Arran Aftermath

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Christ, it feels like someone's swapped my legs for a geriatrics.

Really enjoyed that, weather was a bit of a mixed bag, first half dry and cool, although the rain started after that and was fairly persistent.

I can see why people enjoy this roadying lark, and it's good to know that my back (and my legs) can deal with nearly 60 miles of riding in a day.

Radek put's on a brave face when he see's the bike Kaiser is loaning him...
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For whom the ferry bell tolls
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Kaiser tries to unjam his fat sausage fingers from his helmet vent. Keith looks away, can't stand the sight of blood
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Radek thanks Kaiser (through gritted teeth) for the loan of 'that' bike
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Getting ready to disembark, from L-R: nelly, Radek, Gazz and Keith
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Kaiser does his best Tron impression while Mr P fixes his light cycle
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Whiting Bay - Kaiser
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Keith and Gazz
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nelly
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Radek
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Mr Panda works on a bike polo move
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Whiting Bay - Unleash the tool roll
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Keith and nelly after just dropping a Suzuki
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Kaiser's best 'none shall pass' impression
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nelly's Dawes Galaxy
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Kaiser rehearses winning the 'ferry dash'... dream on
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Radek plus mystery guest rider
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Mr P drafting a Golf drafting nelly
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Mr P practices more bike polo shapes
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Lochranza - the Sandwich Station and Bike Shed. Great food and prices, shame about the midges
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So we didn't hang about for long
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The other side of the Boglie (spelling?) climb, we stop to let the East Coast midges eat their fill
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Kaiser barely contains his excitement upon sighting the longship
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Or was it the burst space-hopper and the 'ghost of Velo' tribute bike?
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Kaiser figuring out if he can launch the boat and possibly pillage a village before tea
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These speak for themselves... shall photoshop later
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Me upon hearing the news we've only got 7 miles to go
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Reeling in the pack (aye right) after stopping to put my jacket back on
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nelly climbing an impossibly steep hill and still smiling about it... check that gradient
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Keith, going too slow to completely be in the photo ;)
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Got him second time though
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Gazz
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Mr P
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Journey's end, Brodick again
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GPS stats here... I forgot to turn it off when we got to Brodick and then doubled back for that bike shop, not that it really matters I suppose...
 
Was a great day lads and love the photo's, not converted to the thin tire brigade but it was fun to slum it, if just for the one day.
 
Extremely well done lads, I'll try and get another Arran loop in myself before the year is out but couldn't do more than 8 miles myself today :roll:

Love Nelly's Galaxy, I had a 1970's version, really wish I hadn't sold it.
 
velomaniac":2ns407h3 said:
Extremely well done lads, I'll try and get another Arran loop in myself before the year is out but couldn't do more than 8 miles myself today :roll:

Love Nelly's Galaxy, I had a 1970's version, really wish I hadn't sold it.

Was very nice in the flesh too velo and a great effort by nelly given it was the heaviest bike too, i would have loved to have had a run on kaisers uber lightwieght machine, indeed any bike that had a descent cassette range :LOL:
 
write up

Apparently MacRetroBike tradition dictates the newbie does a write up of the days ride, so here is my take on a fine days riding around the Isle of Arran.

