The Highwayman Magazine - Spring 2019

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PEAKY BLINDER

NAPLES TO N’ABBOT

Plymouth CTC’s jolly jaunt to the Peak District

Dr Clive Long and Steve Jones (summer) epic from Italy back home.

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WELCOME v o l u m e 6 7 n u m b e r 3

Hello and welcome to another late edition of The Highwayman.

Please accept my apologies. Copy was a little thin to begin with. However it was evident that a lot of members have been away on holiday, mostly cycling. I am happy to say that we have finally got through some wonderful articles from real diverse group of members. To all of you who have provided us with stories and ride reports - Thank you.

It’s good to see that so many of you are having adventures both near and far of equally epic proportions. It is good to see so many people willing to put finger to keyboard and write an article. For some it is no easy task, but I hope you have enjoyed the process and the pride that comes with it.

For those who are contemplating putting something together, please do. It really shapes this magazine and creates it as a mark in time.

All the best.

Shaun

CHAIRMAN:

EDITOR:

LAST COPY DATE:

KEVIN PRESLAND

SHAUN EAST

SUMMER| Number 04th August

Hind Street House

5 Bridge Terrace

PUBLICATION DATE:

Hind Street

Tuckenhay

SUMMER| Number 15th August

Bovey Tracey TQ13 9HT

TQ9 7EH

COVER PICTURE:

T: 01626 833749

T: 07748816396

Can someone else send a picture in?

E: kevin.hindstreet@btinternet.com

E: thehighwayman@yahoo.com

Another Graham Brodie Belter!

SECRETARY:

SUBSCRIPTIONS:

GRAHAM BRODIE

GEOFFREY SHARPE

10 Courtney Road

35 Claredon Road

Newton Abbot TQ12 1HP

Ipplepen TQ12 5QS

T: 01626 335130

T: 01803 812743

E: brodie@bikerider.com

E: geoffsharpe35@gmail.com

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MAGAZINE DISTRIBUTION: ELIZABETH RASHLEY

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E: erashley@hotmail.co.uk

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LETTERS DEVON DIRT 2019 Hi Shaun The 2019 DEVON DIRT was another great success, with almost 300 riders taking part.

This year we were pleased to welcome Julie Rand and her husband Roland. Julie is the Groups Coordinator for Cycling UK in Guilford. They enjoyed their weekend in Devon.

The most notable ride was from 9 year old John Sharp from Ashburton. He was on his fourth Devon Dirt finish, and the second time on his own bike!

The course was mostly dry but there were some big puddles!

CTC helpers did a sterling job, directing and parking cars, signing riders in at the start and finish, and keeping riders fed at Manaton control. It was a bitterly cold wind that day, and I’m indebted to all of them for helping the day go so smoothly.

The helpers this year were Annie Seward, Kate Hattersley, Hilary Durbin and Gordy, Gill & John Beesley ,Chris and Jean Grierson-Jackson, Joyce Sharpe, Clive Long. Roy Russell, Andy Endicott, Geoff & Val Hayes, Kevin Presland, Caroline & Oli Twigger, Rod Pash, Rob & Lynda Swayne & Ann Wareham, plus the staff at the Bigpeaks store, and the busy people at the Lemon Jelli stand.

All the riders received a special 2019 Cycling Uk Challenge medal and a commemorative T-shirt. The only casualty this year was a dislocated finger.

Photos attached: The Goldsmith family from Teignmouth. John Sharp riding with dad Toby.

- Graham Brodie, Event Organiser

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BUSTED BALLS & JAEGERBOMBS WORDS: GRAHAM BRODIE

ing. I forced myself to stay for a double helping of cake as the WI had gone to so much trouble.

The next control was another food orgy, a sea of cakes and also filled rolls and soup.

I rattled on though Chipping Sodbury and down through Keynsham and past Chew Valley Lake, and began the ascent of the Mendips at West Harptree. Just as I was catching up a tandem on the climb there was a surprisingly quiet ping followed by complete loss of transmission!

The bike cam to a halt with two feet of 9 speed chain dragging on the road. Luckily a quicklink and a new fancy tool had me back on the road in about ten minutes with very mucky hands.

At Glastonbury it was time for a bit of savoury – beans and spuds with chilli sauce, which set me up nicely for the finish but those little hills kept on coming.

I spied the chaps leaving the final control at a pub just as I arrived so I was pulling back time. Onto the final climb from Portway which seemed to go on forever, before a very steep drop which saw me overshoot the last junction into the finish, tired but very happy after a great ride.

LVIS BARRY’S BRISTOL BALL BUSTER 200KM & JAEGER BOMB 300KM AUDAXES What’s all this about then?? Well in 2018 I may have mentioned before riding a rather well organised 200Km Audax, run by a group called the Las Vegas Institute of Sport – or LVIS. Marcus Mumford and wife Kirsty are accomplished and legendary cyclists who put much of their time in this.

However things didn’t end there as I got an urge for another day out with LVIS and only a few weeks later found myself sleeping in the back of the van overnight at Bitton ( following a particular unpleasant root canal filling) ready to take on “Barry’s Jaegrbomb 300Km.

So in April I joined Kevin Presland, Dave Twigger and Shaun East for another “Barry’s Bristol Ball Buster”. Fortunately the ride didn’t cause the inferred injury, but the pull out of the start through Long Ashton park was a tough one, and Kevin and myself almost came a cropper on an insanely sharp traffic calming ramp exiting the park.

At 7am, about 40 of us rolled out of the start from Oldlands Hall into misty lanes with sun streaming through layers of cloud.

Again I was near the back but teamed up with Alan from Bristol and we knocked out the first 50 miles to Northleach control.

Just as we were about to leave a large black guy called Pete turned up, he’d been

I spent much of the day off the back having stopped for photos in the park, but arrived at the first control at Hill in Gloucestershire as the others were leavS P R I N G

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BUSTED BALLS & JAEGERBOMBS WORDS: GRAHAM BRODIE

ing. I forced myself to stay for a double helping of cake as the WI had gone to so much trouble.

The next control was another food orgy, a sea of cakes and also filled rolls and soup.

