Yet another sunny day, but this time the wind was supposed to be much lighter than of late. Almost warm, as well.
I wanted to do a longer one. Ideally, and if I may invoke imperial measurements for a moment, I’d have liked to do a 100-miler. Alas I had to be home by about 1830, and my Echo Dot was claiming that the temperature was fridge-ish before about 1000.
I did the eastbound route, but a bit further than last time, past Stainby. Would have loved to go another 20 km further east, but maybe next time. Went through Stanford and Burton on the way out, Wymeswold and Rempstone on the way back. Used the longer route through Griffydam and Peggs Green over the last few km.
Really, really nice out there. Glad I did do the eastbound route though because the wind was a bit more forceful than I was led to expect.
Speaking of ’70s sitcoms, as we were earlier in the thread, or at least alluding to them – Bob Grant, who was Jack in On the Buses lived in Waltham, which is on this route, in the 80s and 90s. I sometimes stop at the Deli there.
Another sunny day, a little bit cooler than Friday. Still too windy for a particularly long ride, but I thought conditions were just about decent enough for a fondo. The wind was coming from the east. I thought I’d do the southbound route. I’d have a sidewind both ways, but not too much of an annoying headwind.
I did that, down to Sibbertoft Gliding Club the usual way, penetrated Northamptonshire for a few metres then came back up the “old” way via Blaby and Enderby. My original idea was to cut across to the “new” route on the way back up after Blaby to avoid the busy traffic near Desford. But I didn’t bother and in the event it wasn’t too bad.
On the way up I took the Wood Road detour which added a bit of distance. But after Ellistown I came the short way through Donington Le Heath. I wished I’d set off back up a few seconds later than I did, because I saw a huge aircraft-shaped shadow cross the road in front of me. Stopped the back and twisted my head round just in time to see a glider landing. It must have passed over the road behind me, just a few metres over my head. Would have been a spectacular sight if it had been in front of me instead.
I decided to use my Casio GPS watch to track the ride, which I haven’t done for a couple of years because the Android app that syncs to Strava had always been unreliable. I thought I’d see if matters had improved, and thankfully they have. It does seem to work decently now. On the other hand the watch itself didn’t start tracking the ride until I’d done about 1.5k. I fixed the track with a GPS editor. Annoying but I think I can put it down to not having used it for a long time. GPS devices use a dataset known as an “almanac” which is updated when they’re used. My watch would have had to download a big chunk of new data from the satellites before it could start tracking.
As I emerged from a petrol station carrying an all-day-breakfast sandwich and a cheese pasty, a kind bald gentleman passed a nice compliment on his way in. “Lovely bike!” he said. I thanked him warmly of course. That’s nice, isn’t it?
Oh and I performed a good deed. I stopped for an impromptu picnic near Amesby, at a farm gate. There was a single item of litter, a flattened coke can. So I brought it home with me to recycle.
I listened to LBC and footy on 5 Live. Fulham vs Liverpool (very entertaining) and the first half of the Manchester derby. Dull.
Beautifully sunny day. Not a cloud in the sky and I had a nice view of the Moon in the afternoon, in fact I see I’ve caught it in the pic. But I did get a headwind intermittently both ways, depending on the particular direction of travel of course.
Back on 101.95km, pleased with 241km so far this month.
Sunny again, and touted to be warm in the afternoon. I didn’t set off until 1050, by which time I judged it was warm enough for bare legs.
I wanted to go out east again, preferably into my Cycling Happy Place to the east of Waltham and beyond. But the headwind was really aggravating. Not merely because of the additional force I had to apply against it, but because of the roar of wind noise going past my head while I was trying to listen to the bloody radio with earbuds in. So I decided a fondo would do. I went to Eastwell, sat on the bench and had lunch consisting of cheese rolls and a flapjack, then turned for home.
I went eastward through Normanton and Stanford rather than Rempstone and Wymeswold, which has been the norm of late. I came back westward through Wymeswold and Rempstone, but used a different road to detour that way than usual. Hadn’t tried it before. Quiet, but nothing special.
Enjoyable ride on the way back with a headwind. Back on 102.86 km.
Another sunny day, warm enough but fairly windy. Had a lunchtime appointment and not that much time, but I didn’t want to go far anyway. I did about 17km of the Twycrosser route, then came back up the same way. The wind was pretty annoying and since it was coming from the north-east, I didn’t choose an ideal route for it. Strong headwind on the way back.
