Rapha Festive 500 - Park Life tour: Day 2, East and Central London

Stats
Kms ridden: 70
Running total: 150
Kms left: 350

Weather: Mild and sunny; 11 degC

Parks: Brockwell; Highbury Fields; London Fields; Victoria; Queen Elizabeth Olympic; Mile End; Green; St James; Burgess; Brunswick

Routes on Strava
Ride to Highbury Fields Park run
Post-Park run ride

My day began with a ride up to Highbury Fields to do the Christmas Day Park Run. The plan had been to do a mini London tour, as I am accustomed to doing on Christmas Day. So with that I thought why not throw in a 5km run as well.

Arriving at Highbury Fields for the Park Run

Naturally I took it easy as I trotted around the five laps of the park, knowing that I would be cycling straight afterwards. Mind you, I was going to be on an eBike so I also knew that if I was flagging I would be able to add in a bit of throttle!

This Festive 500 is not only characterised by riding through parks, but also using different bicycles. Yesterday I was on my road bike; today I'm was on a Liv eBike, which I am testing. I also plan to use my mountain bike and my cyclocross bike during the week too.

After the run, I headed over to Hackney and passed through London Fields and then onwards to Victoria Park. The glorious sunny weather had brought out quite a lot of people, and many folks were out with their families for a Christmas walk. In Victoria Park there was even an amateur football match taking place.

From Victoria Park it was a quick scoot across via Wick Road, to reach the Greenway through the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. It was surprisingly easy to get there and find myself right next to the Olympic stadium.

Nowadays the Olympic Stadium is the home ground of West Ham United Football Club. It seems quite a grand place to have a football ground, though I know that relocating from Upton Park to here was quite an unpopular decision with the fans. Anyway, who am I to worry about West Ham fans, particularly as they are due to play against my home side Crystal Palace tomorrow!

Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

It's always quite a strange feeling going around a place that would normally be bustling with athletes and sports fans, but on this day there was hardly anyone around.

And even though there was this grand stadium and the Olympic Games sculpture, there was still a sense of East London dereliction, with patches of wasteland, graffiti, and high-rise social housing blocks.

Having lots of people around, and sports events taking place makes a massive difference to the atmosphere.

After a quick tour I was back into Victoria Park and pushed on through Mile End Park and then into Central London via the segregated cycle path on Cable Street.

At Tower Bridge I made the most of it being Christmas Day and rode on streets that would normally be too congested to ride through on any other day. So my ride took me through the City, past the Mansion House and then into the West End via Ludgate Circus and Holborn Viaduct.

Surprisingly, from the West End onwards there were quite a lot of people, and even - shock horror - traffic jams around Piccadilly Circus!

There was no public transport running as it was Christmas Day, however there were still lots of black taxis and Uber cabs. Plus, loads of tourists were around and there even appeared to be organised walking tours happening around Piccadilly and near Buckingham Palace too.

Soaking in the atmosphere at Buckingham Palace

The Mall is normally closed to traffic on Sundays and Bank Holidays, so pedestrians are free to roam around the whole street.

And it seemed that people had really made the most of this opportunity in their droves, as there were as many people, if not more pedestrians than you would see ordinarily on a Sunday.

I wondered if the large numbers was also due to people bringing forward their Boxing Day walk, knowing that the weather forecast was for a wash-out.

In any case, there was a nice atmosphere in all the parks I went to, and it was great to be out in the sunshine.

I am not sure how the motorists felt on Tower Bridge, which had quite a long tail-back to get over it. Thankfully, being on a bike meant that I wasn't held up too much. I think it is fair to say now, that the days when you could ride on empty roads through Central London on Christmas Day are gone!

By the time I reached my final park, Burgess Park in Peckham, the run, the ride, and my lack of breakfast had begun to catch up with me and I was obliged to use a bit of throttle on the homeward run - especially as the ride to Crystal Palace from here was mainly uphill.

I must say, the Liv Thrive E+ which I was on was a real joy to ride. It looked a nice bike too, and responded just when I needed it to.

When I reached home I felt tired, but happy with the sights and sounds I had taken in, and I was ready to relax with my family and enjoy a bit of Christmas food.


Related post
Rapha Festive 500 - Park Life tour: Day 1

One day one photo - 14: Royal Parks lunchtime bike ride

Working in Central London near the different Royal Parks means that I can get out a couple of times a week and do some kind of sporting activity.

