Crew: El Pres, PTD, Dr S, Dunc, Lee, Butty, Stunt
Pub: El Pud
Route: Top of Bull Hill Lane, Walker Barn, Charity & Extension, Cat, Danebower Hollow, down Cut-thorne, 3 Shires Head, up the field, Cumberland Clough & Brook, Standing Stone, the RHS singletrack, road to Sutton Hall
Conditions: Warm, Murky, Breezy
Notes:
This week a return to warmth, with short sleeves again in order. With the usual leadership distracted by decking projects or throat lurgy, Stunt takes charge and sets an ambitious plan to get to 3 Shires. Lee promises some birthday refreshment!
Top of Bull Hill Lane for a 6pm start, and we are a couple of riders short, Butty has sent some cryptic messages but we think he has somehow lost his “e” so we share our route plan for him to catch up, El Pres hopes to meet us for the refreshment stop – we offer the Chumby Brook gate as a target.
Despite the warmth, there is a lot of cloud about and some breeze, and visibility to the west is very hazy.
The five of us will do Charity to give Butty a chance to take the high road and meet us, the RHS higher path is greasy and slippy with the heavy rains a couple of days ago, so the main lane is the better option. Dr S is regretting the lack of rear mudguard on the wet bits!
Regrouping at the tea rooms, we find that Butty has overtaken us and is already heading over into Danebower .
With the light fading it’s good to see the lights are burning at the Cat, and it’s very atmospheric with the bottom of the cloud layer literally brushing the roof. Heading off road we are soon into eerie mistiness, head lamps on dim settings, looking for our comrade.
He is relieved to see us at the gate at the top, as its all a bit too “american werewolf in london” up there! A bit of faffing as to whether to put another layer on, or armwarmers or a windproof! With a quality street (in lieu of cake) from Lee to keep us going after all the climbing. We discover that his late switch to acoustic was due to range anxiety, charge leakage if you leave it unplugged it too long looks like it may be a “e” thing!?
Shadows and reflections in the funny murky conditions make hazards of the most mundane things – the tall dead grass becoming distractingly bright and making the trail hard to see being a first!
Down to the main road out of the cloud, and a reverse in and out to three shires is proposed, so a fast spin down the tarmac to the Cut Thorn turn, more tarmac to the cottage and the gate. Butty embraces the spirit of Pete with some tyre pressure management.
Plenty of rocky fun on the way down, and it is a long way down… not Paris-Roubaix blood on the handlebars stuff, but definitely felt in the forearms! Unsuprisingly flying dentists are at the bottom first.
Time for Lee to break out the Brandy, and very smooth it is too.
All the return options are mooted, but in the end the field wins out, the rocky first section is more challenging that expected as legs are slightly jellified (or maybe it was the brandy!)
The actual track along the side of the field is pretty soft so its a grind over the bumpy grass, following the electricity poles for guidance… all this warm moist air now deciding to condense in the cooler spots. We find our way out and regroup at the start of Chumby. Time is beginning to be a factor, so there is no waiting about, and as lead riders reach a gate the others flow through, the brook lives up to it’s name, and there are some pretty damp riders as we exit the last gate onto wildboarclough.
Still no evidence of any activity at the closed road section – weak bridge perhaps??
No rest for the wicked if we are to finish our big ride with the new favourite RHS down from standing stone, and it always feels good to have crested at standing stone, knowing its all downhill from here!
Butty is nursing a soft front tyre after all the rocky batterings of the nights ride (or did he just let too much out earlier?).
A bit muddy and slippy on the entry, but further it was still ok, although Butty took some of us off piste to avoid more dodgy patches.
PTD also suffers tyre deflation at the last, and bails out to the Shrubbery for four wheels to get him to the pub!
Heads down with beer legs all the way to the pub for the rest of us, and locking up right on schedule 🙂
Courage Directors is a blast from the past for those of us with London drinking memories, extra chips for a couple of folk, but we resist puddings.
We are blessed with the “bespoke jacketted man about town” that is the evening incarnation of the Thornton, and he brings tales of Mawds mayhem with hybrid cars 😉
What – 3 pints good, and no whisky…is the collective on a new health kick??
Butty bemoans his lack of e for the ride home, and funnily enough decides that coalpit lane is not the chosen route back tonight!
With the wild weather swings this month will we see snow next week!??