Today's Bike Ride

[mr brightside]

My all-too-rare cycle rides go to all points of the compass from my home, but I have noticed that Graham in Ilkley and Mr B in Horsforth always seem to go to the north and/or west, and certainly never venture into the quadrant from South to East. I can't imagine why.

Why have cotton when you can have silk?

Who would want the inconvenience of the vale of york when you can see the rolling hills of lower wharfedale? Beckwithshaw is worth a visit, but you won't want to venture further south without say a puncture or a collapsed bearing and the desperate need for an LBS such as spa cycles in starbeck. Only lower wharfedale has the craven arms.

[PeteS]

A short MTB ride up to Warley Woods to take in the XC races where I bumped into Travs. Coventry Godiva seemed to be having a fine day with 1st and 3rd in the women's race and many placing high in the men's. I will let Pete fill you in on that.
It was a fine day for cycling and I even braved the shorts. I left the woods and went into Brum via an old disused railway line and then took the main line canal through Gas St and round to the university. Back along Bridalways and up to Woodgate Valley country park where I finally had to get on the road for the last couple of miles home. About 25k in all.

[Graham Breeze]

It being two years to the day since I ran in my last fell race (Whinberry Naze - First V75) and forty years since I first ran in the Chevin Chase I thought I would pootle out for a 40 miles ride through the villages south of Harrogate where rich people who think Harrogate is vulgar live.

Thus my sojourn took in Castley, Weeton, Dunkeswick, Kearby with Netherby, Kirkby Overblow… In tiny Castley there is a largish terrace house that is divided into two 4- bedroom dwellings. One is named Castley Hall East and the other side is Castley Hall West. It sounds rather grand but neither is particularly distinguished although they are worth around £1 million each. But Castley Hall?

These country roads tend to be so quiet that, like today, you meet more cyclists than motorists although the latter do tend to be in huge “look at me” Range Rovers. And thinking of modest, understated vehicles, as I was withdrawing a few pounds from the cash dispenser earlier this morning I noticed the man waiting patiently for me to finish had just stepped out of (I suppose “step up from” is more accurate) an orange Lamborghini parked a few feet from my beautiful Bianchi in celeste. This car is local to Ilkley (it is a LP640-04 V10 5.2 litre Huracan) and although built in 2021 the rear plate displays POW113R except the 3 is reversed so a blind man on a galloping horse might think it reads POWER. Well possibly. The young man might of course have been patiently pondering whether to offer to swap his Italian car for my gorgeous Italian bike - but could I really be seen in an orange car? Does orange really go with insouciant gravitas? Oh vulgar, vulgar.

I only noticed that it was the 40th running of the Chevin Chase because my son was running for the first time. It is a massive Boxing Day three-ring-circus 7-mile trail race based in Guiseley with a £23 entry fee and today had over 1500 finishers. I don’t think it runs at a loss. However at the front end it is always a serious race and was won by one of the Brownlees for several consecutive years (I used to report on the race for the local papers) .

And this fun all started in 1979 when a couple who owned a shop in Guiseley decided to organise an unregistered race (and therefore illegal in AAA terms so participants could be banned from FRA races etc) for a bit of fun on Boxing Day and to make a little money for themselves. In those days it attracted serious fell runners because parts were quite rugged (including the then vertical climb up to Surprise View) but it has become blander over the years to attract more pantomime horses and fun runners.

How things do change.

[Mossdog]

It being two years to the day since I ran in my last fell race (Whinberry Naze - First V75) and forty years since I first ran in the Chevin Chase I thought I would pootle out for a 40 miles ride through the villages south of Harrogate where rich people who think Harrogate is vulgar live.

Thus my sojourn took in Castley, Weeton, Dunkeswick, Kearby with Netherby, Kirkby Overblow… In tiny Castley there is a largish terrace house that is divided into two 4- bedroom dwellings. One is named Castley Hall East and the other side is Castley Hall West. It sounds rather grand but neither is particularly distinguished although they are worth around £1 million each. But Castley Hall?

These country roads tend to be so quiet that, like today, you meet more cyclists than motorists although the latter do tend to be in huge “look at me” Range Rovers. And thinking of modest, understated vehicles, as I was withdrawing a few pounds from the cash dispenser earlier this morning I noticed the man waiting patiently for me to finish had just stepped out of (I suppose “step up from” is more accurate) an orange Lamborghini parked a few feet from my beautiful Bianchi in celeste. This car is local to Ilkley (it is a LP640-04 V10 5.2 litre Huracan) and although built in 2021 the rear plate displays POW113R except the 3 is reversed so a blind man on a galloping horse might think it reads POWER. Well possibly. The young man might of course have been patiently pondering whether to offer to swap his Italian car for my gorgeous Italian bike - but could I really be seen in an orange car? Does orange really go with insouciant gravitas? Oh vulgar, vulgar.

