Words by Alex, Pics by Pete
Crew: Slim, El Pres, PTD, 3 Sheds, Stunt, Butty
Pub: Eric
Route: Rainbow Bridge, Endon House, Push up to the top (a.k.a. “3 Sheds Lament”), Kerridge ridge past trig point & then down to the lower track, out to the Rainow road, Bull Hill lane, Walker Barn, Chazza, Narnia, Hardingland, Sutton Hall
Conditions: Cold, Wet and lots of surface water
Notes:
Slim declares UDI on start location & timing, but only makes it by the skin of his teeth (no thanks to the M6).
Deluge from 4:30 to 5:30 leaves huge amounts of surface water ready for us!.
Wind rising and temperatures dropping, its another night for keeping it simple and heading for the forest.
With Butty delayed route is posted and a Bull Hill via Kerridge is invoked with PTD routemeistering.
It’s another week where Dunc’s Gnar needs are foiled – this time by him not making the ride at the last minute 🙁
This doesn’t stop PTD & El Pres deciding we need to do Kerridge good bits – which we duly do – and if super sloppy slidy is your thing…it is indeed good.
Having got nice and wet and muddy from the trails – it then decides to rain again (Stunt & weather radar 1…BBC hourly forecast 0) luckily we are staying warm* by climbing. *in a relatively less cold sense.
A delayed start Butty is on the catch up, but it’s not the weather for waiting, so we don’t wait at the top of Bull hill, or the start of Charity, or the top of Charity!
Rain stops, clear skies, running river down Chazza, and a pause at the Narnia gate (well he is carrying sausage rolls & mustard!).
It turns out he’s decided on a “short cut” to the benches, so we head that way and find that Stunt has invoked winter protocol with a flask of reinforced sweet coffee (Brandy & Rum to be precise)..it gives a hit of warmth in more ways than one, and Butty finds us in the nick of time with the (sadly cold) rolls.
Sporting new full face helmet, but shorts and bare legs he is lucky to get the last of the “brum” coffee.
Food demolished – to the pub via Hardingland (cracking) and the track between the Langley rezzies (some path could be mostly found between the puddles)
Sutton hall for warmth, ale & food (except 3 sheds who was on a mysterious mission)
If last week was mostly themed on “A” (Storm Abigail, Awful conditions, Alien photo & A&E!) then this week pleasingly followed a “B” theme (Storm Barney, Bloomin muddy, Brum coffee, Bawdy conversation & Steak Baguettes)
Eric made the pub and provided QC on conversational tone (in case it got too high) – it did get sensible later as we dissected Antibiotic resistance for our “Put the world to rights” series
Mr I – we can report that there were table chips despite your temporary absence.
Winter season now properly upon us.