Your ride today....

[Arjimlad]

I'm trying to gain confidence for a 300km Audax early next month. I think I'm almost there!

Yesterday I visited a number of places I seem to have bypassed this year. Down the eastern side of the Severn Estuary, using the lanes wherever possible. After the big bridge, the day's one substantial climb out of Chepstow to St. Briavels. After exiting the forest at Blakeney, back onto more familiar territory, eventually returning to Gloucester from the opposite direction. Here's the map, 119.9 miles:

View attachment 414527

There seemed to be a lot of well-mannered motorists out yesterday. Time after time I had oncoming car drivers unexpectedly waiting for me on narrow sections of road or where parked vehicles were in the way. Needless to say there were a few who let the side down.

Here's a nice view at one of my fuelling stops, approaching Huntley from the south. It's starting to look quite late summery:

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I'm still have some anxiety about the Audax, but it's supposed to be a challenge, isn't it?

I expect you will be fine. That looks like a great route, I may have to borrow it sometime !

 

[Mr Celine]

Sunday was dull and overcast but seemed warm enough for shorts. After a mile or so I had second thoughts about the latter but decided to just ride harder and not stop for any photos. Head down into a stiff and gusty south westerly I headed up Ettrickdale and gradually warmed up so stopped for a photo of three strange new circular developments on the side of a hill. They look like sheep fanks but not the usual dry stane version, and no reason to build three so close together. Answers on a virtual postcard as to what they might be for. -

I carried on up the Ettrick to Tushielaw and turned south then east, instantly picking up speed now that I had a tailwind. I almost missed the summit at Alemoor as I was distracted by another view I'd never seen before, the horizon here was mostly obscured by trees the last time I was up here, only about six weeks ago.

On a clear day this view will be magnificent, but of more immediate concern it was obscured by a light drizzle. I jumped back on and using the downhill gradient and the tailwind for 20 miles outran the advancing rain.
Back nearer home I took a small detour to cross the Tweed on what is locally known as the Bottle Bridge. It reopened on Friday after being shut for six months for major stonework repairs. It is single track and controlled by traffic lights, the upgrade to which had no problem spotting me, though no doubt I confused them by stopping half way across.

53 miles @ 15.1 mph, 3439 feet ascent. The map -

 

[jongooligan]

It's draughty enough here today to have a couple of empty recycling crates skittering along the street but I felt the need to be out of the house so got missen ready and took off down through Chester le Street to North Lodge where I joined the C2C path.

Rode into a brisk headwind through Stanley and Annfield Plain but I was feeling good so carried onto Brooms.

Transformer at Brooms

This is part of the Old Transformers sculpture, representing the old, local industries of coal and steel being transformed into power. This legend is burned into a nearby steel plate, 'The Old Transformers. The men that lived near here, dug in the ground for the Black Stone. In their Giant huts, they Burnt the earth. They turned the Sky red. A river of steel ran to the sea,where it was transformed into the Engines, Ships, & Machines, that transformed the world.'

Stirring stuff and I much prefer this sculpture to the next one along the track which is an earthwork labyrinth that's an absolute PITA to cycle through. Once out of the other side though I was back on the road, following the sign to Stoney Heap and the climb to Hanging Stone. It's usually a bit of a grunt up there but that brisk wind was now behind me easing my passage (fnaar fnaar).

Maiden Law was soon behind me too and the ridge of Long Edge was a joy today with that tailwind and the brand new, super smooth tarmac surface. From the top of Charlaw Fell I took the slightly longer route down to Witton Gilbert then climbed back up to Edmondsley cross roads through Sacriston. Just the dive bomb descent across Waldridge Fell from here and I was back home with 27 miles in my legs.

 

[cosmicbike]

Dragged myself out this afternoon after a late night shift at work. Didn't fancy the upwrongs, so out with the ICE trike and off to the park. Glad I chose the recumbent today, it's bloomin' windy and I felt the effects enough on the trike, would have been worse on the upwrong.
Just shy of 18 miles in the very warm sunshine, and home just before the school run.

