Smashing week off!

With 11 days off work there's plenty of acitivity this week and a lot of Lee update too! 

This lovely thank you card came to us from Katy Dynes. If you're interested in her stuff you can see more here Kitty Dinners Illustration

After a quiet Monday, our friend Sandra came to visit on Tuesday. In preparation our house became an episode of bake off. 

quiche

trifle 

marmite sausage rolls

chocolate courgette cake

On Wednesday Lee and I had a lovely adventure in the Peak District. Firstly we went to Parsley Hay Cycle Hire Centre to pick up a Huka Duet Wheelchair bike.

This magnificent contraption was so much fun and enabled Lee and I to go for a bike ride together. 

As you can imagine, a bike twice the weight I normally ride plus another person sat on the front is neither maneuverable or easy to ride. The 12 miles at 7mph were some of the hardest I've ever ridden and at the end I was soaked in sweat. However every drip was worth it's weight in gold because Lee absolutely loved it!

The Tissington trail is perfect for this type of riding and it was great to see it being used by families as intended. I'd like to try the other trails in the area too and have found a 76 mile route taking in the Monsal, High Peak and Tissington trails. 

After that we went to Bakewell for some lunch and to buy a variety of tart products. We had to park on the edge of town so Lee had a longer walk than planned. It was nice though. After that we did a drive through of the Chatsworth House before heading home. The day really took it out of Lee and she struggled to get from the car to our house when we got home. However she thought it was worth it too!

On Thursday we finally got to use the vouchers for Beckworth Emporium. 

The eating out didn't stop for Lee as she was taken out on Friday by Cousin Sam and Angela. They took this picture especially for the blog!

So all of this would lead you to think that Lee is having a lovely time. In a lot of ways she is. However this week she's been even more tired. She is also sore and achy all over. Some blood tests have revealed part of the answer as her iron and folic acid levels are low! At times this week Lee has really struggled to stand up and she ran out of energy ironing a dress! The long slow recovery continues!!!

Time to switch to the cycling bit. 

On Monday we took the Cyclones for some hill training. The venue was the infamous Neville Holt. We did the hill from Drayton, then from Medbourne and finally we went round to Great Easton and up the Devil's Staircase. All very good training on a lovely summer evening. I rode there and back for 34 bonus Monday miles.

On Friday night I plucked up the courage to enter a Friday Night Summer Series mountain bike race. I put this off all summer and then decided to go for it. 

I absolutely loved it! My aim as ever was not to come last! I made that in the V50 category by just one rider but I'm more pleased than that. My secondary aim is to get as many laps as the majority of riders achieve. The top riders in each group managed 6 laps, I managed 5 so I'm happy with that! It's also inspired me to enter the Leicestershire cyclocross league. 

thanks to Liz Bird for the pictures 

With very heavy legs on Saturday morning,  I joined my good friends from the Cyclasylum for a group ride. Ten of us set out from K Town swimming pool for 40 ish miles of good riding, banter and setting the world to rights!

This was an incident free ride out to Tilbrook until Richard G got stung under the eye by a wasp! Luckily he's not allergic but it's still not a nice thing to happen!

By the time I got home I'd done 57 miles for a weekly distance of 119 miles! All good for the #NHS1000miles and #NursesActive challenges!

Today it was junior parkrun as usual and I did my best not to mess up as run director. We were low on kids today, probably due to the bank holiday. By contrast we had so many volunteers we ran out of hi vis jackets! As this week's RD, that makes me very grateful!!!

In other news the Vuelta continues, we've had the MTB World Championships and The Paralympics is a great watch! My highlights this week were the fabulous Evie Richards winning the Rainbow 🌈 bands and The GB Wheelchair Rugby Team taking gold. 

Number 1️⃣3️⃣, unlucky for some! 🇬🇧

But not @eviee_alicee, it usually means a rainbow jersey awaits 🥇 #ValdiSole2021 🇮🇹

2018 🌈 2021 🌈 pic.twitter.com/gxMJOImXkt

— British Cycling (@BritishCycling) August 29, 2021

Happy Pedalling 

Determined-Lee, Creative-Lee, Wise-Lee

Well what a week it's been. We had a crisis, a birthday, some tough stuff, some good stuff and a lot of activity! I'll start with Lee and end with all my cycling nonsense.

Lee's hair continues to be affected by her beta blockers. However with help from Brad at Queens and a new colour she did herself, she's got a nice short style which looks great. 

My plan to get loads done at work before 11 days leave came to a grinding halt on Tuesday. I was out for a run before work when my phone went crackers. Lee was calling me to tell me that our daughter Níamh was in Leicester Royal A&E. She had been out clubbing with friends and ended up being picked up by an ambulance in a confused state. It's likely that she had her drink spiked. Níamh was in A&E for about 10 hours, after initially being treated as if she was just a drunk silly girl, they realised there had to be more to it. Tests were inconclusive so we'll never know the truth. However the thought that someone tried to deliberately harm my daughter fills me with dread! Niamh after some shaky days is doing better now but I think this will affect her for a long time. 

