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| Kev showing the pain in Tarves |
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| Another rail trail |
Tuesday, July 9, 2019
Where Did The Sun Go !
I don't know whether you've ever had an experience that soundly questions your moral standings but this morning I certainly did !
With H moaning and groaning this morning with bare ass faced in my direction it was obvious that he was having difficulty getting dressed for the days ride with his rib injury.
I'd considered this prospect prior and while having no problem helping him put on his socks and shoes I was having a real moral dilemma debating about whether or nor I should offer to help him put his riding jocks on ! Thankfully Kev managed by himself and while I did help put on his socks and shoes I can safely report that by that stage (thankfully) his bottom half was well and truly covered !
After yesterday's beautiful weather today promised a day full of rain and up until an hour before reaching Aberdeen it didn't disappoint.
We left busy Turrif and were soon out in what would have been beautiful countryside if we could actually see anything through the mist and rain.
Thoroughly wet after 25kms we pulled in at Maud for a community house cuppa where H seriously thought about putting in an offer for use of their community house bus to get him to Aberdeen.
The painkillers were only just working and it was obvious that Kev was going up and down in the one spot but options other than getting a taxi were limited in this isolated part of the country.
We regrouped again at Tarves for another drink and set off individually in our soaked through gear to our final meet close to Aberdeen Airport.
With the rain now stopped I'd been waiting for near on an hour before H finally emerged along the muddy rail trail cursing the fact that at one of the towns en route he'd taken a wrong turn adding another 2km to his journey before he realised that he was going the wrong way. What threw him he reckoned was that the sign normally red, white and blue was actually black - the irony of the colours was lost on him (he's a bulldogs supporter back in Melbourne with the same colours).
Riding the last 5kms together we made it to our hotel near the airport on our mud splattered bikes looking forward to the joy of low flying jet aircraft keeping us awake most of the night.
As for H's condition all we can do is drastically shorten tomorrow's ride to give him a chance to recover.
Sent from my iPad
With H moaning and groaning this morning with bare ass faced in my direction it was obvious that he was having difficulty getting dressed for the days ride with his rib injury.
I'd considered this prospect prior and while having no problem helping him put on his socks and shoes I was having a real moral dilemma debating about whether or nor I should offer to help him put his riding jocks on ! Thankfully Kev managed by himself and while I did help put on his socks and shoes I can safely report that by that stage (thankfully) his bottom half was well and truly covered !
After yesterday's beautiful weather today promised a day full of rain and up until an hour before reaching Aberdeen it didn't disappoint.
We left busy Turrif and were soon out in what would have been beautiful countryside if we could actually see anything through the mist and rain.
Thoroughly wet after 25kms we pulled in at Maud for a community house cuppa where H seriously thought about putting in an offer for use of their community house bus to get him to Aberdeen.
The painkillers were only just working and it was obvious that Kev was going up and down in the one spot but options other than getting a taxi were limited in this isolated part of the country.
We regrouped again at Tarves for another drink and set off individually in our soaked through gear to our final meet close to Aberdeen Airport.
With the rain now stopped I'd been waiting for near on an hour before H finally emerged along the muddy rail trail cursing the fact that at one of the towns en route he'd taken a wrong turn adding another 2km to his journey before he realised that he was going the wrong way. What threw him he reckoned was that the sign normally red, white and blue was actually black - the irony of the colours was lost on him (he's a bulldogs supporter back in Melbourne with the same colours).
Riding the last 5kms together we made it to our hotel near the airport on our mud splattered bikes looking forward to the joy of low flying jet aircraft keeping us awake most of the night.
As for H's condition all we can do is drastically shorten tomorrow's ride to give him a chance to recover.
Sent from my iPad
En route to Turrif - 67kms / 350 metres climbing
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| Nearing Banf |
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| Old WW2 airtsrip - Nether Ballachy |
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| Old railway bridge over the Spey River |
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| Findlochty |
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| Kev's "near" final resting place ! |
A Painful Day !
It's always in Kev's nature to be considerate of others so the fact that he decided to have his physical breakdown until right beside the cliff bluff at Buckie this morning very considerate. If he wasn't going to recover after the generously alloted 15 minutes i'd given him then all I had to do was simply roll him over the cliff.
We left Spey Bay on a beautiful cool morning taking time out to fly the drone over the Fochabers - Spey Rail trail and the WW2 Airfield at Nether Dallachy.
Back on the trail the mornings cycle was a gem as we wound our way through quiet Scottish seaside villages before jumping on to another disused rail trail to Findochty.
Here we met a delightful Scotsman who wished us a good days cycle saying that every day in Findochty is a sunny day it just depends on how you look at it !
Picking up the trail nearby heading around the coast on a predominant walking track was the trigger for Henley's breakdown. His ribs sore after his pole collision exploded with pain as he took on the rough terrain.
Pulling over at Cullen Kev barely made it to the bench seat where he hunched almost motionless until the painkillers he eventually took kicked in. With the offer of simply rolling him over the cliff bluff Kev came temporarily good enough to keep going as we climbed again which only succeeded in bringing his pain back.
