27th February 2025 : Tarvin (brisk)

A pretty full and noisy Maggies saw myself, Ken and Ray set off in a northeasterly direction towards Kelsall, thinking we might not get the full effects of persistent  NW headwind. A lovely sunny day with perhaps the first properly dry roads of the year. A keen and chilly wind remained though. We briefly followed the mod+ group through Farndon before Ray made attacked and formed a breakaway. We charge on through Churton and then familiar roads to Aldford, Bruera and a short stretch of A41 to Tattenhall.

Going over the bridge at Newton, we were held up by an escorted heavy loader transporting a canal boat to the adjacent marina. On the other side of the bridge, we nearly came off our bikes as we had to break quickly as a large group of cyclists (even older than us), were for some reason, stood all over the road.

Through Huxley and along Cork Screw Lane to Willington Lane, we had yet more hold-ups, first cars trying to pass each other, we clear that to more cars held up by a reversing tanker. We were planning lunch in Kelsall, but after deciding it was a bit early, we cut back southwards to Oscroft then across to Tarvin.

 Lunch was in a café by the post office on the High Street, perhaps not often used by CER, called, according to Ken, ‘50’. A small cafe, but good value. Pot of tea and bacon bap costing just over £6. The lunchtime special, broccoli mask and a local pie was tempting, but not if you want to cycle afterwards.

Back out the way we came, with a brief stop as I lost pressure in my rear tyre. A quick injection of air sorted it, and if the sealant did work in preventing further loss, I don’t know as  I never saw any escaping, but never look a gift horse I the mouth! Across the A51 towards Waverton, where Ken and Ray turned left towards Christleton, I went left towards Tattenhall and home.

I would have missed this if it wasn’t for the very helpful arrow!

Mileage around 40 miles form my home and fairly flat as you would expect at an average of 15.9mph, and a pleasant ride around our local lanes, not withstanding the pot holes. 

Caption for image: I would have missed this if it wasn’t for the very helpful arrow! 

See route map and/or gpx file download

NH

20th February 2025 : Davenham (Mod+)

I had a very early hospital appointment, so decided to drive out to Waverton and ride on from there. On the way, I espied Ray S cycling in the outskirts of Guilden Sutton on his way via Waverton to Utkinton.  I set off and few miles on from Waverton I only caught up with him as he had stopped to adjust his clothing as it had started to rain (the first of many times today!). I donned my rainwear and we made our way up the ever deteriorating roadways to Rose Farm to find John M already there.

Very soon Alan and Steve Hu arrived, along with Dave M, Trevor, Nick and finally Keith. The weather forecast was not encouraging as we looked out across the Cheshire Plain but six of us decided to take on my ride to Davenham. The route was out via Kelsall in a clockwise direction taking in some roads we haven't been down for a while. The route was very familiar out via Delamere Forest and down to Acton Bridge. There was the odd stop to take off outer layers as the air temperature rose to double figures (at last!). However, this didn’t last as the rain became more persistent as we waited for the Weaver bridge to be re-closed after swinging open for river traffic.

Before Comberbatch, Alan decided to return as he had to get back home for an unplanned appointment so Steve decided to accompany him back to Rose Farm and their cars. We four cycled on in the light rain to Marbury Country Park. We take the old lane through the park towards Northwich diverting off across the salt marsh via Neumann’s Flash to Wincham where we pass through the industrial estate bound for Wincham village proper.

The lunch stop was planned to be either at Riverside Organic cafe or to visit for the first time Oakwood Marina cafe nearby. As John said he had been there before and it was ok, Oakwood it was then. To get there we have to negotiate the A556 at Smoker's Brook traffic lights and then meander through pleasant Plumley and onwards to Lach Dennis. It's a short run then to the marina at 28 miles ridden.

Although quite small, the cafe was welcoming with all facilities to hand. The food was very good and reasonably priced. As we sat there enjoying lunch, the rain came through at 45 degrees as the wind had picked up and thus would be an unwelcome feature of the 12 mile ride back to Rose Farm. We set off as the rain had temporarily abated but not for long. In and out of Davenham I planned to get to Whitegate via the canal path and the golf course. 

