clairedavieswriter

Once I’d got the hang of GWR’s surprisingly neat bike storage arrangements, the Reading to Penzance leg was a doddle.

Penzance was Riviera-hot and St Michael’s Mount barely visible through the heat haze when I arrived at lunchtime. I stopped to get my bearings and a man walking by volunteered directions: an early benefit of travelling alone perhaps. It also suggests that the locals are surprisingly tolerant of the presumably endless stream of cyclists passing through. Either that, or they’re just keen to move us on.

Believe it or not this was the first time I’d cycled any distance with the bike fully loaded, bar a spin along our road on Saturday. See ‘training’ in my earlier blog. I acknowledge that this may have been unwise. Overall, I reckon I’m carrying 10kg more than usual, the most immediate consequence of which is that I run out of gears more quickly than usual when going uphill.

Fortunately, on today’s short ride to Land’s End, the hills were manageable, even in the heat. But as I toiled up them I did find myself wondering what I could do without. Nothing individually seems to weigh enough to matter, but collectively it all adds up. Which sounds quite deep now I write it down.

Unusual commercial arrangement of the day: a Builder/Funeral Director, which had me wondering about an appropriate advertising slogan. Suggestions below please.