Sorry to disappoint Noel but definitely hail.
It hurt and there was certainly no soft centre!
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Sorry to disappoint Noel but definitely hail.
It hurt and there was certainly no soft centre!
90% of my bike rides are bi-nation. Its almost impossible to cycle from my house on a circular route that does not cross the border. On or off road. Still, I've never been shot or had to leap over razor wire so I've got one up on Steve McQueen!
After THAT rugby match a couple of weeks back I'd make sure you have your helmet strapped on tight, in case those pesky English get their slingshots out and chase you back over Offas dyke.
Prompted by millipede's reference to the old Skipton - Colne track bed I decided to treat my Adventure bike to a day out in the hail and the wind and the misery. Millipede described the section she did as a bit "puddley" (sic). I think she meant puddly but she is a schoolteacher so we mustn't judge her too harshly.:)
Puddly (or "puddley") does not adequately describe the river I encountered flowing down a cutting between Carleton and Elslack - but rain does do that to abandoned undrained railway track beds. But intrepid being my middle name on I plunged for a total of 33 miles 1800 feet.
The sort of ride (or at some points - walk) one enjoys more in the shower than when one was on the saddle, and tomorrow is another day.
Wow reading Graham's post highlights how soft I am��.
Raining, so the best I managed was 1hr on the turbo, medium intensity, on the outdoor patio.
No ride for me yesterday or today, weather too grim and not safe for my peddling. Today was strong winds gusting far too hard for my liking, interspersed with hail storms.
I went for a walk on the hills instead and was caught in a snow storm, no way I would have stayed upright in that wind.
I watch cycling on Eurosport and today at Paris-Nice (Stage 6) Primož Roglič blasted past Gino Mäder in the last 50 metres to win his third stage: absolutely ruthless.
Roglič is the real deal.
:D:DQuote:
Originally Posted by Graham Breeze
Oh my goodness. I'm glad I didn't miss this post.
You did choose to ride it after a week of solid rain when running across fields has been unpleasant, even for a fellrunner.
We did it after a dry patch! Although the land rover bit is always a lake.
Hope you didn't call me too many rude words during....
"Oh Fragrant Emily" was never far from my lips.:)Quote:
Originally Posted by millipede
There is an old railway height gauge near the "puddle" and I wish now I had taken a photograph to show my grandchildren - "it was here I nearly drowned". :cool:
Thoroughly miserable ride today, ground up the forestry in wind and cold, after an hour the rain started and wind increased to a level that was dodgy. Cut the ride short then and headed back down the hill - brakes hard on to avoid being dumped in a ditch, very pleased to make it back to the valley (wet and very cold) in one piece. 31k and 810m, not a soul about and saw maybe 2 cars. There was still pockets of snow in the forestry from yesterday - is the weather like this everywhere?
It didn't go well for him yesterday. Been enjoying the coverage of both stage races on Eurosport and it just left a tinge of sadness when the race ended up like that. Hard to watch.Quote:
Originally Posted by Graham Breeze
It looked a lot warmer outside today than it actually was, and windier too.
A headwind out to Chelmorton and Brierlow Bar on the Scott Solace before a little shelter over to Earl Sterndale, Glutton Bridge and Hollinsclough. Back to Longnor and then along the ridge between the Dove and Manifold valleys with a nice tailwind to Hulme End. The beautiful views were only glimpsed as that road, especially through Sheen, has a terrible surface in places.
Back to Hartington and then up Long Dale which seems to always funnel a westerly into a northerly headwind. The legs were tired so I crossed the 515 at Tagg Lane, dropped into Monyash and a nice taily home.
It was nice to hear children's voices again from the village school playgrounds that I passed, a sign that things may be getting better. Three other cyclists seen, a couple on a tandem and what looked like a proper cyclist dressed in all black Castelli Haute Couture who sped passed me at the bottom of Long Dale, as I was stationary finishing my Marathon, without even a wave or hello.
I can happily report that I reeled him in, Roglic like, in under two miles just before he turned off to Parsley Hay. No wonder my legs were tired!
A total of 30.82 miles, 2,756 feet in 2hrs 10min. A very enjoyable ride out.
