Friday 12 March 2010

Peak of Perfection

We have been staying in Buxton in Derbyshire for Mrs Rine's big birthday bash, fittingly situated in the Peak District.


It was thought for many years that the Roman town of Buxton was the first Spa to open in this Country but that has since been discredited by the discovery of the Matlock Londis and early traces of the Ashbourne Coop. It is now a centre for Motorcycle Road Racing, Tourism and Opera. It also boasts the most profitable Pick 'n Mix Shop in Britain (well it was last week).

On Tuesday I cycled the Tissington Trail which is a fantastic old Railway line converted to a cycle track. The run from Parsley Hay down to Ashbourne was tremendous although it was at that point I discovered a major flaw in my Coast to Coast training plan. As I puffed and wheezed back to the start it suddenly occured to me that Norfolk is as flat as Peter Andre's stomach (slightly rippled and unappealing) whereas the C2C will actually resemble Katie Price's front chest.

I obviously need to get in some serious Peak training before the great event at the end of next month.

14 comments:

Sarah said...

Good luck!
I experience the same problems walking in Essex....even the slight incline up from our lake leaves me breathless!
Fab pic of wall a stone thingy by the way.
Hope Mrs R had a good time.

Z said...

Ooh, Pick 'n' Mix. I love it. I miss Woolworths.

Good to see you back, by the way.

KAZ said...

Now I know why you kept so quiet.
You didn't want me and Kev to drive down and lower the tone.
Hope Mrs Rine had a good one - my 50th was slap in the middle of a major Ofsted inspection.

Vicus Scurra said...

Have you any idea how much we have missed you?

Dave said...

I used to holiday in the Peak District a lot. I love hills. Norfolk is such a suitable place for me.

Timorous Beastie said...

Oh, looks lovely. I'm off to Buxton with Che in a couple of weeks and will be delighted to find this palace of pick n mix.

Rog said...

Sarah: I'm still aching from the walking and cycling on hills! Is Lakeside at the bottom of your Garden?

Z: Yes, I saw someone buy £11.50 in one bag of Jellies and Shrimps etc. If only Woolies could have tapped into that market properly...

Kaz: I didn't realize how near to Manchester we were until I checked the rainfall statistics. You would have been most welcome!

Vicus: You sentimental old fool!

Dave: I suppose you always had your mind on higher things. I do miss hills though, having lived near Hillside Avenue in Gravesend.

Timorous: The Sugar Cube is almost opposite the water fountain. Buxton Dentists all live in the big houses on Manchester Road.

Richard said...

It's a good job you didn't say where you were, I'm only half an hour away.

Jon Storey said...

When you come up to do the C2C, don't keep thinking about Katie Price's chest. You will be totally stuffed, the hills are even bigger! I can arrange oxygen dumps...

Geoff said...

I have many happy mammaries of the Peaks. Much underrated.

Roses said...

So glad you and Mrs Rine had a good time. You were missed.

Good luck with the training. I'm not sure how you're going to manage cycling up Katie Price, but Oz and Lil will cheer you on, in between laughing.

Madame DeFarge said...

Just up the road from us. Cycled the Tissington Trail too - takes a lot of puff!

Rog said...

Richard: Ah, but half an hour by what? You could have give us a guided tour for practise.

Jon: That's really cheered me up now! I'm thinking of getting an electric bike....

Geoff: I hope you didn't have any handbrake problems.

Roses: "Crossing Jordan by Bike" - I'll see if I can get Ewan Macgregor to join me.

M. De Farge: It's a lovely part of the World. I could have called this the "Huffington Post".

Macy said...

Hope Mrs Rine's birthday celebrations weren't restricted to a handful of Pic 'n Mix and hanging around the Tissington Trail to help you off your bike!