Cycling 2022

[Slim]

Saw a couple of Spitfires, late in the day - or perhaps the same one, if it had looped round. I heard that distinctive Merlin engine growl and looked up to see the unmistakable shape. Not exactly air display altitude, but very recognisable.

Managed to find flight data for a Spitfire that overflew Edingale and Lullington at 17:38 yesterday, at a height of 3950 ft. I pinpointed my position at that time using the track off my Garmin and I was about 420 metres to the north of it at this time, just to the west of Lullington.

https://planefinder.net/flight/GRRGN/time/2022-07-03T16:10:00.000Z/speed/1

This does match my recollection that it was going in the same direction as myself.

Apparently it belongs to Rolls-Royce, a Mark XIX. So it was actually a Griffon engine that I heard, not a Merlin.

https://www.nottinghampost.com/news/local-news/iconic-second-world-war-aircraft-4736868

The one I saw later wasn't the same one, this one landed at East Midlands Airport ten minutes later.

Glad to know that Royces still own a Spit. I saw their Spitfire XIV overfly our offices in Derby in 1990. Sadly that one was lost in a fatal crash two years later at the Woodford Air Show.

[Slim]

Lovely afternoon again, warm and sunny. I set off with the intention of doing a Twycross Bypasser at 1552. There was a fair old breeze coming from the north-west and a Twycrosser (or Bypasser) mostly takes place to the south-west so not ideal, but I was looking forward to the cosy familiarity of a frequent ride as a sort of warm-down from Wales.

However, unaccountably, I forgot to take the turn to Norton on the road down to Twycross, so I continued all the way down there. I did the detour to Orton from there, though.

Went right down to Mythe Lane and across Atterton Lane, to the A444, which I took all the way up to Gibbet Lane. I don't usually do that long a stretch of A444, preferring to turn for Bosworth or Shenton more often that not. But it was fine.

I was listening to Marr on LBC as this evening's news came through, but I'll post about that in the Politics section.

Anyway - back up through Ibstock and home on 32.62 miles - which takes me to 2901 this year.

https://www.strava.com/activities/7420486036

[Nickslikk2112]

Went over 3,000 miles for the year today. Thankfully no duty cobbles were involved.
It was bloody windy again though. On the sheltered bottom half of the Harewood Road climb I was going well, then when the trees disappeared it was into a block headwind.

[Slim]

Another glorious afternoon, an ideal candidate for an early exit from work. The wind was coming from the north-west and it wasn't particularly light, but it was properly warm and sunny out there.

Set off fully intending to go up over Swarkestone Bridge then west but before I got to the turn for Coleorton I'd decided to do a Twycross Bypasser instead.



I did a bit of the old Dad's Army route at the bottom end. Nice down there. I went through Upton, but I didn't see the two old petrol pump ornaments I was looking for last time. I must plan a route to go past them.

Up through Bosworth, Barton and Burgoland. Back on 39.28 miles.

Tuned into 5 Live for their all-day political celebrations, very pleased with themselves for their victory over ordinary people as you'd expect.

Back on 39.28 miles. Lovely run out. I'm almost getting used to going out with bare limbs, but I'll certainly miss it when I'm pulling on overtrousers over jogging pants in two fleeces in five months' time.

https://www.strava.com/activities/7431467152

[Nickslikk2112]

Forgot to put my cycling gloves on today. The backs of my hands have got sunburnt.

[David L]

Great ride on the mountain bikes today from our campsite in Hope. Lots of climbing (and a bit of pushing!). Went up and over to Ladybower reservoir and stopped for a swim and our packed lunch at Slippery Stones. Nice and warm but the water was cold!
The wife did brilliant, really getting the hang of the challenging descents.
Had covered just over 30 miles by the time we got back to the village

[Slim]

I imported my four favoured Fondo routes onto the same map. Upper West, Lower West, East and South.

I'd like to have a North route really but Derby and Nottingham are in the way and it can get hilly up there. I wonder if I could find one that goes north to the west of Derby.

[Slim]

Great ride on the mountain bikes today from our campsite in Hope. Lots of climbing (and a bit of pushing!). Went up and over to Ladybower reservoir and stopped for a swim and our packed lunch at Slippery Stones. Nice and warm but the water was cold!

Funny you should mention that, a piece about the drowned village (Derwent) came up in my YouTube suggestions this morning. From four years ago, though.

