Friday Night Ride to Somewhere Random 29/10/10 Whitby Weekender

[jogler]

That's the bit I'm trying not to think about

[CrinklyLion]

My train tickets are booked,

I really should get a roundtoit

If it helps with getting the cheap tickets, same offer as Scab still stands - if you need somewhere to lurk after getting an earlier train in, or before heading back (assuming I haven't fallen asleep in a hedge somewhere along the way....) just shout.  As it's half term I don't have the 'getting home from work' issue on Friday to deal with, although I may be getting home from camping with the biggun instead.  We will quite likely have a plenty of YACFers round ours at some point over the weekend, I reckon

[jogler]

I'll bear that in mind CL,thanks.
I have no cub-style toys left though

[CrinklyLion]

I have no cub-style toys left though

They won't mind!

[Arch]

I looked at the map just the other day actually.  I think we can head down to Castle Howard via Coneysthorpe as Deano suggests, but if we want to avoid as much hilly stuff as possible (and I always do!), perhaps bypass Sherrif Hutton, and skirt through Thornton-le-Clay and Flaxton instead - on that route, it's pretty much flat once you drop down off the Castle Howard ridge.  I've ridden it the other way a few times.

The only thing is that there are a couple of cattle grids - not bad ones, in fact the only ones I've been able to ride on on two wheels, despite my phobia.  But easy enough to cross on foot if anyone is nervous of them.

Oh, I looked at work, and we don't have a suitable metal teapot, only a huge one. Bags in mugs I reckon.

[jogler]

I bow to your superior knowledge Arch.I'll follow you

[Arch]

I bow to your superior knowledge Arch.I'll follow you

Lawks, I better get it right! I have only ridden it the other way!

We can't avoid a climb at some point just after Pickering - if we went via Malton, it would be a long drag up (I've been down, and it's lovely, want to try it on three wheels!), and if via Amotherly, a bastard short sharp edge.  Getting from Pickering to Malton is the thing though - I'm not sure the A169 is going to be a good idea in the day time.  To Amotherly, we can take all quiet back roads quite easily.  There are back roads to Malton, but it looks more complicated and meandering.

[TimO]

I'm intending on bringing my gas cooker, with a reasonable sized cylinder, and as big a camping pot as I've got (probably good for a reasonable number of cuppas, I'll need to measure it!).

I can use the GPS to "magically" get me from A to B, but it'll tend to use whatever route it decides is the shortest, which can often involve main roads etc.  In addition to that, whilst it knows about things like cycle routes, Andy's Munky Maps will sometimes use them when there's a perfectly acceptable shorter route on a road, and on other occasions avoid them when they would be the shorter route!  OpenStreetMaps isn't entirely perfect.   A planned route, based on some local knowledge would be far better, and then we can plonk it onto GPSes, and follow that (I don't even know where the steam trains travel between!)

[CrinklyLion]

There's an 11:00 train from Whitby to Pickering, gets in at 12:40 (the alternative being, if we're much earlier, that we all pile onto the 8:52 ordinary train as far as Grosmont and then spend an hour and a bit waiting for the connecting steam service at 10:30 - but that does only get us into Pickering an hour ealier). 

I've found a route on Bikely that went through Pickering and York - and chopped out the extra bit.  Going the wrong way, but I'm sure other people better at these things than me can sort that out!

So, does this Bicycle Path - york-pickering at Bikely.com make sense as a route?  Or is there a better way?

Incidentally - I'm still reserving the right to turn up at the station with cake, wave you all off and bugger off back home if the weather is too gruesome!

[Arch]

I've found a route on Bikely that went through Pickering and York - and chopped out the extra bit.  Going the wrong way, but I'm sure other people better at these things than me can sort that out!

So, does this Bicycle Path - york-pickering at Bikely.com make sense as a route?  Or is there a better way?

Mostly. I'd change it a bit after Castle Howard - that takes us down and then up an arrowed valley.  And I think we could go more directly at the start.  A good starting route though.

