Epic day in the saddle....and the pub
0900 meet up at Glossop train station.
@doughnut @I like Skol @BRounsley . Going to meet up with
@Kestevan in Holmfirth after Holme Moss (he claims to live in Holmfirth but I suspect he lives in Glossop and told us this to avoid having to climb Holme Moss with us).
As soon as we hit Holme Moss Brian and Skol shot off leaving the more tactically astute Doughnut and me to conserve out energy with a rather slower ascent. Super fast descent into Holmfirth when we found that whilst Brian is probably the only person in the world faster up Holme Moss than down it. Picked up Kestevan in Holmfirth and then a nice climb and descent took us to our first café stop at Langsett (at which point Doughnut started asking if we were half way yet. "Yes of course we are". We'd actually done 24 out of 66 miles)
Here we are. As you can see, the weather was really kind. Sunny, not too hot. Bit of a breeze but not so much as to be a battle
The Strines are next, up and down all the time but we all managed it (some faster than others it has to be said). Stop off in Hathersage for ice cream. Then the long grindy climb up to the Abney gliding club where we got to see them landing (looks very dangerous) and taking off (looks impossible based on laws of physics). The participants needed whipping hard to get them back on the bikes at that point. Sitting behind a dry stone wall out of the breeze in the sunshine was very pleasant
Run down(ish) to Tideswell where Brian claimed he planned to go home and get changed, strangely enough missing the last two hard climbs of the day. Another café stop with excellent Bakewell tart. A couple of small digs.....ok, hard digs and then the last two proper climbs. By which time we were all royally knackered. Fast descent into Glossop and then the pub
Great ride with excellent company. A challenge of course but a real sense of achievement for all. Very kind weather. Good café stops and, although I do say it myself, a good route
66 miles with 6.900ft of climbing
Look who we found at the pub
@MossCommuter
We then proceeded to have a fairly epic session in the pub. I left when it was dark. Can't remember the time. Skol had to cycle 8 miles home, I barely manage the half mile I had to do without falling off. Here are the culprits
............and I almost forgot. Moss told us that Robinsons to quite a fancy brewery tour. Food and quite a beer session can be organised. There is serious talk of a nice CC ride (nothing like this, flat stuff in Cheshire) followed by said tour and session