Your ride today....
- Thread starter gbb
- Start date
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lazybloke
Considering a new username
- Location
- Leafy Surrey
Just a short ride along the river into Guildford to pop in at the theatre, and noticed some works at the navigable canal section. Snapped some pics for my father-in-law who used to do voluntary restoration work for a canal trust.
Yesterday morning was white over, looking outdoors, which said ‘no ride today’ to me. This morning allowed me to make my own decision, so I rode away. Still on the fixed, a new frame is under construction for the geared bike. Should be three or four weeks.
On with today. A bit of breeze was blowing, this was a bit obvious as I left the urban mess of Holbeck on my way to cross the river at Crown Point. On the way from there to the clock at Oakwood it was obvious there was some assistance from the wind. The next bit, up Boot Hill, needed that. First time for some time on this bike, sort of forgot how hard it is. All good things end, reach the top and ride on to Red Hall Lane, along that to Thorner Lane. Down Sandhills is fun without a freewheel. Through the village and ride out up Church Hill.
It is bare trees and ploughed fields from here to Bramham, I blame winter. Just before the bridge over the A1 is West Woods Road, which I always think should be West Woods Way ‘cos alliteration is more fun. A few gusts of wind as I rode along here reminded me of the headwind to come, I reached the roundabout at Wattle Syke and almost automatically took the first exit, to Collingham. The second exit leads to Wetherby and three or four extra miles for the ride. Collingham does not have a maypole but I stopped here for a bite and sup anyway, before facing the wind that was blowing along the A58. It certainly makes the hills steeper.
Along to the traffic lights by Bardsey, a short temptation to climb Rigton Bank. Not without gears, thank you. Then down a bit to the start of the long climb through Scarcroft. Slowly up that, aye, slowly for the rest of the ride. That wind was winning. Even the spin down Boot Hill was below 25 miles an hour and that little climb before the Oakwood Clock was quite a struggle. From there though it is down to recross the river and the shorter way home through Hunslet. And even after twenty eight miles and very close to 1800 feet of up, reaching home saw my mug wearing a grin.
Wind and geography,
On with today. A bit of breeze was blowing, this was a bit obvious as I left the urban mess of Holbeck on my way to cross the river at Crown Point. On the way from there to the clock at Oakwood it was obvious there was some assistance from the wind. The next bit, up Boot Hill, needed that. First time for some time on this bike, sort of forgot how hard it is. All good things end, reach the top and ride on to Red Hall Lane, along that to Thorner Lane. Down Sandhills is fun without a freewheel. Through the village and ride out up Church Hill.
It is bare trees and ploughed fields from here to Bramham, I blame winter. Just before the bridge over the A1 is West Woods Road, which I always think should be West Woods Way ‘cos alliteration is more fun. A few gusts of wind as I rode along here reminded me of the headwind to come, I reached the roundabout at Wattle Syke and almost automatically took the first exit, to Collingham. The second exit leads to Wetherby and three or four extra miles for the ride. Collingham does not have a maypole but I stopped here for a bite and sup anyway, before facing the wind that was blowing along the A58. It certainly makes the hills steeper.
Along to the traffic lights by Bardsey, a short temptation to climb Rigton Bank. Not without gears, thank you. Then down a bit to the start of the long climb through Scarcroft. Slowly up that, aye, slowly for the rest of the ride. That wind was winning. Even the spin down Boot Hill was below 25 miles an hour and that little climb before the Oakwood Clock was quite a struggle. From there though it is down to recross the river and the shorter way home through Hunslet. And even after twenty eight miles and very close to 1800 feet of up, reaching home saw my mug wearing a grin.
Wind and geography,
Dave 123
Legendary Member
- Location
- Cambridgeshire alps
An afternoon ride for me on my Cube. The roads were fairly dry and clear. ‘‘Twas a touch blowy out around the coast.
coming down the hill at Noss Mayo the road was closed so I had to divert!
https://www.strava.com/activities/3001671312
coming down the hill at Noss Mayo the road was closed so I had to divert!
https://www.strava.com/activities/3001671312
lazybloke
Considering a new username
- Location
- Leafy Surrey
Gravity odd your way?