I only noticed that it was the 40th running of the Chevin Chase because my son was running for the first time. It is a massive Boxing Day three-ring-circus 7-mile trail race based in Guiseley with a £23 entry fee and today had over 1500 finishers. I don’t think it runs at a loss. However at the front end it is always a serious race and was won by one of the Brownlees for several consecutive years (I used to report on the race for the local papers) .

And this fun all started in 1979 when a couple who owned a shop in Guiseley decided to organise an unregistered race (and therefore illegal in AAA terms so participants could be banned from FRA races etc) for a bit of fun on Boxing Day and to make a little money for themselves. In those days it attracted serious fell runners because parts were quite rugged (including the then vertical climb up to Surprise View) but it has become blander over the years to attract more pantomime horses and fun runners.

How things do change.

Orange you glad you don't drive a car like that?

[PeteS]

Well I love my vulgar orange campervan and it is so easy to spot on a campsite that are generally full of white vehicle!

[molehill]

I did take the gravel bike out yesterday, post Christmas indulgence guilt ride.
A mile up the road to the local MTB tracks in the woods, where I went up and down a hill several times. In my running days it would have been called "hill reps" but that sounds a bit grand these days, "survival reps" would be more like it. The times only changed by a few seconds so I must have been pretty steady.
Total ride was 15.8 miles and 2300ft

[Llani Boy]

I did take the gravel bike out yesterday, post Christmas indulgence guilt ride.
A mile up the road to the local MTB tracks in the woods, where I went up and down a hill several times. In my running days it would have been called "hill reps" but that sounds a bit grand these days, "survival reps" would be more like it. The times only changed by a few seconds so I must have been pretty steady.
Total ride was 15.8 miles and 2300ft

Well done. Keep those lungs firing!

[mr brightside]

It being two years to the day since I ran in my last fell race (Whinberry Naze - First V75) and forty years since I first ran in the Chevin Chase I thought I would pootle out for a 40 miles ride through the villages south of Harrogate where rich people who think Harrogate is vulgar live.

Thus my sojourn took in Castley, Weeton, Dunkeswick, Kearby with Netherby, Kirkby Overblow… In tiny Castley there is a largish terrace house that is divided into two 4- bedroom dwellings. One is named Castley Hall East and the other side is Castley Hall West. It sounds rather grand but neither is particularly distinguished although they are worth around £1 million each. But Castley Hall?

These country roads tend to be so quiet that, like today, you meet more cyclists than motorists although the latter do tend to be in huge “look at me” Range Rovers. And thinking of modest, understated vehicles, as I was withdrawing a few pounds from the cash dispenser earlier this morning I noticed the man waiting patiently for me to finish had just stepped out of (I suppose “step up from” is more accurate) an orange Lamborghini parked a few feet from my beautiful Bianchi in celeste. This car is local to Ilkley (it is a LP640-04 V10 5.2 litre Huracan) and although built in 2021 the rear plate displays POW113R except the 3 is reversed so a blind man on a galloping horse might think it reads POWER. Well possibly. The young man might of course have been patiently pondering whether to offer to swap his Italian car for my gorgeous Italian bike - but could I really be seen in an orange car? Does orange really go with insouciant gravitas? Oh vulgar, vulgar.

I only noticed that it was the 40th running of the Chevin Chase because my son was running for the first time. It is a massive Boxing Day three-ring-circus 7-mile trail race based in Guiseley with a £23 entry fee and today had over 1500 finishers. I don’t think it runs at a loss. However at the front end it is always a serious race and was won by one of the Brownlees for several consecutive years (I used to report on the race for the local papers) .

And this fun all started in 1979 when a couple who owned a shop in Guiseley decided to organise an unregistered race (and therefore illegal in AAA terms so participants could be banned from FRA races etc) for a bit of fun on Boxing Day and to make a little money for themselves. In those days it attracted serious fell runners because parts were quite rugged (including the then vertical climb up to Surprise View) but it has become blander over the years to attract more pantomime horses and fun runners.

How things do change.

Have you ever been to spofforth castle? Nice place for a comfort break and a gel.

[Graham Breeze]

Have you ever been to spofforth castle? Nice place for a comfort break and a gel.

Oddly when I've ridden to Wetherby and Collingham before turning back - I haven't, so thank you.

[mr brightside]

Oddly when I've ridden to Wetherby and Collingham before turning back - I haven't, so thank you.

It's basically a ruined great hall with some fortifications, but worth a look. I'll meet you in the Inn and we'll see if you can drink me under the table.