League2000 Presentation Night

The Presentation Night for the League2000 2013 Series was on Friday night @ Southlands Sports Centre, Middlesbrough. It is always a great night for the kids and the hightlight is the slide show then followed by the presentations, oh and the juice / biscuits at the end. It great to see all the kids getting rewarded for all there hard effort they have put in over the series. It was a record breaking year in terms on number of riders and cash paid out. Well done to all @ the League2000.
Angus & Arran both got 3rd in their age cats - here they are happy as larry with their brown envelopes! happy spending boys.

What a difference a day makes, sunshine at last

Well after heavy rain all night and most of Wednesday afternoon the sun finally came out today and it was lovely to see instead of overcast cloud. I had a few hours to spare so decided to have a ride along the lines to try and keep reasonably free of mud! I decided to head up the C2C line / Waskerley to Park Head cafe, turn and burn then straight back down. It started off canny but by the time i got near the moors i could feel the wind and what a headwind it was. The last 6 mile of the 15mile out leg was a full on head busting slog and too top it off they had just laid a new subbase surface on the last 3miles to the cafe and it was like riding through glue. The cafe was closed when i got up there so had a quick drink and straight back down again. Still cool at times but for a change it was hotter at the top than it was at Consett and further down the line. As in the post below its was time to put on the winter boots so my feet were not cold or wet this time.  

Its time for Winter Boots again (45NRTH Fasterkatt)

Its that time of year again to drag out the winter boots, the weather was just starting to change last week and was cooler but still dry most days but this week is cold and a wash out. I have used winter boots for my offroad cycling for many years and have two pairs of Northwave Artic's. They have been performed well under the worst conditions apart from when we hit minus 12 degrees my toes were still cold and in very heavy rain it penetrates down into the boot through the ankle area and takes about a week to dry out properly inside. The market has several updated models from many manufacturers and some new models as well. I decided not to purchase a thrid pair of Northwaves but to try something alittle different for a change. Last winter i bought a skull cap manuafctured by a company called 45nrth and has performed very well. They have took out a less extreme boot this year and is probably more suited to my type of riding / conditions than there full blown extreme boot. Full info can be found here and are due into the country hopefully next week. Press relaease info here. I have a pair pre ordered so hopefully should be on my feet end of Oct / early Nov. Below are some photos of the boot.

Rally Cross @ Croft Racing Circuit this weekend

Also this weekend is Rallycross at Croft Racing Circuit, its on both days Sat 19th & Sun 20th Oct. We have been to a few Rally Cross events at croft and is a fantastic day out. Full info here and there will be Emmerdale & Coronation Street Stars driving as well. They have also booked stunt driver Paul Swift to appear. Wrap up warm as its also a cold and windy day down there.

For the third year in a row Croft will host the British Rallycross Championship finale and British Rallycross Grand Prix all in one weekend. Julian Godfrey came, saw and conquered in 2012 in his 550bhp Fiesta but he’ll be hard-pushed to defend his titles this year with stiff opposition from the likes of Andy Scott, Pat Doran and local hero Kevin Procter and probably some new challengers as well as rallycross starts to go through something of a boom period in its history…

Gates open: 8.00am Sat & Sun 
Price: Adults £10 Sat/£13 Sun
FREE accompanied children 15yrs & under
Website: www.rallycrossuk.com

Neccl Rd 4 this Saturday

Front Light - Lupine Report

I have been mid week night riding for many years now around Durham and the outskirts. My first proper light was a Cateye Stadium, now then who can remeber them! what a beast they were and the first of proper bright lights. Since then they set the standard for many other manufacturers to better. Westbrook Cycles started stocking Lupine so when the battery on my Cateye was not upto a couple hours of riding time i purchased a Edison 5. I used that for many years and still have it. It performed without fault and is an excellent light on both low & high beam settings. When a Betty 7 model come up for sale for half price i could not resist it. It has LED bulbs in the head unit so produces a more whiter/cleaner light compaired to the older style buld in the Edison which has a blue / yellow tinge. The Betty is very easy to install on the bike and only takes less than couple of minutes to set up. It is charged with the same Charger One and pumps out 1680 lumens on full power mode. The one thing i will say is when its on low beam setting it is not as bright as the Edison low setting but is ample for road use with street lighting but is too dull for offroad unless it is dusk. I have not mouted to my helmet so cannot comment on that but the performance from the handlebars is excellent offroad at high speed and just taking it steady through singletrack or bridleways. The overall weight of the light inc battery is just over a pound and burn time is more than enough for my average night ride. I will be using it offroad most weeks now until spring next year. Below is some stock photos of the Betty 7. I will do report on rear lights soon as well.

