Well 7 intrepid explorers set of at Sparrow fart yesterday for a BH trip to the seaside for FishnChips. The forecast wasnt great with some heavy showers forecast. The rain was pounding on the conservatory roof when I woke up, but magically stopped before I left the house. We all met bang on time at our respective meeting points (cough) and were only 15 minutes late at our final rendezvous at Harewood Bridge. We were all warmed up by this point and packed away the waterproofs. Wet roads for the first 40miles meant everyone was fighting for the back wheels of those with mudguards, and riding to the side of everybody elses! A good steady pace seemed to get us past York and onto Helmsley for 10.30 in no time with fresh scenery along the way. Tea and scone later, we were on our way again with what proved to be a very hill leg to Robin Hoods Bay. None of the 1in3 climbs apparently were on the map that Gavin had used to plot the course, and his high tech Garmin wasnt alerting us them coming up. Ben was lighting up the roads on the climbs, the rest of us experienced folk were taking it steady and wondering when he was going to pop. The sunshine made the North York Moors look fantastic, and we exited the North edge at Chop Gate with spectacular views across Rosemary Topping. We were only 10 miles from Middlesbrough at this point. We headed back into the moors again, hitting some showers for a 10 mile stretch. The high tech Garmin wanted to take us down a stone track, so we backtracked a little but had to stop to fix Alans puncture. Not long after we had to stop to fix Alans puncture. Then we had a good 5 miles before we had to stop to fix Alans puncture! A few nice coastal climbs later and we were screeching down into Robin Hoods Bay where we all had F&C apart from Stuart who ordered Shark and chips, huge! It was about 4.30pm when we left the cafe, the waiter telling us about the Strava segment out of the village and up the steep climb. We all paid our bills and I wasnt charged for the Red Rag. I havent charged William Brown for his strava e-mail either! Lots of climbing to be expected leaving sea level with Gavin taking up the charge back onto the moors. A little headwind meant that teamwork and keeping a tight bunch was order of the day. We routed via Scarbrough to keep the route simple, Gavins Garmin wasnt updating well, then onto some rolling roads on the way to Stamford Bridge. A few tired legs on the hills by this point, but on the flat sections we were keeping a paceline at 20ish mph. Gels and flapjack out again despite the F&C which on hindsight isnt the best cycling fuel. Stamford Bridge Coop got an unexpected boost in business where an impromptu stop was held for calories and a sit down for John Mawby. The weather was still holding and the pubs were spilling out onto the green. Wed now reached 7.30pm and were realising a midnight finish was becoming a reality. Eventually we reached a superb descent 52mph onto York plain and paceline was resumed into York. We had a comedy red light sprint where some old chap on a cast iron full suspension mtb burned us all off! Twice. So now it was retracing our steps to Wetherby and KO but now in the dark. The paceline was working well with Stuart, Ben, Gavin, Alan all working well. It seemed we would land home before midnight. The rain threatened but never really got going and we stayed dry for the last 10 miles. We counted 7 out, we counted 7 back. A brilliant day, weather was actually perfect in the end, little rain, very little wind. Not too warm, not too cold. So, hats off to: Josh - probably suffered as much as anyone but dug deep and provided much needed route consultation Alan - who hindered the group as much as possible but his smiles kept us all in high spirits! Ben - Who plagued us with his squeaks, creaks all day. Best book your bike into Crosstrax! Stuart - who casually announced he is a double ironman triathlete, at which point I thought he will be our secret weapon towards the end of the day. He was on the return from York! John - Relentless diesel engine slowed down by the hills but back on before you know it, a surprising number of turns on the front, plus a PB from Black Hill to pool chasing John on the front! Strong finish Gavin - I didnt know that was there McIntosh. The ringleader. He was having so much fun yesterday. Strong riding, faultless navigation and boundless enthusiasm. Thanks to Gavin for what was a memorable day - mileage records for all I think (except maybe Stuart )
Posted on: Mon, 26 May 2014 08:56:01 +0000