On Monday I went out for a ride with my dog. Now I should explain here that about a year or more ago my husband came back from sea ( he works in the Merchant Navy too) with a big basket. He sails into Amsterdam a lot and as you may know the Dutch are quite a biking nation. So he had sourced a basket big enough to fit a dog!
Normally what happens is that the dog sits in the basket, securely fastened with her harness on and we cycle along a short stretch of main road until we turn off down very lovely quiet country lanes. At this point its time for her to get out and run along next to the bike. Hubby and her travel many miles using this method and she gets lots of exercise, well needed for a border collie.
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| Mad dog and Englishman! |
We have plenty of comments about it and have seen many heads turned as we have cycled past. I often go out with them and find it fun to cycle behind them because I get to hear all the comments - "Did you see that dog?" is the most common. Its funny cos she just sits there looking very smug at times especially if we pass another dog.
When hubby is away I do try to go out and use his bike and take her for a cycle run but with work etc its not always possible so we do tend to stick to conventional dog walking!
Anyhow on Monday I decided we would go out for a short cycle in between rain showers.
We had done our main cycle run and were just entering a small housing estate near were I live which is still in the process of being built. There is a short cut through to where we live so I thought I would go through that way as the occasional droplet of rain had turned to a constant shower.
I stopped and put the dogs lead on and got back on my bike. She trots along easily on the pavement as I was going to freewheel down the slight hill to the gate. As I set off I had my right hand on my handlebars while holding the lead in my left hand. I have done it so many times but on this occasion it didn't quite work out. As I turned my handlebars slightly to keep away from the kerb, for some reason I also yanked on the brake and before I knew it I was falling, slamming onto my right side.
Wow that was hard.
The dog just stood looking at me on the pavement 'What exactly are you doing?' she seemed to be thinking.
'Are you alright?' said a voice as I picked myself up, trying to understand the stupid thing I had just done. The occupant of a nearby bungalow had just come out their front door and had seen me sprawled on the road. 'Oh yes, I'm just fine' I replied and proceeded to brush myself off and clamber back on the bike. 'I've got to get out of here quick, 'I thought, I was so embarrassed.
I came home and got straight in the shower, bruises had already started to appear on my right knee and elbow.
I have to say my shoulder has been the worst casualty, especially first thing in the morning but after a visit to the doctor yesterday I've been reassured that I have broken nothing. Anti inflammatories and Tiger Balm are the prescribed solution.
Yesterday I had a more cheerful encounter with a bike. As well as spending time at sea my main form of income now is as a Foot Health Practitioner. I visit people at home, trimming their toe nails, removing corns and callus and generally cheering them up so they can walk more comfortably until I see them next.
I was visiting my last patient of the day, I had made up some time in the afternoon and was about 20 minutes early for my appointment. This particular gentleman, I'll called him Mr Posh, is a lovely chap, who used to write plays and Radio & TV scripts. He is very well spoken, 'Posh' even but is sadly going blind. I don't leave him an appointment card as he wouldn't be able to read it so I always phone him a day or two before the appointment to remind him I am coming.
He can no longer write which I know saddens him very much. He lives on his own and I know he enjoys listening to audio books a lot now using headphones. He is also a great font of all sorts of knowledge, every time I visit he always asks if I have an ancestor who did one thing or another. I think he must look up my surname and find out information about different 'Greenways'. One was apparently deported to Australia!
Anyway I knocked on the door several times and after getting no reply was feeling a bit worried. I know he rarely goes out so hoped nothing terrible had happened to him. I thought maybe he was listening to a book and couldn't hear my knocking so I rang his phone. He answered but seemed a bit out of breath and I was aware of loud music in the background. Slightly puzzled I explained I was a bit early but I was on his doorstep waiting to be let in.
After a few minutes he arrived at the door, a bit breathless and as I apologised again for being early he said,' Oh I was cycling'
I wasn't quite sure what to say but I think a quiet 'oh' came out of my mouth followed by a louder, 'Cycling? what do you mean?'
It appears he has an exercise bike in one of his rooms and goes cycling on it every day. No wonder he is still quite fit at the age of 91!
Finally today I have been updating my local RNLI fundraising page on Facebook. We have recently met a chap, who has decided to do a cycle ride in aid of the RNLI.
At the end of May /early June, this recently retired railwayman, will attempt one of
It did get me thinking about how brave he was to decide to do such a thing. When I was 16 I cycled from Lands End to John O'Groats. I did it with my father and 4 other people from our cycling club. Although we were a cycling family, having done a few cycling holidays etc, cycling such a large distance was completely alien to me. 'Oh yes, I'll do that' I said and off we went. I remember doing a practice ride a week before and after about 10 miles I was knackered. I think we all doubted if I would succeed so much so that I never got myself any sponsorship until after I had completed it and then told everyone what I had done. We cycled 1000 miles in 2 weeks, the longest day being over 100 miles on the last day. We stayed in Youth Hostels along the way and were supported every day by my mum, a friend of my parents and my brother. They travelled in a big yellow minibus from youth hostel to youth hostel and stopped at various points during the day where we would stop and refuel!
It was the hardest endurance thing I have ever done and I'm not sure I would do anything like it again. We did it in July so the weather was fairly good to us until we arrived in Scotland and then it rained. The worst day was cycling into Scotland, on a very main road with rain pelting me in the face and wearing a cape which ballooned up making me feel like a giant plastic bag or umbrella being blown along the road. Traffic was thundering past us as we pedalled along in a line. I had got to the point of wondering why on earth was I doing it and had started to cry. It was at this point that the big yellow minibus came past and I remember seeing my brothers face peering out of the van at me. Apparently he tried to make my mum stop to see if I was alright but on such a main road it wasn't possible so I just had to carry on.
I have to say that there were many times before that, that I could have given up. One of the men would say, 'Get in the van luv' if I ever looked weary or sounded fed up but I always thought, well yes I could, but I would feel better again in a few miles and I could get out again and carry on BUT I wouldn't have cycled ALL of it, so I always carried on.
So I shall be wishing this chap much luck in May when he sets off to France for his endurance test - rather him than me!
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| Us at the finish line in John O'Groats - July 1991 |
Well lets hope that trip to Scotland won't be your last endurance test, Varuna wants you to take her to Tonga! Crossing the Atlantic then Pacific should measure up to cycling 1,000 miles!
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