# Spring Into The Dales (SITD), Sun, 14th Apr, 2019. HQ Mytholmroyd.



## ColinJ (19 Mar 2019)

It is only just over a month until SITD 2019. Those of you who have ridden it before know what to expect. For those of who haven't ... it is 100 km of extremely lumpy roads in beautiful surroundings, joined up by about 15 km of busier and less pretty roads, but don't let them put you off!

If you are not reasonably fit, you'd be better off doing sister event _Leap Into The Aire _which sets off an hour later than SITD.

For more detail, search the audax and recreational rides forums for ride threads from past years.

@skudupnorth and I have already signed up. @Amanda P - are you still interested? Anybody else who fancies joining us and could ride at an average speed of (say) 13-14 km/h in such terrain, post below. (Minimum speed for the event is 12 km/h but we'd aim for higher in case of problems such as punctures.)


----------



## skudupnorth (19 Mar 2019)

Cannot wait for this no matter what !!! Two days later I will be in hospital so it will be a perfect event to keep my spirits up for the impending lay off


----------



## ColinJ (19 Mar 2019)

Dogtrousers said:


> I love these punny names. That's an absolute classic.


I was thinking that myself, playing nicely off '_Spring Into The Dales_', which is pretty good too!

I referred to riders on my ride to Glasson Dock/Conder Green as '_Lune-atics_'... (We were headed to the Lune Estuary.)


----------



## ColinJ (26 Mar 2019)

Not that this is a subtle way to nudge this thread up, but I can't remember if I mentioned it to former SITD rider @Kestevan on our ride on Saturday?


----------



## Kestevan (27 Mar 2019)

You hadn't... but then we hardly got much time to talk.. 

I may be doing the Leap with Mrs Kes…. however there is the chance she will be unavailable in which case I'll by riding it... The three blokes I was with on Sunday will be riding anyway... and there's even a chance @Steve H will have run out of dodgy beer related excuses and decided to try and ride a bike again.


----------



## DCLane (28 Mar 2019)

Missing this as my 14yo wants to ride the GHS 100 in 8 to Pocklington and back; he'll need an adult to accompany him.


----------



## skudupnorth (30 Mar 2019)

What time are you setting off from the start @ColinJ ? Just planning my get up and meet times


----------



## ColinJ (30 Mar 2019)

The audax website seems to be down at the moment but I'm fairly sure that the start is at 09:00 so I will aim to get there at 08:45, which would mean me leaving Todmorden at about 08:15. 

I am considering riding to Littleborough and back first to get another 20 km in. That, with the 18 km to Mytholmroyd and back from Tod would give me about 153 km for the day so I would only have to find another 8 km or so for 161 km, the metric equivalent of 100 miles. (I'll forget that idea if the weather is bad!)

So, it could be ... 07:25 Tod, 07:50 Littleborough, 08:15 Tod, 08:35 Hebden Bridge, 08:45 event HQ in Mytholmroyd.


----------



## skudupnorth (30 Mar 2019)

If my pace is good enough I will try to meet you at one of those points but if all fails I will meet you at the HQ


----------



## skudupnorth (1 Apr 2019)

Spa Tourer fettled and ready


----------



## ColinJ (11 Apr 2019)

Aaaargh! Sorry, skud - I am going to have to drop out! 

I have been battling my second heavy cold of 2019 but was hoping that I would recover in time to do SITD. I _am _getting better and no longer feel ill when sitting around indoors in the warm, but a simple 3 km test ride to the shops and back this morning soon exposed how weak my body still is. If 50 metres of climbing over 3 km made me feel _that _bad, then there is no sensible way for me to attempt 2,350 metres of tough climbs over 135 km on Sunday!

I hope you have a great ride. I'll (hopefully?) meet up with you later in the year in Cheshire, and maybe on some other rides elsewhere too.


