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I must admit that is not normally a question I get asked when I am out on a ride, I have been asked if I have seen a dog, kids or other cyclist but cows, that was a first. The question came from one of the local rangers who was out to check the cattle that graze the local heath and had yet to find them. Unfortunately I had only just come onto the local heath from a direction that the cattle don’t currently graze so I was unable to help although I did spot them later on in the ride (well 5 of the 6 anyway). We had a chat for a few minutes (being young, blonde and good looking might of had something to do with that) before I bid her farewell.

Here what the ranger was looking for (picture taken a year or so ago)

I had intended to go out riding early this morning, but getting up late put pay to that idea. When I did pull back the curtains I was surprised to see it raining. I ended up watching the F1 practice session, then going shopping then back home to watch the F1 qualifying. So it was mid afternoon before I got out for a ride so instead of the planned route I opted for a local ride over the heath and tried a few of the trails in different directions.

I am on holiday this coming week so I have a couple of rides planned during the week (up until Wednesday) then I will see what the rest of the weeks weather brings. One job I have got to do is drain clearing, as in the main sewer. About six other house’s drains run into our drains and then into the main sewer, well Friday night all the other house’s drains were blocked, some idiot had put a large plastic\metal rail thing down the drain and was causing a blockage, once that was removed everything started flowing but it seem as though the large amount of debris that was backed up has restricted the flow from the last man hole into the sewer (it happened once before). So I need to borrow some rods and give it a push to clear it out the way, not a job I am looking forward to.

As I have not been able to ride this weekend I will have to talk about riding Carnage refers to what I have been watching in the Tour De France. The last few days have seen a succession of riders crashing out of the tour, some due to cycling accidents and others are a mix of crashing into spectator stood in the road, being hit by a motorcycle (carrying press photographers taking picture of the tour) and to days and worst accident of the tour so far was when a TV crew car side swiped a rider which resulted in two riders crashing, one of them ended up tangled up in a barbed wire fence.

Here how the BBC Sports Web Site reported it (look at the guy in the fence).

Apart from the F1 this afternoon which was fairly entertaining and watching the cycling I have done very little . Stepping on the scales won’t be much fun tomorrow night.

This morning saw me sat in the local A&E to get my shoulder properly checked over. Before I continue I must say that I have whinged in the past when I have been to A&E with the daughter, waiting more hours than I like to count. Well this morning I was in and out in under an hour and a half and I cant fault the treatment I got. Makes a change to all the bad press the NHS normally gets.

Anyway back to the plot, once I had been booked in I was quickly seen by a doctor (who turned out to be a mountain bike rider as well), she gave my shoulder the once over and said that she did not believe anything was broken but would send me for an x-ray just encase. After a 10 minutes wait for an x-ray then a further 15 wait I was called back to the cubicle. Before seeing the doctor I was seen by a medical advisor about alcohol education. Apparently it is an iniative that they are running and all those that are seen in A&E are offered this service, apparently many people that visit A&E do so because of an alcohol induced injury.

After my alcohol education, the doctor arrived to tell me that there was no broken bones but there was a larger than normal gap between my collar bone and me shoulder joint. Apparently this is normal if have had a dislocated shoulder. The doctor thinks my shoulder either partially dislocated and then relocated or full dislocated and then relocated its self. My arm is now in a sling and I have a return appointment on the 10th, so no riding for me till at least next Friday.

As normal with the last bank holiday of May I have the following four days as holiday and this year no is different. It looks like I will have to wait till Wednesday to get some decent riding weather judging by the forecasts. The last two days have been very windy down this way, this morning ride was in winds averaging 24mph. The ride started with a little drizzle but that soon disappeared but the wind stayed for the duration of the ride (and beyond). Yesterdays ride was also windy although I decided to only do a short ride, had it not been for the fact that yesterday weather forecast for Monday said rain I would not have gone out. I was totally lacking interest for a ride yesterday, but I wanted to do at least two rides before Monday nights weigh in so I went out just encase. As the forecast stands now I should be able to get out and ride tomorrow, just have to wait and see what tomorrow brings, forecasting the weather is never particularly accurate.

