Your Best, Worst & Toughest Ride This Year

[Donger]

Best? So many to choose from. 5 great rides in Belgium in July, including one to go & watch the TdF for the first time at Vielsalm; 5 stunning rides in the Yorkshire Dales in May (Grinton Moor, Buttertubs, Arkengarthdale etc); and a great 69 mile ride with @Banjo in May, taking on the Tumble for the first time.

Worst? 27 Sept. 1.4 miles. Tore my axle in two and had to walk home with both pedals hanging limply downward.

Toughest? Got my Metric Century a Month Challenge off to the toughest of starts on New Year's day. A cold, miserable day with relentless, pouring rain that just never stopped. Rode to (and up) the Malverns, (where it briefly started to snow) and back. The misery of repeatedly squeezing frozen water out of my gloves as I rode along will take some time to forget.

 

[PeteXXX]

A pleasure to feature in your best rides @tallliman
My two favourites of the year were finally completing to Marin Trail, after getting snowed off a few miles in a couple of years back and 'Chase the Rising Sun',
an overnight 100 miler starting in Cromer at 21:30 and finishing at dawn the next day.
Both great rides..

Possibly my worst was a non-event, as a mate and I were both psyched up for our 2nd ride up Mt Snowdon, but the weather was so bad that we couldn't risk it! 70mph winds at ground level would have been too dangerous to attempt.

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

Best
Any sunny, warm day, when the tailwind is constant?

Worst
Probably a loop similar to below (Toughest 1)
Mid 90s??
But... leaving Holmfirth in nice-ish weather, but with a cloudy looking 'Moss ahead
Once on the summit, it started snowing. Heavily
By the time I'd got down to Woodhead, the road was white over
I decided to cut it short, & turned towards the Flouch
By the time I'd got to the layby (where the butty-van always used to be), the snow was coming down big-style, & the road was covered, my jacket was sodden (one of those 'foam' types)
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4625694

I ended up sheltering in the phone box that was there, back then, debating what to do
After a while shivering, I had to say "Sod It!" & continue, as I didn't know what else was in store - weather wise
By the time I'd slithered down over Salters Brook Bridge, & to the Flouch, it was almost gone
By Penistone, it was glorious sunshine again
I've never had the same variances of weather over there again


Toughest #1
Possibly about 1991 - 1992??
A 'loop' ride with my (brother-in-law since 1997), & Nick (still a good friend who is still capable of winning/placing very highly in a V50 MTB race)
Wakefield - Calder Grove - Denby Dale (start climbing)
'Sovereign Crossroads' - New Mills - Holmfirth - Hinchcliffe Mill - Holmebridge - Holme ('drag' all the way from Holmfirth)

HolmeMoss
Crowden - 'Glossop Road'/Devils Elbow - over the Woodhead Line at Torside Reservoir
Glossop
'Snake Pass' (A57)
LadyBower reservoir
Mortimer Road (aka 'The Strines')
Across the Stocksbridge road, & climb some more
Penistone - Ingbirthworth - Upper Denby
Denby Dale - Clayton West

I'll still admit that after that circuit, the ascent to Midgley roundabout almost finished me off
Then home, via Wakefield

Why was is so hard??
The gearing on my Orbit America was a bit high!!
42 x 21 bottom

Even Nick was struggling a bit on Ewden Bank on his Kona Explosif on slicks
Mark (b-in-l) even held onto Joannes (g/f now wife) car coming up there (wuss)
She gamely followed/leapfrogged to look after her little brother/provide water bottles/etc....
I think she insisted, at the time, now (like most of us), all I get is 'Take a housekey'.....

Glossop Station (b-in-l sitting in car, probably eating?)




