Copperfield

It might have been a look that worked for Uriah Heep, but it didn't take long to realise that this years glove collection needs some work if I'm going to cut it as the running worlds answer to Jock Wan. It was so cold on Sunday first thing before we set off for our 2 hour constitutional through the lanes that I delved into the running drawer and stuck on a pair of gloves for the first time since around April. Very stylish with fully vented index and middle finger. They couldn't fail to impress. It was just as well the sun came out and the temperatures rose otherwise my archery days would have been numbered.

This followed a heroic but ultimately a doomed attempt on Saturday to ride to the Bellingham Show to take some snaps of the fell race. I was 6 miles short of the village when I surrendered after battling for an hour and a half with a wicked headwind. The ride back was pretty prompt though making it around 12mph out and 18 back. The group of 3 cyclists in front gave me some added incentive but I didn't make any headway into the 20 seconds or so they had in front of me and I kept losing them round the bends only to get a visual again on the short steep inclines. They then split at a junction. Yeah, oldest trick in the book.

Yesterday after dusting down the old Raleigh frame which I've decided I'm going to rebuild, it was an easy 7 miler in the late afternoon as the sun made a welcome appearance. I might nip out tonight to snap the Blyth Links 10k which usually gets a good turnout. If the wind behaves itself there might be some fast times.

This Sundays Keswick trip to the trail race looks like it takes in much of Latrigg and a slideshow on the website www.lakelandtrails.org/slideshow/Derwentwater/slideshow suggests an old pair of road shoes should do the job. Its quite a big field with what looks like some potential bottlenecks so I'll need to get a bit of speed on early to avoid the masses.

I'll patch up the old gloves before then. Just call me Micawber. When I dug out this illustration, Aggie did a double take, then went all pale. She thinks she's featured in David Copperfield. She hasn't changed a bit.