Cycling reading glasses review / Rat Race confirmed

Fantastic start to the week. Took GoaTheaD out for a spin over to the Roger’s before we went out on a tandem jolly. Very cold day, about 0 degrees Celsius, but lovely to catch up with Roger for the first time this year. First time out on my titanium bike his year, plus first time out on Rogers tandem too. For those that don’t know, Roger is my oldest mate at 81 years old. Roger is the stoker, tailgunner, navigator and rear admiral on all our tandem adventures, and beat this - he is completely blind. We cycled a shorter route today, about 40k, and stopped at Wedges bakery at the mid point. A sausage and egg bap washed down with a cuppa tea was essential to keep us warm! After I cycled GoaTheaD back home, I did some math and figured I must have cycled about 80k.

Roger

This cycle gave me the perfect opportunity to review the new pair of glasses I had recently purchased. The glasses were a pair of voltX Grafter Bifocal cycling sports glasses that cost just £10.99 on Amazon. Meekon recommended these glasses and I have to say they are awesome, especially if you need glasses to read. With these glasses on, I can read my Garmin, iPhone and watch without issue and still see a clear road ahead. The glasses were relatively comfortable, had an anti-fog coating plus an anti-scratch coating too. I purchased the single clear lens set, however, you can get a set of three (sun glasses, yellow lenses and clear lenses) for £26.99 by following this link here.

Ran a few times throughout the week. My runs included a run around the village, a run over the fields and a ParkRun. My run around Studley Village was spent looking for a hidden gate that I came across when running with the Crabbs Cross Chasers last year. It took some searching but pleased to report I did find the gate. The damaged bridge over the fields remained damaged and caging has been put up to stop folks crossing same. Ha, I still managed to scramble across. I ran Arrow Valley ParkRun for the 44th time and completed my 78th ParkRun to date. I finished 121/469 and my time was 26:12.

Bridge menace

Mr 'odge has now officially signed us both up as a team of 2 to complete the Rate Race Coast to Coast in September later this year. This event is a multisport adventure where participants run, cycle and kayak 100 miles in the Scottish Highlands. For further detail, check here. Awesome having events to look forward to and this really helps with motivation to train. 

Today’s episode of challenge menace has been brought to you by the letter Y and the numbers 10 and 60

This was a great week on the activity and adventure scale. Big numbers were hit. Lots of fun was had.

Right at the start of the week, my daughter Spoon accompanied me to the Kingfisher Harriers running club. We were in different groups but both ran around the same track. This was the first time I had ran around the track this year, something I hadn’t done for months. A good track session all in all. I ran about 8k and was certainly whacked at the finish. Towards the end of the session we played ‘cops and robbers’ - I was a robber and ran like crazy so I would not get caught - turns out ‘my’ cop never set off, as he took a phone call instead. D’oh!

Cycled and skipped little throughout the week. Had wanted to do more of these activities, however, work was real busy and got in the way. Even got a weighted rope now, though have not used same as yet. Midweek was also my youngest daughters birthday. Moo turned 10 and we celebrated by stuffing our faces with a Burger King! Happy birthday Moo! 

Saturday saw me complete my 77th ParkRun and knock of the letter ‘Y’ in my A-Z challenge. Just 3 letters remaining now (J, V and Z). This ParkRun was Y Promenad, Aberhonddu. I finished 39/120 in a time of 26:06. I have now ran at 30 different ParkRun locations.

Immediately following my ParkRun, I jumped in my car and raced to meet The Phantom (et al). It was Phantom’s 60th birthday and we were going to celebrate this by a walk up Pen Y Fan. This was a lovely walk in and out and below and above the clouds. Was nice to go for a walk and wear my bright orange Hally Hansen top that I purchased from a charity shop on the last family holiday. My kids get embarassed about this attire and say I look like 'carrot man'.

Right at the summit we took an obligatory picture of us all. Those on this walk included Meekon, the Mitchum 3, the Bramer’s, Phantom, Dave and my good self. The photo was taken by random folk who also reached the summit.

We strolled a different route back to the car park. On route, we bumped into a couple of ParkRun nerds who had also ran the Y Promenad run this morning. Celebrations continued into the night with a nice curry to boot. Happy 60th Phantom!