Dave 123
Legendary Member
- Location
- Cambridgeshire alps
I was on the wall of death....
EltonFrog
Legendary Member
Two utility rides today very low mileage but another opportunity not use the car, (10 days now) . The first trip was a one way trip to the station to be collected by a mini-bus to go and fetch another mini-bus, put the bikes in then drove home, then the second ride was to town and back to see a woman about a dog and have a coffee. Just 8.57 miles.
Had a phone call from big sis in the week ,big sis asks what you doing Sunday ? me nothing planned ,big sis do you want to meet for breakfast ? ,me yes . So a plan arranged to meet at Nice Pie at 10.30 . Nice Pie is the perfect distance from home for me 16 miles so a 50km ride it is. Initial plan was to be out early for an extended route out . Alarm went off at 0730 I could hear the wind howling so rolled over and finally up at 8.15 . Out the door at 0915 decided on a route up the Wreake Valley which meant a tailwind nearly all the way there .Anstey ,Cossington ,Ratcliffe on the Wreake ,Hoby and Asfordby then the climb of Saxileby hill . 1 mile from the cafe it starts to rain 
on with the rain jacket . Gets to cafe with 5 mins to spare just as big sis virtually follows me in . A very nice light breakfast was consumed 
washed down with a nice latte . A relaxed stop chatting away letting the rain pass . Time for the homeward stretch which would mean a headwind most of the way . The rain had past and the sun 
came out . Battled the wind all the way to Barrow . Down the descent of Paudy lane had to work hard to maintain 15mph . Finally turned left to Sileby and helped by a crosstail wind it was a but rapid . Slight detour in Sileby to avoid a flooded lane which has been shut for almost permanently since October . Mountsorrel ,Rothley ,Cropston 2 miles from home and it starts to rain again just press on and get home . 37.1 miles in the bag at a nice 16.6 mph average and got lucky with the timing of the rain
on with the rain jacket . Gets to cafe with 5 mins to spare just as big sis virtually follows me in . A very nice light breakfast was consumed washed down with a nice latte . A relaxed stop chatting away letting the rain pass . Time for the homeward stretch which would mean a headwind most of the way . The rain had past and the sun came out . Battled the wind all the way to Barrow . Down the descent of Paudy lane had to work hard to maintain 15mph . Finally turned left to Sileby and helped by a crosstail wind it was a but rapid . Slight detour in Sileby to avoid a flooded lane which has been shut for almost permanently since October . Mountsorrel ,Rothley ,Cropston 2 miles from home and it starts to rain again just press on and get home . 37.1 miles in the bag at a nice 16.6 mph average and got lucky with the timing of the rain
Dave 123
Legendary Member
- Location
- Cambridgeshire alps
Another ride today, this one in the sun.
Saw a beautiful female Bullfinch, it perched obligingly for a good while
https://www.strava.com/activities/3003937475
Saw a beautiful female Bullfinch, it perched obligingly for a good while
https://www.strava.com/activities/3003937475
roubaixtuesday
self serving virtue signaller
20 very pleasant miles in intermittent sunshine en tandem with Mrs Tuesday this afternoon, après le deluge this morning.
Turns out the stoker gets more splashback from standing water, or so Mrs Tuesday assures me, and I'm certainly not arguing...
Turns out the stoker gets more splashback from standing water, or so Mrs Tuesday assures me, and I'm certainly not arguing...
Donger
Convoi Exceptionnel
- Location
- Quedgeley, Glos.
With the recent weather and flooding, our club didn't post any routes this week. Four of us turned out anyway, and we paired up by ability level and went our separate ways. Tina and I rode out to Dursley via Frocester and Upper Cam and returned via Slimbridge and Frampton on Severn. We called in on a couple of clubmates who have just moved to the village of Frocester and had a very pleasant tea break. I had actually helped them move house a couple of days previously, and really needed this ride to get my muscles back to normal after a day of heavy lifting. Did the trick nicely. The forecast rain didn't put in an appearance, although it was a bit windy and there were some quite threatening black clouds ahead of us on the outward leg. A surprisingly nice sunny day in the end. 35.3 miles in the sunshine.
