Hmmm...Tree Pollen or the Lurgy???

It's going to be a brief blog this week without too much family stuff to report. I did get a fair bit of cycling done, despite feeling 'not quite right,' and I got a couple of 5K runs in too!

Top: Niamh Bottom L-R: Me, Sam, Amy, Joe and Lee 

On Sunday night after a good roast dinner we had a family outing to the Red Lion, poor old Niamh was working but the rest of us had a jolly nice time. In recent weeks I've mentioned how proud I am of the kids. What struck me on Sunday in the pub was that there was no doubt that Niamh was in charge! Then on Monday all four generations made it to my Mum and Dad's for a Easter Monday dinner. Just a lovely family time. My Mum pulled off an astounding feat, she made gluten free sausage rolls which were nice and a vegan alternative which was also nice! Good work Nanny Chris. As I type a Pork shoulder is slow roasting for today's family meal.

I'm starting to think that my hay fever might actually have been a bit of virus of some sort. On Sunday night I felt dreadful and Lee wondered if I was having an asthma attack. The nasty cough persisted through Monday but seemed to subside by Tuesday. So I headed for the RFW Good Bean cafe ride with the aim of seeing how it went...well not so good. A nice group of 8 left the clubhouse but the first significant hill out of Medbourne saw me dropped and exhausted...so I called it a day and headed home. The 'Hill,' at Middleton really was a unnecessary addition to my short ride!

Why is the defib at the bottom of the hill?

I avoided all further exercise (if you don't count dog walks and housework,) until Thursday when I joined Alan for the RFW mountain bike ride at Wakerley and Fineshade Woods. 

Alan and I had a good muddy ride. The trails had kind of a top surface of slick mud. For me I felt better than Tuesday but still not my full self. It was just good to be out! It was also nice to see that the bluebells are coming! As ever one of the highlights of my day was giving my bike a good clean!!!

Bluebells

This is what my bike looked like...

This is how it looks now! Rinse and repeat...

For the rest of the week it was lots of dog walks and I also managed a couple of 5k runs on Friday and Saturday. 

Out with the pack...

The traditional Saints selfie

With a run, a dog walk and a trip to Northampton Saints, yesterday I topped 19000 steps. As ever it was great to catch up with people at Franklin's Gardens and a good win means the Saints are still in with a chance of making the play offs.

Yes I do need a shave...

Today I still had that lurgy lurking at the back of my mind so I didn't want to be a burden to another group ride. I decided to do a reduced version of the WVCC spring gravel ride. The full distance to and from Great Bowden was 100km and I knew I wasn't up for that. So I said I'd meet the group near Rothwell but not to wait for me if I wasn't there. I arrived at the top of Violet Lane in good time but the group were going well and had passed there earlier than expected. This was no worries for me, I wasn't feeling sprightly and could roll at my own pace.

On the way I bumped into my old friend Ian Bird who was marshaling the NRCA road race, using the Old circuit. I got some pictures of the race action too as I passed in the other direction. It's great too see road racing featuring as part of our local cycling activities.

With a slight shortcut I caught up with the group at Brixworth Country Park where they'd stopped for coffee. I then had company for a good chunk of riding as we went back around the reservoir, down Merry Tom to the Brampton Valley Way and then by bridleway through Haselbech to Kelmarsh. I let the others head off to the pub as I rolled home with a good 40 miles in my legs!

Great gravel

In elite cycling I was typing during Paris-Roubaix last week, which for me, finished poorly with MVDP winning somewhat unfairly. Today Amstel Gold has just finished. An absolute masterclass from Pogacar, a nice second for Healy and then Pidcock holds onto 3rd. Earlier in the day the women's race was good too with a win for Demi Vollering. Lots more to come next week with Fleche Wallone and Liege-Bastogne-Liege. 

Happy Pedaling