Quite an emotional day today...
Firstly, and most importantly, it's my 1st wedding anniversary today - this time last year we were in London celebrating our wedding with close friends and family. All I can say is that she must love me to be putting up with the disruption to a normal family life for the last 4 months! What more could a man ask for? :)Claire's upstairs getting ready to go out so I've got a few minutes to keep the blog updated. It's been a bit quiet on the blog front this week but I've had a week off with the family, and it's also been the first week of tapering ahead of the trip.
But today was another milestone day in the Betfair LifeCycle Challenge 2010 - the last Sunday ride before the final week of tapering and before the bikes are shipped off ahead of us to Venice.
It was just a 120km day today but both Dan and I wanted to finish early so I was up at 4am for (hopefully!) the last time. Even Alfie the cat now thinks the whole getting up early thing is "so last season" - he can't help himself when he hears me, and thundered down the stairs to the kitchen for food as always. But, instead of prompting a frenzy of leg biting, his food is now just a pre-cursor to him trudging wearily back upstairs and going back to bed for a few hours, leaving me alone with my thoughts and my porridge.
My last early bowl of porridge down, I saddled up and headed out. We set off on one final lap of the island - like some kind of swan song. We said goodbye (for now) to a few old friends like Golden Bay and the Coast Road, and good riddance to a few personal dislikes, like the hills entering and leaving Valetta. I made a small promise to myself that I would never approach Valetta from that direction again, not even in a car!
It's weird, but not only was it the last day of training, but it felt like the end of the Summer too. Not just because we wouldn't be back in Malta until mid September, but also because the temperature had dropped a lot in the last week. While last week was like cycling in a sauna, today had the fresh feel of Autumn - I knew it's only mid August and wouldn't last but it was appropriate for today. The last ride had the feel of the last day of a holiday - although that's not to say the training has been a day at the beach by any stretch!!.That atmosphere carried on at the meet point, with everyone relaxed but a little subdued - most of the talk of the packing to come. 125km down and I headed home, earlier than promised, to spend some quality time at home with my wife. Oh wait, sorry, I mean to pack my bike. Like I said, I'm lucky she loves me.
The bikes are being driven to Venice tomorrow by some of our support team, and we all needed to dismantle our bikes and have them all boxed up and at the meet point by 4pm this afternoon.
You all know that I'm a novice cyclist to say the least. The nice man at Halfords built my last new bike for me when I was 12 years old, and Lenny kindly helped put this one together for me when it arrived. Add to this, the fact that I'm no mechanic - more Tim "The Tool Man" Taylor than Al Borland - and the scene was set for a challenging few hours.
I amazed myself by actually appearing to achieve all that was expected of me. A short detour via Dan's and Evan's to get the right tools to remove the pedals proved a little frustrating (more for Claire than me!). The bike was dismantled as instructed, padded with bubble wrap, and surrounded by a variety of objects ranging from protein shakes to sleeping bags. Finally, the box was taped and sealed before being put in the car.
My only worry is that I have never done anything like that before - did I do it right? Will the bike be in one piece when I unpack it at the other end? Will I be able to re-assemble it, and still make it go in a straight line? Did I pack everything I needed? If not, is the missing item a) crucial and b) available in Venice on a Sunday afternoon? OK, so maybe not just the one worry!
The bike was delivered to the checkpoint, along with all the others and the assembled massed tried to help (!?) Soner do a mighty fine impression of a contestant on the Crystal Maze or the Krypton Factor trying to get them all into the confined space on the truck.
So, with the end of the first phase of the challenge behind us, the start of the second phase began.
I almost had a tear in my eye as, with a fleeting glance over my shoulder, I waved goodbye to my constant companion of the last 16 weeks, and drove away. It was almost like the first time you watch one of your children head off on their first school trip. You know they're in good hands and will be ok, but you can't help but worry if they'll be back in one piece.
I've now got a whole week ahead of me without my bike. It doesn't feel unlike losing a limb - Alfie went in for the "operation" last week and so is also missing something important from around that area and, other than the other LifeCyclists, is probably one of the few who can empathise with just how it feels!
But this is worse - not only do I feel like I've lost a vital organ, but I'm the one that pulled it apart and shoved it in a box!! Let's hope surgeons DeGiorgio and Miller are on hand to assist putting me together again in Venice, when the box is unsealed, ready for the big day!!
The bikes are being driven to Venice tomorrow by some of our support team, and we all needed to dismantle our bikes and have them all boxed up and at the meet point by 4pm this afternoon.
You all know that I'm a novice cyclist to say the least. The nice man at Halfords built my last new bike for me when I was 12 years old, and Lenny kindly helped put this one together for me when it arrived. Add to this, the fact that I'm no mechanic - more Tim "The Tool Man" Taylor than Al Borland - and the scene was set for a challenging few hours.
I amazed myself by actually appearing to achieve all that was expected of me. A short detour via Dan's and Evan's to get the right tools to remove the pedals proved a little frustrating (more for Claire than me!). The bike was dismantled as instructed, padded with bubble wrap, and surrounded by a variety of objects ranging from protein shakes to sleeping bags. Finally, the box was taped and sealed before being put in the car.
My only worry is that I have never done anything like that before - did I do it right? Will the bike be in one piece when I unpack it at the other end? Will I be able to re-assemble it, and still make it go in a straight line? Did I pack everything I needed? If not, is the missing item a) crucial and b) available in Venice on a Sunday afternoon? OK, so maybe not just the one worry!
The bike was delivered to the checkpoint, along with all the others and the assembled massed tried to help (!?) Soner do a mighty fine impression of a contestant on the Crystal Maze or the Krypton Factor trying to get them all into the confined space on the truck.
So, with the end of the first phase of the challenge behind us, the start of the second phase began.
I almost had a tear in my eye as, with a fleeting glance over my shoulder, I waved goodbye to my constant companion of the last 16 weeks, and drove away. It was almost like the first time you watch one of your children head off on their first school trip. You know they're in good hands and will be ok, but you can't help but worry if they'll be back in one piece.
I've now got a whole week ahead of me without my bike. It doesn't feel unlike losing a limb - Alfie went in for the "operation" last week and so is also missing something important from around that area and, other than the other LifeCyclists, is probably one of the few who can empathise with just how it feels!
But this is worse - not only do I feel like I've lost a vital organ, but I'm the one that pulled it apart and shoved it in a box!! Let's hope surgeons DeGiorgio and Miller are on hand to assist putting me together again in Venice, when the box is unsealed, ready for the big day!!
Right, sorry for the abrupt finish but Mrs Botha is ready and waiting and looking fabulous so I'm off for dinner!
Andy, I'm going to try and come up to old trafford to see you in - i'm meeting Dave Mc next weekend so i'll try and rope him in - good luck mate, though with all that training your not going to need it!
ReplyDeleteSteve Ryan
Hey Steve, thanks for the good wishes - think we're going to need them! Say Hi To Dave for me - would be great if you were able to be there (although appreciate its a long way to come unless you were planning to be there anyway?). Hope to see you at the end of the month :)
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