Into Horseracing Country (C#20)

Thursday 7 July, 115 Miles

With the prospect of a reasonable day’s weather the chance to ride two consecutive centuries was just too hard to resist. So I decided to head over to East Cambridgeshire and ride round the heart of horseracing country in the vicinity of Newmarket. And taking a leaf out of yesterday’s ride I decided to follow my ‘usual’ route in reverse. Two things soon became apparent.

Firstly, although there wasn’t much wind today there was a breeze that was noticeable. Quite pleasant in terms of keeping me cool but strong enough to just register and give my legs a little bit more to contend with. This meant that the longer, outward part of the ride was going to be mostly into the wind. The plus being that towards the end I should have the benefit of a slight tailwind.

The second thing I noticed was that when I originally rode the route the other way round I must have added in quite a few loops and twists to get the total mileage up to the required hundred. So this meant that after an hour’s riding I was still fairly close to home. But gradually the distance built up and I was eventually south west of Bury St Edmunds and heading for the horseracing countryside around Newmarket.

The landscape in this area is quite unique. There are numerous stud farms and the fields, when you can see them behind well-manicured hedges are usually double fenced often with, no doubt, expensive horseflesh grazing serenely within. Everywhere has a looked after and tidy feel – so tidy that it’s unnatural. The estate mansions are discretely located, usually not visible from the road, and their entrances are barred by often ornate high security gates. Occasionally there is a guard house complete with a security guard to discourage nosey parkers such as passing cyclists. From time to time signs appear to announce a particular stud farm. I can’t think of anywhere else in England like this. The air positively reeks with the smell of money. Even the road surfaces are unusually smooth and free of potholes. Do I like it? Mmm, I’m not sure. But I do appreciate the contrast which, to my mind at least, makes me appreciate our more natural countryside even more.

One of the great things about this ride is the opportunity to enjoy a bit of gentle hill climbing in the rolling countryside. So I ride up and down, back and forth rarely following a straight line – a bit like a yacht tacking – and pick out a series of climbs to stretch my muscles and give my lungs a bit of a workout. And it’s really invigorating too in the warm sun. All too soon I am approaching the fringes of Cambridge so it’s time to turn north east and head over to a friend’s house for a coffee and a gossip.

Then, with the benefit of a tail wind, I make fairly rapid progress back towards Bury and home. On the way I pass Ampton Hall. This is a fine house, built in a sort of Jacobean style, after the original hall burnt down in 1885. The entrance to the hall boasts some rather ornate gates. Passing the hall is a milestone as it means that I now have less than ten miles to reach home – unless I go off piste as it were.

So today I can celebrate two milestones. Twenty centuries completed; one third of my goal. And with 115 miles ridden, the longest century ride of the series – so far. Oh, and when I got home I found out that Cav had won his third stage of this year’s Tour. I’m all made up as they say!

Orford Ness - The Other Way with a Tyre Challenge (C#19)

Wednesday 6 July, 105 Miles

Up early and ready to do one of my favourite rides this morning – to the Suffolk Coast and Orford Ness. The lure of those Oscar winning doughnuts is simply too hard to resist! From spring to autumn I usually try to do this once a month but this year I have only ridden down there twice so far (C#3 and C#11). So off I went under a sky that promised (hopefully) some sun as the morning developed.

After a couple of miles I decided to ring the changes and ride the route the other way round. Normally I head for Woodbridge and reach Orford after riding about 60 miles. Then it’s back via Framlingham (c50 miles). That way if (when) I stop at Orford I have already done more than half the route. But the great thing about riding circular routes is the chance to see them the other way round.

