Cycling – Page 11 – Frank Kinlan's Blog

CTC Ride Eureka Cafe to Halkyn

What a day this turned out to be. A tale of bad weather, the steepest climbing I’ve done and sheep. I wasn’t going to bother with a ride today but I’m glad I did.
I needed a lift down the Eureka as I was running late and needed my breakfast before the ride. Chester and North Wales CTC were off to Eastham and the Ferry Hotel for lunch, this was a bit too close to home for me. Plus I am trying to avoid places that pile the plate high. Some years ago I had the 32 ounce steaks they served here. Is it any wonder I went up to 21 stone. So I gave it a miss.

Merseyside CTC were going to Flint led by Alan. So Flint it was along with 8 others. I’ve ridden with most of the others at one stage or the other. Emerging from the Cafe it starts to rain, the forecast was good but that would be later on. It was a stop for rainwear down Woodbank and past RAF Sealand it was particularly bleak with a strong headwind to boot. If anyone had had any sense we’d have turned back. We cross on the Dee on the rail bridge and as we thread through Shotton a chap stops us all and asks if we are interested in some tandems he is selling.

Bob leaves us at the college and we head towards Flint, we pass Paper Mill Lane which I had down as the route up the hill. No such luck Alan had a much tougher route in his devious mind. We take a parallel road further on but end up at a set of traffic lights in Flint that have a cycle lane turning right across the traffic, cars excluded. We take the fork in the road to the hospital. Around here we take a left up Cornist lane. (You can see it on the Google map if you zoom in far enough)

This was the start of the fun, I turned on the gradient function on the Garmin boy did that come in useful. Bear in mind the steepest thing I’ve seen is 17% up till now. The first section is steep enough and I arrive at the crossroads first stopping for more directions from Alan. The others come through and I set off near the back, the instructions are to keep going straight on. I pass some of the others on here I think Ron dismounted and I was in the granny ring. It’s steep about 20% (1in5) Alpe D’Huez is 10/11% but long. One chap made it to the mid section of this part but stopped (I don’t know his name).

Now it starts to get interesting, REALLY interesting, I’m out front again the road dips and then starts to climb again, I’m at about 9 out of 10 on the perceived effort scale and the climb is just getting steeper. I’m riding up a river literally, the road (track) is awash with all the recent rainfall. The Garmin is locked at 20% and it looks steeper. I’m looking for a reason to dismount and walk. My wish is granted when a sheep leaps over a hedge and runs down the bank in front of me.

Respite was shortlived 50 yards up the hill I try to get back on the bike. It’s just that the sheep that I used as an excuse to walk has joined up with the rest of the flock. There are about 20 of them at least. Every move I make pushes them further up the road. The A55 is at the top of the road and you can hear the traffic speeding by. Next thing a chap in a red BMW pulls up. They’re not his and obviously not mine and seem to keep a 50 yard distance between us.

The rest of the group are nowhere to be seen which is probably just as well at this time. The chap with the BM phones the Police to alert them about the hazard. As we move up the lane I end up taking my HiViz jacket off as it is spooking the sheep. The BM guy scales the bank goes up the field to get in front of the sheep. Then the rest of the group arrive. All but one stop. One doesn’t seem to grasp the situation and keeps on going, potentially driving the sheep onto the road.
The quality is poor as the light is poor. Ray reckons I should have taken pictures of the whole event. the sheep have just run up the bank out of sight. Try to picture it with 20 to 30 sheep in the road.

The BM chap manages to send the sheep back down the lane, the others manage to send the sheep up the bank and further back down the lane.Another two cars have joined the queue. The drama is over and we cycle to the top of the lane and the Transport Cafe.

Cornist Lane

This is the shallow bit at the top. I burnt 500 calories before I took this picture.

The Transport Cafe (I’ve forgotten the name) was just that. Basic food, a lot that I no longer eat but a fast service and cheap. Probably not too many of these places left these days.

Transport Cafe.jpg

After we had finished there was more to come, with another two climbs that registered 20% on the Garmin. Ray had a Puncture to repair so thats one for the stats. Turning right from the cafe we then turn left and go under the A55. There is another climb that also touched 20% up to Pentre Halkyn. Chris is starting to struggle a bit on his fixie. Its hard going even on 30/28. Once round the bend it flattens off and I though that was it for the day. No such luck, Alan leads the group up Halkyn and yet another climb where the gradient is 20% in places. Once through Halkyn we take the lane that runs along the top of the hill. Then it is a fast ride down through the lanes eventually ending up in Northop.

Here the battery on the Garmin finally gave up. I should have left it at that but started it up at RestHill again so the route got corrupted on the upload to Motionbased.
The ride back was a lot better than the ride out as the sun was out.

It was another sprint up Woodbank to get this picture and then another tea and flapjack at the Eureka Cafe. Rode back with Roy and Joan to Willaston continued on Route 56 and finally up RestHill as the light was going.
Had a great day, got beaten by a hill, played at being a shepherd, looked down from the top of Halkyn and wondered ” Have I just ridden up that !”. Great scenery, good people and this is Wednesday in the first week of January.

