The Rules

There'll have to be Rules.  Try these for starters:

For a hill to be cycled up...it's gotta be cycled up.  No walking.

But it doesn't have to be cycled up in one unbroken ride.  Stopping to, ahem, "blow my nose", "admire the view" or, more likely, put my lungs back in...is allowed.

That's probably it.  

The bikes

These are the two bikes I'll be doing it on - a 40 year old Claud Butler Majestic, refurbished and resprayed about five years ago, and a 20 year old Dawes 301, overhauled with a new bottom bracket, freehub and chainset to provide a set of lower gears.  Claud has also just had a new chainset, also to provide lower gearing.

Signed off!

After almost six weeks I've been signed off by the surgeon as fit to cycle and run.  Yay!  Result!!

I've actually been cycling indoors on the trainer for a week or so now without any issues so I'm confident about cycling 'properly' outdoors.  Just need the weather to improve.  Soon please.

What's this about then?

This is the year I turn 70.  I've always liked cycling up hills, and there are lots of them within striking distance of where I live in Sheffield.  I have books about them:

• the 100 Greatest Cycling Climbs
• Another 100 Greatest Cycling Climbs
• Cycling Climbs of Yorkshire
• Cycling Climbs of the Midlands

So here's the plan.  My challenge is to cycle up 70 of them in the year I turn 70, starting as soon as possible after my birthday on March 23rd 2020.

There is a small problem.  At present I'm not cycling at all.  On January 21st I had surgery to repair a hernia and I'm still in the "Do not run or cycle" period which necessarily follows.  That ends in early March, after six weeks, so I'll make a start then.  And post about it on here.  I'm going to have to do an average of more than one a week to get through.  It's gonna be a challenge!