My family, always thinking of me, promised I could ride for a ride in the daylight this weekend. I have to say I was quite looking forward to the novel experience of seeing my surroundings. However, a trip to one of those indoor play centres on the Saturday and even more horrific, the annual Ikea visit on the Sunday meant I didn't leave the house until 8.30pm on both nights.

I'm pretty use to night riding and as long as the roads are lit it isn't much bother. The bigger issue is that I'm not back until 11pm, so by the time I've cleaned the bike a bit (it's getting less and less as the enthusiam fades), showered, put the washing machine on (sweaty cycle kit smells like the bottom of a hamster cage) and eaten something, it's midnight.