"How are you this morning, Bob," Simon Partridge asks as I fill my water bottle in preparation for today's ride.

"Great," I say. "Much better weather today." "The weather report says it's going to rain later, though," the proprietor of The Held tells me.

No surprise there.

Jason fixes a flatJason is fixing flat tires in the stone barn that functions as a garage for The Held, and the Black Mountains are clearly visible in the distance, a sea of rolling fields and sheep.

It turns out one of Tony's tires is flat, too, which means I'm the only one who escaped the thorns. After Jason puts leaches on the tire punctures, we hook the trailer to the back of the sports utility vehicle and set off for more riding.

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