Pricycles

www.team-dave.co.uk

This is the website for myself & Dave Lewis’  charity Lands End to John O’Groat’s ride we will be starting on 11th September 2010. The biggest difference about this challenge is that we will be riding to the start & back from the finish, so I suppose that makes it end to end, twice! We will be raising money for Air Ambulance & you can donate on the Team Dave website using the Just Giving link. Any donations will be received with great appreciation & I hope we can raise our target of £1200.

Team Dave

That’s right, I’m off to Germany at the end of august with my best mate, Joe. To be more specific we’re flying to Baden Wurttemburg, then back from Munich in Bavaria, Germany’s largest state. Everything else inbetween has no plan, we just see where the trip takes us.

Map of Germany

Places of particular appeal are the Black Forest & Bavarian Alps. Need I explain the appeal… …I think not!

Spectacular even on film!

Germany appeals to me for not only its beautiful countryside, but it’s reputation for engineering excellence. I love things done not only properly, but as best they can, just because you can. I visited Germany some years ago with a school trip but was rather sheltered from the real experience as any young whipper-snapper ought to be. Faint memories keep returning of trumendously striking architecture & a clean environment with simple principles that this country seems to have lost. Principles of recycling & efficiency.

I wish to return to see how my memory fares up & experience some relative freedom from todays busy world. Well at least before the flight home!

We depart Stanstead Friday 28th August & depart on the homeward bound flight Wednesday 9th September, hopefully older & wiser with lifelong memories (good ones that is!)

Dave

Apologies for the big delay since the last post. Plenty has been happening, the biggest moving to a bungalow in Marden (about 5 miles north of Hereford). Subsequently causing a lack of connection whilst the detail get diverted, but that’s sorted now!

So what’s happened since the 3 peaks? Well I’ve finally gotten that mtb frame that i’ve longed for since 2005/6 (I think), Pricer now rides a Santa Cruz Superlight, Anodized in slate with a Fox RP23 shock. Now i’ve gotten through alot of frames & bikes since wanting one of these & had a fair bit of stick as a result, but you know, I got told I shouldn’t have one back then & have kind of being trying to find an alternative since, now I know that nothing lives up to it! It’s superb! It’s here to stay & shall be the one & only MTB in the garage with exception to my work/hack bike (Rockhopper).

Event wise I did the shorter of the Rough Ride routes starting from Kington on Sunday 14th June with regular riding buddy Sparky Dave. Glorious day, fabulously hilly terrain & riders that can’t descend or ride over a tree root. Commical Stuff. I arrived to late to start of at the beginning to try and hoof it round at the front. So many decorating jobs waiting back at home led to talking myself out of the longer route.

The weekend just gone, with the longest day, is of course, Mountain Mayhem weekend at Eastnor Castle, Ledbury. This being my second year at this event, apprehension was the best word to describe my gut feeling. With next to no race action for me this year & jotted into the faster Pearce Cycles team, cold I live up to expectation? I guess the answer is yes! I haven’t seen the results yet but, it would appear that all the short blasts to & from work on the bike keepp the fitness levels up more than I could have imagined. In the team apart from myself was Gary Brain, Pete Harris & Dave Lewis. All respectable riders. I recorded one of my fastest laps as opproximately 47 minutes. I think this was on my third lap. Hopefully the results will reveal the other lap times of mine & the others… keep those eyes peeled!

Back to some more decorating…

Dave

This weekend I made an attempt with 3 others to climb each of the highest peaks in England, Wales & Scotland in a 24 hour period.

Traveling up to Fort William Saturday morning took the best part of the day, so a planned stay at a youth hostel in Glen Nevis Saturday night enabled us a fresh start Sunday morning.

Departure time at 09:20 followed a good sized breakfast, the best way to start any action packed day! £3.50 at the hostel got you toast, cereal, apple & orange juice, tea or coffee, yogurt & a ham & cheese bread roll.

Rapid Ascent

The trail up Ben Nevis is a fair warm up that quickly gains altitude with a bit of meandering before levelling approximately half the altitude of the summit. After the short ease of gradient, the trail began to zig-zag up through massive areas of rubble with varying sizes of boulders & rocks with a few patches of snow for good measure, an indicator of the sort of altitude we were at.