Link to Google map CTC Ride Eureka Cafe to Halkyn

Stats:
Height Ascended 1254 ft
Max Height 844 ft Halkyn
Min Height 21 ft
Calories Burnt 2023

CTC Ride to Holt (Bellis,s Garden Centre)

The first ride of the year was an impromptu one, those that turn up decide where to go on the day. Normally this would probably be the Ice Cream farm but we understood it to be closed today so it turned out to be Bellis,s Garden Centre at Holt. This was a new venue for me and I had no idea it was at Holt.

This was my first proper ride since the fall and a chance to see if I’m up to doing the Audax at the end of the month. The ride out to the Eureka Cafe went OK, giving me a chance to see if the new cassette (12,28) on the back would make any difference. It might be another year but it was breakfast as usual. Margaret and Phil were there, it was Margarets first time out for about three months after she had broken her wrist. Janet was back from her cycling holiday in Costa Rica ( I think) and also had had a fall.

There were 8 on the ride John, Janet, Margaret, Graham, Brian, George, Annabel and moi.
It was nearly 7 as Margaret,s bike needed attention for a loose seatpost. I was just packing the multitool away in the saddle bag with the bike leaning against the bus shelter, turned around and they were gone. Still in sight, it was a quick bit of pedaling to catch up.

First Ride of the Year

It was down Woodbank a left turn and across the A5117 multi million pound Newt bypass.
Here I had to stop to tighten up a loose bottle cage so it was another catch up job. It started to rain too and some stopped to don rainwear. Margaret and Graham left to go into Chester as the rest of us headed to the Dee crossing at Saltney (footbridge). It was a drink stop on the other side.
Out of Saltney towards Bretton John went over a small puddle that concealed a pothole. If it happened to me the jolt would have set me back a bit.

Then it was on to Dodleston, Pulford right at the tee towards Rosset and then left on to the Rosset road towards Holt. Left at another tee and into the square at Holt.
Right here and Bellis,s is a couple of hundred yards down the road. I’ve never been here before but the first thing that struck me were the signs saying don’t park Bicycles virtually anywhere. Same goes for the shop. The bike gets parked up against a wall on the far side of the carpark. Obviously something has happened in the past. But they could do themselves some favours by putting up a bar similar to the Eureka. You’d get six to eight bikes in the same space as one of the 4×4 that dotted the carpark.

STI levers aren’t cheap and I like to keep an eye on my bike, not have it shoved aginst a wall in the back of beyond. Any way the place isn’t bad Garden Centres are not my particular cup of tea. The cafe is busy and we get the last table for six. Linda from the Sunlight joins us. She has had to stop for something to eat and the group had gone on without her. Janet mentioned about upgrading to a carbon framed bike, well Linda has a Trek Maddone WSD similar to mine, we both said how much we loved going out on them.

George was a bit more sceptical “Whats the difference, how can you tell”. Well there is a difference, I felt the same way about the Colnago Carbitubo and I didn’t know it was carbon fibre untill it broke. Everything is a bit smoother and you can pick the thing up with one finger. The winter bike although good just isn’t the same. It may be the wheels as George suggested but the wheels on the Iceni came off the Colnago.
Chicken baguette with a pot of tea for me, I’d just cycled 18 miles for it. I’m increasingly aware of how large we have become as a nation, there were a fair number of big people in there, the furthest they walked must have been the fifty yards through the store. I was in the same position and realise just how little most are doing. I litterally did nothing. Anyway the bill was £6. No picture this week as the baguette at The Swan is going to take some beating.

Bellis,s Cycle Rack!.jpg

It was light rain when we set off again, I was riding around in circles in the carpark with the Garmin Edge 305 bleeping away at me. As I had pressed the start button to log the ride again it was counting my circumnavigation of the carpark as training laps. Four laps later we set off back into Holt. It looks like Paul Burrells Flower Shop has closed in Holt village square, pity really as it sort of put Holt on the map.
Now its a garden centre with no cycle parking.

Down the hill from Holt the lights are on red for the River Dee crossing. For those that don’t know it this is a picture postcard bridge that links Holt on one side of the river and Farndon on the other. There is only one lane and it’s controlled by traffic lights on either side. Feeling in good form I position myself in pole position at the lights aware of the car I heard coming up probably wants to beat us to the chicane.

I fly across the bridge at over 20mph the speed dropping as I hit the hill on the Farndon side its still 16-17mph as I tackle the climb to the junction. I stop for a blow as by this time the heartrate has hit 160 bpm and look back to see the car come slowly past some seconds later. The gradient is 6 to 8% so its about 1:12 in old money. As you can gather I’m having a great time.

We are following the road to Churton and then on to Aldford. After Bruera I see the climb to the tower at Saighton in the distance. Determined not to be beaten again by George I take off, well its flat on the run up and the Garmin says 22mph dropping as I hit the climb. This was a full on effort and the garmin has it logged as 177 BPM. Next one along is George which is good going as he is 72. Its pretty much straight on to Huntington past the Rake and Pikel. Avoiding the Jungle we stay on the B5130 with views over the River Dee to our left. Another sprint up the hill that has a park at the top of it. There were two grey squirrels here when I stopped for a few seconds.

