Sea of vapours
Guru
- Location
- Clapham, Yorkshire Dales
Less murky this side of the Forest of Bowland, Colin. Good luck!
The Metric Century (100KM) A Month Challenge ChatZone
- Thread starter ColinJ
- Start date
Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
Ajax Bay
Guru
- Location
- East Devon
Donger
Convoi Exceptionnel
- Location
- Quedgeley, Glos.
Miserable cold, persistent rain. My mate had a puncture, and then just as we were about to latch on to the back of the second group again we came across another guy with a puncture. Played catch-up in the rain for the rest of the ride and ended up soaking wet and cold. Somehow, there is still a grim enjoyment to be had on these occasions, despite being so cold that we couldn't sign our names. After two consecutive years of passing this challenge with a grand total of 12 rides, I've finally gone and done a superfluous ride. (There were times when I wondered why the hell I was doing it, though!).
OP
OP
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
I'm back! 
My decision to wait for the depressing, chilly, murky mist to dissipate before setting off was not a sensible one since that meant me riding home in depressing, chilly blackness, with the added stress of rush hour traffic!
I did get about 45 minutes of sunny spells on the way out. In fact, I overheated and stopped on the fringes of Burnley to take off my arm warmers and the buff that I was wearing round my neck. Later on I got chilled and had to stop and put them on again!
I had a slight tailwind on the way out but it picked up later and the headwind was a pain on the way back.
I made a stupid navigational error which meant that I had to improvise part of the route to restore missing distance. I know those roads so I had not bothered programming the route into my Garmin. Unfortunately, my mind wandered and I missed the turn towards Whitewell which I had intended to take. I realised very quickly that I had because I found myself riding back towards Longridge Fell, a landmark that you can't exactly miss out there. Still, I couldn't be bothered to go back and get on the right road. I had planned the route to be exactly 100 km and it was going to be getting dark on my way home so I didn't want to add extra distance.
I had set myself a target of 5 hours for the 100 kms. I missed out by 2 minutes, easily accounted for by getting stuck at multiple sets of traffic lights in rush hour traffic. Nearly every set were on red and I took 2 or 3 cycles to get through most of them because of the long queues of vehicles ahead of me. So, not quite 20 kph average speed including stops, but near enough. I am a bit disappointed with that but it is early in the year, it was cold and windy, the traffic was heavy on the return leg, and there were roadworks on the A646 which introduced extra delays. (Those can be the excuses that I promised to make. I don't need to make excuses for not doing the ride because I DID IT!
)
I don't intend to leave my February metric century ride so late in the month. I might do the Mini-Northwest Passage audax on the 18th. That is ~120 km. I have ridden to and from the event in the past but that involves me doing the busy A58/A6033 3 times in one day which isn't a lot of fun! If I do it, I will probably treat myself to a return trip to Rochdale on the train with my bike. It will only cost me £2.85.
My decision to wait for the depressing, chilly, murky mist to dissipate before setting off was not a sensible one since that meant me riding home in depressing, chilly blackness, with the added stress of rush hour traffic!
I did get about 45 minutes of sunny spells on the way out. In fact, I overheated and stopped on the fringes of Burnley to take off my arm warmers and the buff that I was wearing round my neck. Later on I got chilled and had to stop and put them on again!
I had a slight tailwind on the way out but it picked up later and the headwind was a pain on the way back.
I made a stupid navigational error which meant that I had to improvise part of the route to restore missing distance. I know those roads so I had not bothered programming the route into my Garmin. Unfortunately, my mind wandered and I missed the turn towards Whitewell which I had intended to take. I realised very quickly that I had because I found myself riding back towards Longridge Fell, a landmark that you can't exactly miss out there. Still, I couldn't be bothered to go back and get on the right road. I had planned the route to be exactly 100 km and it was going to be getting dark on my way home so I didn't want to add extra distance.
I had set myself a target of 5 hours for the 100 kms. I missed out by 2 minutes, easily accounted for by getting stuck at multiple sets of traffic lights in rush hour traffic. Nearly every set were on red and I took 2 or 3 cycles to get through most of them because of the long queues of vehicles ahead of me. So, not quite 20 kph average speed including stops, but near enough. I am a bit disappointed with that but it is early in the year, it was cold and windy, the traffic was heavy on the return leg, and there were roadworks on the A646 which introduced extra delays. (Those can be the excuses that I promised to make. I don't need to make excuses for not doing the ride because I DID IT!
)I don't intend to leave my February metric century ride so late in the month. I might do the Mini-Northwest Passage audax on the 18th. That is ~120 km. I have ridden to and from the event in the past but that involves me doing the busy A58/A6033 3 times in one day which isn't a lot of fun! If I do it, I will probably treat myself to a return trip to Rochdale on the train with my bike. It will only cost me £2.85.
Dogtrousers
Kilometre nibbler
Ajax Bay
Guru
- Location
- East Devon
Well done @ColinJ . I too have been racing sunset several times this month (caused by thinking (with some truth) that if I start later it will be warmer (ie not so bloddy cold)). Getting noticeably lighter every day.
and blasting from the past:
The weather for that event can be anything from surprisingly good to "I'm going back to bed"!
OP
OP
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
Thanks.
I just nipped out to the station to pick up a copy of the Metro. (Not for the editorial content - I like to do its cryptic crossword.) I should have called in at the nearby One Stop and treated myself to a bar of chocolate while I was out. I can't be bothered to go back for one though.