The old roadway just after the blue bridge, was in a very poor condition and frankly, if I knew what was also in store a little further on, I would have re-planned the route. We carry on finding a tank training ground section of gravel and deep muddy pools followed by a very muddy section before hitting old tarmac again. We all got through unscathed and smooth tarmac welcomed us into the Vale Royal golf club grounds.

The run now is straightforward up Whitegate hill and through Little Budworth and Cotebrook and the final rise up and over to Utkinton with 40 wet miles ridden. Nick and John had driven over so they just had to climb up to the cafe whereas we continued on to Waverton. Here, I loaded a very dirty bike into the car's boot, and Ray cycled on back home with mid-60 miles ridden compared to my mid-50 miles.

I noticed now that the sun was out and the air temp was 15C! Despite the rain and the headwind and the poor roads and that Weaver-side track to the golf club, we all had enjoyed being out and about in wet Cheshire today with some sun and heady double figure temperatures for a change. 

So thanks to all for supporting the ride and apologies for the Weaver mountain bike section!

See route map and/or gpx file download

CA

13th February 2025 : Knutsford (mod)

There were many walkers gathered at Delamere Station, and no vacant parking spaces apparent. Having popped my head into the café to ensure we had some candidates for a club ride, I managed to squeeze the Berlingo in between the line of cars and the far fence by the forest entrance gate. It was good to chat to Steve Hughes, Clive, Alan, Dave Matthews and Pocket Rocket Ray, but Dave was in civvies and there were no “moderate” riders around. George and Andy Barber have been rarely sighted recently, and Large Ray and Keith were somewhere (separately, thankfully) in the Caribbean. Then Trevor arrived having ridden from Guilden Sutton, so I no longer had to contemplate a solo ride. Three possible destinations were briefly considered, but as I would find it easy to fashion a route to and from Knutsford and write it up, Trevor went along with my preference.

This was my first ride on my Marin with last week’s snapped rear wheel spoke replaced, so fingers crossed! When we reached Crowton my steering felt so odd that I thought that I had a puncture, but it turned out to be the headset had been tweaked up a little too tight. From experience I know that extra lubrication will not provide the solution, so that’s an adjustment task for the week ahead. It is surprising how unnerving a tight headset can be at low speed; we make so many constant steering movements in order to balance that any variable resistance is hard to manage. 

While I’m on about mechanical issues, I have only twenty spokes in my back wheel. It is remarkable how it has survived for about two years with all spokes intact until last week. In particular, the wheel has had to cope with my Chris Hoy-like power and fifteen stone five pounds fully dressed weight. Trevor’s bike was built by the reputable Spa Cycles, and I could see at a glance that it had a zillion spokes in the rear wheel, and when I returned home I counted thirty- two on my spare road bike. So here I am, risking my neck on wheels for waifs. Marco Pantani on his 1998 Bianchi Mega Pro had sixteen Alpina spokes at the rear, which was considered “crazy!” but these were in some of the very first deep-section wheels, and Pantani was a sparrow(nine stone wet through). Even Pantani used twenty-four spoke Campagnolo Electron wheels for the Tour de France’s mountain stages.

Anyway, back to the ride description: from Acton Bridge we headed past Cogshall Hall and climbed up to Frandley, past the Quaker House. At Antrobus we turned down the quiet Keeper’s Lane passing Firtree Farm where family members once walked Alpacas with my son for a treat (he was nearly forty at the time!). We finished up in the grounds of Arley Hall, and I was able to point out to Trevor where I had crashed because I had stared too long at four birds in a field. I had been cleaned up in the equestrian centre at Arley Moss Farm where they were used to sending for ambulances after riding accidents, and I was eventually transported to Warrington Hospital where they spent hours trying to find someone qualified to stitch me up. This was no surprise as Warrington Hospital’s reputation has always been at Gregg Wallace level. 

The sign at Moss End showed only six miles to Knutsford. You can make good time on this stretch to the A556 Roman road, so we resorted to alternating the lead to help the pace and provide some shelter from the cold easterly headwind. We entered Knutsford from Tabley Hill, and locked our bikes to the railings at the rear entrance of Costa. Costa was friendly, clean, cheapish and saved time. The food? Just what you would expect, but I can’t see Jay Rayner making a visit anytime soon. Amongst other matters we discussed holidays, and it turns out that Trevor is shortly holidaying in Sri Lanka. Trevor so often has an imaginative destination or experience lined up, whilst some of settle for Tui, the Canaries, and finding someone to take the dog for a winter week away. 