As noted earlier there used to be a railway between Colne (via Foulridge, Earby [Barnoldswick], Thornton, Elslack) and Skipton. It was 11 1/4 miles long. From Colne you could travel anywhere and similarly from Skipton eg via the Settle-Carlisle to Scotland. Barbara Castle (Labour Transport Minister) authorised its closure from 1st February 1970, a closure NOT recommended in the 1963 Beeching Report.
Very little of the "track bed" has been built on and a study is to be carried out to assess the viability of rebuilding the line. "A no-brainer" is not a phrase I use often but in this case...
It is actually possible to travel the 11 1/4 miles between Colne and Skipton by train. It requires 3 changes and takes 4 hours 10 mins (and a single is from £23). Skipton is north of Colne but the current rail route via Burnley, Halifax and Bradford goes a long, long way south first.
And apart from revitalising the labour market and the economy there is the benefit of a shorter more efficient route for 2000+ tonnes quarry trains.
Anyway: today's blue sky merited a trip on the Bianchi so I cycled via Silsden, Cowling and Colne to Foulridge (notable as one end of the famous long tunnel on the Leeds-Liverpool canal) to explore the last bit of track bed to Colne 2 1/4 miles away, which I had never explored. Most of the track bed is in a cutting and therefore approximates to a swamp and the path that walkers have created over the past 51 years is uneven, unattractive and mostly mud. Of course reclaiming track beds for social purposes (SUSTRANS) is far harder and more expensive for those in cuttings so SUSTRANS usually go for those on embankments to avoid the drainage issues. I have ridden on some lovely elevated routes. And obviously a route in a cutting is not quite as attractive to those seeking spectacular views.
The track bed comes to an abrupt stop at the A6068 (Vivary Way)by Boundary Mill, Colne which I joined, suitably subdued, to ride home up the long drag (passing Black Lane Ends) to the wonderful Pinhaw Beacon (388 metres) with its spectacular views and deliciously long and fast 12% descent to Carleton in Craven and Skipton.
42 miles and 3250 feet. It was a beautiful day so I was happy to ride and of course there would have been no practical train service available to get me home had I had a major mechanical:)
12k on the tandem with Mrs Noel before the sun set. Glorious hazy views across the Cheshire plain from the road near the Hanging Gate Pub.
We did about 5km running earlier in the day, so all good triathlon training. I might do a few lengths of the bath later for the full training experience.
26 miles and 3525ft around the reservoir, mix of on and off road. I am not fast in these hills!
sounds like a nice day out Graham.Quote:
Originally Posted by Graham Breeze
The quarry trains can I think use the Clitheroe section and link up to Long Preston and is occasionally used for some seasonal passenger trains and quite often for freight, as well as an option when the West Coast mainline is out of action.
I agree though opening up beyond Colne would add options, as well as more regular services via Clitheroe.
28 miles in the forest of dean. 3,140 feet of climbing. Average 9 mph. Me and Mr Bosch that is.
Glad I continue to inspire you Mr B.
I went out on my newly serviced bike last night.
Was smoothly whizzing along with my brand new sprocket, new brakes and new pedals.
Until at the end of a long very steep decent into Lothersdale part of my brake (the disc?) fell out onto the floor.
I stopped to pick it up and burnt my hand. Ouch.
Do you need to bed new disc brakes in?
Yikes. I didn't know that could happen.
Glad I continue to inspire you Mr B.
I went out on my newly serviced bike last night.
Was smoothly whizzing along with my brand new sprocket, new brakes and new pedals.
Until at the end of a long very steep decent into Lothersdale part of my brake (the disc?) fell out onto the floor.
I stopped to pick it up and burnt my hand. Ouch.
Do you need to bed new disc brakes in?
Are you sure it was the disc? they are pretty big and attached, hopefully firmly, to the wheel. If was a couple of cm square then it was probably a brake pad, still shouldn't fall off though.
23 miles, 2900ft in forestry tracks at 10.75mph. No electricity 🔌!
Er no. That all sounds very odd. And whatever happened should not have.Quote:
Originally Posted by millipede
But what you should have done was take the wheel out, held it high in the air looking forlorn and the yellow Mavic support car would have zoomed up and sorted you out in a trice. :)
The mechanic said it was because my bike is so old.