Cheers, Donger.
Cheers, Donger.
Stonechat
Guru
- Location
- Staines, Middlesex
Club ride today though not a long one,
4 of us started.
We went out via Wraysbury, Datchet, Eaton, Dorney, with diversion because of a closed bridge, via Burnham, Taplow to our destination in Bourne End.
refuelled by a large plateful of breakfast, we went via Cookham, Maidenhead, Bray, and Windsor.
36.25 miles @ 16.0 miles per hour, not bad as there was a fair wind out there, although parts of the return leg was with the wind and set a number of pb’s on Strava. Only 625 feet climbed, though this included one tough hill
https://www.strava.com/activities/3004418889
4 of us started.
We went out via Wraysbury, Datchet, Eaton, Dorney, with diversion because of a closed bridge, via Burnham, Taplow to our destination in Bourne End.
refuelled by a large plateful of breakfast, we went via Cookham, Maidenhead, Bray, and Windsor.
36.25 miles @ 16.0 miles per hour, not bad as there was a fair wind out there, although parts of the return leg was with the wind and set a number of pb’s on Strava. Only 625 feet climbed, though this included one tough hill
https://www.strava.com/activities/3004418889
Bagged my January entry for the Half Century challenge, but ended up not doing the route I had first intended.
Set off through Betton Abbots and then onto very muddy and flooded lanes to Berrington, Eaton Mascott and Cound. I was then heading in the direction of CoundMoor, where there were yet more deep floods and the ford looked virtually impassable. To be honest I’d had enough of mud and water, by now and with only 7 miles done I decided to back track and head for bigger lanes and Town cyclepaths instead.
So I headed back to Berrington and then to Cross Houses, which meant a short stint on the busy A458, but only 1 close pass. I then took the road down to Atcham and crossed the bridge, before eventually negotiating the very busy junction and along to Berwick Wharf. There was lots of traffic coming away from Attingham Park National Trust and so I was glad I hadn’t used the lane through the grounds.
Branched off to Upton Magna, then down to Uffington, another flood to deal with, then the muddy cycle path to the Sports Village, where the National Cyclocross Championships are taking place this weekend.
Continued on to Heathgates and joined my usual route around Town, along the towpath, where both floodgates were actually open today!! The Quarry was a slow slalom, with it being busier than I think I’ve ever seen it. Dogs and children running amok, necessitating a careful slow speed.
Next was Porthill, Shelton, Copthorne, Radbrook, Nobold, Meole Brace and then up to Reabrook, doubling back along the old railway bed to home, making sure I got the necessary mileage in.
31.45 miles
Set off through Betton Abbots and then onto very muddy and flooded lanes to Berrington, Eaton Mascott and Cound. I was then heading in the direction of CoundMoor, where there were yet more deep floods and the ford looked virtually impassable. To be honest I’d had enough of mud and water, by now and with only 7 miles done I decided to back track and head for bigger lanes and Town cyclepaths instead.
So I headed back to Berrington and then to Cross Houses, which meant a short stint on the busy A458, but only 1 close pass. I then took the road down to Atcham and crossed the bridge, before eventually negotiating the very busy junction and along to Berwick Wharf. There was lots of traffic coming away from Attingham Park National Trust and so I was glad I hadn’t used the lane through the grounds.
Branched off to Upton Magna, then down to Uffington, another flood to deal with, then the muddy cycle path to the Sports Village, where the National Cyclocross Championships are taking place this weekend.
Continued on to Heathgates and joined my usual route around Town, along the towpath, where both floodgates were actually open today!! The Quarry was a slow slalom, with it being busier than I think I’ve ever seen it. Dogs and children running amok, necessitating a careful slow speed.
Next was Porthill, Shelton, Copthorne, Radbrook, Nobold, Meole Brace and then up to Reabrook, doubling back along the old railway bed to home, making sure I got the necessary mileage in.
31.45 miles
- Location
- Shrewsbury, Shropshire
After the ride with Doug last weekend I was feeling good about getting out more during the week but a tickle in the throat on Monday morning turned into the dreaded lurgy by the afternoon and put paid to that idea.
