Clifton CC

Try

http://www.manchesterwheelers.co.uk/

Yea I am going to try do there mixed 75mile social ride tomorrow, just its a pain to get there the roads are so confusing for me, Manchester aint the best place for cycling me thinks and am putting on abit of weight already, going to cycling back home every 2 weeks as my parents can bring me back.

Dave B wrote: Loads of places within an easy rail journey of Manchester which will give you access to some hilly country for riding - e.g. Chinley, Glossop or Macclesfield for the Peak District, or somewhere like Stalybridge, Hadfield or Huddersfield for the Pennines.

Dave

Will,

Dave is 100% correct, here. It should take about 5 minutes of cycling through Stockport to convince you that Manchester is full of nightmarish two-lane-each-way urban roads that all look identical! They are an enigmatic combination of boredom and danger, and a half hour journey seems to quickly double in time when you factor in traffic, one way systems, mysteriously signposted roundabouts....

Train to Glossop, for example, on the other hand is 30 minutes each way and £2.70 return last time I used it! (2005). No stress, no worries, just lots of rolling and hilly roads.

As far as Uni societies are concerned, I wouldn't worry too much about which uni you go to. For being a casual member, most societies aren't going to need I.D. or a student number from you anyway; I reckon if you explain that you are a full time student they shouldn't care too much. Unless they got real strict lately.

Matt

I think I could handle the dual lanes and all that to a certain degree, worse comes to worse I would dismount at roundabouts, I'm ordering an Edge 605 tommorow along with City Navigator NT 2008. I'm not sure about trains yet I mean where does the bike go??

I found a route up to Hawes from Manchester and with a satnav and some paper backup should be pretty easy, its 71 miles so 142 miles there and back.

I'm going to try contact a uni cycling club and see what they got. Would be good if they let me join them as its so close the Uni is.

Trains usually have an area with flat folding seats and a picture of bike above them, like on the trains that run from Hebden Bridge to Manchester, or Manchester to York. The Glossop trains generally are those kind with the doors in the middle of the carraige and a wide open space around them - tons of room. The Virgin ones to London, I think you have to book a bike space in advance, but some of them have a half-carraige fitted out with bike stands.

Matt

Does sound useful that, train from manchester to york then I bike 10 miles home but I'd rather cycle the extra 52.

What if some idiots on the train come and knock you out and steal the bike??

willhub wrote: What if some idiots on the train come and knock you out and steal the bike??

Only a fool would travel around Manchester unarmed, Will, you know that. Simply chain yourself to the bike and refuse to be taken alive!

Seriously, though, it's not a concern. You're on a busy train... where would they go? It's moving. At the other end, they're at a train station... full of people and POLICE. What are they gonna do? Take you hostage?

Matt

Matt G wrote:

willhub wrote: What if some idiots on the train come and knock you out and steal the bike??

Only a fool would travel around Manchester unarmed, Will, you know that. Simply chain yourself to the bike and refuse to be taken alive!

Seriously, though, it's not a concern. You're on a busy train... where would they go? It's moving. At the other end, they're at a train station... full of people and POLICE. What are they gonna do? Take you hostage?

Matt

I guess so, just seems though train is taking miles away from you, I know manchester is real crap for cycling but its still miles, I went on a ride with someone from Manchester Wheelers other day, he does 40 miles on manchesters city roads .. a day!, without a GPS!, his memory must be like photographic.

I might give the rain a go some day.

Actually, Will, I'm cycling over to Manchester on Thursday, do you fancy riding out to meet me half-way for the ride back?

Does anyone else fancy the ride? I'd be going from York via Otley and Hebden Bridge, probably over to Littlebrough; I'm going to be carrying some luggage and making a start around 9AM. I'm not making the return journey, so anyone joining me would either have to make a turn or get the train back.

(At this time I should probably point out that I don't work for, or own shares in, any train companies)

Matt G

"What if some idiots on the train come and knock you out and steal the bike??"

I regularly combine journeys by train and bike, whether it's getting to project meetings and back, or travelling to evening races. It's dead easy, and far from "stealing miles" it just frees you up to do the miles on quiet roads in nice countryside rather than filling your lungs with petrol fumes and risking becoming roadkill.

