Your ride today....

[Old jon]

No ride yesterday, I was playing with dough.

From the left, a sourdough raised potato bread and two yeast raised poppy seed loaves. Its a good job I ride, it keeps the waistline down a bit.

Today the wind was evil, where I live it swirls and gusts unpredictably around the houses. I started the ride intending to travel up Wharfedale again, but at the top of the Chevin on the Harrogate to Bradford road I wimped out. Turned left and the wind immediately felt less threatening. Anyway, rode through Guiseley and found the road to Shipley, where the bike was born and stopped at the top of Hollins Hill for a poppy seed bread and Arran cheese sandwich.

Dropped down the very well surfaced hill, called in Ellis Briggs for a chat and went home by the boring direct route with the wind on my back. Wonderful 31.5 miles

 

[EltonFrog]

@Old jon Nice looking bread. How do get it to rise so much?

Just got back from my second Charlie Pride today, needed some spuds for bangers and mash tonight, so instead using the old jam jar to go down the bottle, I jumped on the ol' Dick Van Dyke and off down the frog n toad to the farm shop, I got a Bunyan and a cows egg while I was there too. Another two n'arf miles.

 

[mybike]

Just a short ride today, after last weeks fun along the North Wales coastal path. Last week seems to have have done the OH good, after her fun & games with the medical profession as it was her suggestion. I was a bit doubtful, as yesterdays walk along the canal showed end to end puddles. But it seems the puddles have drained away, in the main.

Only one photograph from today, showing the changing season. The trees are dropping their leaves making it a little more difficult to see the lumps of concrete.

It was a bit of hard going with my tyres still inflated to pressures suitable for hard smooth surfaces and the mud was thick enough to be slippery. However my front DR is making a funny noise due to the cage rubbing on the highest (lowest?) gear. There's the problem with bike racks on cars!

7.8 miles at an average of 5.7mph Year to date 359.8

Some pictures from last week - the change in the weather is notable, as is the quality of the surface.

At Splash Point

On the way to a nice little cafe, just before Llandullas

 

[Racing roadkill]

https://www.strava.com/activities/418060595
Just a short hop today.

 

[galaxy]

Mr & Mts Galaxy on of out regularly routes. Taking in a nice 10 miles mostly of rd.

 

[NorthernDave]

Two days, two rides - no photos though.

Yesterday I literally had a spare half hour, so jumped on the road bike and legged it round a quick local 5.67 miles in 22 mins at an average of 15.4mph.
Back home, freshen up, quick change and out to see the hilarious Chris Ramsey at the City Varieties.

Today I had marginally longer (although not long enough...), so another local spin round knowing that anything over 10.1 miles would put me over 230 miles for the month (gotta love that OCD ). Blooming awful gusty horrible wind this afternoon though, which made it interesting at times.
11.39 miles in 44m 52s at an average of 15.2mph. Did manage a PB though

 

[Saluki]

https://www.strava.com/activities/418225492

Home to Hospital, without getting lost.
As I rode up the hill (not much of a hill but I've seen kids pushing their triple ringed MTBs up it, bless 'em), I overtook a chap on a nice roadie and said 'good morning' as I whizzed past on my CX. He caught up with me at the lights and said that it was OK for me, I was half his age. I asked him how old he was. Turned out he was 10 years younger than me. I pointed out that my bike was not a nice roadie like his and I had my winter knobblies on. He was astonished that I was going as 'far as Ipswich' .
I followed the route that I had worked out, it went well. I did have a chat with a driving instructor after his pupil nearly had me off the bike with his close pass. I mentioned 1.5m when passing and the instructor said 'are you sure'. I said that I was positive and that he might want a squint at the highway code before teaching his pupils to overtake anything.

The correct route is 11.47 miles. It took an age to get round the roundabout when I hit the outskirts of Ipswich but the cyclepaths are great here. It was the only hold up on the ride, except for the roadworks near ours.

I have found the box where my camera was packed. I forgot to take it with me, not that I saw anything to photograph today, too overcast and miserable grey looking out.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

Great writeup and great pictures @User9609!
I recognize many of the places from rides past, didn't do any of the hills though
Ah that canal! Every time I ride it I say "never again"

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

A couple of contrasting rides on the commute today. I had a great ride in with a good tail wind and the Raleigh just seeming to fly along. So much so that I varied the route, adding two miles so that I wouldn't be in too early. The 12 miles was rattled off quicker than 10 miles usually takes on the other bike.

The journey back wasn't quite so good. I needed to be home in good time this evening so took the short route but it was against the wind which slowed me down, the new saddle seemed slippier than this morning for some reason which made maintaining a good pedalling rythm difficult and the other traffic wasn't overly polite in passing.I topped this disappointing trip off by riding through a long stretch of fresh hedge cuttings and picking up a thorn in my front tyre (first puncture since fitting Marathons to this bike about 6000 miles ago ). I may avoid that route for a while until the motor traffic has cleared the cuttings a bit.

20.4 miles for the round trip at an average of 14.9 mph - not too shabby really.

Edit: Have been looking back at my records and it's actually five years and 7000 miles since I started using the Marathons on this bike.

I suppose one puncture that held pressure 'til I got home and pulled the thorn out is acceptable in that time.

 

[sanddancer]

My regular suburbs route, but done the opposite way to my recent trips along it. Battled through the roadworks into Sutton Farm, then down to Meole Brace, climbed up to Nobold, through Radbrook, Copthorne, Porthill and into the Quarry. Along the towpath to Heathgates and back along the cycle paths home.

Things to note, carpet of wet fallen leaves were quite slippy and so took it gingerly for a lot of the ride. Woman stepped out from Reabrook Nature path, without looking, which wouldn't have been a problem if she didn't extend the lead her dog was on, across my path in the cycle lane! Emergency stop avoided crashing into dog

12.9 miles

That happened to a lad at works brother. He never saw the lead until too late and broke his ribs

afer commuting on my 12 hour days mon tue i missed wed night shift due to mrs sandancer serving up a big fry up half hour before i was due to leave
back on the bike tonght though for my last shift. Used the triban for a first decent ride and im very pleased with it for the money.
the seat feels more comfy than my defy 1 but prefer the defy's thicker handlebars.

 

[sanddancer]

Nice ride home this morning from work, last 12 hour shift took a bit of a detour. Clocked up 9.5 mile instead of 7.7

I thought so much about doing this commuting lark and have put it off for so long for one reason or another, mainly thinking it would be a real pain but I'm so glad I did and hope I keep it up

 

[Stonechat]

Nice ride home this morning from work, last 12 hour shift took a bit of a detour. Clocked up 9.5 mile instead of 7.7

I thought so much about doing this commuting lark and have put it off for so long for one reason or another, mainly thinking it would be a real pain but I'm so glad I did and hope I keep it up

You'll soon be adding bigger and bigger diversions!

 

[Racing roadkill]

https://www.strava.com/activities/418581889

Just a little one to top off all the Strava stuff for this month

 

[Old jon]

@CarlP Good recipes I reckon, I just follow them.
The short Lotherton circuit today, 29.6 miles, sandwich in the deer hide and a picture of the bike in the same place.

Nothing happening with the deer, they all seemed to be at the other end of the park. About two miles before I reached Lotherton this happened:-

I can only tell you about this 'cos I could slow down faster than the car was slowing down . . .

 

[Elybazza61]

Little ride out with the better half today for her first go with the Look pedals;all good too no wobbly moments and no falls,she's getting good at this cycling lark.

https://www.strava.com/activities/418623776