Stage 5: Ypres to Arenberg

What a day! This is the first time in a long time that a decent section of cobbles has been included in Le a tour route. Oh goodness I thought, they have to go cobbles the year that I do it! Quite a few people were concerned about the cobbles at the training weekend, but with a cumulative 15km of cobbles I figured that even if I walked it wouldn't be such a big deal- it's mountain after mountain after mountain that concerns me.

So, cobbles. I pictured something like riding through a city centre of cobbled streets. No, these are cobbles of back country lanes frequented by tractors. We are heavily in WW1 territory at the moment, and I imagine that in a lot of respects when you fly around those back lanes little has changed.

There were 9 sections of cobbles, with 15km in total. The trick, we were told, was to hit them fast, pedal in a high gear nice and hard (good triathlon style riding, which will not serve me well in the mountains). A bit of weight helps (tick!) and my bike is perfect for the cobbles (so says Aaron of Cycle Zone, Darwin).

I had so much fun, compounded by the fact that the rest of the day was fast and flat (really flat, not this pretend flat with a few thousand metres of climbing), and mental the day is so manageable because you are effectively cycling from feed station to cobbled section to cobbled section to feed station.

Extra bonus was arriving at 4pm, with time for bike wipe down, washing and nap, instead of arriving at dinner while it was in motion.

BVS Update: All good downstairs! Liberal creaming up continues to work. The crease below the bum cheek, which also happens to be the edge of the saddle/chamois is getting somewhat uncomfortable, but I am happy to say that my legs continue to be a bigger issue that blisters in unmentionable places.

Thanks for all the messages of encouragement- I'm having a great time... Only five days until the rest day.