I rattled on though Chipping Sodbury and down through Keynsham and past Chew Valley Lake, and began the ascent of the Mendips at West Harptree. Just as I was catching up a tandem on the climb there was a surprisingly quiet ping followed by complete loss of transmission!

The bike cam to a halt with two feet of 9 speed chain dragging on the road. Luckily a quicklink and a new fancy tool had me back on the road in about ten minutes with very mucky hands.

However things didn’t end there as I got an urge for another day out with LVIS and only a few weeks later found myself sleeping in the back of the van overnight at Bitton ( following a particular unpleasant root canal filling) ready to take on “Barry’s Jaegrbomb 300Km. At 7am, about 40 of us rolled out of the start from Oldlands Hall into misty lanes with sun streaming through layers of cloud.

Again I was near the back but teamed up with Alan from Bristol and we knocked out the first 50 miles to Northleach control.

Just as we were about to leave a large black guy called Pete turned up, he’d been having Garmin trouble.

A few miles later he waved as he swept past us on his swish Trek Emonda carbon bike with deep section rims and Sram Red wireless gearing.

The route was delightful, rolling across Wiltshire down through the Amesbury Rings to Avebury for another control stop at around 4pm, after a bit of a tuck in to Ice Cream and chocolate cake, in walks Pete again cursing his Garmin!

We left Avebury together but a couple of miles out Pete went ahead and took a wrong turn, we called him back, and he decided to stick with us for the ride, it was the first time he’d attempted something like a 300Km, and was a bit shocked when we announced we were looking at a midnight finish! Bristol was still 60 odd miles away, and he was hoping to meet his son for supper and didn’t have a front light!

We rode on together to the final control near Glastonbury, - A pub for a pint, and pre-ordered Fish and Chips from the Mendip Chippy – hit the spot!

At Glastonbury it was time for a bit of savoury – beans and spuds with chilli sauce, which set me up nicely for the finish but those little hills kept on coming.

I spied the chaps leaving the final control at a pub just as I arrived so I was pulling back time. Onto the final climb from Portway which seemed to go on forever, before a very steep drop which saw me overshoot the last junction into the finish, tired but very happy after a great ride.

We sorted a spare light for Pete and set off. I hadn’t realised how much my gum was aching from the dental, job, and my S P R I N G

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BUSTED BALLS & JAEGERBOMBS WORDS: GRAHAM BRODIE

face was starting to swell a bit. I took som Ibuprofen for but started to really suffer over the last few miles. Climbing from Wookey we were very tired, and weirdly all our GPS units seem to suffer a tech failure. I couldn’t read the route sheet too well in the dark and we ended up going the wrong way at the top of Mendips and coming out on the wrong road.

However I remembered the way down to Chew Valley from a previous ride, and on arrival there my Garmin suddenly revived itself. Where the last hill cam from I have no idea as we’d done the Mendips. We were only about 10 miles from the finish and were on an endless climb before dropping into Keynsham, and the final pull back up to Oldlands Hall.

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We were Lantern Rouge but only by a few minutes, and soon tucking in to a great chilli followed by Rhubarb & Custard a midnight feast!

It was a great day out, but sadly my face suffered a lot, the abscess I’d had the treatment for had come back with a vengeance and I had a swollen jaw and had to go onto antibiotics the next day!

Luckily it all cleared up in time for the next adventure more about that another time! Thanks Marcus & Kirsty and the LVIS gang, - I can’t recommend their rides highly enough.

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NOTICES CTC TORBAY SUMMER BBQ:

9 201 t s Gho

Don’t forget the SUMMER SIZZLING BBQ is being organised by Maurice Bard and it’s on 4th July, at the PARK INN in Kingskerswell, 15 Coles Lane TQ12 5BQ. Price £8.00 per head.

Please email dietary requirements for Vegetarian or Celiac meals to mail@mauricebard.com You can also pay direct to Maurice.

y or RideTrace tmo t r h y a g i e D m N Bov ast

f k 150 2:30 @ break c 2 n : i et 0 r ts eb.n Sta £13.5 w x uda w.a w w

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COFFEE POT RUNS WORDS: JEAN BRIERLY

2019 June 6 Exmouth ~ Kings Garden Centre June 13 Poltimore House Tea Rooms June 20 Powderham Castle June 27 Cullompton - Padbrook Hotel July 4 Exminster Golf Club July 11 Bernaville Nurseries July 18 Clyst Hydon Village Hall July 25 Escot

Aug 1 Willand ~ Bluebell Restaurant Aug 8 Greendale Farm Shop Aug 15 Tipton St John ~ Keith Portlock Aug 22 Plymtree Barn ~ Peter Draper Aug 29 Exmouth ~ Kings Garden Centre Sep 5 Newton St Cyres Golf Club

PBP 2019 QUALIFICATION Congratulations to Kevin Presland on completing his SR and qualifying for the 2019 edition of the Paris-Brest-Paris Audax. We wish him all the best for what is the most demanding Audax on the calendar.

from professionals. There are two independent long distance bicycle tours. One is the brevet (also called randonnée), in which cyclists ride individually. The goal is to make it within 90 hours, but with no competition. This is held every four years. The other is an audax where cyclists ride in a group, held every five years. So in 1931 there were three independent cycling events, sharing the same route.

Paris–Brest–Paris (PBP) is a long-distance cycling event. It was originally a 1,200 km (750 mi) bicycle race from Paris to Brest and back to Paris in 1891. The last time it was run as a race was 1951. The most recent edition of PBP ran from 16 August to 20 August 2015.

The audax is organised by the Union des Audax Françaises, while the brevet is organised by the Audax Club Parisien.

In 1931 amateur cyclists were separated S P R I N G

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PLYMOUTH SOUNDS WORDS: TREVOR BRADSHAW

Plymouth Section Tour: The Peak District

Day 2 dawned reasonably brightly and 10 cyclists set off on a circular 42 mile route through a mixture of limestone dales, high gritstone moors with amazing views over the Cheshire Plain and an 8 mile ridge to bring us back to the limestone country.

Sadly as the weather appeared to be deteriorating we returned to the hostel via the entire length of the Manifold Trail.

Sue and Niccy elected to explore on foot the famous Dove Valley with it’s caves, rock formations and Stepping Stones.

