Your ride today....

[MrBeanz]

Much appreciated @MrBeanz . Being a classical introvert I’m not going to go about shoving the camera in people’s space or have a running commentary..

My comments weren't about shoving a camera in faces. I did say I like to see more of the scenery rather than just handlebars and a slight view of the road up ahead. From the views of the rider just ahead of you on the trail, I think that rider might rather have the camera shoved in her face rather than where you had it ha ha!

For instance, in this shot it seems you are missing the beauty of the ride but limiting the view to mainly handlebars. A view of the road would be nice with all the greenery. You did a good job capturing the surroundings when you stopped and panned around to check out the views. But imo, I think you missed some of the beauty of the ride aiming more at the hb's.

 

[Heltor Chasca]

My comments weren't about shoving a camera in faces. I did say I like to see more of the scenery rather than just handlebars and a slight view of the road up ahead. From the views of the rider just ahead of you on the trail, I think that rider might rather have the camera shoved in her face rather than where you had it ha ha!

For instance, in this shot it seems you are missing the beauty of the ride but limiting the view to mainly handlebars. A view of the road would be nice with all the greenery. You did a good job capturing the surroundings when you stopped and panned around to check out the views. But imo, I think you missed some of the beauty of the ride aiming more at the hb's.

View attachment 477621

Thanks again. I’ll keep working on it. Do you mind me asking how you got that screen shot? Clever stuff.

 

[Andy in Germany]

Yesterday's Ride: This is my FIRST ride video so please leave comments and subscribe for more. I look forward to doing a few more.

“A Forest Faunication” is a 205km DIY Audax from Somerset, along the Colliers Way, through Longleat, into Warminster and Salisbury through the Cranborne Chase AONB and on into The New Forest to Brockenhurst, returning along a similar route. (This is an “Out and Back” randonnée)


View: https://youtu.be/6TWI6QY9pF4

Very nice: a good quality video with interesting intro. What software are you using?

 

[Heltor Chasca]

Very nice: a good quality video with interesting intro. What software are you using?

Thanks @Andy in Germany I used iMovie. My 9 year old daughter showed me some stuff and the rest is learned from YouTube tutorials.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

Was it all in my mind or do women worry about strange men following them on country trails?

A wee bit.
I slow down on purpose if I don't get passed.
Usually I then get a thank you and away they go.

 

[MrBeanz]

Thanks again. I’ll keep working on it. Do you mind me asking how you got that screen shot? Clever stuff.

I played the video then pushed the snipping tool on my computer during the scene. I just timed it to the point where I figured was what I wanted then pushed the snipping icon.

I'm sure one can do the same with a screenshot.

I also have a screen recorder that will record everything on my screen. So if I really wanted to take the time, I could record your video, then place in my video editor and extract a screenshot/still image.

 

[Elybazza61]

Just back from an un-planned 100k with the better half which is her first.

Was just meant to be a ride up to Downham Mkt via Sutton,Chatteris and Outwell/Upwell for a change.

All good until Downham when first the planned coffee stop had changed their layout so no outside seating and with no lock with us didn't fancy leaving the bikes outside.So went to station to come home to find no trains running due to power line issues so no option but to ride home.

Popped in at Denver Mill but they were closed However owner pops out and offers to get us a couple of coffees anyway so to her for that; also gave us chance to fuss the resident cat Millie.

Bit of a slog coming back due to a blustery head/side wind and a couple of sharp showers but made it back with just a couple of loops around Ely to top up the 100k;seemed silly to stop with only a few km's needed.

My Strava;

https://www.strava.com/activities/2572921252

And Val's;

https://www.strava.com/activities/2575573553

And some pics;

Over the river Delph from Sutton Gault

This was along the Sixteen Foot bank

Denver Mill

And of course some pics of Millie;

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

Once again, a couple of rides to report on.

Yesterday I wanted a longish ride, having not been able to get out over the weekend. I decided to link up two of my regular routes and set towards Condover, Acton Burnell and Cardington using the Raleigh.

All went well at the start but a headwind slowed me on the undulating bits on the way to Pitchford. I had a few stops to experiment with the saddle setup (now that's never happened before ) after the struggle into a not very strong headwind last time I was out had set me thinking. (This bike had a new saddle earlier in the year and I just stuck with the first position that felt comfortable). By the time I got to the climb to Folly Bank I was fairly happy with it and wound my way up the gradient quite nicely.

While taking a drink at the crossroads at the top a couple of other riders came up from the Cardington side. I had a brief chat - they had ridden from Wellington and were heading back in a loop via Cross Houses. I thought it would be funny if our paths crossed again later.

