October 2017 Round Up and Video
Another month over and despite conditions reverting to the wet and muddy side of life, we managed quite a few rides, mainly on our own North York Moors but Hamsterley featured a lot this month, mainly owing to K Line being opened. This is a grand track and shows what can be done with time, effort and of course, money. For those who haven’t had the pleasure, imagine Glentress’s Berm Baby Berm on steroids. October does also mean the Lakeland Monster Miles, which me and The Fireman entered, as usual, only the short one, it turned out everyone was joining us this year, the long route was cancelled owing to ground conditions. This years short route is approaching the longer route anyway, now 50 odd miles and almost 5,000 feet of ascent, add in sodden ground and it became an arduous experience.
For me, October’s riding ended with a bang, quite literally - a bang on the head as it smashed into a fence post on a local cycle track, plus a cut arm and some bruises, settee time for me for a bit.
Here’s a couple of rides that have not been blogged.
Me and Trainee#2 arranged to meet Benny The Brawl at Kildale railway station, Benny assured us he could find the parking spot, following a decidedly cursory glance at the map when we were at work. A nonagenarian dementia sufferer could have made a better job of finding the railway station, we waited almost an hour before giving up on him. Apparently he had been in Westerdale at one point, a bit like arranging to meet in Middlesbrough and turning up in Hartlepool. Benniless, we made our way to Guisborough Woods for a quite satisfying scrounge about in the mud, failing to find a track Rod told us about but having fun failing. Forgetting it is half term, we squeezed our mud-splattered carcasses amongst the clean people in Glebe Cottage for refreshment. How do people visit the countryside and stay so clean? Even if I go for a walk I end up looking like I’ve been potholing.
Thursday 26th October route
The following day Benny managed to find his way to Clay Bank without diverting via Oslo or somewhere, to join Trainee#2 and The Breadlad for his “favourite” ride, essentially over the top to KIldale and back through the woods. He would be getting a variation today but taking in all the best bits. We made our way up to the crossroads near Round Hill (highest point of the NYM etc. etc.), when he eventually caught us up, he declared, with some vehemence, that he’d never never been on this spot before and the ride had been changed to make it more difficult for him, all this despite photographic evidence to the contrary.
Unconvinced he rode on with us, across to the top of the Ingleby Incline. We had a look down the slope and I do believe he became a little bit excited, reverting to four years old with an incessant stream of can we’s. Never passing up on an opportunity to disappoint a child we demurred, the thought of regaining the height being the main reason. Instead we took the track along the edge of Ingleby Moor, following the Cleveland Way along my favourite doubletrack, heading toward Battersby Moor before doubling back on ourselves to get to Turkey Nab. The track by Turkey Nab is an eroded 4x4 track, constantly changing, with lots of exposed bedrock and some deep gullies, to a gate, after which it is a more straightforward drop down through the trees to Bank Foot Farm. From the farm, an allegedly flat track, part of the old ironstone railway, leads to the bottom of the incline, I say allegedly because it always feels like hard work plodding along this track. After the Incline and undulating fire road passes through Battersby and Greenhow plantations to the short but steep bit of tarmac to Clay Bank car park. And, for the first time ever, Benny managed to ride the whole thing. Good effort that boy.
Today was meant to be an easy pootle up the local river on my CX bike, while my car was being serviced in Middlesbrough. Drop car off, ride to Stockton Cycling, cup of coffee, ride back. And the first three quarters went to plan, a pleasant ride up the river in the sunshine, the ride back didn’t quite work out as well as expected. Blind bend, broken helmet, battered spine and badly lacerated arm meant the day finished in A&E - again. Special mention has to be made of all the lads at Stockton Cycling who kindly looked after me and got me to hospital, taking customer service to a new level.
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