Wednesday was a better day as it was Joe's 24th birthday. We had a lovely evening with a Thai Garden take away (locals will KNOW!) A good time was had by all and I got to make fire in the garden!

Our youngest, Sam, is very pleased his Mum can drive now. He'd been getting a lift to his girlfriend's house in Geddington with me before work. Now Lee can take him he can have a lie in! That's good for Lee too so she can build her driving confidence.

In other Lee news, we have picked up her new inhalers and are waiting to see what difference they make. Apart from that it's continued daily walks and recovery exercises. She's had a couple of days without an afternoon sleep and we've discovered this is NOT a good idea. Lee still needs that extra rest  or she pays for it the next day!

Yesterday was a good example. I returned from my ride insisting we needed to head out to Scotch Farm, where I had stopped for coffee with the group. The kind lady running a hand made card stall, had given me a mask and I wanted to go back to repay her kindness. More on that in the cycling section...

Lee picked a few cards and then noticed these lovely pictures. With a generous discount that mask ended up costing me £214 with an order for Christmas cards at a later date! I don't begrudge a penny of that, the stall holder and artist Katy Dynes is a lovely lady. She had even sketched a picture of me whilst I was waiting for my phone to sort itself out (also more on that later!)

We went from Scotch Farm to Tescos and it was clear that Lee was exhausted. It's just so easy to do too much! 

Onto the next section. It's "what the Lindsleys ate." You know we had that Thai Gardens on Wednesday. On Monday I arrived home from coaching to the nicest fish dish.

This is a lovely grilled Salmon with a delicious rice. 

As well as the Thai food, Lee made this salted caramel cheesecake with toffee popcorn and pretzels. Just wow!

Sam is a lucky boy because I make these sausage rolls for him every week. Lee and I get one each for quality control. This week I added marmite to ours. Delicious! On Saturday night I made a pie with slow cooked beef in a red wine sauce. That worked well too, I didn't take a picture!

Lee and I have a few plans for next week. I think it will be a great week together. For now...it's time for cycling stuff!

On Monday we held a family ride for the cyclones. It was a lovely evening having a gentle spin around Stanwick Lakes.

I didn't get a ride in at all for the rest of the week but I did get all my walking and running goals ticked off with the dogs. My furry friends bring me so much joy. No matter how bad my mood is, it's always improved after a dogwalk/run!

On Friday I helped out at a Mountain Bike race. Here in Northants/Leicestershire we have the oldest MTB Cross country race series in the world - The Friday Night Summer Series. This week was at East Carlton Park - hosted by Rockingham Forest Wheelers. This was a superb evening with great racing and a lovely sociable barbecue afterwards. Well done to all involved. 

 

On Saturday morning I woke up in one of those stupid moods which put me off cycling. However "Wise-Lee," knows better. She told me to go out, that I'd feel better for it and that I'd enjoy myself once I'd got going. Lee was absolutely right. I met up with The Cyclasylum for a 42 mile trip to the south of the county, taking in Bozeat at it's furthest point.

It took me a few miles to find my legs but once they warmed up I was having a lovely time. As ever the banter flowed as did a number of enlightening chats. 

As previously mentioned we stopped for coffee and food at Scotch Farm near Earls Barton. Firstly I didn't have a mask and sensibly they're still insisting on those. As you know Katy came to my rescue. Then my Barclays app decided not to work. That's when I was being sketched. Finally I sorted that out only for the shop's card reader to stop working. Eventually I paid for a latte and piece of carrot cake with PayPal! Thankfully everyone else was having cooked food so mine was ready at the same time! What a ridiculous drama!!! 

We had our usual race to Harrowden before splitting up. Four of us cycled on to Broughton before I ended up solo. Making light(ish) work of series of hills through to Loddington I decided I might as well keep going for another 100km fondo. On the way back I passed the Triangular Lodge at Rushton so I stopped to take a picture of this piece of history. It's a fascinating building...find out more on the Triangular Lodge here

Sunday morning as usual was junior Parkrun duties. Myself and Matthew, the event director were on time keeping. So what could go wrong? Quite a lot actually, Matthew double hit start meaning we had an early time recorded. Then I hit the wrong button meaning I lost all my times after just two runners! What a pair of clowns!!! Luckily Matthew fixed it and we move on! I won't make that mistake again...

 

Needing just 27 miles to complete my 100 miles for the week I set off on my favourite route around the Welland valley. I took this 30 mile loop at a very relaxed pace. A bit of a recovery ride really! 

As well as beautiful rolling hills there's lots of interesting features. I'd love to know the story behind this clock tower in Baston.

The bridge to the church has always fascinated me in Medbourne. I hadn't seen the plaque before but it explains that the structure is a medieval pack horse bridge.

Then just round the corner I saw this steam engine!

For me this is all part of the cycling experience. You see way more stuff on a bike!

Okay I think that is enough!

Happy Pedalling 

Another positive week

You know the drill. Update on Lee and then into my cycling blog. Lots to talk about this week so let's get to it!

