OP
OP
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
That was fun!
Brian (@Littgull) and I met in Todmorden and rode over to Mytholmroyd together. My pal Bill was at event HQ but he went on ahead and we didn't see him again all day. I bumped into a former colleague and said hello to him but he didn't ride with us. Paul (@PMarkey) introduced himself and did the ride with me and Brian.
There was a good turnout, no doubt inspire by the forecast of good weather. I would be surprised if less than 100 riders took part.
It was a chilly start down in the valley but a few kms down the road, the stiff climb from Hebden Bridge to Heptonstall warmed us up.
The sun was out and it was pleasantly warm for the time of year in the sunshine, but there was a fairly strong breeze blowing which made conditions feel quite nippy in the shade and on the descents.
We had a shortish stop at the control at Country Kitchen cafe in Waddington. The climb of Waddington Fell seemed easier than in recent years so perhaps I am starting to get some of my old fitness back after all? Early days yet though - I was overtaken by lots of riders and Brian was pulling away from me on most climbs. Paul was having problems, but we didn't discover what the cause was until we got back to Mytholmroyd. More on that later ...
We took another break at Slaidburn, where Brian had lunch. Paul and I just had drinks and I polished off a cereal bar.
The road from Slaidburn is like a rollercoaster, going up and down several times until a rapid descent to Chatburn.
After that we nipped over the A59 to Downham, and then did yet another long climb (with steep sections!), this time round the northern end of Pendle Hill to Twiston Moor, followed by another fast descent, to the hamlet of Roughlee. That is immediately followed by another stiff climb, but just a short one, before another rapid descent, to Barrowford.
We rode across a bridge over the M65 and then up to Nelson.
From Nelson there is a long, draggy climb to Coldwell Activity Centre. We actually got there a few minutes after the official cut-off time but we got to use their toilets and get some water for the run back.
The nasty climb at Thursden was as nasty as usual! It always will be nasty, unless one day we got a stonking tailwind to help us up it, and I have never had one of those up there.
After the summit, the ride back to Hebden Bridge and on to Mytholmroyd felt like a welcome relief. There are a couple of small climbs but it is mainly downhill or flat.
We arrived back at HQ just in time to get some snacks before things got packed away. We met @zacklaws standing outside and he kept an eye on our bikes for us while we went inside.
Paul discovered what had been slowing him down on the ride. And wearing out his back tyre ... His seatpost had slipped down, which had plonked his Carradice saddlebag on top of the rear mudguard and pushed that down onto the tyre. There was a groove worn into the surface of the tyre by the resultant rubbing!
Littgull and I had easy rides home, unlike Paul who had to get back up to Queensbury which is at an elevation of 300+ metres, north of Halifax.
Brian watched my bike in Todmorden while I dashed into a supermarket for supplies.
I did 127 km (79 miles) in total, with around 2,700 metres (9,000 ft) of climbing, including lots of steep stuff!
Most of my photos didn't turn out but I have rotated and cropped one to get this shot of the Ribble Valley from the Nick o' Pendle. It shows the kind of scenery we had ridden over to and what the weather was like for most of the day. (We had just a few spots of rain late in the ride, but that was that. My friend Bill said that he got soaked when he arrived back in Mytholmroyd a few hours before us!)
Brian (@Littgull) and I met in Todmorden and rode over to Mytholmroyd together. My pal Bill was at event HQ but he went on ahead and we didn't see him again all day. I bumped into a former colleague and said hello to him but he didn't ride with us. Paul (@PMarkey) introduced himself and did the ride with me and Brian.
There was a good turnout, no doubt inspire by the forecast of good weather. I would be surprised if less than 100 riders took part.
It was a chilly start down in the valley but a few kms down the road, the stiff climb from Hebden Bridge to Heptonstall warmed us up.
The sun was out and it was pleasantly warm for the time of year in the sunshine, but there was a fairly strong breeze blowing which made conditions feel quite nippy in the shade and on the descents.
We had a shortish stop at the control at Country Kitchen cafe in Waddington. The climb of Waddington Fell seemed easier than in recent years so perhaps I am starting to get some of my old fitness back after all? Early days yet though - I was overtaken by lots of riders and Brian was pulling away from me on most climbs. Paul was having problems, but we didn't discover what the cause was until we got back to Mytholmroyd. More on that later ...
We took another break at Slaidburn, where Brian had lunch. Paul and I just had drinks and I polished off a cereal bar.
The road from Slaidburn is like a rollercoaster, going up and down several times until a rapid descent to Chatburn.
After that we nipped over the A59 to Downham, and then did yet another long climb (with steep sections!), this time round the northern end of Pendle Hill to Twiston Moor, followed by another fast descent, to the hamlet of Roughlee. That is immediately followed by another stiff climb, but just a short one, before another rapid descent, to Barrowford.
We rode across a bridge over the M65 and then up to Nelson.
From Nelson there is a long, draggy climb to Coldwell Activity Centre. We actually got there a few minutes after the official cut-off time but we got to use their toilets and get some water for the run back.
The nasty climb at Thursden was as nasty as usual! It always will be nasty, unless one day we got a stonking tailwind to help us up it, and I have never had one of those up there.
After the summit, the ride back to Hebden Bridge and on to Mytholmroyd felt like a welcome relief. There are a couple of small climbs but it is mainly downhill or flat.
We arrived back at HQ just in time to get some snacks before things got packed away. We met @zacklaws standing outside and he kept an eye on our bikes for us while we went inside.
Paul discovered what had been slowing him down on the ride. And wearing out his back tyre ... His seatpost had slipped down, which had plonked his Carradice saddlebag on top of the rear mudguard and pushed that down onto the tyre. There was a groove worn into the surface of the tyre by the resultant rubbing!
Littgull and I had easy rides home, unlike Paul who had to get back up to Queensbury which is at an elevation of 300+ metres, north of Halifax.
Brian watched my bike in Todmorden while I dashed into a supermarket for supplies.
I did 127 km (79 miles) in total, with around 2,700 metres (9,000 ft) of climbing, including lots of steep stuff!
Most of my photos didn't turn out but I have rotated and cropped one to get this shot of the Ribble Valley from the Nick o' Pendle. It shows the kind of scenery we had ridden over to and what the weather was like for most of the day. (We had just a few spots of rain late in the ride, but that was that. My friend Bill said that he got soaked when he arrived back in Mytholmroyd a few hours before us!)
