Your ride today.... (part 1)

[albion]

With the whole day available I headed south and finding the road quiet I chose the Chester-le-Street by-pass, near as dammit riding over a roadkill iPhone as I went.
Hamsterley Forest was the direction, via Spennymoor, Bishop Auckland, Etherley, WIndmill taking thw Windy Back mid entrance to the Forest.
One puncture fix later I set back on my more usual route back towards Newcastle via Hamsterly but having not done this route 2013 I took a wrong back road left turn.
I'm a 'no turning back guy' so rather than a rather hilly diversion via Wolsingham I cut along a cheeky deserted farm road towards a law abiding bridleway for an ad-hoc route to Hamsterly.
I was now on my bridleway but with no signposts at a Y 3 way I consulted my map to be met by the owner of a 'barking hunting dogs' midway route house.
He kindly routed me back on track to for what would become a walk via Hamsterly caravan site whilst rasping 'YOU CAME DOWN MY ROAD?'.

Back home, knowing the iPhone was KO I contacted the owner via the SIm, and and 2 hours later I was back down to Chester-le Street to do the good deed of the day.
83 mild miles of 50% sunshine.

 

[gavgav]

My 2nd half century ever today and something completely new as well. I am down in Devon on holiday and decided to tackle the Tarka Trail. I wasn't able to bring my bike and so had to hire a bike from Tarka Trail Cycle Hire at Barnstaple Railway Station. I arrived there at 9:30 and bike was provided by their very friendly team at a very reasonable £10.50 for full day hire. The guy said that the trail would be no problem for an "Experienced Cyclist like you".....I look like an experienced cyclist!!

The bike was a Raleigh Pioneer 2 series and it had seen better days really. It was 21 speed, but I reckon only about 15 gears were "gettable", it had some Kenda tyres that were quite worn, a Selle Royal saddle (pretty uncomfortable) and a useless "Ping" bell that hardly worked, which is not good on a trail that is full of families and walkers and you need to use the bell a lot! It didn't spoil the day, but it made me realise how much i like my own bike!!

I left the railway station and after a very short section through Barnstaple I was already on the Trail. It felt very unusual not to have a speedo and so I hadn't got a clue what speed I was doing, but today was all about a leisurely ride and it would have been dangerous to go too fast with the amount of people out on the trail.

Barnstaple Estuary

First stop was Fremington Quay, to use the facilities and then it was onto Yelland, passing large Saltmarsh's (any relation @Rickshaw Phil ?? ) and Instow, where I stopped for a quick snack at the old railway station.

Instow

The trail is Tarmac and flat for the 1st 15 miles and so pretty easy going and I made good progress onto Bideford and East The Water and then over viaducts as the river estuary narrowed

The old Bideford Bridge

Viaduct views

From there I pressed on to Weare Gifford and Torrington, with lovely views of the River Torridge in many places

I also cycled through 2 tunnels, which was a 1st for me. The initial tunnel wasn't too bad, as it was lit, but I arrived at the 2nd tunnel to find the lights were out and the local power board had their van in the tunnel to try and fix the lighting! I gingerly crept through and it's amazing how you lose your sense of balance in the dark! I was all over the place really, but made it safely through.

Workers ahead

After Torrington the track becomes a good quality gravel track and you head away from the river and into forestry type land, which also means the crowds thin out a bit and so I was able to pick the speed up. It is also where the climbing starts and whilst it isn't steep it goes on and on and on, so takes it out of the legs a bit.

I paused to have lunch in the sun in the forest and it was simply bliss

The scenery became a bit repetitive from then onwards, with just more and more trees, but it was still pleasant as I arrived at petrockstow and met a pick up and tractor on quite a narrow section. The pick up stopped and a very friendly Devonian had a quick chat and said they were off to repair something. With his strong accent I only picked up about 1 in four words!!!

There was a nice downhill section then to Meeth Quarry and at 25 miles into the ride I needed to turn and head back, otherwise I was in danger of not having the bike back by 5pm!

The return journey was retracing my steps and began with a lot of steady climbing for around 7 miles, into the wind, which was hard going, but I spotted a few things I hadn't seen on the way.

The section after Torrington was now extremely busy and it was slow progress avoiding children on bikes meandering along and parents towing trailers with kids in, that took up most of the path. Not complaining though as it was great to see so many cyclists out. Must have been a few hundred at a guess. The tunnel light wasn't fixed either and the van was just abandoned in the tunnel, with it's headlights on, so dazzling all the riders!!

