Oh yes, the direction ... I forgot to say that in the other direction the steep descent into South Newbald would become a steep climb which wouldn't suit me on my singlespeed bike. I don't really have strong feelings about the direction apart from that.
PS I now see that it was Hull-York-Hull rather than clockwise vs anticlockwise. No - Hull is too far away for me. Last year I left home before 06:00 and got home at 22:00 and that was to and from York!
As for the B1228 to Howden ... We had a couple of very close passes by HGVs in the rain last year - I didn't like those much!
If we do the route I linked to above then we still have to do a short stretch into Howden. We also have to 6 or 7 minutes on the fast-looking A163 from North Duffield to Bubwith. There are not a lot of choices in how to cross the Derwent - we either cross at Sutton as in previous years, or choose between 2 A-roads or the cyclepath at Barmby. For a new route I think the A163 is the best choice.
Just to clarify - I'm all in favour of tweaks and changes to keep things fresh. Plus it's your ride anyway, so would never quibble with someone else's plan, just wanted to point out possible 'sticky bits' was all
Good, that's what I wanted!
The cycle path out of York is very pleasant. A bit bumpy with tree roots pushing through, but nothing major. If you were to continue south along the NCN65 to Riccall instead of heading onto roads at Escrick that would allow people to enjoy the solar system section. From Riccall King Rudding Lane would allow you to rejoin your route at Skipwith without needing to take any A roads. Just a suggestion.
That does sound tempting ... I think we should manage to keep to a reasonable average speed even with staying on the TPT a bit longer.
So, the trail marked on the map from King Rudding Ln to Skipwith through the nature reserve is ok for road bikes then?
Other than that a nice enough route, and pretty simple to follow. Call me soft if you like, but Swanland Hill (B1231) would probably be reason enough for me to come armed with gears (if it ends up being a date I can make) rather than take the single speed...
It looks to be about 600 metres at 6%, which I reckon I can cope with!
That nice steady climb out of Welton should get people warmed up again for the home leg! Rest of it looks good. Nice to not be repeating too many of the same roads on the route home. I don't like that road between Raywell and Riplingham that the previous version of the ride took, so it's a good thing in my book that this version avoids that.
Cheers.
Thanks for comments. Subject to confirmation of the quality of the TPT to Ricall and the trail through the nature reserve, I'll put those sections in.