Ignorance is bliss – but perhaps the warning signs were there on the start line. There was a 75% DNS (Did Not Start) rate on the longest of the four CTC Challenge Rides which meant I’d be doing this 200km route alone.

The East Yorkshire CTC run a series of Challenge Rides: 70km, 130km and 170km. This year, however, the organiser (Chris) had added a 200km route which could be ridden as an entry level Randonneur event. New rules from Audax UK allow for routes which can be both planned and validated by GPS devices. Traditionally, Randonneur events [Audax in the UK], are ‘allure libre’; meaning you can take any route you like between control points. I like this approach but if you want a more convoluted route it can be difficult finding appropriate controls. The “Mandatory DIY by GPS” rule meant that I could take Chris’ route and submit it as my DIY 200km Audax.

My ride had actually started by leaving Welton and climbing Welton Wold to reach Cottingham, it was promising to be a beautiful day for this 210km route. In Cottingham I met other riders who’d travelled from as far as Harrogate to take part, and everyone turning up early in the morning was given a warm welcome by Chris and treated to some delicious coffee he’d prepared for us the evening before.

Although I was the only 200km rider on the start line, there was a good turnout for the 170km route and Chris set us off together at 8am. In the enthusiasm of group riding we did set off at a cracking speed, keeping the pressure on over the first early climbs through Little Weighton to High Hunsley. There was great communication in the group, pointing out surface hazards and calling out junctions. We took a sharp right on a steep downhill into North Newbald and stretched out a little on the climb of Newbald Wold. The views opened out before us and we had a brief respite rolling along fast together towards Etton and into South Dalton.

I was beginning to think about dropping off the back of the group now as I had an extra 40km to ride and some locally infamous hills to experience. These riders were all strong, but when *the fairy who shall not be named* deflated Richard’s rear tyre we all pulled up to wait. I made my apologies – they were on a different ride to me – and I just carried on. I had a feeling they’d be passing me before long anyway.

At first though, my speed stayed quite high because we were in the flatter part of the ride and I was being helped by a friendly tailwind. Between Lund and Hutton Cranswick I was passing across wide open farmland with lovely views. Lovely views featured constantly, and there is something very reassuring about gently rolling farmland. It wasn’t until I’d crossed the A166 at Garton on the Wolds that the road began to climb again, this time on the shallow 3% gradient of Garton Hill to the 37m high “Sir Tatton Sykes’s Monument”. The monument stands out from the surrounding landscape and apparently built in 1865 by “those who loved him as a friend and honoured him as a landlord”. It is an easy climb just over 2km in length, but the exposed road can result in a bit of a headwind.

Just past the monument I reached Sledmere and there is a cafe in Sledmere House, highly recommended I understand. I wasn’t quite ready yet so happily I rolled on, following Croome Road north and slightly downhill to West Lutton. I was beginning to wonder where all the hills were, not that the ride had been flat, but more that my route had 3000m of ascent and I’d barely scratched that despite covering 80km already. I found some encouragement in West Lutton, because I was now on a road used in several audax events – the climb to Settrington Beacon. This was a 5km climb with about 100m of height gain… about 2% gradient: at last I was chipping away at the headline climbing figure.

Settrington Beacon

There were very good views from the top of Settrington Beacon, but the cloud level was now low with a hint of rain in the air. The descent is definitely hazardous with gravel washed across the road, a very uneven surface, tight bends and occasionally a local motorist hurtling along. I was glad I’d reached the bottom before the rain suddenly hit. Getting drenched certainly created a sense of camaraderie between me and the walkers out exercising their dogs along the roadside. I was now into North Yorkshire, having dropped off the northern edge of the Wolds and I was very close to Malton. As I passed the lake outside Settrington Grange, I was blissfully ignorant that the next 60km were going to contain the majority of the climbing. First was Grimston Brow along Luddith Road, a tough little climb thanks to the broken and uneven singletrack road surface.

I wasn’t aware at the time, but looking at my OS map I see that I was cycling past ‘Earthquake Plantation’ and Wharram Percy Medieval Village. I soon dropped down again into Birdsall and another testing climb began to get over the top of Birdsall Brow. Once over this climb I was delighted to find Water Dale, and its sweeping bends which lead down to Thixendale where it was time for some refreshment. The village was quiet, it was 12:30pm and I was 100km into my ride. Coffee was on offer at the village hall, and behind me was a village shop. I rested for about 15 minutes and then set off on the ‘additional’ loop which would turn the 170km ride into the 210km ride.

