In Search of Tailwinds
(No photos today - gloomy conditions, and a bit chilly, so I didn't feel like stopping for photo opportunities!)
The year is slowly drawing to a close and I had 3 distance targets left to complete. (I had speed goals too, but I haven't managed to get much quicker this year. Maybe next year I will make progress on that?)
Target 1: Average 11 miles a day in 2015, a 10% increase on 2014's target which I fell 1% short of due to an illness at the end of the year which stopped me doing my planned final 31 mile ride.
Target 2: Do at least one ride every month of 100+ kms.
Target 3: As well as the 100 km rides, do at least one ride of 50 kms/miles every month.
I didn't fancy doing a metric century in wet conditions and I didn't want to wait until nearer Christmas in case of the kind of problems that had last year, so when I saw that today was going to be dry here, I decided to put up with strong, blustery winds and get the ride done.
I did the ride solo since my usual riding partners were busy. I tried various loops to seek out helpful tailwinds but the wind hindered me far more than it helped. In the end I did 3 loops (with a few extra kms on the A646 to make the distance up to the full metric century).
Loop 1: Todmorden, Littleborough, Blackstone Edge, Cragg Vale, Mytholmroyd, Hebden Bridge, Tod. I had a nagging headwind on the A646, and I also had a headwind on the A6033 to Littleborough which is near enough at right angles to the A646! It is a curious feature of the local topography - winds can get funnelled down the valleys by the surrounding hills so local winds can go in all sorts of directions even if the county in general is being blasted by e.g. a south-westerly. I experienced a cross/headwind on the first half of the climb to Blackstone Edge, but finally managed to pick up a tailwind higher up where the road bends round. A slower descent than usual due to swirling crosswinds, and then a slog along the valley through Hebden Bridge back to Todmorden. The wind put me off doing loop 1 again so I came up with a loop 2 instead ...
Loop 2: A646 towards Burnley. I expected a tailwind but I didn't get it! The road climbs gently up that valley and it would have been nice to have the help of the wind, but it had other ideas ... I did a short detour to climb up the Lancs cycleway to Bacup Rd and then rode down to the traffic lights on the A646 and climbed to the traffic lights on Manchester Road, turned round and went home for a short break,
Loop 3: I was feeling lazy and sorely tempted to stay in with the heating on but I wanted to bag that 100 km for the day so I headed back out onto the A646 to Mytholmroyd. I climbed into a headwind through Cragg Vale, turned left at Syke Gate and then got a tailwind which I didn't really need up there! I descended back to 'royd via Steep Ln, and Scout Rd. I completed the metric century up and down the A646.
So ... target 1 has been completed! I have now ridden 4,052 miles of this year's 4,015 mile target - 101% done, with more than 3 weeks left before the NY.
Target 2 has also been achieved. I have ridden metric centuries every month, and doubled up a few times. I also sneaked a 200+ km ride in
I just need to get a 50+ km ride in now to complete my final distance challenge for the year. I am supposed to be doing such a ride with
@Littgull next Friday, subject to acceptable weather conditions. (We have a backup option the following Monday if bad weather stops play on the Friday.)
It has been quite a good year for my cycling. I can still feel the residual damage from my clotting problems of 2012/2013 but I have got back to a level of fitness that is enjoyable.
I'll get a few more rides in to finish 2015, take a week or so off the bike for the festering season, and then try to make a good start to 2016.