I was surprised that this 'flattish'*** metric century actually had 1,300 metres of climbing, including a hill with a short stretch at 20%. (The Garmin said 23% but I don't think so - more like 15% average with one or two bends at 20%.)
I got overtaken going up the Rossendale Road climb by someone who looked like he was riding back from work. It bothered me, not so much that he overtook me as how easily he did it and how quickly he disappeared into the distance. Mind you he looked at least 20 years younger than me and was a skinny man. I am 8-10 kgs over the weight I would like to be and that doesn't help when going uphill.
*** Flattish only by our local hilly standards
Sea of vapours
Guru
- Location
- Clapham, Yorkshire Dales
I think you'll find that the correct term for that, in the local context, is pancake flat. That's not far over the flattest 100km (loop) I've ever managed around here, so congratulations on the planning front and on getting it done.
I've currently adopted a timing method of estimating how long a given route will take, adding 15 minutes and subtracting that from sunset time, then leaving at whatever time that gives. That gives a nice sense of urgency! (I do have lights, but I don't wish to need them to see by.)
OP
OP
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
I have a REALLY flat route in mind for one of the rides ... I caught the train to Garforth with my bike once and did a big 100 km loop. I have never done such a flat longish ride before - it made a nice change.
Definitely a suitable route for my singlespeed bike!
- Location
- Egham
Ajax Bay
Guru
- Location
- East Devon
Without wishing to have too much of a 'pop' at that, and of course deeply envious of your environs (will be back for another crack at the Mille Pennines in July and maybe a recce beforehand), I thought I'd see what a nice flat ride from Clapham might look like. here's one:
107km + 935m - Clapham Lancaster Sedburgh Triangle - making full use of the Lune valley. I've used most of those roads either touring, or LEJOG, or in the first and last 100km of the Mille Pennines 2016. So if you're pushed for time . . . .
Sea of vapours
Guru
- Location
- Clapham, Yorkshire Dales
Ahhhh..... well I didn't want to set out the criteria in detail in a light quip. The issues - for me - with that route are several:
- A65. That is a horrible road to cycle on for any distance at all. It's permanently busy and fast. It's actively unsafe in places (bends which people typically enter at 50-60mph where a bike is hidden by walls or hedges) and pretty unpleasant throughout due to the volume of traffic.
- The road from Bentham to Lancaster starts off as a busy B road which is *very* windy, has poor visibility and is driven rapidly by locals, whilst being a narrow two lanes. I've never cycled more than short stretches of that. It then joins another A road which feels relatively safe but is unpleasantly busy and fast (it was listed as third most dangerous road in the country by some analysis a few years ago). The parallel route along Mewith Lane (Way of the Roses) is very nice, quiet, but much lumpier.
- Cycling through Lancaster isn't something I'd do unless I had some compelling reason to go into Lancaster. I certainly wouldn't go round the inner one-way system ring road, but there are less busy routes than you've selected which are OK.
So yes, that's certainly relatively flat (though it comes out over a thousand in practise), but I'd not consider it to be nice for at least 40% of the distance. I've done pretty much that route, sometime last winter I think, when it was icy and can't say that it was enjoyable as such, at least not for about half of it, though it was certainly fast (combination of flatness and fear!). A much better 100km. and only an extra 100m ascent or so, is Austwick, Helwith Bridge, Ribblehead, Hawes, Sedbergh, Kirkby Lonsdale, Gressingham (west of Lune), Hornby, back along Mewith Lane.
- A65. That is a horrible road to cycle on for any distance at all. It's permanently busy and fast. It's actively unsafe in places (bends which people typically enter at 50-60mph where a bike is hidden by walls or hedges) and pretty unpleasant throughout due to the volume of traffic.
- The road from Bentham to Lancaster starts off as a busy B road which is *very* windy, has poor visibility and is driven rapidly by locals, whilst being a narrow two lanes. I've never cycled more than short stretches of that. It then joins another A road which feels relatively safe but is unpleasantly busy and fast (it was listed as third most dangerous road in the country by some analysis a few years ago). The parallel route along Mewith Lane (Way of the Roses) is very nice, quiet, but much lumpier.
- Cycling through Lancaster isn't something I'd do unless I had some compelling reason to go into Lancaster. I certainly wouldn't go round the inner one-way system ring road, but there are less busy routes than you've selected which are OK.
So yes, that's certainly relatively flat (though it comes out over a thousand in practise), but I'd not consider it to be nice for at least 40% of the distance. I've done pretty much that route, sometime last winter I think, when it was icy and can't say that it was enjoyable as such, at least not for about half of it, though it was certainly fast (combination of flatness and fear!). A much better 100km. and only an extra 100m ascent or so, is Austwick, Helwith Bridge, Ribblehead, Hawes, Sedbergh, Kirkby Lonsdale, Gressingham (west of Lune), Hornby, back along Mewith Lane.
GuyBoden
Guru
- Location
- Warrington
Wow, that's flatter than my easy Cheshire rides.
Last edited:
OP
OP
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
I forgot to mention that on the previous occasion that I tackled that route a wind picked up during the ride. With absolutely nothing to offer shelter from the wind, it became very hard-going despite the lack of hills. I saw a small group of slow-moving riders just a few hundred metres ahead of me but it took me ages to catch them. During that time one of them got tailed off the back of the group due to the effort of riding into the wind. It was ridiculous how hard we were trying yet how slow we were going.
