another of those 'rides' over to my parents' home and back today. the only difference being today was the day my step-father has his op (3rd on the same hip inside 10 months!) and I also had a Dr's appointment so it was an out no matter what the weather job and to be honest it wasn't that bad. I seemed to miss most of the really bad weather (torrential rain which has left a few interesting new 'ponds' on the roads but nothing serious). Going out was hard work - cycling for 25 mins then stopping a sitting in a warm waiting area is not great.... then onto the country lanes, and a photo stop at midday (actually it is a stop to take my steroids and turn the alarm off on my phone, but...)
An oak tree planted in 1887. I was surprised at who little it has grown since then - probably because of the ones I knew when we lived in Surrey which were massive...
A nice patch of light across the road in Bostock Green.
From there it was a battle with the headwind (yet again) and playing dodge along a main road (A54) with hawthorn hedge clippings as the hedge was being cut back! Strangely I managed a PR2 along that strava segment despite the playing dodge but it is just possible it had something to do with the exceptionally large red lorry behind me... thankfully as I approached the mini-roundabout the only car approaching it indicated left and got a wave of thanks... I had been holding back (though still moving) trying to figure out which way (left or right being the only options) they were going and so many vehicles don't indicate at that particular mini-roundabout and then turn left that it is really annoying, but I'm going right and the road surface is horrendous on the roundabout and there is no-way I will risk it...
From there it was back to back lanes and the odd idiot driver, but nothing too serious and onto my 2nd set of flood water to cycle through before heading off along the single track lanes prior to my parents' home. As I was approaching the M6, I could see the south bound traffic was totally stationary. Completely and utterly stationary and then I heard an helicopter take off... the air ambulance, close enough for me to read its (can't think of the correct term here) 'licence number'. As I cycled up and over the M6, it was clear there had been a major accident less than 150m from the bridge on the north bound carriageway.
2 HGV's had collided and one was off the carriageway, the other blocking all lanes including the hard shoulder. South bound was in the process of being 'reopened'... but what got me the most was that a motorist who had just overtaken me on the approach to the bridge, stopped on the bridge, got out of his car with a set of binos and promptly stood in the middle of the road looking at the scene! Talk about rubber necking - jesh that is taking it too far.
About 10 mins after getting to my parents' home the weather broken big time and for several hours we had nothing but torrential rain... still it was washing the roads clean for my journey home
. Not to mention leaving me with much more flood water to ride through.... Other than the M6 still being exceptionally slow south bound and virtually closed north bound, both lorries still in situ, there was little to report for the journey home - not surprising given it was dark (but it did stay dry for me!) other than meeting lorries on roads I don't normally meet them on, but all were great giving me loads of room overtaking me etc.
Out
http://www.strava.com/activities/104694965 35.4km
Home
http://www.strava.com/activities/104694968 33.5km