Our Peak District Tour this year was somewhat dogged by very poor weather! However, all of us managed some good rides, walks and a good helping of culture and nostalgia!

On day 1 (5/6/19) ten of us arrived at Hartington Hall YHA in time to have a short but picturesque introduction to the limestone scenery. We managed a sizeable chunk of the Manifold Valley and a shorter section of the Tissington Trail with some steep hills in between. The Tudor/ Jacobean Hostel, formerly a Manor House was large and lively (3 school parties!) with superb facilities. Ok, communal sleeping was perhaps a little more problematic at our age! but this was more than offset by the choice of communal sitting rooms, the setting, well equipped kitchen where we liked to gather for a brew, the friendly bar and restaurant and the easy access to open countryside.

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As we feared Day 3 was very wet! And the majority of us decided to seek an alternative in the form of a National Trust property with The Museum of Childhood at Sudbury Hall providing us with a happy hour or two of nostalgia. Hardier members of our party were not to be deterred by mere weather forecasts and set off to explore Buxton by bike (bravo to Mike, John and Larry!) At this point things became slightly more complicated eg. bikes at Hartington, new dorms and on-street parking |

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PLYMOUTH SOUNDS WORDS: TREVOR BRADSHAW

awaiting us at Youlgrave and group members spread to the four winds! The former Village COOP building which served as the Yougrave hostel was quirky but lacked the facilities of Hartington. Eventually the majority of us enjoyed a excellent meal at The George Pub in the Village, we booked for 14 to eat there again at 630 the following night.

With a worse forecast for Saturday, Day 4 , 6 cyclists hit the road, 2 went on a hike through Lathkill Dale with Graham (‘Winkie’) Dave’s friend, and 5 ( those with National Trust membership) investigated the life and loves of Bess of Hardwick after sampling tarts at Bakewell.

On this day at least 2 Wetherspoons were located to add to the tally. Our two younger members got rather muddy and were spotted with copious quantities of water dousing bikes and themselves!! (that will teach them to not have mudguards!) We enjoyed the evening at The George followed by a convivial coffee in the well-equipped member’s kitchen. We hit the sack fairly early in anticipation of a short ride before setting off home the next day.

Day 5 saw 8 of the group head north out of the village through Over Haddon and Taddington before descending into Miller’s Dale where they cycled along the beautiful Water-cum-Jolly Dale, which proved to be very muddy. As we climbed up to Monsal Head we encountered a bunch of racing cyclists speeding in the opposite direction. As time was pressing some headed back to their cars whilst others had one last coffee break.

‘Winkie’ led a short walk into Bradford Dale and Graham Black was pleased to be able to take part as he is recovering well from his op.

In conclusion, on this year’s tour we had no food poisoning or heat exhaustion, not much sleep or cycling (well, for some!) but lots of good company and bonhomie!

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THE ART OF CYCLING

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NICK NICHOLS

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THE MERRY MONK 105KM AUDAX WORDS: GEOFF SHARPE

XVth Merry Monk 105k Audax, Sunday 28th April.

Flower Island again and through the traffic lights we joined the B3148 climbing towards Yeovil. After crossing the border and coming back into Somerset a drop down a long hill to Mudford and a series of rural lanes to Yeovilton. Escorted by 3 helicopters across the Naval Air Base to reach the outskirts of Ilminster to join the A372 going towards Langport. Counting off the junctions, we take the 4th right going along some more very rural lanes skirting a high hill. Up there is where the finish is and after passing a grass triangle and going through a farm you commence the climb up to High Ham. I’m please to say that I climbed it without stopping, first time ever, to arrive back at the village hall with plenty of cakes and endless cups of tea for us. This event has not only a pleasant route but also the amount of cakes at the finish has to be seen to believed.

15 years Mark and Helen Lilly have been organising this event, doesn’t seem it and I think I’ve ridden 10 or 12 of them.

A full entry of over 300 sign up for the ride, I was number 276 and Rob Legg who had joined me for the ride was 245. Chris Burton was the only other rider from CTC Devon, but Mid Devon CC had about 10./12 entered so we had some company from time to time.

Rob and I chose a 9.30 start with about 150 others, half the entry had gone off at 8.30, we had met them driving up to High Ham, now it’s our turn to ride down the couple of miles into Langport. Around the top of the town to cycle across the Somerset levels through a series of villages with wonderful names that just roll off the tongue like, Muchelney, Kingsbury Episopi and Shepton Beauchamp.

Riding in a bunch and going at a good pace soon found us going through Dewlish Wake and the start of a climb going up to the A30 at Cricket St Thomas, venue of the TV series “To the Manor Born”. A fast downhill after crossing the main road brought us to the first control at Forde Abbey, 34k covered.

It’s unfortunate that not more of us didn’t make the drive up to High Ham to do the ride. Do it next year and have an enjoyable days ride in Somerset and Dorset, but get your entry in early, this event fills up very quickly.

Crossing the border into Dorset through several villages and up onto a ridge. This was followed by some nice descents down to Sutton Bingham reservior near Yeovil and onto Halstock and Bradford Abbas.

Approaching Sherborne by going through several sets of traffic lights and around a Flower Island to the control at Olivers Restaurant, 73k covered now. Restaurant was quite crowded but across the court yard was Waitrose Supermarket so we went in there and got a sandwich and drink.

Leaving the control and going round that S P R I N G

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DEVON DIRT 2019 WORDS: DAVE PRUDDEN

If, like me, this is your only off road ride of the year, you need to be careful where in the field you start & who you ride with, as from past experience, it can be scary to find yourself scrabbling for grip with seasoned off roaders hurtling past.

So, I with Rob L, Richard C & Richard E managed to start on the back of one group & managed to keep together for a few miles. Not all of the route is off road – maybe 50%, with the rest usually on small lanes. Richard E was testing a new GPS unit & was soon away up the track.

All types of rider enjoy these events, from the fittest flyers with the latest machines to adept youngsters who look 7/8 years old out with their mother/father for the day but seemingly able to keep up the off road pace with me.

Incidents happen in these events.

