Life is not a Practice

Today was a bank holiday so I took the racing bike out in to the Austrian mountains.



80km and 936 meters of climbing. Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=xrekiqknlwipdwft

Tuesday evening. Four of us on our race bikes. Just a light shower in Pfronten.

44km and 463 meters of climbing. Track at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=laxwwdhuguaecuzq

Five of us cycled past Wertach and on through to Sonthofen stopping off for a white sausage on the way. In Sonthofen we stopped at a cafe for a salad and a beer and then on the way home for a cake.



At the first stop, Moni had me sign the protocoll from the last meeting of TVN

Finished the day in the ice cafe here in Nesselwang. cycling is so strenuous.

58km and 1047 meters of climbing. Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=qvsxtzocsjdoklim

In 20 days we are leaving to cycle to Monte Carlo so it is time we started some serious practicing. We had no plan but it turned out to be a nice gentle trip through Allgäu.



54km and 760 meters of climbing. Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=rtmrungkgugwcpgd

Thursday evening and there were 22 people at the Alpspitzhalle for biking. We split in to three groups and five of us followed Wear up to Freyburg, down a trail, up to Pfronten and down another trail.

Jon went over the handlebars, Karin K. landen on her thumb and I hit a little tree with my knee.



For the first time this year we could actually sit outside at the Bistro.

26km with 524 meters of climbing

Jon has a software that makes little videos of the route - https://www.relive.cc/view/g11718018708

Track at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=dghrdemkuwpiynfv

Just me out on my race bike. On the Ellegg I received an email saying that the boat owner had agreed to sell the boat in scotland :-)

31 km and 444 meters of climbing
Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=bepcvpvqowvywsxj

Tuesday night and there were four of us. Sunny and warm so the Tannheimertal run.
I had a pulse of 140 to 160 to start with and my average pulse was 133. Shouldn't have eaten just before going.



50.5km and 560 meters of climbing.
Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=qyhizathofnvalnm

Jon has a little video of our route at
https://www.relive.cc/view/g11674284427

Heidi wrote and suggested a training run round the lake with the road bikes. We got to Wertach and saw the storm coming so headed straight back home and just beat the downpour. My GPS packed up halfway and lost the whole track.

18km and 206 meters of climbing. Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=aqwdpsoocxidckgi

Caro was "extremely motivated". Stefano less so. So caro and I took our mountain bikes in to Tannheimertal. It rained on and off but was also sunny on and off.



And the Apfelstrudel at the Engel in Grän made it all worthwhile.

46.8km and 700 meters of climbing
Track at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=phtcixlokeyxjsql

A quick trip to Ardfern in Argyll, Scotland to look at a boat.



Flew to Edinburgh and then drove across to Ardfern. Next day did the whole thing the other way.

Four of us out on our mountain bike enjoying the Allgäu spring and getting dirty.



27km and 481 meters of climbing
Track at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=fjwqhprkcddzdevu

Pictures at https://goo.gl/photos/BJ8FEUuKJqQvqgwY6

Moni rang me yesterday to say that the flowers in the meadow by the Kögelweiher are in bloom. The weather forecast lied and said it would be dry until midday so we cycled over there.

I didn't know there were so many different types of flowers in Allgäu. Afterwards we drank coffee down at the lake and then froze our way home.



Recovered with mulled wine.

10km and 144 meters of climbing
Track is at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=lavvgusnqphxmxxe

Once again sunshine and once again round the Grüntensee but this time there were two of us.



Better speed of 21.1km/h and a lower heart rate at 118 beats per minute. Amazing what a bit of wind shadow can do. :-)

25.5km and 328 meters of climbing.
Track at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=cmvyopmblrberkbn

The end of April and it has been snowing this week. The roads are clear though so I was out on my road bike today. Once round the Grüntensee. And you can tell I recently spent two weeks eating and sitting around on a sail boat. 22.5km at an average speed of 19.7km/h and an average heart rate of 123 beats per minute.



22.5 km and 265 meters of climbing.
track at http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=kdmzjeoskivtekcj

Thursday and snow and rain. Jon suggested nordic walking as a joke and four of us said "yes please" so we did Jon's "normal" morning route through Wertachtal.
And then hot tea and Baileys at the Frenchie House

This week the Farina's left us and Annalena and Daniel joined us. During the week we worked our way back north and then visited some islands in the Kornati.

Better weather than last week but less wind.



Photos at https://goo.gl/photos/XDTv6MWSu24zBV43A

Tracks at:
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=diemedrdkelcvtdo
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=dullwdxuepcxtdci
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=inbnquomflncrkpc
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=tgdweupbhvwcwijn
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=sdwoozdqcuzhxkal
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=mrbybsffmbaneyob
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=beugquklogazhpvl

Max's blog for the week starts at http://maxhogarth.blogspot.de/2017/04/sailing-croatia-day-8-tucepi-marina.html?m=1

Stefano's photos are at https://goo.gl/photos/5BCDUaiUVH2rNycPA and Max's at https://goo.gl/photos/JWtE4H6AWGdyPAMY7

Week 1
Rhiannon, Caro, Max, Stefano and I on a Dufour 350. The three Hogarths are staying for two weeks. Farinas are making space for Annalena and Daniel at the weekend.



We are enjoying everything from an afternoon and evening tied up at the harbour wall in Hvar to lonely bays on uninhabited islands; glass flat seas to 30 knot gusts out at sea.

What I absolutely love about sailing is waking up not knowing where you will be in the evening. You know the direction and you know you will have your "home" with, but you don't know what the day will hold or where you will be sleeping. On one day, we started anchored off a village on an island and now we are backed on to the main harbour wall in the middle of a medieval town. A day later we finished the day anchored in a tiny cove surrounded by forest and nature.

At the end of our week together, we did a night sail to the mainland to meet Annalena and Daniel.

Photos at https://goo.gl/photos/XDTv6MWSu24zBV43A

Tracks at:
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=alqibrmrxxcfhebw
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=uvkyehqtbwxjhbyx
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=bcckveftakgdqbdz

on day 4 I restarted my plotter and lost part of the data
- http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=iajyhkuhyaeqqmja (part 1 of the day)
- http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=rreuxgpjwpzflndy (part 2 of the day)
- http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=rjkftidbhfyjqeju (the whole day from Max but with lower resolution so you can not see the heart that Rhiannon salied and which is shown in my part 2 track)

http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=htswjbiuzsqznhux
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=tydixdnajvlpnzxp
http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=rzxvjddcttrmbnft

Max's blog starts at http://maxhogarth.blogspot.de/2017/04/sailing-croatia-day-1-nesselwang-biograd.html?m=1

Stefano's photos are at https://goo.gl/photos/5BCDUaiUVH2rNycPA and Max's at https://goo.gl/photos/JWtE4H6AWGdyPAMY7