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

Out for a longer spin on the Raleigh this afternoon. It's quite windy here as well so I went for the anti-clockwise version of my Melverley loop which has a shorter stint directly into the wind than if I did it clockwise.

I wasn't particularly quick getting away from town (held up by temporary traffic lights, then sticking to the cycle path as the roads were busy) but settled down to a reasonable pace between Montford Bridge and Little Ness where I was sheltered by the high hedges. From there to Melverley I was now riding directly into the wind which surprisingly didn't seem to slow me as much as I'd usually expect.

At Crew Green my route turned to give the first section with the wind right behind me and I got on fairly well but not as well as I'd hoped until after Coedway where there is a steepish crest followed by a nice downhill through the village. The climb at Prince's Oak was as slow as ever and I found myself flagging a bit by the top, then had a problem with sweat dripping into my eyes so a stop near Halfway House was needed to sort that out and take a drink.

At Westbury I joined the second section where the wind was directly behind me and this time it did give me the boost I'd hoped for - I cruised along to Nox at 23 to 25 mph much of the way, touching 30.9 through Yockleton. In the village a guy on a roadbike pulled out of a side road ahead and although he sprinted it up to near 30 I still caught him and matched his pace as far as my turn off in Nox.

I flagged again slightly at Shorthill so needed another drink stop then found that although that perked me up I couldn't go as quick as I'd hoped through Exfords Green as the wind had shifted to more of a cross wind for this bit. On the other hand, that meant that it would be a favourable direction (if not actually right behind me) for going through Condover and up to the A49 to finish off, which I did.

Not many cyclists out today. Including the guy already mentioned, I only encountered four riders in the whole trip.

34.8 miles this time at 16.1 mph average which I'm extremely chuffed with on this bike, especially as I hadn't intended it to be a fast run at the start.

No photos again as too busy .

 

[LeetleGreyCells]

After picking up a Frog 62 for my daughter on Saturday, today was the first chance we had to get her out on it as it was a school INSET day. We did about 8 miles around Clumber Park and she loved it. It’s such a lightweight bike and combined with that she can now use all 8 gears (her previous bike had 6 and she isn’t strong enough to shift to first on that bike (big jump in ratio from second to first). She shot up the hills and along the flat like a rocket. Shifting gears and pedalling like there was no tomorrow.
We’ve never had such a good ride as we had today.

 

[arranandy]

Not today but Saturday another superbly organised sportive, or wielertocht as they call them over here in the Netherlands. This one is organised by ex-pro Koos Moerenhout and starts/finishes in the nearby town of Steenbergen.
I decided to do the 190km route this year so with the ride to/from Steenbergen I was just over 222km for the day.
Most of the time I was riding in a couple of good groups so that kept the average speed up and provided some respite from a pretty stiff wind.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1642067682

http://www.koosmoerenhoutclassic.nl/home

 

[Vantage]

Looking out the window this morning I figured it was gonna be cold and wet, so the fleece bib tights, base layer, ss jersey, ls jersey and waterproof were put on before going out. I'd also decided to forgo the weight of the Pendle and take the saddle pack out for once.
I headed south to explore some lanes I'd seen but never ridden on a planned circular route. I can't do non circular routes... they're just so boring.
Having dealt with the A58 which is basically a drag strip I rode through an estate via some nice little shared use paths and that meant avoiding traffic on the A576 and Hulton Lane. Then it was straight down the remainder of the A579 and turning left onto Engine Lane, the first of the unknown tracks. Potholed to hell as I imagined but still pretty rideable.
By the time I got here I was getting warm and the etrex was spitting its dummy out thanks to dying batteries. Those changed and waterproof squeezed into the Carradice and I was on my way again. That cobbled surface was jarring to say the least!
Into Tyldesley where I joined Leigh Guided Busway which had a very loose but smooth gravel surface. It certainly tested the City jets. I left at Hough Lane and had a gentle downhill into Astley then across the East Lancs and onto Astley Road. Been itching to explore this for a couple years after being told about it from other cyclists. I made a right fuddle of crossing the train tracks prior to Astley Road though. I went through the car gate instead of the ped gate and couldn't figure out how to close it. Luckily a guy in the security booth (for lack of a better description) gave me instructions
Astley Road left me feeling a little disappointed. I expected more. Although more what I can't say. I did spot these though...

