First spin out in a while - Old Railways lines of Co Durham loop

 

Last week was a complete blur as I was working in the house everyday apart from Friday when I decided to have a couch day and watch James Bond again, first time since I watched it since Christmas! 

After the heavy overnight rain it was forecasted dry for a few hours before more showers this afternoon so I took the gravel Creo out for one of my regular loops to make sure everything was working as I hopefully have a larger / longer ride planned for tomorrow. The rear shifter / mech still feels stiff to change but not as bad as it was. The disc callipers need re aligning after replacing both front and rear disc pads, slight rubbing from the disc rotors. The bike also needs a charge, wash, dry and lube - I will sort that out later on today. Anyway back to this mornings ride, I set off from Bearpark to pick up the Lanchester line to Broompark then the old line all the way up to Stanley Crook. The descent down to Crook is getting worse and with all the recent heavy rain / storms the top surface of the path has washed away and there is loads of deep loose gravel sections with deep gullies formed. I am going to report this to the Countryside Rangers as someone will come a cropper flying down there and they will be straight over the bars. From Crook its the road section to the Coop at Willington before picking the line back up to Broompark and then back to Bearpark. There was quite a few dog walkers out and a few other cyclists on their mtb's. The weather was very warm and not too windy with the sun getting out a couple of times. 

All in 23 miles in 1 hour 51 mins with 1200ft of climbing. Below are a few snaps from the ride, enjoy and hopefully more soon - 

Weekend update - Whitby and Great North Classic Car Show

 

Yesterday (Saturday) Angus and Arran were both not working, first time in well over two months so decided to have a day out at Whitby. We thought it would be quieter with the summer holidays finished and kids back at school but as ever it was still busy'ish. With being right on the coast the wind was trying its very best to keep the rain, drizzle, fog, and mist away. We have not been down for a while and the town has picked up with loads of new shops only leaving a few empty units. It was baltic on the pier / beach but there was a few in the sea! We also had a walk up the steps and took 10 at the top. We had our dinner from the Quayside fish n chippy followed by chucking a few quid away at the arcades. The weather driving home was dreadful, thick fog and lashing rain. 

Today (Sunday) we had a drive over to Red Row Estate (back of Beamish Hall way) for the Great North Classic Car Show, it opened at 10am and was tenner each to get in. They said was going to be 450-500 cars but looking around the fields it was well short of that number. The bottom field was not even half full. The Car Barn and Aston Workshops opened up there doors for the day and was great to see what they had for sale, some of the asking prices were eye watering to say the least. The highlight of the day was the ice cream van! the whippy ice cream was lovely and not a rip off for a change. There was loads of different places to eat and drink. There was not alot of public there. This could have been due to an update they put on their Facebook page about poor grass / possible muddy conditions, yes the grass was damp in places but was solid underneath. 

A ride back from Meadowfield & Dura Ace R9100 SPD SL pedals

 

I dropped Angus's van off ofr its mot this morning and had a ride back from Meadowfield. After heavy overnight rain the tracks, trails and lines have started to soften up and slippery on the top but still rock hard under the top layer. It was a direct route back as I have started decorating in the house again. Below are a few snaps from the 6 mile ride. Enjoy and hopefully more soon - 

These are the Dura Ace R9100 pedals from Evans Cycles. Looking around the net the cheapest is around £150 to £130 with an rrp of £235, so I got a good buy! They come with the blue cleats (2 degrees of float) so might order a pair of yellow cleats which have 6 degrees float as I have been using Time pedals which have 5 degrees float. Again shop around as the rrp is £21 but I have seen them for £11.70.

SURLY BIKES - Answers to nearly everything bike related

 

Wolsingham Show 2022

 

Yesterday me and Jane had a day through at the Wolsingham Show. We had pre booked our tickets and get there for 9am and missed the traffic and queuing to get in. We even managed to wangle parking in the members car park! It was set out a lot better this year with loads of more stalls and displays. To be honest there was too much going on and missed a couple of displays we normally watch. The giant tortoise were back again, they are great fun to watch wandering around the pen. My all time favourite - tractor pulling was back. All ways love watching the pulling, the air was full for black smoke! Below are a few snaps inc a couple of video clips. Local lad Jez Avery was back again but missed both of shows some how. Th show was well worth the £12 entry fee and best of all they have finally sorted the exit traffic problem as traffic coming from Wolsingham way parked in two fields further west of the main entrance and had there own exit.