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| The Meeting Point - Picture Courtesy of Charles Rispin |
Early Morning Start
Peeking through the bedroom curtains at 6.45 in the morning things didn't look promising. A white sheen of ice covered the road immediately outside whilst a neighbour chipped away the frost from his car.
For a moment the thought of ditching the ride for an altogether more comfortable Sunday morning flickered across my mind.
How though would I become a cycling god in the summer if I didn't do the work in winter ? So I resisted the temptation to get back under the covers and got myself up, fed and watered.
Today's ride was starting at the Swiss Cottage pub, Bilton on the east side of Hull.When I got to the meet point it was clear that road conditions were going to be acceptable but boy was it cold !
I got talking to Darren who was doing his first ride with Cottingham Road Club. He was looking forward to next weekend when he was due to fly to the Dominican Republic for a holiday. I hope he has a great time. It is the Howden run next weekend for the club. I didn't tell Darren this in case he got upset he was missing it.
Thanks to Charlie for his photo of our get together in the morning where it is obvious that I have a big credability problem. It seems that when gathering for a ride the correct posture adopted by a cyclist should be bike between the legs, leaning forward with forearms resting on the handlebars.
If, in addition, you are sat on the top tube this means that you are practically a professional rider.
This posture conveys to the casual observer a feeling that the rider concerned is a competent bike handler, confident and relaxed with his machine.
Note to self, don't just stand there without your bike, you look like you haven't got a clue!
Flat Rides Are Nothing To Be Ashamed About
And so to the ride itself a 44 mile circuit in the flatlands north east of Hull. I wasn't going to beat myself up there were no hills on this ride today. There have been many hills with the club in the past and there will be many hills in the future. There doesn't HAVE to be hills on every ride, it's NOT compulsary and it DOESN'T make you a bad person. Not that I'm sensitive about this in any way.
One slight cloud on the horizon, literally and metaphorically, was a stiff southerly breeze that was developing. This would be helping us along as we travelled northwards but when we turned southwards for home there would be a reckoning.
Departing from Swiss Cottage we headed North for just under a mile up to Ganstead where we turned left onto Swine Lane. There then followed 9 miles of country lanes with multiple crossing points over streams, drains and dikes with great names such as "Bulldike Drain" and the "Arnold and Riston Drain" before we came to a T junction with the main road from Beverley the A1035.
We turned right onto the A1035 cycle path, passing the Nags Head pub turning left at the next roundabout and heading for Leven. Through Leven to Brandesburton and North Frodingham where we turn right onto the B1249 heading for Beeford. We cross the A165 and continue onto Skipsea on the B1249.
Apart from one of our number having his chain come off and another unclip his left foot to step down only for the bike to keel over to the right (we have all been there) it had been an uneventful and enjoyable 24 miles.
With the back wind this ride had literally been a breeze. The footage below backs this up, everyone just seems to be gliding along. Apart from the last 30 seconds.
Hurricane Alley
The group serenely turned right at Skipsea onto the B1242 that eventually will take us to Hornsea. We were now turning into the head wind that will be against us all the way home. Come on though how hard can it b...HOLY MOLY !! WHAT THE ..!!All of a sudden the complexion of this ride had changed completely. Whereas before it was effortless to be up at 20 mph and above now it was hard work to maintain 15 mph, sometimes less. Not only hard work but the cold which had seemed to vanish when we were with the wind was back with a vengence. Hell's teeth this was unpleasant.
The topography didnt help us either. Long straight roads with no cover and the group staring down the barrel of hurricane alley. Absolutely no exageration. OK maybe a little bit.
Like a shoal of fish protecting itself against a predator there is a bunch up with riders going 2 x 2 hoping to get some protection from the riders in front. " I think we should be in single file guys" shouts Ian as we are on quite a busy road and causing a bit of blockage.We spread out to single file.
Adam and Chris do stints on the front. I let them. My signaling is rubbish anyway.
We roll into Hornsea like a gallant fishing boat making it back to harbour in a storm. I sense a coffee stop is on the cards. Charlie is always keen on a coffee stop and like an Exocet he homes in on his target .
To Coffee Stop Or Not To Coffee Stop That Is The Question.
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| Is the Bar Open ? |
On the other hand I can sweat for England. Urghh ! Yes sorry for this level of detail. If I have cycled for 30 miles and then sit down at a coffee shop I will just bucket sweat into my cycling clothes. This is getting more and more distasteful. So when you get going again it is absolutely horrible with cold, slimey ....do you know what ? That's enough of that I think.
Suffice to say it can be tough to get going again after a coffee stop.
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| Helmet on Table ..Tut Tut ! |
The reluctance to get going again was fully justified as even Adam said he was freezing when we set off into the raw southerly wind. Pretty soon the coffee and coffee cake became a pleasant but distant memory.
The Push for Home
Just 14 miles to go from Hornsea back to Swiss Cottage. We go through Mappleton, Great Cowden and Aldborough on the B1242. Chris leads for a lot of the time taking on the head wind as if it's something personal " I love the wind " he says or did he say " I have wind " ?
Eventually I feel I should do some time at the front so after taking a right turn on the B1238 after Aldborough onto Hull Road I take a turn. The road surface is very good something I have checked out before going to the front.
There is a responsibility when going to the front to set a sensible pace that is not going to blow everyone away (no problem there) but also keep everyone moving along reasonably smartly.
I am not the best signaller in the world due to an unfortunate incident I had some months ago where I was signalling to take a left turn. I had one hand off the bars for the signal and then I hit a pot hole. I couldnt save it and came down like a sack of potatoes, going over the handlebars and landing on my hip.
Luckily there was nothing broken but I had the mother of all bruises for a fortnight ( pictures available on request ).
So when approaching pot holed areas, rough ground, manhole covers etc my instinct above all else is to keep 2 hands on the handlebars. Keeping both hands on the handlebars and signaling hazards in the road for your colleagues are mutually exclusive. I haven't figured out how to do both at the same time, apart from shouting " hole ! ".
So the ideal scenario for me when I am on the front is that the road conditions are good and there are no hazards to point to. If there are hazards I will point ...briefly.
My time at the front is short lived however as we are asked to back off as one of the guys is struggling with a knee injury.
Following the B1238 we go through Flinton, Sproately, Wyton before arriving back at Swiss Cottage.
Chris ups the pace towards the end and I finish with the blood pumping trying to keep up with him.
Despite the wind on the way back it had been a very enjoyable ride. As the group gather at the end of the ride and shoot the breeze, no pun intended, I get talking to Darren again. I ask him how he found it to which he replied the overall distance wasn't a problem but it was a little faster than what he was used to.
He starts talking about the Dominican Republic again. I keep quiet about the Howden run, I think I got away with it.
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