open 5: peak district

my thighs are still heavy with yesterdays efforts. bike is coated in a thin paste of brown grit, fell shoes damp, winter boots are water logged but i'm still feeling very satisfied at a job well done. it's only our second time racing together and although it was 'just for fun', we definitely pushed hard and earned our points.

i took the lead on the run and 'over shot' 2 checkpoints-we only went to 6! as expected rosemary's navigation on the bike leg was faultless. very wet under tyre and foot but the views along the tops were stunning with dark clouds rushing across the sky and rainbows showing the way. at times i forgot we were racing, too busy enjoying the descents and cruising along the road. until some helpful pushes reminded me spin a little faster.

racing is a good way to get know people, glean tactics and forge new friendships. i hope there's more to come. rosemary, i promise to put gears on my bike if you do some running training!

...and over the hill but not too far away jane was running in the d&w mini mountain marathon. her first solo outing in a score event, she's even got ideas about joining a running club now-there's my motivation for those long dark runs!