It’s around the back of the Bike Factory, follow the canal for 200 metres across the bridge and work our way to the cycle path. This is by far the best route to get back to the Eureka. You only see traffic on the road you pick up on the outskirts of Blacon. Back up Woodbank to the Eureka for a picture of John and Annabel turning in.

John and Annabel Finish.jpg

Tea and flapjack in the Eureka, Linda made it back with the Sunlight, Graham and Margaret made it back. Met Roy and Joan and started talking about Audaxes, he put me onto the CTC events. I asked about Joans Giro helmet which they got from Deeside. I’ve just learnt that they have ceased trading which is a pity as I was only in there the other week. Looks like I will have to go further afield for that Colnago Extreme C that I dream about.

I followed Roy and Joan to Willaston, they ride at a respectable 16-17 mph or did do until Roy,s Cateye computer bounced down the road. This computer has nine lives as it fell off when Roy dragged me off Moel Famau when the Toy broke. Luckily there was no passing traffic when it was retrieved otherwise it would have ended up as roadkill 1 on the stats.

The front light gets switched on after Willaston and it’s the full 15 watts at Brimstage. Up RestHill on the lowered gearing the Garmin gets stopped at the top.
55 Miles, it’s been a good day out and a good start to 2007. Thanks everyone.

Link to Google Map of Ride opens in new window.

I don’t know why it has uploaded the section from RestHill to the Eureka as I have gone to some trouble to delete that data, along with software updates, hardware updates to boot.

Stats:
Eureka-Bellis,s-Eureka 37.1 miles
2167 Calories burnt. Max heartrate 178 BPM. Average heartrate 130 BPM.
Average speed 12 mph. Max speed 25.2 mph.

New Years Day Ride.

01 Jan 2007

A week after the crash I just had to get back on the bike for a ride. A picture something like the one above is going to replace the clipart wheel on the homepage. All my rides start or end up finishing at this spot so it now plays an important part of my (new) life.

To recap, about two years ago I\’d taken up cycling to improve my health. I tackled this hill after a while on my mountain bike. I\’d been cycling on the flat for months before tackling this hill, I also happened to have my Aldi Heart Rate Monitor on. I was around the 20 stone mark. I\’d come around the bend at the bottom, engaged the lowest of the 21 gears I had and gave it a go. Now the hill steepens up where the gate to Storeton woods is. Some where around here I looked at the HRM it was flashing 166 BPM.

After the gate things were just as bad, this was my 100% effort . I ended up stopping at this sign and literally collapsed over the handlebars. It was minutes before I regained my breath and I was the colour of a beetroot. When your the weight I was you remain seated on a climb like this. There is good reason to remain seated mainly that getting out of the saddle is even harder work, your knees aren\’t up to it and 20 stone doesn\’t dance on the pedals.

Even if they did your not going to get anywhere fast. The gear I was pushing meant I was spinning the pedals like crazy but only inching up the hill. The only thing that kept me going is the unwritten rule that getting off and walking is failure and the hill has won.
Well the hill didnt win this time but for a long time I avoided the fight with this hill because I didn’t want to loose.

It had a major influence on my cycling at that time, keep to the flat, go around a problem(hill) rather than up and over it. It was all a question of weight, it takes a lot of effort to lift a surplus 7 stone or 100 lbs up 150 ft. I had problems lifting it up a flight of stairs which is roughly 10 feet. No wonder I was in a heap at the top.

This hill holds no fear for me now, its something that I gauge others by. After I got “The Toy” back from Quinns I rode up and down Rest Hill 3 times in succession just to prove I had it beaten. Because of the weather I haven’t been out on “The Toy” for about a month. Today I went out on it and instantly realised how good it is and what I was missing for the sake of a set of mudguards.

It was a bit breezy today, otherwise you may have copped a look at me in my Discovery Channel kit. I\’m still wary of my of my appearace these days especially after Gibbo from work commented about the spare tyre I was carrying on the Eureka Ride. An offhand comment but it hit home hard. I now realise what women go through to please their men.
Ride write up tommorrow. It was short but worth doing.

A picture or two to brighten up the site. (and cheer me up)

Kev Charlie and Bob at Chester

I took this picture on the return from a ride to the Ice Cream farm with Kev,Bob and Charlie. It was May, a fantastic day and I had a great time. It was before I had set this site up. Charlie sorted out my seat height on this ride. The difference in the ride was amazing.

Charlie telling jokes

They are large files so if you are on dial-up sorry.

Christmas Eve Ride(I've fallen off and broke my shoulder)

What a day this is turning out to be, it could have ended a hell of a lot worse if I wasn’t wearing a Bell cycle helmet. I’ll post a picture of it when I can get around to it. I’m a bit sore at the moment and using my left hand to type.

It started off OK with my usual trip down route 56 to the Eureka Cafe for probably the last Franks Breakfast of the year. I saw 4 riders coming back as I was heading out but joined a chap from the Chester Road Club at the sweeping bend outside Willaston on the road to Clatterbridge. I ended up passing him a few hundred yards later but he must have took the road by Leahurst as I ended up behind him again at the Hadlow road traffic lights. He had upped his pace so I was content to stay behind.

