That’s it, its all over and done with for another year, thank goodness !

I personally dislike this ridiculous festival of avarice and gluttony more than any other time of the year, this combined with a death in the family meant that my mood and general demeanour were low, it took a few days before the opportunity for a ride arose.

The weather wasn’t particularly inspiring but a cold snap after a few dry days meant that the local trails would be dry enough to ride a mudguard less bike, a rare pleasure in the Manchester winter, the single speed was recovered from the cellar, and arrangements made.

Paul also chose to ride his single speed, the chance to just pedal without thought was grabbed by us both, it seemed appropriate.

After an early start  we rode for an hour so, choosing a different and slightly longer route than normal to get to the bench.

After sausage butties and freshly brewed tea, we sat and chatted for an hour, enjoying the quietness that the cold had brought with it, there were few people around.

And then we rode home for about another hour or so, content with our mornings work, just long enough to get a breather from our everyday lives.

The power of moving your legs in circles for a short time rarely fails to lift your mood, its always worth the effort to get off the couch and get moving, even if the raising of the mood lasts just as long as the ride, simple pleasures on simple bikes.