That was a Biggie! Longest, highest day yet, only one significant hill up to Mendip Hills but it was 400 m finishing in 250 m at >1:10. Heroes all! Especially the one who had been a bit under the weather for a few days.
Very late into Bristol about 21:20 and 12:30am by the time we’d negotiated the cul-de-sacs and locked shopping centre gates at Domino’s for pizzas (exactly twice the price of the Australian equivalent and they don’t do anchovies, backward country).
We were late due to a prolonged stop in Glastonbury for lunch, to comment that the many hippies and hippie shops there were the same as 40 years ago. Only those hippies now had their daughters with them. Ride halfway up the Tor, then walk to the top, feel the power (not from Hinckly nuclear power station visible in the distance from the Tor) of the Ley lines and then circle the tower. Lots of hippie dippie people doing the mystical power thing.
On the next leg past Wells through Wooky Hole to the Mendip Hills climb John found his promised land (see photo, Titsland Lane).
Shortly after finding the Promised Land, John and I found the steepest and longest hill of the ride. Up the Mendip Hills. It seemed a 1 to 2 kilometres of between 1:10 (the resting bit) and 1:7 (the steep bit). I had to stop on the way up, I understand John rode the whole thing in one hit. The locals were zipping past us using it for cycle training.
Bristol is horrible to cycle in because it’s hilly, and apart from the magnificent Bath to Bristol Rail Trail, the routes going to the suburbs twist and turn every few hundred metres. Our lodgings were 10km out in the new burbs built on the cul-de-sac ‘you’ll never find us’ principle. Round and around trying to find the multi-block development, then around and around in the development trying to find our booked house.
Basic bike maintenance (handle bar tapes taped back into place, Christine’s new bike getting nuts tightened, sundry other bits done. Getting the bikes down the steep stairs is a two person job so only to be down when necessary.