So I have been lurking around the Retrobike website for a couple of years. I have a few bikes featured on the site, I have contributed to threads, bought and sold a few parts - but what I haven't managed is a decent days riding with the MacRetro lads. So when the Loop of Arran was announced a few weeks ago it was all the inspiration i needed to get my Galaxy finished, and more importantly get it out on the road for a proper test. After all I bought and restored the bike with the intention of touring, so then what better test than a 58 mile ride around the island known as little Scotland. Apart from how the bike performed I was also curious to test my general levels of fitness.
Leading up the weekend there was plenty of looking at the BBC Weather 5 day forecast - at one point heavy rain & high winds were forecast and my commitment wavered. This might have been more than aversion to rain on my behalf - I had no idea how if I could do 58 miles in the saddle, especially in the company of Macretro's finest? But then I decided I had to see this thing through - bikes 'aint show ponies, they don't only exist on forums, they have to put out on the road, I had to follow up my build with a damn good ride and preferably one that would get me out of my comfort zone and have me huffing and puffing up some big hills.
Fast forward to Saturday morning, the ferry has completed the 50 minute crossing and I am on the car deck waiting to reclaim my bike. There are cyclists everywhere, but where are the retrobike lads? I see some hard core looking roadies, it can't be them. Neither can it be the posse on mountain bikes, but then I see a small group gravitating towards my bike and I figure out they have spotted my bike but not me. I am dressed in black denim shorts over my cycling shorts, a wooly hat and an Adidas track top. On my feet are my Vans skateboarding shoes. I look at the retrobike lads - to a man outfitted in proper cycling shoes, cycling shorts, cycling jerseys & helmets. Then I see there bikes - out of the six of them there are 5 slick looking light weight road machines & Gazz with a vintage, but very fast looking Gazelle. I look at my Galaxy fitted out with handlebar bag, mud guards & rack. Its like an old VW camper in the company of sports cars & hot hatches. I wonder if I have bitten off more than I can chew.

But soon we are all introduced and as we roll off the ferry it is dry and we turn left out of Brodick onto the clock wise route that allegedly gets the hills out of the way first. So here we go. Starting a days riding with ascents is all very well in theory but in reality all it does is leaves you knackered for the whole day - after about 7 miles I was starting to doubt whether I could see this ride through - my knees felt weak and I was thinking I should have gone for triple rings on the front. The photo below was our first stop - thats the wee Holy Island in the background

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IMG_4388 by stllsman, on Flickr

As we flew around the southern end of the island I started to enjoy the ride - the hills had become less frequent and we maintained a healthy pace. At certain sections the group started to thin out, but we would always regroup at some point further down the road. No man left behind. Once hit the south western tip of the island I was praying for a lunch stop, but the consensus was we should push on up the flatt'ish western side and get a good rest before attempting the big ascent that lurks just beyond Lochranza. So we got our heads down and started pedalling, just as the rain began to come down. The next hour was a blur of tarmac and rain, but playing on my mind was the climb ahead. The group thinned out and after I slipped to the back it was only a matter of time before I lost sight of the rider ahead. But then I arrived in Lochranza and found the lads munching on lunch while attempting to shelter from the rain in an unfeasibly small roadside cafe. But we were all in good spirits - we had covered almost 45 miles in good time, and once over the next hill it was a stright run to the ferry. The midges were dreadful so once I had eaten my sandwich I was back in the saddle and attempting to get a head start on the next ascent. This was definitely a case of anticipation being worse than the actual experiece - yes the hill that cuts accross the north tip of the island is a pain, but i got over it through a combination of ride, walk for a bit, ride and then walk a bit more. Even in first gear my knees just didn't have anything left, but it was one of these hills where you could see it all ahead of you, so I had a clear idea of what had to be done. This is me at the summit :

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IMG_4390 by stllsman, on Flickr

Once over the sun came out and we began a tricky descent over pretty crappy road surfaces. There were sharp turn, pot holes and all sorts of obstacles to be avoided, but luckily there was very little traffic on the road. 7 miles short of Brodick we stopped to regroup and I got a quick snap as the light was good :

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IMG_4394 by stllsman, on Flickr

The next few miles were flat, and although tired as hell I was starting to feel quite satisfied that I had done this run. And when I saw the sign that read 'Brodick 1 mile' I felt elated. We arrived back in Brodick with 45 minutes to spare before the ferry. No crashes, no breakdowns, no drama, just a damn good days cycling in Scotland. The pints on the ferry were well earned. Back in Glasgow I had a 2 mile ride back home from the station - elation gave way to exhaustion and by the time I had parked the bike and climbed the stairs to my flat I was dead on my feet. But it was worth it - met new people, rode around Arran and gave the new ride a bloody good test : jobs a good 'un. Cheers lads, thanks for having me![/img]
 
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