Well that was fantastic, a whole day of riding glorious singletrack on the Surrey Hills, freestyling back down Leith Hill, racing the light back to the car park at Holmbury.
Bikes on the car and a quick drive to the  Volunteer for beer and birthday cake (thanks Nicky) then to Dorking and the train back to London.
I’m not sure rides or birthdays get much better than that…

Yum, as mentioned earlier I picked some up at lunch time in Sainsbury’s it’s 5.6% and really rather good I was going to save it till tomorrow and have a dry night but I managed to keep it at just the right temperature so I just had to open a bottle. Theakston’s say the taste is mysterious and it certainly is, I can’t put my finger on it at all other than to say it’s completely magic crisp and quite dry and just perfect really. This might be my favourite beer at the moment, certainly it’s just right for winter, proper full bodied and just plain drinkable.

Looks like we’re due due at least three sunny if not warm days so I’ll be able to get loads of riding in over the course of the next three days. Early morning spin on Hackney Marshes I think, then sit at work tired, 8 hours of monotony then the North Down’s on Saturday with a bunch of friends and Epping Forest by myself on Sunday. I’m really properly excited just hope the sore throat that seems to be lurking goes away.
My day was made even better by the fact that Sainsburyss had a special offer on Theakstons beer and sausages, get in.

Yum…

It’s quite strong at 5% but deceptively so, it’s a very light fruity beer I’d say it’d be ideal for summer really but it’s still a treat in winter. I had a bottle on Friday night and expected something a bit darker and heavier but I’d not read the tasting notes, so I was surprised and actually really pleased, with what I’d picked out of my beer stash.
More detail here.

Well what a great day out that was riding round Berkhamstead and the Ridgeway with Sam from Singular Cycles and load of other friends old and new on a combination of back roads cheekytrails and bridleways lots of fun indeed.
What it did make me realise was how much I love my Voodoo Limba, if I was ever forced to just have one bike it would have to be a nice light cross bike possibly without gears like the Limba is as it’s just fantastic to ride. We managed a couple of beer stops on the ride as well which was fun and it’s put my mileage total over 200 for the month which I’m pretty happy about, the lurgy I’ve had seems to be properly on it’s way out too.
All in all this week had got a lot better as it’s gone on which is ace.

Back to work today after being ill, I still felt a bit pants this morning but everyone I seem to chat with online seems to have been sick as well and at work I wouldn’t be able to sit and wallow with them. The ride in was horrendous despite huge quantities of drugs I was suffering horribly, not daring to risk overtaking in my usual places, having to wait in traffic and being passed by the people I routinely race and beat. After a few hours I felt a bit better and going for a walk at lunchtime gave an added fillet to my condition which was nice. Getting into my Lycra I thought the ride home would really hurt but actually it was fine, I wasn’t fast by any stretch of the imagination but held my own things were getting better.  Then I needed to go to Brick Lane bikes where ten minutes and a fiver later they’d removed a freewheel that hadn’t been greased when I put it on and had abandoned for over a year, I left the chain I bought in the shop, on the counter they ran after which really was rather good.
I got home to fit my 20 tooth white industries freewheel ready for a cross ride at the weekend, now is there enough room in the sliding dropouts on my Voodoo Limba, did I think about this kind of thing when I built the bike up……?
Turns out I did five minutes later new freewheel is fitted wheel is flipped  and the chain is tensioned, another five minutes and both brakes are fettled ready for a ride at the weekend, magic. Swiftly followed by Tesco’s turning up with my shopping early and with chilled bottles of Badger and Black Sheep ale, great…

Well it’s getting a bit colder and the nights are settling in, that makes it time for proper beer in my book, cider and lager have been dominant in the warmer months now for some proper traditional ale.
I started tonight  with Black Sheep Ale, a truly fantastic fairly light ale (4.4% certainly in comparison to some of the Belgian beer I drink) but still crisp and dark and quite liquoricey as well, proper bonfire beer. I’m hoping to have some Theakstons next week to compare and contrast it against.

Very crisp, this could be my new favourite drinking at home lager, although I have seen it on draft in a few places. Happily it’s on special at Sainsbury’s as well which just makes things even better.

I do wonder how some companies get lager so totally wrong when this is so good…..

Is very malty and very dark and is almost identical to the French Pelican beer I drank on my holiday in May.  Crisp and lovely and at the moment on special offer, not up there with the likes of Kwak, but still pretty good and a definite contender to Leffe Brun.

First time I’ve had a drink on a Monday for a long time as well…

Is really rather quite good very crisp, very dry but incredibly smooth and conceals it’s 7% strength like a true master of deception. It’s possibly my favourite drink at the moment, handily it’s also on special at Sainsbury’s.

I’ve rather gone off beer of late although the few Belgian beers I had at the end of last week were pleasant enough, not cider though. To be honest I can see this cider phase lasting as long as it takes me to get completely hammered on it and then I’ll be off it for a good nine months, why does that always happen with cider? Is it only me?