Hebden Bridge / Marsden / Holmfirth / Emley Moor - Sunday, May 23rd

[Chrisc]

There's also a cafe at Armitages garden centre where my wife works but it's awkward leaving the bikes outside and still runs £5 for a butty and £3 for coffee and cake after so little in it and you can sit out front of the pub, even if it is on the main road it's a pleasant spot in the sun.

I think you're right about Jagger lane. 34/25 at the bottom and grind it out. I tried going up standing for a bit on the 21 to get a run on it and it paid me back!

I got 25 miles in today but in the wind it they were hard miles and my legs felt like lead. The hailstorm in the last couple of miles was a nice touch tho, stung like hell! Need a couple of days off the bike methinks.

PS I took that last post out, felt like teaching granny to suck eggs!

 

[ColinJ]

PS I took that last post out, felt like teaching granny to suck eggs!

Hmm, I wonder what that was - I'm afraid I missed it!

Okay chaps - for the re-run on Sunday 9th May I'm shortening the route by 10 miles to try get me home in daylight. That's mainly achieved by cutting across from the Emley Moor mast to rejoin the original route near Broadstone reservoir so despite the thread title - no Sculpture Park!

In place of a cafe stop, I'm proposing that we stop at the pub suggested by Chrisc - The Sovereign near Shepley (unless anyone has a better idea?) That's after 68 km (42 miles). It doesn't look cheap so I'll probably just have a Coke and a bag of crisps but if you can afford the prices they have a tempting menu.

I'm missing out the Norland Moor section to avoid the potentially dangerous descent into Sowerby Bridge (it is very steep and has tight bends - in wet conditions and with an oncoming vehicle it would be very dodgy indeed). You will also have to forego the massed hordes of drunks in Sowerby Bridge town centre - sorry!

The total distance from Hebden Bridge to Hebden Bridge will be 120 km (75 miles). If you want to start and finish in Marsden that would be about 49 km (31 miles). Starting and finishing in Holmfirth would only be about 35 km (22 miles).

Meet at the usual car park (as for original ride above) at 09:45 and ride round to Hebden Bridge station to meet anybody coming in by train at 10:00. ETA Marsden 12:40 (ish) and Holmfirth 13:30. ETA back at Holmfirth 16:45, Marsden 17:45, Hebden Bridge 19:30. I know the average speed is pretty low but I'm being realistic based on what I managed last Sunday. If you plan to ride home from Hebden Bridge - bring lights just in case!

So, who is up for this one?

 

[colly]

I'm up for it. Not so sure about my legs mind you.

I'm about 90% certain so far because I have that odd feeling you get just before a sore throat etc sets in. Should know by tomorrow.

I might come over by train and break off around Denby Dale and make for home from there. Would that be after the pub break?

I did a quick route on bikehike last night and it would be just over 100m for me. Seeing as how I haven't been doing lots of miles this year it will be a real effort. At least the ride from there isn't so hilly as the first part.

 

[ColinJ]

I'm up for it. Not so sure about my legs mind you.

I'm about 90% certain so far because I have that odd feeling you get just before a sore throat etc sets in. Should know by tomorrow.

I do know the sore throat thing. That's what I had after SITD. It left me feeling weak but it didn't actually develop into much but it kept me off the bike for 2 weeks.

I might come over by train and break off around Denby Dale and make for home from there. Would that be after the pub break?

Yes - from the pub to rejoin the WYCR at Denby Dale is only 4 km down the A635. Alternatively - 2 km down the A629 to rejoin the WYCR at High Flatts.

I did a quick route on bikehike last night and it would be just over 100m for me. Seeing as how I haven't been doing lots of miles this year it will be a real effort. At least the ride from there isn't so hilly as the first part.

I hope the sore throat doesn't amount to much and we see you on Sunday!

Right, I'm off for a quick walk before the rain arrives - ta ra!

 

[Svendo]

I was hoping to do this ride but I'm afraid the GF has decided I'm helping her reassemble flat pack furniture in her new house instead. This is what happens when you offer to help out, people take it seriously.

Also I am feeling a bit snuffly, like Colly.
I can't decide if I'm developing hayfever (unusual at my age), just on the verge of a cold which may or may not develop (a possibility), or just being a bit wet (most likely).

