Your ride today....

[Gravity Aided]

Another 7.1 miles for me today, nice weather and brilliant sunshine, no mistakes about the forecast today. But very few people out there, I suppose they are all in spin class.
54F
12C
Winds SW 13
64% relative humidity
29.78 barometer
Sunny

 

[Katherine]

First ride out after two and a half weeks. (Post wisdom tooth extraction pain finally settling) Just a 17 mile pootle around Salford to get the legs going.

 

[Tail End Charlie]

A spin out on my fixed and I headed up towards some hills as I've being doing flat rides of late. Bagged a carving on the back way up to the top of Alderley Edge, it's not by the chap I know, it's an owl and the seat round the tree in the background is cute aswell.

Passed a stone trough on the way to the lunch stop, the names Grice (I think), Barnshaw and Waller and carved into the side and the date 1836 with what looks like a trig point motif aswell, it's on the left of the names. Very strange. Lunch was at Sutton Garden Centre.

Bagged another carving near Henbury

And finally climbed over a gate to get a pic of Henbury Hall. I think this is now owned by the Ferranti family and the gardens are open on only a couple of days each year, but well worth visiting. From memory one of the owners in the Victoria age was responsible for introducing the grey squirrel into the area. I must revisit this year as it's been years since I last went.

My knees were complaining towards the end of the ride.

 

[Elybazza61]

Yesterday afternoon bunked off work early to ride home basically doing a return journey back from that mornings commute;nice to have the wind mostly at my back although did get a bit buffeted along the stretch from Earith to Haddenham.

https://www.strava.com/activities/447269848

Stopped to take a pic of the sun setting at the busway stop at Fenstanton;

Only downer is that I have dropped my glasses somewhere( I wear contacts when riding),thought I'd left them at work but they are not there so must have lost them somewhere.Hey,ho they were a bit past their best anyway(lots of scratches and were nearly 3 years old) and I'm due a test next week so will see if I can get a pair via my contacts contract(seems I get should get a free pair).

 

[Racing roadkill]

I got out early today, in order to miss the worst of the promised weather. Then it duly arrived, several hours early ( good old met office ZX spectrum at its finest again). Yet again I had an absolute pillock struggle past me, nearly clattering me as he failed in his attempt, it was so bad I had words with the idiot this time, anyway other than that complete horn gobbling bib dribbler, and the cack weather, the new tyres performed fantastically and I got round in a non too shabby time.

https://www.strava.com/activities/447660085

 

[Donger]

No rides for 8 days now, and I'm going nuts thinking about completing the Metric Century a Month Challenge.(Ricked neck just not getting better).

P.S. Just thought I'd let you all know I've started off a "Your Rides This Year" thread again this year. Foolishly, I launched it late at night on a quiet day, though, so it is currently tucked away somewhere on page 3 of the "Cycle Chat Cafe" list of threads, now, unloved and sliding down the charts.

 

[Katherine]

No rides for 8 days now, and I'm going nuts thinking about completing the Metric Century a Month Challenge.(Ricked neck just not getting better).

P.S. Just thought I'd let you all know I've started off a "Your Rides This Year" thread again this year. Foolishly, I launched it late at night on a quiet day, though, so it is currently tucked away somewhere on page 3 of the "Cycle Chat Cafe" list of threads, now, unloved and sliding down the charts.

Can you put a link here please?

Sorry that your neck isn't getting any better. Have you been on the bike at at all? Even for just a short ride?

 

[Donger]

Can you put a link here please?

Sorry that your neck isn't getting any better. Have you been on the bike at at all? Even for just a short ride?

Not sure about a link, but all you need to do is go to "Forums",& "Cycle Chat Café" and a list of page numbers comes up. Quite a few decent threads end up in the lower pages from time to time ... just depends on when anyone last replied. As to the neck ... 8 days of anti-inflamatories and loafing around with a cushion behind my neck as soon as I get home from work. Will give it another 3 or 4 days before going to the doc. Have got nowhere near my bike.

 

[Katherine]

Not sure about a link, but all you need to do is go to "Forums",& "Cycle Chat Café" and a list of page numbers comes up. Quite a few decent threads end up in the lower pages from time to time ... just depends on when anyone last replied. As to the neck ... 8 days of anti-inflamatories and loafing around with a cushion behind my neck as soon as I get home from work. Will give it another 3 or 4 days before going to the doc. Have got nowhere near my bike.

