Today's Ride

[Repack Rider]

A long time ago my late friend Pat Reddix started this venerable thread. When the now deceased magazine Privateer came to Northern California, I was not available to guide them, and for better or worse, I turned them over to Pat. I found the article today while working on the Mountain Bike Legacy Project and I scanned it into a .pdf. that is now on my website.

 

[Repack Rider]

There is a group of old guys like myself who meet daily at the same place and time. No fixed list, just whoever shows up. Yesterday no one else did, so I rode alone. That meant I took a harder ride than their usual, and ended up poised on top of "Heart Attack Hill," ready to ride back to town. I turned on the GoPro and got an amazing downhill run off the mountain and even through town.

 

[slackboy]

I'm mid way round the tour de coniston, just stopped for a sustaining samosa
.

 

[raidan73]

You must join us one day. I’m sure it won’t be the last outing.

Give me a shout next time you’re out

 

[peetee]

Give me a shout next time you’re out

Will do!

 

[Markybeau]

There is a group of old guys like myself who meet daily at the same place and time. No fixed list, just whoever shows up. Yesterday no one else did, so I rode alone. That meant I took a harder ride than their usual, and ended up poised on top of "Heart Attack Hill," ready to ride back to town. I turned on the GoPro and got an amazing downhill run off the mountain and even through town.

Thank you for sharing Charlie. I wish I could join you for a ride like that. Awesome stuff.

 

[CassidyAce]

A long time ago my late friend Pat Reddix started this venerable thread. When the now deceased magazine Privateer came to Northern California, I was not available to guide them, and for better or worse, I turned them over to Pat. I found the article today while working on the Mountain Bike Legacy Project and I scanned it into a .pdf. that is now on my website.


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I think of Pat each time I turn down this road (see photo) on one of my regular rides. The first time I did that ride, I was faced with several near-identical looking roads and I wasn't sure which was the one to get me where I wanted, but when I saw Fairfax Drive, I thought that's the one to try, cheers Pat, and it turned out right.

 

[CassidyAce]

Today's ride: 41 miles, about 15℃, sunny to start, raining for the last half-an-hour. I was going to take the Ridgeback which is riding sweetly thanks to a new bottom bracket and new jockey wheels, but I'm riding that five days a week as it is, so I decided on a road ride. I'm enjoying the ride to Sandwich at the moment, so I thought I'd head there again, but a little bit further, to Sandwich Bay. I didn't stop for many photos, but these guys looked worth stopping for:


However, I think it's fair to say that they were a lot less interested in me than I was in them.

Sandwich Bay, itself, is a peculiar place. It's right next to Sandwich's famous golf course and it's a private estate, owned by the residents. Cyclists get in free but drivers have to pay £7 at the toll booth to drive in. It's five minutes' ride, then, to the beach, past driveways littered with German luxury 4x4s. The average house price is probably about £1.2 million but it's a bit Stepford Wives. It reminds me of Confucius's saying, that those whose actions are guided by self-interest will encounter much ill will. I get the feeling that quite a lot of self-interest has been associated with this place and I don't much like it. But the beach is lovely—Ramsgate is in the distance:

 

[Markybeau]

Yesterday's ride was a humble 5 miles. This time to Swinton Lock, also known as Waddington's, as it's behind the boatyard. This lock is normally only accessible by boaters, unlike the other lock I tend on a Saturday.

The barge in the photo is one of a pair. The other called Confidence. If you look closely you can see that she is indeed a 'cut and shut'. I'm not sure of the displacement but I believe it's getting on for 500 tonnes plus. She and her sister were built to transport components for a power station. Task completed, she has remained tethered here for upwards of 20 years now. Her sister is in the boatyard behind.
Glorious sunny morning.

About 16°c by 11am.

 

[Markybeau]

Slipping out the door, into the cool air as the sun began to rise. Took the 98: like slipping into a comfy armchair.