Sunrise in the campsies!

There really is something special about the moment when night turns to day and this is augmented onehundred fold when you are in as beautiful a place as the Campsies.

We headed off at 5am this morning and finished just after 8am with a cup of tea and a slice of simnel cake. Our route took us out of Cumbernauld and up to Denny then we turned on to the B818 which runs all the way to Fintry where we joined the Crow road which ends at Lennoxtown. From there we headed to Kilsyth, up over the Forth and Clyde canal through Dullater and back home. The odometer read just over 40 miles for the trip.

I have never riden the road with a companion before and I have to say it was an awesome experience. Great to have somebody to chat with along the way. We practiced some of the skills we've been learning in the Velodrome while riding along the long straight beside the Carron Valley Reservoir by riding on each other's wheels and drafting. Was fantastic fun.

So what did I learn other than how an experienced cyclist can descend hills twice as fast as me? Well I learnt that at that time of the day, it is absolutely baltic. The water froze in platypus tube which has never happened before. I don't think that my feet have ever been that cold before. But do you what, cannot wait to do it again next week (but this time with neoprene overshoes on my feet!!)