The intention today was to have a gentle pedal around, most likely down the riverside, maybe as far as Allerton Bywater, and back similarly. Twenty nine miles after starting I can say, ‘Yes, that is what I did.’ But there was more than that.
Gentle it aye was, 560 feet of climbing and none of it steep or long. There was lots of added interest though, for this rider. Reach the river path at the Armouries early enough for things to be quiet along there. Ride down through Woodlesford to Lemonroyd Marina and decide to try to stay on the west bank of the river or canal, ‘cos there are paths marked on the OS map. And for a pedestrian, there are indeed paths, bridleways, trails and stuff.
On 25 mm slicks it was an interesting ride. Had to walk up two gravelly stretches, and cautiously down another, due to lack of traction. Reached Methley Mires, fished there in my youth, never returned until now. Found the way to Methley Bridge and had fun lifting the bike over a fence to put it on the road. It was the sort of fun that you are glad when it is over, but happy that you did it. Then I rode through Castleford, crossed the Aire finally and up the hill to Allerton Bywater.
The Lines are here, a nature reserve, and St Aidan’s something or another with a similar purpose. I turned onto the Lines, had to stop to pass through a gate and ended up chatting to a dog walker who was also a cyclist. Called me brave for riding fixed wheel with SPDs on. Good chat, rode away. And was lost! I knew where I was, St Aidan’s, but it was not easy to find my way out. And then I found a gaggle of guides.
And after that found my way back to eastern / northern bank of the river. No need to explore further now, Woodlesford is soon reached and the familiar ride back to Leeds passed without event. After leaving the riverside for the rest of the ride home there was one closed road to find a way around, but home and the happy grin were close. A very good morning it was.
The way the wheels rolled,
I decided on a solo ride to make the most of the nice weather. My first stop was only about 10mls in as I was roasting and had once again left home without a drinks bottle. The pint of Lager shandy was lovely but the packet of accompanying Salt n Vinegar crisps was not a great idea as they obviously just made me even more thirsty later on. I don't know if somebody had slipped EPO into my shandy but, I then rode the remaining 20mls at a much faster pace than I normally would and seemed to actually enjoy the few steady 6-7% hills that I encountered too. There was even a section of bridleway that I blasted along finding mud from last nights storm in the process. This was quite an unusual ride for me as I'm generally a steady eddie and don't 'feel the need for speed' at all.. However, after arriving back home and taking a shower I soon realised that Mr Sun, riding too quickly and a 'foolish' lack of liquid' had taken hold and I have felt rough all afternoon 
My lungs felt as if I'd been inhaling hot air constantly (which I suppose I had really) so the bottle holder will definitely be going back on the bike tonight.