I’ve missed the scale from this image, but the bottom of the profile is about 40m above sea-level and the top of the profile is about 240m above sea-level. I knew Chris had ridden this to check it was rideable, but little did I know how demanding it was going to be. I headed out of Thixendale on the climb to North Brekenholme and joined the Roman Road which runs along the ridge top looking west towards York. The escarpment drops steeply away in the multiple crinkles of Open Dale and Acklam Wold and with about 200m from top to bottom, the views west were beautiful.

Just like that moment on a rollercoaster as the car crests the top of the big dipper… so I felt as I turned left and dropped down Leavening Brow: but there was no way I was going to be as fast as a rollercoaster. This was going to involve a lot more suffering. I knew this when I saw cyclists were walking up the road towards me! In Leavening I rode up and down and up and down through Acklam Wood to reach the bottom of the climb to Acklam Wold and the mast at the top. Lung busting. I turned immediately right and dropped down steeply to Barthorpe and turned at Bugthorpe back eastward. Before I reached Kirkby Underdale I took the turn for the gated road and the climb from Salamanca Beck; thankfully there were no closed gates today, but the 1:6 signpost warned of pain, and the rough road surface delivered it.

This climb brought me back to the Roman Road, but Chris’ planning took me straight back down again through Uncleby to what must be the most humorously named “Painsthorpe”. All of these climbs feature in Simon Warren’s “Cycling Climbs of Yorkshire: A Road Cyclist’s Guide” – in fact Chris’ 200km route ticks off 5 of them. There is a very detailed analysis of the local hills which was written by a gentleman called Roger England. So – Painsthorpe. Actually, not so bad in reality. I found the previous climb – from Salamanca Beck, possibly known as Hanging Grimston – the toughest. Perhaps it was the knowledge that the majority of the day’s climbs were over, but while riding up to the Roman Road for the third time something buoyed me along: I felt serenely comfortable as I crested the top of Painsthorpe. With a whoop of delight I dropped once more into Thixendale and refuelled. I’d covered 150km and as everyone knows, it’s all downhill from there.

The first bit of downhill came in the shape of a 14% uphill (!?!) gradient out of Thixendale; up and over Huggate Hill. Then a turn and descent into Millington, along a sweeping and twisty gentle downhill slope, somewhere to enjoy freewheeling! In Millington there was a really tempting looking pub, with people sitting out in the sunshine – but the joy of cycling was upon me and I rolled along without glancing back.

I skimmed around the east of Pocklington and was riding at a brisk pace as I came to Nunburnholme. I have heard there is a hill here, so I girded my loins for another arduous climb – but the wind was in my favour and took the edge of the effort. I stopped at the top of the climb and looked south west: the Holderness Plain was laid out before me. I could see Market Weighton, the Humber, and beyond that the wind farms of North Lincolnshire. Further west I could see a couple of power stations, I assume Drax and Ferrybridge. I had a huge grin on my face and thought I’d be able to take it easy on the way home now. I called Chris to let him know I was well, because I suspected that I was now the last rider on the road.

As I approached Market Weighton, I was moving a lot faster but then the road was a lot busier. I crossed the roundabout on the A614 and headed into town, but Chris’ route planning had one last surprise for me: I turned for Goodmanham and started the Kiplingcotes Lane climb. I was surprised and delighted to find that Chris was actually out on the route taking photos of the riders. So later he sent me a picture to remember his event.

Riding faster and faster, I took the busy little road through North Cliffe and South Cliffe before one little bump up to Hotham and paused to enjoy the view from under the wind turbines. Each descent was feeling more and more glorious, giving me a grin on my face from ear to ear. In North Cave I called into the White Hart Inn for a pint of fermented-isotonic-recovery-juice and a packet of artificial flavours.

I hope this route becomes a regular feature in the East Yorkshire CTC Challenge Rides because it asks a lot but gives a lot. The euphoria I’ve been feeling for completing it makes the pain and struggle worth it. The views from the Roman Road are breathtaking, as are the climbs. And the twisty descents of Water Dale and into Millington were great fun. Thank you once again Chris, the East Yorkshire CTC, and everyone who helped make this ride happen.

Burdale: a short, sharp climb but is it long enough to be amongst the toughest climbs on the Wolds?