My incidents in the first part included finding my new tyre pressures were too high – They had a minimum pressure listed of 50 psi but I found they were bouncing over the ruts so had to lower them. A loosened rear mudguard had to be detached & hidden in a hedge, for later retrieval & last but not least going off route near Bumpston. Five of us, including Richard C & Rob L ended up at Staverton Station & having to find our way back on route. The route is marked with yellow arrows & although the event notes had warned of felons removing arrows near Bumpston, five of us missed the turn. Many riders use GPS’s to aid their navigation but Rob L’s Garmin GPS wasn’t co-operating & my marked up maps for the day were useful to get back on course but sadly lacking when immediate L or R choices have to be made when disorientated in strange lanes.

Devon Dirt 2019 – Dave P’s experience I’d ridden the last two editions of the ‘Dirt’, two years ago I thought it was the best ride I had all year & just great fun – it was dryish & I hadn’t ridden it since Graham B first started it. Last year it was on a muddier course & I found it a bit of a tougher ride altogether, so the prospect of a dryish course this year sounded good.

There are now three choices of entry, Buzz for the e-bikes, Full – 37 miles, two loops of 16 plus 21 miles & Lite – a loop of 16 miles. I’d put down for the Full but several of our ‘team’ from the year before had chosen a Lite for varying reasons.

For those who have never ridden mountain bikes on this type of event, it can be exhilarating, to start an event with 270 other riders & hare over & down slippery, rocky trails, at times, & survive to tell the tale feels an achievement.

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A 30m water trap proved a draw for Graham B, our event organiser/photographer & the drone expert to record our antics – trick is to get in a low gear & not stop |

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DEVON DIRT 2019 WORDS: DAVE PRUDDEN

pedalling on any account or you face certain wet feet.

The motif of the day seemed to be ‘It’s not a race’. Banners to this effect at the start, on your route cards & at the finish on the jerseys handed out with the medals attested to this message. It certainly helps the miles pass a little easier if you can do them with friends.

These events are more fun if done as a group for most folk. After an off road section, it became usual in the first loop, to find 5 to 10 riders awaiting their last ‘team’ member before continuing. Rob L & myself made it back to the Ashburton together to the end of the Lite loop.

Many thanks to Graham B & all the many helpers for making this event such a success.

Savouries & cakes were enjoyed with a hot chocolate drink at the Ashburton control with its happy band of helpers.

There seemed no good reason not to do the second loop so off I set, by myself, as Rob was on the Lite ride.

The second loop features a couple of descents that resemble stone chutes with steps – I took these at a really slow speed & was grateful for the telescopic forks on my bike. A longish descent through the woods after Manaton is exciting with big stones & tree roots to scrabble over. A roar of stones behind made it evident I was to have riders passing so I moved over to the side & gave them the maximum of space.

The Manaton control was most welcome with more savouries, cakes & drinks. I was warm enough riding with the hills but for the 20 plus helpers spread over the controls & en-route, it was cold to be waiting around – The met office had forecast minus 1 deg C at Manaton with the wind chill.

The longer hills of the second loop were taking their effect on most folk by Sigford on the return. With my old mountain bike the gearing would ideally be lower for me nowadays, so I ended up cycling the hills harder than ideal – It was fortunate that Clive’s ride the previous Sunday around & over Dartmoor had been arduous to improve my fitness for the hills !

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DEVON DIRT 2019

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DEVON DIRT 2019

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DEVON DIRT 2019

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SOUTH HAMS CHALLENGE

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SOUTH HAMS CHALLENGE WORDS: SHAUN EAST

Plymouth CTC The South Hams Challenge May 19th 2019

was greeted by many new and familiar faces. A good turn out for an inaugrual event - around 20 people. I was signed in by one of the many volunteers from Plymouth CTC who had given over their spare time to assist with the event and make us all feel welcome. With a very punctual set off, we headed down the main road from Ivybridge towards Wrangaton to approach the many beautiful lanes of the South Hams. This indeed was one of the flatter sections of the ride. In the distance, on the other side of the road, we saw a familiar site. With a camera swinging from his torso and what appeared to be a different bike from the last time we saw him, it could only be no other than Graham Brodie!

He had come under some difficulty with his cleat while cycling over from Dartmouth, where he had sailed in from Topsham the previous evening with his wife, Kate. Kate must have been very understanding for Graham to have his bike stowed on board.

It is always nice as editor to have ones attention drawn to a new event. I always see this as an opportunity to ride a new route and to meet new faces along the way. So when I had received an e-mail from Trevor Bradshaw of Plymouth CTC regarding a circular route within the South Hams area and marked as a challenge, I was keen to find out more.

The route was 63km with a very spirited 1372m of climbing, but considering this was in the South Hams, where the terrain make the OS map look like it is scrunched up, it is not surprising. The start was at Ivybridge train station, with a socially acceptable commencement time of 10.00am. This would certainly allow myself and other Torbay members to travel over from their homes. After continuous issues with my usual bike, I decided to ride over on my MTB. It turned out not to be a bad choice of bike due to its wide range of gears for the forthcoming hills.

The first sections of lanes would take us through to the Plymouth Road at Avonwick and made for quite challenging ride both on gravelly decent and followed by very abrupt climbs. However, there

On arrival at the train station car park I

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SOUTH HAMS CHALLENGE WORDS: SHAUN EAST

was very little traffic on these roads so it was good to chat to our fellow riders and enjoy the lovely weather that day (yes, lovely weather. A distant memory). From Avonwick there was a very short spell on the main road until we took a right hand turn to follow the river Avon then a punchy climb up to Diptford. We followed more undulating farm roads and dropped down towards Harbeton, then across the A381 to Harbetonford. A left from Harbetonford took us along one of my favourite local lanes. A flattish road that follows the River Bow valley to Tuckenhay. If anyone gets the chance to take this lane on their next ride, then you’ll be in for a treat!

ham John of Plymouth CTC and we commenced the final descending section of the ride back to the start at Ivybridge. We were surprised by the amount of climbing we had achieved in such a short distance, but equally surprised that we were the first ones back at the car park. To reward our smugness we went off in search of ice cream prior to heading back our separate ways, by bike, to our homes.