Tuesday I have other commitments so there will be no riding but will try and get some bike maintenance done then hopefully out for a big ride on Wednesday, not sure what the rest of the week hold, not thought that far ahead.

I think part of Saturday lack on enthusiasm is that I had not planned anything in advance which is partly due to the fact that my Memory Map program is not working on my new PC. I have installed it but it is not letting me see the my licensed maps I have. Will hopefully have it sorted ready for Wednesday ride, have a couple of idea but will see how it goes.

In the not very frequent “What animals did you see on your ride today” column, I can tick off a Kingfisher and 3 deer. The deer were very close, one watched me ride past while the other two carried munching grass. Also heard a Cuckoo and something shrieking from the bushes, sounded like a peacock but I never saw it.

My secret started after starting secondary school, I would watch all the kids do it and after a couple of week I joined in. I continued with my secret until I left secondary school. After leaving. I seemed to lose the urge but kept an interest but from a distance. I revisited my secret from time to time but it was slowly dying. Then it 1985 I was into PC’s and I found a computer game where I could indulge my secret, I was hooked. The day I bought the game I played it for 12 hours straight, the following day it was nearly 18 hours. Over time the urge again started to wane and in time it was all but forgotten.

Then in 1994 still into computers I found another game that indulged my secret, this game was so much better than the previous game, more colour, better graphics, oh the excitement. In 1995 a Deluxe version was released, I could hardly contain myself. By now my wife was sharing my secret and thoroughly enjoying herself and keeping it in the family my brothers took an interest in it as well.

Again as the years rolled by and I grew older, the urge slipped away again, I would briefly revisit my secret but it was just for a day never anything more. Then in 2003 unknown to me my secret started to make a come back. I uncovered this secret in 2005 and once again was involved in my secret world, again the wife joined in and in later years my young son has joined in.

Dear readers, my secret is………………………………………………………………..I like trains!!

I actually blame my father, as he dragged my to the railway station when I was about 5 to see the Flying Scotsman go through Poole Station, I don’t remember a lot about the train but I can remember somebody hanging out the window of the Pullman door holding a 2lb bang of sugar!!

Going to Henry Harbin Secondary School (now Poole High School) which is situated next to the main Waterloo to Weymouth line it was second nature to become……………………….a train spotter (oh the shame). Yes I stood train platforms quickly writing down train numbers down in little books. But upon leaving school I also left my interest in trains behind for the most part.

In 1985 I bought a game for my PC called A-Train, I could not stop playing it. Then with the advent of a new PC which meant the game played at absolutely silly speed I stopped playing the game. Then in 1994 I found a new game Transport Tycoon. This was followed a few months later by the expansion pack and then the Deluxe version. Over the years the game became stale and I stopped playing it, I moved from running Windows operating system to running Linux Operating systems. When suddenly one night while surfing the net I found Open Transport Tycoon Deluxe OpenTTD for short. This was a remake of Transport Tycoon Deluxe built by enthusiast and not only for Windows based PC by Linux and other as well, check out the OpenTTD web page, it is also free although donation are always welcome.

I have visited the train depots and looked around modern diesel as they were repaired and serviced. Even had the chance to drive a train, ok it only went a couple of feet but at 15 years old I was living the dream (same type as this one in the picture in this post. I have taken my son to the local steam railway (including to see Thomas). But now I realise it the mechanical aspect that I enjoyed about the train and not the collecting of the train numbers.

As I mentioned above, my brothers also had this interest in train (they went to the same school), one has kept that interest and taken it much further that I ever did, you can check out his web site, but you will need to take your own anorak! click here

The picture below is from the Didcot Railway Centre, a good day out for any closet trainspotter and their family

Old time Railway Station