to bring us to the middle of October!

I've been quite busy since my last post, the weather has been fair (for the most part) and All Hallowes Day creeps ever closer!

With a day of light winds and sunshine forecast, i set out on Thursday to get some lunch out at the coast, now the grockles are mostly departed, you can actually get a seat in the cafes! For some reason i usually take an anti clockwise route on these rides to the sea but i decided to go the other way this time, out towards Bath before turning to cross the lumps of hill that sit between the Avon and the Mendip. Choose the wrong route and there are some nasty bits of up but there is a route of least resistance which does the job and it was that way that i started westwards on.

But partway along i decided to mix things up a bit, which added a bit of climbing but kept me from the main road a bit longer, then it was up towards the airport before once again using some less familiar roads down into the Yeo valley. I kept heading south and west through the aromatic cider orchards at Sandford where they were harvesting this years crop before picking up the lowest crossing of the Mendip chain before the coast which lands you into the Levels. A loop past Brent Knoll then back north to Weston where i stopped for my sausage and chips. The route back to Cabot Town is almost flat and helped by the light tailwind i was soon back at base with over 125km in the bag but a mere 550m of climbing for the day.

Friday i got myself organised early and by 10am i was at the keyboard working on the next chapter of Smell of the Crowd. The wroting she did wasn't murder (see what i did there?), in fact it went swimmingly and i had to stay my fingers from over elaborating things, by early afternoon it was done. Patreon supporters got access from Friday whilst the rest of you will have a short wait to get your hands on the new scribbles.

And so to Saturday. The forecast was a bit mixed, stronger winds and a chance of showers but otherwise it didn't look too bad so i set off for a loop on the Cotswold massif. My original plan was a loop around Tetbury but maybe the tailwind offered too much help and in my enthusiasm i found myself heading out to Cricklade where i crossed the headwaters of the Thames before turning towards Cirencester. A short stretch on the quite busy Swindon dual carriageway soon had me searching out the lanes again which took me north through Driffield (not that one Podracer!) towards Barnsley (again, not that one!).

The lanes actually kept me north of Corinium allowing me to avoid the towns confusing one way system, then with thoughts of some grub foremost in my mind, i headed over the hill to the Stroud valley where i knew there would be several chances to stop. A roadside trailer got my business, bacon and egg in a bun with a cup of tea, the Garmin showing 103km covered. I hadn't escaped the expected showers but my new jacket did its job and al fresco dining was fine.

Then it was down through Stroud itself to start the return leg on the familiar lanes between the A38 and the Cotswold Edge, the dark clouds were gone and it was now wall to wall sunshine. I try to mix things up a bit but inevitably, as you draw ever closer to your destination, the options reduce, unless you want to make a big detour and with the miles mounting up i realised i would run out of road before hitting the magical imperial Century. Oh it was so close, i reckoned i'd be @ 2 miles short so i hatched a plan to add a bit of length without too pointless a route.

And so, after a little over six hours riding, i ended the ride, 163km and a surprising 1253m of climbing. Its the first hundred miler i've done since early summer, i actually felt pretty good if a bit tired afterwards. Its certainly, with Thursdays ride, made a serious dent in my target deficit, i'm now well under 500km in arrears so providing i can get in my usual rides i only need @ 50km extra each week to get there. I may try to bank a few extra miles this month as insurance against any bad weather down the line.

No Gaby today but there will be more of Book 1 on Wednesday. In the meantime i'll be cracking on with writing Smell of the Crowd with an ambition of releasing the next arc during the week.

Thats all folks, i'll be back on Wednesday.
Tak,
Madeline Annafrid