Whenever a storm has a name you know the conditions aren’t going to be great for cycling. Last weekend I took part in the ‘Beyond the Dales we Know’ 300k audax, and Storm Hannah joined in too. It was the second of my four qualifiers for Paris-Brest-Paris. My original plan had been to ride a…
Banana Blossom ‘Fish’ n Chips
I’ve had a tin of banana blossom sitting at the back of the cupboard for a while, and it was time to do something with it. It’s strange stuff, but I’ve found it works as a really good vegan alternative to fish or seafood. It worked really well in the paella I made last year….
The Yorkshire Gallop
Yesterday I rode the Yorkshire Gallop – a 200k calendared audax in the Vale of York, starting near Darlington. I would imagine around 40 riders started, setting off at 8am. The forecast was good; sunny with a gentle breeze. We seemed to have a light tail wind to start with, and that combined with riding…
Paris-Brest-Paris
This summer I am aiming to complete Paris-Brest-Paris. It is one of the oldest and most challenging events in long-distance cycling. The aim is to ride from the French capital to Brest and back again in 90 hours – 1200km in total, twice the biggest distance I’ve done before. I genuinely don’t know if my…
Home from Edinburgh
I got up early on Saturday and caught a train to Edinburgh. It was cold. Very cold. There was snow on the ground and there was something rather beautiful about the frozen landscape as the sun started to come up. This was my 200k ride for February, the tenth of my attempt at a Randonnee…
Riding Slowly to a Castle
On Saturday I competed the ninth ride in my attempt to complete a ‘Randonnee Round the Year’ – a 200k ride every calendar month for a year.It was cold and there was snow around, but the forecast for the day was reasonable – cloudy but dry and light winds. There was a suggestion of a…
Vivera Veggie Fish Goujons – Watch Out Captain Birdseye!
I took a break from proper cooking last night and went for a quick and easy dinner: Vivera Veggie Fish Goujons with sweet potato chips and peas. I don’t quite know how Vivera did it, but these are great! I never would have thought before going vegan that something like breaded fish would be possible…
Looking back…
It seems an appropriate time to look back over 2018. It’s been quite a year on the bike! I’ve achieved more than I set out to at the start, and far more than I could have imagined when I started cycling about three years ago. I’ve covered a very similar distance this year compared to…
Over the Border
Yesterday I completed the eighth ride in my attempt to complete a Randonnee Round the Year – a 200k ride every calendar month for a year. My original plan had been to ride to my parents’ house for Christmas today (I did this last year and it was a little over 200k), but the forecast wasn’t…
Turmeric Latte: Sounds Disgusting, Tastes Amazing
Most summers I find myself at Greenbelt Festival over the August bank holiday weekend. A favourite spot at the festival is the Tiny Tea Tent. One night at this year’s festival I fancied a hot drink before bed and spotted a turmeric latte on the menu. It sounded horrible, but I decided to risk it…
Plant-Powered Pedalling 