Once back at Instow I braved the traffic on the road and headed down into the village, to enjoy views out to the estuary, before doubling back onto the trail.

I arrived back in Barnstaple with a bit of time left and so headed up onto the large Taw bridge, that takes the main road over the River Taw and onto Ilfracombe, to enjoy the view from the highest point.

I dropped the bike back in and had a chat to the guys there. They asked me how far I had been and when I said to Meeth they replied "we'd just been saying this guy looks like he could have been all the way" and seemed impressed as not many of their hire bikes get down that far!

A fantastic day, it stayed dry and out of the wind it was quite warm, but more like spring than summer!

51.6 miles
2489 ft of climbing

 

[Gravity Aided]

10.6 miles down the trail to the amphitheater and back. My first ride since gastroenteritis last week. I rode along behind a fully loaded tourist a fellow was guiding. He had become lost due to road construction. He had left the Chicago area, and was heading for the deep south, then out west to the Rocky Mountains. I felt pretty poorly when I started the ride, but much better by the time I returned.

 

[Elybazza61]

Nice commute today although didn't get the clothing right as I was a little chilly at first but got a bit hot at the end;bit more gumption today though compared to Tuesday;

http://www.strava.com/activities/183220502

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

My 2nd half century ever today and something completely new as well. I am down in Devon on holiday and decided to tackle the Tarka Trail. I wasn't able to bring my bike and so had to hire a bike from Tarka Trail Cycle Hire at Barnstaple Railway Station. I arrived there at 9:30 and bike was provided by their very friendly team at a very reasonable £10.50 for full day hire. The guy said that the trail would be no problem for an "Experienced Cyclist like you".....I look like an experienced cyclist!!

The bike was a Raleigh Pioneer 2 series and it had seen better days really. It was 21 speed, but I reckon only about 15 gears were "gettable", it had some Kenda tyres that were quite worn, a Selle Royal saddle (pretty uncomfortable) and a useless "Ping" bell that hardly worked, which is not good on a trail that is full of families and walkers and you need to use the bell a lot! It didn't spoil the day, but it made me realise how much i like my own bike!!

I left the railway station and after a very short section through Barnstaple I was already on the Trail. It felt very unusual not to have a speedo and so I hadn't got a clue what speed I was doing, but today was all about a leisurely ride and it would have been dangerous to go too fast with the amount of people out on the trail.

Barnstaple Estuary
View attachment 53901

First stop was Fremington Quay, to use the facilities and then it was onto Yelland, passing large Saltmarsh's (any relation @Rickshaw Phil ?? ) and Instow, where I stopped for a quick snack at the old railway station.

Instow
View attachment 53903
View attachment 53904

The trail is Tarmac and flat for the 1st 15 miles and so pretty easy going and I made good progress onto Bideford and East The Water and then over viaducts as the river estuary narrowed

The old Bideford Bridge
View attachment 53905

Viaduct views
View attachment 53906

From there I pressed on to Weare Gifford and Torrington, with lovely views of the River Torridge in many places

View attachment 53907

I also cycled through 2 tunnels, which was a 1st for me. The initial tunnel wasn't too bad, as it was lit, but I arrived at the 2nd tunnel to find the lights were out and the local power board had their van in the tunnel to try and fix the lighting! I gingerly crept through and it's amazing how you lose your sense of balance in the dark! I was all over the place really, but made it safely through.

Workers ahead
View attachment 53908

After Torrington the track becomes a good quality gravel track and you head away from the river and into forestry type land, which also means the crowds thin out a bit and so I was able to pick the speed up. It is also where the climbing starts and whilst it isn't steep it goes on and on and on, so takes it out of the legs a bit.

I paused to have lunch in the sun in the forest and it was simply bliss
View attachment 53909

The scenery became a bit repetitive from then onwards, with just more and more trees, but it was still pleasant as I arrived at petrockstow and met a pick up and tractor on quite a narrow section. The pick up stopped and a very friendly Devonian had a quick chat and said they were off to repair something. With his strong accent I only picked up about 1 in four words!!!

There was a nice downhill section then to Meeth Quarry and at 25 miles into the ride I needed to turn and head back, otherwise I was in danger of not having the bike back by 5pm!

The return journey was retracing my steps and began with a lot of steady climbing for around 7 miles, into the wind, which was hard going, but I spotted a few things I hadn't seen on the way.

View attachment 53912

View attachment 53911

The section after Torrington was now extremely busy and it was slow progress avoiding children on bikes meandering along and parents towing trailers with kids in, that took up most of the path. Not complaining though as it was great to see so many cyclists out. Must have been a few hundred at a guess. The tunnel light wasn't fixed either and the van was just abandoned in the tunnel, with it's headlights on, so dazzling all the riders!!