It was mulled wine and mince pies at the Eureka Cafe but it was Franks Breakfast for me. CTCers were a bit thin on the ground with Lusso jacket John the only one making it. Fresh from my climb up School Hill at Lower Heswall (gradient 17%) the other Wednesday (the Old Quay ride I haven’t written up) I decided to tackle the recent killer climb published in Cycling Weekly namely Pipers Lane up to the Cleaver Hospital. Its still there unclimbed by moi as things took a turn for the worse a few miles up the road.

Before that I’d set off from the Eureka Cafe following a passing cyclist that looked quite handy, he’d turned off to Puddington which was the route I was following. At the village green I spotted Pinarello Kev going the other way. A quick U turn had us riding back to the Eureka Cafe for another tea. It’s been a couple of months since we’ve seen each other and he had suffered a bereavement.

At the Eureka Cafe the talk got around to Colnago,s. Kevs got his heart set on a C50 with the plane (fighter) paint job. I told him about the broken Carbitubo and the Extreme C dream (88 kg weight limit). I also mentioned the Audaxes I intend to try next year and with a bit of luck Kev might be doing them too.

We parted company at Craxton Wood, Kev heading back so he could get off to work, me heading off to Puddington, Burton, the Dee at Denhall lane. Things were going good, I’d called down the sister inlaws at West Vale for a cup of tea. Once I rejoined the route two riders came past and I tagged along with them, their route was behind the church on Church Lane and onto Parkgate.

They stopped for a rest break at the square in Parkgate. I continued on. Past the Boathouse I turned off through Gayton. This wasn’t too bad untill I hit Wirrals finest gates. You’ll know them when you see them.

50 Yards further on I’m in a bad way, I try to straighten up but it isn’t happening.There are double grids on this bend and the odd single grid for good measure. There is something on the road and I go down hard. Two people stop to see to me and I am gratefull. About 200 Metres further on I call for help on the phone and am rescued. It’s a tough call but the right one.

Casualty at Arrowe Park see me as a cyclist, fit, healthy,that has had an accident. Its a big change from the begining of the year. Morbid obesity that sort of effect on your mental health. I stupidly ask about going to into work on Boxing Day only to be told that my insurance would be null and void for driving. It’s slowly starting to sink in, it’s not the end to the year that I wanted.

The end of my year was supposed to be the begining of Vals year, my wife of 26 years. Christmas Day was going to be about visiting family on the new Trek 1000 WSD I’ve bought her. Her support has been invaluable throughout the year. The old Raleigh (unused) she had has had to go once I saw her dissapear into a hedge on a ride we started out on. The bike was virtually unridable to me when I tried it out, it looked the part but proved that looks aren’t everything.

It’s not the end of the fantastic year that I had in mind but it’s something that I can’t control unlike my weight which I can.

I’m out of action for a couple of weeks by the sound of things, I still hope to do the Audax on the 28th of January and get my year of to a new start. It’s probably time to reflect a bit more, take in what I have achieved.

The climb out of Pipers lane remains unclimbed, I lost an Ebay auction for a Discovery Channel Jacket that hurt almost as much as the shoulder. One thing I have learnt is you have to be out there to do it. Don’t waste too much time on sites like these, just do it. And with that I’ll wish everyone a Happy Christmas and a Happy New year.

I’ve had a look at the Garmin Training Centre upload and it’s logged the crash, by the look of the data I hit the deck at 16 mph. The next thing I’ll do is upload the data into Anquet.
I want to start playing with the routes in the new year. First things first fracture clinic on wednesday.

CTC Ride Eureka Cafe to Ice Cream Farm 2

After Fridays debacle with the ski gloves I’m determined to be a bit more prepared for this ride. The gloves have dried out, the Iceni has had its chain lubed and the Garmin is charged and the HRM has had its battery changed. Weather looks a bit mixed so I set off overboots on but no overtrousers. I’ve also managed to take a spare pair of Aldi Winter gloves with a lining pair thrown in to boot.

A little shower soon blows over at Brimstage and I’m just chugging along through Thornton Hough on the way to Willaston. At the lights at Hadlow Road one of the North End catches me up his bike decked out like a christmas tree. The pace quickens down the top road as can be seen from the Motion based site. It’s the first time I’ve seen anything like this so I’ve taken a few pictures.

North End Cristmas Ride

I’ts much the same inside, with everyone in a festive mood. Turns out the North End are off to ” A pub somewhere ” . Our planned ride to the Dunham Arms has had to be cancelled as they are only serving christmas dinners. It was only a few weeks ago that we filled this place on a wet wednesday, with not a regular or other passing customer in sight. The North End assemble outside so its off outside for some more pictures.

These images are compressed, if you’d like a copy at the orginal size, let me know.

