Thursday 30 July 2009

End of the blog

I have decided to end this blog. Given its aim was to track my progress towards the Etape and then write about its completion, it has come to a natural end. I have really enjoyed writing the blog, much more than I thought I would. I never thought anyone would be interested with what I had to say and the comments I have received have been really encouraging. It has also lead me to many other blogs and many interesting people.

As I have enjoyed writing the blog so much, I am going to start a new one. I'd love anyone who has enjoyed follows me to continue to read about my exploits here:


Cheers,
Simon

10 comments:

Lost Sheep said...

I sure will follow you over to your new blog page, it's been great reading about your trials and tribulations for the Etape!

Keep it up, and I'm sure you'll succeed in many more exploits xx

Iain McC said...

Simon,

I have enjoyed your Etape blog. I found it when training for my first attempt at the Etape and it was a real help to find someone going through a similar experience. Initally it was going to be a one off for me, but, like you, if they run the Etape up d'Huez next year it will be very hard to resist.

Best of luck with the teacher training.

Rgds

Simon Lewis said...

Cheers guys. Iain, how did the Etape go for you?

Iain McC said...

Ironically my Dartmoor and Etape experiences were pretty much the inverse of yours.

Did the Dartmoor in 6.19 with no problems. On the Etape I had a bit of a mare, largely through poor nutrition and the heat. Started to get really bad thigh cramp on Col de ND and then hunger knock on the Ventoux. Finished in 8.53, which was just over 5 hours to get to Bedoin, but then 3 and a half hours + to get up the "hill". Also had a puncture on the Ventoux which it took me 2 inner tubes to fix, just to liven things up.

Net conclusion was that I achieved the initial (and main) objective - which was to finish, but I fell short of what I felt I could do. So not necessarily the experience I expected when I set out for from Montelimar, but it was still a hell of an experience.

rgds

Anonymous said...

Thank you for your blog it was great to have the chance to follow you. Looking forward to what life now will hold for you.
Regards
Trea

Simon Lewis said...

Well done Iain. That's a fantastic Dartmoor time. And still a good Etape ride. It gives you an excuse to go back next year :-)

Thanks Trea. I hope the half marathon training is going well.

ShirishK said...

Hey Simon,

Well done on the blog...as you probably guessed, I'd been watching it for a while, but as a 'beginner' I felt a bit intimidated by how much training everyone else had done, so didn't feel confident enough to 'comment'.

Was really great to compare your experiences with mine..although obviously your performance was well out of my league!

Good luck with future challenges. Have you got anything in particular in mind? I'm definitely gonna do LEJOG next year, and maybe even give the Etape another go, although on that Monday night I was thinking 'never again'.

Take care,

Shirish

Simon Lewis said...

Cheers Shirish. I've never been out of anyone's league :-)

I'm probably going to try and do the Etape again next year. Even my wife said I should go for it again and she knows how many weekends I was away (thanks Cath).

The LEJOG might have to wait a couple of years. I'm 40 in 2012 so I want to do something big then. We'll see.

What next for you?

ShirishK said...

Hmm, the more people talk about it, the more I feel like I'd like to do the Etape again next year - I guess it'll depend upon where it is. I kinda fell on my feet this year with getting on the Sky team and having a really good friend living so close. It really was amazing seeing the Tour riders doing it 'in the flesh' having done it just a few days before. Would thoroughly recommend staying on for the 'real' stage if you do it again next year.

In the short term I've got to stay off the bike for 6 weeks or so to see if my knee cartilage trouble will sort itself out on its own. Otherwise I might be in a bit of bother.

Ironically it's more painful when I'm walking than when I'm cycling, but it's the cycling that causes the damage.

Do I remember that you had a cycle fitting somwhere near Box Hill? Would you recommend it? I'm wondering whether something like that might ameliorate my problems.

Simon Lewis said...

http://etape2009.blogspot.com/2009/06/cycles-dauphin.html

I would recommmend a bike fit. Stuart at Cycles Dauphin was excellent. He definitly reduced my knee pain.