LSLi Property Blog

The Olympic Torch is currently heading towards the UK onboard Firefly, a gold-coloured plane! Flight BA2012 left Athens with the torch and heralds the final countdown to the games this summer. The final countdown has already started for the Zoopla British Property Cycle.

Training in the early mornings is getting easier now we have the light but it would be good if the rain paused for me now and then. Taking on a challenge like this has some extra advantages I hadn’t thought of. Last week I wore a pair of jeans I hadn’t fitted into for ages and I needed a belt! I've also noticed a big increase in my stamina and strength after countless early morning sessions with the personal trainer and that really helped me one rainy weekend when the wind was against me for 100 miles or so.

Now I have my own Watt Bike at home and can pedal away to my heart's content in front of the telly in the dry. I hardly ever travel with the family in the car now as wherever we’re going I’ll cycle there and back, which has its advantages as my daughter is a big One Direction fan and my wife a Take That fan! Freddie my son quite sensibly brings his headphones.

Having trained with my brother and some friends a few times I am amazed how much of a difference it makes when you tuck in behind someone and ride in their slipstream. You can take the lead for a while then drop back when you feel the need.

So many people have told me they are joining for a stage but I really do need you to register and commit please on www.gbpropertycycle.co.uk where you can download the entry form. The £30 you pay to join in will all go towards the homeless charities supported by the EAF. For me the one thing I look forward to after a long ride is tea and cake and it’d be good to share that with you.

Off to the do the miles in the city this weekend, 180 miles hopefully in the sun.

Jon chats to Mary and David Frost about LSLi and the opening of their new estate agency in Wheathampstead.

This year has been a busy one for Frosts and the great start is highlighted with the opening of the new branch in Wheathampstead to celebrate. Mary and David Frost have been together for 46 years and in business together for 20 of them. They opened Frosts in June 1992 on the ground floor of the same building where they now occupy all three floors, working with sales, lettings, property management and land and new homes.

Since then a lot has changed but, surprisingly, much has stayed the same. The whole ethos of the business has revolved around the core values of quality, standards and reputation. To give you an example: at dinner with friends one evening, before opening the first Frosts office, when David was asked what he was going to do that other agents don't do he replied "I'll do everything they do but I'll just do it better".

Frosts has always strived to be ahead of the rest as David proudly confirms they were the first agent to advertise in colour!

Even today every property brochure is read by Mary before it leaves the office and Rightmove shows Frosts as the marketleader, who lists more than any other agent and in an area with so much competition that's no easy ride.

Of course this success doesn't sit solely on Mary and David's shoulders as there is an exceptionally talented and hardworking team including Jason Smith – Associate Director of Lettings who has been with Frosts for 18 years and Tom Bradbeer – New Homes and Land Director who has clocked up 15 years.

The relationship with LSLi started about 5 years ago and investment in expansion was always on the horizon. Mary explains "Being part of a larger pro-active team at LSLi has distinct advantages, as we can share ideas and see what works in other areas then translate that into what would work here at Frosts. This is a very exciting time for Frosts and having a branch in Wheathampstead gives us a much further reach into the villages including Codicote, Old Welwyn and Whitwell."

The bank holiday was a great time for training and I managed a 103 mile ride up to Norfolk on Saturday where the family had booked into a campsite to "test" the campervan. It was extremely windy all the way which was a bit of a battle but the tea and fruit cake on arrival more than made up for it. My children Hattie and Freddie had set up a finish line with a tape they’d tied to two trees and were waiting at the end of the road for me cheering and waving "well done daddy" posters.

The next day I left for the 70mile ride to Southwold taking the country roads whilst trying to ignore my creaky knee as it protested.

By Monday I was rested and looking forward to spending some time with the family and asked the kids what they’d like to do. "A bike ride!" they shouted.

You can find out more about the route of the Zoopla British Property Cycle and our excellent sponsors in this downloadable PDF.

I thought it would be interesting to share a page of my wife Victoria's diary from Sunday. My family are supporting me throughout the training process and will be travelling with me in a campervan when the Zoopla British Property Cycle begins this summer - every little bit of support counts, even a toothbrush!

Victoria's Diary

My toothbrush has gone. It was there this morning and tonight I have searched by every sink in the house and have moved on to family interrogation tactics. It doesn't take long for the husband to break under intense torture and confess. Even as I write this I am still reeling from his admission that he needed something small to clean his bike after today's ride.

I have put up with the daily piles of sweaty lycra, the sudden interest in Vaseline, the bum bag (remember them?) and the padded bottom weekend wardrobe but the toothbrush has just about pushed me over the edge.

Hopefully in a few days I'll be laughing as I tell this story but for now I'm just busy planning what to do with his toothbrush.

You can find out more about joining the Property Cycle and also sponsorship at the EAF website

Joining Jon on the Zoopla British Property Cycle will be Martin Farrington, an Associate Director with Intercounty Estate Agents. Martin will be joining Jon on the Scottish stage of the ride, which is sponsored by YOUR MOVE, and in this post Martin describes some of the training he has been undertaking and an unfortunate twist that his preparations have seen.

"I have been cycling now for the last 10 years with a local club going out most Sundays and at 48 I believe I am fitter than many of my age. I have the privilege of riding with 81 year old Eric Beachamp who competed at the highest levels and whose father in-law was the first British Road Race Champion in 1922 a title which is now held by Mark Cavendish."

"This year's training has started gently and I was doing around 200 miles in the month stepping up at the end of February early March with an extra 3 audax rides of 100km on consecutive weekends. On Wednesdays I do a spinning class at Harlow Sport Centre and on Tuesdays I play 5-a-side which is where it all went wrong. Two weeks ago I over extended my left leg which caused the knee to swell to the extent that I could not bear any weight on it at all and was on crutches, two visits to A&E and one to my GP didn't get me very far, the prognosis was vague and all I could do was rest it."

"This advice was strangely accurate and I am now walking albeit slowly and with the advice of the physio I was spinning on my turbo trainer for 10 minutes with no resistance which I will continue to do for the next 7 days, morning and evening. My Next appointment is on Thursday and I hope if all the swelling has gone down I will be back to full fitness and training and get back on stream. I have added a few pounds but once the training starts this will drop off, my aim was to be hitting 100 mile a week starting May, and this consists of my Sunday ride of 50-60 miles, 15 mile spinning class and evening ride each week."

"Over the years I have taken part in many organised rides home and abroad the most gruelling being my second attempt of an ETAP which is a timed stage of the Tour De France in 2008 if you are too slow they sweep you up."

"The journey from Pau to Hautacam is a 169km trip taking in four cols, two of which are category 1 climbs. The col du Tourmalet and the Hautacam are 2115m and 1520m of climbing respectively, so just these two were approximately 40km of continuously going uphill. The route was completed in just over 8.5 hours."

"Scotland definitely won't be easy but spread over 8 days it will be joy to do, subject to the weather, my biggest challenge at the moment is the logistics of having somebody to support me, however Jon and Sean's challenge around Britain is a whole different ball game and will require immense mental as well as physical strength."

"Good luck to everyone taking part in the stages."

You can keep up-to-date with Martin’s training and progress via Twitter.