So, after a good night's sleep I'm feeling somewhat better and able to string two sentences together!

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Where to start? Gaby writing I suppose, well I've started work on a completely new chapter which should be finished today and hopefully inroads made into the follow on. I've got plot lines lined up, its just stringing them together in a coherent manner and reasonable timeline that takes the time. On the subject of writing, my one off piece, Relocated has garnered a lot of reads and a few comments, I'm glad so many of you have taken the time to read it, I won't say enjoy as its clearly struck a few chords. There may be some form of follow on in the future, I guess that may depend on RL happenings.

Next up then, my perambulations. Since last time I've done two mini epic rides, the first to Chippenham and Malmesbury in Wiltshire, the second, and cause of my fatigue yesterday, to Weston super Mare and Wells in Somerset. Maybe a blow by blow of both rides is a bit much so we'll do the condensed version instead.

With a forecast of midday damp I set off for Chippenham under leaden skies and by the time I'd fixed one deflation, traversed Bath and climbed into the Cotswolds it was starting to damp. Not having a decent map I was flying by Madnav, taking turns that looked to be the right direction but which sometimes became not much more than two strips of tarmac either side of green. A quick stop in picturesque Castle Coombe then out past the racing circuit and shortly I made Chippenham.
Long story short, I didn't see any obvious lunch stop and somehow found myself heading towards Calne on a disused railway line! The damp may have ceased but now it was muddy tracks and once I broke free of the trail, muddy roads as I headed north for lunch option 2, Malmesbury. When I say mud, this was a viscous orange sludge coating many of the roads and soon enough ne and the bike, run off from the rich ochre of the fields. Finally I reached the twee little market town and just caught some chips before they closed, it now being close to two pm.
Fed, I started the return only to be thwarted after a few miles by a puncture incident, one puncture but issues with the repair meant a longer than usual delay. It wasn't far as the crow flies back to base but a missed turn added extra kilometres and the puncture meant my hoped for cuppa on the way back didn't happen.

Zip forward through the wet that swept the south west on Saturday and Sunday dawned cool but bright for my planned ride to the coast. So down through Brizzle and out to Avonmouth under the Clifton suspension bridge (look it up, pretty famous) first puncture, then on to Portishead. a brief stop to look across to Wales and the Severn crossings then it was south towards Clevedon. Second puncture, I've had more deflations since August than in the last ten years!
Anyhow, after a stop at the sea front I set off for my lunch stop at Weston s M, a route twice as long as it could be if someone built a bridge in the right spot. I finally ended up on the seafront and lo, sand, pier, donkeys and a café! Chips again, this time with several sausages and time to start the return leg. I picked up the road for Wells and soon left the almost flat coastal zone in favour of the south western part of the Mendips. By the time I reached historic Wells I was ready for more tea so I took the chance for a sit down overlooking the ancient market 'square'.
With summer time ending last night I was aware that I needed to get a skate on now, to get back before dark, between me and base though was about two hours riding across the Mendips! Luckily, although the temperature was dropping, the sun was still colouring things so I set off with determination to climb first into the hills then keep a good pace through them as the road bucked up and down for the next twenty miles. I lost the light when I reached Brizzle so the last few km's were in the dark, 137km to add to Thursdays 121km!

The forecast is fine if cool for this week - who knows where the roads will lead me?

Now that you're thoroughly bored, there's some light, the next chapter of Express is now available. Racing Away has our heroine back in competition with some old friends and adversaries.

I'll try to get the next post out on schedule, in the meantime, take care
Mads

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