Thanks to my impressively immense knowledge of horticulture I have proclaimed these to be...plants! Quite nice ones too.
When I reached the junction of Roscoe Road and Princes Park in Irlam I noticed a distinct lack of traffic lights and was getting some funny looks from other drivers. What was their problem I wondered.
A quick glance behind me revealed all. A one way sign. And I was pointing the wrong way. Oopsie.
The long drag along the A57 was boring as ever and noisy from traffic. Time for the SanDisk and some gangsta rap hommie. I cruised along on my pimped out ride and from the ghetto of Patricroft I slid onto the Bridgewater Canal for a while and then made my way into Bolton on NCR55.

The butt cheeks were getting a little tender by now and the legs were tiring so I took my time which is something I seem to be doing more and more since building the Spa. It inspires smooth stress free pootle about sort of riding
I made a bit of a cockup in turning up the wrong street off Chorley New Road which led to a slight accidental increase in my mileage but I reached home around 1 ish...I think.
Just under 33 happy miles averaging 9mph.
I think I'll be sticking with the Pendle from now on though because whilst I enjoyed the weight savings of the saddle pack, there was no room in it to store more discarded layers. I was way too warm today as the weather brightened up.
And to top the day off, the remaining parts for going 9 speed arrived today. Busy day tomorrow

 

[Stonechat]

Yesterday was my day for the round the Isle of Wight tour.

I pinched the route from the internet it helped with some tricky areas, such as getting through Newport and across an obscure little bridge , with some weird cut through.

Weather was mostly sunny, though wind picked up later, which was when I was on the more exposed Military Road which runs the length of the sw side of the lozenge shaped island.

The island is quite hilly , and there were some bits up to 14%, though none of the hills was that hard.

I went in clockwise direction from Totland Bay. Through Yarmouth. Route was a lot of the time onobscure minor roads, made finding them a little tricky. Not much of the route was level, these are the routes that I find most tiring.
I abandoned some of the Minor curls of the route and made the last part down the military road, it was v windy and exposed, fortunately little traffic as I banked into the gusts of wind.

Not fast, bit overall
68.70 miles @ a measly 13.8 mph
4701 feet climbed.
Stilly enough energy to walk the dog after
https://www.strava.com/activities/1646392748

Photo is of me at Bembridge, more or less furthest from start point

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

Out again this morning for a different spin on the Raleigh doing another of my regular routes to Upton Magna, Eaton Constantine, Cressage, Acton Burnell, Longnor and back via Condover.

A pretty good outing with some good cruising speeds going on at times and no unpleasant incidents to report.

There were more riders out today (including four in a mile on the way to Walcot) and there didn't seem to be as much motor traffic which was quite nice.

I chased a young hare along the road near to Eaton Constantine and was almost immediately overtaken by a roadie who was pressing on quite well so I gave chase to him as well . I managed to mostly keep up until Cressage Bridge (it's downhill all the way to here) then started to run out of puff but it didn't matter because he went a different way to me at the next junction anyway.

That was fun but with the legs tiring after yesterdays's efforts as well, it made the climb out of the valley the other side a bit of an effort and I wasn't as quick for the next few miles.

The wind has been a bit odd this morning, alternating between dead calm and being a bit blustery and seemingly shifting round a lot so that I was finding headwinds where I wouldn't have expected them. Fortunately the last few miles from Longnor I had it helping and kept up a very nice speed most of the way home from there.

34.3 miles this time at 15.3 mph average which is less than I thought it would be but still isn't too shabby.

The only pic I took: pausing for a drink en-route to Eaton Constantine with the Wrekin as the backdrop.

