Ysella Glamping in Cornwall

 Ysella Glamping in St Agnes. 

Snowdonia scramble

Big Swim Cornwall

The Big Swim event is a one mile swim from Port Gavern around the headland to Port Isaac, home to Martin Clunes. a.k.a Doc Martin.

Doc Martin on Port Isaac beach. 

You will notice the lovely weather and calm sea a few days before this years Big Swim.

On my first Big Swim the shimmering deep blue sea had turned in to a raging 7ft brown swell.

Starting off went quite well. Then I felt claustrophobic among the melee of swimmers so I sped off to find some space. I concentrated on my stroke and kept going at a nice steady pace, not sure how much energy to keep in reserve. At this point I was aware only of the bubbling sound of my exhalation and flashes of landmarks. 

The jolly flotilla followed us round the headland. As we turned the corner of the swell became very powerful, it pushed and pulled and made me feel really sea sick. I began to get tired I noticed my steady breathing became like walrus-type snorting. 

Out at sea - the harbour wall still not insight.

Finally the harbour wall. I knew I could safely return from here on in. The water felt calmer and shallower. I managed to swim the last 20 feet in top gear, passing and over taking a few other swimmers. Finally, I felt the bottom grow nearer and my hands brushed the sand. I looked up to see a packed beach, and staggered ashore. Awaiting me a free pint of Doom Bar. 

Regent's Park 10k

I ran the Regent's Park 10k this morning and was impressed. It's pretty cheap, well organised and not too busy with around 500 runners taking part. Three laps of a circuit, so you get a good opportunity to time and regulate your efforts for consistent lap times. I was averaging 20 mins a lap. This was the first 10k (my first competitive run) and without any training I was fairly happy with my time of 1:02. Scenic and pleasant but no much of an overall adrenaline rush. Just happy to have got it over with.

Hertforshire 100

Rhythm and drafting is so important on a long ride. Without it, you constantly feel like you’re battling away, that every pedal stroke is laborious and slow. We left London far too late to set off with the peloton on the morning of the Hertfordshire 100, and consequently the ride was one of the slowest and most tiring i've ridden. Glad we opted for the 34 mile ride, the demanding climbs they call little Austria, five miles to the end were exhausting. Nevertheless the scenery of rolling hills didn't disappoint. Total riding time: 3 hours 48 minutes, total distance: 34 miles. 

Regents Park Loop

You’ll have noticed that the sun has been a little slower coming up over the horizon. Before the light goes completely in the evenings I headed up for to Regents park to cycle the famous outer circle. It was time to learn the truth, find out if it was just full of London Cyclists in Rapha who've never been cycling outside the M25. To my surprise not so. All shapes, sizes and ages and it was surprising fun, with Thursday's being the traditional night to hammer around. Small packs of cyclists whizzing past, dropping back, breezing back up to the front. A few short stops for traffic lights but otherwise a pretty car / traffic free ride. You rack up the miles too, we cycled 18 miles in an hour, that's 6 laps in an hour. Followed by a couple of pints in the local.

Nictri Sprint Tr

So, with the daylight hours of each day reducing dramatically, and with every weekend in September already looking busy, this would be the last good weekend to give a Tri a stab. And so I decided to sign up for the NiceTri Super Sprint in Cambridge. Wish I hadn't bothered, St Neot is horrible and I left without competing.