Friday night: As
@gavgav mentioned I accompanied him on a test ride after fettling his bike - all went well and I'm glad he's pleased with it. After we parted I thought i'd make a loop out of it and headed out towards Betton and Lyon's Lane, returning home the flat way making use of a very quiet A49.
11.3 miles at 12 mph average.
Sunday: For various reasons I hadn't had a go at my challenge ride for February yet. Yesterday looked good from the forecast and I set out to tackle a circuit anti-clockwise to Ludlow. It's been quite some time since I've done this route in this direction so I looked up some of my old ride reports first to remind myself how much distance I need to add at the start to be sure of the 100 miles - it was more than I remembered so I started off by heading to Condover, along Lyons Lane and through Betton to Weeping Cross before entering Shrewsbury along Wenlock Road and Abbey Foregate. Being early on a Sunday morning it was nice to have these latter roads almost completely to myself for a change.
I followed the riverside through The Quarry to Porthill then headed out of town via Shelton to Montford Bridge, Montford, Shrawardine, Pentre, The Royal Hill and Melverley. This was all pretty pleasant riding and I was making good progress in spite of taking it easy to save the legs for later. I had my first snack stop by the bridge on the way to Crew Green with a view that was changed since I was last here as the river has dropped substantially, down to the level it would usually be in the summer.
Moving on again I headed through Coedwy, up the climb at Prince's Oak and made my way to Halfway House (the A458 was almost empty, so easy to cross) then Westbury where a driver slightly annoyed me by doing a last moment overtake to get to the give way line first.
A right took me onto the B4386 and the headwind became noticable for the first time this trip. It wasn't strong though so I made comfortable progress. On the way to Worthen a faster rider overtook and very quickly shot off into the distance. Not long after that a club peloton of about 30 riders also overtook. Another similar sized group passed me a few miles later on the approach to Marton, this time accompanied by a couple of beeps of the horn from overtaking drivers.
I turned off for Chirbury and the tracks in the salt dust on the road suggested that these groups had gone straight on, which made me wonder where they were headed to. I didn't see any other cyclists on the way to Chirbury and the motor traffic was fairly light as well. I was starting to find my legs tiring on the hills, which was a little concerning as the route had been fairly easy going so far.
Arriving at Montgomery, a lorry driver was appreciative of me letting them go first past some parked cars on the approach to the town, then I found the first part of the climb not as steep as I remembered it. A pause for my elevenses was taken at the crossroads, where there is a bench and a phone box that has been repurposed into a tourist information kiosk. I picked up a handful of leaflets describing cycle routes in the area.
After the stop it's a steeper climb into the centre of town and the legs were a little reluctant to get going. As I left town the wind seemed to pick up and it was bitterly cold. I'd set off with thermal leggings under my trousers and a base layer plus three fleeces on top but it looked like I really could have done with a fourth fleece on. I knew that I had some climbing to do on the way to Bishop's Castle which ought to warm me up again so I wasn't too worried at this stage. This undulating road did warm me up but it was starting to feel like I had very little left in the legs. The last climb into Bishop's Castle was quite an effort and very slow, so I was glad to crest it and drop into the town.
I was stopped taking a photo when a tweed-clad passer by said "You're the kind of cyclist I like to see". My thought was; "Uh, oh, where is this going?" but it turns out that he liked my touring set up and has done long rides along the Rhine and hopes to tour in Patagonia some time in the future.
Headed out of town, the roads I was taking level out for a few miles on the way to Lydbury North then Kempton where I got off the main road (even though it wasn't busy today) for some quieter lanes. Down by the river here there were decorations appropriate for the season and after I'd taken a picture a lady approached and asked if I liked the display before explaining that she'd put them up.
Purslow was my next stop (after needing to answer a phone call en-route). I found a gateway that was nicely off the road and reasonably sheltered from the wind so I could eat my lunch in peace before carrying on. Despite this spot being sheltered I was feeling the cold again by the time I restarted and it took a little while for the legs to get going. There is a short but sharp climb on the way to Hopton Heath and it really took it out of me this time, to the extent I thought I was going to throw up at the top. I was alright after a bit of a rest but progress to Leintwardine was somewhat plodding after that, not helped by the truly awful state of the roads once I'd crossed the border into Herefordshire.
I took to the lanes to Burrington and Pipe Aston, taking it very easy as I knew that I was approaching the biggest climb of the day into the Mortimer Forest. At Pipe Aston I opened the jelly babies, probably the earliest I've needed to open them on one of my challenge rides, and they did seem to help as I plodded my way up the hill. The descent was very cold and I felt chilled to the bone by the time I dropped into Ludlow. The legs cramped as I rode along Linney and I was really wondering if I'd make it to the end. It was so tempting to make a call and see if my brother could pick me up.
I persevered though and headed out of town taking the quieter route to Stanton Lacey. The legs cramped again by Fishmore Hall and I couldn't ride through it so I paused in a gateway and decided that this was a good time for another bite to eat. The horses in the field seemed to think I had something for them and wandered off with a dejected look when I told them "I'm going now".
That rest helped for a while and I got through Culmington slowly but without issue. This road was probably the busiest of the day and quite a few of the drivers seemed to be pushing on a bit so I was glad to get off it and climb up through Seifton Batch. More cramp came near Westhope but after a rest the legs were alright for the steepest part of the climb over Wenlock Edge. It was cold again on the descent but seemed to be sheltered from the wind when I reached the bottom so I warmed up again fairly quickly on the way to Wall under Heywood.
It was approaching sunset and I just wanted to get home so, despite the legs, I opted to go the direct way back even if it meant climbing to Cardington then over Folly Bank. I was very thankful of having added the extra miles at the start as otherwise I wouldn't have had enough distance in hand for this option. The legs did cramp on the way up Folly Bank but this time I managed to keep moving. The descent was cold once again but after that I seemed to find a reserve of energy and made surprisingly good time to Longnor, Ryton, Condover and back home the flat way.
102.26 miles at 11.3 mph moving average. 11 hours and 20 minutes including all the stops though. That was the hardest ride I've done for quite some time. I'm honestly surprised the moving average was as high as that.
Nice to see lots of riders out enjoying themselves, also the birds were singing Spring songs and I heard woodpeckers tapping away in the woods at several points.
Looking up Wyle Cop in Shrewsbury early in the ride.
Worthen.
The road to Montgomery.
Outside Bunner's in the centre of Montgomery.
Bishop's Castle.
February decorations at Kempton.
The classic view over Ludlow.
Climbing up through Seifton Batch.
At the top of the climb after Westhope.
Afterglow of sunset viewed from Ryton. I really thought I'd be finishing before dark this time.