Once back at Instow I braved the traffic on the road and headed down into the village, to enjoy views out to the estuary, before doubling back onto the trail.

I arrived back in Barnstaple with a bit of time left and so headed up onto the large Taw bridge, that takes the main road over the River Taw and onto Ilfracombe, to enjoy the view from the highest point.

I dropped the bike back in and had a chat to the guys there. They asked me how far I had been and when I said to Meeth they replied "we'd just been saying this guy looks like he could have been all the way" and seemed impressed as not many of their hire bikes get down that far!

A fantastic day, it stayed dry and out of the wind it was quite warm, but more like spring than summer!

51.6 miles
2489 ft of climbing

Looks like a great trip. I'm glad you enjoyed it. Metric century next?

 

[luckyfox]

7.3 miles into the office, 48mins. Chuffed to bits as pesky plantar fasciitis had made it 1h15m with stops previously.

 

[PeteXXX]

My ride today was annoying, done. 2269 miles august to august, started a new job and not been out for over 2 weeks. Went out today and really pushed it for nearly 2 hours. Endomondo said 0 miles, 0:00:01 duration, avg speed 0 . . . .

Endomondo continually did that to me. That's why I dumped it.

 

[PeteXXX]

Another Road Ride today. I met a couple of mates at our usual place, the Canoe Centre, at 10:00 and had a chat for a five minutes or so before setting off on our jaunt.
As most days and rides recently, it was quite breezy. We had the wind behind us for the first couple of miles. After that, it seemed to be continually in our faces! How does that work?! It was a bit nippy as well in the shade, but not so bad once we got moving properly.

We were planning on riding through Cogenhoe, Wollaston, Bozeat and in to Santa Pod before a coffee stop at, inevitably, Salcey Forest. (I must have shares in the place by now!)

At Santa Pod, the gates were open, and no one seemed to object, so t'other two took a blast up the strip.. I met them at the far end for posterity photographs..

No, not the result of crashes, just the remains of peoples pride & joy after the Monster Trucks had had their fun with them....

Once we were back on route, we headed for some coffee. This is a rare shot of me being in front..

At Salcey, we were on 40 miles and were thinking of getting the last 10 miles home in to make a nice round 50. Another cycling mate txt me while we were ther asking if I was around to give him some help with his car. He was broken down in town. I reckoned I could be there in my car in 80 or 90 mins, once sustenance was taken.

Mug of coffee and a coffee ice cream to top up the caffeine levels. That'll do

Once we got going again, we rode together for 3 or 4 miles before I branched off for home. Quick shower and change of clothes, into the car and off into town to ge a car sorted.

Once home for good, I wiped the bike down and had some proper refreshment..

Mmmm. Tasty!

A nice 50 mile circuit with a couple of great mates..

http://www.strava.com/activities/183320491

 

[BigonaBianchi]

105 miles on the Bianchi today, out to Royal Tunbridge Wells and back via lewes. Pictures on the blog link below
http://summeronabianchi.blogspot.co.uk/

 

[andrewpreston]

On holiday in New York. Yesterday the brood and I went on a leisurely cycle tour of Central Park... Excellent except that some of the party wouldn't see 50 again and clearly hadn't ridden a bike since they gave up their paper-round.

Today was even better. We hired bikes for the day and decided to pit our wits against the Big Apple's traffic. We had these big Sun Cruisers with reverse peddled braking, three speed Sturmy Archer type gears and seats like a LazyBoy. Now I'm riding relentlessly towards my bus pass and the last time I used this braking system I had a paper-round and even then it was ten minutes on a mate's bike,so I was a bit wobbly at first and the rest of my party, except for the youngest, have minimal to no cycling experience.
We took off towards the Brooklyn Bridge like a gaggle of unruly geese and I' m fighting my instincts, riding on the wrong side of the road, grabbing for a brake lever which isn't there and standing up and locking the back wheel; all this whilst trying to look in control... I'm the expert after all! Then we're on Brooklyn Bridge and WOW,what a view! We ride the bridge, the park, see the Manhattan skyline and end up in a back street diner for burgers and fries... Great! Back via the Manhattan Bridge and return the bikes after a truly memorable day.
New York has a real mixed bag of cycle provision with badly marked, painted cycle lanes, in NYC it is an offence not to use the cycle lane where provided, and dedicated cycle paths (although these can be infested with PEDs on iPhones and cameras). Its great to see so many people in every-day working clothes riding bikes as a means of transport. I wouldn't have missed it for the world!

