London to Paris - Training 05

The training regimen is struggling to kick in fully. Last Sunday we were due to do a 3 hour ride with a group starting from Redhill. The plan was then to pop over to my sister in Reigate for afternoon tea. We put the bikes on the roof rack and drove down. Only one other person turned up and she was not the tour leader so after half an hour we gave up and devised our own 2 hour ride ending up at my sister's for lunch. Mum and Dad were there so that was bonus.

Tuesday night I was at the Kylie concert so Mary did a long route home via Hammersmith. Wednesday night Mary was in Birmingham so I did a circuit round Richmond Park. Even so we are not getting in the distance rides we need.

Last Thursday I also suffered a mishap on the way home. Little girl on edge of cycle path turned wheel of scooter, Mary braked, me too close behind, emergency stop!! Over the handle bars and chinned the pavement. Off to our GP surgery, as we were nearly home, who sent me to A&E at St Georges where they glued the cut together - better than stitches apparently - and sent me home. So a wasted evening and we didn't get to eat till about 10:30 by which time Pizza Express was the only restaurant in Old York Road who's kitchen staff hadn't packed up for the evening.

A week later all was healing nicely apart from my right hand where the swelling hadn't gone down as much as the other lumps and it was painful to open things (jars and doors). So I spent 3 hours this lunchtime first at a walk-in center then Barts getting an x-ray confirmation that nothing was actually broken.



You can see the wider space between the index and middle finger bones in the main body of the hand. That is where the tender muscles and stuff are. So pop some Ibuprofen and let nature take its course.

It has to be said that there may have been over 6 hours of sitting about in waiting rooms but I paid not a penny for any of it. The NHS is a great thing and deserves all the support it can get and some more beside.