North End Heading out.jpg

I know I’ve captioned one of the pictures wrong it should read Mel

A little later we set off for The Ice Cream Farm the group comprising of the two John,s , Barbara, Jill, Bob, Andy, Annabel, Barry and moi. Turning left at the church towards Ledsham heading towards Capenhurst, turning right before the station.
Turning left at Backford we head towards Wervin. Here as we cross over the motorway the weather takes a turn for the worse. Steady rain, not a downpour but it takes the shine off things.

I’m shaking my hands to get the water off them as I know from Friday that they won’t stay dry forever. Towards Beeston and the hills in the distance we can see sunshine, our route though has us twisting and turning as if we are trying to stay under the black cloud overhead. Around Hargrave the rain eases off, I’ve been riding off the front so its a sprint up the bridge over the canal and down the other side to get the next picture of the group turning into Newton Lane.

It was mainly other cyclists at the Ice Cream farm when we got there, other clubs and riders from around Cheshire. Todays choice was a Christmas special Baguette and a pot of tea. The converation got around to BMI (Body Mass Index) calculations. The Times managed to cock it up with people getting strange results.
So long as you stick with the same units (Kg/Mtrs) (Pounds/Inches) you should have much trouble working it out. The all singing dancing PDA gets an airing as I have a BMI calculator programme on it. Once one has theirs done everyone wants to know what theirs is. Well a couple of us are in the overweight category me included, the women were normal. No one would have qualified for the course I am on. My BMI was 41.9 before I took up cycling, Morbid Obesity starts at 40>.

There was another cyclist in there who was raving about SealSkin gloves and socks, 100% waterproof etc. I would have bought some of these the day before in Chester but Millets had put a security tag on the cuff, so I figured the membrane would have punctured so gave them a miss. Back outside I change gloves to the Aldi winter specials with a silk innner glove that I picked up from Decathlon in Stockport.

I don’t know if anyone ever looks at the routes on the MotionBased site apart from Ray but average heart rate for this ride was 105 bpm which sticks it right in the fat burning zone. There were parts that were a fair bit higher, like staying with the chap from the Noth End down the top road. Or sprinting up Woodbank at 18 mph to take a picture of the group only to have the phone malfunction and I end up getting a shot of my foot. It’s a lot better than sitting on an exercise bike in the gym watching the TV with the resistance on level 1. Loads do it for some reason.

There are 101 way to the Ice Cream Farm but this is a fairly straight forward one. Once you’ve done it a few times you start to get to know the lanes and you get to know the turns. Apart from two busy road crossings its done on quiet roads and lanes. The cyclepath through Chester keeps you away from all the traffic. If there is anyone out there contemplating taking up leisure cycling this is one route I would reccomend. Its flat, there are a couple of points where you may have to change down a gear or two or get out of the saddle but thats about it.

Back at the Eureka it’s time for a tea and a flapjack. This weeks ride home was via the Missing Link or route 56, all the recent rain had cleared it up a lot. Back through Thornton Hough, the lights getting switched on for Brimstage and the final climb up Resthill.

Link to Google Map: CTC ride Eureka Cafe to Ice Cream Farm 2

Stats:

57 miles for me.
Punctures none, Average speed 12.9 mph.
Breakfasts 1, Baguettes 1, Tea 2 cups 1 pot. Oat flapjacks 1.
Calories burnt: 2804. Elevation gained 2616 ft

Wirral Loop (A very wet ride).

Things didn’t go to plan today. In fact the plan went west the night before.
The 60 odd mile Steve Cummings route that I was planning on doing wouldn’t transfer into the Garmin Edge 305. I was also going to ride it in reverse order just to further complicate things. The forecast said showers, I can cope with showers, but they lied. Google Steve Cummings , now riding for Discovery Channel.

The only bit of kit I had on that wasn’t Aldi badged was the Altura Hi Viz Jacket. You can’t miss me in this and it’s a quality bit of kit, breathable, waterproof, vented at the back and comes with these fancy waterproof reflective zips at the front. Pity I forgot the Aldi Winter overshoes, I will pay for this later. The Aldi ski gloves are getting an outing so off I set in a light drizzle.

The botton of Rest Hill is flooded so it’s a singing the rain act as I plough through it with the feet out of the clipless pedals. I’ve taken the only picture of the ride on the return.
It’s a bit dismal as I head through Brimstage and Thornton Hough but spirits are still high.
I’m still dry, it’s a penetrating drizzle on the outside, the Aldi gloves seem to be doing the trick and before you know it I am at The Eureka Cafe. There is a slight problem, it is closed. There is another chap outside that I have seen there in the past.

I retreat to the warmth of the Mini dealership at the Two Mills lights. Pleasant enough place but they don’t seem to take me seriously when asked a few questions. My next car will probably be a Mini but the pushbike outside and me dripping all over their cars probably diverts their attention. (don’t forget the Hi Viz jacket). The other guy prefers to wait in the rain. Once I’m sorted I check to see if it is a late opening and it’s off on the rest of the ride.

The Eureka Cafe breakfast is part of my ride, so I’ve been thrown off course. The penetrating drizzle persists as I head back through Puddington and Burton. Thoughts of the Steve Cummings route long gone. I take the road down to the marsh at Burton. I don’t know if the firing range is still in in operation but these days but I doubt it. Denhall lane is always a challenge, I saw 8% gradient at one stage so its not easy. Terry (77) showed me this one.

