make it up!

So here in Brizzle, this is the weeks weather since Sunday. Monday - grey and drizzly, Tuesday - snow showers, Wednesday - hard frost but bright sunshine. Yep, just a typical November week for Blighty.

Of course, this has inevitably affected my program this week. Monday i had a trip to IKEA, promptly forgot why i'd gone but did have the Festive Meatball lunch. Tuesday, well it snowed throughout the day so i dropped plans for a ride and instead just took a parcel to the Post Office followed by planting up the Plum tree we got at the weekend, with any luck we'll have fruit next summer.

Which brings us to today, nothing was supposed to fall from the sky, no rain, snow or Russian bombs so i dressed to defcon 3, (temperature above 0c but below 5c, dry), I have options down to -10c with falling snow, and headed out for my longest ride in over a fortnight. so defcon three is winter boots, ski mitts, longs and a windproof jacket over the long sleeve top. I might go out at defcon 2 level (-10c) but there'd need to be a really good reason to take the bike out at defcon 1 - thats usually walking only (snow/ice on the ground)

There were still a few pockets of snow on the verges and fields as, keeping to the main roads, i headed up onto the Cotswold massif. The high point, @175m had maybe an inch of white stuff on the ground but despite the temperature hovering around 0/-1c, the roads were clear of anything of the frozen water variety. I cracked on eastwards past Castle Combe and on to my stop at Chippenham where i warmed myself with tea and a cheeseburger, without the warming effect of riding it was perishing cold!

It wasn't a day for lanes or mucking about so i just headed back towards Bath along the A4 before deviating slightly along the Kennet/Avon canal into the city. From there it was straight back along the B2B bike path for a grand total of 75km at an average of 0c.Yep, i was pretty much spot on with my defcon 3 dressing choice.

That's it for now, i'll be back on Sunday so for now,
Tschussie,
Mads.

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