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It's been very quiet on here lately.....

First family ride of the spring for us on Saturday, 60k round Riccall and Taddy. Loads of cyclists out. Great to see. Forgot how flat it is down there though, am sure you can see the curvature of the earth.

Just 4 of us in The Square on Sunday morning. Regular company of Andy and Steen, while James gave a welcome extra wheel to hide behind. Headed for the southern Wolds via Millington and on through Tibthorpe, before turning south at Kirkburn through Etton, Cherry Burton, Walkington and Little Weighton. No space in our usual cafe in Swanland, but we found a new one in Elloughton with great cycle lock up area. Back via Elloughton Dale, Newbald, Everingham, Thornton and Stammy Bridge. Really enjoyed the ride - lots of traffic free lanes, big skies, felt like spring. Just about clocked the first imperial century of the season, while Steen, who rode in and home, got his first metric double century .

Langdale End next week, the Thixendale Spiro the week after.

Saturdays ride with the K group, was something of a wakeup ride for me, having put on a new chain on the Friday ready for the weekend. I had 2 chain incidents. First after we had turned round at Crambe crossing having been advised by the keeper that the Kirkham abbey road was closed for resurfacing, my chain snapped just before the T junction. So by using a Kwick link we then headed up Howsham, then across to Leavening, before heading out to Langton and then Birdsall where the group split, with Julia and I taking up the rear before the big house.( we should have kept up - as the next part will explain). After we had passed the right turn to Burythorpe, my chain snapped for the second time - but this time we didn't have all the required items to effect the repair; i.e no chain breaker only one part of it !! Check kit before next ride!! Fortunately Julia has some very good neighbours, who kindly drove out from Stamford Bridge with the chain breaker, by which time we had walked past the cross roads. But it was still after 1.30 before we had repaired the chain, so no lunch stop and straight to Julia's via Worsendale dale etc and a bowl of soup courtesy of mine host Julia, then I caught up with Mark Finch and Nick on the Mount in York. Lessons learned - get it right first time with the length of chain as you can't join these 9/10 speed chains without a speed link, carry the correct tools. But why the chain snapped a second time is a mystery to be resolved when it gets back to SMC.