From the base of the mountain there was only a few patches of snow visible, with notice board’s warning not to go to the edge of the north face (very vertical!) due to overhanging snow, a problem that seemed unlikely from the bottom.

Top of the UK

Nearing the last 100 metres, the main features visible in the snow-scape were the cairns that proved invaluable for safe navigation. At the sumit was the trig point & what I beleive to be an old observatory, now used for emergency shelter. Both were just about through the snow, but the shelter had a moat surrounding it some 3 feet deep indicating just how much snow was up there! Descending the snow section didn’t take long with soft cushioning for landing feet. At about halfway down the mountain, a search & rescue Sea King helicopter appeared over the mountain with no apparent direction heading, hopefully only executing a training exercise.

Don't get too close to the edge!

At 14:30 we had reached the bottom & with 10 minutes of organisation (or lack of it maybe??) we began the drive to Scaffell Pike in the Lake District, arriving at 20:20 sunday evening. The mountain to climb had an ominous cap of cloud to it! Sure to make conditions difficult. Managing to complete the majority of the climb by natural light, & warning showers of rain, we reached the summit that lurked in the cloud & stern wind. As we quickly began our descent the rain set in steadily, paying of for donning waterproofs in the warning showers. The descent in the dark proved tricky to determine quite how far we had come down due to limited visibility & different lighting. We reached the car at 00:35 Monday morning & promptly started for Snowdown.

What lurks above???

We reached the car park at the summit of Llanberis Pass at 05:15 Monday. Shortly after a few bits had been rummaged in, we realised the car keys were missing & a 40 minute search ensued before turning up, thank goodness!

At 05:55 we began our ascent on the Pyg Track up Snowdon, in breezy, showery conditions. Unfortunately the conditions became progressively worse before reaching any exposed summit or ridge with strong & unpredictable gusts making matters dangerous. Despite the determination to make progress, as a group we decided it best to retreat having reached approximately 3/4 of the way to the summit. Frustrating but the mountains need to be respected, & that we did, they’ll all be there for next time!

After competing in the Mawwdach Gold Rush on Sunday, my first race effort of the year (and a little longer) cleared my system out & gave me an extra boost of confidence. A rewarding day, though some people reconed it was down to the contents of my lunch box…

Competing as a relay team last year, comprising Jim Williams, Sparky Dave Lewis & myself, we won our category around 30 minutes up on the second place team.

This year we gave Jim the sack & recruited young Perry Gardener (a future XC superstar, though he doesn’t realise it yet). Perry the team leader did the first lap, followed by myself then Sparky. Perry set a 1:03:32, I did it in 0:51:52 & Sparky swooped in 0:56:51 after departing on the final lap. We came 2nd this year some 3 minutes down on combined time. The B team of Mat P, Jim & Lee Monks finishing a respectable 5th out of 16.

Now the circuit was the same as last year & afterwards Sparky informed me that I’d done virtually the same time as the previous year, to my Amazement! Since the start of January I have cycled very little other than some gentle rides & short haul trips to work, post office etc. Certainly less than last year!

My head has now swollen after setting the fastest lap of our two teams, & has made me realise my fitness is still ticking over quietly, a little below boiling point. Since the event, my concerning health symptoms have relieved somewhat to regular spells of heart burn, more tolerable than before!

In May, I shall be attempting to complete the 3 Peaks with my bro & friends, hopefully within a 24 hour period in an un-official manner (i think). A little spur of the moment, but why not? Sometimes you can think into matters too much rather than just getting on with it! Hmm… that gets me thinking why not now, but i’m commited by my word, & that is enough! Failure to stand by my word is a crime to me, but more often than not I find it hard to say no!

Lunch for a hardcore racer!

Always looking shifty (Watch your back!) - Sparky

Pricer

Not a huge amount of travels and excitement have gone on just recently (hence the lack of posts). But just so you don’t thing I’ve forgotten about it all, here’s an progress update…

…Hill Walking has been creeping into my agenda more and more just recently. Took a refreshing stroll up Pen-Y-Fan this Saturday just gone with my girlfriend Charley, despite the cloud. Though every now & again, the light wind would blow the clouds clear to produce some eye catching scenery & effects!