Fat Biking Weekend @ Berwick Upon Tweed

Spent the weekend at Berwick upon Tweed and took the Fat Bikes. We stayed in a Wishbone at Ord House, just on the outskirts of the town. We havent been to Berwick for a few years and the site had just been bought out the last time by a big national outfit when we were camping. There is no camping now but have put in 10no Wishbone Lodges (Wigwams/pods) £35-£30 per night. The on site facilities are top notice and could not ask for more. Plenty for the kids to do and the club house does food / drink as well. When I was a child i used to go to Berwick for nearly 10years on holidays in our caravn and not much has changed since then. Its a shame the town has so many empty shops now but its tough going out there. The butchers is still on the corner down the bottom of the town and does a cracking haggis, neeps and tattie pie with a cracking bakers over the road for cakes. Spittal is still great fun for a walk along the sea front/ beach and pop into the cafe / amusment arcade to spend a few quid. The swimming pool is great value for money on a wet day for some indoor entertainment. Here is a gallery of some photos of the weekend, the weather was very windy & cold at times but it stayed nearly dry until we left to come home. We had a ride along the coast on the Coast & Castles route from Berwick to Holy Island inc some beach riding. Enjoy.

Turn Night into Day on the Beargrease

With the evenings starting to draw in quickly its time to charge your lights up again. This is the second night so far on the Beargrease set up for the dark nights. On a Wednesday I drop Angus off at the CX training at Meadowfield then i head off along the lines in the darkness. This week was an eye opener to say the least. The temperature without the baltic gale windchill factor was just over 6 degress and you could hardly stand up on the open field. Once onto the lines and through the woods most sections were sheltered better from the wind but still hard going. I was going to head for the hills but kept it simple and went aalong the old line to Bishop Auckland, over the Newton Cap Viaduct and into Bishop. Quick drink, 180 degree turn around and headed straight back. Last week there were a few walkers, horse riders and animals about inc an owl & a bat, this week i only seen two people over the 19 miles and no wildlife, they had more sense than me! I took the camera but i think it was suffering from the cold like me, got a few snaps of the Lupine Betty 7 and Smart R1 lights in action. 

On the way out still some daylight as it was a clear sky

Just over 6 degrees compaired to 16 degrees the day before

Lighting up the bridge underpass

R1 on full power, dont use this option offroad but is excellent for road sections

Turn night into day on full power option

This was just before i set off and you can see the floodlights were on

Camera was just not having it tonight

Upgraded last year from my old Edison 5, which is still going strong

A test report on the lights will be on the Blog over the next few weeks after some more night rights.

Autumn Riding at its best

What fantastic weather we are having at the mo in the NE of England. The leaves are falling from the trees, very little rain and the sun even comes out sometimes. Strong winds are the only problem and on the exposed open sections its tough going. On Sunday i was up early and the forecast was looking good so time to drag out the Cannondale Super X Hi Mod for some offroad mileage.
I headed from home down to Chester le Street, zoom around the riverside then straight to Gateshead. Down to the waterside then along the cycle track to the Metro Centre. From there turned left and headed up hill all the way to Consett coal truck junction. The climb is long but gentle but was hard work with a headwind. It was blowing a gale at Consett but no signs of any snow up there yet! it will not be long though lol. A quick drink and rest the legs for a few mins then turned left and down the line to Langely Park where i bumped into Richy just heading out in the opposite direction on a mission to cover 100 offroad miles on his Super X, after a chat it was time to get going again and on down to Bearpark farm then home. Garmin route details here
My Cannondale Super X has performed in all conditions with no major problems over the past year. I have changed the lower bearing in the headset and greased the bb30 up a couple of times. Apart from that the bike has been excellent on tarmac and offroad. 1 1/2 hr niht ride planned for tomorrow night so off to charge up my battery and get the Beargrease ready. Might take the camera and see if i can get some photos.

Washed and ready for some more offroad action

Ian's Splitting & Cracking ride @ the 3 Peaks CX

This is Ian just before incident no2. It was Ians 9th 3 Peaks Cyclo Cross and with some training and better weather this year he was flying. The wind on the tops made it very interesting riding just trying to keep on the bike. He had less cramp which is one of the major problems on the third hump and forgot his gels but completed in 4.47.25.
If you have a look at the photo to the right he is not riding his new Scott CX Carbon Addict because it developed a crack during training just before the event. Good news Westbrook Cycles have sorted him out a new replacement frame now. Problem no2 was the tight arse had run his rims to the limit of wear and the front one split. A lovely lady loaned Ian a replacement wheel so he could complete the Peaks. So all in it was an expensive outing but defo one to remember.