Despite it being the Phantom's birthday, he gifted me with presents. He collected a number of rocks on this walk and presented them to me at the end. If I visit the site again, I'll be able to collect more rocks and add them to my Jenga collection.

I wonder how long it will take my wife to notice my new Jenga construction? It currently sits on my drive. Maybe the weeds will help keep it hidden.

Free Zwift / Banana's / No kayaks go

A couple of blog-posts ago, I shared that I had learnt that eating banana's and almond nuts was a good source of magnesium. Furthermore, I read that magnesium did wonders for sleep. For a week or so, I consumed both banana's and nuts and am sad to report that my sleep did not improve at all. 

Christmas last year, saw me playing the game 'Articulate' with some of my family and friends. I asked my brother-in-law 'what do monkeys eat that are yellow?', to which he replied 'slippers'. Nuts, eh?!

Talking of banana's, my friend Flair got admitted to A and E this week due to her low potassium levels and had to have an infusion. She was told she would have to eat like 11 banana's a day to supplement the potassium she was deficient. Banana's, eh?!

Activity during this week had been great and started in a triathlon style, which saw me swim, run and cycle all in the same day. I really could not recall the last time I did something like this. Swimming was a jolly - I took my girls to a local(ish) pool and we all swam in a leisurely fashion for just over an hour. The girls had some friends join them in the pool too. Running was a 5k run in the woods with Ernie and the cycling was an hours spin on Zwift. 

Ran a few times in the week and a theme appeared to emerge. The theme was 'blocked tracks'. On my first run with Ernie, a fallen tree had blocked our path in the Oversley Woods. On my second run with Ernie, recent flooding had damaged the bridge crossing near College Woods in Studley.

It was nice to run around Oversley Woods. It had been a while since I had last been to those words, and the fact that the car park has been closed for over a year didn't encourage a visit. The recent weather made running a little more tricky. No major worries though, any blocked path was soon scrambled over.

Renewed my subscription to the Kingfishers Harriers running club. This cost a whopping £15 for the year (great value really). I ran with this club on a few occasions last year and it was awesome when my girls joined me. Lunar and Melody both stopped running with me once they returned to years 5 and 7 at school. However, Lunar made a pinky promise she would run with me next week and hence my subscription again this year (there is no cost for youngsters). There is something nice about running on a track.

The hostile weather had prevented me from attending a local ParkRun this weekend. Plans to kayak were also abandoned - this was because the canal had frozen over. The temperature was around -4C.

All my cycling this week was on Zwift (a massively multiplayer online cycling and running physical training program that enables users to interact, train, and compete in a virtual world). Have used Zwift for a few years now and am currently at level 56. Hodge gifted me Zwift controllers for Xmas 2023 and these have proved pretty awesome. Also, I managed to get a free, 3 month subscription to Zwift and you could get one too! I got this free subscription by downloading the adidas app, collecting points, and trading said points for a voucher. If you want to join the app, please follow this link: adiClub. By joining the adiClub you will get free membership, £10 off your first purchase of adidas goods, early access to online sales and exclusive releases, and earn rewards, - just like I did! Everyone likes freebies and discount vouches.

This week also saw me skipping once again. With the busy life I lead, skipping sounded like a good idea. Inspired by what I read - 'According to a study published in 2013, 10-minutes of jumping rope per day has the same cardiovascular effects as a 30-minute run. 

'Bonus', I thought. I skipped for about 15 mins and completely whacked myself out. The following days and my calf muscles felt really painful. This is presumably DOMS (delayed on-set muscle soreness)? Too much, too soon perhaps? After just a brief research on skipping (or 'jump rope') I became a bit over-whelmed. There is loads to muse about skipping - there are different ropes, different weights, different lengths etc. There is always so much to learn and explore.

Decided to end this post with the photo above. Jamie randomly sent me this pic and stated 'we need an adventure this year'. I knew the pic was of me but just couldn't place it. Turns out it was from our Trans-Atlantic Way adventure in Ireland. I'm sure adventure awaits!

Not the January Sale

I’m wanting to be more active in 2025 than I was in 2024. I’m wanting more adventure simply because it’s fun and is great for my mental well-being. I’m sure it has benefits for my physical health, however, this is not the motivation behind it. And, it’s not because I have any guilt in relation to being lazy either. Plain lazy is an art form!

