Clifton CC

Wiggy 300 for me. Getting up at 4 to make the 5am start was hard work this year round. Saw Tim J briefly before the start. Having done the ride last year remembered that it was easy to get held up at Malton in the café if a large group arrives at once so made an effort to stick with the VC167 guys as they went off the front.
After all the bad weather that had been forecast we were rewarded with a cracking morning clear skies mist and of course very few cars on the road. The VC boys held the pace high all the way to Malton with a group of 6 of us arriving just before 8. Had to make a few minor mechanical adjustments here so rode the next section through to Ripon by myself. The ride from Ripon to Richmond was pretty uneventful , though a detour just after Exalby was necessary to avoid a shut bridge over the A1. Looked like it will be shut for a while so if anyone is planning to ride that way watch out for the diversion signs.
From Richmond to Stokesly the wind was making itself felt much more. After another café stop in Stokesly it definitely felt as though my legs were starting to pay for the early pace having to stop part way up Clay Hill and resort to another gel before continuing on to Helmsley for yet another quick break. The hills between Helmsley and Brandsby saw my legs struggling again. A last push to Wiggington and it was done. Managed the whole ride in the dry with only wet roads in Richmond and then a few puddles in York so it was a shock when Keith said that there had been torrential rain here in York.
Hope everyone else enjoyed their rides.

Hi all
My week started with racing at croft where the weather was good for a change which means it wasnt raining or blowing a gail.The first few laps were fairly uneventful until a crash took out a few riders.Nothing serious.The pace was fairly high and you had to be careful not to loose a wheel going out of the corners.A few riders tried to get away but as i have learnt to my cost it is pretty hard to do.Finished with the bunch sprint but as Phil says no fiver!30 miles at 25.7mph.
Sat i travelled to Stannington for a steel city su per sat race .Didnt really know what to expect .The race was 50 miles run on a rolling course with a drag up to the finish line.Good race course at 24mph average and one of my best days racing this year finishing strongly with the bunch.Just starting to get some race fitness after a dodgy start.This was well worth the long journey.
Cheers Timj

We were had a family camping weekend at Cropton Forest. Claire rode out on Saturday am. I rode back on Mon pm. I lengthened my ride by heading over Egton Moor, then back over the Roman Road to Pickering. Egton Moor was a bit of an ordeal with the hail stones driving straight into my face, but the sun came out again for the Roman Road and I was zipping along with the tail wind. Got back from Pickering in under 90 mins, which is better than Claire managed in the car (bank holiday traffic).

Looking forward to getting back out on the Sunday clubrun for the next few weekends.

A family break in a farmhouse in Wensleydale, and a chance for me to attack a few hills. On Saturday I revisited the best bits I remembered from the Yorkshire Alps ride - via Leyburn to Reeth and Grinton, up Arkengarthdale to Tan Hill, then down Stonesdale to Thwaite and over the Buttertubs to Hawes; up to Fleets Moss, down into Langstrothdale and turn off at Buckden to return home via Bishopdale saddle. A great 71 miles with stunning views and barely any rain. Funniest part was misjudging a tight switchback at the bottom of Stonesdale and realising I'd ridden into exactly the same bush two years ago.

On Monday I wanted to try some interesting looking passes from Askrigg in Wensleydale over the top to Swaledale. But after climbing the Buttertubs from the south side I took a wrong turning onto a deadend road around Crackpot and finished up crossing between the two dales four times in various directions (including the spectacular Oxnop moor, with a 25%+ grade at the bottom) taking in a couple of vicious hailstorms, and a healthy portion of rain, served on a bed of cold northerly winds. All good Dales riding...
tom