Feeling a bit empty and a bit damp I call in at Ness garden Visitor centre not surprisingly I’m the only customer, its early, too early for lunch and the weather is horrible. I settle for a pot of tea and and a mince pie (no cream). Once I’ve got the overtrousers and jacket off I find I’m dry underneath and nothing like the drowned rat dripping every where when I walked in. It’s a nice setting, bright and modern and the staff are cheerful.
On the way out I chat to a remarkable lady on another table initially about the weather but also covering health and fitness. Another one of the cards was given out. I only ever ask that it is passed on to someone who might benefit from a site like this. This year has been one of unbeleivable change for me and it’s not over yet!

The ski gloves are not proving to be 100% waterproof the right one is sodden, probably with water running in through the cuff. Heading towards Neston I head down Church Lane as this avoids going through Neston Cross. Emerging near the Library I head down the road to Parkgate. I’d normally stop here for a drink, admire the view and one day have an ice cream as a treat. Not today I chug along the front the drizzle not bothering me.

Once past The Boathouse the only way is up, this used to be a stiff climb for me but it’s easier these days. Long, a bit of a drag but not steep enough to get out the saddle for. Once at the top road it’s straight on past the Glegg arms (where I used to drink in younger days) and up the hill to Heswall. I purposely choose this route these days as it is always gridlocked with traffic. Today is no different.

Today its another call in to Dee Fine Arts to see if there is anything that catches the eye. The problem today is I’m dripping wet, I have quick look around but think I shouldn’t be looking at any watercolours the state I am in. Back on the bike and heading towards the lights down the outside of the traffic I see what the cause of the holdup is. A bus is trying to turn right into the station. Its way is blocked by a very considerate (not) motorist ignoring the keep clear markings on the road.
Just a well the Firestation opposite didn’t have a call too. After that the road is clear to the lights not surprisingly.

Right at lights along Pensby Road to see my mum and dad. They can’t get over the change in me too. I’m contemplating a couple of changes for next year, but where do I go from here?. It won’t be backwards. The plan changed again, the West Kirby, New Brighton route got changed to Gills lane, Barston dip . Along Station road and back to the bottom of Resthill. There was the little matter of crossing the flooded road to take into account. So I stopped and took a picture of it, the only one on the ride.

Rest hill doesn’t look much from here, but its the end of every ride for me.
Taken in a gearing of 40/25( no granny ring now) it’s taken out of the saddle at the bottom, maybe seated after the rise at the gates to Storeton Woods.

Stats. 23.88 miles
1444 Calories burnt.
Max 28 mph Average 13.6 mph . Weather : Awful, Feelgood factor: High
Site link given out: 1
Eureka Cafe Breakfasts 0, Zero, nought. A first.
This was only half of the day, the rest of the day is another story in its own right.

CTC Ride to Boughton (The Peacock)

The forecast didn’t look too hot for this ride and as the crow flies it looked on paper to be a short one. I was running a bit late as I couldn’t quite sort out what to wear as I haven’t set out much in the rain.

I’m at the top of RestHill and a car passes with a bike on the back of it. It transpires it was George. The Garmin gets started and I’m off, breakfast awaits and I’m in good form. I pass one of the Sunlight just after Brimstage, one of the CTC riders at Thornton Hough and Brian just after the turn off for the missing link. I was doing 20 to 23 mph at the time playing around with the big ring to increase my speed.

I don’t know where all the other clubs where this week but the cafe wasn’t bursting at the seams this week mainly CTC riders this week. After a quick breakfast we assemble outside and we’re off to Woodbank rollcall reads John, Andy, Jill, Brian, Barry, George, Mike and moi. (I may have left someone out)
At Sealand we take to the Route 5 Cycle path to Chester. I haven’t been on this particular part but further on the path looks very familiar.

Ellevenses were at the christian tea room at Newton, it’s just off the park/play area. We cycle past the “No Cycling” sign and park up. It’s a bit quirky but tea and a mince pie for £1 is a bargain. (No cream for all the dieters, weight watchers and calorie counters out there) The funny thing is mince pies are the topic of conversation at the followup class in the evening. Mikes got some mudguards this week that cost more than the bike. I changed bikes to the winter trainer or number 2 bike, riding at the back forces you to take these extreme measures.

Routemeister John leads us out through the Cheshire lanes, we head out to Waverton and a little later on Saighton Lane I blast off the front over the hump back rail crossing bridge. It’s one of those challenges I see in the distance and think I have to do this. It was an opportunity to burn off the mince pie. No picture from the front this week as it’s raining.Anyway its getting a bit wet now and we head towards Saighton.
At Huntington just past the Rake and Pickle we take to “The Jungle” its a cycle lane through an overgrown valley. The google route map explains it all. The whole idea of these rides is to ride on cycle friendly routes.

