Decorations for the new year!

I had to wait a couple of days before I could get back to the burnt out van because of constant rain. I did manage to get their today.

One person walked past me while I was drawing on the van. He had a pair of binoculars around his neck and said good afternoon.

I wonder how long the van will be there before the council remove it? I was thinking of doing the other side. The side nearest the hedge which is still clear. Maybe the rain will wash it all off and I can do another make over soon?

to see more photos of the drawn on van see

http://s213.photobucket.com/albums/cc3/robturner/New%20year%20decorations%20for%20a%20burnt%20out%20van/

and 'Happy New Year' to any readers I may have.

The derelict power station and cooling towers dominate the landscape.

I was out out on my road bike then today. I went to Deal, through the lanes. It was a nice ride, and I enjoyed looking around. I only had one speed like a default setting, but I kept it steady and no problems.

I saw everyone out doing 'leisure activities' today, horse rinding, golf, micro lite flying, falconry, motor bike riding, bird watching, walking, fishing, bike riding and even flying bi-planes. I also saw some very self important people wearing very smart clothes, driving top of the range large black 4x4's. Why do these people think they have to go first. I made a big effort to stop them passing me through the narrow streets of Sandwich. When I got home my family had been shopping.

I had no speed at all, might have 'kept my heels down' going over small rises, but that was all I could manage. One guy whooshed by, he had lettering all over his clothing. I accelerated fast enough to get on his wheel, but after about 200 yards I had to let him go, I cant keep that up for long.

I enjoyed taking photos and can not possibly show them all. But the disused cooling towers dominated the landscape virtually the whole ride. I also passed a car breakers yard called 'Zen Motors' which reminded me Dave has not given me back my copy of Zen and the art of motor cycle maintenance yet and he has had it about 4-5 months. That is the second copy I have lent and it not been returned!

I also saw a single bed in road and a burned out van. I will return to the burned out van tommorrow and draw on it. This will add one more to the 6 or so burned out cars I have previously drawn on.

Xmas is over

I wore my suit on xmas day and if I did the two jacket buttons up, then pushed my bloated my stomach out I could see my shirt peeping through the 4 inches or so between the buttons. This reminded me of Oliver Hardy and actually shocked me a little. So getting the bike into my life style is important if things are to change.

I know some of my bike mates will be out tommorrow (the hard core) the ones out 2-3-4 times a week types. I've been out about twice since I got back from holiday end Oct.
I know I will get that hot peptic sensation if I try and keep up with them tommorrow. They like off road and I know I will also get wet and covered in mud. I expect they will have new cycling clothes, equipment and may be even new bikes from Santa. I got a book on totem poles, some David Attenbourough natural history DVD's and some red indian flute music. I would rather spend time looking at these presants than charge round the woods in the mud.

So after some consideration I have decided not to go with them and will aim to get out on my own during the week!

The best laid plans of mice and men?

This blog is not turning out the way I thought it might, I have only had one ride with Andy since it started. I have had several rides with Andy, but with the rest of the group as well!

And there lies the rub: the rest of the group, they want to go fast, they have no time to chat, ponder or wonder about anything. Riding is all, and riding fast.

So I have decided to keep to my original plan, that was to photograph the kent countryside over the course of one year and combine the photos with the typical 'bolcloks' me and Andy talk. I will do exactly that, exept that the 'blocloks' spoken will be all mine?

I have no doubt I will ride with the group again, but this blog may be more solitary than I planned.

So the first ride with Andy and Rob was not with Andy?

A guest apperance from an old friend, who came to stay for a week, who I have known since nursery school. Ian brought his bike with him and we did several low key outings, just local they became known as 'the tour'.

The experiences and references we have in common from growing up together is what we mostly chuntered on about, kind of reminding our selves of stuff that happened to us, and its not often someone shares your memories and understands them so readily. Easy to make each other laugh with memories from school. I think we probably would have bored other people rigid, so it was best Andy's road bike is still unrepaired and out of action.

His health is poor now and we kept it steady on his single speed. But if you had been with us pottering around the lanes you would have heard his story about when he beat the famous Belgian cyclist, Patric Sercu an olympic gold medal winner, and holder of the record for the most wins in 6 day track races, 88 wins, twice world sprint champion and he also won the green jersey in the tour de france in 1974.

My mate Ian totally mullered him in a one on one 400 meter handicap sprint, part of a points race at Herne Hill. It is all true, but what he might have left right till the end of his story, when you were really impresed was a detail on the length of the handicap...................

......................................................................................................................

....................................................................................

....................................................................

...................................................

...................................

.......................

.............

........

...



200 meters!

Introduction

There are times in my life when I have never even owned a bike. Others when I took it all far too seriously. Riding has been a key activity in my life and I own two bikes at the moment. One road bike and one off road bike. Niether getting much use, but this blog I hope will change that.

There are three types of bike rides in my opinion, wobbly ones when you are with the kids, fast ones when you are with cyclist nutters when you can’t see, can’t breathe, can’t think. Then there are the thoughtful ones, where the destination is not important, when you stop to look at trees, flowers and fields and experience the journeys and the conversations that journeys inspire. Lets spin those miles and let the ramblings begin.

There is the fourth bike; thats the one your were riding when Francesco Moser could'nt chase you down in the last mile and a half, the one you rode over Mount Ventoux with Lucien Van Impe, the one Freddy Maertens nearly brought you down from when he managed to get round you and beat you by half a wheel. In fact it's the same bike you were riding when you got promoted to that directorship. When you bought a new set of wheels for it you had just gone self employed and had turned over a hundred and eighty three grand in 18 months. You put some paniers on it one year and had that fantastic family holiday in New Zealand.

Yeh; I was looking for that bike a couple of days ago!