Our return route was via Pickmere which once had a fairground on the banks of the mere, and you could take a ride on a large boat that plied the waters. There were dodgems, a ghost train, helter-skelter, and a café in the large house at the start of the lane down. We cycled through Great Budworth, passing the George and Dragon which has gone upmarket since Clive and I enjoyed liver and onions there on what I think was his first ride with the club. 

We took the Little Leigh route back to the A49 adjacent to The Leigh Arms. The climb up to Acton Bridge never gets any easier, but at least we had been wind assisted on our return and made good time before the inevitable slogs from the Weaver Valley up to Delamere. A slight misunderstanding climbing up to Norley meant we split up before Hatchmere, but mobile contact established that there were no problems, so Trevor carried straight on home and I returned to the Berlingo at Delamere Station.

 
A very pleasant, relaxed day with Trevor clocking up something like fifty-nine miles, and approximately thirty-nine miles for me.

DH

13th February 2025 : Bunbury (mod+)

Well a hardy seven Easy Riders were easily outnumbered three-to-one by walkers at the cafe today. All parking spaces were taken and most of the indoor seating as well. However a table came free allowing Dave H, Dave M, Trevor, Ray, Clive, Alan and Steve Hu an opportunity to warm up. 

Dave M was in civvies as the required temperature of plus two degrees Celsius had not been achieved, plus he had been out on Wednesday. Trevor took the opportunity to discharge some of his community service hours and accompany Dave H as a small mod duo. Clive had a ride but it was a tad long so we went with a ride developed by Neil (fair weather rider) T to Tilleys. 

We were all ready to set off when Clive realised a pair of gloves he had arrived with had disappeared. Initially blaming the walking group, the blame quickly turned on Dave H. Whilst his initial pleas of “I've only got one of them” may work in the Frodsham branch of Clarks shoe shop, it didn’t persuade Clive. On searching the mighty Berlingo, a second errant glove was discovered. 

So replete with all PPE, we set off towards Hatchmere and took a right. The original route takes in the Whitegate Way, but since it has been muddy and Ray had just cleaned his steed from head to toe, we followed Clive’s diversion through Cuddington and towards Sandiway. Clive was setting a blistering pace only matched by super domestique Ray, whilst Alan and I grovelled in their wake. A rare navigation error at Sandy Lane by Steve firmly re-asserted Clive as ride leader as he safely routed us through Clay Lane and into Little Budworth. 

From now on the Cheshire lanes hummed under our wheels at a modest 14.5mph however it felt quicker  possibly due to the one degree headwind (hence no Neil T) all the way to Bunbury. Tilley’s provided an excellent fayre as usual, with Ray eating his body weight in baked beans whilst mushrooms, chips and sausages made up for the rest of us.

At Beeston Castle's gatehouse

A quick diversion to Peckforton allowed us to turn North and whiz through Beeston (photo opportunity) and then on towards Tarporley. Ray left us at this time with Clive peeling off just after Eaton. The last two miles to Delamere seemed hard despite the low average of 14.2 mph and 1800 ft of climbing the route felt tough today. 

Thanks to Clive & Ray for navigation. 

See route map and/or gpx file download

S Hu

Photo SHu

6th February 2025 : Overton ( brisk)

A very cold but sunny start for today’s ride commencing from Walk Mill over to Overton. Nick, Clive, Ray, Alan and Chris were my companions. We followed dry roads out from Waverton via Hargrave into Tattenhall.

 
Leaving Tattenhall on the Harthill Road, this initiated the usual grumbles about the gradient although I personally felt the icy patches we came across were more of an issue. The road from Harthill through to Malpas was enjoyable as it was dry and clear of debris and allowing us to keep a good pace.

After navigating Malpas’s busy high street, we turned onto Dog Lane and, after negotiating the potholes of Worthenbury, went through Bangor and passed its racecourse to arrive in Overton at 12:30 with 25 miles completed.The  staff at the 2 Doves cafe facilitated secure bike parking at the rear of the cafe and the rest of the service and food was excellent.