What a thoroughly enjoyable ride. We hope Trevor and the gang repeat this for next year and it would be very exciting to think that this could be a regular event on the local CTC calendar. We thank all those who took part and more so those who volunteered their time to make this a very enjoyable, if not challenging event

The only issue is that they’ll soon be greeted by one of two big hills up to Ashsprinton, then on to Sharpham. It was at this point the MTB came in to its own both on the climb up and the gravel decent along the wonderful bike path from Sharpham to Totnes. A quick section along the path in Totnes and another climb up to Dartington Hall saw us perusing and salivating over the array of lovely cakes available at The Green Table Cafe. Cake and coffee consumed, followed by chatting with some other riders, saw us back on the lanes from Staverton to Pridamsleigh.

These are very familiar lanes to the Torbay members and we affectionally name this area the “Denbury Triangle”, due to the density of lanes in a very small area, with the additional high risk of getting lost and never returning home.

- Shaun.

A swift section along the main road through Buckfastleigh to Upper Dean, saw us ascending the southern tip of the moors up to Shipley bridge to the next control. This climb was particular stunning due to the blooming wild flowers in the hedgerows and the view up to the moors to the North of where we were riding. A quick rest and a chat with GraS P R I N G

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NAPLES TO N’ABBOT WORDS: DR CLIVE LONG

Steve used a CB Dalesman with front and back panniers and a handlebar bag. Clive used a Velomotion recumbent with saddlebags and double bags on a carrier.

Clive did navigation and Steve handled the money. Clive’s preoccupation with the navigation was the realisation that if we were wild camping, we would have no way to recharge devices. We decided to use an Android mobile phone. We mainly used Cycle.Travel website (excellent) to daily generate routes and downloaded to be rendered offline with turn by turn speech (screen kept off as much as possible) on OSMAND. We had Naviki app as a backup. We planned day to day because we were not sure about our overall route at the start.

Clive did the navigation, and as a screen on the handlebars didn’t work well with the recumbent, I wanted speech turn by turn. Broadly speaking nav was a success. We had a comforting female voice to tell us where to go the whole trip. This made Clive happy, not so much for Steve!

Steve Jones & Clive Long April/May 2019 Tour – Naples to Devon. 1615 miles cycling. 23 days cycling. 3 rest days. 70.2 miles per cycling day.

Why? We did a short tour last summer and we both got on and had a similar ambition to do something more adventurous. We fancied and “out and back” trip and when we heard of a new flight from Exeter to Naples, we booked it and were committed.

We carried a spare charged phone, 3 powerbanks, an AA battery emergency charger, a solar charger, usb bottle dynamo. As it turned out this was overkill as we stayed in accommodation every few days.

We arrived Naples 24.4.19. and carried the bike boxes and gear 2 miles to the hostel.

Filthy slummy streets, hot sweaty. The hostel told us that we were too old! We were 3x the age of most of the other clients. It worked out ok though. Next day built the bikes and checked out Naples – not great – no need to go again.

We reckoned on 4-6 weeks at 50 miles/ day. Camping with occasional beds and showers. We did a surprising amount of preparation which included a trial run with the CTC trip to France in Feb 2019.

We packed lightweight tents and sleeping bags and minimal cooking gear and summer clothing. We assumed it would be warm in Italy in May and summer would follow us north (How wrong!).

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Day 1. Naples to Miturno. Hot, sunny.

Once we got out of the filth of Naples, |

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great. Wild camping on a windy headland.

Weather showing signs of going cold.

not real food.

Day 6. Largely flat. Cool headwind (I think we had headwinds 90% of the trip). Using bars for food. They are quite good in Italy – sandwiches and croissants. Wild camped on the riverside. It was quite pleasant when we put the tents up but by the morning we were freezing and damp!

Clive came out with a cold so the next few days were grim – dogged by sinusitis the rest of the trip. Steve got similar once we got back to England.

Day 2. Miturno to a wood near Latina.

Southern Italy has had a large influx of African and Asian Migrants. They work on the farms and get around on old bikes. We camped in a wood near a migrant camp which was raided by the police in the middle of the night. Dogs barking everywhere most nights. In Italy, most houses have guard dogs which are luckily always locked in. They ignored Steve on a conventional bike but became rabid as soon as they saw me on the recumbent. I guess it triggered something “Lion/wolf” in their brains. I am quite sure it would have been nasty if any got out.

Day 7. Ride to Florence. Pleasant evening looking round. Stayed in a hostel 2 nights.

Spent most of next day in bed.

Day 8. Rest.

Day 3. Latina to Formello. Weather started ok but got cold and wet as we approached Rome. Breakfast in MacDonalds. MacDonalds became a lifesaver as they were everywhere. Food was otherwise quite easy in Italy as they have Bars and corner shops in the country. Not so in France – where if you are in the countryside there are NO shops or bars left – its a wasteland with empty villages and a few commuters.

Day 9. North east out of Florence and up into the mountains. Quite a pleasant day but we had a wet cold forecast for the next day. Camped on a site at Lago Suviana (500mt alt). It was COLD that night and rained all night. Next morning we realised we weren’t going anywhere. Tried to rig tarps to stay dry(?) Then it started snowing. We realised we were not going to survive! Steve wearing sandals with plastic bag socks and shorts! Luckily the campsite had some rooms! It snowed for 24hrs. The next morning cars were going by with 6in snow on their roofs and we had 3in where we were.

Steve was impressed that I navigated him direct to the front door of the Colosseum! Steve got in conversation with various people and was chilled, Clive the opposite! We had a quick look round the sites and moved on out of Roma along the Tiber cycleway. It got hilly and ended up camping in a nature reserve with some horses near Formello.

Day 10. Rest.

Day 11. We rode in slush down the hill toward Bologna. Couldnt feel fingers and toes. Steve got some great pics. Skirted Bologna to the west. Once on the Po cycleway things were more pleasant and warmer. Got some miles in and camped on the edge of a village.

Day 4. Past old hill towns to a wood next to a layby near Attigliano. Lovely sunset.

Day 5. Through some beautiful Umbrian country to the lake at Castiglione.

Camped in a proper campsite. It rained as soon as we arrived. So wet and cold.