 

[delb0y]

Pleased with that. Another in my series of short hour rides (had to be back to turn the oven on) in between work and tea. I've moved on to Harescombe Hill # 2 - which is a bit longer and steeper than # 1. I nailed it first go :-) Max grade was 24.7% (according to Ride With GPS and Wahoo). What was good was I didn't know the climb and it was a bit of a teaser with loads of false summits, so it was just as hard on the mind as it was on the legs and lungs. As it happens, I think it was easier in some ways than Hill # 1. It's a narrow lane but it's just that bit wider and that means that cars can pass - unlike # 1. The worse bit is lower down (on #1 the last bit, when you're most tired, is a killer) and it eases off at the top. Plus it's absolutely beautiful up there.

 

[Mrs M]

Sunday club ride time again. Everyone was in a very sombre mood at the beginning due to the tragic and unexpected death of a clubmate this week. His wife, usually the life and soul of our social group, bravely turned up at the start to see us off. Sometimes cycling seems so unimportant. I think most of us, at one time or another, have felt the mood-restorative and healing power of a good cycle ride though, and today's ride actually ended up going very well ..... out to Berkeley via Frocester and back via Taits Hill and Cam, then Frampton on Severn. We had a long 3/4 hour break at the Berkeley Tea Rooms yet I still got back about 3 1/2 hours after leaving home, having done 40 miles - whole stretches of it at 20mph. I started this ride feeling glum and with my heart not really in it. I was thinking of it only as a bit of exercise that I didn't really want to do. Actually ended up enjoying it.
Enjoy your rides everyone. Life is short. Make the most of it while you can.
Cheers, Donger.

Aw, so sorry to hear about your club mate.
Really nice gesture and very brave of his wife to see you all off.
Cycling does work wonders, glad you enjoyed the ride.
xx

 

[Mrs M]

Nice pootle into Bristol today via the Two Tunnels and Bath to pick up some wireless earbuds from the Apple store. What an excuse for an 80+km bimble. Stopped for a Taiwanese noodle salad and iced fruit tea. The fuel of cyclists. My Surly DT is made in Taiwan so very appropriate I thought. Can recommend on all accounts.

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Your bike is so smart
Love it

 

[jongooligan]

Fancied something different today so cobbled together a route that connected five different railway paths.

Started on the A167 to Durham then onto railway path #1, the Bishop Auckland way which took me to........wait for it............Bishop Auckland.

Quite a bit of climbing from there to the far end of Hamsterley Forest and the Byway that drops into the far western end of the trees. Nice traffic free run on the forest drive to the visitor centre caff for beans on toast.

Had a bad patch after that (mebbe should've let the beans go down a bit before I set off). It's a stiffish climb back over to the Wear valley at Wolsingham that took me through West Hoppyland, one of my favourite place names in the country. The bad patch was still with me on the short climb over the A68 and like @Rickshaw Phil ^^^ I was finding the wind troublesome, expecting it to be helping me a bit by now but being thoroughly disappointed by a blustery headwind.

So I stopped for a rest, enjoyed the view back up Weardale for a bit and reconsidered my route plan.

As soon as I set off again I knew I was refreshed, rejuvenated and recovered so decided to continue with plan A. Up the steep climb through Billy Row and onto railway path #2, the Deerness Valley Way, my favourite railway path around here. It goes downhill all the way to Broompark where it runs almost seamlessly into railway path #3, the Lanchester Valley Way, which took me through .......wait for it ........ Lanchester and onto Knitsley tearoom for a toasted teacake and a gallon of tea.

Just another couple of miles from there to Lydgett Junction and I was on railway path #4, the Consett to Sunderland path aka the C2C which gave me a fast run all the way down to Pelton Fell. Came off the C2C, cut through the old colliery and got onto railway path #5. This one doesn't have an official name but it's the old colliery line to Daisy Hill through Cong Burn Woods and comes back out onto the road just a couple of miles from home.

Five railway paths, one byway, one forest road. three flies swallowed, one sore backside and 80 miles ridden. Hard graft with almost half the route being off road. Took me six and a half hours.

 

[Spiderweb]

An extended home commute tonight. Lovely early evening ride but more flies than Volgograd!
35.1 miles in total with an average of 15.9 mph.