Your ride today....

[Slick]

I gather theres a “gap” in Port Glasgow, due to a landslip. The diversion route is pretty steep.

Ah, still might be worth a look though.

 

[Jenkins]

I thought it was warm enough this morning when I went on a shopping trip to Lidl & Morrisons, but having changed the rear tyre on the Van Nicholas I took it out for a spin in the afternoon to check all was well, and according to my Garmin, it was around 25°C

Thanks to the volume of sport on the TV & radio (including the TdF for @pjd57 ), the roads were unusually quiet so my intended 50km turned into 50 miles heading into Ipswich and eventually out to Claydon before retuning very indirectly via the other side of Ipswich.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1687199438

 

[Heltor Chasca]

An audacious day in the saddle for me. I popped my 300km virginity among other things: Lifted my thumb nail changing a friend’s inner tube and that throbbed the whole day. I was stung in the lip by a wasp and got my poor man’s Botox hit for the year. Drank 8 and a bit litres of fluid. Fell in love with Wales (again). A momentous day.

Thanks to my coach @Aravis who gave me lots of pre-ride route advice.

 

[welsh dragon]

An audacious day in the saddle for me. I popped my 300km virginity among other things: Lifted my thumb nail changing a friend’s inner tube and that throbbed the whole day. I was stung in the lip by a wasp and got my poor man’s Botox hit for the year. Drank 8 and a bit litres of fluid. Fell in love with Wales (again). A momentous day.

Thanks to my coach @Aravis who gave me lots of pre-ride route advice.

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Brilliantl much kudos to you.

 

[lazybloke]

Early morning ride today; 40 miles. Quiet roads, a bit of wildlife, no-one to interrupt you when answering a quick call of nature.
And an escape from the heat. What's not to love?

 

[Noodle Legs]

An audacious day in the saddle for me. I popped my 300km virginity among other things: Lifted my thumb nail changing a friend’s inner tube and that throbbed the whole day. I was stung in the lip by a wasp and got my poor man’s Botox hit for the year. Drank 8 and a bit litres of fluid. Fell in love with Wales (again). A momentous day.

Thanks to my coach @Aravis who gave me lots of pre-ride route advice.

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Sounds more like a painful day in the saddle let alone audacious! Great effort, well done!

 

[cosmicbike]

An audacious day in the saddle for me. I popped my 300km virginity among other things: Lifted my thumb nail changing a friend’s inner tube and that throbbed the whole day. I was stung in the lip by a wasp and got my poor man’s Botox hit for the year. Drank 8 and a bit litres of fluid. Fell in love with Wales (again). A momentous day.

Thanks to my coach @Aravis who gave me lots of pre-ride route advice.

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Somehow just a like doesn't seem enough. Well done

 

[cosmicbike]

Todays plan was an early start and then onwards into the Surrey Hills to get me some explorer squares. Out the door at 0525hrs and the roads were quiet, the temperature cool. Mostly things went to plan, aside from missing a square somehow, and one on a hill at that. A minor navigational hitch (I blame the Garmin) saw me routed onto the North Downs Way from Mickleham. A little bumpy to start, but doable on 28C tyres. The path soon turned to tarmac so nice, but a bottom cog slog to the top. As I came out the treeline the view was stunning, and my photo does it no justice. Looking out over the vineyard with Dorking in the distance.

Back home before 1000hrs, 63.5 miles done and that's the 3 challenge rides for the month done

 

[Aravis]

It is nice to ride that way, though I find the right turn towards Eckington Bridge at Defford quite stressful. How do you handle it? I slow down quite a lot up the ramp, and I am always wary of someone coming up too fast behind me as I am moving to the middle to turn, and the road is too narrow to wait in the left anyway.

I negotiate that junction quite often, usually late in in a ride. So that I can take the assertive position in the middle of the road I find it's best to put a bit more effort into the ramp than I might otherwise do, and I can't remember having a problem. I guess if things were shaping badly, with vehicles behind and a stream coming the other way, I'd make for the left verge and wait until they've gone.

I see there's another right turn a little further on, which loops back round through the village of Birlingham. That's another option I didn't know about before now!

 

[TigerT]

Two very different rides this weekend.

The first ride on Saturday afternoon was time to say farewell to an old friend. When I came to Switzerland almost 9 years ago, I bought myself a bike, just to see if I could get back into cycling. Back then a 20km ride was about my limit. Since then cycling has became my passion (some may say obsession!). This bike was the one that started it all. However it doesn't get used anymore ands just living outside in the back yard. One of my friends rebuilds old bikes and gives them to people in his village who need them, so I decided to donate it. Therefore we had one last ride together - Firstly out to Baden for a quick lunch stop, then I headed out the long way to Bremgarten, taking the route that goes up the hill and riding along the top of the hill with beautiful views of the valley below. I met my friend in Bremgarten for a Coffee and we then rode back to his village together.

Really enjoyed he ride, it was hard work, the bike is twice as heavy as my newest road bike and the gears were somewhat industrial, hit the shifter, wait.... clunk.... and we're there. Will miss it, but it will get used now and I'm happy about that.


Farewell my old friend - The bike that re-ignited my passion for cycling on a last ride to it's new home.

Sunday's ride was a nice gentle Coffee and cake run over to Baden and back with a friend. We started out early while it was still cool. Stopped for an hour in Baden enjoying as coffee and reminiscing about previous rides before riding back in the sunshine, putting a bit more effort in on the return journey. It. was so quiet out there today, hardly any traffic and good to be back on the new bike.

105km in total for the weekend and still back in time for todays stage of the Tour de France.


Arriving in Baden

 

[Dave 123]

21 warm French miles on the tandem today. 2,178’ of climbing, most of that being the Col de Fay. It was about 5 miles at 7%, but a really steady and even gradient.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1688474543

 

[13 rider]

21 warm French miles on the tandem today. 2,178’ of climbing, most of that being the Col de Fay. It was about 5 miles at 7%, but a really steady and even gradient.
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https://www.strava.com/activities/1688474543

I'm getting jealous now . It looks simple stunning

 

[13 rider]

An audacious day in the saddle for me. I popped my 300km virginity among other things: Lifted my thumb nail changing a friend’s inner tube and that throbbed the whole day. I was stung in the lip by a wasp and got my poor man’s Botox hit for the year. Drank 8 and a bit litres of fluid. Fell in love with Wales (again). A momentous day.

Thanks to my coach @Aravis who gave me lots of pre-ride route advice.

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Well done Epic ride

 

[Stonechat]

Normally would go on club ride, but instead up early, hit the road at 6.15, through Laleham, Shepperton, Lower Sunbury, Hampton & Hampton Court ( nice and early before the flower show crowds), and through Kingston to Richmond Park. 2 clockwise laps done, I am clearly fitter and stronger than when I last did it, lapping in about 23 minutes (6.7 or 6.8 miles with hills)
Return journey through Bushy Park, Hampton Hill, Hanworth, Lower Feltham and Ashford.

40.1 miles @ 17.4 mph with 843 feet climbed
Back home by 8.45
https://www.strava.com/activities/1688077534
Had a snooze after, making up for lost sleep, though who sleeps normally in these temperatures

 

[Spartak]

On a cycling holiday in Peak District this week, staying in the village of Froggatt.
Yesterday rode Winnats Pass and came down (carefully) the old collapsed road.

Today we headed in the same direction but took a right in Hope for the road to Edale and then climbed Mam Tor from that direction.

The weather has been fantastic with the heat making the climbing that bit more challenging BUT so rewarding.

Some pics......

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Just back from 4 day cycling holiday in the Peak District.
What a great place to cycle both on & off road.

Here are some more pics.....