Going for the burn/ My legs, still sore with lactic acid dripping off them from skiing, were a little upset to hear my plans for today, as I jumped out of bed at 8am and decided I wanted to do my first ever group ride with Fareham Wheelers which starts from Wickham at 9am. So all hands on deck, with R pumping up tyres and A serving me an interesting breakfast of sugar puffs with milk and lemon juice. So, Wickham Square, blue sky and sun shine, very little wind and the most perfect cycling day, so off I go! Now, cycling is not reknowned as being a female dominated sport, and I keep telling the few single friends I have that they should take up triathlon, but I was the only woman, with about 18 males, ranging from 13 - 70 something. Was not expecting it to be any different, if I am honest, and it might explain why I have taken such a long time before taking the plunge of going along to a club run. However, I opted to join the slow gang, and there were 10 of us, we did a pleasant route out around Corhampton, West and East Meon, Petersfield and Rowlands Castle. We stopped there at 25 miles to have a refreshment break, it is a great cafe with speedy service and good choice of food so check it out if you are ever over there. So far so good. However, my body assumed, wrongly, that the day's cycling was done. Oh no. My fronts of my thighs were burning and heavy and I was utterly leaden for the next 15 miles back to the start. I struggled to keep up, got lost behind at one point and really had to work to keep up. My heart rate was always in the zones above the zone 1 I have been training in all winter, at one point my heart rate was above 180bpm. I blame the skiing for my legs being out of practise on the bike... However, I was utterly delighted to find that our riding average speed was 17mph, I usually managed about 14mph on my own, so having a gang to chase along with made a huge difference. I am looking forward to going out with the very welcoming Wheelers again, but I am afraid that Sunday mornings are at a premium. It would work much better for my sporting life if Messy Church could be on a Saturday morning. On my return home, we decided we would go to see my bro and family at Bracklesham Bay where they are staying in a holiday home, with a huge garden and gate directly onto the beach. Wow! Amazing weather, the children all played in the sea and on the beach all afternoon, and R checked out his open water wetsuit which had arrived since we were away. He found it a bit freaky to swim in the sea, with no visibility when you are head down, and a cold head as the wetsuit does not cover your head. I was really proud of him, anyway, I think he is great, learning to swim open water in order to do his half ironman in September. I would stick to breaststroke, at considerable disadvantage to my speed, but at least you can see where you are going when you breathe.