Dropping down towards Cardington I hit 32.6 mph which is quick for me. The gradient and breeze would be in my favour for a few miles so I got on really well through Hughley and on to Cressage where I decided to do the full loop through Eaton Constantine and on to Walcot rather than the shorter option through Wroxeter as I'd had in mind.

Turning back towards the wind didn't slow the pace very much through Upton Magna (where I did pass the two cyclists from Wellington again ), Atcham, Cross Houses and back to Condover where I could enjoy a tailwind for the final run up the main road. Shame it took so long to get a gap in the traffic.

A good number of other cyclists out and about today - many in touring rig.

45.1 miles this time at 15.5 mph average

Caer Caradoc as viewed from Comley. Lovely conditions for cycling.

At the top of the Folly Bank climb. Brown Clee is the hill in the distance.

Another shot from a favourite viewpoint near the King Street crossroads.

-------------------------------------------

Today, the weather forecast looked awful but I awoke to bright and sunny conditions so decided to risk it and try to get a ride in before the rain arrived.

My Condover, Longnor, Acton Burnell, Harnage, Berrington route seemed a good one to go for as it's fairly quick to ride and there are options to shorten or lengthen it depending on how the weather panned out. I used the Galaxy and set out into the morning traffic.

It wasn't too bad getting out of the village but at the Condover junction I encountered a blockage as a lorry and a car had collided. It looked messy but everybody appeared to be unhurt (the back end of the lorry trailer had dragged down the side of the car as it took a corner).

After the apparent success of the adjustments on the Raleigh yesterday I decided to have an experiment with the set up of this bike too. This let to quite a lot of stops to tinker until I was happy with it. Riding into a headwind on the way through Acton Burnell and Cound Moor made it difficult to judge how effective it was but turning away from the wind again it felt good up the climbs at Harnage, Cound and into Berrington. Hitting 28 along the little valley just before Allfield was quite exhilarating - I'd usually think I was going quite well to hit 23 along here.

Back at the A49 I had another long wait for a gap in the traffic then added a loop round the village to round up the mileage. I got back in the dry but the sunshine I'd set out in had been replaced by plenty of threatening looking cloud.

A fraction over 24 miles at 15.7 mph average. Pleased with how the bike went today but the next few rides will tell if I've got it right.

No photos from this one.

 

[jongooligan]

A very short ride this afternoon but very entertaining none the less.

Over the years as my body becomes less flexible I've had to assume a more upright position on the bike to stay comfortable. On longer rides discomfort often becomes pain so it's time for a more radical change of position.

Velomotion stick bike

A very nice man I'd met through Audax (Hi Dave) offered me a trial ride on his recumbent. The idea was to see if I could rule out this option before spending any money as they're a very different ride to an upright bike and some people never get the hang of them.

We met at Broompark car park, the junction of several cycle paths where I could safely fall off without getting run over.

For me it was an incredibly weird experience. After a few words of advice from Dave (one leg either side, preferably facing forward) I pushed off. And came to an immediate halt. Try again; bike dives off to the left and my feet are on the floor again. After several attempts I was still only ten feet from where Dave was standing - I hadn't even got my left foot up onto the pedal. How hard could this be?

A pause, a deep breath, relax, closed my eyes and visualised what riding a recumbent looks like. Push off and away I went until the car park boundary came rushing at me. A wobbly attempt to steer saw me lose my nerve and slam on the brakes before hitting anything.

There were several other learners in the car park it being a popular spot for driving instructors to bring their pupils for them to practice reversing into the bays. I seemed to have caused a collective paralysis though as three of them were frozen in various attitudes, reversing lights on but unsure what to do with this idiot careering about the place. Got some nasty glares from the instructors but hey it's a car park for cyclists and this is really going to make your pupils into better drivers.

Then something just clicked. I was able to ride in ever tightening circles. Sashayed a few figure eights and finished with a swaggering weave back to Dave's car. It's the future.

Looking on ebay now and looking forward to cycling without a stiff neck, without losing feeling in my hands and, hopefully, without sciatica.

Thanks Dave.

