"Three Thousand Six Hundred"

Elvis & I on Leith Hill tonight just moments after reaching my goal of 3600 miles.


That's it! I did it! All done! And with just four days left to go before my goal deadline. In fact, I could have finished yesterday or the day before, but with a slightly longer ride to finish. But I noticed the 27th coming up and thought I'd let my obsession for the one and only numeral nine get to me yet again.
I'm happy that it's over too. The goal I mean. When I first set the goal back on Jan 1st 2007, I didn't really know wether I could achieve it. I very basically calculated what I might have done the year before (2006...the year I was on treatment for Hep C) and I think I came up with about three thousand odd miles and thought I'd try and beat it. The exact figure 3600 came about because that would be my age (36) in 2007 too...plus I don't need to tell you all about my Love affair with the number nine;)

So really, I wasn't entirely sure if I would clock that many miles at all by the end of 2007 and when August eventually arrived and I was up to 2700 odd miles, only then did I think it was reachable. I know that 3600 miles isn't that many miles for a whole year and I am sure some people cycle that every year of their lives just by going to work and back. But for me it was a challenge. For one thing it was mostly all off road. And also, I'd say half of it was cycling up hills...not to mention the hundreds of miles of mud and wind and rain too. And not wanting to complain, all the hundreds of miles of pain also. The pain in my right elbow and both ankles have kept me company for a fair few of those miles let me tell you!
Plus there were a few falls and a cold that threatened to bugger things up near the end, but after my last fall back on Friday 14th December, where I was cycling on just a normal piece of road very near to my house and on my way to meet Ian by Richmond Gate at Richmond Park, I thought that I'd better slow down and take it easy a little. It wasn't as bad as the two times I fell onto my knee up in the hills previously, but it could have been so much worse! I was going too fast into a 90 degree bend in the road by Teddington Studios and my front tyre slipped on the wet tarmac of the road and down I went with a wallop and almost slid into a car coming in the opposite direction! It did hurt at the time and I even managed to wreck my watch which I had only just bought new batteries for the week before. And my left hand still doesn't feel right where it slammed palm down into the road. And I still have a scab on my left hip where it slid across the icy asphalt.
Anyway, I got up and painfully continued with my ride completing 25 miles in the end. I was just happy that I didn't slide into that car and that my joints were ok. But, it also made me think that I needed to slow down a little and think about the dangers I was putting myself in every time I was going out on my bike...especially in the winter and mostly all at night and alone! So after one days rest, I decided to really take things easy and not go anywhere where I might fall and to slow down in the ice and this way I might just reach my goal. Two days after the fall I went out more or less everyday to make sure that I did. You can see from my "My Cycling for December 2007" post (will be posted on Jan 1st 2008) just how much I was going out. Not particularly long rides, but long enough and as you can see they were all mostly alone too. Which meant that I wasn't under any pressure to keep up or lead etc (but they are much more boring alone!). I even managed to get a ride in on the beautifully moonlit night of Christmas Day itself (see photo below).

Christmas for me this year was alright. This time last year I was coming to the end of my treatment for Hep C and although I was having a relatively fine time on it, I was still thinking a lot as to wether or not it would work. So this year was much better not just because I was not on tx anymore, but mainly because my 50wks of treatment worked just fine and now I am cured of one of my viruses. I did however, have a terrible mouth ulcer during this Christmas period being at it's worst on Christmas Day and Boxing Day! It has cleared up now...It isn't often one can say just how wonderful the drug Thalidomide is.
So onto my ride tonight. The ride where my trip computer flipped over to three thousand six hundred. When I set out, I had approximately ten miles to go and thought that a ride around Richmond Park just wouldn't do. So in the car the bike went and Elvis & I made our way to Leith Hill as I knew that a single loop of the hill is about ten miles long and would be quite nice if I finished by the tower...which is exactly how it turned out. I was alone and took my time not to have any accidents up there. The trail was absolutely water logged from recent rain and in parts the trail was simply a mud bath! The exposed tree roots were as slippery as ever and to make matters more interesting the temperature during the ride was at a steady 12 degrees! Shouldn't it be freezing cold at the end of December, at night and in the middle of the English countryside?
It was a nice ride in the end, albeit quite muddy, but with no falls, no crashes and no broken spokes either. I started my night ride at the trail that leads up to Leith Hill tower from High Ashes Farm, went up to it passing it by, down the rock, rooty slope that I would use as the setting for my photo at the end of the ride, past what has to be the highest cricket pitch in South East England, down past Deliverance and into a very mucky Waggledance. Next was Summer Lightning and all her roots, twists and turns. At the bottom of SL brings you out by the medieval ancient boundary that is Wolvens Lane, which is a total mud bath at this time of year. Then a little road section that winds it way up and down to a tiny village called Broadmoor, then back into Leith Hill forest and onto the long and slow rooty, muddy trail back up to the tower. I was all alone for the entire ride. No other humans at all...pure bliss. I was spooked though when a lone bunny rabbit decided to run out in front of me, almost finding himself squished under my big fat knobbly tyres! And as I said earlier, after just over ten miles for the day and three thousand six hundred for the year, I was back up by Leith Hill tower, where I then went and found the spot where I posed for my very first photo for this blog back in August 2006 (it's still there if you want to look). It is literally yards away from the tower down a rather steep, rocky, rooty section. I set my camera up and took several shots and ended up with what you see above.
I don't think I will set a goal for next year, but I will continue to log my trips and mileage. There are a few decent length rides planned for next year already in between my normal rides and no doubt their details will be posted here.

Me and my back light in Richmond Park on the beautifully moonlit night of Christmas Day.


Happy New Year my blogging buddies:)



Jasonxx


Update; Today, as I was washing my bike I discovered yet another broken spoke nipple on my rear wheel from Thursday nights ride! So, free of charge, Nirvana Cycles in Westcott have said they will replace all the alloy spoke nipples with stronger brass nipples. Sounds good to me:) Brass nipples indeed!
In fact, I took it in this afternoon (Saturday) and got a call at six saying they are already done. Brass nipples here I come;)








(C) JPT 2007.........3600.7 miles. YAY!!!!!!!!!