London Cycling Diary

Ride It!

I came home to find the latest Evans Cycles catalogue had arrived via the post, and while drooling over all the lovely bikes and bits and bobs inside, out tumbled a little flyer about Ride It! This is a new initiative by Evans Cycles (in association with the magazines Mountain Bike Rider and Cycling Weekly) to run organised road and off-road rides in various locations across England twice a month this year.

According to the flyer, the off-road rides will be held on Saturdays and the road-rides will be held on Sundays. Both types of rides offer various route lengths, so you can choose the one that best suits your level of ability. They're not races, but simply a hassle-free way to enjoy some weekend riding in places you might not have visited before. A £10 entry fee applies.

You can find out more via the Evans Cycles website.

Cycling in Manhattan

Most people go to Manhattan for the shopping and the sight seeing. Me? I bite the bullet and go on a one-day cycle tour. Nothing like living dangerously, right?

A circuit ride: Hammersmith, Fulham, Putney & Barnes

While other poor folks were office-bound and chained to their desks this afternoon, I was out enjoying myself on two wheels.

I've not done much commuting by bicycle lately, so today I thought I'd begin a week's annual leave by making the most of the balmy autumnal weather. Plus I wanted to blow a few cobwebs away and check I'm in OK shape to tackle the 26-mile ride criss-crossing the five boroughs of New York that I'll be doing later this week. Yes, I'm heading to Manhattan and am looking forward to experiencing another big city by bicycle.

But today it was all about cycling along London's tow paths and the back streets of Fulham and Barnes.

A quick trundle to Hyde Park and back

A gorgeous summery morning here in London (predicted high of 23 degrees Celcius), so I decided to beat the crowds and took myself on a little trundle around Hyde Park at about 8.15am.

I've managed to work out a nifty 7-mile circuit which takes me from my door in West Kensington, around the park once and back again, with an obligatory diversion to my local French patiserrie for a not-very-healthy breakfast of pastries.

It's not a particularly fast ride, but it's an enjoyable one -- and a great way to blow away the Saturday night cobwebs!

Total distance: 7.19 miles, including a diversion to my local French bakery.
Ride time: 37.42min
Average speed: 12.03 mph
Top speed: 19.5 mph

An Easter Saturday trek to Richmond Park

Is there anything more life-affirming than riding your bike in the early hours through scenery like this?

Hammersmith to Twickenham on the back of a bike

At the risk of this turning into a cycling blog, let me tell you about yesterday's excursion by bike.

Bluebells at Kew

Every May I think, I must go see the bluebells in Kew, then promptly find an excuse not to get off my fat, lazy backside.

But this morning I donned my cycling gear, got on the bike and pedalled my way towards the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew. The five-mile trip along the tree-lined Thames Tow Path was easy riding, muddy and stony in parts, crowded with pedestrians in others. The only real hazard, apart from the odd rogue dog bounding off his lead, were the green flying aphids that clung to my sweaty face or flew into my mouth and down my throat! (That was my lunch sorted, then!)

A Sunday morning cycle through Richmond Park

I decided to appease my guilt for lack of commuter cycling this past week (due to inch-thick morning frosts and an inability to get out of my cosy bed, shame on me) by going on a longish cycle to Richmond Park this morning.

So armed with a map and my camera, I took to the streets and managed, somehow, to cycle my way across Hammersmith Bridge, through Barnes, past The Priory (where all the rockstars and models go to get help with their drug problems or eating disorders) and on into Richmond Park through Roehampton Gate.

There was a little nip in the air and some blustery wind, but the sun was shining and the sky was a beautiful blue. I have to confess that it was a little hard to appreciate when I first arrived because I felt bloody exhausted - all that nervous energy expended through trying to find the park in heavy Sunday morning traffic had taken its toll. I had to get off my bike and have a wee rest to catch my breath...

A Christmas Eve cycle tour of London

It was a beautiful day here in London today. The sky was a cloudless azure and the sun was out in all its glory. I swear it felt almost tropical, with no need for gloves or scarf or winter coat.

The two of us decided to make the most of the unseasonal weather and so, having done all our Christmas shopping yesterday, we went for a bike ride to Hyde Park to "tool around" on two wheels.

We had a late breakfast purchased from the Hyde Park Corner "refreshment point" (bacon roll for T, chocolate muffin for me, and two cups of steaming hot coffee), before getting back into the saddle again.