Bike's back

The bike is back - and what a difference.

For a mere 25 pounds, the bike has gone from the kind of machine that needs a basket on the front to the kind that needs a lycra clad racer on the back. I wish servicing did that to my Rover!
Apparently the rear gear had broken.

I've stopped beating myself up about only using two gears (out of what I thought was 17). The (17) 'go faster' graduating marks around the gear 'bell' are apparently only for decoration, and the bike actually has just three gears at the front - and I'd only need the top one if I was going really fast (a little hard around suburban Reading).

And the back gears were broken anyway, so no wonder I was confused! (Before you think I'm having a blonde moment, I hadn't been on a bike for 20 years before I embarked upon this challenge: my last bike was a chopper - first time around - that my parents gave away to the gypsies because apparently I wasn't looking after it properly. )

Between this and the people I spoke to on Sunday, I really do feel I can conquer this challenge.

The long and short of said advice came down to: if you're relatively fit you can do the Action 100. The pain factor comes in if you don't practise on your own bike in your own kit - expect to be sore (as in blisters, not muscles)

So the kit will be a great investment (no I didn't get shorts for my birthday: Mr Romantic got me a birthday card) But I'm not buying anything until I'm a little more sylph-like than I am at present.