----------



## skudupnorth (11 Apr 2019)

ColinJ said:


> Aaaargh! Sorry, skud - I am going to have to drop out!
> 
> I have been battling my second heavy cold of 2019 but was hoping that I would recover in time to do SITD. I _am _getting better and no longer feel ill when sitting around indoors in the warm, but a simple 3 km test ride to the shops and back this morning soon exposed how weak my body still is. If 50 metres of climbing over 3 km made me feel _that _bad, then there is no sensible way for me to attempt 2,350 metres of tough climbs over 135 km on Sunday!
> 
> I hope you have a great ride. I'll (hopefully?) meet up with you later in the year in Cheshire, and maybe on some other rides elsewhere too.


Noooooo !!!! The weather is looking good aswell


----------



## ColinJ (11 Apr 2019)

skudupnorth said:


> Noooooo !!!! The weather is looking good aswell


Yeah. It is the second weekend on the trot that I have had to pull out of a ride, but it would be daft for me to try this one - it is a hard route even when feeling fit.

I think I hadn't fully recovered from the first cold before doing my Garforth century on March 23rd. I got tired and chilled in the dark on the way back and that probably reduced my immune response and let the cold bugs multiply again.


----------



## skudupnorth (12 Apr 2019)

I’m going to be Billy no mates  Determined to do it as I have just had my operation confirmed the week after next so no riding for me for at least 4-6 weeks


----------



## ColinJ (13 Apr 2019)

You'll enjoy it anyway...

Good luck with the op!


----------



## skudupnorth (13 Apr 2019)

ColinJ said:


> You'll enjoy it anyway...
> 
> Good luck with the op!


Cheers Colin, hope you recover soon..... this old age thing is not good ! 
I will take plenty of photos


----------



## skudupnorth (13 Apr 2019)

Bike, food and myself ready, anyone coming ?


----------



## skudupnorth (14 Apr 2019)

That was tough ! The wind was relentless and cold on the outward route plus I rode to and from the start and chucked Crag Vale just for good measure  Full photo report later, need food and drink


----------



## Blue Hills (14 Apr 2019)

Duly liked, what's the bike?

I like it.

Something from Spa?


----------



## skudupnorth (14 Apr 2019)

Blue Hills said:


> Duly liked, what's the bike?
> 
> I like it.
> 
> Something from Spa?


It’s a Spa Steel Tourer, got it for my 50th and it is a lovely thing


----------



## Blue Hills (14 Apr 2019)

Hope to see you on a ride sometime so that I can check it out.

Good to see another flat bar fan.


----------



## skudupnorth (14 Apr 2019)

Blue Hills said:


> Hope to see you on a ride sometime so that I can check it out.
> 
> Good to see another flat bar fan.


I’ve never liked drops, even removed them off my fixie and put bullhorns on it


----------



## Blue Hills (14 Apr 2019)

Me neither.

When I was a kid (up north) "serious" bikes were always drops.

Thank god cycling moved on from that monoculture - plenty of cycling crimes since but the 90s hybrid was what got me back into cycling.


----------



## ColinJ (14 Apr 2019)

Well done! It must have been well over an imperial century with your extras and close to 3,000 m (10,000 ft) of climbing? I would have liked to have come and suffered with you but I don't think I would have even made it to the top of the first climb...


----------



## skudupnorth (15 Apr 2019)

Managed a total of a 133 miles yesterday...…..62 were the journey to and from the start !


----------



## Littgull (15 Apr 2019)

skudupnorth said:


> Managed a total of a 133 miles yesterday...…..62 were the journey to and from the start !


Great ride and total mileage skud. Good luck with your op.


----------



## skudupnorth (15 Apr 2019)

Littgull said:


> Great ride and total mileage skud. Good luck with your op.


Cheers,hopefully I will be back on two wheels very quickly


----------



## ColinJ (15 Apr 2019)

Cold winds, _LOADS _of hills, 133 miles! 

In stark contrast ... this morning I did another little test trip to the shops on my bike. I'm still not right but at least I felt better than I did last Thursday. I'll gradually increase the frequency and length of rides until I feel good again.


