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Andie and Max got Married
Well, in cycling, everesting is defined as “Pick any hill, anywhere in the world and complete repeats of it in a single activity until you climb 8,848m – the equivalent height of Mt Everest.”
the official way sounds hard, and a bit dull. So, I chose to Everest over a week and on multiple different hills. As in 7 daily random rides with cafe stops.
It still wasn’t easy since one ride was a boggy mtb ride, 5 days brought a nice soaking plus we had our 20-30 mph winds from the west. Thankfully I had mudguards and debatably appropriate gear for the Dales winter.
The altitude racked up fairly consistently 4-5000 feet per day however, more persistent rain on day 6 had me panicking a bit. In the end I rode 25 low viz rainy miles in gale force winds to grab 3500 feet.
Totals 31200 feet, 306 miles, 7 days..
After the usual Dales days of wind, mud and rain, possibly the freezing temps aren’t so bad.
The skies turn blue, the ground becomes firm and I’m sure the icy wind is good for the complexion.
Of course, the Dales landscape becomes blue, white and icy bottle black.
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Hike Week 2022
A lovely week in September saw back to back visits from Elena and then Lisa.
Enjoying the freedom of no car, means hiking from the door. Twice to Ingleborough, the always rewarding Gordale Scar and Malham cove plus Catrigg force and Smearset scar for good measure.
3 days is a short time in the Dales so, we packed in the content. 3x 16 mile hikes, a wheelsucking ride with Elena then Lisa, plus the all important cask ale sampling experience. Talbot arms music nights, trivia and great food.
It’s 10 miles to the top of Ingleborough from the house, but so worth it. The descent to Ribblehead had outstanding views of Whernside and Ribblehead viaduct.
Just wish we could have fit in another ride and a bit more hiking. (puke emoji)
Just remember, little Ingleborough isn’t the top, even Fosters tastes good when you’re knackered and, in the battle between lamb or lentil shepherds pie, there can be only 1.
A work in progress til I get this figured out..
It takes a ripping tailwind and cunning drafting for KOMs to come my way. Fortunately, strava sent ‘local legend’ to the rescue. Now I just need to ride the same routes every day for 3 months to get the local legend laurel wreath. With Settle Nipple well and truly in the bag, it would have been nice to grab badger butt lane however, I’m satisfied with 8 pages of legend.
I’m adding a page here of course since I’m away from the UK and getting daily ‘There it goes….’ emails from Strava.
In a few more weeks, all the glory will have switched to the new legend. I suppose I can take comfort that these most beautiful cycling roads are now etched in my mind.
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Sheep Drafting
It’s pretty remote out here in the Yorkshire Dales. Thankfully I’ve had a flocking good time Drafting team Black Sheep. Of course I seem to get Fleeced in the sprint and sometimes the roads are too rammed to get near the front.
bridging across to the breakaway:
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The Wrong Scone
Life is so busy, but locating the cafes with the best scones has to take a priority.
Of course the mission is simplified by only going to cafes with scones. Scoans dont count and are probably out of area or sold in disreputable establishments.
Anyway, a long way to go. Seems most cafes are closed Mondays and I’ve had to allow clotted cream tubs versus whipped double cream.
Apologies to those cafes where tired legs and electrolyte levels caused me to order a bacon sandwich instead.
Also, kudos to Robby for suggesting Le Tour de Scone.
Only 5 contenders so far so stay tuned.
AKA, nectar of the gods, and rightly so. Cask ale is absolutely the best way to hydrate after a long ride, consume after 5 o’clock any day or after a salty breakfast.
Its hard to be disappointed by cask ale. I’m still in shock that people drink any other alcoholic beverage.
Did I get long glossy hair or that smile on my face from drinking Peroni?…I don’t think so.
Timothy Taylors Landlord. A favorite for decades:
A recent selection of the best:
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The Cows of Malham Moor
Such magnificent animals. So often found chewing the cud near settle nipple. You can’t help yourself from stopping to chat with them and postponing the kom for another day.
