This is my first post for a while, and may well be the last for some time – I’m settling into PhD-finishing mode. I’m still finding time for some fun things though, like cycling…
The weather in Lancaster today has been… exciting. After battling the rain-filled headwind all the way to work, I heard news of major delays on the railways and motorways after extensive flooding. This evening was a different story. The wind had, if anything, intensified during the day, blowing the rain away and whipping the tempestuous clouds across the sky at an alarming rate. I left campus and pedalled hard south into the wind again, then turned north to ride back home along the Lune estuary path.
What a ride it was. The cross-wind kept threatening to shove me into the trees – at times it felt more like sailing than riding a bike. Despite the need to concentrate, I couldn’t resist throwing glances back over my left shoulder and out to sea. The wind was piling the waves up into the estuary, brown seawater swelling high over the normally dry and grassy salt marsh. A dazzling silver-gold light spilled over the lush, now ponded fields, accentuating all the colours in the late summer vegetation. Rarely have I seen the grass such a vibrant green. Cows moved together to investigate the new watering holes. On the estuary path, trees raged sideways in the gale, scattering twigs and leaves, apples and galls across the way.
I arrived back at the dockside tired, ready to make the most of the generous tailwind. There’s nothing quite like spinning easily back home in top gear, the wind in your back, tyres zipping up the tarmac.
Today’s verdict? Cycle on rainy days. You’ll have adventures.
Mike Whitfield 