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Wild camping seemed reasonably well tolerated. We tried to be completely hid|

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den but when that wasn’t possible, camping on a public space rather that private property seemed to work. I used a tent and normally wore every stitch of clothing I had. Steve experimented with a bivi bag, so he could see the “stars”, until the mouse incident. He woke up shrieking – he had a mouse in the bag with him, under his shirt!

Goeschenen the other side of the pass.

Clive, much anxiety as Swiss railways do not seem to allow recumbents – as usual it was all ok. We probably missed 3 days cycling but beautiful scenery from the train.

Nice easy descent on perfect Swiss roads to Brunnen on Vierwaldstaetter See. As we went north Italian roads improved. Swiss roads are perfect, as are French, followed by German and Belgium just a bit better than ours.

Day 12. Rain and cold. We slogged past Monza to the nearby roar of racing cars.

Ended up in Como in a hostel. When I booked it I didn’t realise it was up a hill which involved 30mins pushing. Was very good tho. Good company.

Brunnen was very posh but we found a secluded but public place to camp on the lake side. V cold but a great sunset.

The only food we could afford in town was Turkish kebab.

Day 13. Short cycle into Switzerland (Chiasso). We had originally planned to cycle over the St Gotthard pass but we belatedly realised (thanks Kevin) it’s generally not open until early June (probably even later this year).

So we got the train from Chiasso to

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Day 14. We had planned to visit Clive’s relatives in Basel but they couldn’t put us up so we booked a hotel near there.

Monster day starting with freezing rain.

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Record prices for mediocre coffee and cake.

Day 21. The rest day worked! Good ride to Ypres – camped on a real campsite. At last, plenty of Brits around to talk to. Attended the evening service at the Menin gate – very moving.

Day 15. Flying visit to Basel. We had planned to to take the Rhine cycleway to well north. There are various alternatives – German or French side. We elected for the German side. It was a bit boring and much on unsurfaced surfaces. Wild camped on an island in the river – rain cold.

Day 22. This was supposed to be a quick ride to Dunkirk ferry. Cold, wet, headwind.

Clive got the distances a bit wrong, so it turned in to a monster.

Day 16. Flatlands fairly rapidly to Strasburg. We decided to take beeline to home which involved leaving the Rhine and going through France and Belgium to Dunkirk. Good decision – fantastic canalside route on well surfaced tracks for mile after mile. Moselle/Meuse. Wild camp on towpath.

The white cliffs! Sweet to see. We ride on broken roads to Folkestone and camp in a real site known to Steve. We are on NCN 2 and Steve leads the way as he’s done it before. The weather is getting better!

From now on it actually feels like summer!

Day 23. Big day to Brighton YHA. To tired so we give the Ladyboys of Thailand a miss.

Day 17. Enjoying it more now. A bit warmer.

Through Nancy and ended up in Verdun.

Amazing history. We had a hidden camp in a wood just north of the town. Some evidence of ww1 earthworks next to the tents. Visited by deer in the night and the mouse incident!

Day 24. Another biggie, NCN 2 to Burley YH in the New Forest. Just before the hostel we meet a lost Spanish cyclist (Jorge). We get him a night at the hostel and regret it – the loudest snoring ever!

Day 18. Through the French “wasteland”.

No shops – hungry. In the end we googled “Lidl” and went off course to find the shop. We camped that night in a wood – our last and worst choice of wild camp.

Day 25. He is going to Plymouth, so we feel obliged to accompany him from now on. He turns out to be a bit of a liability.

Although he has done lots of touring, he has no idea how to ride or maintain a bike or navigate. His approach is to lurch from emergency to emergency and rely on others for help. He stayed in top gear (and relied on his great bulk) on the Dorset hills and the inevitable happened in the middle of nowhere when his chain snapped.

We patched him up, got a new chain in Ottery and generally sorted his bike out – slowed us down.

Day 19. Clive was flagging so we booked a cheap hotel slightly off route. Now in Belgium and although the roads were a bit rough there were plenty of old rail lines converted to cycleways. Stayed in La Louviere, a deprived ex mining town.

It was pretty rough, lots of obese people drinking lots of beer but quite jolly. The next morning Clive still felt unwell so a rest day.

Slept at Litton Cheney YH – very nice. We became aware of a dodge that volunteer YH wardens do. They state on the website that the hostel is full when actually it

Day 20. rest.

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t isn’t. ?to reduce workload. Moral – ring or just turn up.

had a slightly loose headset (found out to be caused by a broken stem clamp) and bad indexing from Sunrace thumbshifters (to be replaced). We were fairly evenly matched. Bike weight about the same. Clive’s theoretical aero advantage wasn’t really apparent. Steve did better on the hills when they got steeper.

Day 26. Litton Cheney to home – 77 miles. Sunny day. Alls well, except we are slowed down by Jorge. Say goodbye to him at Countess Wear (he’s sensibly taking the train). My rear brake cable snaps – need to be careful going down Haldon! Safely home.

Clive started with minimalistic luggage and shed even more bits and pieces on the way. Steve carried the beer for us.

We are both glad we made it. There were times when we thought of taking trains etc but the last few days were warm and we were really getting into it.

A hell of an experience.

Next year, trans America?

Clive Long

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BACK TO THE SMOKE 400KM WORDS: DAVID TWIGGER

Having set out the options, and with the longer events being safely far off in the future, I enthusiastically discussed them with Shaun, a fellow 400km virgin, on a Torbay winter pub Wednesday ride. And then I did nothing about them, vaguely hoping that my diary would fill up with good excuses as to why I couldn’t spend almost 24 continuous hours riding a bike.

But regularly riding with several audax veterans, amongst whom 400s are considered little more than jolly outings rather than rides of epic proportions, I tend to feel a little inadequate with my rather thin audax palmares of a few 200s and single 300. So when Shaun, who is clearly made of stronger stuff than me, signed up to the Back to the Smoke, I made the leap too, still happy that it was a few months off.

