Your ride today....

[8mph]

I decided to ride to a bike shop 24 miles away, hoping that they might have a chain. I took the wrong road and ended up doing 29 miles there in a bit of a rush in case they closed for lunch. The shop was the first that I have seen in India with modern parts and qualified mechanic.
I had an 8 speed Shimano Altus casette 11-34t fitted, a new Shimano chain, 2 new Impac inner tubes, a Schwalbe Black Jack tyre on the front and a Continental Travel Contact tyre on the back. Picked up a bottle of dry lube which is a godsend as I've been cleaning the chain every day due to all the dust and sand, and I bought 30 fizzy recovery tablets. The bill came to £48 and the mechanic took £3 for his time.
I had a leisurely ride back, took another wrong turn, visited a market and bought a cheap nylon sports top Which feels much cooler and more practical than riding in a cotton t-shirt.
Got back 9 hours later at 6pm, the whole day gone but for a good cause.
The bike doesn't feel as pacy with the new tyres and it's a lot more bumpy but hopefully there will be fewer punctures and the tyres feel very grippy in the corners and fast downhill. The new cassette gives me lower gearing too.
I rode back wondering if the shop had made some kind of mistake with the bill. I'll go over the receipt tomorrow and see.

 

[Dark46]

Well I was sat a home on the settle watching Hawaii 5-0 and was thinking I cant do this! I've got to get out I can't sit here and do nothing!

So I messaged a friend and said I'm going out! She said "I'm impressed " my reply was dont be I haven't gone yet!

The plan was to take my old bike, the Orro Oxygen out. The last time I did it I only managed 8 miles before I could do no more.

After pumping the tyres up and transferring the lights over from last night from the Cannondale , I was off.

To start I had no idea where I was going, after the initial discomfort of getting used to the position (the Cannondale is much more relaxed) I decided I was going to do the same route as last night.

With music in one ear (as I wanted to hear things around me) I found it easier to focus and the ride seemed really quick.

So it was to Elmore, Longely and through to Saul and Frampton and back. I stopped at The Bell at Frampton on Severn for a quick sip out of the water bottle and picture before heading for home .

A good ride all in all but not as enjoyable as last night with the lovely Claire and @Donger and Rob.

I was surprised at the pace as the Orr definitely feels harder to ride than the Cannondale, so next week it's the same ride but on the in the Cannondale.

So no rides before this week since 21/11 , now I've done 3 rides in 4 days and every ride 20 miles. So far 62.1 miles for this week, see what happens tomorrow?

 

[pjd57]

just a short trip down to Glasgow Green to do a few hours at Free Wheel North's track.

Had a go on this. Great bit of equipment. Steering took a bit of getting used to but I got there.

passed our newest statue on the way home along the Clydeside Strange look about it. Lot of plinth and not much statue.

 

[Old jon]

Another warm day, with some cloud promised for later. An early squint at the map showed a minor road route to the Decathlon shop, which is where the midweek rides organised by the Audax man start and finish. I think. So I thought I would ride that way this morning.

But it did not happen like that. After the descent and ride over the flyover a sort of automatic right turn was made, which meant I was heading for Beira Mar again. And there is little to tell about a cycle track along the seafront. Yup, there is pedalling to do, and the shine will take a long time to wear off the scenery, even the old bridge is rather impressive in an unobtrusive kind of way.



So, I thought, lets go further. Lets pass the place I fell off last year. And I did. The cycle track ends shortly after the bridges, continue along the road to the lights I turned left at the other day, but turn right this time. A much quieter road, mostly residential, but with a bus route. A bit more up and down, the occasional sight of the sea. This road goes around the end of a hill, which has a pair of road tunnels through it, and all the traffic uses these tunnels. Anyway, turn right at a junction underneath the tunnels exit road and continue along a road that is still quiet and mostly residential. It runs parallel to the airport road which again has most of the traffic. Residential means something different here. The thing that really jars, and makes photography difficult, is the large number of power lines between the lampposts. Some of the older buildings in town are almost completely hidden, which is a shame.

As before, there are few chances to ride a different route back. The opportunity was there but the road goes through the town centre again. So, ten miles showed on the garthing which seemed a good time to turn around. It all looks different of course, and there is a little bit of creative riding to do if heavy traffic is to be missed. All the pretty way back home then, and maybe five yards further up that ‘orrible ‘ill. Big grin and twenty miles ridden.

The map, well, that is where I rode.

 

[Denis99]

Bit of a grey day, started off from Neath relatively warm, should know better about the temperature drop up near Coelbren.

Taken by the Washeries at the highest altitude today.

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Fladbury backwards today.

No - I wasn't riding backwards. Rather Pete M and I took the standard run clockwise for a change. So down to Upton to cross the River and on over Kinnersley Bank. Buzzards were circling despite the grey skies. Pirton Church looked its usual picture as we went by. No wildlife to report at Pinvin ford but we did have a bit of traffic through that while we were there. Then over the old airfield to dodge by Bishampton and down Furze Hill to the cafe.

