Went out for some Saturday morning consumerism. Tried on four pairs of jeans, didn't buy any. Oh hang on, wrong place! Rode up to Tortworth for koffii anna caek – lemon curd sponge. While I was there it started raining but the sky was mostly bright and cloudless so jacketed up and carried on. But carry on to where? Hadn't really decided. Headed on to Nibley and noticed how low the sun was in the sky behind me. Checked the time – it would be dark in just over an hour. And the rain had gone but come back again, but more to the point it was very windy. So went to the Black Shed in Slimbridge, cos it's got a reputation. But does it deserve it? Well it's a nice position next to the canal (which looked very high with regular waves travelling Gloucester-wards, presumably wind blown) but frankly it smells of old grease. I don't know if it's under the same management as before it closed, quite likely it used to be better.
And then home. Dark now and the wind had really got up (yr.no said over 25mph) with bursts of rain. At one point along the exposed flat section between Ham and Hill a particularly strong period of wind combined with the flatness, the relative lack of hedge and the direction of the road to make it a bit scary riding – so I got off and walked for a minute or two. Just at this point a car came past, stopped and the driver asked if I was okay "or was it just the wind?". Which was nice of him. I noted that it was a small car, quite likely in a big car you wouldn't feel the wind much. And then there was a weird total calm. Before more wind, obviously, I decided to go via Thornbury rather than my usual route of Oldbury. And so up Fern Hill and down the Concorde Way to home. I hadn't been paying attention to the distance but checking the comp at home it came to a satisfyingly palindromic 101.
