So today my weather widget tells me it’s -4ºC in Montgomery, Powys (that’s 269K for those physicists who only speak in SI Units). So I decided it was the perfect day to get out on my bike. I haven’t been training for 6 weeks since I picked up an injury on Manchester velodrome, which was followed by snow and an illness.

I figured for my first ride in that long it wasn’t going to be inside on the turbo trainer. So, with extra layers and a little less pressure in the tyres I was off out to enjoy Christmas Eve on the roads of Wales (and England also incidentally).

Despite the lack of traffic you get in foreign countries like Wales, the roads were surprisingly clear. I only lost grip once, when I tried to accelerate a little too quickly on a slightly icy road.

Hopefully it’ll warm up slightly so the best roads to ride on are clear enough of snow/ice to be safe. I had to return home to my grandparents on the main road today, which is barely safer. I’ve noticed that drivers seem to get worse in snow and near Christmas, rather than more cautious and better as you would expect in the current weather.

Anyway in conclusion, I need to tape up the air vents in my cycling shoes, get something to cover my mouth and something to stop my drink from freezing – PSP22 energy drink obviously doesn’t have the same effect as salt. But anyway, though it wasn’t precipitating (snow or rain), it was ‘blinkin’ cold, and much Rule 9 was on show