Just after leaving Eye I sensed that all was not well. A slightly spongy feeling on my back wheel announced a puncture. Damn! At least it seemed to be a slowie and not a blow out like the one I had a couple of weeks ago. Fortunately, there was a convenient stopping place complete with signpost that I could lean my bike against. After removing the wheel and levering off the tyre an inspection of the inner tube gave no clues as to the exact location of the puncture. The wind meant it was hard to hear the hiss of any air escaping and in any event the tyre didn’t seem to be deflating much. A close look at the outside of the tyre and a feel on the inside didn’t help much either. There was the tiniest of fissures on the tyre so I could only guess that whatever had caused the puncture had stayed on the road. So with slight apprehension I fitted a new tube and hoped that my diagnosis was correct i.e. when I got moving again I didn’t discover that I had missed the offending object and suffer another puncture which is every cyclist’s nightmare. As I can’t inflate the tyre to quite the same pressure on the road I had a slightly softer ride which meant that for the next few miles I wasn’t totally convinced that I had sorted the problem. But gradually I realised that everything was fine.

Quite a few non cyclist friends – and I do have some – have asked me what I do when I get a puncture. So whilst I’m on the subject I’ll complete the story. It’s quite simple really I carry two spare inner tubes, a pump and sometimes a gas canister which is quicker than a pump and can inflate the tube to a higher pressure. I also carry a conventional puncture repair kit (patches and glue) in case I’m really unlucky. Changing an inner tube takes about ten minutes. So it’s not a real hassle; rear wheel punctures are a tad more annoying than front wheel ones because removing and replacing the wheel usually means handling the chain and getting greasy fingers. But over the years I’ve got quite adept at using a leaf or a bit of stick to hold the chain and keep my fingers relatively clean. So there you have it. Punctures. Now back to the ride.

I was soon through Framlingham and over the A112, which for me means I’ve arrived in coastal country – the sea’s actually still a few miles further on but the A12 is a sort of frontier to me; the only time I cross over it is when I’m heading for the coast. From Saxmundham I was soon at Snape and decided to have a quick look at the Maltings before heading on to Orford.

Concert Hall Visitor Centre

The Maltings are famous for the concert hall which is home to the Aldeburgh Festival which was started in 1948 by Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears. Britten was born up the coast in Lowestoft. In addition to the fabulous concert hall, which one of my daughters has sung in, there are a number of ‘designer’ shops and other amenities. Judging from the cars in the car park and the well-dressed people wandering around it looked like the rich folk had come out to play and spend. Clearly not the place for the sweaty cyclist.

Reclining Figure by Henry Moore

So I moved on, riding the wrong direction round the one-way system much to the annoyance of a large Mercedes driver – large applied both to the car and its driver. Minor victory to me! I was soon away from Snape and riding through Tunstall Forest. With a gentle tailwind I arrived at the quayside in Orford in next to no time. Then it was back to the village for a visit to the Pump Street Bakery to grab some lunch. I had a lovely egg sandwich washed down with a Cappuccino. The bike had a freshly made raspberry jam doughnut.

So that’s it really. The ride back home via Woodbridge and Debenham was very pleasant, if rather unremarkable. And I wore my green jersey to celebrate Cav’s achievements so far in this year’s Tour de France.

A little footnote to end on. Eagle eyed readers (there are such people as I have discovered) may have noticed that this route is usually 110 miles long and today it was 104. Well that’s because I didn’t make my usual detour to Bawdsey which adds the missing six miles. And no special reason for this - just ringing the changes! So there you are!!

The Tour De Brecks (C#18)

Saturday 2 July, 100 Miles

It’s been nearly four weeks since my last century ride. Maybe you’re wondering why the gap? Well, two reasons. First the weather has been pretty lousy and this coupled with a heavy cold that I’ve been struggling to shake off has clipped my riding somewhat. I've actually ridden about 600 miles in the interim, but sadly no centuries. The other reason is that I have been away walking – some of my more full-on cycling mates describe this as a betrayal and a crossing over to the dark side. Well, everyone is entitled to their view.

The walking is long-term thing. Together with a close friend, who I first met 40 years ago at uni, we are trying to walk the whole South West Coast Path from Minehead to Poole, some 630 miles. We started in 2004 and have walked for one week each year, with a couple of gaps. We have now completed just over 500 miles and have reached a few miles east of Exmouth. Speed of travel is not a consideration. Instead it is much more about a series of strolls, sometimes over some pretty testing terrain, during which we try to soak up the local landscapes and lifestyles, and enjoy a few beers and currys. And I can report that we certainly done a lot of ‘soaking’ and had vast quantities of ‘enjoyment’. Anyway, enough of this walking malarkey, back to the bike.