It all began in January, with Kevin P planning his audaxes for the year, based around PBP qualification (requiring him to ride 200km, 300km, 400km and 600km audaxes). He circulated a list of his chosen rides to see if others might be interested. Being the geek that I am, I popped them onto a spreadsheet along with various other options, their stats and a column for the Twigger Hilly Percentage© (THP). THP© isan un-universally accepted method of measuring how hilly a ride is. The THP© of a ride is determined by dividing its total ascent in feet by the length in miles, so a solidly hilly ride of 10 miles with 1,000ft of ascent has a THP© of 100%. The Dartmoor Devil’s THP© is typically around 130% and Kevin’s chosen 400km audax, the Back to the Smoke is 51%, making it an ideal first 400.

Having ridden a 300km last year, which was fine, and with a few overnight Dartmoor Ghosts under my belt, I decided that a 400 is just a combination of the two, which sounded eminently achievable – a little longer than a 300, with an overnight thrown in. But when I occasionally mentioned my plans to anyone with little or no knowledge of audax, I was met with a looks of incomprehension followed by what I’d like to think were looks of awe and admiration at my bravery, at which point it would occur to me that 400km is actually quite a long way.

The Back to the Smoke starts at Exeter St David’s station in Exeter at midday on the Saturday of the weekend of the late May bank holiday and finishes at Marylebone station, going via the Cotswolds and Chilterns. Riders have up to 27 hours to complete the ride. It is an x-rated event, which means that there are no manned controls or refreshments provided, but riders are required to obtain proof of passage through the control

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BACK TO THE SMOKE 400KM WORDS: DAVID TWIGGER

l locations – usually receipts from shops, garages or pubs. Navigation is straightforward and with a THP© of 51%, made up of mostly rolling hills, it is a relatively straightforward ride. I quite like planning rides, so created another spreadsheet detailing the attributes of the various stages of the ride and found a great looking campsite for us to get a couple of hours kip in.

The forecast in the week before the event was a little changeable but it settled to being just about perfect Goldilocks weather – not too hot, not too cold, probably dry and generally with a tailwind. In keeping with the train station start and finish, Shaun and I took the train to Exeter, meeting Kevin there along with 25 or so other riders, many of whom would be riding homeward having travelled down to Exeter from the South East. We started off in one group, heading up and through Exeter with Kevin leading the initial charge. His lead was pretty quickly brought to an abrupt halt though, after his rear light bailed and ended up over the road. Fortunately, it went back together OK and we carried on our way at the opposite end of the peloton.

Stonehenge. Arriving there shortly before dusk, we opted for a pub supper at the Stonehenge Inn, complete with a miniature replica of its neighbour. Inside we found another group of Smokers and a well briefed waitress who without asking advised us which were the meals that would arrive quickly. Lasagne all round.

105 miles or 40% of the ride done as we set off northwards into the chill and increasing darkness and what promised to be a good night for riding. This leg took us over the North Wessex Downs, dipping into Marlborough and finishing at Stow-on-the-Wold in the Cotswolds. This was rather a fantastic stage of the ride, with a lovely sunset and following undulating quiet roads through the occasional pretty village. The pace was still quite reasonable, but without putting any real effort into it, so that I didn’t feel physically weary, and the interesting roads kept me awake. But arriving at the Stowon-the-Wold 24 hour garage at about 1.30am, with 167 miles done, I was starting to feel a little sleepy. The forecourt already had a few other Smokers huddled in little dens between displays of charcoal and de-icer and the like, munching sandwiches and grumbling about the garage’s coffee machine being broken. Not good news, but we enjoyed a late supper/ midnight feast/early first breakfast and headed over to the road to our campsite, or the Stow-on-the-Wold Cemetery as it is known. Oddly, the three of us had the

The first leg, of 62 miles, was to Wells via Taunton, which was pretty quick with the tailwind. We opted to go upmarket for our first proper refuelling and stopped at Waitrose, only to be told that the café was only selling sandwiches, but that there was a Wetherspoons nearby. Thoroughly disappointed, we were about to slump out when another member of staff apologetically mentioned that they did have some macaroni cheese left. Result!

The next leg initially took us to the highest point of our ride east of Wells at around 300m and on to Durrington, which is just very close to Amesbury and S P R I N G

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cemetery to ourselves, at least as far as the living were concerned, and it made a perfect bivvy spot, with nice grass and a good tall wall for privacy. I took advantage of the privacy and stripped off, swapping into fresh clothes ready for bed. ‘Bed’ was a thin silvery plastic bag, which with my smelly clothes as a pillow was marginally more comfortable than it sounds. We had something like an hour and a half of sort-of-sleeping then packed and headed back across to the garage for second breakfast, and fortunately they had coaxed their machine into producing hot chocolate.

With about 95 miles left we headed east again towards Buckingham, all three of us feeling pretty good still. At this stage I had got quite used to seeing a high number of miles remaining on my computer, so when it dipped below 100 miles to go, it felt like we were nearly there, forgetting of course that a 95 mile ride is a good day out on its own. We kept the pace up pretty well, had a third breakfast at around 7am at a Buckingham garage and popped pro-plus with 40 or so miles to go. Surprisingly after such a long way, we were still coming across quite a few fellow Smokers. The route into London was along the A5 Kilburn Road, which was a bit of a stop/start drag, but eventually we turned onto Abbey Road, over the famous crossing and on to Marylebone station, arriving a little under 24 hours after we set off. After buying a

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pasty and carefully squirreling away the valuable receipt, I very uncarefully demolished it.

Shaun, Kevin and I headed our separate ways from the finish. Shaun to his parents before driving to Italy the next day, me to my in-laws in Kent and Kevin on the train back to Devon. Physically I felt absolutely fine, joined the afternoon dog walk and didn’t wince even a little bit when going upstairs. But watching the highlights of the previous day’s Giro d’Italia stage later in the afternoon, I dropped off and ended up covered in the contents of my mug of tea. Top marks to Kevin, though, who headed off to a South Hams pub festival when he got home and danced the night away! |

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TOURING COMPETITION WORDS: GEOFF SHARPE

CTC DEVON TOURING COMPETITION 2018/19 Three more events have taken place since the positions were last published and some changes at the top.

Dave Prudden, last years winner has been out on events and picking up the points and now has a single point lead in the Overall and Veterans from myself. I managed to take up the challenge in the South Hams to score 8 points but there’s another 5 members close behind looking for the best ways to improve their score.

