The reason I'd worked out the route was, as I said earlier, to see if it was possible to reach Redhill using only the quiet suburban roads and not the A23. However, the hills involved on roads such as Higher Drive and Rutherford Rise, to name but two, made the A23 the best option. I quickly reached the conclusion that cycling to work is not worth the effort. Not only would I have to use the awful, traffic-laden A23, but when I reached my destination I'd need to head to the leisure centre for a shower then take the bike to the office...yawn, yawn, yawn!!!
While it was hilly and, at times, unbearable, it at least made it clear that I won't be cycling to work (I needed to know). It's also made me think hard about any ambitions I might have harboured about cycling around the coast of the UK or, as I dreamed up yesterday, cycling down from Inverness and stopping off at assorted breweries en route. The book would have been called Beer, Bike and Bed, but not only would I never have the time to do it, I'd have family pressure to stop me doing it and even if I was given the green light by both friends and family, I'm not sure if the hills would do me much good. As I mentioned in previous posts, my right knee started playing up, probably a result of those hills around Purley. I was never in pain, just a little stiff and a bit achy and all is well now, but the very idea of being a long way from home, knackered, facing steep hills and strange bed & breakfasts and not seeing my family for days on end – I'll leave it Mike Carter and Rob Lilwall. I suppose I could do it in stages...
No comments:
Post a Comment