Two days of wet commuting with the wind from the South West on the Wester Ross left me feeling tired, especially on the return home each evening.

The trouble with wet weather is that it leaves the bike in a mucky state. If the rain is hard enough to require a waterproof I tend to overheat.

Ah well this morning's ride in was from Small Heath and the weather has changed after more heavy rain overnight. There's still quite a breeze but at least it wasn't raining. I bounced in on my AM7 (actually now a '9') this morning (for any Moultoneers reading this there's a good picture site at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/anglepoise/ with lots of pictures of Moultons) which is always good fun and a very different ride.

Traffic appeared to be influenced by the 'wind', lots of fast inconsiderate traffic this morning - including one that overtook and immediately turned left in front - more annoying than dangerous perhaps.

Cooler and more cloud this morning.

Part-commute in from Moseley on the Mercian Fixie this morning. The cars were wild (due to the wind??) today, for example a black VW Golf overtook me and a car waiting at a traffic island and turned right going on the wrong side of the island (OK it was a mini roundabout) ...

Otherwise a nice fast ride in, a little wind but not too bad

Well even I can't complain about the weather over the last few weeks, warm and sunny for almost three weeks now, OK maybe the wind's a little cold but nothings perfect! Of course the gardeners are all worrying about the lack of rain but I guess that's global warming!?

This morning the traffic was a little frantic, maybe it's because they're all back from their holidays or it could be the weather, anyway Birmingham commuting doesn't seem to improve with the weather conditions.

I rode the 'Heart of England' 300 on Saturday, I've no idea why the ride started at 6.00am but the sunrise over the Cotswolds was worth seeing. The ride was one of those 'choppy' affairs, mostly short steep hills but there were quite long flat stretches . A couple of the controls were at 'greasy spoons' which I really hate and so I didn't really eat enough for the first half of the ride and consequently suffered a bit. I did manage apple pie & custard and treacle sponge and custard at a later control which was great!!

Although it's only April and the start was quite cold by mid day the temperature was high and I was down to shorts and a short sleeved top and I was still feeling hot, drinking even became a serious business.

Anyway, finished before 9pm which wasn't bad for my first 300 in a few years. Rest day Sunday and a gentle ride on Monday morning helped recovery. Decided the saddle wasn't right though, seriously sore from the ride which is quite unlike me so swapped the 'Swallow' for a 'B17 Standard' which should help spread the 'load' a bit.

The weather has picked up somewhat over the last week. Yesterday's commute, after the Easter break, was warm and sunny both ways.

Of course, unlike Monty Python, I don't always 'look on the bright side ..' and so I noticed the flying bugs on the way in (I hate insects landing on bare arms and legs - yes it was that warm!) and the crowds of people enjoying the park in the late afternoon (which means the cycle path through Canon Hill Park becomes the worst kind of dodgems you could imagine). But I should n't complain.

This morning was cooler but the ride in was excellent, I've changed over to the summer bikes now and so I used the Jack Taylor, no 'guards and gears. Yesterday was the Mercian fixie. They both urge me to catch the commuters in front which, depending on the legs, is always good fun.

Listened to Radio 4's 'Today' programme before riding in this morning. The speaker on 'Thought for the day' talked about climate change and said something about people riding their bikes to work being 'smug'. I may have misheard or misunderstood him of course but I can't help feeling that even a 'smug' cyclist riding their bike to work is better than a 'humble' motorist driving in, at least as far as congestion/carbon emissions etc etc are concerned. The 'bloke' was apparently involved in 'conflict resolution' - if that's an example of his diplomacy I'd be wary of using him because he managed to annoy me in one sentence!

Nice sunny spring morning, a little chilly but just lovely. Traffic was, however, on the wild side this morning, motorists using mobile 'phones whilst driving (2+), cars jumping red lights (2+), cars passing too close (1) and general congestion and frustration - lots.

A grey ride in this morning but dry! Seemed to be more people riding in today, including a bloke on an 'On-One' fixed machine - probably a bit new because he was being so cautious on the corners, probably over geared too but that's his problem.

Rode the 'Cheltenham Flyer' Audax on Saturday, a good ride in nice sunny warm weather - pity about the horrible south westerly wind which made it a grovel for much of the time! The organisers had changed the route somewhat since I last rode it sometimes for the good (start and end) and sometimes worse - nasty Cotswold ascents and rough roads - but at least the fast main road from Tetbury to Cirencester has now gone.

I was sore on Sunday and rested but this morning after the first couple of k's I felt good (was it the tail wind?) and enjoyed the ride in (apart from three very small, freely running dogs in Cannon Hill Park who seemed to have a death wish - much to their owners amusement? - although I managed to avoid them).

Difficult ride home last night, into the teeth of a South Westerly gale, heavy rain near the end.

This morning bright and sunny, still a little breezy though. Lots of wet paths and roads from all of the rain over the last three days, so much for washing the bike at the weekend!