Your ride today....

[Rickshaw Phil]

Boxing Day: I got out for my traditional ride to burn off some of the Christmas excesses. After two wet attempts to get round the Pulverbatch and Wilderley route recently I thought I'd try again but anti-clockwise this time as that would work better with the direction of the brisk wind.

There were more cars parked up at Lyth Hill than I have seen since the covid lockdowns and consequently lots of people enjoying the bright and cool day. I used the track to the top and descended to Exfords Green then headed for Plealey. These roads weren't exactly busy but there were a reasonable number of vehicles about as people enjoyed a bit of a tour of the countryside. In Plealey I turned towards Oaks, up the climb that starts off very gentle and gets steeper further up. Just before Wrentnall there was a carriage pulled by two horses coming the other way (I'm afraid I neglected to take a photo). The steep climb of Broom Hill was taken at a relaxed pace. I got surprised by a new Landrover Defender at the top - they are rather quieter than the old ones so I hadn't heard it coming up behind me.

After Pulverbatch I headed towards Wilderley, having to pull well in to the side of the road at one point for a large tractor & trailer. After Wilderley Croft I met a couple walking their dogs - the retriever seemed very happy to see me, the terrier wasn't fussed at all.

On the descent after Smethcott another cyclist was headed the other way (it isn't often I see other riders round here) then at Leebotwood I thought I would leave out the section to Dudgeley to avoid going further into the, by now, strengthening wind. After crossing the A49 it became a tailwind along the old Roman road and helped an enjoyable, if muddy, run to Longnor. I was starting to reconsider shortening the route by the time I reached the crossroads so decided to extend it again by heading to Frodesley, Acton Burnell, Pitchford and Cantlop (into the wind for a short while again here) before heading back the flat way from Condover to the A49 again.

Exactly 27 miles recorded for this one at 12 mph average. It was great to get out and enjoy a dry ride.

A sunny view from Lyth Hill this time.

En route to Wilderley.

Wilderley Hall.

The view from Walkmills to The Lawley.

The Pound Inn at Leebotwood.

Condover.

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

Yesterday: As @gavgav has reported above, we arranged to meet for a bank holiday Tuesday ride. Another good ride in company over Lyth Hill and round a familiar route to Longnor, Acton Burnell, Cantlop and Betton Abbots. It wasn't as dry as I hoped it would be, but we didn't get drenched.

Most of the ride was done at a pace where we could chat easily but we did have some fun downhill sections, with a tailwind, where it was possible to get some speed up - particularly on the descent to Cantlop Bridge. The Range Rover was quite comical in the way they blasted past as if to make a point after ignoring two, possibly three, safer places to overtake. At least they gave a reasonable amount of room while doing so.

The rain came on again as I headed for home but again it wasn't too heavy and I put up with getting mildly damp for the last couple of miles.

19.9 miles by the time I got back at 11.2 mph average. Despite the weather it felt good to be out enjoying the countryside.

 

[Dave 123]

I’ve only been doing Zwift rides over Christmas, including yesterday…. My legs were beaten this morning!

But out on the mountain bike it was. It was chucking it down overnight so I stuck to roads. Some of them were as mucky as a ditch!

I had to drop some stuff off at my in laws house so i took the coast road to Battisborough then down to Holbeton.

From there is was through Ford and Creacombe.
Almost 13 miles with plenty of weather!

https://www.strava.com/activities/8306418709

 

[sevenfourate]

@Dave 123

Is that first pic a pathway or your local tributary 😳

 

[Dave 123]

@Dave 123

Is that first pic a pathway or your local tributary 😳

It’s a beautiful and dry footpath!

 

[Donger]

Well, that's that done. Overweight, wrong gloves, saddle needed adjusting, dull weather. But I got in a last ride of the year. Just a paltry 7.9 miler around and between local housing estates, but it brought my year's total to 1,001.5 miles. After averaging 3k per year for the last few years, getting into four figures seemed the minimum acceptable distance. Not a good year. It started with catching covid and taking a good six months to get back almost to club riding form and then my wife came down with heart problems. Now that she is very much better, I'm looking to get back out on the bike much more next year. I feel some tinkering and bike setting-up calling. Might change to a softer saddle for the coming months until I get some weight off.