I usually run, and I also get my bike out (naturally). I am not quite sure which is the best park to use for this. Years ago when I worked in Westminster I would go around St James's Park, but I stopped going there because the traffic lights and pedestrian crossings meant that you would have to suddenly decelerate after riding a short stretch, and be mindful that the stray tourists randomly crossing the road along Horse Guards Road could make for a high risk situation!

I then found that at Hyde Park as you could get a good work-out going south to north on the Broadwalk, which is slightly uphill. The stretch along North Carriage Drive is on the road and has no traffic lights. Then the rest of loop has a cycle lane that is part of the Cycle Superhighway network so you could get up a good speed with only minimal stoppages along South Carriage Drive, and just a brief slow-down just before the Broad Walk. That seemed ideal as the stoppages were just right for me to get a quick breather during my laps.

Cycle training in Regent's Park

Unfortunately things have changed there now. In their wisdom Royal Parks have decided to put speed bumps on the Broad Walk, and put a 10mph speed limit. Furthermore, they have made the Broad Walk shared use, basically giving pedestrians carte blanche to wander into the cycle lane, and they will always take priority. An accident waiting to happen, in my opinion. Also, different events going on in Hyde Park mean that cyclists get diverted onto the pavement on North Carriage Drive, so overall you end up sauntering around Hyde Park, and not getting a beneficial work-out. And it does nothing to help my Strava segments either!

So today, I tried out Regent's Park. I know that club cyclists tend to meet up and do a chain gang around the Outer Circle. I didn't do any chain gang, but I just went there and rode fast laps. There's quite a nice atmosphere as a number of other cyclists train on that circuit too, and there are sections where you can get in some hard intervals over a long stretch. However, there are a few traffic lights in rapid succession in the area near Baker Street and Marylebone Road.

The worst thing about this circuit though, is the ride back to the office. On the straight road from Park Crescent to Piccadilly Circus, a stretch of less than a mile, there must easily be 10 sets of traffic lights, making the homeward ride seem interminable. And the traffic fumes can't be great for my lungs either!

I can't really say which Royal Park provides the best cycle circuit, but I think that for the time being I will just alternate between the three Parks. I guess, having traffic lights will be good interval training, allowing for a short breather in between. And I always welcome a bit of rest whenever possible!

Lunchtime jaunt - 1

Bollington - Blaze Hill - Macclesfield

One of the advantages of working in the new place, up in Macclesfield, is being able to ride my bike at lunchtime.

It is something that I have been able to do in the past - for instance, the times when I was home based  in London I could easily find quick routes around South London. When I worked in Central London it was even possible to do reps around St James's Park or Hyde Park, while trying not to frighten the tourists crossing the road!

Sadly, when I was in Milan this was a definite no, no. First of all there were no changing/shower facilities after finishing my ride. Secondly, places to ride were quite limited. There was only really a stretch of canal path on the Naviglio Grande. Thirdly, and most importantly there was no secure bike park so there was no way I'd leave a road bike chained up outside the building. It wouldn't have lasted 30 seconds - and I know through bitter experience! So really, if I went to work in the morning with my road bike, by lunchtime I would have had no bike to use for my lunch-time jaunt!

Moving to Macclesfield, situated right on the edge of the Peak District has been the best antidote to 18 months of being in an urban sprawl of Milan with its lack of green spaces. This area of Cheshire offers the best lunchtime cycling that I have ever had so far.

So I make the most of it. There are lots of country lanes near where I work. Quite a few of them go uphill! There are even some steep roads with cobbles for if I wish to practice for the Tour of Flanders, which I have signed up to ride. I will talk about the different routes over time.

The route I will talk about in this post is the standard jaunt that I take at lunchtimes. Even though it's only around 9-miles long it is a good little work-out, since it involves around 250m of climbing. One of the local hills to where I work is Blaze Hill - a climb that lasts less than 2 miles but gives a height gain of around 170m. There are a couple of 15% gradient sections, especially the early part of the climb, coming out of Bollington. Prior to doing Blaze Hill there is also the leg tester on Grimshaw Lane, which I always find a bit of challenge, especially as I tackle it from a low speed after having taken a sharp right from the main road through Bollington. But it's all good fun.

The descent back towards Macclesfield is lovely and sweeping, with a couple of tight bends but great for maintaining your cornering skills. There is also a short spike known as Tower Hill to stop you getting too complacent about freewheeling!

This is a good quick spin that can be done in a lunch hour without being accused of "skiving away from your desk!" When I get back to the office I feel like I deserve my lunch!
I can certainly feel myself getting stronger these days, so the hills must be good for me. I must just try to remember that whenever I heave and wind my way up Smithy Brow!

The route is here