Once past the school we are soon approaching the lunch stop, “The Peacock” at Boughton Heath.
The Peacock (Boughton)

Jill had warned us that the service was slow and so it turned out. Three of us ordered caesar salads or something similar. Now apart from the chicken there is not much that needs cooking on a salad. Every Tom, Dick and CTC Harry seemed to be getting served before us, and all we wanted was a salad. Anyway just as we were about to find out what the delay was it arrives.

The Peacock. (rear)

Plenty of space to park 30 cycles, pity the weather wasn’t a bit better.

Part of the reason they had trouble coping with the meals could have been the size of the group. There where 34 of us there that I counted which I thought was an exceptional turnout, considering the weather. The Chicken Caesar Salad wasn’t bad but I’ve been spoilt now by the bagguette at The Swan. I have trouble getting something healthy at the chain pubs that do meals. Something has to suffer if they can do two meals for £8 so I generally leave well alone and stick to what I know has worked for me. Which means no chips etc.

Its wet when we reassemble outside and we head towards the canal, we follow it for a while and then its back on the cycle track. This is a familiar route now, its quiet with only the road in from Hoole to cross that is busy. You can see the route on the Google map. For all those that look at the routes, I couldn’t come up with these routes just looking at a map. It takes years of The Knowledge that I just don’t have. The Garmin GPS is a shortcut to gain that knowledge.

We seem to be riding under a black cloud that follows us all the way back to the Eureka Cafe. We can see blue sky but it’s a couple of hundred yards to our left. Good weather for newts as we cross the A5117. It’s been a good day despite the rain, I’ve had some good advice off George (72) about increasing my speed, and training. He used to do Red Hill which is just a couple of hundred yards from Rest Hill. A bit of rain shouldn’t stop you going out. Or should I say the thought of a bit of rain shouldn’t stop you going out.

Link to Google Map Eureka Cafe to The Peacock (Boughton)

CTC Ride to The Swan, Kinnerton

This wednesdays ride was to The Swan in Kinnerton and it turned out to be a good three bears type ride, just right. 30 miles in total with a good pub lunch half way around.

Even though I’d prepared the number 2 bike I ended up having to leave the house later than I intended as I couldn’t find the heart rate monitor for the Garmin 305. So it was down Route 56 for breakfast at the Eureka Cafe. It was packed again this week with standing room only, things eased a bit when we started to assemble for our 10 o’clock start.

Wednesday at the Eureka Cafe.jpg Ride assembly.jpg

We had another new rider join us, Fred. It turned out it wasn’t going to be Freds day more of which later. The ride list reads like this. The two Johns, Barbara, Jill, George, Ray, Fred, Brian, Ruth, Julian, Jake and moi. It was down Woodbank to the lights on the Welsh Road, A5117 junction which appeared to be stuck. We soon joined the cycleway at Convatec following the route around to the railway bridge Dee crossing. Left after the bridge, along the Dee and we are soon in Shotton.
It,s weird riding up the road with the church at the end of it, I have this target fixation on the large white cross on it. Not to the last minute do you see the path to the side of the church.

We climbed up towards Ewloe past a gaudy pink painted bungalow which had a matching pink Nissan Micra on the drive to boot. The ride came to a stop when we lost Fred off the back. A taxi driver stopped to tell us he had a puncture.

Waiting for Fred.jpg

Once this was sorted it was up the hill towards Hawarden. Right at the T junction enjoying the freewheel down the hill before the inevitable hill. This week I didn’t miss the turn up the lane and had a good workout going up the hill. I’d enough time to get some pictures of the group coming up the hill, so heres one of them.

The two Johns.jpg

Barbara always beats John (on the right) up the climbs. Thought I would throw another one in as I don’t seem to have all that many action shots on the site. After this it was over the footbridge across the dual-carriage way. Then right then left. The map shows the route. We ended up going past some farm where a bloody terrier chased me on another ride. Thats what you get when you ride at the back. I wasn’t at the back for long.
It’s nice riding around Kinnerton and after circular tour we ended up at the lunch stop, The Swan.

The Swan.jpg
This turned out to be a really good lunch stop, like the week before there were more than 20 of us who rode out there. I think there were about 4 other customers in there. I was one of the first in there but one of the last to order, another mistae I won’t make again.
I ended up ordering a Salmon with cottage cheese and chives baguette which is pictured below.
I met Linda (I think) in the Eureka Cafe after the ride and she was looing for a place to take her father for lunch. This should give you an idea of what it was like.

Salmon Baguette at the swan.jpg

All the meals looked really well presented. I was more than happy with what I had all washed down with a diet Coke. I shared a table with John, Ruth and Julian discussing various thing like dieting, this website. I was asked for two of my cards so it looks like I will have to get some more printed. I ended up giving out as many cards out as Fred had punctures, three!

No ride is complete without a puncture picture.jpg

It was a short climb up the hill once out of the pub car park, the garmin logging the ascent all day. It was all downhill from there, a small climb the only thing of note near the Airbus factory. I sped off down the road so as to be in position for some more pictures.
Then it was across the footbridge and up the lane to the junction at the top. Fred picked up another puncture around Blacon. I had another look at Georges chainset, this is the ultimate compact chainset IMHO, more like a granny ring and a big ring combined. He goes well on this combo and I mean well. For those that don’t know him George is 72, flies down hills and has the beating of me in him if I drop my guard.