 

[wafter]

Well, that's that done. Overweight, wrong gloves, saddle needed adjusting, dull weather. But I got in a last ride of the year. Just a paltry 7.9 miler around and between local housing estates, but it brought my year's total to 1,001.5 miles. After averaging 3k per year for the last few years, getting into four figures seemed the minimum acceptable distance. Not a good year. It started with catching covid and taking a good six months to get back almost to club riding form and then my wife came down with heart problems. Now that she is very much better, I'm looking to get back out on the bike much more next year. I feel some tinkering and bike setting-up calling. Might change to a softer saddle for the coming months until I get some weight off.

Well done for getting out - and as we all know any time spent in the saddle is a win.. even if it's not ideal.

I've kind of gone the opposite direction; managing a bit over 1160 miles this year which compared to the halcyon, 3.5k miles days of 2020 is a drop in the ocean, however in the context of living in this grotty little village and hating every facet of my life is a win. It's more documented miles than last year and even 2019 when I was living in the city of cycling dreams.. so I'll take that as a win. In your case, 3k miles as an annual average is fantastic by my standard, but again.. anything more than zero is progress and there's always next year


This year's probable last ride was modest. After a Smirnoff breakfast the outside finally looked sufficiently tolerable by lunchtime to venture out for some eggs. I wasn't hopeful, however upon arrival I found one box of the precious remaining which was quickly swallowed by the single back-roller pannier I'd seen fit to chuck on the bike.

I made my way home through the forbidden farmyard for the first time since I was verbally accosted for doing so.. the wind was absolutely punsihing and tbh I'm glad I didn't resolve to cover any more miles today. Home via the Co-op for some bread and I'm now back in my warm place, content to ride out the rest of the day in darkened solitude with an appropriate goth-rock soundtrack.

Less than five miles at sub-11mph, fap knows about the rest as it's inconsequential and I didn't bother to strap on the HRM.. but as always just a win to get out. Fair play to those who've managed to cover a decent amount of mileage in today's gloom

 

[chriswoody]

After a truly wet and grey few weeks it was great to see some of that rare sunshine today. I headed out on the mountain bike with the plan to ride over the Heide and through a quiet part of the forest beyond. The first kilometres on the road pass pleasantly enough and whilst it's chilly, it still has a mild feel to the air. After a few kilometres on quiet roads, I'm heading into the forest and the first section is looking pretty churned up, the forestry workers have been here and combined with the rain it's a bit of a mess. Leaving that area behind, I soon start to drift off, my thoughts elsewhere as my wheels follow familiar trails, when suddenly a large grunt snaps me back to reality, to my right in the trees is a large wild boar. I decide to change up a gear and up the speed rather than linger and see how friendly it's feeling. A few kilometres on and I'm onto wider gravel roads, the sun creating long shadows on the trail.

The trail is ever changing here from hard gravel, to sand and everything in between. I'm making reasonable time and the nice weather is appreciated. After a short uphill and exhilarating downhill I make it to the shores of Angelbecksteich and stop for a flapjack on the side of the lake and watch life slowly drift by.

I set off back onto gravel roads and the short but stiff climb up to the Teifental, a popular area of heathland. I'm heading to a spot that's great fun to ride, a short ridgeline that is bordered by heather and Scotspine. Today there are a lot of walkers about and I need to keep my speed in check and courteously pass folk who are out enjoying this area like me.

After I reach the end, I stop at one of the small wooden shelters that pepper this area, for a snack. Recently all of the shelters in the area have received small painted animal murals, each one is different and a lot of work has gone into them, it's really nice to see.