But I only did 35.75km. Had a quick excursion to Ashby on the way back, and a bit of a detour round the village over the last klick, where I took the pic.
Lovely day. Coolish in the morning but sunny with very low winds. I planned to do a fairly long one, partly a repeat of a ride I did a few years ago in which I entered Rutland from the eastern side, then pedalled through England’s smallest county east to west, for about 20km. I did that one on a sunny day in 2021 (four years ago yesterday actually) and have always remembered it as being delightful – scenic and very quiet.
I’d hoped to set off at about 0930 but I slept in longer than I expected, no doubt due to the clocks going forward at the weekend. I set off at 1040. I did the usual eastbound route as far as Buckminster, where I stopped at the village shop to stock up on food and a Maltesers drink. Then I dipped south and east to South Witham, then decended into the rightmost bit of Rutland.
Rutland was just as I remembered it from last time – almost spookily quiet and very pleasant. Idyllic villages with very little traffic passing through them. Normally when I tick off Rutland I penetrate it only superficially – just over the border for a bit and back. But it’s a lovely part of the country. I missed a turn after Thistleton and looped back up tthe way I’d come, but I recovered.
I re-entered Leicestershire just after Whissendine and came back what I might call the “usual way” from there, except that I’ve only been over that way four or five times. Through Little Dalby and Great Dalby. Then up to Six Hills and the usual eastbound route via Asfordby and Shoby. Home through Wymeswold, Rempstone, Zouch, Belton as usual.
Setting off a bit later was probably for the best as conditions were a bit warmer by then and I was able to wear lighter clothing. I stuffed a pair of tights and a fleece into my backpack after the first couple of hours. I was home long before sunset anyway, in fact I did ponder extending the ride to make it an “imperial fondo”, or 100 miles. I didn’t but in any case it was a glorious day out on a bike, probably one of my top ten favourite rides ever.
Listened to LBC, 5 Live, Jeremy Vine on R2 for a bit.
Back on 146.12 km and that’s a pleasing 1141 km this month, which is my highest ever monthly total for one of the first six months of the year, and my fourth highest monthly total overall. I did seven fondos in March and interestingly I’m 300 km ahead of 31st March 2024.
That was my first visit to Rutland this year and the final neighbouring counties box ticked for 2025.
Not a particularly warm day and I had a commitment in the afternoon. But I had a plan to investigate the fertile territory south of the A5, aka the “Dad’s Army” route, without having to go on the A5 to get there. This would take me through Polesworth, through a place called Stoneydelph, then down through Hockley.
So I did that and unfortunately it was not a success. The new part of the route was hilly, depressingly urban, often poorly surfaced and busy with traffic. It was a relief to get down to Kingsbury. Actually I failed to take an intended turn at Hockley, but the worst of it was behind me by then anyway.
So I came back the usual way and put up with the A5 between Dordon and Old Grendon. It’s not so bad going that way anyway, since it’s downhill.
Quite enjoyed the ride on the way back. Another 67.23 km in the bag anyway.
Saw a couple of hares frolicking like dogs in a field near Norton Juxta Twycross.
Listened to the BBC News channel, then Fulham vs Crystal Palace in an FA Cup game.
The weather was supposed to be really nice today. I’d hoped to do 80km, or maybe a fondo. But it was foggy out there when I looked out of the window, not long after I got up. And cold. I might have tolerated it if I was going to do a particularly interesting ride but since I’d intended to do a minimal fondo at most, I hung on for the temperature to rise a bit.
Set off eventually at about 1255, by which time I’d decided to settle for a Bypasser. It was a pretty ordinary one except that I did a bit of excursion, as far as the A5, down the Dad’s Army route. And I did a small detour through Upton on the way back up.
Very nice out there by the afternoon. Warm and sunny. I think the wind was a bit stronger than I’d been led to expect.
Listened to coverage of the emergency budget on 5 Live. Back on 69.05km. Nice run out.
928km done this month now, which is a record for a March. And I think I can get that up to four figures.
Another pretty nice day, low winds, plenty of sun forecast for the afternoon. My intention was to do the Lower Westbound Route, with the twist that I’d go out through Ashby and Moira rather than Heather and Measham. I’ve done this before in the dim, distant past. It doesn’t save any distance or climbing, but I wanted to avoid the traffic and speed bumps in Measham.
Actually I messed up by going up through Coleorton on auto-pilot, but it was easy enough to make my way over to Ashby from there, and fortunately the roundabout over the A42 wasn’t too busy.
