Cycling hell

Three days have passed since our last catch up and we have generally continued in a state of continual relaxation. Hours of snorkelling in the sea and long walks along the (endless) beach have been the pinnacle of our exertion with several breaks to lounge by the pool or drink at beautiful bars along the way.

We have also taken up darts as a leisure activity. I haven’t played since I was much younger, it was one of my favourite pastimes to participate in with my dad and has really brought him to mind. He was highly competitive, occasionally a little bit of a cheat and would always make any game of 501 or 301 into a maths lesson. His methods of subtraction were far superior to mine even though (as he would always remind me) he only went to school for five years. My mental maths hasn’t improved greatly but luckily I now have Rob!

Netflix is still featuring highly in Rob’s agenda

and I have found the perfect place to read the 12 new books I’ve downloaded. A double hammock underneath a coconut tree.😊

Before we move onto the topic of the title of today’s blog I just want to mention football.

Every evening, from 5pm onwards, you cannot move outside our bungalows or on the beach without encountering football. It seems like every local male between the age of 10 and 35 congregates at one of the pitches to play the full hour and a half match before their evenings commence. The beach matches are definitely more casual whereas outside our bungalows the games are well structured and even have a referee.

They also attract quite a crowd.although the seating is fairly unconventional.

That’s enough from me – over to Rob for his specialist subject of cycling.

We casually booked 2 bikes for a trip down the beach today – Sunday.

After our usual two course breakfast and having packed a rucksack for the trip we were told the bikes were ready.

When I first looked at the bikes I thought they were for a child, Oh no they were ours.

The photo below doesn’t really give a true picture as to how bad they were. Handlebars were short with some grip in places, saddle seemed to be at incline (which would later prove to be painful), significant brake rub ( I later disconnected the brakes). Bent crankset. Gears just about worked.

Anyway we set off on what can only be described as one of the hardest cycle rides I’ve ever done.

We searched for flat, hard sand to ease our pain.

I did log the ride on Strava but would rather forget about it. Lots of pain, sweat and tears.

I later found out they one of the wheelers completed his 100th 100 miler today which would have been a dream compared to the 16k assault on the beach we managed.

Just before we go, two things to add.

Happy Birthday today to Gosso, hope you’ve had a fantastic day.

Well done To Ellie for (finally) passing her second year. We’re very proud!!