After my break I turn North and into a section of forest that really is far from the madding crowd, it's deserted up here and the solitude is lovely. The trail is getting wilder and more rough the further in I go. The only sign of humans out here are the frequent hunters stools, though at this time of day they are unoccupied.

Before long I enter the rollercoaster, a beautiful and fun section of trail that swoops and loops and dips through the trees. We don't have much in the way of elevation change out here, so I need to take what fun I can get!

The kilometres are passing by now and I've swung South and started the ride home, there's still not a soul to be seen and aside from a Buzzard that keeps me company for a short while, I'm completely alone out here.

The singletrack draws to a close at a massive meeting of the ways, 6 different trails converge and then split again, going to who knows where. I stop at a small picnic bench for a drink and then point my bike down a lovely surfaced trail that winds its way through a delightful stand of trees.

I'm drawing ever closer home and the skies have started to turn grey again. The trails here are mostly fine gravel and I'm enjoying the smooth ride, another Buzzard swoops on by. I can never get enough of watching Buzzards gliding along between the trees, amazing birds. My legs are growing tired now and as I reach Reberlah, I stop beneath the sprawling Oak for a last snack break.

The Wind has really picked up now and it's blowing hard from the South, under the trees is fine, but where there are clearings and fields it's tough going. Unlike the gravel bike, I'm stuck in an upright position which makes the going tough. Slowly I grind out the last kilometres towards home under increasingly greyer skies. Finally I roll back into the garden as the computer shows 60km covered, with over 70% of that off-road. A satisfying winters day ride and now for a hot coffee.

 

[wafter]

After a truly wet and grey few weeks it was great to see some of that rare sunshine today. I headed out on the mountain bike with the plan to ride over the Heide and through a quiet part of the forest beyond. The first kilometres on the road pass pleasantly enough and whilst it's chilly, it still has a mild feel to the air. After a few kilometres on quiet roads, I'm heading into the forest and the first section is looking pretty churned up, the forestry workers have been here and combined with the rain it's a bit of a mess. Leaving that area behind, I soon start to drift off, my thoughts elsewhere as my wheels follow familiar trails, when suddenly a large grunt snaps me back to reality, to my right in the trees is a large wild boar. I decide to change up a gear and up the speed rather than linger and see how friendly it's feeling. A few kilometres on and I'm onto wider gravel roads, the sun creating long shadows on the trail.

View attachment 672718

The trail is ever changing here from hard gravel, to sand and everything in between. I'm making reasonable time and the nice weather is appreciated. After a short uphill and exhilarating downhill I make it to the shores of Angelbecksteich and stop for a flapjack on the side of the lake and watch life slowly drift by.

View attachment 672719

I set off back onto gravel roads and the short but stiff climb up to the Teifental, a popular area of heathland. I'm heading to a spot that's great fun to ride, a short ridgeline that is bordered by heather and Scotspine. Today there are a lot of walkers about and I need to keep my speed in check and courteously pass folk who are out enjoying this area like me.

View attachment 672721

After I reach the end, I stop at one of the small wooden shelters that pepper this area, for a snack. Recently all of the shelters in the area have received small painted animal murals, each one is different and a lot of work has gone into them, it's really nice to see.

View attachment 672720
After my break I turn North and into a section of forest that really is far from the madding crowd, it's deserted up here and the solitude is lovely. The trail is getting wilder and more rough the further in I go. The only sign of humans out here are the frequent hunters stools, though at this time of day they are unoccupied.

View attachment 672722

Before long I enter the rollercoaster, a beautiful and fun section of trail that swoops and loops and dips through the trees. We don't have much in the way of elevation change out here, so I need to take what fun I can get!

View attachment 672725

The kilometres are passing by now and I've swung South and started the ride home, there's still not a soul to be seen and aside from a Buzzard that keeps me company for a short while, I'm completely alone out here.

View attachment 672723

The singletrack draws to a close at a massive meeting of the ways, 6 different trails converge and then split again, going to who knows where. I stop at a small picnic bench for a drink and then point my bike down a lovely surfaced trail that winds its way through a delightful stand of trees.