- GEOFF SHARPE CTC Devon Events Co ordinator | Email.geoffsharpe35@gmail.com OVERALL

LADIES SECTION

1 2 3 4 5

Dave Prudden Geoff Sharpe David Twigger Richard Etches Rob Legg Steve Main 7 Graham Brodie 8 Caroline Twigger 9 Shaun East Steve Jones 11 Hilary Durbin Kevin Thompson

52 points 51 50 48 46 46 44 39 36 36 28 28

1 Caroline Twigger 2 Hilary Durbin 3 Jill Day Stella Thompson

39 points 28 20 20

VETERANS SECTION 1 Dave Prudden 2 Geoff Sharpe 3 Rob Legg Steve Main

52 points 51 46 46

TEAMS Torbay Vets Rule Okay The vets have taken over top spot from Totally Torbay and the Tipplers. With several of the members in more than one of those teams it’s going top be interesting to see how it will end up.

1 2 3 4

TORBAY VETS (Geoff Sharpe, Dave Prudden, Rob Legg) TOTALLY TORBAY (Geoff Sharpe, David Twigger, Graham Brodie) TORBAY TIPPLERS (Steve Main, Graham Brodie, Dave Prudden NIGHT RIDERS (Dave Prudden, Shaun East, Steve Main)

149 points 145 142 132

Future 2019 Events Round 9 Sunday 23rd June 10 Saturday 13th July 11 Sunday 21st July 12 Sunday 21st July

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Tamar 100 100k (Cat B) Dartmoor Ghost 145k (Cat C) Shore to Moor 200k (Cat D) Devon Delight 100k (Cat B)

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TED’S TOPICS NO.38 WORDS: EDWARD GAMESON

In normal practical road use, travelling straight and upright, you don’t need any tread, for two reasons: 1).There aren’t any sideways forces, so there is no risk of sliding 2).Because of the narrowness of bicycle road-going tyres, and the relatively low speed, tyres don’t need tread to dissipate water as there is no risk of aquaplaning (tyres floating over puddles or lying water).

In corners, however, your security on the road relates purely to the amount of friction between your tyre and the road surface. Friction is dependent on the characteristics of the tyre rubber, the road surface and the applied forces. Most of the friction comes from the ability of the tyre rubber to engage with micro and minor sized roughnesses in the road surface.

So a hard rubber is less likely to hold the road well than a soft rubber which easily moulds to the road’s micro-surface to provide lots of grip. Equally, a very smooth surface like a polished stone or smooth metal is very treacherous for two-wheels, particularly when wet, precisely because the rubber of the tyres isn’t able to penetrate the surface of the material and ‘hook’ onto it – think wet polished stone.

– you’d easily slip on that. In a way, this is proof that the concept is correct. Friction resistance increases with higher cornering force, as well, as the tyre gets forced even more into the road surface. Which is just as well, and is why it’s quite possible to lean over in bends and risk grounding the cranks, usually with a high degree of security on good surfaces (particularly if you’re handling your bike properly by counter-steering into the bend and weighting the bike on its outside).

39 - Tread Patterns on Bicycle Tyres – Who Needs Them ?

I wanted to talk about tyres again this time – specifically breaking the myth that bicycle tyres need tread. For almost hundreds of years or so it seems, cycling on-road, I’ve been riding tyres with an accentuated tread pattern. Why ? Well because I was reassured by the thought that I was more secure this way, and I could easily see how worn the tyres were. More recently, as I’ve sped up on descents, and am much happier hustling the bike through the twisties, leaning the bike through corners, I’ve actually found out the practical way – call it discovery learning - that tyres with more tread are less secure on the road. Thinking back to some of the unintended ‘drifts’ I’ve had at times, even in the dry, this loss of grip has been scary. So what’s going on ?

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Given this scenario, what would you think about cutting chunks out of your friction |

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surface, making the remainder of the tyre’s contact surface more wobbly at the same time ? Well, logic would suggest that it certainly won’t improve cornering ability. And tyres with a substantial patterned tread have other serious drawbacks too:

wheels, there are exceptions. If you have to mud-plug, or attempt to ride through snow, then you really do need some big knobbles on tyres to provide the hooks you’d normally get from the road surface, to gain some traction and security. Also, if you habitually ride muddy roads, then some tread pattern could be useful. It might get you a little more purchase on the road mud, but you probably should be going slower and upright over this – and if you’re upright there are no sideways forces, so why do you need the tread pattern?

• A fair whack of the energy you lose in a tyre is the tread deformation, or ‘squirm’ on the road. This energy loss is substantial, so the rolling resistance is increased.

•Losing bits of your contact patch also means that your tyre has to have deeper rubber to maintain a reasonable service life.

To conclude then, for normal road use, a bicycle tyre doesn’t need any tread. If you want to go fast, ride comfortably, puncture-free and secure, put decent quality slicks on your bike, for all-year riding.

Most of my riding is now done on 32mm Gatorskins, and so far, I’ve failed to wear these out in three years and that’s a record. This was the first winter I didn’t revert to the Sch….’s. Frankly I’m glad I stuck to the slicks – they are a revelation.

In truth, the real function of a tread pattern on a bicycle tyre might just be in its artistic value ?

Now this is nice, you have to admit ?

•Tyre makers might be tempted to use a slightly harder tread compound to maintain the service life of a tyre, which by definition, will mean less grip on the road.

•And, to make matters even worse, the tread can, and does, pick up flints, nails and other things to increase puncture frequency. It’s why ‘plus’ versions of heavily-treaded tyres are available, with extra puncture protection. These tyres are often much heavier, roll less well, and in my experience, can be downright hazardous to your health and well-being in twisty country. If you want to be permanently at the back of the CTC ride, this is one very good way to stay there.

Anyone want some ‘NOS’ treaded tyres hung up in my garage ? I doubt I’ll ever use them.

All this is exactly what I’ve found to be true on the road. So, your deep-tread tyre, on the road, will: •Go slower •Be heavier, •Provide less grip in most road conditions, and most probably •Won’t last as long as an equivalent ‘slick’ tyre However, as with most things twoS P R I N G

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