The attraction of Tan Hill brought out 19 SOC cyclists yesterday. They descended on the Market Place in Reeth from all directions, having cycled variable distances as a warm up, Glenys having cycled from Catterick Village and Greg from Barton. Some of us just rolled up by car, saving ourselves for The Climb !!
It being a large and varied group of riders, we took off roughly in 2 groups with the understanding that everyone would go at their own pace. As the route was easy to follow, even Sarah said she wouldn’t get lost, it was agreed to meet up either at Tan Hill Inn or Keartons Tearoom at Thwaite. All went well until Glenys had a puncture, fortunately just outside the CB Inn. Barbara and Glenys struggled to get the tyre off the rim but a knight in shining armour arrived from Melbourne, Australia and James and Yvonne came back to look for us. My contribution was to borrow fairy liquid and buy coffee from the pub who were very helpful. However the repair team failed on the difficult bit, getting the tyre back on. Fortunately Dales Bike Centre came to the rescue and while the rest of the party continued to Tan Hill, Ben whisked Glenys back to DBC and carried out the repair with ease (must practice those thumb exercises)
The other excitement to report was the race up Tan Hill climb against a professional female cyclist. Greg McNulty beat her time easily (although her climb was part of a ride from Knaresborough and back) but James could not keep up with her even on his Ebike.
We all met up again at Kearton’s Tearooms where a delicious lunch was enjoyed in the garden in beautiful sunshine. As the second group was about to leave, up popped Glenys having resisted the temptation to cycle home from the DBC stop. With a brisk wind behind us the journey back down Swaledale was a delight. Some of us turned off at Scabba Wath Bridge and took the scenic route to Grinton and the DBC, but nearly all of us ended up there for Brenda’s delicious cakes. Our Australian knight was there too as he was staying in the new Glamping Pods. A ride in perfect weather, apart from the NW wind, enjoying some of England’s best scenery.
Barbara