 

[cosmicbike]

Following on from a good physio visit yesterday, I was back on the bike again today. Still very much ambling about on the hybrid, but it's very enjoyable riding the towpaths etc which I miss on the road bike. Todays plan was 10 miles plus an extension if I felt able, so I finally pulled my finger out at about 10 ish and headed off towards Chertsey. Nice bit of road pedalling before joining the Thames at Chertsey Bridge and along to Laleham Park. This was one of my old stomping grounds as a kid, and it hasn't changed a bit which is great. A brief pause for some sugar rush at Laleham Village, opposite one of quite a few boatyards.

Homeward bound then to Staines, up to the Runnymede Hotel and home.
14.2 miles today, tired but happy
Edit:- Got my first 'visit' today, only noticed when I pulled into the drive so must have been very close to home. Can't complain, first in 1200 miles for this bike.

 

[Stonechat]

Following on from a good physio visit yesterday, I was back on the bike again today. Still very much ambling about on the hybrid, but it's very enjoyable riding the towpaths etc which I miss on the road bike. Todays plan was 10 miles plus an extension if I felt able, so I finally pulled my finger out at about 10 ish and headed off towards Chertsey. Nice bit of road pedalling before joining the Thames at Chertsey Bridge and along to Laleham Park. This was one of my old stomping grounds as a kid, and it hasn't changed a bit which is great. A brief pause for some sugar rush at Laleham Village, opposite one of quite a few boatyards.
View attachment 54023
Homeward bound then to Staines, up to the Runnymede Hotel and home.
14.2 miles today, tired but happy
Edit:- Got my first 'visit' today, only noticed when I pulled into the drive so must have been very close to home. Can't complain, first in 1200 miles for this bike.

Probably went past our house, except we have not returned after flooding

 

[cosmicbike]

Probably went past our house, except we have not returned after flooding

That's taking a long time. Mind you we have friends still in temporary accommodation in Windsor who don't expect to be back in their home until the end of September.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

Just a quick (OK, read that as slow) evening ride on the touring bikes after a day a fettlin' them. They have been changed from 40/17T combination to a 38/17T combination to give that one extra Granny gear for when we go away next weekend, and in the process I had ascertained that I had lost one of my chainring nuts... also had the sprocket off to clean the hub seals up, regreased the Rohloff hub bearings and some new brake pads - must remember to adjust the brake levers so I don't unseat myself again when using the brakes....

Anyhow, I wanted to make that the bikes were OK and I hadn't 'killed' them, so given the nice weather this evening we went out for a slow spin on them rather than an evening walk.

Stopped off for a couple of pictures - sorry about the quality its the phone camera rather than my normal camera because its battery is finally flat (I have been running a test to see if I need to buy a spare battery for a 2 week tour with electricity - answer is probably knowing how many photos I take!).

Was a touch surprised to find a rainbow - had not appreciated that there was even rain about this evening!

Oh and we decided to be complete and utter rebels and go in normal clothes with trouser leg tucked into socks and no helmets. I have to confess though lacy knickers are not that comfortable after an hour in the saddle and I shall have to try to remember that one for future and also that getting on for 8pm in the evening with the coolness of the evenings at the moment, is neither that warm or that sensible without gloves!

18km at a slow pace. http://www.strava.com/activities/183869572 but a nice ride out, and nothing fell apart!

 

[Dark46]

Well it was yesterday's ride! Just had to get out as I didn't on Wednesday as I was busy. Hmm watching the cying show that was recorded the night before . Plus I was abit shocked after meeting Moto GP rider Scott Redding while he was on a ride and I was on the way home from work. We ended up talking more about cycles than Moto GP! Lol.

Well yesterday's ride was as planned at just over 25 miles on the local loop. It didn't start to well as as I came into Longney I came across a tractor . Unfortunately for me it was pulling a trailer full of manure! Luckily I wasnt behind it got long. But it did it's worst of spreading the muck over the road too. I was pushing hard trying to best my personal best . But unfortunately I came across another tractor , I closed on up the next hill and then overtook it going down the slope my Elmore Court. I got up to 34mph , I bet he never saw that comin lol. On the second loop I came across another 2 sodding tractors . So now after downloading my ride the swines really slowed me down plus the headwind didn't help either going from Hardwick to Longney. Well at least I set 2 pb's so not a total loss.
Pluses to add to pressure when I got home I had a email from Strava saying I had a new follower "Scott Redding" . Got to push now ! Lol