It's quite busy in the cafe these days but we were shown an empty table. Lovely food and drinks for sure. That's why it's so popular. Over the Avon on Jubilee Bridge we went to go by Cropthorne for Bricklehampton. Here the blossom was superb. I do hope the weather doesn't turn too cold and destroy the wonderful flowerings. The Combertons lead us to recross the Avon at Eckington so we could aim at the Severn crossing from Strensham. Traffic was backed up from the roadworks before the bridge but our two wheels were able to jump the queue. Just the final run back by Brotheridge Green to get us home. Another nice outing with the weather actually better than advertised by the forecasters. 53 smiles

 

[iancity]

Well thats the end of week 1. Cycled in and back (and in and back again one day!) every day so pleased I did it even though its a measly 5.5 miles. Pleased I also extended the run home every night bar one.
One more week left of the training and I aim to cycle in every day again, then back to normal office, where its just a 6 minute walk...

 

[Dark46]

Well what can I say..

Out again 4th time in 5 days!

I cant really write a review of the ride as it was the same as yesterday's and Wednesday's too. So 4 rides this week all just over 20 miles and 2 were woth people and 2 were solo, which is unusual for me.

I'm really loving being out there and find myself restless at home.

What I don't understand is how the elevation can be so different? If you look at yesterday's ride and today's they are exactly the same distance but 109ft adrift! I went exactly the same route as so I could compare my 2 road bikes.

So this week 82.6 miles of which I've enjoyed every second especially with @Donger and friends.

 

[colly]

What I don't understand is how the elevation can be so different?

Live in Bermuda ? Y'know.....near the triangle?

 

[Stonechat]

Well what can I say..

Out again 4th time in 5 days!

What I don't understand is how the elevation can be so different?

Altitude is derived from a pressure sensor and if the air pressure changes during the ride you get these effects

 

[Dave 123]

Good going @Dark46 !!!

Well we’ve had the first tandem ride in ages due to Mrs Dave’s virus. She’s still coughing likes she’s had 20 Woodbines...

Up to Kingston and we were caught up by Mark who is one of Jo’s bosses at work. He lives in Kingston and was just going home from his ride to Cardington.

Down into the Eversden and past the church... ‘stop’ came the cry.
‘Every time we come past here I see the meridian marker, let’s get a photo ‘

On through Haslingfield and Newton. We both neede the loo so we stopped at the pub. A bag of crisps and 2 pints of soft drink, £6.60..... jigger me!

We did see this beautiful tandem there though

Reynolds 531 tubing, nice bike!

In Grantchester we were hassled by some fat gammon w4nker who thought we shouldn’t be on the road.

Home via Madingley Hill.

25 miles.

https://www.strava.com/activities/2186074672

 

[Dark46]

Cheers @Dave 123 !

Loving the purple bike!

Great 25 miles and good to hear Mrs Dave is on the mend.

 

[Spiderweb]

Out on the Tricross at lunchtime, around 11 degrees so didn’t even wear my shoe covers. A gentle ride to the outskirts of York. 26.8 miles with an average of 15 mph. I’m loving this mild weather.

 

[Mr Celine]

Off in search of my next letters for the ABC photo challenge, the first of which unfortunately lies further up last week's route, northwest up the valley of the Gala Water. The valley that the Gala Water flows down was formed as a result of a glacial dam bursting at the end of the last ice age. The valley is not straight and neither is the river, which meanders across the valley floor. The road up the west side was a turnpike built in 1764 and designed for post horses. It follows a fairly straight course but goes up and down steeply over all the spurs of the hills. It was superseded from 1818 by a new turnpike up the east side of the valley. It was designed for stagecoaches so goes round all the spurs rather than over them and has an almost constant and imperceptible gradient. The only time I have cycled it was when I knew it was closed further north, as normally it is too busy (it is now the A7) and the constant curves have very poor sight lines. Neither of these roads as built crossed the river at all, whereas the 1848 railway as originally built crossed it 22 times in 16 miles.
The original turnpike did not go through Galashiels, as at that time it was a very small hamlet. A spur to it was added later, though the southern end has a mansion built over it. From the diversion along a farm track there is a nice view over Galashiels to the Eildon Hills beyond.

I've only gone this way once before on 34mm knobbly tyres so had doubts about trying it on 28mm slicks but they coped fine. On the old road proper there is still some of the old pave surface...

...which carries on for about a mile and and half before the road becomes the B710 for half a mile. After that there is another mile that used to be pave but was surfaced with tarmac five years ago to keep the landowner happy when the railway was being rebuilt. Speaking of railways, here is this week's 'your bike with a train in the background' photo.

At this location the road is still a yellow road on OS maps. I'm at the top of one of the spurs I mentioned in the preamble to this post, while the traffic on the A7 can be seen above the train lurching round some of the many travel sickness inducing corners.