Well – it was nice to do that for a change, but it’s no less hassle than Measham really. Anyway after I got to Kings Bromley, I decided to keep going down the A515 rather than turning for Abbots Bromley. Quite nice down there. This time I went all the way down to Lichfield, and had a look round the northern outskirts. Hadn’t been there since the ’90s, when I went to a pub there with my Rolls-Royce section leader at the time. I did pass a pub and wondered if it was the same one. I turned back after nearly 50 km.
Back up to Kings Bromley, and I thought to add a few km by going up toward Yoxall for a bit then coming back down. But instead I decided I’d do something a bit more adventurous. I thought I’d keep going all the way up to Sudbury, then go home via the Upper Westbound Route and the beloved A road. The main road up there is a bit of a rollercoaster ride so I was a bit trepidatious, but it’s much more tolerable going north than south. The main climb is much less steep.
Back the usual way through Hatton, Hilton, Willington, Swarkestone, Melbourne and Coleorton as usual.
Glad to have combined those two routes, I’ve been intending to try that for quite some time. Without the excursion down to Lichfield it would come to a bit less than a fondo. Today though, 118.93km.
Really nice out there. I had to take a few layers off at Lichfield, after which I was down to bare legs.
I had to stop to let a train pass at Hilton. Interesting that the gates are manually operated. A person comes out of the building next to the tracks and opens and closes them by hand. I’m sure that some level crossings were automated back as long ago as the ’70s. At Lullington I had to stop to let a funeral procession pass. Very elaborate. Two horses drawing a carriage and a long line of mourners.
I listened to 5 Live, LBC and the John Scofield live album Pick Hits Live which I hadn’t listened to for years. Recorded just before his best studio album, which is a bit of a shame. Misses some stellar material.
First run out for the Roubaix this year, and its first time out with new tyres. I think the white sidewall stripes suit the bike.
A mild and sunny, dry day. But with a strong-ish wind coming from the east. I thought I’d do the eastbound route, or a variation on it. Usually the route curves round Loughborough, to the north. But this time I thought I’d go straight through the town.
I actually nearly took the usual route on auto-pilot and went up Gracedieu Lane to Belton rather than continuing to Loughborough. But I returned to the intended route via Forest Lane.
Loughborough was depressingly urban and busy with traffic, as I thought it would be. But if I were to do my long ride to East Lincolnshire and back, I’d likely be going through there before 0500, and it would be fine I’m sure. Would save a bit of distance, and possibly a bit of climbing.
I also took my occasional detour through Walton on the Wolds and Paudy Lane before joining the traditional route at Six Hills. I turned back short of Eastwell as I’d actually added distance a bit by exploring round where my ex-partner’s parents lived in Loughborough, and by doing the Walton detour. I didn’t want to do much more than a fondo as the headwind had been really annoying. Much nicer on the way back. Came back through Wymeswold and Rempstone (ie avoiding Loughborough, as usual).
Finished the Reacher novel. It turned out to be really daft. Not one of the better ones. Lovely sunny mild day, although I thought I’d need to take a layer off in the afternoon, and I didn’t.
That’s 740 km done in March now, happy with that. That was the fifth fondo this month. I’ve only done more than four in a month three times previously.
It wasn’t brilliant weather for cycling – a bit cold and cloudy with a threat of showers later on. The wind was coming from the north-east. I had two ideas in mind – either to do the usual eastbound route, or to go up toward Newark.
The first 25 km is the same in either case and just before I got to the crossroads at Rempstone, I decided to do the Newark route. I wasn’t going to go nearly that far. Just enough distance for a fondo. But I hadn’t done that route for four years.
I went as far as a village called Barnstone, then, having done nearly 51km, I turned back.
Well – I’m not doing that again. Nice to reacquaint myself with those roads (and acquaint myself with some short stretches of new road, where I took wrong turns) but the roads were shocking in places. I do remember that they were a bit rough, it was always the downside of doing that route. But it was worse today than I remembered. I was actually getting quite angry rattling over what passes for a road surface in parts of Nottinghamshire.
I’d be happier doing it on my gravel bike, but then again it’s the heaviest bike I own and there’s a fair bit of hill climbing over that way.
After Belton on the way back I took a detour down Forest Lane, hadn’t done that for years either.
It was colder than I expected. I picked up a few spots of rain but nothing troubling.
Listened to more Reacher and footy on 5 Live.
Back on 102.23, that was my fourth fondo this month. And that’s 2003 km done this year now.
