Your ride today....

[sevenfourate]

@sevenfourate - don't you ever sleep?

I thought that since you get up before sunrise for dog walks and bike rides, you must go to bed about 4 hours earlier than this!

Huh. Sleep. You what ?

 

[ColinJ]

Huh. Sleep. You what ?

Haha - that is what I am going to prepare for now! (Puzzle games and crosswords until I doze off...)

 

[sevenfourate]

Not too warm as yet on today’s commute in. Was running a wee bit late after walking 2 miles with the dog: before then leaving at 4.40am. So only did the bare minimum / straight ride in today……bloomin lovely it was too though ❤️

Overlooking the Broads pre-sunrise…….

A proper Suffolk Sunrise today:

More practice for the legs:

 

[ColinJ]

I thought about doing a hilly evening 50 km ride today once the temperature had dropped to a more comfortable level. I set off but soon decided that I would prefer to do a shorter and slower ride, rather than thrashing myself to do the longer one before dark.

I was riding along the valley to Hebden Bridge and noticed a strange clicking noise from somewhere in the front half of the bike. It was really irritating me. I could not work out what it was until I realised that it was slowly getting quieter and soon after that it finally stopped...

Question: What sounds exactly like a cycling bottle which has had a tray of ice cubes added to chill one's drink for a hot summer evening ride?

Answer: A cycling bottle which has had a tray of ice cubes added to chill one's drink for a hot summer evening ride!

My original route was going to take me from Mytholmroyd up the famous Cragg Vale climb, but I changed my mind and did the longer, steeper, more scenic alternative of Scout Road, Steep Lane, High Stones Road, which eventually rejoins the other climb above Cragg Vale.

I continued up to Blackstone Edge reservoir, the surface of which was unusually ripple-free.

A rapid descent got me to Littleborough. I opted for the harder/quieter route out of the village/town up through Caldermoor and Calderbrook, then rejoined the A6033 for a rapid ride back to Todmorden.

A fine 38 km summer evening ride...

 

[wafter]

Awake at half four this morning thanks to my inability to cool the flat to a more comfortable level overnight heaped upon the usual sleep issues.

By five I'd given up and by twenty past I was out on the Fuji heading to the park on the other side of the city for a short session on the rings. By the time I'd reached the edge of town I was regretting not brushing my teeth; however that was OK as the sight of the unbuckled pannier finally dragged my sleep addled brain to the conclusion that I'd forgotten the rings, so back home we went...

Gob sanitised and rings acquired I had another go... the morning glorious but already a bit warm in 3/4 lengths and an unbuttoned "technical" shirt. I ended up passing through town at about six; predictably not deserted but gloriously quiet - especially by the standards of summer in a tourist hotspot.

Unsurprisingly the rings were hard work and I let myself off with doing very little. Afterwards it was back home along the path; mindful of the need to air the flat before the temperature rose too much more outside, but stopping fairly frequently to lop off some more fat bramble canes that were encroaching on the path.

Now back home after a shade under 15 miles I feel great, however am well aware that it's probably downhill from here once the endorphins dissipate, the fatigue returns and the temperature climbs..

 

[PeteXXX]

Will edit later, but completed the hottest and most humid London to Brighton bike ride on record. Phone died in the heat at Ditchling Beacon, so the last segment wasn't recorded. Walked up, very slowly. The heat in open sun was really punishing.
This year marred by serious accidents, details of which are a bit thin, but one caught thousands of us in a country lane around 12 miles out, and we were stood still for over two hours. Once restarted, my son had Di2 issues, which he eventually resolved by disconnecting everything and plugging it back together. Needs attention!
The delays caused all sorts of issues down the line. The final check point below the Beacon shut on time, meaning one less water stop.
Then, having made it up the Beacon, reconnected with my son (straight up the Beacon non-stop) had an ice cream, we set off again, cruising enjoyably down to the A27/23 and...stopped again for another accident. 30-odd minutes while organisers and police put a diversion in place, then finally got to the finish.
While all this was happening, the announcer at the finish line was saying they'd shut down and pack away at 7.15, despite thousands still unfinished. No other details hiven as to delays, which caused some anxiety for those waiting.
Fortunately, they did not carry though with this madness, and the huge mass of delayed riders got there in the end. There were still stragglers 30 minutes after I finished.
But...job done!

I've ridden the L2B lots of times in the past. It did seem to get less of a pleasure & more of a chore eventually. Maybe because of having done the same route all the time or possibly because the organisation got worse..
Anyway, two friends rode it but didn't mention the holdups, only the temperature!

 

[PeteXXX]

I've not really been out on the bike much recently but did have a ride around Eyam, pronounced Eeeem, the plague village.

Not too many miles but a fun little bimble around..

 

[PeteXXX]

Short ride this afternoon to drop some stuff off at the charity shop.

Conveniently, it's fairly close to the ice-cream parlour 😁

I also wanted to check out the roadworks on Mill Lanen a notorious bottleneck for motorised transportation but straight past on the cycle lanes.. 👌
The way back from there was across a railway line via a footpath & swing-gatrs but they've now been welded shut so Plan B was put to use and I got home by crossing the line at Chapel Brampton Station and the Brampton Valley Way homewards..

So hot when I reached home that I peeled my T shirt off and sprayed a hosepipe over my head to cool down a little bit 🚿