As has been said, with local/regional trains you just turn up and load it on with you. It's worth avoiding the worst of the rush hour as trains can get full and commuters can get snotty. For longer journeys on Virgin or National Express it's worth booking on, but if you're booking cheap tickets you just do it at the same time.

And as for assault/theft, surely we'd never go out riding if we were worried about people nicking our bikes?!?

Matt G wrote:Actually, Will, I'm cycling over to Manchester on Thursday, do you fancy riding out to meet me half-way for the ride back?

Does anyone else fancy the ride? I'd be going from York via Otley and Hebden Bridge, probably over to Littlebrough; I'm going to be carrying some luggage and making a start around 9AM. I'm not making the return journey, so anyone joining me would either have to make a turn or get the train back.

(At this time I should probably point out that I don't work for, or own shares in, any train companies)

Matt G

Yea I would not mind meeting you half way , only if I have my GPS by then though.

My GPS will be coming tommorow or the day after so I should have it and have plenty of time to play around with it, where about exactly do you want to meet? I'll have to type it into google maps and print some emergency paper backup off.

PhilBixby wrote:"What if some idiots on the train come and knock you out and steal the bike??"

I regularly combine journeys by train and bike, whether it's getting to project meetings and back, or travelling to evening races. It's dead easy, and far from "stealing miles" it just frees you up to do the miles on quiet roads in nice countryside rather than filling your lungs with petrol fumes and risking becoming roadkill.

As has been said, with local/regional trains you just turn up and load it on with you. It's worth avoiding the worst of the rush hour as trains can get full and commuters can get snotty. For longer journeys on Virgin or National Express it's worth booking on, but if you're booking cheap tickets you just do it at the same time.

And as for assault/theft, surely we'd never go out riding if we were worried about people nicking our bikes?!?

I've never got a train before so I dont know what its like, I might give it a go eventually but not used to around here enough yet.

PhilBixby wrote:As has been said, with local/regional trains you just turn up and load it on with you. It's worth avoiding the worst of the rush hour as trains can get full and commuters can get snotty. For longer journeys on Virgin or National Express it's worth booking on, but if you're booking cheap tickets you just do it at the same time.

Hence my suggestions for destinations; all are served by Northern Rail and "are turn up & go". You can get to Macclesfield from Manchester by other companies' trains, which are quicker but you'll need to reserve the bike (and despite the need for a reservation, Arriva CrossCountry's bike storage facilities are none too sparkling). Likewise, Transpennine runs to Stalybridge and Huddersfield from Piccadilly but you need to reserve your bike [1]. The Northern service from Victoria is slower but more flexible if planning to take a bike.

Dave

[1] If travelling on a Transpennine service that starts/terminates at Manchester Airport, you'll still find, reservation or not, that some inconsiderate folk have usually filled the bike space with gigantic wheeled suitcases.

willhub wrote: Yea I would not mind meeting you half way , only if I have my GPS by then though.

My GPS will be coming tommorow or the day after so I should have it and have plenty of time to play around with it, where about exactly do you want to meet? I'll have to type it into google maps and print some emergency paper backup off.

I guess it depends how far you want to ride. I was going to go (from York): Wetherby, Netherby, Weeton, Pool, Otley, Menston, Eldwick, Bingley, Cullingworth, Oxenhope, Hebden Bridge, Mytholroyd, Littleborough. In Manchester: Rochdale, Middleton, City Centre. But, if you have your fancy GPS thing, any sensible route from Littleborough would be good!

The climb out of Oxenhope to Hebden and over Soyland Moor are reasonabley challenging (for me), so I guess it depends whether you want hills out and hills back. I think you can avoid a lot of hills on the way out if you go Bury, Rawtonstall, Burnley, Colne, Keighley, Bingley/Oxenhope. (No idea what those roads are like, though). Anyway, I'll PM you my email address.

Matt

Dont you have windows live?

I should have my GPS.

What I'll do is pick one of the places you are going through and plan a route with the GPS and go there via that, I'm not sure I'll be able to configure it for going back though.

If I got a train from Manchester to Selby I guess I'd have to stop at leeds?

If it was pitch dark would it be safe you reckon to cycle from leeds to Selby with just those small lights with 3 LED's in them? Every 2 weeks I go back to Selby but I have college on Friday now so cant set off until like 5pm.

I notice it says with Northern Rail its 2 cycle spaces on each train available first come first serve? Do I book one?