My burning guilt at leaving poor Haggis behind and disloyalty in hiring a substitute for a week was too much to bear. The only way to mitigate against any persuasions towards purchasing a granny bike, besides money and garage space, was to get back out on Haggis in my most concerted attempt at getting back to where I once was on the cycling front. Yes, it seems that two days of decent mileage can cure a girl of any ridiculous notions of needing anything less than 24 gears. Despite a rather flatter terrain than I'm used to, the ruggedised nature of my lovely little hybrid thoroughly enjoyed some designated paths through beautiful countryside, speedy sweeping bends and gently glowing exertion and the odd grin inducing hard push to speeds I'm quite sure a basket and pannier just wouldn't allow. The weather was perfect when paired with some rather good suntan lotion, and the only thing missing was the padding from my shorts - how quickly you forget just how much better life is with a chamois! I'm not sure my next trip to the shops for the Sunday Times will measure up to this latest excursion - a 10 mile ride in glorious sunshine just to pick up the paper, Krispy Kreme (apple & cinnamon are yum!) and a smoothie, and spirited return journey to laze outside the tent for a few hours before returning to normality. It's not quite the Life of Riley, but it certainly beats the weekday windowless office hands down. Horray for the sunshine!