If you’ve not heard of it before, 30 Days of Biking is a personal challenge with a charitable edge. People pledge to ride their bike every day in April, and for every two that do, 1USD is donated to World Bicycle Relief. This year we have six riders attempting the challenge.
Day 9
Sound the klaxon! Get your pitchforks! We have our first failure!
Adele
With the trail best described as ‘slop’, I went ‘old school’ today for a bit of good old fashioned x-country riding. Fun came courtesy of this super light Santa Cruz Highball which rocketed me up the hills like a race horse. Which seemed fitting on Grand National day.
Giles
On Boxing Day my local bike shop was severely flooded. The good news is they’re trading again in a pop-up, which has popped-up, up the hill. Today was a glorious 1000 foot climb for an opening day hello and to buy brake pads. Support your LBS, they all need us.
Greg
Didn’t factor in the travel to the British Fell Championships race in Donard and riding a bike… couldn’t even find a kid’s bike to borrow. Good race though…used the old XCM course for the last descent!
Hannah
I live near Hebden Bridge. Which is probably why when I saw this scene I thought ‘Ooh, that’s nice, Morris dancers on a canal boat’…
…actually, a pirate themed stag party on a canal boat. More yo-ho-ho than hey-nonny-no.
Lara
Shopping by bike is much easier with this view on the way back. Even in the rain.
Rachel
I spent the weekend in Surrey. Once I got over the shock of being so far south I started to enjoy the novelty trail features. First, filling up my water bottle at the well in the grounds of the Hedgehog Hall.
Day 10
And onwards to Sunday, the second helping of weekend fun…
Adele
The day I failed to get a photo with Daniel Craig AND Brendan Fairclough. When I volunteered to take part in this project I promised that one of my images would be a selfie with a celebrity (why? Isn’t riding every day and taking a photo tough enough?). So far, unfortunately, celebrities have been a bit thin on the ground – so imagine my frustration when I heard a rumour that last night, while I had been swanning around on my hardtail, The Actual Daniel Craig had dined at a restaurant that is a mere stone’s throw from the trails (okay, it’s two miles away – but if I threw a very tiny stone on a very windy day it might just make it).
Still stuffed with bitterness about my missed photo opp, I popped into my local bike shop on this morning’s ride (on a bar plug mission, incidentally). As they fettled away I explained my celebrity task, and Daniel. “If only we’d known you needed a celebrity selfie!” they said. “Brendan Fairclough was in last week.” “He’ll do!” I cried “where is he now? can you call him and get him to pop back?” “Err…he’s competing at the Worlds in France today, so probably not. Sorry.” So, no Daniel or Brendan – but here are some lovely colourful bikes instead.
Giles
Today was meant to be my last long ride before the Dirty Reiver, but I woke to find that Mr. Scratchy Throat had moved in. The planned four hours in the saddle was scrubbed for an easy but beautiful ride over the tops, eventual destination the Coop to stock up on vitamin C, honey and hummus – all known for their bug fighting abilities, apart from the hummus.
Greg
[Greg is too ashamed to write, so your Editor is taking liberties] This is not the result of cycling. This is from fell running. Which Greg did instead of cycling. As well as cycling would have been ok. But it was instead of. So Greg is a bad boy. And a failure. Two days in a row. And he is very sorry. He is going to try extra hard this week. His legs are going to love him.
Hannah
Sunny Sunday family pootle to the climbing rocks. On the way round Kid2 conquered a hill with a happy shout of ‘Mummy I did it!’ – which is just about everything you could hope for in a family ride.
Lara
A quick stop on the way home from a bright sunny road ride to buy asparagus. Well, it IS the season of weird smelling pee!
Rachel
The Surrey mountain biker takes the trail side facility to the next level. You only get burnt out cars where I live.
Another week…
Ah well, we can all feel a little better about ourselves thanks to Greg. Although, to be fair, he had already ridden further than any of us, and it’s not like he spent the weekend drinking beer and eating pies. Well, he might have done, but only once he’d hurled his body up and down several mountains. So we might forgive him. A little bit.
How about you? Did your weekend rock? Did you hit rock bottom? Or did you hit rocks with your bottom?
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Rode out on Saturday from Addingham, across the moor top to Skipton, more climbing over to Heston then Barden moor to Bolton abbey. Did I mention the dust, it was everywhere, in my eyes, in my cassette, caked all over my tyres. It actually made the ride horrendously hard work! Sorry not dust, mud!! I’ve had more fun at a funeral, even the downhills were hard going. I’m sticking to fire roads until August, when it may have dried up!!
Good to see Giles, I know him from his days in North Cheshire Clarion, I ride with Bolton Clarion. Keep at it Giles, don’t let mere viruses stop you.