Your ride today....

[Stonechat]

Went out today.
This week is meant to be a hardish week, things then start tapering off for the velothon

So did some hard intervals first (Carried the effects of those in my legs for the rest of the ride)
Went from there (Shepperton) through Chertsey and Viriginia Water up past the park to the Winkfield/Drift Road loop

Back home through the deer park.

Two rain storms, one short but quite hard on the Drift Road loop, another when I was on the Wraysbury-Staines Road, saw of the worst under the motorway bridge and hurried home. Needless to say there is brilliant sunshine now

47.24 miles @ 16.5 mph
1903 feet climbed

Felt I was not at full speed so I do seem to be building up well for the Velothon

Also completed the Strava Climbing Challenge, without really going for it
Currently at 5556 metres climbed in the month (excuse the mixture of units)
Still Sunday's club ride to go.

https://www.strava.com/activities/559917938

 

[Stonechat]

A pretty brutal 63.5km this morning, averaging 15m of climbing per 1km of riding(about 79ft per mile).
It wasn't the climbing that made it brutal it was the mixed bag of weather, sunshine, cold/cloudy and wintry showers.
On my final big climb(a cat 3) the cold side wind turned from gusty to very stormy, just about stayed on the bike. With a left turn and 300m of climbing to go I was grinding straight into a wind doing it's best to blow me off. The weather then decided to get worse by adding in lots of painful hailstones.

It was looking nice.
View attachment 126478

Then two minutes later, my face was in pain from the hailstones.
View attachment 126479

The another two minutes later, the sun came out but it was a little muddy.
View attachment 126480


Now going out to the garage to clean the bike as it looks like I've been doing some cycle cross on it.

well done you deffo have cojones

 

[iandg]

A day off work and out on the cross-check (I love that bike). Mostly off road from Stornoway across the Castle Grounds and out past the fabrication yard to the old battery and lighthouse then up to the Bonnie Prince Charlie Memorial, more Castle Grounds trails then back home. The new Hawkwind album (The Machine Stops) blasting through the earphones for the first 15km and then shuffled to 'Space Ritual' for the rest of the ride

View: https://www.strava.com/activities/559916717/embed/1096624b015e8cdd4dbc926e1ef722a2a89f89ae

More snaps here

 

[BSRU]

well done you deffo have cojones

Or I'm mad as a hatter

 

[Racing roadkill]

https://www.strava.com/activities/560025568

I went out to Winchester on the easier, shorter route today. I nearly got skittled by a grouse that popped out of a hedge on a fast descent, I took its head off with my pedal, but managed to stay upright. I had to clean some claret off of my boot, when I got to Winchester, then I forgot to restart the Strava, so there's a chunk of the ride missing ( to match the chunk of the grouse that was missing, I guess). I got caught in a properly nasty hail storm on the return as well, which is always 'interesting', when the road in front of you turns into marbles. About 35 miles in total, one more sticker to add to the collection, and a stingy face, from the hail storm. I saw something that's quite a rarity round here as well.

3 black swans.

Some white swans, swanning about with the black swans.

Ooooh I've just noticed that one of the White swans is a different type of swan to the others. It's got a white beak, and no black feathers on its face, I reckon its foreign or something (possibly an alien).

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Another ride over to Maryport today. But first I had an errand to run in Cockermouth. The weather is dire. Snow on the hills just up the road, cold wind and showers. But I took on the challenge and took to Broughton Moor. I could see the rain around and about and I even had some drop on me.

I did a little explore in the streets of Maryport and as I rode out along the prom the wind was whipping up the waves. I was riding into a strong head wind and heading straight for a band of rain and sure enough it began to hit. Turning inland helped but cold was setting in and looking at the snow on the fells didn't warm me up. Despite that I took the longer way around by Isel and the Ouse bridge. Skiddaw was white with snow but in a quiet and sheltered spot on the Ellen the swallows and martins, newly arrived from Africa, were happily catching food on the wing. Bizarre? - absolutely.

 

[BSRU]

A little video of the last part of my cat 3 climb, remembering it was sunny before and after this.
I was very glad I packed a waterproof jacket in my saddle bag, it was definitely needed.
I stopped before going down the decent, 17% with a right hand bend at the bottom, easy 40mph in the dry but not this time, braking all the way down.


View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Muuxseegf6I

 

[biggs682]

Up and out early this morning with intention of 31 miles .

Headed out of the boro via the mad mile and towards Overstone around the walled grounds of the Overstone Manor into Northampton and then down towards Billing Mill across to Little and Great Houghton.

Next was Preston Deanery and a short blast down the main road to Hackleton and Horton this section of road was still in the shade si felt a bit slippy.

From here on it was homeward bound with a slight tail wind . On the way to Denton you can see what the ctc have spent their money on .

Only joking about the ctc and money. Next up was the lovely village of Denton followed by Whiston then along to Earls Barton where the newly built marina now has a few spare moorings.

After Earls Barton it was Mears Ashby and back down the mad mile to home a total of 30.2 miles.

 

[Billy Wizz]

Just like the Med well ish.
The thermals are finally put to bed, a quick ten miles a slight breeze but otherwise a lovely ride along the Thames.

 

[mark st1]

View attachment 126566 Just like the Med well ish.
The thermals are finally put to bed, a quick ten miles a slight breeze but otherwise a lovely ride along the Thames.

That's a cracking pic.

 

[cosmicbike]

After a week of commuting I dusted off the MTB and headed over to Swinley Forest with my lad. He's just about too big for his 24" MX2, but not quite big enough for the 26" Hardrock I've been refurbishing for him, so we went with the smaller bike.
Cracking fun, green trail to warm up, then a good run on the blue before finishing on a green lap. Glad we got there early ish at 0900 as by the time we left is was packed.

 

[Billy Wizz]

That's a cracking pic.

Thanks it was one of them, stop the bike and take a quick pic, it was really bright I wasn't expecting it to come out like that.

 

[SteveF]

Picked up the new bike.... very pleased with it.. Quite a lot of traffic out there but, well it's London so shouldn't be surprised really I suppose.

View: https://www.strava.com/activities/560856909/embed/a8a6d22f03c499114e793ddf25d4a4cb94c15eb5

 

[derrick]

Good club ride this morning, 10 of us left the cafe this morning for a loop of Hertford. Roads were nice and quiet a lot of people must have gone away for the weekend, Made for an enjoyable ride, we only had to stop once, Group of guys stopped us as they were having trouble with a chain that some how had put a double loop in itself. After a bit of faffing around we managed to sort it out for them lol. Then a nice ride back to the cafe for another coffee. Another great ride with the club.

 

[Old jon]

There is a bit of a bike race going on today round here, so a bit of careful route planning was called for, not wanting to be on the wrong side of anything.

My Holbeck meander is an easy approach to Office Lock, and from there to Viaduct Road and Cardigan Road is almost automatic. Up to the Ring Road at Lawnswood school, over that and take a left up Otley Old Road, carry on along the side of the airport and cross the A 658. Yup, I know. I am still heading towards Otley, where all the race stuff is starting. Take the second left turn off after crossing the A 658, York Gate I think it is called, there used to be a quarry of that name along there. It is still high up, and the views repay you for the pedal up there.

The end of that road was not quite as I remembered it, but a couple of turns had me pointing towards Guiseley and eventually I reached the top of Hollins Hill, above Baildon.



So down that, through Shipley and back towards Leeds through Thackley, Calverley, Rodley, and Kirkstall. Back on the canal and the end of the 31.5 miles was celebrated with the last ten minutes under a very generous raincloud. Ah well.