Away from the hilly stuff the cycling was superb, quiet country lanes with fields of rich colours which were stunningly beautiful.
We entered Banf by way of its rugged coastline before heading inland once again for 20 delightful kms to Turrif arriving at our well appointed accommodation at 5.30 pm.
After a meal in town we walked slowly back to our b&b.
It remains to be seen whether Kev's painkillers kick in enough to allow him to safely cycle tomorrow's longer route to Aberdeen.
Sent from my iPad
We left Spey Bay on a beautiful cool morning taking time out to fly the drone over the Fochabers - Spey Rail trail and the WW2 Airfield at Nether Dallachy.
Back on the trail the mornings cycle was a gem as we wound our way through quiet Scottish seaside villages before jumping on to another disused rail trail to Findochty.
Here we met a delightful Scotsman who wished us a good days cycle saying that every day in Findochty is a sunny day it just depends on how you look at it !
Picking up the trail nearby heading around the coast on a predominant walking track was the trigger for Henley's breakdown. His ribs sore after his pole collision exploded with pain as he took on the rough terrain.
Pulling over at Cullen Kev barely made it to the bench seat where he hunched almost motionless until the painkillers he eventually took kicked in. With the offer of simply rolling him over the cliff bluff Kev came temporarily good enough to keep going as we climbed again which only succeeded in bringing his pain back.
Away from the hilly stuff the cycling was superb, quiet country lanes with fields of rich colours which were stunningly beautiful.
We entered Banf by way of its rugged coastline before heading inland once again for 20 delightful kms to Turrif arriving at our well appointed accommodation at 5.30 pm.
After a meal in town we walked slowly back to our b&b.
It remains to be seen whether Kev's painkillers kick in enough to allow him to safely cycle tomorrow's longer route to Aberdeen.
Sent from my iPad
Sunday, July 7, 2019
En route to Spey Bay - 45 kms / 150 metres climbing
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| Rail trail near Spey Bay |
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| Spey Bay |
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| Elgin Cathedral ! |
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| Spey Bey |
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| Our pub accommodation at Findhorn |
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| Finished at last ! |
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| Elgin Cathedral |
Eeezy Peezy Even If a Little Breezy !
There was enough groaning coming from Henley's bed this morning to tell me that he was still alive despite having taken out traffic signals en route to our overnight accommodation in Findhorn.
Not overly excited by our one pound / in room breakfast of instant porridge, a banana and a muesli bar we hit the road a little earlier than normal knowing that today was going to be pretty cruzy at just 45kms.
Despite glimpses of early morning sun the wind made it cool enough for us to don our longs. H this time navigated safely past the traffic signals to the Kinloss Spa (sort of an Aussie 7/11) where we breakfasted on sandwiches, fruit and for me some chocolate milk !
Our Sustrans signposted guided route into Elgin was a delight taking us along quiet and flattish country roads before emptying us in Elgin right beside the beautiful ruins of Elgins 13th Century cathedral.
After a few obligatory pics and a nearby Costa coffee, our remaining 20kms to Spey Bay (where the Spey river meets the Nth Sea) where equally enjoyable cycling through lovely rural scenery and along the Fochabers Spey rail trail.
We had a little while to wait in the sun before our b&b's listed check in time. We'd timed it well arriving on a Sunday for the nearby Moray Golf Clubs weekly carvery.
In between "shit canning" the Septics (as H called the USA women's soccer team) we took in the views from the golf club and wondered whether the fine spell of sunny weather (3-4 hours) would continue !
Sent from my iPad
Not overly excited by our one pound / in room breakfast of instant porridge, a banana and a muesli bar we hit the road a little earlier than normal knowing that today was going to be pretty cruzy at just 45kms.
Despite glimpses of early morning sun the wind made it cool enough for us to don our longs. H this time navigated safely past the traffic signals to the Kinloss Spa (sort of an Aussie 7/11) where we breakfasted on sandwiches, fruit and for me some chocolate milk !
Our Sustrans signposted guided route into Elgin was a delight taking us along quiet and flattish country roads before emptying us in Elgin right beside the beautiful ruins of Elgins 13th Century cathedral.
After a few obligatory pics and a nearby Costa coffee, our remaining 20kms to Spey Bay (where the Spey river meets the Nth Sea) where equally enjoyable cycling through lovely rural scenery and along the Fochabers Spey rail trail.
We had a little while to wait in the sun before our b&b's listed check in time. We'd timed it well arriving on a Sunday for the nearby Moray Golf Clubs weekly carvery.
In between "shit canning" the Septics (as H called the USA women's soccer team) we took in the views from the golf club and wondered whether the fine spell of sunny weather (3-4 hours) would continue !
Sent from my iPad
The Truth
Now let's get the real facts out about my life threatening tumble .
We all know Litchfield is a rather large bloke and with an arse like a working bullock he's very difficult to see around when you're riding behind him , in fact you'd probably have more chance of seeing past a cement mixer truck .
As we're travelling past an old airfield where Mike's Dad Geoff used to fly out of in his pilot days he was pointing out certain parts of the field and the large hangers still in place .
