Herefordshire Road Ride III AFTERMATH

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Smashing day out topped by getting back in time to see Wiggins dominate in the time trial and win Le Tour - chapeau, Bradley!
 
Ace day but didnt expect anything different!!

The Peloton consisted of 5 .

Ededwards, grumpycommuter, markyp, Iwasgoodonce and daj

I am always rubbish writing something interesting when I just got in but really a fantastic day in great company and another corking route from Ed. talking of the route Ed broke us in gently with 1200ft of climbing in the first 6.5 miles!! :shock: :shock:

Quite amazed at Karl punting around quite a beast with 4 gears :shock: hopefully someone has a pic it was fully equipped with dynamo lights , full guards, a front lamp from chitty chitty bang car and a tool bag that I could of actually climbed into!! And he still pi@@ed all over me!! :LOL:

Felt a bit guilty knowing that Mark was going to have a day of pain with his gears but fair play feller you gave it some!! Not quite so sure about your little friend that popped up when you had the tyre issues?? ha,ha

Bloody good day more will come to me after I have rested!!

Massive thank you as aways for the hospitality provided by the little boss and Ed , The grill selection was awesome !!

Cheers

daj
 

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Many thanks to everyone who turned up for making it such a lovely day and especially to Mr and Mr's Ed for their warm hospitality...top stuff indeed.

I can't think of a better way to spend a warm, sunny day. Yes!!! i said warm and sunny for it was indeed perfect riding weather. I remembered my camera this time but neglected to charge the battery so no photos from me i'm afraid.

The day was filled with banter, heroic climbing and insane descending, following a meandering route through the beautiful green rolling hills of Herefordshire. Could this be the archetypal view of the English Coountryside? I certainly think so.

A swift pub stop to replenish those lost electolytes with alcohol and a chance to discuss weighty cycling matters before a quick 10 miles spin back to Ed's, via the last climb of the day. This one 'soared majestically' up into the blue Herefordshire sky and illicted some colourful language and an awful lot of panting.

The final run in was taken at a fair clip. Ed and Markyp, freed from the shackles of their companions, shot of like a 'rat up a drainpipe', leaving myself, Daj and iwasgoodonce to fly back three up, sucking wildlife from the hedges such was the pace :roll:

Their were numerous highlights of the day, perhaps the best being Markyp's bunnyhop over a cattlegrid at approx 20 mph. As for quote of the day, the 1st is Ed's description of a headlong plunge down what can only be described as a farm track, as merely 'engaging' (the meaning of this word permanently altered for me) and any comment from Mark as he crested the various summits with his tiny selection of gears. Usually along the lines of 'i can't see!!!!" etc ...

And how best to top of such a day? SKOL!!! and meat. Living the dream....

Oh and well done Mr Wiggins and Mr Froome :LOL:

P.s that first sentence reads like i was involved in the organisation..i wasn't...it was all Ed's fault :LOL:
 
Cheers for an absolutely top ride!
Thanks to Ed and Mrs Ed for such a welcome....and the food!!
Really enjoyed it....can't wait for the next.

MarkyP



all smiles before the start.....
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please insert speech bubble containing appropriate cussing....
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mum! mum! that man's scaring me!!!
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suddenly, the camera sensed the age of the bike and reset to black & white!!!

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Smashing photos Mark and love the pics of Karl on his steed in my eyes a awesome effort !! :D

I forgot iwasgoodonce amazing words at the top of the climb in photos

"I think I am ACTUALLY going to die" !!! ha,ha :LOL:
 
Wow. What a ride. The scenery, the company, the apres ride entertainment and (remarkably) the weather(!)

A seemingly unnecessarily early start quickly became a prudent early start due to someone parking their caravan on its roof on the M5. Cue a detour through rural Worcestershire to arrive on time.

Everyone arrived and a quick glance at the others hinted at qualities I don't have! MarkB had gone for legs out of the Chris Hoy ilk, whilst Karl had gone for the Sean Yates in his prime look. Ed was his usual mixture of Big Mig and the Terminator.

Also, worryingly, there appeared to be some quite large sprockets adorning the usual array of sparkly retro stuff. Still, I would be fine. Daj had assured me 42x23 would easily be low enough! Karl had gone for the stealth look, keeping his gears hidden under a Sturmy Archer shroud of mystery!

We left Ches-Ed and headed off into the Hereford countryside along a glorious river. This was God's way of telling me I should have gone fishing instead as Ed took us away from the beaten track and up a climb that must of broken away from the rest of the Alps at he end of the last Ice Age.

Up and sweatily up we (I) toiled using my previously unsoiled-by-a-chain first gear.

Seeing the sort of figures on my heart monitor you only usually see in the first five minutes of Casualty, the scene was set for the rest of the ride.

My pedalling technique can't really compare to Wiggins or Fondriest but it does rely on a quick and smooth cadence of around 90 to 95. I could not muster anything in double figures for most of the day.

The scenery when the cascading sweat lessened sufficiently for me to see anything, was stunning and refreshingly different from the flatlands of the Midlands where I currently reside. Climb after climb ensued which many years ago I would have loved.

Now, many years (and Kgs!) later the feeble pipe cleaners that pass for my legs struggle to put out the watts necessary to light up one of those energy saving light bulbs and I was suffering like a bugger.

Would I have rather been anywhere else? Absolutely not. I enjoyed every minute of it. The double puncture was a blow and the bloke who wanted to tell us all about his life and verically pointing bar ends was interesting but as a whole...

...Best ride in ages!

Huge thanks to Ed and Ed's boss for the glorious spread upon our return and thanks to all for waiting for me. Now, since it was my legs doing all the work, can some one explain to me why my arms hurt so damn much?

See you next time.

One last edit. Whether it was the head covering, the powdered Bike Food powder or the fact I managed to drink enough (about ten times more than the rest of you), but I had no headache afterwards. Result!
 

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A few reflections a few days on has revealed these 'highlights':

- Dave, having eschewed FridgeRaiders, showing up, arms laden, with a heady combination of a mini breakfast patisserie selection and assorted tat
- Mark, learning from experience, turning up with more shit tyres than at the brewery ride. "I found the rear one in a skip" does not qualify as an excuse even amongst the most thrifty minded
- no official bike of the ride but Karl's Raleigh Clubman was made of win (and at it's 40lb weight, clearly it was hewn from solid win), the chromed rims and leather brake block combo a particularly sweet touch
- although a straight through 12-18 was clearly the winning choice, there were audible gasps when Mark nonchalently drew his bike from the car, resplendent with young mans gearing
- Dave thinking a plastic bike was acceptable
- markyp dancing up all the climbs; there's being owned on your own ride and then there's icing it with cattlegrid bunnyhopping, chapeau
- Karl opting for a Skol with distinct enthusiasm
- the Little Boss querying "honey, your shorts aren't usually this sticky" when we arrived back.

Look out for the Grimpeur's Winter Warmer, coming to a farm track near you sometime soon......
 
excellent pics markyp.....never mind 47 mph, i think i aged by that much down the same descent, watching my brake pads evaporating right in front of my eyes.

iwasgoodonce":39210lp8 said:
whilst Karl had gone for the Sean Yates in his prime look.

that's the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me

 
Brilliant day out .... Just a tad confused why we only have it once a year?!? :D

When we having a crack at gospel pass? :shock:
 
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