View attachment 672724

I'm drawing ever closer home and the skies have started to turn grey again. The trails here are mostly fine gravel and I'm enjoying the smooth ride, another Buzzard swoops on by. I can never get enough of watching Buzzards gliding along between the trees, amazing birds. My legs are growing tired now and as I reach Reberlah, I stop beneath the sprawling Oak for a last snack break.

View attachment 672726

The Wind has really picked up now and it's blowing hard from the South, under the trees is fine, but where there are clearings and fields it's tough going. Unlike the gravel bike, I'm stuck in an upright position which makes the going tough. Slowly I grind out the last kilometres towards home under increasingly greyer skies. Finally I roll back into the garden as the computer shows 60km covered, with over 70% of that off-road. A satisfying winters day ride and now for a hot coffee.

In totally unrelated news, on a scale of -1-10, how likely do you think it would be for your friends and relatives to notice that your skin had been appropriated by a third party interloper, in order to assume your identity and procure your lifestyle...? Asking for a friend..

 

[Mr Celine]

An old mate who lives in the Caribbean is due to visit next week. He's in to both road and mountain biking and has bought himself a new mountain bike while he's in the UK. I don't have a MTB but have been meaning to get one for years. There was nothing local for sale on fleabay or gumtree and all the LBSs were shut until after new year. None of the Edinburgh shops had anything in stock either, so I resorted to the interweb for a n+1 purchase. Halfrauds website said they would deliver on or before Saturday. Aye, right, it's hogmanay tomorrow!
May as well try - I pressed the button at 14:30 yesterday, the courier rang my doorbell at 07:45 this morning!
All built up by lunchtime

Boardman MHT8.8 in silver and blue.

Now for a road and off-road test. The sun coming out had coincided with my completing the build and I hadn't really noticed how hard it had been raining all night and this morning.

The Tweed was rising rapidly -

...and all the fields were underwater an hour later when I returned although it was too dark by then for a photo.

The Ettrick Water was also in spate -

...but the town of Selkirk was looking unconcerned behind it's flood defences, getting their first real test after being completed about six years ago.

However, it looks like the Murray's Cauld hydro powerstation upstream of Selkirk may have taken another hit. During construction the old cauld (local vernacular for a weir) was washed away twice by floods. It appeared to be holding up, but the machine / generator house was under water and neither of the screws were turning.

Shakedown ride went OK, no issues with the n+1 but it does need mudguards! Despite very little off-road action I got home wet and muddy. Can't wait to try some proper off roading.

 

[gavgav]

Well, that's that done. Overweight, wrong gloves, saddle needed adjusting, dull weather. But I got in a last ride of the year. Just a paltry 7.9 miler around and between local housing estates, but it brought my year's total to 1,001.5 miles. After averaging 3k per year for the last few years, getting into four figures seemed the minimum acceptable distance. Not a good year. It started with catching covid and taking a good six months to get back almost to club riding form and then my wife came down with heart problems. Now that she is very much better, I'm looking to get back out on the bike much more next year. I feel some tinkering and bike setting-up calling. Might change to a softer saddle for the coming months until I get some weight off.

I look forward to reading about your rides this year 👍🏻

 

[wafter]

After a fairly unproductive holiday, yesterday had been earmarked to get some jobs done - last minute as usual. The one job I did manage went well, perked me up and I figured earned me a ride on quiet roads in the surprisingly mild night air.

I headed out west on the Fuji having neglected to check the forecast; out into a stiff SW breeze. After getting warmed up the base layer and gloves were fine, however a few miles into the loop it started spitting with rain; getting progressively heavier and driving into me courtesy of the wind.

As much as I like riding with a head torch this was no fun in the rain thanks to the reflected light from the falling drops, and poor visibilty saw me on the brakes on a descent on which I'd usually just let it roll.