For the return, we retraced the road back to Bangor where we stopped by the church for a photo shoot as this coincided with Chris picking up a puncture. It only took ten minutes for the tube to be changed and then we were back on the road  heading out via Cross Lanes to Farndon.

Onward through Aldford and Saighton, we arrived back at Waverton where Clive, Ray, and Chris peeled off back to Chester leaving myself, Nick, and Alan to collect our cars. It was a glorious day, despite being cold, for this 45 mile route on mainly well-surfaced roads with an average speed around 15mph.

See route map and/or gpx file download

KP

6th February 2025 : Malpas (mod)

Would there be any moderate riders at Walk Mill, or would I be destined for a lone ride, like Keith a couple of weeks ago? Overnight ice, warmth seeking holidays and medical appointments are amongst the reasons for missing CER winter rides. As it was, there was a reasonable club turnout on a brilliantly sunny but cold morning. Trevor and Mike Gilbert were to be my knowledgeable riding companions, so there was little chance of taking wrong turns. 

Lunch was to be at the Little Deli in Malpas, and the morning route was intended to miss any hills with possible ski runs created by the sub-zero overnight temperatures. We made our way to Hargrave, but Trevor suggested an excursion before passing through Tattenhall. So it was that we navigated the quiet little lane from Owler Hall to Honeyend Farm before cutting across to a familiar route at the north gates of Bolesworth Castle estate on the road from Tattenhall to Harthill. There was some flooding near Woodlake Farm, but nowhere near as deep as the previous week. We were also grateful for the absence of water on the stretch from Tattenhall to the A41 , which has been closed a number of times this winter. 

No - it's this way

We reached Tilston via Carden Park and headed south for Cuddington Green. Mike nearly came a cropper in some ice slush near Chorlton Hall, but managed to eventually unblock his mudguards and continue. I think we were skating on sheet ice turning left at Chorlton Lane, but we got away with it and kept firmly on the sun-kissed side as we headed up the lane for Chorlton Lodge. We had completed a reasonable nineteen miles before ensconcing ourselves in the warmth of our friendly Malpas lunch destination. 

During our chat about various health challenges being encountered by our club colleagues at the moment, it became apparent that between the three of us only Trevor would pass an M.O.T. without any advisories; mind you he is the youngest! The lady serving us was the one who had run a fair way up the road after us last time waving my car keys in her hand. This incident had given everyone a laugh at my expense and saved me a load of hassle on the day. Trevor and Mike went for the Big Breakfast, whilst I attempted to make a healthier choice accompanied with coleslaw and greenery guaranteed to give me more gas than a barrage balloon for the rest of the day.

Our return was planned to be by way of Hampton Heath, Gallantry Bank, Peckforton, Tiverton and Burton. Unfortunately, as we climbed up the road approaching Bickerton Hill on our left, there was a loud bang from my rear wheel. I was able to wrap the broken spoke around an adjacent one and disconnected the rear brake to avoid fouling the now distorted rim. When we moved to a safe spot across the road the chain had to freed and replaced on the bottom jockey wheel. It’s most likely that the chain was dislodged after the spoke broke, but I’m dropping it off at Leon’s at Barrow tomorrow to fix the wheel and check the transmission. 

I can’t complain as Dave Matthews offered to replace my original wheels after I broke through the rear rim on that day, many months ago, when I returned from Bangor-on-Dee in a furniture restorer’s van. I was looking to buy new, but Dave had a lightly used pair in his garage that had been there sometime, and kindly fitted them for me, all for about ten bob. I believe that they had been on Andy Whitmore’s wife’s bike. They have covered many trouble-free miles since, although ideally the back wheel spoke count should be higher for my weight. In the circumstances we decided it was best to carefully take the shortest route back. 

The Harthill climb would be a test for the damaged wheel, and the descent with only one brake demanded concentration. The weather remained sunny, and thankfully the remainder of the ride from Tattenhall was very pleasant and the rear wheel held up. At the last T- junction after Greenlooms, I appreciated Trevor and Mike’s offer to follow me back to Walk Mill, but I was able to politely decline, and they headed for Waverton. The amended return route had resulted in just thirty-five miles covered, but it had been a lovely day in relaxed company. 

Thanks to Mike for the photo which captures the essence of being on one of our Thursday rides in quiet, scenic Cheshire countryside on a fine day.

See route map and/or gpx file download

DH