The gateway that Boonen shot through on a Tour of Britain a few years ago
All. apparantly, resurfaced since the Tour of Yorkshire used it




Toughest #2

Not really that bad, but stupid all the same
Years ago (mid 90's) on my CX bike (ex team-issue Paul Milnes 653)
It was on sprint-rims, I'd put a pair of road tubs on the spare wheels

A loop through Dewsbury - Liversedge - Brighouse - Halifax
Leaving Halifax, towards Salterhebble, a thunderstorm rolled in (rain was forecast)
Up the 'Autobahn' (the dual-carriageway) to jct 24/M62, at Ainley Top
Rain, in rivers, on the road
Visibility appalling - barely seeing more than 2 -3 cars lengths
Down through Huddersfield, still in the downpour
Up the climb to Grange Moor, past the (now) Mining Museum
Rain eventually petering out somewhere near Horbury Bridge

Tough, due to the intensity of the rain, & spray on the 'autobahn'
Stupid, as no spare tub, & I'd lost my water-bottle (in jacket pocket, as it was a proper CX frame, no bottle mounts, or mudguard eyes)

Thankfully, I'm comparatively grown up now...........................

 

[mjr]

[...] 'Chase the Rising Sun',
an overnight 100 miler starting in Cromer at 21:30 and finishing at dawn the next day. [...]

Please excuse the interruption but why would you start in Cromer facing north/NNE (aka the wrong way) and not start in Hunstanton or Holme to face the setting sun before doing the 80ish miles (either through Norwich or around the coast) to Lowestoft Ness for the rising sun?

Mid 90s??

Did you miss "This Year" in the title?

 

[Dave 123]

Best- probably the ride east back to Roscoff in Brittany in July. Stunning scenery, hot weather, good food, good company

Worst- I honestly can’t think of it!

Toughest- From Benodet in Brittany to wherever we ended up. About 40 miles of snaking lanes with vicious hill after hill. Just never hit a rhythm. Good coastal views though.

 

[13 rider]

A pleasure to feature in your best rides @tallliman

Also mentioned in toughest ride as well that loop we did with you on the Harborough ride turned the ride into a hard ton for Tom we had to break out the emergency chocolate

 

[Milkfloat]

Toughest was a ride in February where I came down on some nasty ice after about 30km. I was out for my metric century so decided to carry on. By the last 25km I had stiffened up, was freezing cold and it started snowing again. Not too pleasant.

Worst - see above, but only for part of the ride

Best I have a few candidates; Some beautiful climbs in the Canaries, riding with friends in the Netherlands, riding a tandem in the dark drunk in the Netherlands, but I think best of all was Velo Birmingham. Not because of the sportive itself, but because I got to ride with some of my good friends that I had not ridden with much before and it was probably the last time I will ride with a good friends Dad who is unlikely to ride much in the future.

 

[Fonze]

Toughest and Worst was today.
34 km, was on tank empty, frozen like a fish finger, had to get my son to collect me 2 miles from home.
Spent the afternoon puking.
My have a bug but today was horrible !

 

[tallliman]

Also mentioned in toughest ride as well that loop we did with you on the Harborough ride turned the ride into a hard ton for Tom we had to break out the emergency chocolate

I wasn't going to point that out!!

 

[PeteXXX]

Also mentioned in toughest ride as well that loop we did with you on the Harborough ride turned the ride into a hard ton for Tom we had to break out the emergency chocolate

And the second cafe stop at Sibbertoft!!

 

[graham bowers]

Toughest and worst was 29th June Anstruther to Stonehaven. Lashing it down with rain and strong headwind all day. I could have holed up in the hostel in Anstruther for the day, but decided to see if I could do it in those conditions. Learned I could, but it wasn't worth it.

Best, much harder to pin down a single day. But if I have to pick one, I would say Lairg to Melvich on 4th July. Sunny, flat calm and spectacular scenery - particularly cycling alongside Loch Loyal that mirrored the spectacular skies.

 

[PeteXXX]

Please excuse the interruption but why would you start in Cromer facing north/NNE (aka the wrong way) and not start in Hunstanton or Holme to face the setting sun before doing the 80ish miles (either through Norwich or around the coast) to Lowestoft Ness for the rising sun?

The previous Chase the Rising Sun was indeed from Hunstanton to Southwold, 100 miles 21:30 to 04:30.
This years ride was 100 miles, starting at Cromer, with 3 x 33 loops + a mile, to and from Cromer. Strange, I know, but that was the sportive..

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

Did you miss "This Year" in the title?

Having looked at the thread title, after reading this
Yes
Sorry.......................