After refocusing back to the trail and seeing the incoming poles in the MIDDLE of the bike path he swerved to miss them but neglected to inform MWA of the impending danger with a " watch the poles " warning .
I was blissfully distracted by the airfield and the instant I turned back to the trail I sort of found 3 poles slightly in my way .
They weren't about to budge so to show them who was boss I hit the first bollard with the bike and crunched the old traffic light pole in the middle with my right chest followed by a magnificent landing .
Litchfield's response up front was " you all right , c'mon hurry up we've got to get to our B&B , totally oblivious to the life threatening injuries I had sustained , namely 23 broken ribs , fractured sternum to name a few , but I should be ok by tomorrow .
I know everyone is worried sick but I'll survive .
Saturday, July 6, 2019
En route to Findhorn - 54 kms / 300 metres climbing
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| Approaching Inverness |
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| Findhorn |
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| The offending Pole ! |
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| Crossing the Spey bridge into Inverness |
H Crash Lands on Approach to Kilross Airport !
The man that has left the best part of his hip in Wales, most of his elbow in Slovenia and his stomach contents in Santander added to his impressive list by donating a few of his ribs to the Scottish cause riding today to Findhorn. In doing so H became one of only a handful of people ever to crash land on approach to an airport without actually being inside of a plane !
We left our luxury b&b near Alness on full stomachs courtesy of our wonderful hosts Gunta and Alec and set about cycling the 40plus kms to Inverness on an overcast and cool day.
Taking flattish and quiet back roads to Dingwall had us both believing we were living in a dream until we took on a 200 metre climb mirroring the A9 along country lanes on the Black Isle.
Entry to Inverness was by courtesy of the Inverness main bridge where an easy 3km cycle followed to the train station where we were just over a week ago !
My plan was to bypass the exit from Inverness and give H an easy day but the look of the ticketing attendant had me worried. "I'm glad you guys are only going to Forres" he said - if you'd wanted any other train heading south you'd have to wait a week or more as Scotrail only provides access for 2 bikes per train !
We gladly paid our $20 equivalent for a 45 minute train journey ( trains are incredibly expensive in the UK) and sat back enjoying the views over the terrain that we would have cycled
Getting off at Forres we had only 10 kms to go to our accommodation at Findhorn by way of Kinloss.
It was at this point while passing the airports runway and talking about the old giant hangars in place that H failed to notice the 10 foot high partially dismantled traffic light obviously in use once upon a time to stop cars while a plane was landing.
From our best forensic recreation it appears that H hit the protective bollard at speed cannoned into the traffic light and then crashed on to the crash verge impressing both the Russian judges and a good natured young lass who stopped her car to see if H was ok !
Thankfully the damage was limited to Kev's pride although H reckoned a few cuts and bruised ribs warranted hero status as he continued riding on to Findhorn.
With our basic accommodation found we had just enough time to watch the conclusion of the opening stage of the Tour de France (their crashes weren't as impressive!)
A late afternoon walk around the shore of this holiday town gave us just enough time to relax before dinner and for H to check whether any permanent damage to self or bike had been done !!!
We left our luxury b&b near Alness on full stomachs courtesy of our wonderful hosts Gunta and Alec and set about cycling the 40plus kms to Inverness on an overcast and cool day.
Taking flattish and quiet back roads to Dingwall had us both believing we were living in a dream until we took on a 200 metre climb mirroring the A9 along country lanes on the Black Isle.
Entry to Inverness was by courtesy of the Inverness main bridge where an easy 3km cycle followed to the train station where we were just over a week ago !
My plan was to bypass the exit from Inverness and give H an easy day but the look of the ticketing attendant had me worried. "I'm glad you guys are only going to Forres" he said - if you'd wanted any other train heading south you'd have to wait a week or more as Scotrail only provides access for 2 bikes per train !
We gladly paid our $20 equivalent for a 45 minute train journey ( trains are incredibly expensive in the UK) and sat back enjoying the views over the terrain that we would have cycled
Getting off at Forres we had only 10 kms to go to our accommodation at Findhorn by way of Kinloss.
It was at this point while passing the airports runway and talking about the old giant hangars in place that H failed to notice the 10 foot high partially dismantled traffic light obviously in use once upon a time to stop cars while a plane was landing.
From our best forensic recreation it appears that H hit the protective bollard at speed cannoned into the traffic light and then crashed on to the crash verge impressing both the Russian judges and a good natured young lass who stopped her car to see if H was ok !
Thankfully the damage was limited to Kev's pride although H reckoned a few cuts and bruised ribs warranted hero status as he continued riding on to Findhorn.
With our basic accommodation found we had just enough time to watch the conclusion of the opening stage of the Tour de France (their crashes weren't as impressive!)
A late afternoon walk around the shore of this holiday town gave us just enough time to relax before dinner and for H to check whether any permanent damage to self or bike had been done !!!
Friday, July 5, 2019
En route to Alness - 57 kms / 400 metres climbing
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| Climbing the Struie Hill ! |
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| Bike shop / PO at Bonar Bridge |
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| Bonar Bridge |
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| Beautiful views in afternoon sun at Alness |
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