Vague plans were made to cycle the January Sale 200k audax on this first weekend in January, however, sensibility got the better of me and I didn’t even start. Weather conditions were poor, sub zero in fact and snow was forecast. I wasn’t overly concerned that I hadn’t crossed ‘cycle a 200k’ event off this years challenge list - still have 12 months to play with. Furthermore, had cycled this particular event on at least 2 occasions previous years. I remember being cold, wet and miserable too.

On a brighter note, this weekend saw me complete a ParkRun and cycle an event I stole from Komoot and dubbed ‘not the January Sale’. Am real pleased that early this year I have participated in some challenges. Better yet, I’m pleased that I’ve had some fun with others.

The ParkRun I completed was Babbs Mill. This was my 76th ParkRun to date and my first at this location. I finished in position 43/178 in a time of 26:13. My running has gotten slower over the years and it’s one of my challenges to beat my 2024 best time this year. 15 ParkRuns to go and I will have beaten my record for most ParkRuns ran in a year.

The ‘not the January Sale’ cycle was a lovely 45k jolly with my buddies Ron and the Meekon. As stated above, this was a stolen route - Komoot is great for pinching routes and getting ideas. We cycled using our MTB’s and got very muddy. Roads, tow path and a bit of single-track was followed. A stop at the Cowshed for much tea and a finish at Ron’s for bacon sarnies. So pleased I chose this cycle over the audax. Oh, and thanks to the Meekon for my new buff which kept my ears toasty warm.

Meekon, Doo and The Phantom

Feelin' alive in '25

Welcome to 2025! Hope everyone is feeling alive! I was until I started a New Years Day ParkRun. I ran my 75th ParkRun today, and my second at Brueton Park, on this very wet and windy morning. My time was 27:19, a good 2m 24s off my previous time. I'm not planning on beating my ParkRun PB this year, however, would welcome any improvements.

So with this year in mind, and following a really inactive year in 2024, I've decided to write a list of challenges to make sure this year is hopefully a little more active. Some challenges are un-finished business, some rely on others and the rest, well, take a look at my list:

• Complete a Rat Race or similar. (The Rat Race in mind is a 100 mile coast to coast adventure in the Scottish Highlands that incorporates running, cycling and kayaking. It's not 100% definite yet - just waiting on Hodge to run through the logistics before we sign up. If this is a no go, will look to find a similar alternative).
• Cycle the Cantii Way. (Wanted to do this last year and plans were formed but the weather told us 'no'. We spoke about cycling this as a feature of Hodge's stag doo - he's married now, but, we could do a post event thing surely).
• Sleep in a bothy. (Have 'the' book, the gear and a vague idea).
• Run more than 16 ParkRuns in a calendar year (and beat my 2023 record). (After todays effort, that leaves just 16 to go).
• Run a ParkRun in under 25:21 (and hence beat my fastest time in 2024, not likely to beat my fastest time ever, which was 21:39).
• Complete A-Z of ParkRun. (Only have 4 letters remaining, these being J, V, Y and Z. ParkRun's in the UK could see me complete 3 letters, however, the Z would require a trip to Amsterdam or Germany.)
• Cycle at least 1 x 200k audax. (Have vague plans of cycling the January Sale Audax on the 4th).
• Cycle more than 4,398k (and beat 2024's effort).
• Run further than 286k (and beat 2024's effort). (Knocked 5k off today).
• Drink some of Ron's nettle tea. (This clearly depends on motivating Ron at the correct time of year). (Ideally, this tea should be consumed during a wild camp).

They say 'start as you mean to go on' and this year started with a run. A little later in the day, I managed to squeeze in a Zwift cycle ride and walked Ernie too. Would be great if something like this continued.

Am not overly sure what this blog will cover this year. I'm thinking it might record adventures, it might record odd items in a diary kind of fashion and/or it might contain musings, both sensical and otherwise. I mused over whether a day dream at night is still a day dream? Who knows, this blog might also share nuggets of knowledge - like todays learning. Today, I learned that magnesium can help one sleep (and stay asleep) and banana, almonds and cashews are a good source of same. I've eaten banana post run and just consumed 23 almonds and will report back on how well I sleep tonight.