Bimble out on the CX bike in the sun

After three rides on the Beargrease back to back covering nearly 80 miles it was time for a change and ride something alittle easier on my legs so out come the Dale Super X. Todays ride was a little different to normal taking in the cycle lane from Durham to Birtley then more tarmac surfaced old lines from Birtley to Cox Green then offroad gravel trails / road sections to get back home. I took a half day from work as I had an appointment to get my eyes tested (first time in nearly 6 years!) and finish off a new job application form but got side tracked by the sun and lure of trails again! This CX bike fairly nips along the fast smooth sections with a nice tail wind blowing you along, the tracks were quite as well so not much stopping and starting for dogs/kids etc. Below are some photos from todays ride -  

Shaded through the wooded sections

Sign is some what out of date but still very important during the warmer summer months

which way will i go today then? down hill to Washington way looks good!

The local art work

Sunny / dark / sunny sections through the woods

The original C2C sign

This 1/4" plate steel lasts longer than a self adhsive sign sticker!

Plenty of bridges & tunnels on todays route, from modern constructions to vintage engeenring

Bridge @ Cox Geen

Zoom in n the photo and check out the sign above the life rings, i think the boat club needs a few bob spending on it !

Low tide on the river - smelly in places

Now then where has the normal trail gone to? time for a road diversion instead

Finchale Priory with the Abbey in the background

All up hill from the bridge back home, time to stop and take this last pic

Fresh Goods Sunday - Sram XX1 11 speed Cassette - Original Beargrease wheels back in use

This weeks fresh good is the last part to get my original Carbon Beargrease wheels back in use - Sram XX1 11 speed 10-42t cassette. I have held off due to the massive price tag on these things but over the last few months they have been dropping in price and are now cheaper than two models below XX1 ! the rrp is mega bucks but i ended up buying one inc next day delivery for £176, still very expensive for a cassette and the most i have and probably will ever pay. When you open the box it is a thing of shear beauty but when its covered in oil and mud ! There is one thing for sure they perform without fault and gear changes are very quick. Fitting is less than a couple of minutes and ready for use. As you can see i also had to fit the rotor to the rear wheel which i had set aside ready to fit. I have the same razor rotor on my Hope / Rabbit Hole 26+" wheels as well. Again they take less than a couple of minutes to fit and perform without any problems over the last 7 months of use.  

Sunday morning local offroad ride on the Beargrease's

No miles yesterday - busy doing jobs in and around the house, so today was bike ride time. Up and out for 7.30am to a cold and damp start. Overnight rain made the trails wet under tyre to start with then the sun tried to pop through the clouds but was still a cold ride in the wind. It was just over 9 degress on my Garmin ! not very good for this time of year but as you can see in the photos below the sun did come out for a brief period of time but when we got to Durham for our ice cream break it was overcast again and even started spitting rain by the time we got back in. We both took our Beargrease's today to have some fun through the wooded sections of the route, they really are a great bike to have some fun on. By the time we got back home we had covered 36 miles. Below are a few photos from the ride -