Streatley, Sun 13th Jan

With ski trips imminent, we wanted a ride with some climbs (for fitness and leg strength) but no gnarly stuff (don’t want to get hurt). This Streatley route is ideal – thanks, Knobblies blog!

By Lilley my tubeless rear tyre was soft, but it wasn’t getting worse, so I (stupidly) just kept going. But I didn’t have enough psi to keep the tyre on the rim, and it flatted completely on a small drop. Think I’d have been ok if I’d topped it up when I first saw it, d’oh.

The Baulk climb started super-slippy, but the top has been resurfaced – easier, but less fun. Baz’s tyres were starting to jam up on Lilley Hoo, and by Icknield Way both Speshes were really clogged (and also short of grip). My Trek (on Mud-X’s) was going beautifully 😉

Tried (and failed) to stay off the brakes at the Springs – 30mph slalom through the bushes on slippy grass was terrifying! Climbing past Jeremiah’s Tree we were feeling the pain and ’twas getting late, so we took the road back for a pie and a pint in the Chequers.

Later while hosing the bike I found 6 thorns in my front tyre, which was still holding pressure. As I pulled each thorn out the air started hissing, but I pointed the hole downwards and the Super Juice plugged it up in 2 or 3 seconds. Tubelessness rocks! 😀

Route/Conditions:
Overcast, windy, 8-12°C. The ground was very wet which meant sticky mud in places and slow progress. Total 15 miles in 4 hours.

Learning points:
1. Speshes on stock tyres get trounced by EX8 on Mud-Xs. 🙂
2. If you lose psi from your tubeless tyre, stop and pump it up!!
3. New fave carry-along snack: malt loaf. Loads of carbs, no fat, tastes the same after it’s been crushed in your camelbak…

Crew, kit, bruises:
Baris (FSRxc), James (EX8), Chris (Stumpy).
Two punctures, lots of mud clogging issues.
No crashes! Baz suffering from knee pain.

Edale, Sat 7th July

An old post that I never published…

For our first visit to the Peaks, we chose the much-blogged-about Edale loop (see Chocolate Foot, Flat Tyres, Knobblies).

The hills here are steep and technical, and the very first climb (up to Hollins Cross) highlighted our lack of fitness and/or bike skills. Having missed a turn on Mam Tor, we ended up at the summit where Baz demonstrated his mastery of Wingardium Leviosa.

A tough slog onto Rushup Edge was followed by a superb long descent to Roych Clough. But our average speed was low, our legs were tired, and it was getting late. Time for a cheeky shortcut? We turned north across Brown Knoll – a big mistake, the next mile of miserable peat-bog trudging took over an hour.

Eventually we reached the top of the rocky and seriously steep Jacobs Ladder. Now this is a scary section. We walked the first 50m, then got back on for a fantastic banzai descent, which dropped 300m in 3 miles and fired us right back to the car, brilliant!

An excellent challenging route, which must be treated with respect.

Route/Conditions:
Sunny, 16°C, strong winds. Lots of rain recently but the going was good. Total 13.5 miles in 4 hours.

Learning points:
1. The Peak District is proper tough! Expect low average speeds.
2. We wasted half an hour getting change for the parking meter in Edale. Keep a few quid in the car and save faff time.
3. On test this ride: Cadbury’s brunch bars. Score: 10/10 😀

Crew, kit, bruises:
Baris (Spesh FSR XC Comp), James (Trek Fuel EX8). A few minor spills, but no bruises, and no mechanicals. Hurrah.

New format, new name…

I found the wiki format to be awkward for this site, and wondered if a blog would be more suitable. So here we are, let’s find out!

There’s already an easyriders blog at WordPress, so we needed a new name. The best I can do is mudandbruises – hope you like it 🙂