Upshot is I'll have to miss the (shortened) second running of this ride, which I was hoping to do as I've not got round to actually visiting the Elmley Moor transmitter. It was apparently built by my great Uncle Sidney's civil engineering company, so I'll just have to put the effort into getting out that far another day.

 

[ColinJ]

I was hoping to do this ride but I'm afraid the GF has decided I'm helping her reassemble flat pack furniture in her new house instead.

Ah, the old 'flat pack furniture' excuse!

Also I am feeling a bit snuffly, like Colly.
I can't decide if I'm developing hayfever (unusual at my age), just on the verge of a cold which may or may not develop (a possibility), or just being a bit wet (most likely).

There seems to be something going about. zacklaws wasn't feeling good after SITD and I got zapped by something too.

Upshot is I'll have to miss the (shortened) second running of this ride, which I was hoping to do as I've not got round to actually visiting the Elmley Moor transmitter. It was apparently built by my great Uncle Sidney's civil engineering company, so I'll just have to put the effort into getting out that far another day.

Oh well - see you on another ride.

The mast is certainly a big structure but somehow it didn't look quite as big as it is! I think if there had been somebody abseiling down it to give us some sense of scale it might have looked bigger. It is almost 1,000 ft high and the road gets pretty close to it but I still found it hard to believe that the top of the mast was almost as high above me as the top of the Keighley Road climb is from Hebden Bridge 4.5 miles down the road. (If you do the calculations that's about right!)

Mind you - it was so tall that I couldn't get the top of the mast in the picture!

 

[Chrisc]

Tallest self supporting concrete structure in Europe. The very small lift that takes engineers up wobbles, rattles and creaks it's way up there in a speedy 7
minutes. Terrifying according to my mate who's been up. And in the breeze it sways 15' either way... no plans to try and get a trip up there meself.

That new gantry round the base is approx ten stories up for scale.

 

[ColinJ]

Tallest self supporting concrete structure in Europe. The very small lift that takes engineers up wobbles, rattles and creaks it's way up there in a speedy 7
minutes. Terrifying according to my mate who's been up. And in the breeze it sways 15' either way... no plans to try and get a trip up there meself.

That new gantry round the base is approx ten stories up for scale.

Er, no thanks - I get much more pleasure from looking up a long way than I do from looking down a long way and I also suffer from motion sickness so standing at the top of a huge swaying tower wouldn't be good at all!

It's amazing that a concrete structure can sway like that without cracking.





As for the ride on Sunday... At the moment it is just me and possibly colly. Does anybody else fancy joining us?

 

[dan_bo]

I really would but the knees would have something to say about another VERY hilly ride on johnny cash. I did cragg vale OK fine last weekend but its the downs as much as the ups.......


See you lads out soon.

 

[colly]

I'm out.

Throat isn't so bad but I'm aching like I have been pushing weights all day. I'll see how things are tomorrow but even if I feel less crap I might be better leaving it for a bit.

Have a good one.

 

[ColinJ]

I'm out.

Throat isn't so bad but I'm aching like I have been pushing weights all day. I'll see how things are tomorrow but even if I feel less crap I might be better leaving it for a bit.

Have a good one.

That was the decision I came to with the recent Brian Robinson Challenge. If you aren't feeling good, why risk it? Get well soon!

I'll have to see if anybody else decides to do the ride (Bokonon, PaulB - you both expressed an interest?). I don't think I'll do it again solo a week after the other one, but I will go out and do a good ride somewhere. If even one person wants to do it though, that's fine - I'll go ahead with the ride.

 

[ColinJ]

**** RIDE POSTPONED ****

It's nearly 10:30 pm and nobody has signed up for tomorrow so I think I'll have a few beers, a late night, sleep in and go for a shorter solo ride tomorrow.

I'm busy next weekend but if anybody fancies doing the 75-miler on the 23rd or 30th post below and we can arrange it.

 

[aJohnson]

I blame the pricey sandwiches.

 

[ColinJ]

I blame the pricey sandwiches.

I stayed up really late on Saturday night, then slept in. In the end I didn't get out on my bike at all but from what I heard the wind was awful so I don't have any regrets!

 

[Chrisc]

I stayed up really late on Saturday night, then slept in. In the end I didn't get out on my bike at all but from what I heard the wind was awful so I don't have any regrets!

I was up Emley and Ingbirchworth in that wind. It was indeed foul... I was bollixed after fifteen miles of fighting it.