[David L]

Nick - were you out on the Bianchi today? We were at the bus stop today at Aston Lane, Hope when a cyclist passed at around 13:50. Saw another coming back through Castleton an hour later (Sheffield direction).
Was it you?

[Nickslikk2112]

Nick - were you out on the Bianchi today? We were at the bus stop today at Aston Lane, Hope when a cyclist passed at around 13:50. Saw another coming back through Castleton an hour later (Sheffield direction).
Was it you?

No, I was out on the Giant today. Didn't get out 'til 15:30 either, I was slumped watching the Tour de France. There's something Zen about just watching a big pack of cyclists heading through the countryside.

After feeling not at all like a cyclist last Sunday, I'm getting back round to enjoying things again. Strava even reckons I'm about as fit as this time last year, but whatever metrics it uses for that it's a pile of piffle. I'm still a good 5-10% down on the uphill from this time last year. Although I did set a PB on one climb today, but it was only my fourth attempt and the others have been out of peak season. Not nice to be beaten by Candy Crapper and Mernard Banning though.

Set a best time for me on the Abney descent today, which surprised me as I had no intention of doing so. I'd rather go down it on a disc braked bike than a rim braked one, and I got held up by an old fart in a mobility scooter.

I'd hoped the ride would come out at 50 miles, but it turned out to be 55. I can spend 20 minutes longer watching the Tour de France tomorrow now.

https://www.strava.com/activities/7441915652/

[David L]

A shorter route than Friday's today. From Komoot, we did 'The Shattered Road - Hope valley views loop from Hope'.
First part takes you up Mam Tor via the collapsed road, interesting! Reaching the highest point of 1800ft then remaining above 1000ft until a couple of miles from Castleton. Loads of variety in the featured terrain. Slightly spoilt by the unrideable section back into Castleton behind Peverill Castle.
2hrs 35min in the saddle, 16.6 miles. Stunning weather giving stunning views in all directions. Very enjoyable second ride of the holiday.

[Nick]

First time out for ages due to work travel, holidays to Greece and illness. Nearly boiled alive!

[Slim]

Hot and sunny out there, this afternoon. I particularly wanted to do a Twycross Bypasser, because I wanted to take some landscape pics, in pursuance of my hobby of identifying distant objects. To this end I took a decent zoom compact as well as my phone. I'm particularly interested in a pointy little hill, just visible from Orton Lane in the right conditions, which I think is near Dudley, nearly 30 years away.

I found the road closed by a metal barrier near Warton. A charity run was taking place, with people dressed in pale blue Cancer Research shirts running towards me. I told one of the stewards who was handing out bottles of water that I'd weave through them carefully and she just asked me to take it easy. I was tempted to ask her for a bottle of water, but I didn't. I did run out of fluids on this ride which is unusual, and I certainly enjoyed my post-ride beer straight out of the fridge.

I pressed on past the barrier and ploughed through the oncoming runner traffic, deliberately and slowly. A lot of them were walking, anyway. Don't blame them, it was bloody hot.



I took this pic with my compact, to be fair I think the phone performs just as well in these conditions.

Annoyingly I forgot to turn the bike computer back on after one of the stops so I had to repair the track using https://www.routemaster.app/.

Very glad I did the Wales trip last weekend, would have been cruel and unusual in today's weather.

34.24 miles, that's 249 this month. I want to get to 500 this month if I can.

https://www.strava.com/activities/7447712694

[Nickslikk2112]

It was indeed hot out there today. I drained two bidons in 41 miles today as against two in 55 yesterday. If I had any sense I'd have gone out this morning, but I had a bit of a red wine head. Barbera d'Asti always seems to affect the insides of my head than other reds.

I tried keeping a high cadence in a low gear today to try and avoid too much strain. Didn't seem to work as my average cadence was the same as last time I did a similar ride, but the Summer Giant is more highly geared than the Winter Giant.

The air was very clear today, up on Beeley Moor I could see over to where the gliding club above Great Hucklow is and then over to the Kinder plateau and the moors above Buxton. Looking the other way I could see over to Hardwick Hall. Couldn't tell if the Trent Valley Power Stations were visible though.

I did see a Paddy Wagon with its blues and twos going up on Beeley Moor. Rather an incongruous place for that to be happening as there are only a few farms knocking about.

https://www.strava.com/activities/7447384990/overview

[Nickslikk2112]

Went out for my Tuesday regular - must start mixing things up - and it rained. It was lovely - for once!