I am a keen cyclist and having spent the last 9 years living in Farnborough, I would typically cycle 20-30mins through Fleet or Aldershot to get to the roads south of Crondall and Odiham. If time allowed, that would often include routes through, Bentley and Binsted.
However, with two young children, I rarely cycle at the weekend, and I typically get out for a ‘power hour’ at the start of the day before the school/nursery run or at the end of the day, which would often mean a lot of my riding would be on busier roads around Farnborough.
That’s not to say that where we used to live didn’t have access to outdoor spaces. We enjoyed walking and running in the Ash Ranges, along the Basingstoke Canal and the mountain bike trails around Tunnel Hill were ideal for a quick off-road loop. I also had a couple of good cycling routes around Puttenham and Elsead that could be done in an hour.
I was excited by the prospect of being able to go out for an hour from Binsted, knowing that pretty much all of the ride would be on country lanes. More living space and a bigger garden, were some of the reasons for moving, but access to outdoor pursuits from our doorstep was certainly something that appealed to me (possibly more than anything else).
We have been here for two months now, and I have not been disappointed. In fact, when the sun is out and I’m cruising down a quiet lane enjoying the views I still smile to myself that we are fortunate enough to live somewhere like this. The first time I went out on the bike, I didn’t see a car for 15 minutes. The views of the rolling hills and farmlands really are an absolute joy.
Exploring the area and creating new routes has been a lot of fun. I have found that whichever direction I head, there are a lot of hills to climb. Binsted is at the top of a hill, which means there is always going to be at least one hill to get up on any ride. It took a month for my legs to adjust to the hills and I have now gone from slowly pacing myself to trying to attack some of the ones I am more familiar with, chasing PR’s on Strava. Hopefully, as time allows I will be able to explore further into the South Downs.
I have also started to get out on the bike with the girls as this was something that we used to do a lot in Farnborough. Hollie was really excited to go on the bike to Nursery and I’m looking forward to family bike rides as they grow up. Unfortunately, despite being so close to being able to ride her bike before we moved, Chloe has generally refused to ride her bike. One of our neighbours’ children has recently learned so I’m hoping she might change her mind soon.
Winter is definitely on the way. This week I have started to notice a drop in temperate and it is darker when I go out in the morning. I usually manage to stay out on the bike through October and into November before resorting to the turbo trainer for the winter. I will certainly be wanting to make the most of the outdoor riding and the views while I can.
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