gosh it felt like that!

Had nice lunch in tea shop in Shere,  V. nice countrtside, lots of views.

Wed: Rob was picking up my bike to take to Spain, so had to clean and pack it, plus load up a rucsac for the walking week.  Then cleared out some books for Nigel, pottered around.  Seemed to loose a day as I thought it was Tuesday.

Thu: Got out old steel white bike and early ride to JJs Cafe.  Puncture in Chalfont St Giles from a very small flint.  Good tea and bacon sandwich, then home feeling a bit weary , only 39km in just over 2 hours with 450m climbing:

Spent afternoon prepping the No 2 bike (alu giant - it doesn't have as low gearing as the modified Charge Juicer but that should be a good test!)

Fri: Packed clothes etc, need to be prepared for any weather, keeping adding more options, this is getting silly, far too much being taken.  G to hair, pick her and N up after coffee.  Wait in for parcel delivery.  Final checkout of bike, adjust saddle height since I changed the saddle yesterday.  Syced myself up for the next days rides.

11 - 17 Aug

Sat:  Walked to vill for coffee.  Bimble to Chesham to change t-shirt in Millets, 25km and 360m heigt.

Sun: Up early to go to the "Devil in the Downs" sportiv near Horsham.  A number of sharp steep ups in the first half, then long climbs, good views form Devils Dyke on the South Downs and finally a nice glide back to Dial Post.  Weather excellent & sunny but not too hot.  Was pretty exhausted, but felt good.  Ate lots at the end!  122km in 5:42 moving, 6:14 elapsed with 1500m of climbing.  A good training day.

Mon: G to dentist in morning, then short ride to Denham in the afternoon, 30km in 1:40 with 460m climbing:

Tue: Out early for the long easy climb up Bryants Bottom - was thinking of going further and up Knop Hill, but felt I'd had enough and had to get back to take G to the Dentist.  54km, 2:45 and 560m:

Wed: Out to Thame (tea and bacon sandwich for lunch) and back up (long climb) and then along Bedlow Ridge, an area of the Chilterns I had not been to before - nice smooth ridge road and good views, but then a few climbs to get further east.  Rained for an hour, but stayed warm.  88km in 4:27 moving with 930m climbing.

Thu: Spin class at 6:40 (!), then bromptoned into London to Kensington Palace,

then, when it stopped raining, across to Globe

 to see Mark Rylance in Richard III (brilliant)

then pushed bikes along embankment to dinner on balcony at Oxo Brassiere

Fri:  Up early again to pick up Jon at T5 at 6, then dropped Dr M at Hillingdon.  J to dentist at 8 in Ricky, I went to Waitrose.  G to hair at 9, then down for coffee with J and N at 10:30.

Busy morning!
Went out for quick ride in afternoon to Boxmoor with a few up and downs, 37.5km in around 2 hrs with 650m:

4 - 10 August:

Sat - Olympic fencing @ Excel.  Afterwards caught the Emirates cable car over Thames

Sun: New relatives over for tea, so prepped for that in the morning.  I went for a 2x run on Common, 5km in 35 mins.

Mon: Cycled to Ricky PO to pick up packet.  Then proper ride was to Dunstable Downs via Bison Hill an d back via Ivinghoe Beason.

72km, 1160m in 3:43, so with earlier ride and piece before I switched on the Garmin (!) make 85km in total

Walked to vill, then it started to rain.

Tue: Cycled to Hyde Park to see Triathlon.  Not easy to a) cycle into the park itself and b) find anywhere to see anything decent.  Saw the swim at a distance, then cyclist going by.

Somewhere in there are the swimmers!

Damm, camera clicked after the leaders (Tean GB) cycled passed!

Was cold so caught the train back and watched the end on the TV - Browleee gold and bronze! 38km in 1:42.

In evening Mr P(hotographer) took me to William Penn to try and get some action water droplet pictures when I was swimming, here's a sample:

Wed: Ran to gym (4k) then 45 mins spin, then 1500m swim, then walk/ran back.  In evening, to NT to see Simon Beale in Timon of Athens - excellent

view from hungerford foot bridge over Thames

Thu: Relaxing day - walk to vill for coffee, then took Nigel out to pub lunch at Red Lion in Coleshill - nice and quiet, good food. 

As it was a lovely summer's evening, on whim got tickets for Regents Open Air Theatre to see their musical Ragtime - disappointing as it was rather ponderous without any likeable characters 

Fri: Lovely sunny day, a first!  Planned and executed a big ride out to Princes Risborough to do the hills there:

93km in 4:44 with 1,900m of climbing.  I'm slow up the hills, but make it.  Bacon sandwich and tea for lunch at JJs at Tylers green, v nice

29 July - 4 August: Olympics training

Sun - G&N for lunch.  Watched ladies road cycling (lizzie Armistead Silver!) and 400m ladies freestyle (Rebecca Adlington Bronze).

Mon - Frank & Bronwyn arrived and went straight off to Lee Valley for the canoe salom.  I went for a ride to try Whiteleaf (supposed to be one of the hardest in the area and in the "100 climbs" book) and Pink Hill.  Found then OK in the lowest gear.  66km, 1000m climbed, 3:19 hrs:

Tue - Out to Dancers End, Ashton Hill and Hale Road.  Not nice weather - damp and cold rain showers, stones on road, slow. 65km 1190m climbed, 3:50

Wed - Sarratt hilly intervals - North Hill to the Cock six times plus a few more, over 600m climbing in 1:31.

Thu - Olympic Tennis @ Wimbledon.  

Fri - Gore Hill and other side of Coleshill down to Wycombe Road 3 times -  46K, 1000m climbing (!) in 2:35.  Felt OK