Plans are a foot for some more walking this Saturday In the Abergavenny area with my friend’s Joe & Sam.

The biggest concern I’ve had just recently, is my health. Despite having good physical fitness, I’ve been experiencing episodes of light headiness, chest pains, sudden sweating & breathlessness. Symptoms that have been increasing in frequency over the last month or so. I took a trip to the doctor today for an ECG scan. Not quite getting the full results the doc wanted, I’m now waiting an appointment for a bigger scale ECG scan in Hereford hospital. Now i don’t know a lot about this type of scan other than it traces the electrical signal from the brain to the heart. By means which i do not know, it can reflect major problems of the heart that has been experienced further back in history. Now as i say, the doctor wasn’t entirely pleased with the accuracy of the results, but did express a concern of irregularities in the nerve signal from time to time, possibly causing these symptoms? I’ll have to wait to find out more.

This is a blatant concern & i will be halting plans for intensive training & races until i know more. With exception of the Gold Rush event this weekend at coed-y-brenan, competing as a relay team.

It seems so many aches & pains are catching up with me. So i feel it perhaps a good plan to let my body recouperate at last. Of course still keeping active but at a more forgiving level…

… racing has gone far from the top of my priority list! The question i do not know is for how long?

Dave

This time last week ’twas bruv’s birthday, instead of getting him a cake, i made him a manchester tart…

gorgeous gal

…NO! Not that sort! It had a base of pastry,

Real homemade pastry none the less!

then comes a layer of your favourite jam (blackcurrant)…

…sliced Banannas,

Sliced length ways of course! How The chimps like it you understand...

& finally a smothering of custard!

Wallah!

Taste's as good as it looks!

Dave

With all the snow melt just now, the river Lugg next to the old mill flat i’m living in has been the highest i’ve seen it so far…

River Lugg, taken from our flat on the first floor.

By all accounts the water has only risen to the height of the top of the garden & not to the ground floor.

Dave

Exactly a week ago today, i finished my employment with Pearce Cycles & had arrived at my brothers flat in snowy Hereford. Monday would be my first day at HR Smith Group Companies, returning to my roots of machining & metal working after nearly 3 years tinkering with push bikes. An interesting job role (Technician Engineer) with good variation, producing work for the R & D department.

Campsite

I spent the whole week ‘camping’ in a minimally furnished room. The job, however, is fantastic! Loving every moment of the work i’m producing & working in such a clean & tidy, up to date workshop.

Still connected to the outside world

The week’s flown by really quickly & have had no chance of any cycling, especially with the snow! The only real cycling that’s been on my mind is commuting to work from the north east of the city to the south east & over the river.

Friday gave a good incentive to get pedalling as all the short journey’s & cold weather became too much for the battery in my van. She wouldn’t start! But many thanks to my bro for the jump start (I’ll get the leads the right way round next time!) and did get to work all be it a few minutes late. Not the ideal on the first week at a new job, but they’re pretty understanding sort’s of people… no sweat.

Dave

… to Pricycles! The website of Dave Price, just an ordinary guy doing ordinary things. Living on the Herefordshire/Powys border for my entire life on the family farm, I have been raised with passion for most things creative and outdoors. Tagged as a bit of a ‘hill billy’ I take it with pride, I mean just look at the view from my bedroom window! I wouldn’t want to be in many other places!

Hell Peak emerging from the sun

Hell Peak in the snow

The site you see before you is a collaboration of my thoughts and computer wizardry of good friend Joe Hawes. The name “Pricycles” came from a tongue and cheek name for a venture I never expected to take off. As most who know me will realise, my biggest passion is cycling. Though it has been the cause of much physical pain, it is something that runs through my veins, I can’t give it up, one way or another, I’m addicted! My parents have also got a passion for motorcycling as well as other family members.

The Website is a blog of the things I get up to in day-to-day life and the things that are a little more special, to me!