Notes on a week of cycling

June 5, 2011

Up until this time last week, my shiny new bike had mostly been sat there collecting dust, then having it washed off by the rain ready for the cycle to complete. That’s not a happy life for a bike.

So last Monday, I took it for a ride to work (yes, I know it was a bank holiday, but the lovely people at One gave us the option of swapping this one for a date in October), and since then, I’ve been cycling everywhere like there’s no tomorrow.

That was unexpected. You see, I’d describe myself as quite a lazy person, and I remember cycling up Headington Hill for the first time which almost inducted a heart attack. My legs for sure were ready to fall off. But as the week went on, cycling has surprisingly become much easier, much more enjoyable and actually quite addictive. So addictive that I was pacing up and down waiting for the weather to cooperate for me to go out for a ride today.

I didn’t have anywhere in particular I wanted to go to today, I just wanted to ride. I hope that this continues, and I suspect that it will, I just need to remember that I like riding my bike and not convince myself, like I often do, that it’s a lot of effort. The thing I must remember most is that there is so much out there to see without going that far or riding too hard.

Just yesterday, I cycled through suburbia, village style cottages, down the river, through the city centre, through various fields, past some cows, through a flock of geese, down some hills, up some hills, down countryside tracks, along smooth cycle track, through the university and much much more.

I have posted a couple of maps below of where I’ve been this week. It’s not an exhaustive collection (yes, there are more, but I didn’t have Runkeeper running for them), but it’s a good indication of just how quickly a lazy and unfit nerd can begin to get fit and get out and about.