28/2/24
Ride on the Spirit recumbent with shopping on the way back.
Some rain earlier on but after a spell of rainless greyness I decided to live dangerously and go for a short ride, do some shopping on the way back, and be back for lunch. There didn’t seem to be much wind so I thought I’d take in the Test Hill of Doom aka Cinder Hill en route to see if I could improve on this year’s recorded max speed downhill.
A thermal underwear day today as was yesterday, with lightweight motorcycle gloves. Otherwise I just wore my usual everyday stuff. A bit chilly to start off with but soon warmed up. Out through the back gate, across a junction, along an estate road which wound about a bit. Going quite well. Turned right uphill at a T junction and was soon at another T junction with Swanlow Lane where I turned left to the A54 roundabout. After a delay at the lights, straight across into Delamere St then Chester Road. Right into Whitegate Road then a whoosh on a narrow downhill under the old railway bridge before grinding up the other side of the dip with traffic holding back or giving me plenty of room when passing. My breath was visible as I panted on up to the summit and went up through the gears as it levelled out. A car hung back behind me as I approached the junction with Cinder Hill where I turned right and he passed me on the left going straight on.
Annoyingly, I found the wind in my face, so I knew I wouldn’t be producing any new max speeds today. I pressed on, letting random cars get by in the hope that they wouldn’t be cluttering up the road further on. I pedalled as fast as I could before reaching the downhill stretch and just let the bike go, steeling myself to not touch the brakes. The road remained clear, apart from random potholes and unexpected gravel. My worst problem was what to do with my cap which I had in my hand to stop it blowing away. As I turned right at the bottom I saw a road name which was “Grange Lane.” It seems that this road is in fact Grange Lane even though it turns right a little further on and becomes a minor road then a bridleway. The road itself becomes Mill Lane beyond Grange Lane’s turn off. I have a map of the area dated 1993 which shows Grange Lane as a “road less than 4m wide” while modern maps show it demoted to a bridleway for most of its length.
I peered at the Garmin as I went straight on on Mill lane and saw that today’s max speed was 30.0 mph which was not what I’d hoped for but not so bad considering. Some sort of airspeed indicator might be good for morale in this sort of situation, to compare with groundspeed. I puffed up the short steep climb out of Whitegate watching the summit crawl closer before changing up for the easier going on the other side.
Trundling downhill against the wind I eventually passed the eponymous former mill which gives the lane its name. It is actually called Bradford Mill, on the Pettypool Brook. The road becomes Bradford Road further on. Which came first, the road name or the mill name? Perhaps neither. Maybe there was an ancient Broad Ford hereabouts.
The things that go through your mind when you’re out for a bike ride.
A last bit of downhill and then it was a right turn across a flat concrete bridge just before the stream itself flowed into the River Weaver. There were some basic railings each side which felt as if a person could easily fall through into the water.
As I passed the salt mine it occurred to me that in all the time I’ve been coming this way I’ve never stopped to take a picture so today, I did. As I looked for a place to stop I heard a faint high pitched squeaking which I initially thought it was a disc pad rubbing. It continued after I stopped and I realised that it was probably a conveyer system at the mine.
I continued on my way until I reached the entrance to the Whitegate way on the right. Due to all the recent rain the surface wasn’t very appealing. I went a couple of hundred yards then turned round back to the road.
Despite again having the wind against me I made reasonable progress. Nevertheless I was overtaken by someone on an ebike stolidly pedalling uprightly by, hi viz and all. I said hi, but like Jack Reacher, he said nothing. I turned off to get onto the old High Street, climbing some unexpectedly steep bits until it levelled out somewhat. I nipped across the dual carriageway during a lull in the traffic, uphill to the next lights then left, right at two mini roundabouts and locked up at the usual car park barrier of a supermarket.
Later I tottered out with an armful of shopping having forgotten to take my bag in. With everything safely stashed, I unlocked and set off again.
With the pavement free of dozy dodderers (usually people my age or younger!) and oblivious phone tappers I carefully set off alongside the supermarket towards the road where I turned right on to the pavement cycle path. Round the corner to the right, then across the road, turned right then left on to the pavement before the next traffic lights, for a steady trundle up the long hill. I got back on the road before going through Over roundabout with the intention of hopping on to the left side pavement rather than mix it up with the fast dual carriageway traffic on the other side but there was a slow moving man with a pushchair taking up the full width.
Rather than annoy someone who had a greater right to be there than me, I continued on the road. Naturally as I came out of the shelter of the climb, I felt a distinct breeze in my face. A knot of vehicles hurried past me, all giving me plenty of room. As I neared my turn off onto an estate road another group went past, and a grey van driver gave me a good blast on his horn. Maybe no good deed goes unpunished, but no one has beeped at me on a bike for at least a year.
A long downhill on the estate road, no doubt helped along by the weight of my shopping, then a sweeping left hander on to the level. Less than a mile further on, with a car behind me, an oncoming van with a tiny trailer beep beeped. I don’t know if that was for me or for someone he knew in the car behind.
Blow me down if a minute later someone else overtaking me beeped too. Was something hanging off the bike or flapping? I stopped to have a look but everything was shipshape. Was it annual sound your hooter day or something?
I rolled on feeling a bit perplexed. Up a small hill, right on to a level road, swooping downhill to the right, and soon I came to my back gate, escaping unbeeped -at for this last bit of my ride.
Mission accomplished as I got back in reasonable time to make my lunch.
Distance 10.32 miles. Max speed 30.0 mph. Average 7.2mph. According to Garmin. Ascent 397ft. According to Bikehike.
