Going up The Wall

School holidays and a social life have meant I haven't exactly been training like a pro over the last few weeks. I've only managed 16 miles a week for the past three weeks, but I've certainly been feeling fitter. The London Eye and the Natural History Museum were the highlights of a few days away with the kids in London last week.

I was sent the Rider Manual for the Right To Play ride when I was down there, which gave me something to read on the train & Tube. You may remember I mentioned that I mentioned the possibility of a section on pavé on the route... ...now we get the detailed route I see it's just 'any old pavé' - this is serious stuff.

We're cycling up the Muur van Geraardsbergen or Kapelmuur - more often just known as The Muur ("The Wall"). It's the huge, next-to-last cobbled climb on the Tour of Flanders; the climb that in April Fabian Cancellara blasted past Tom Boonen to ensure he won the De Ronde. Imagine (seriously) cycling up the Hovis advert hill and you get some idea. I guess I should expect at least one puncture....

Suitably 'inspired', I took off on a ride earlier tonight with plenty of climbs - the road around Damflask Reservoir provides suitable training, both for the hills and a road surface that is a close approximation to cobbles.

300 metres of climb (The Muur is a 92m climb) and 13 miles.

I noticed cars are already making their feeling known about England's chances in the World Cup, and saw 3 dead England flags en-route.

For those of you blissfully unaware of The Muur, you can read about it in Wikipedia or even watch the terrifying YouTube video