I reach Heriot to bag my letter H. This village is very spread out, with most of the houses being beside the A7 and the former railway station, while the school and kirk are nearly two miles away. The church tower can be seen in the background through the trees -

This road is the B709 which heads west until this very remote looking spot, which is actually less than 20 miles from the centre of Edinburgh.

The snow gate hinges have probably rusted up.

Now heading south towards Innerleithen I battled against a fierce headwind. I barely noticed the top of the hill as I had to pedal hard against the wind on the downhill too. At Innerleithen I stopped for another village sign.

Turning east I had a tailwind at last. At Ashiesteel NC route 1 has two alternative routes. Buoyed by the success of my earlier pave adventure I took the alternative signed as 'track'. The start of this alternative is very well surfaced and the end of it is tarmac, but the bit in the middle was a mixture of slippery mud and big cobble stones. The Sirrus definitely out of its depth.
Back on terra firma one last photo, of Yair Bridge. This is where the 1864 turnpike, which was heading from Edinburgh to Selkirk, crossed the River Tweed.

Today's map -

46 miles @ 12.5 mph 868m up and down.

 

[NorthernDave]

I'd initially had doubts about getting in a ride today, as the forecast all week was for Saturday to be wet and windy. However, that changed and it seemed an ideal chance to get the qualifying ride in for the Half Century Challenge while the weather was benign.

Nothing fancy, just a variation on familiar roads to do the miles while keeping out of the worst of the stiff breeze. Down the hill into Thorner and then back out up Milner Lane, bowling along between the hedgerows, before looping round Rigton Green and up onto Bramham Lane for more solitude. A spring up the hill on Jewitt Lane and out onto Thorner Lane and heading for the dip when I spotted a small and very Heath Robinson "Mud on Road" sign by the farm access road.
They weren't joking, but fortunately I'd scrubbed enough speed off before I reached the worst of it. Up the other side and on to Wothersome getting passed by a club ride, several of whom were muttering about "bloody farmers".
Down the hill almost to Bramham enlivened by what I think was a weasel running across in front of me, and then left onto West Woods Road for the ups and downs (mainly ups) to Wattlesyke, round the roundabout and down the hill into Wetherby, where it was a quick loop around the town centre and in an effort to avoid traffic and myopic peds I took a different route out of town using Hallfield Lane and then Third and Fourth Avenues to get onto the Walton Road.
Over the A1(M) bridge and out into the countryside past the race course and straight on instead of taking the first turning to Thorp Arch.
I had intended to take the cycle path that runs parallel to the road here, but Harry the Hedge Hacker had clearly been out and I could see the lovely smooth tarmac surface was covered in pointy bits of hedge, so I stayed on the road.
A loop through Walton village for a change and then down past the prison and onto Church Causeway to drop into Thorp Arch.
Across the river into Boston Spa and from there on to Clifford where I stopped for a pic of the Wesleyan Methodist Chapel for the YBIF of a Church thread:

Despite only being a small place, Clifford has 3 churches and this is the only one I've not captured before as it's tucked away up a dead end residential road.
Back on track and onto Main Street, where I stopped for another pic for the YBIF of a Memorial thread:

Up the last bit of Main Street and the the quick descent into Bramham, which as always if followed by a slow climb back out of the village, across the A1(M) and the steady climb up past Bramham Park.
Despite the earlier mud, I retraced my outbound route through the lesser dip at Wothersome, mainly as to take the alternative road would have left me cycling directly into a stiffening breeze for two miles. The mud was more of an issue in this direction and I could feel the back wheel breaking traction a few times.
It's a steady slightly uphill grind for the next mile from here and I warned any riders heading in the opposite direction about what lay ahead for them.
Right onto Jewitt Lane and back out into the open countryside, before a tight left onto Compton Lane for the run back to Rigton Green.
Much like the bus stop I've mentioned before at Ulleskelf, the bench on the ridge appear to also be 'party central' as an empty box of Bud was stuffed under it.
Clearly a lot happens in the countryside after dark!
Through Rigton Green, passing a horse drawn wagon, and back onto Holme Farm Lane, then Milner Lane with a pesky three quarter crosswind slowing progress, before the plunge down the hill into Thorner.
Carr Lane was used to climb out of the village today, followed by a shuffle along the A58 and the final hill of note with the climb up Coal Road, across the mini-roundabout and then local roads down to home.

32.0 miles (51.49 km) in 2h 39m at a very steady average of 12.0 mph with 1,686 ft climbed and an average temperature of 9.5°C

Despite getting out there when I can, my fitness is still showing no signs of a reappearance, but I suppose at least I'm still getting some miles under the wheels. Took Mrs ND out for lunch when I got in but I'm absolutely cream-crackered now.

On a more positive note, lots of cyclists out again and you can't really argue with this weather for the time of year. And the Half Century Challenge continues for another month.

And to end, the map: