The 2023 Half Century (50km or 50m) Challenge Chatzone

[ColinJ]

The good news is that it is the end of the month and I am still in - yay!

The bad news is that I have had to break my 'singlespeed rides only' rule to achieve that... I am going to count my 70 km forum ride done in Devon earlier in the month.

I don't have an excuse - I looked back in my diary and there were several nice days when I could have done my s/s 50, but didn't - I left it until yesterday! I went out intending to do the 50 but conditions were looking grim 'on the tops' in the distance, which is where I had planned to ride to. I opted to stay in the valley instead and was going to do 50 km worth up and down. The trouble is that I got 10 km up the A646 towards Burnley and then it started peeing it down. There was a cold wind blowing, my bike doesn't have mudguards, and I was not dressed for rain... I got wet-through and chilled very quickly so I u-turned and dashed home. I was shivering by the time that I got here.

I was going to try again today but I didn't sleep well last night. By the time I finally got up and went out it was looking iffy again and I felt a few spots of rain so I just did a half hour ride for the three 30+ minute rides a week challenge.

My aim now is to do at least one 50+ km ride a month on the singlespeed bike but if I have to count a ride on another bike, I will. Let's see if I can manage 11 months s/s!

 

[13 rider]

Congratulations to @AndreaJ the first poster of the month for the 2nd month running

Thanks to a report from a third party I can do the monthly round up . We have 28 fully posted up for February and 1 rider who has done a qualifying ride but yet to update the threads making 29 of still in the challenge
We have lost 1 rider through injury the unfortunate @PatrickPending
Well done everyone Hopefully spring is coming and some nice weather

 

[Jon George]

Congratulations to @AndreaJ the first poster of the month for the 2nd month running

It was close, though. I had some lunch before posting.

 

[13 rider]

It was close, though. I had some lunch before posting.

You've competition Jon ,snooze you loose

 

[AndreaJ]

It was close, though. I had some lunch before posting.

I had lunch after posting 😂

 

[Domus]

I had lunch during.
A wild and windy ride over the West Pennine Moors. Beans on toast in Rivington didn't touch the sides then the wind picked up so a head / cross wind all the way home. Only 54 Kms but it was hard graft after lunch.

 

[Jon George]

I had lunch during.

 

[FrothNinja]

The good news is that it is the end of the month and I am still in - yay!

The bad news is that I have had to break my 'singlespeed rides only' rule to achieve that... I am going to count my 70 km forum ride done in Devon earlier in the month.

I don't have an excuse - I looked back in my diary and there were several nice days when I could have done my s/s 50, but didn't - I left it until yesterday! I went out intending to do the 50 but conditions were looking grim 'on the tops' in the distance, which is where I had planned to ride to. I opted to stay in the valley instead and was going to do 50 km worth up and down. The trouble is that I got 10 km up the A646 towards Burnley and then it started peeing it down. There was a cold wind blowing, my bike doesn't have mudguards, and I was not dressed for rain... I got wet-through and chilled very quickly so I u-turned and dashed home. I was shivering by the time that I got here.

I was going to try again today but I didn't sleep well last night. By the time I finally got up and went out it was looking iffy again and I felt a few spots of rain so I just did a half hour ride for the three 30+ minute rides a week challenge.

My aim now is to do at least one 50+ km ride a month on the singlespeed bike but if I have to count a ride on another bike, I will. Let's see if I can manage 11 months s/s!

A646 is not a road I would like to ascend on a single speed - that said I would use the towpath for as far as I could. I much prefer descending it - especially when I come down the ridge through Shore

 

[ColinJ]

A646 is not a road I would like to ascend on a single speed - that said I would use the towpath for as far as I could. I much prefer descending it - especially when I come down the ridge through Shore

There isn't a towpath along the A646 from Todmorden towards Burnley! From Tod through Hebden Bridge towards Halifax, yes. The thing that puts me off that stretch of towpath is the cobbled spillways which are treacherous on a road bike. The narrow plank-like footbridges should have been upgraded to something more usable when they upgraded the surface of the towpath. (The planks are bad enough when on a bike, but completely useless for wheelchairs and children's buggies!)

The rise of the A646 in both directions between Burnley and Tod is ok on singlespeed, only averaging 2% or so. I too like that run down from the railway bridge to Todmorden through Shore.

I will possibly be doing the Cragg Vale climb on singlespeed tomorrow - that is a lot harder. That only averages 3.4% for a long way but there is a much steeper ramp in the middle which is nearer 10% for a couple of hundred metres - pretty tough! As can be the frequent cross-headwind from the Littleborough direction on the exposed moorland higher up. If all goes to plan, I will get my singlespeed '50' in and avoid making the mistake that I made in February.

 

[FrothNinja]

There isn't a towpath along the A646 from Todmorden towards Burnley! From Tod through Hebden Bridge towards Halifax, yes. The thing that puts me off that stretch of towpath is the cobbled spillways which are treacherous on a road bike. The narrow plank-like footbridges should have been upgraded to something more usable when they upgraded the surface of the towpath. (The planks are bad enough when on a bike, but completely useless for wheelchairs and children's buggies!)

The rise of the A646 in both directions between Burnley and Tod is ok on singlespeed, only averaging 2% or so. I too like that run down from the railway bridge to Todmorden through Shore.

I will possibly be doing the Cragg Vale climb on singlespeed tomorrow - that is a lot harder. That only averages 3.4% for a long way but there is a much steeper ramp in the middle which is nearer 10% for a couple of hundred metres - pretty tough! As can be the frequent cross-headwind from the Littleborough direction on the exposed moorland higher up. If all goes to plan, I will get my singlespeed '50' in and avoid making the mistake that I made in February.

Wish there was a towpath for that bit - the cars fly along there and there's a few blind corners and ones they cut.
The spillways are sketchy on the CX, must be quite scary on a road bike.
Good luck with the wind, got battered by it today...and then the drizzle started

 

[bluenotebob]

A bitterly cold and gusty NE wind today meant that short rides would be the order of the day – and a good chance to get four of my five bikes off the mark in March. As the total came to over 50km, I am claiming a point – but I’ll do a ‘proper’ qualifying ride just as soon as we get something close to reasonable cycling weather.

 

[ColinJ]

Good luck with the wind, got battered by it today...and then the drizzle started

The forecast is for much less wind, and to stay dry. I will therefore get blown all over the place and soaked...!

 

[ColinJ]

Ah, I have found an old photo of mine illustrating the spillway problem! (That's my CAAD5, not my singlespeed bike.)

 

[13 rider]

Ah, I have found an old photo of mine illustrating the spillway problem! (That's my CAAD5, not my singlespeed bike.)

View attachment 679997

Hit it at speed I'm sure you will be fine😗🤕

 

[ColinJ]

Hit it at speed I'm sure you will be fine😗🤕

That's what I used to do on my mountain bike and it was okay. It is one thing doing that with knobbly 2.3" tyres and suspension, but It is a completely different thing on a road bike with delicate 25C tyres...!