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Ramblings of a retiree in France
Holiday blues
We’re on holiday this week, cycling in Austria. We drove up yesterday, leaving behind the sunshine and warm temperatures, for leaden skies and temperatures a full 23 degrees lower! This morning we awoke to find it was raining: not too steady a downpour, more of a constant, cold drizzle. Undeterred, we went cycling and immediately discovered that we had left one vital piece of clothing at home: our leg warmers. We had all of our wet weather gear but hadn’t foreseen that it would be sooooooooo cold.
In order to keep warm we indulged in some uphill, interval training, perfect on the rolling terrain and it kept our legs less cold. The outlook is not good for the next few days and we can expect further showers but after riding in the freezing, pouring rain in the Pyrenees, a bit of rain is not going to put us off enjoying our vacation. We have spent many happy holidays, both winter and summer, in the area. I recall one summer vacation when, after six continuous weeks of almost heat wave like conditions, we spent a very wet week walking in the surrounding hills, wild-water rafting and canyoning. Of course, I may need a few (more) glasses of Jaeger Tee or Gluehwein to warm me up post-ride.
This is however the first time I have cycled in the area and what I previously assumed to be steep climbs are in fact rolling hills which one can easily power up. We’ve mapped out our rides for the following days and are looking forward to spending significant time in the saddle and putting plenty of kilometres on the clock. Already my hay fever symptoms have disappeared and my breathing is almost back to normal.
This should also help in my fight against the surplus kilos always assuming I manage to steer well clear of all those delicious Austrian desserts
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