Darlington - Hamsterley Group Ride - Darlington

Rode the Inbred out to Hamsterley to join the monthly Trailblazers group ride. I seem to be able to manage 20kmph fairly consistently on the 50" gear (even riding home into a pig of a head wind with big, draggy tyres), which bodes well for 'races' like the Kielder 100 and Hit The North.



The club ride was really good. Great group of people of all abilities, some nice long climbs and some technical stuff too. Got a good pounding from the rocks and roots now that I'm getting a bit faster, and actually had a hand cramping on the ride home. Group rides are always stop-start, but they give me a chance to ride stuff that's much more technical than I'd ride alone, and are good fun so well worth going on. We rode up to the top of Black Hill, then down Dangerous Descent before following the Red route backwards for a while before riding a really steep descent that almost had me over the bars and then heading to the end of the Black from the DH huts.

Had a couple of mystery punctures. Think they were caused by running 'normal' size tubes in 2.4" tyres, at low pressure while braking hard.

Distance: 106km (maps: home to Hamsterley, group ride, Hamsterley to Woodland, Woodland to home (phone crashed, so two tracks))
Time: out of the house for 9 hours, riding for just over 8 (2:11 out, 3:45 (very stop-start) for club ride, 2:15 home)
Surface: road - off-road - road
Weather: Sunny, warm
Bike: SS Inbred (32:17, with 2.4" tyres)

Darlington - Dales Bike Centre - Barnard Castle - Darlington

Rode the Solitude out to Dales Bike Centre, then home via (almost) Tan Hill and Barnard Castle. My original plan was to go via Hamsterley too, to get to 100 miles, but I couldn't feel my feet at Barnard Castle after the hail-filled puddles on the track to Bowes.



Once I'd warmed up at home, I felt fine. Sure I could manage the Hamsterley bit too.

Distance: 115km (maps: 44km from home to Dales Bike Centre, 39km from DBC to Barnard Castle and 32km from Barnard Castle to Home)
Time: 7:50 (2:36 out, 50 mins for coffee, 2:40 to B'd Castle, 1:40 home)
Surface: Mainly road, with bits of easy off-road
Weather: Sunny, wet, hail...
Bike: SS Solitude monstercross (34:18, with 1.6″ tyres)

Hit The North 1.5v2

Two years ago I went down to Manchester for Hit The North, a 12 hour MTB race. My chain skipped and it was really muddy, but I had a great time.

Last weekend I went down to Manchester for Hit The North 1.5v2, a 2 hour MTB/CX race. My chain skipped and it was really muddy, but I had a great time.

My chain doesn't skip like that anywhere else. Weird mud in Phillips Park, Manchester!

The course was a great mix of MTB-type riding on singletrack, with some CX boggy fields and steep climbs thrown in to the mix. 600 feet of climbing in each 3km lap, with 100 feet of that being up steps.

I did my usual of heading for the back of the group at the start, then queueing for most of the first part of the first lap meaning my first lap took almost half an hour, almost ten minutes longer than my second lap.

It took me about an hour to feel like I was warmed up, but my slipping chain meant that I couldn't really power up the climbs, leading to lots of pushing the bike and running.

I managed 5 laps, compared to the 8 laps of the winner and 2nd place rider, and finished in 2:05. I think I'd have got 6 laps without the skipping chain, which would have put me right into mid-pack mediocrity.

This was my first event as a Ragley Bikes rider and it was good to meet team mates Dave and Jason (they're the fast part of the team) and also designer Brant, who was marshalling/heckling. Also good to meet and remeet lots of others too; the best bit of travelling to events and races really.

Evidence: too fast to photograph and checking my brakes work.

Distance: 15km (5 laps of 3km)
Time: 2:05
Surface: Off-road
Weather: Coldish, but dry. Very muddy.
Bike: Inbred Singlespeed (32:17, with 2.4" tyres)

Popped out for a coffee (fixing Swaledale)

Popped out to Dales Bike Centre for a coffee and a panini.

I'd planned to ride on my Inbred, but found that the bottom bracket was bust the day before, so had to do a fixietwat ride instead. It's a long time since I've ridden a fixie a decent distance so, like all the best rides, I wasn't sure I'd manage it. It was fine though, though I could get out there a lot faster on the MTB.

Distance: 90km (maps: 45km out and 45km back)
Time: 3 hours out, 90 mins for coffee, 3 hours back
Surface: Mainly off-road
Weather: Cold but dry and sunny
Bike: Fixed Solitude monstercross (34:16, with 1.6″ tyres)

c25k - week one run one v2

Second attempt at starting the C25K running programme. Made the mistake of taking the dog, so runs got slower and slower as I dragged the dog round; she can stay at home next time.

* walk 10 mins
* 8x run 1 min, walk 1.5 min

Too many layers and too warm.

Distance: 4.35 km
Time: 35 minutes
Surface: concrete/tarmac
Weather: Warm and dry
Trainers: Inov-8 Mudroc 290
Clothing: skanky Tracksters, long sleeve merino baselayer, merino jumper, waterproof jacket

Fixing Darlington

First ride on a fixed in ages, so just a play around the town, with little bits of easy off-road. Beech Woods was good for getting used to fixed off-road, getting used to clipping pedals or skipping off unexpected rocks.



Good fun, and even found a waffle stand in the town centre!

Distance: 23.5km (map)
Time: 2 hours
Surface: On- and off-road
Weather: Chilly and damp
Bike: Fixed Solitude monstercross (34:16, with 1.6" tyres)

Darlington - Hamsterley Group Ride - Darlington

Road out to Hamsterley again for another Trailblazers group ride.

Usual ride there and back.

The group ride was ace. Lots of new faces, including "Twitter friend" menage-a-moi, and probably the biggest group ride turnout of the year. In October!

The route was really good. Big climb up to Doctor's Gate; the descent off Doctor's Gate is now brilliantly rocky after all the summer rain. Then rode dangerous Descent followed by some nice twiddly stuff in the back end of the forest before heading for the 'new' Section 13.

Did a cheeky descent that runs parallel to the black after that. Just a narrow ribbon carved into the pine needles on a steep descent, with the odd bit of woodwork over a fallen tree or two. A really good little trail, that I think I might like even more than I like Golden Owl. I think my new garden will be getting some bits of woodwork at the bottom to practice on.

Moving house soon, so this could be the last big ride of the year. But maybe not.

Distance: 67miles (39km, 27km, 42km)
Time: 9 hours (2.25hrs, 3.5hrs, 2hrs (plus cafe and group ride faffage))
Surface: On-road, off-road, on-road
Weather: Warm
Bike: Inbred Singlespeed (32:17, with 2.2″ tyres)