You know what the answer to that is don't you? :D
Ah but one (of the many) idiosyncrasies of modern cycling is that the neutral support only carry rim brake wheels and then you have to hope it's the right thru axle too!Quote:
Originally Posted by Graham Breeze
Yes! That's what is was. They've shoved it back in. Will see how it gets on tomorrow!Quote:
Originally Posted by bigfella
The mechanic is...?Quote:
Originally Posted by millipede
Well I have now and have had bikes with proper brakes and those gimmicky discy things and I am not convinced discs are not just another way for bike manufacturers to take our money.Quote:
Originally Posted by PeteS
On the last bike where I had a choice I chose rim brakes.
It's been a while since I last took the road that climbs 140 metres from Woodhouse to the col between Beacon Hill and Broombriggs Hill, but that was my route today. Then a gentle descent before turning into Priory Lane: this road is 3.5km at right angles to the contours (3 climbs, 2 descents); someone should paint some brown lines across the road to match what the OS map shows. After this the ride became less steep, although the highest point (232 metres) at Hobby Hall was still to come.
Total of 360 metres of climbing in this little 85-minute jaunt around Charnwood Forest.
You probably need to peddle considerably faster than you do to appreciate the superior stopping power of disc brakes 😜.Quote:
Originally Posted by Graham Breeze
Whoo hoo!:DQuote:
Originally Posted by molehill
I live at 120 metres and with the sunshine yielding a pleasant 61 F I thought it was time to show my striking red/blue (matches the bike) St.Raphael/ Geminiani top to the world again on my favourite Blubberhouses Moor/Greenhow/ Grassington/ Thresfield/ Skipton route. But who would have thought that by the time I had climbed to a mere 285 metres and turned into a biting north wind that the temperature would have plunged to only 39 F and I was reaching for my cag? Not many riders out and those that were were all serious riders on serious bikes - none of these battery things out today. Perhaps everyone was watching Milan - San Remo on Eurosport as I did later with its brilliant surprising finish.
Anyway a second 42 mile ride (3600 feet), [max speed 36mph, max pulse 148bpm] since Tuesday totalling 666 miles this year. Walking is at 119 miles. Fell racing is still at 0 miles.:(
As the old saying goes:
“All the gear, look even more of a knobhead....”
Postman Pat satchel accessory deployed
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/ExE3JeSX...jpg&name=large
A cracking 15.5 miler from home yesterday, two thirds of it off road on the Pennine Bridleway:
Up the High Birkwith lane from Horton and then scooting left on the Pennine Bridleway just before High Birkwith, over the river bridge and under the railway bridge and across the road just before Selside, then through Ingleborough Nature Reserve, straight on at Sulber Nick, past the epic limestoneyness of Thieves Moss and down on the now mainly grassy track into Crummack Dale. Then Crammack Lane down to Austwick but swiftly back on the Bridleway over to Feizor for a takeout coffee and cake. Then up over the top past Feizor and Wharfe Woods and down the other side to pick up the lane from Austwick to Helwith Bridge. Then a main road speed burst from Helwith Bridge to home
A barnstormer
With a couple of small variations to avoid most of the roads completely this route is a fantastically fast running route too. About 1500 feet of climb altogether
Left hamstring a bit sore today after yesterdays run but due to a glorious day and my op on Wednesday I had to go out for a ride.
I did not want to go too far from home just in case it gave me jip so I rode the Scott Solace up to Chelmorton and then did three laps of a six mile circuit which went over to the 515, left to the Bull i'th Thorn, left down to Flagg and left again back to Chelmorton.
A total of 31 and a half miles, 2,844 feet in 2hrs 2 min. One other cyclist seen and the hammy was fine:)
As I write this I can feel my face tingling from a bit of sun/wind burn. Spring is sprung!
Nice to find someone riding with a bottom gear even higher than I have with my 7-speed hub gears (although I suspect that your machine is somewhat lighter than my tourer). Not like these pansies riding around with sprockets bigger than their chainrings. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Marco
Breezie?
Quote:
Originally Posted by anthonykay
How dare you!Quote:
Originally Posted by brett
And sometimes I even forget I have a small front ring. :)
Still up?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Graham Breeze