Today was the first stage of the 2016 Tour de France so it seemed entirely appropriate to go on my own tour – a Tour de Brecks. So with the sun shining at last and a rather strong wind which made me wonder if this really was a good day for a century ride, I was off and riding. The route I followed took me west initially and then I turned north through Thetford Forest (tailwind – yippee) before skirting the edge of the fens and into Norfolk – a few miles south east of Kings Lynn.

I rode through Methwold and Northwold. Quite a few place names hereabouts end in ‘wold’ which made me wonder why. Now this might sound a bit sad, but I possess a dictionary of British Place Names. Methwold is ‘Middle Forest’ and Northwold – well you don’t need me to tell you. Intriguingly, the road I followed out of Northwold was called ‘Little London Road’. Google tells me that Little London is a village in Hampshire so it’s anyone’s guess why there should be a road to it from here. Answers, as always, on a postcard please.

From Northwold it was a pleasant, if unremarkable ride through the heathy Brecks back into Suffolk and then a gentle meander round the lanes to clock up the necessary miles and complete the century. Oh, and the final highlight? Mark Cavendish won Stage 1 of the Tour de France and the right to wear the famed yellow jersey. Yaay!

Searching for a Cowboy (C#17)

Wednesday 8 June, 101 Miles

Today I was on a bit of a mission! When planning a ride I usually try to include a specific focal point - a place to visit, or a 'new' bit of countryside, or sometimes a curiosity. Well, today my ride achieved all three of these goals. My main objective was to find a rather unusual sculpture that I had spotted a couple of years ago. A bit of research on the Interweb helped me to pinpoint its location. So that became my initial goal. Plotting the route gave me the chance to include a few new lanes and as it was a lovely sunny day I thought I could ride out to the coast at Aldeburgh as well.

So under a lovely blue sky, a warming sun and a nice gentle breeze I headed east towards the coast passing through Framlingham and then by that wonderful crinkle cranke wall at Easton (see 11 April blog). I was soon beyond the A12 road and into countryside that really did have a coastal feel to it. Everywhere felt and looked fresh - is our summer really here at long last. I do hope so; the heavy grey overcast skies and northerly winds have been a feature of our weather for far too long. And besides, riding under clear skies with the swish of rubber on warming tarmac is just the best way to cycle!

I was soon in bustling Aldeburgh and then turned to ride parallel to the coast towards Thorpeness with the House in the Clouds (I'll write about this on another ride) and Sizewell Power Station (I won't be writing about this) on the horizon. By the time I got to Thorpeness (about 50 miles from the start) it was pretty warm so I stopped at the village shop for an ice cream and a cold drink. The woman running the shop asked where I had come from and then gave me what can only be described as an unbelieving stare which brought any attempt at further conversation to a rapid end!

Feeling refreshed, I headed off to Leiston and then on to Middleton where I hoped to complete my mission. Sure enough, as I approached Middleton there he was - a magnificent and slightly larger than life steel cowboy! But there was more to come because by chance its creator, Paul Richardson happened to be there unloading a mini digger. So introductions were made and Paul told me a bit of the background - the cowboy was originally displayed on the platform at Manningtree station, with an American Indian sculpture on the opposite platform. Paul said I was welcome to have a look around his yard at the some of the other sculptures there. And what a delight they were! There's lots more information about Paul and his work on his website (click here). So thanks Paul for some great work and the chance to see it.

























I could easily have lingered longer but I needed to get underway again before my legs seized up! So from Middleton it was a easy spin across to Dunwich which is gradually disappearing under the sea (I'll be back here to look around a bit more). From Dunwich I turned westwards for the ride home. And along the way I was able to ride along some lanes that were new to me. All to soon though I was back across the A12 and into the heart of Suffolk with a great ride home via Stradbrooke, Hoxne and Eye.

What an enjoyable day!