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Looking at the tee times, I was pretty sure I could fit some rides in after the golf and before the wine, but needed to ride Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. So, after five hours sleep and an average round of golf I assembled the bike and set-off south down the coastal path towards San Pedro. Lots of paths and tracks but busy with walkers, holiday makers and dog walkers. Quite a good network of cycle paths, coupled with bike-savvy drivers made for an enjoyable stretch of the legs. Tuesday I went north, through Torrevieja and enjoyed some good off road sections where the coast has yet to be covered in concrete. Thursday I went in-land to explore an area in-between Villa Martin and San Miguel that I had spotted on the way to (the excellent) Las Colinas golf club the day before. I soon knocked off the road miles to Eagles Nest and had a great hour exploring the trails and tracks off-road.
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Quite a few walkers out and about but everyone was really courteous and tolerant and it made for an excellent evening out. Three rides, about 100km overall and no punctures / mechanicals - bonus !
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The Golf wasn't quite as good as last year and I finished fourth overall, but won the par-3's and the team competition on the last day, so it wasn't too bad.
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Back in the real world and Dick visits on his way to Florida. Just enough time to squeeze in a tour of Harrison Rocks, Groombridge, R21 with lunch at Java.
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There is some nice single-track round here if you know where to look.
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Dick left early and we enjoyed a lie in before setting off for the O2 and the long-awaited return of Sade. Awesome performance by one of our favourite singers. I can't believe it's been nearly twenty years.
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The final day off was filled with chores and a spot of bike fettling to fit the race tyres onto the ASR5. I had a quick 24km spin across the Downs to test out the feel and set-up prior to riding this one in the next Southern XC event at Crow Hill this coming weekend. It's not as light as the ARC, but I'm hoping that the full-suspension will be a bonus as the laps progress ...
