“WHEN THIS OLD WORLD STARTS GETTING ME DOWN” How strange, or perhaps not, that in recent weeks it is this 1962 lyric from the Drifter’s rendition of a Goffin and King song that has been filling my head. Of course back then at the tender age of twelve, thankfully, it was the tune rather than […] Continue reading → 
MOMENTS IN TIME COME TOGETHER She doesn’t know it but I have a lot to thank Alys Fowler for. Regular readers of this site will recognise her as the gardening writer for the Guardian who inspired my recent garden makeover. It was her description of wild flower meadows in Romania and her tips on how […] Continue reading → 
BIRDS, BIKES, BOTANICS and more in the RAINBOW NATION. With Barbara’s sister to visit and our daughter to meet at the end of her African adventure, South Africa beckoned. Our timing proved to be fortuitous for while we were away the whole of the UK was gripped by a prolonged icy blast and carpeted in […] Continue reading → 
HIKING AND BIKING with a little HITCHHIKING During breaks from painting our kitchen, Scott the decorator and I chatted about our mutual interest of cycling. He is an avid mountain biker with a strong Strava App digital record to show for it; all along the top of Helvellyn being just one example. When recounting such […] Continue reading → 
“Music is playing inside my head Over and over again My friend, there’s no end to the music…” (1) And so it was, as 2016 was being brought to a close, with the launch of a new supergroup. (See previous article entitled “My back pages” ) Specialized was joined by two new partners courtesy of […] Continue reading → 
LIFE IN THE FAST LANE October 2016 “What have you been up to Dad?” inquired our daughter Beth when she phoned. “Very busy” was my reply and I gave her a quick run down of recent events. “Wow, life in the fast lane” was her verdict though delivered with a chuckle. I laughed too given […] Continue reading → 
“Watching the wheels go round and round I really love to watch them roll” (1) Three hot days in mid August called out for John Lennon’s lyric to be put into bicycling practice. Fittingly inspired, I set out on ‘Hardrock’ for an exploration of the old railways around Cornhill. With a warm wind behind me […] Continue reading → 
OUT AND ABOUT Kielder Water: May 18th. It was to be a big day in my ‘Hardrock’, off road, cycle ride calendar: the circumnavigation of Kielder Water just over the border in Northumberland. In prospect was a ride of twenty seven miles around the largest man made lake in Northern Europe. The fifty mile drive […] Continue reading → 
WHEELS ON FIRE April 2016 Well it certainly felt that way on two recent runs on Specialized and Raleigh. The Dylan lyric and Julie Driscoll vocals pounded through my head as I held on tight during two fast downhill stretches. Let’s take them one at a time. On April 9th I set out on Specialized […] Continue reading → 
BACK ON TRACK February & March 2016 With days slowly lengthening and stiff left hip easing at the prospect of spring, it was time to ‘get back on track’ with a first run of the year. So on February 23rd, on a recently serviced Armstrong , I followed the Bowmont upstream and into the hills. […] Continue reading →