 

[Mike_P]

Monday evening headed east on the Defy – around 70F and a wind of just 3mph. The surface dressing on Bilton Lane had seemingly melted in the hot weather and it appeared as if the road had almost been fully resurfaced. Not a good sight at the crossing of the Nidderdale Greenway with a bike propped at the site of the road, two police cars and an ambulance with someone receiving attention. Took the A59 down to and through Knaresborough and then to Goldsborough where the previously felled gate post at the entrance to the village had been fully rebuilt (the one on the right hand side of the road)

Back briefly on the A59 and then north through Flaxby, Coneythorpe and the narrow lane, that once joined with the A1 before it was upgraded to a motorway, to loop round to Arkendale. Surface dressing time again all the way the A6055 at Ferrensby but reasonably compressed. At the latter stopped by the Duck Pond for a snack and if there is a competition for the most poorly maintained village bench this would be a potential winner – two thirds of its length had nettles growing at knee height just in front of it. West into the low sun to Ripley then home through Killinghall. 23.02 miles 1223ft climed 13.6 mph avg.

 

[Old jon]

It’s the day to take the fixed out for a ride, fairly bright out there with a bit of breeze. The street is rather sheltered so not a good wind speed guide really. But if you are going for a ride, that may be part of the fun.

Aiming for the bottom right hand corner of my map today. My map, hmm. It’s a 1:50,000 OS map centred on my postcode. A forty kilometre square view of the surrounding district reduced in size so I can see it easily. It is hanging on the wall behind me. The bottom right hand corner is the flat bit so should be well suited for a ride on the fixed, and possibly the rider also. Start with the usual diversion through Holbeck, just to miss a right turn that means crossing four lanes of traffic. Happy to wimp that one. Aim for John o’ Gaunts. After passing that go all the way down the hill to Oulton roundabout and take the second exit. For the first time in quite a while I am going to Castleford. But first through Methley.



That is all one road, not difficult. Reached Castleford and took the correct left turn, pedalled along noticing how much things had changed. That is my excuse for missing the left turn to take me across the river, anyway. Then cross the canal, shortly after the road starts rising it also crosses what was once a railway line. Rising, aye. It was once a Roman road, the map mentions Roman Ridge just a bit east of Kippax, and it also played quite a part in the preamble to the battle of Towton. Today each rise was visible well before reaching it, straight roads are like that, so it was a relief to reach Peckfield Bar and less of a gradient. And a stop to have a bite to eat.

Carry on the A 656 and reach that enormous roundabout over the motorway. There is an unclassified road that bypasses this but traffic was a bit dense for the right turn needed. The B 1217 passes the gates at Lotherton Hall, just as I rode onto Lotherton Lane the garthing told me I had ridden twenty miles so far. There is a bit of a hill before reaching Aberford, after all the miles of more or less flat this was not easy. Aberford Main Street and a lot of the way to Barwick are lumpy as well. That knocked my average speed down.

After the last rise in Barwick, as the road dropped to the junction I decided to go left, rather than through Scholes. Again, a long time since I have ridden that way. Once back in the suburbs this involved wandering around bits of Seacroft to eventually find Easterly Road and my preferred route back home. The alternative is the A 64 and its much written about Cycle Super High Waste. Or something. So, back across Crown Point Bridge to return south of the river and through that tiny corner of Hunslet that leads to Dewsbury Road and my way home. Thirty three and a bit miles, 950 feet of climbing, told you it was flat, and a grin. Brilliant.

Map, with missed turn

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Mrs 26, Jules H, John B and me today. Jules decided he would have an easy day so headed home. Mrs 26 turned for Suckley as she only wanted a few miles. So it was just John and me that headed for Munderfield Stocks. The plan was to try a lane I hadn't ridden for a long time. So we rode through Bredenbury to turn right. There is a bit of preserved railway along here so we stopped to admire it. We looped by Bockleton then towards Leominster before turning to take us to the cafe. Lovely spot at the golf club. We watched a bit of coaching on the course as we sat and chatted.
Our run back was fairly traditional although we took on the steep bank before Marden. At Bartestree John suggested the lane on the flanks of the Marcles so we did that. Lovely bit of riding. Then back on route things rolled well. Just the climb of The Wyche left. All good today. 72 smiles

 

[EltonFrog]

I’ve been fettling with the Kingpin for a few days, bought another one and swapped some parts over, I now have a Dynohub front wheel and lights on the bike, plus I swapped over a few other bits n bobs, so I took it for a test ride to Tesco and back, just four miles. Took some pictures on the way.

This bench is supposed to represent Wittenham Clumps, two hills in the distance just above the handlebars.

Church in East Hagbourne in the distance.

The track is on an old railway embankment.

Trying to be arty under the railway bridge.

Lots maize being grown around here this year.

A thatched cottage.

I’ve got a spare Kingpin if anyone wants one.

 

[Reynard]

You do realise the saddles and handlebar grips don't match @CarlP

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

..........

View attachment 477954

I’ve got a spare Kingpin if anyone wants one.

If only I hadn't just bought one.