The weather remained resolutely nasty so I hung a right at the first available oppotunity to cut the loop short and return home largely the way I'd come; the intensiy of the sometimes-near-horizontal rain gradually falling off until it was once more nearly non-existant. By this point I was pretty much soaked to the skin, but the temperature was so un-naturally warm that this wasn't really a problem and given enough continued riding I reckon I'd have naturally dried off.

Ultimately only about 14 less-than-ideal miles but I put my back into it a bit more than usual and ended up with a mean heart rate of 142bpm for about 750kcal burnt. This morning I remain tired after a less than ideal night's sleep (I often struggle to get to sleep after evening exercise) but refreshingly feel in a much better place mentally than I have for a while and I'm very glad to have gotten out.

Happy new year folks

 

[wafter]

Awoke this morning feeling enthused if tired from yesterday's brief but somewhat intense excursion. Straight out on the Fuji down to the farm shop, which (as is becoming increasingly apparant on a Sunday morning) was abundantly stocked with eggs. Only a 3-odd mile out-and-back; good to get out in the sun but the strong, chilly wind was no fun..

 

[Spiderweb]

So I managed to ride 4895 miles in 2022, my target was 5k but this was scuppered by the cold weather snap and a bout of man flu keeping me off the bike for nearly 3 weeks in December.

Todays ride was a steady spin on the Dolan, 30.2 miles with an average of 15.7 mph.

Happy new year to all 🚴

 

[13 rider]

I always like to start the year ticking off a challenge ride used to be the tradition to do an Imperial ton on New year's Day but COVID put paid to that so this morning a solo 50km ride to bag an early one for that challenge . Out the door at 9.15 weak sunshine a bit chilly and roads begining to dry . Just did my Standard loop out to Wymeswold and back a couple of deviations from normal to avoid some floods ( the one a Preswold is still there @Supersuperleeds ) . Just climbing the hill to home and noticed I might sneak under 2 hours so much more effort than normal up the hill clock stopped at 1.59.45 for 31.84 miles made me smile 🙂. Hopefully the first of many an enjoyable ride ,Happy New year everyone

 

[Supersuperleeds]

Two days left before I go back to work, weather forecast for today, mild but windy, weather forecast for tomorrow, cold but calm. I really want to kick the year off with an imperial but can't decide which day to do, I hate the wind, but I hate the cold more, so I decided on today.

Planned a route that went out into the wind / crosswinds, but eventually turns for a tailwind to finish.

Out the door at 6:30 and into the dark (roll on summer) roads are still damp from yesterdays rain, but not as bad as last week. First 25 miles are into the wind, but it doesn't feel too bad, though around 20 miles I look at my average speed and it is below 14mph, so it is obviously having an impact as I'd normally be over 15.

First 5 miles I have three cars come by, the next one doesn't happen until over 20 miles, by time I get to 40 miles and onto the outskirts of Coventry the total was less then 10.

I love New Years Day for riding as it is as if you are the only human on the planet for the first few hours out. Wildlife was enjoying it as well as I spotted foxes and rabbits out and about.

After 25 miles of headwind it is time for crosswinds to around mile 60. I stop at MacDonalds at 40 miles (average speed up to 14.4mph) for a bacon and egg mcmuffin and a cup of tea before setting off again through Coventry and out to Solihull, the wind had changed direction and got stronger and this stretch of the ride is hard work, but I know at Solihull I will be changing direction and getting the tailwind.

Get to Solihull and turn to take advantage of the wind and head home. Get to 67 miles and decide to stop for a bit of chocolate and take a photo. I guess a fair few of you (and not just locals) will know where I stopped based on the photo

After that brief break I'm back on the bike and feeling fine and quickly get to Hinckley at around mile 80 for another MacDonalds visit, this time just for a brew, no food.

I'm now back on familiar roads and with the tailwind feel really good and get home having done 103 miles and the average speed up to a respectable 15.7mph, that tailwind for the majority of the last 40 miles really helped

Also no stopping with cramp like last week and no floods to go through, though the bike is beeping filthy again

Happy New Year to all.

https://www.strava.com/activities/8320731594