Sounds like you've given it plenty of time already. Should go to the doc. They might give you some stretching exercises or some drugs to ease the tension other than anti-imflamatories.

 

[Racing roadkill]

https://www.strava.com/activities/448235159

A bit of a jolly on the cleaned and adjusted Boardman. I over shortened the chain, which gave me a bit of an moment, when I tried to downshift for a hill (the rear mech went fully horizontal ), so I got some chain pins in order to re lenghthen the chain, I got a couple of jockey wheels for the rear mech (the ones that are on there at the moment are a bit goosed), and whilst I was at it, I got some 25mm GP4 seasons. Then I went and got some free swag courtesy of O2. The weather wasn't even close to being as bad as predicted either.

 

[Old jon]

Totally unrealised until I got home, I did the same ( ish ) ride as last Friday. The first of the rain hit at the bottom of Garforth Cliff, and it hit hard. So I adjusted my plans for the ride, missed out Sherburn and travelled through Micklefield instead. That shortened the route by about six miles, roughly half an hour at my current riding speed. So, 31.6 miles started with the standard pedal through Hunslet, which is relatively quiet after ten in the morning, up to John O' Gaunts, past Woodlesford station and over the river to climb the hill into Swillington. Garforth for the first of the rain, Micklefield, Lotherton gates, Aberford, Barwick ( more swimming ), Scholes, A 64, Thorner Lane, Skeltons Lane and Red Hall and my usual grin factor 11 descent of Boot Hill. The rain / hail / purple frogs caught me again on Leathley Road and stayed with me almost to my front door, about a mile and a half. All the waterproofs did what they should have, but by 'eck my feet were cold.

 

[Elswick Cotterpin]

Ten mile loop in the rain... just because.

 

[Racing roadkill]

https://www.strava.com/activities/448762184

A short one due to the strong gusts today.

I changed the jockey wheels, and lengthened the chain on the Boardman, that did help.
It got mucky, so I put it in the shower when I got back.

I'm going to put the original 105 spec 11-25 cassette back on it ( rather than the current Ultegra 11-28), then put the new GP4 seasons on as well.

 

[Elybazza61]

Club ride this morning and a proper HTFU day.

Got to the start as the easy group were leaving to find just Martin waiting for the moderates,routes had been shortened and we waited a few more minutes before setting off in the drizzle;decision would be made when we caught the first group on what to do for the rest of the ride.

Finally caught the first group at Haddenham and as things got stretched on Haddenham hill Martin and Dan who had been in the first group headed off,after a quick chat with the club captain about the routes(and his new bike!)I decided to try and keep up with the other two.

Failed in keeping up so rather than wait in the now persistent rain I headed off on the shorter route but then went properly solo doing a bit of the busway(and I needed a comfort break so made use of the warm toilets at the bus stop);got off at Westwick and rode back via Cottenham.

57 kms at the end which ain't too shabby in the wind and rain and in some ways I found it perversely enjoyable.

https://www.strava.com/activities/448697179

 

[Goonerobes]

The grey miserable weather kind of matched my mood as failures to both the laptop & the Garmin made for a not very happy chap as I set off with no particular plan for todays sortie having already completed the metric ton a month challenge.

The sight of the local hunt setting off from Minstead on their seasonal savagery hardly enhanced matters & the usual differing opinions were duly exchanged before continuing on my meander around the local lanes. Seemingly avoiding the worst of the winds I decided to head into Wiltshire for a while & once the Bolderwood climb was out of the way it was a flattish 20 miles or so through the country lanes of Ipsley, Sandleheath & Martin where at 30 odd miles in I decided to loop back.

A gentle 200ft climb was made easy by the howling tail wind I had now picked up, although this was short lived & the descent upon turning right was back into it with speeds slower than going up the hill in the first place & a slight left turn was soon applied to bring back a cross wind as I headed down through Rockbourne to Fordingbridge & back across the forest for home.

57 miles in all with some pretty blustery conditions but the grey skies held onto the rain & I got home dry if not particularly clean!!

https://www.strava.com/activities/448768951