Supporting New Forest Cycling Club on a D-Day Ride

I have been lucky enough to have my own mechanic (AKA my husband Barry) to mend my punctures of which I had two whilst doing the Heavy Metal Truants Ride- but luckily whilst not out cycling.

Barry also helped me with my IT -uploading my rides on Garmin and Strava and creating my progress chart.  Barry also accompanied me on a 25 mile ride, and got the dinner ready on a couple of occasions whilst I was out cycling, so it only seemed fair to help Barry out today.

Barry is the cycle coach for New Forest Cycling Club and today was leading the club on a 200+km ride around 16 D-Day sites in the New Forest.

So I volunteered to be the support car.  I met the cyclists at the start point before 7am so that could drop off bags of clothing, food, drinks bottles etc.

The cyclists set off at 7am and I went home to prepare for refreshment stops.

The first one was at Stoney Cross to provide water to top up their bottles and give out Flapjacks that I'd made.

Once back home I started baking scones and and some savoury flapjacks for a refreshment stop at our house around 3pm.

I'd already made some cakes earlier in the week that I'd frozen.

After this pit stop, I started making some savoury muffins to give the cyclists a change from sweet foods and these were just coming out of the oven as they arrived for the end of the ride.

I say the end, but some cyclist still needed to cycle home (or in a few cases do extra km's - one cyclist did over 300km today!)

The cyclist very generously donated to my Heavy Metal Truants sponsorship fund which now stands at a whopping £682.10

UPDATE The NFCC Sunday ride stopped by to support me at the end of their ride and helped to finish up the cakes! Thanks to their generosity, my fundraising total has increased to £727

Thank you to each and every one of you for sponsoring me.

If you wish to sponsor me, you can do so here.

A few people have asked me for my flapjack recipe, so I will share it here.  It is based on a Riverford recipe.

Carrot & Banana Flapjack

Vegan, gluten-free, sugar-free carrots cake from Riverford🥕 🥕

Recipe

1 cup soft seedless dates or soft apricots

Pinch of salt 

1 ripe banana 

1/4 cup coconut oil (approx 50 g) melted

1 cup rolled oat 

1 cup shredded coconut and/or walnuts/sunflower seeds

Approximately 4 grated carrots 

Cinnamon -optional

Put  dates/apricots in a  food processor to chop (or cut with scissors/knife into small pieces)

Add bananas and blend until smooth (or mash with a fork)

Put oats into a mixing bowl.  Add all the other ingredients.

Mix it together and press into a baking tray. 

Cook at 200 degrees for 20 mins. 

Allow to cool and then cut when cool.

Note 

The mixture probably would fill a 7” square or equivalent tin. 

I double the recipe to fill a bigger baking tin, but do not double to dates/apricots as with the carrots and banana it is still sweet.

Thank you for reading this and for your support, encouragement and sponsorship.

Julie x

Heavy Metal Truants Ride 10

Today was my final ride for the Heavy Metal Truants virtual charity bike ride and the last day of the ride for everyone.

I had 13 miles to do today and was gratefully accompanied once again by my friends Corinne and Duncan.

We set off for Sandy Down and then headed to Boldre.  We stopped by Boldre church to take off a layer of clothing after warming up climbing a hill.

We cycled to Pilley and then to Norleywood.

After East Boldre, we cycled past Hatchet Pond and decided to stop for a photo opportunity. As ususal, there were a plethora or ponies and donkeys here.

On the road back to Brockenhurst I noticed that I had passed the 13 mile mark which meant that I had cycled 175 miles since starting this challenge.

As we cycled past The Pig, a vehicle and trailer overtook us but cut in too early and nearly took poor Corinne out! Thankfully Corinne anticipated this and managed to stop.

We got back to Corinne and Duncan's house, thankfully in tact.

After thanking Duncan and Corinne for their company, I went and emptied the aluminium recycling bin and headed home.

As I got near my road, I noticed that I was on 19 miles for the day so decided to make it to at least 20 miles.

I was rewarded by seeing lots of ponies, foals and a Highland cattle.

So I have now cycled the equivalent distance from Alexandra Palace to Donington.

As I said on my sponsorship form, I have always been a reluctant cyclist, but I think I now have the cycling bug.

I have really enjoyed this challenge and really wish that I was fit enough and had the health to complete it in the allotted 12 days

But on the plus side, I am fitter and have enjoyed learning routes on the Forest roads that I didn't know. I think I've lost a few much needed pounds too.

I really want to keep on cycling and continue to get fitter.

Thank you to each and every one of you for sponsoring me, for your encouragement and for reading my blogs.

I set my target for £175 and have been overwhelmed by your generosity.  I am currently on £590  - more than in my wildest dreams!

There will be one last blog written over the weekend as I am involved with a cycling activity (but I won't be cycling for this one)!

Thank you for reading this and following me on this challenge

Julie x

 

Ride 9 Heavy Metal Truants Charity Ride

With my youngest sister still with me and it being a Bank Holiday Monday, we got up and made an early start for our bike ride today.

We started off doing a tour of Brockenhurst to get a (safe distanced) view of a newborn donkey.

We then headed to Sway, Boldre, Pilley,  Norleywood and East End. The crocheted message of "Hope' on the Pilley postbox was very apt!

We took a detour to the beach at the end of Tanners Lane, as I had never been down there before. We enjoyed a flapjack and a drink and a chat with another cyclist.

We enjoyed riding down the quiet country roads through St Leonards, towards Bucklers Hard, listening to the birds.

During our ride we saw Blackbirds, Buzzards, Sparrows, Robins, Swifts, Goldfinch, Swans, Cote, Moorhen, Pheasants, Black Headed Gulls, Mistle Thrush, Crows, Dragonfly, Wagtail, Pipits and Chaffinch. We hears Chiffchaff, Mediterranean Gull, Skylarks and Song Thrush.

There was another donkey foal in East Boldre. 

We stopped at Hatchet Moor for a drink and enjoyed watching Dragonfly over the water lilies and seeing a pair of swans with their signets.

The roads were quite busy busy this stage, so we decided to ride back via the trails.

What really helped me through the miles today was knowing that, with your great support and sponsorship,  I have already raised a whopping £535! Knowing that for every mile I cycle I am raising over £3 per mile is a great incentive to me, and I thank each an every one of you for sponsoring me. If you haven't sponsored me. yet, you can do so here .

Today we cycles 28.55 miles

That takes me to Ashby de la Zouch.

Only 13 miles to go to get me to Donington by Friday!

Thank you for reading this.

Julie x