We crossed the A5117 with remarkable ease, no gully where the central reservation was last week, just Mr Macadams finest. Another sprint up Woodbank to get some pictures at the finish and it was all over.
Ride Stats: 30.75 miles. 1244 ft climbed. Punctures 3. Black cats 1. Newt sightings 0. Calories burnt 1824. Averge speed 12mph. Max speed 28.1 mph. Pub rating 5/5.

Another great day, thanks everybody. A couple of more pictures to post and I’m sorting out a link to the route map.

Link to Google map of CTC ride to The Swan (Kinnerton)

Comments welcome.

CTC ride to Dunham Arms

Yet again I started out on the wrong bike, I should have rode on the winter training bike with spd pedals and mountain bike shoes. It wasn’t too bad when I set out, blue sky with the odd woolly cloud so “The Toy” got wheeled out instead. Left it a bit late too so it was full speed ahead to the Eureka Cafe to get my breakfast before the ride started. Tis was aided by one of the tunes from the previous evenings spinning class bouncing around my head.

I’m still getting comments about the breakfast so I’ll say it again “I have the breakfast EVERY time I walk through the door of the Eureka Cafe” I’ve done a post about. It’s part of my diet and the only fat on it is the bacon and that gets cut off.

Now that I’ve got that over I’ll get on with the ride. There were 45 in the cafe and by the look of it no one wanted to set out in the cold. Things stirred and next minute there are fair few of us outside getting ready for the off.

The usual suspects set off towards Capenhurst lane and we had Mike along for a second time. Last weeks ride not putting him off. We were relagated to the back as we had no mudguards on or we just might have been slow. As we chatted at the back of the bunch the conversation got around to the merits of ACE Inhibitors versus Beta Blockers. That and heartrate. You can see all the data I gather on the rides on the MotionBased site if you look hard enough.

Margaret and husband left us at the A56 Warrington Road along with the chap I talk to who has the magnesium framed bike. There were six of us left, the two Johns, Jill, Brian (I think) Mike and Moi. The weather had been ok until we crossed the Tarvin road there was a bit of a biting headwind there and a bit further on it started to drizzle. It was time to don rain gear at the Plough Lane crossroads.

Ellevenses were at a Cafe in the block of shops at Waverton. Tea and a flapjack for me. There were two guys in there having the breakfast, it was literally two heart attacks on a plate. While we were in there I had a look at the free mag that was on the table, there was an advert in it for the Abbey Arms (a ride I did a few weeks ago) apparently it,s a Hungry Horse pubchain. Five course Christmas Dinner for £32. Probably served on those 17 inch plates. It’s no wonder the country has a weight problem.

I didn’t want to leave the cafe as it was pouring down, the gutter of the one stop shop was leaking a steady stream of water over “The Toy”. We retraced the route to Plough Lane and the next stop was the Dunham Arms. The Aldi Winter Gloves aren’t waterproof (I expect too much for £2.99) and my hands were freezing, the roads are awash and the decision to go out on a bike with no mudguards is really making itself felt. And not for the first time!

Dunham Arms.jpg

After about 7 miles we arrive at the Dunham Arms, cold and wet in my case. Other groups have taken probably a more direct route and arrived there before us. All told there are 20 of us that have ridden out to the pub, there are no other customers that I could see.
I ordered a jacket potato with chicken strips which came with a salad. When it arrived (which was quite soon) it was so well presented I took a picture of it. What caught the eye was the cherry tomatoes sliced in half and placed centrally on the cucumber slices. All the food seemed to be of a similar high quality.

DunahamArms Baked Potato.jpg

It was too much to expect my gloves that had been placed on the radiator to be dry before we left. So now I am looking around for a waterproof pair, and the way its getting colder by the day they might well be mitts.

It was still raining when we left and headed down Hob Lane but as we headed down the hill the rain eased off. Stanlow oil refinery was in the distance and the next thing you know we are following the reverse of the route we took on Rememberance Sunday.
For some unknown reason my hands are now ok, still wet but not freezing. It’s my feet that are now cold, the Aldi Winter Overshoes secumbing to the stream of water that the unguarded front wheel directing at them. We are soon going back down Capenhurst Lane towards the Eureka Cafe. At the junction by the Ostrich Farm I sprint off the front hoping to secure a photo of the group returning to the Cafe. It was to no avail, although I reached 28 mph on my dash to the Cafe, by the time I had parked the bike and rushed out on to the road my hand were too cold to operate the camera in time. An opportunity lost but still it was worth giving it a go.

Dunham Arms Ride Finish.jpg

After a cup of tea and another card for the site given out it was back home along the Chester High Road and back through Willaston , Thornton Hough, Route 56 and back up Rest Hill. It was a good day out, the weather was terrible, but I’ve still had a good time, my whingeing was all self inflicted. 100 lines ” I must not go out in winter without mudguards”

The map opens up in a new window, click on Hybrid view for a satellite overlay.

Link to Google map of CTC ride to Dunham Arms

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