Some big appointments happened for Lee this week. On Monday it was checking in with the GP on a gazillion things. Lee had a list prepared so pity the poor doctor! First up was cardiology and we've been told to go back to them! Next up was the long covid service and our GP has agreed to refer. Then Lee told him she needed her potassium checking, so we got a blood test form. Finally she asked about her assessment for driving. The answer was: "as long as you feel okay there's no reason not to drive!" The GP also said he felt that respiratory was key to Lee's treatment.

So Lee has driven. Not my car...sorry this is a bit of a staged photo! She has been out in her mini though! I guess that means I don't have to take it for a spin to work once a week now! A real shame I love that car in sports mode!!!

In mahoosive news our son Sam got his GCSE results. 

The clever chap got everything he needed and will start A levels in the 6th form in September. It's been tough for all the kids but I'm especially proud of Sam. Whilst Lee was fighting for her life, Sam got his head down and worked hard! As a reward we have bought him an Apple watch! I got quite emotional about all this and after we got the results I was good for nothing for the rest of the day!

On Saturday Lee had her long awaited Respiratory appointment. The news is good. Her lungs are recovering! The consultant has prescribed new inhalers and this will aid her recovery further. It's still going to take months but the consultant believes Lee will make a full recovery. This has given us so much hope!

Today Lee has been out with her most splendid friends from FORJS (friends of Rothwell Junior School.) The lovely ladies have long since left that committee. As you know our youngest kids are in their GCSE year! However this lot have stayed the best of friends and took Lee out for lunch today. It is what she needs and I'm very grateful to them all! 

After her ladies lunch Lee needed a jolly good sleep! I'd say that was a good way to get tired!

That's the Lee bit done...it's time for the cycling stuff.

On Monday we tried to do a structured coaching session with cyclones. However the pesky weather had other ideas. We did somehow make it work though. It's weird but we worked something out, had a lot of fun and it just felt great! 

On my return Lee had prepared yet another superb fish dish.

This was hake with Orzo. Another highlight in this week's "What the Lindsleys ate," was our seafood paella last night! This beauty has chorizo, prawns, scallops and mussels. 

My cycling didn't work quite as I expected this week. I went out on Tuesday for a standard 17 miler and then didn't make it out again until Saturday. I also didn't manage a run all week! So by Saturday I had the tall order of cycling 80 miles and running 7 miles to reach my weekly goals!

I did consider joining the early birds on Saturday and then running parkrun. However my cycling friends at cyclasylum decided that early birds started at 6am this week so they could get 35 miles in before the main group ride! So I ditched that idea!!! Instead I decided to forget parkrun and go for the 47 mile cyclasylum ride. I'm not sure what's wrong with us! We used to be happy with a 30-40 mile ride on a Saturday morning. Now it's 45-50 and if that's not enough go to early birds first! 100 mile rides are now commonplace among my cycling friends. It's like we just want more and more! Please don't think that's a criticism, I think as a bunch of MAMILs we are pretty impressive. We love riding our bikes so why shouldn't we go for long rides?

This long ride was titled "gentle Neville," as it supposedly climbs the Neville Holt hill the "easy," way! For me this was a weird ride. My legs went exactly like they did at the Dartmoor Classic. One minute I had tonnes of energy the next I was totally exhausted. This meant I was arse end Charlie for much of the ride.

Along the way we had a lot of fun. One highlight was discovering this quiet cycling route that ended up in Great Bowden. The banter flowed as did some great conversations and the odd sing song!

We had a cafe stop in Geddington near the end of the planned ride. By compete accident we bumped into Old friend Nathan Gallon with his beautiful dog Dexter. It was great to see the big man. 

I was knackered by this point but having done 50 miles of a possible 62 mile 100km fondo I decided to push on. Those last few miles were a struggle!

Today I came up with a clear but ever so slightly mad plan: walk the dogs, junior parkrun duties, cycle 20 miles, run 7 miles, hoover the house, mow the lawn and do the ironing. 

My furry friends were fabulous company as usual before I headed off to Desborough. At junior Parkrun I was the volunteer coordinator for the first time and I have to say it feels more pressured than being the run director! However it was yet another great run for the kids and a sense of satisfaction for the adult volunteers! 

My 20 miles cycling turned out to be 19 but that was still enough. This route is a firm favourite of mine and with the wind behind me on the return journey it was a lot of fun!

Once home I got the Dyson out and whizzed round the house before getting my running kit on. 

The run was not my fastest at all. I was quite tired at this point and decided a slow steady plod was the only way!

I ran back to Desborough and round the greenspace so I couldn't resist a go on the outdoor gym equipment. Let's face it I needed a sit down!

I got home feeling pleased that I'd completed my exercise goals for the week and then sat still for a good hour. I did get going again though, the lawn has been mowed and the ironing is done too! I think I'll sleep well tonight. I also decided I deserved a beer!

In other news I got a muc off clean and lube pack this week. The oil comes with a uv light to show where you have oiled your chain. I love this sort of thing!!!

So I discovered some even closer to home Olympic connections this week. The bike that Charlotte Worthington rode to victory got its paint job at Precious Metals on Telford Way, Kettering. This company is owned and ran by the husband of my Lee's cousin! The name of the company is also very important to our family but that's another story for another time! Anyway here's their fine work!

Okay that's it for this week. 

Happy Pedalling