The 19th July was the annual trip to the Derbyshire hills and the Knights were in the capable hands of Pat who had planned the route which most of us knew was not going to be easy – an accurate prediction this quickly proved to be.
Within the first ten miles we were already at the foot of the Mam Tor hill climb. This beast of a climb was certainly a warm up for the day ahead. For those who relish the climbs this was familiar territory however the rest of us mere mortals were left to puff and pant our way up the best way we could. Chapeau to everyone though as all the Knights made it up with (relative) ease.
After the hard work of the climb a well earned bite to eat was in order, a wonderful little cafe was hastily willing to accommodate however the anxious look on the staff faces as 15 Lycra clad sweaty cyclists piled into their little shop was rather amusing, nevertheless the cakes, sandwiches and coffee were fantastic.
Time to clip back in and burn off the carbs consumed. This was quickly achieved with the climb up the Windgather hill. I forget the proper name of this monstrosity of a drag so I’ve opted for it’s ‘Strava’ name, the name is irrelevant, it still hurt. Reaching the summit of this hill was a relief made all the more better by the absolutely breath taking views – full 360 degree panoramic of the beautiful countryside as far as the eye can see, even as far as northern Wales as we regrouped here and took in the views I think we can all look back and agree the torture to the legs was worth it.
Then the descent down in to the Goyt made it even more spectacular with some nervous moments on the way down at 48mph a closed road awaited us and the comfort of knowing there would be no traffic for at least the next five miles, this combined with the tranquillity of the Errwood Resovoir with the sun shining was a cause for smiles all around.
Up the cat and fiddle to the next cafe stop, again more great food some interesting cutlery and breathtaking views yet again. The next hour saw Neil desperately try to offload his cucumber to someone but was unsuccessful in his plight. Maybe next time Neil….
Again what goes up must come down and a phenomenal descent down Grin Low road topping speeds of 50mph with some fantastic corners thrown in for good measure on the way down, the speed continued with only a few shorter climbs thrown in before the end it was easy riding from this point on…. or maybe we could smell the pub??
A special thanks to Pat for taking us out and showing us the delights of Derbyshire, until next time!
A gallery from the day can be seen below:
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- A well earned pint
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- Into the Goyt and around Errwood Resovoir.
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- The summit of The Windgather!
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- The first of two cafe stops!
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- Keep pushing, never stop!