----------



## skudupnorth (15 Apr 2019)

ColinJ said:


> Cold winds, _LOADS _of hills, 133 miles!
> 
> In stark contrast ... this morning I did another little test trip to the shops on my bike. I'm still not right but at least I felt better than I did last Thursday. I'll gradually increase the frequency and length of rides until I feel good again.


It was good test  Look forward to going on one of your rides Colin but I need to find a better way to get over to you because the roads through Bolton, Bury and Rochdale are absolutely rubbish


----------



## ColinJ (15 Apr 2019)

skudupnorth said:


> It was good test  Look forward to going on one of your rides Colin but I need to find a better way to get over to you because the roads through Bolton, Bury and Rochdale are absolutely rubbish


@Littgull is the local expert that you need for that! He knows Bury and Rochdale intimately and I'm sure knows his way round Bolton too...


----------



## Blue Hills (16 Apr 2019)

I have a tried tested ridden gpx route from manchester, through bury to whalley skud. Involves very mild off road. Pm me if interested @skudupnorth


----------



## Littgull (16 Apr 2019)

Blue Hills said:


> I have a tried tested ridden gpx route from manchester, through bury to whalley skud. Involves very mild off road. Pm me if interested @skudupnorth


Hi @skudupnorth 
Yes, there are some quiet and scenic routes from Astley to Littleborough and beyond that avoid busy roads.

I can pm you a very flat route (mainly decent surfaced off road, easily rideable on your Spa tourer) and a more hilly route that takes you through Bradshaw, Hawkshaw, Greenmount (nr Ramsbottom), quiet roads and tracks the south side of Bury and later via the Rochdale Canal towpath at Castleton on to Littleborough. From Littleborough to Todmorden/Hebden Bridge it would just be a choice of opting for the main Calder Valley Road or using the canal towpath. The only snag being that the stretch of canal towpath from Littleborough to Hebden Bridge does include some very mucky patches in a few places after a period of rain. But the surface is excellent from Castleton to Littleborough.

Just let me know if you would like the gpx files of these.


----------



## skudupnorth (16 Apr 2019)

Well what a brilliant and challenging ride that was ! 115k Audax with the added extra mileage to and from the start made my total mileage up to 133 miles with a cheeky ride up Cragg Vale on the way home. For most of the ride i was on my own with the odd time tagging on to groups as we went along the route. The organisation was perfect with food and drink provided at the start,checkpoints and a banquet at the finish ! As already mentioned,the wind was a major factor on the outward leg to Keithley. It was cold and the odd time there were snow flakes trying to spoil the the already tough ride. I took plenty of food just in case i started to struggle and stopped at regular intervals to have a munch and enjoy the scenery. From previous experience,i avoided eating at Bolton Abbey,it is expensive and not really good compared to the smaller cafe's or pubs. Once at Rossi's cafe,i splashed out on a massive coffee and scone for the last blast over the hill to the finish. I met up with a chap called Eric at this point who was from my area originally but moved to Halifax recently. I shared the bike lock with him and he was happy to have a familiar accent on the ride 
The ride into Hebden is bliss after the long slog up from Rossi's and we made good time to enjoy the amazing,homemade sandwiches,cakes and treats at the community centre. Hope you like the photo's and roll on the next one


----------



## ColinJ (16 Apr 2019)

Somebody has ruined the surreal joke on that elephant graffiti! (It is on a small outbuilding on land owned by Bradford University at Cock Hill, between Hebden Bridge and Oxenhope, on the way to Haworth and Keighley.)

I had seen it many times in passing but never taken much notice until someone asked me if I had looked closely at it. They didn't explain why though, so I made sure to check it out the next time I rode up there. This is what it looked like until recently ...





The adult elephant is painting a picture of an elephant. 

(PS I could swear that originally the smaller elephant was standing on the larger elephant's trunk and was the one doing the painting!)


----------