Apart from a couple of very short utility rides, today was the first chance to get some miles in again and Doug came out as well. We kept it simple with the Condover, Cross Houses, Atcham, Upton Magna, Uffington, Shrewsbury route.
After heavy rain this morning the afternoon brightened up quite nicely but it was quite breezy. Doing the ride this way round meant that we started out against the wind but then had it helping from Condover through to Upton Magna so we got along quite nicely. A scenic detour was taken through Attingham Park, which had a good lot of visitors.
At Upton Magna we paused for a drink at the cafe at the Haughmond Inn. This is proving to be fairly popular with cyclists and they now have a couple of bar type racks to hold the bikes. Doug was quite tempted to head for the pub rather than the cafe but I suggested maybe another time would be better.
There was a minor flood to splash through on the way to Uffington and the canal path was pretty muddy even on the first tarmac section so we took a right and headed for Sundorne Road to avoid the worst of it. There was an event underway on the cycletrack at the Sports Village which I later found out was a round of the National Cyclocross Championships - we probably should have gone to hve a look.
Sundorne Road wasn't too bad traffic-wise, then after we joined the cycle path on Telford Way, Doug said he'd prefer to take the shortest route back this time, following the town inner ring road. We were riding into the wind again by now but it seemed to have eased a lot from earlier on which suited us just fine.
A reasonable number of other cyclists out today - it's good to see the earlier wet weather didn't put them off.
19.6 miles at 11.8 mph average. I think Doug did well this time and he did seem to enjoy it. Bodes well for building his fitness back up.
Sorry, no photos this time.
Apart from a couple of very short utility rides, today was the first chance to get some miles in again and Doug came out as well. We kept it simple with the Condover, Cross Houses, Atcham, Upton Magna, Uffington, Shrewsbury route.
After heavy rain this morning the afternoon brightened up quite nicely but it was quite breezy. Doing the ride this way round meant that we started out against the wind but then had it helping from Condover through to Upton Magna so we got along quite nicely. A scenic detour was taken through Attingham Park, which had a good lot of visitors.
At Upton Magna we paused for a drink at the cafe at the Haughmond Inn. This is proving to be fairly popular with cyclists and they now have a couple of bar type racks to hold the bikes. Doug was quite tempted to head for the pub rather than the cafe but I suggested maybe another time would be better.
There was a minor flood to splash through on the way to Uffington and the canal path was pretty muddy even on the first tarmac section so we took a right and headed for Sundorne Road to avoid the worst of it. There was an event underway on the cycletrack at the Sports Village which I later found out was a round of the National Cyclocross Championships - we probably should have gone to hve a look.
Sundorne Road wasn't too bad traffic-wise, then after we joined the cycle path on Telford Way, Doug said he'd prefer to take the shortest route back this time, following the town inner ring road. We were riding into the wind again by now but it seemed to have eased a lot from earlier on which suited us just fine.
A reasonable number of other cyclists out today - it's good to see the earlier wet weather didn't put them off.
19.6 miles at 11.8 mph average. I think Doug did well this time and he did seem to enjoy it. Bodes well for building his fitness back up.
Sorry, no photos this time.
AndreaJ
Veteran
Yesterday’s ride was only a short one to test ride my new bike, after getting home with it and quickly swapping some lights on to it as it was a bit dull I set off for a short ride round the Whixall lanes. No mudguards on the bike yet but it was dry out so didn’t get too filthy. 18 miles done and no adjustments needed to the bike. Unfortunately my run of rides in the sunshine came to an abrupt end this morning and it was raining quite hard when I got up although it soon stopped, I really wanted to ride the new bike and besides how wet and muddy could you get with no mudguards. I started on clean lanes to Wolverley, Loppington, Burlton turned to Myddle,found lots of mud through Nonely and into Wem where it stopped raining and the sun came out. Carried on to Barkers Green, Aston, back into Wem, Edstaston, Tilstock, Whixall adding an extra detour towards home to make it up to 50km. 33 miles @15.9mph. Turns out you get really filthy riding on wet roads with no mudguards, there was mud everywhere even in my hair 😂. Enjoying the new bike though. Now going to order mudguards.