[Deano]

I've found a route on Bikely that went through Pickering and York - and chopped out the extra bit.  Going the wrong way, but I'm sure other people better at these things than me can sort that out!

So, does this Bicycle Path - york-pickering at Bikely.com make sense as a route?  Or is there a better way?

For anyone looking at the elevation profile, you can blame the Howards for that massive wall at 15 km.  

If you don't know the area, the Howard estate is a fascinating place to ride through, and to gawp at the sheer arrogance and wealth required to shape the landscape to your personal vision.

[mcshroom]

Looks pretty good, although I'd be tempted to ride straight on at the cross-roads near Welburn and come through  Foston and Thornton-le-Clay. It would then avoid the 1:7 just after Bulmer.

[Tigerbiten]

I'm still planning to be on this ride on my Trice Q.

The plan is to drive to York from Northampton friday afternoon.
Ride to the coast, train back to Pickering then cycle back to York.
Then drive up to Hexham to see my mum ......... 

I just hope my knees can do the distance.
I can do 70-80 miles without too much pain, and I'm planning to trying to reach 100 miles this weekend.

Crinkly Lion, I may take you up on a patch of floor to sleep on, if thats ok.

[Arch]

Looks pretty good, although I'd be tempted to ride straight on at the cross-roads near Welburn and come through  Foston and Thornton-le-Clay. It would then avoid the 1:7 just after Bulmer.

My thoughts exactly. Whoever planned it that way is a masochist.

The long straight past Castle Howard is fab, I'm looking forward to doing it on the trike and getting the maximum speed in the downs to help with the ups (it's undulating, rather than sadistic).  And if you do it at the right time of year, the smell of the wild garlic is amazing.

Tigerbiten, I reckon you'll be fine - we'll have a good break in Whitby and then on the train before the last leg, for your knees to rest. If you're flagging, I'll probably be flagging too, and we can flag together... The great thing about a night ride (says she, with a grand total of one under her belt), is that you really have all day to do the distance, so there's scope for breaks.

[Kim]

Undulating darkside fun you say?  This just gets better and better...

I won't be flagging though.  My 'bent's high enough already.

[Tigerbiten]

I was only a little flagging on the FNRttC.

But still almost got squashed in a pinch point by a car.

So I may be bigger flagging on this ride ...........   

[Arch]

My current flag is the little rectangular Trice one. I do have a choice of bigger ones. Hmmm.

If I do fit a bigger one, I must secure it better than the one that blew off on the Pont de Normandie and is even now probably wrapped around the Eiffel Tower.

I also have some seasonal decorative options...

[Deano]

FWIW I found that the undulations past Castle Howard were too far apart to maintain momentum, when I went round there on fixed.  At least you'll be going along in the right direction - getting the worst hill out of the way first.

Th glow sticks I bought seem a bit crap, but they'll do the job for one night only, so I'll grab a couple more packs.  I couldn't bear to get any more Halloween-related tat, so you'll have to decorate your own bikes.

This is going to be a blast - I suggested Whitby out of pure selfishness, cos it's easy to get back to Darlo.  I didn't expect so many others to think it was a good idea

[TimO]

I'm not sure it is a good idea,  but what the hell.

[Kim]

It's a profoundly silly idea.  But much less so than a lot of the things I've been doing with the aid of a bicycle in recent weeks, and therefore why not?   

[Tigerbiten]

At least I'm not the only mad one doing this ............   

[Arch]

The glow sticks I bought seem a bit crap, but they'll do the job for one night only, so I'll grab a couple more packs.  I couldn't bear to get any more Halloween-related tat, so you'll have to decorate your own bikes.

I'm sorted, I hope, but that doesn't mean I won't succumb and buy more tat before the ride.... :wink:

Fortunately, I already had my set of Skully lights.

[Aidan]

I bought a witches nose today, specially for this! 

[Arch]

oooh oooh!  If it's very cold, I could wear the Foska Bones....

But it would have to be very cold, and the rest of me might freeze. And I don't want to wish cold on the party.

[Kim]

I figure I'll just turn up and bleed everywhere.  I seem to be getting good at that.