In addition to the various articles there are a number of web sites devoted to cataloguing climbs, and one site, climbbybike.com does list one of our local climbs, Staxton Brow. This site is different in that it gives each climb a ‘Difficulty Score’ in an attempt to provide a comparison between different climbs. Staxton scores 44 compared with Blakey Bank on the Moors at 70, and the Lake District’s Hardknott Pass (West) which tops the English climbs with a score of 106. These scores show why climbs on the Wolds do not figure in national surveys. Nevertheless some of the climbs can offer tough challenges to a tired rider.

The Ordnance Survey map only shows three roads on the Wolds with a double chevron: Flixton, Staxton and Acklam, indicating a gradient of 1 in 5 or steeper. Both Flixton and Acklam have road signs confirming a 20% gradient, but the sign at the top of Staxton only shows 17%. In addition to these climbs there are numerous roads with a single chevron indicating a gradient between 1 in 7 and 1 in 5. Could some of these longer climbs be harder than the short but steep roads up Flixton or Acklam?

With digital Ordnance Survey maps it is now relatively easy to get an accurate profile of a hill to arrive at an average gradient and calculate a Difficulty Score.

However, it is one thing to sit at a computer and decide which is the hardest climb based on data from a map, the real test is to get out there and ride the climb. I also wanted to check the actual gradient since many of the minor roads lack a gradient sign and a single chevron on the map covers a range of 13% to 20%. One way to measure the gradient is to use an inclinometer. Searching the web I found a German model specifically designed for cyclists. This is a simple graduated spirit level that clamps to the handlebars and gives a reasonably accurate measure of the gradient. I tried the inclinometer on different bikes and decided that my Moulton gave the best reading as the suspension cuts out a lot of vibration to the bars. I also experimented with a cycle computer which calculated the slope by measuring the change in altitude, but this turned out to be very inaccurate, as do the GPS units which work on the same principle. So equipped with the inclinometer I have spent the autumn weekends exploring some of those vertical lanes which many of us go out of our way to avoid at all costs. I rode and checked all the climbs listed except the main road climbs of Staxton, North Grimston and Garrowby. On one afternoon I climbed 5 of the big climbs between Leavening and Bishop Wilton. I think my knees were trying to tell me something that evening!

Leavening Bank

The steepest and longest climbs lie on the northern and western escarpments, but away from the escarpment there are many shorter roads climbing out of the dry valleys that proliferate across the Wolds, with many of the best climbs lying in the Thixendale and Burdale area. However further east the isolated hamlet of Fordon nestling deep in a valley is also worth a visit, but here I have concentrated on the northern and western edges of the Wolds. Starting in the north eastern corner of the Wolds the first real climb is Folkton Brow (16%) which I found quite busy and unappealing. Moving west the next climb is Flixton Wold which is a real killer sporting a 300 metre ramp with gradients between 16% and 20%. This road is probably marginally steeper than Acklam but the steep section is not as long. Next come Staxton Brow, Ganton Wold and Sherburn Grits.

These are all 17% climbs in spite of the 16% sign at the top of The Grits. Because of their location adjoining the A64 we tend to avoid these roads which is a pity as The Grits is a super climb up a narrow lane with a leg sapping middle section of between 12% and 17% for nearly 700 metres. I last climbed this hill as a teenager over 50 years ago when it had a fearsome reputation. I then climbed it on a 5 speed Holdsworth with a 49 inch bottom gear, now I need something nearer a 29 inch gear.

Over the next section towards Birdsall the escarpment is more broken with a number of valleys cutting back into the Wolds, and the climbs become easier. However, West Heslerton which has been used on the Milk Race, is another tough climb. Don’t be misled by the 16% sign at the bottom – the middle section is consistently steep with gradients between 12% and 17% for 400 metres.

Birdsall Brow

Despite the 17% sign at the foot of Settrington it is not that hard with a predominant gradient between 10 and 13% and only two short steep ramps of 16% and 17%. Birdsall marks the north western corner of the Wolds as the escarpment heads south to the Humber, and the next section between Leavening and Bishop Wilton offers eight roads climbing up to the highest section of the Wolds. These range from the brutal Acklam Wold which attacks the escarpment head on, to the scenic climb out of Bishop Wilton which winds its way up an attractive wooded valley. Most local cyclists will have climbed Leavening Brow but how many of us are familiar with Uncleby or Worsen Dale?

Although only a short climb, Acklam Wold has a well-deserved reputation for being a killer climb on a par with Flixton. Leaving the village the road rapidly steepens to between 15% and 20% for 500 metres as it climbs straight up the hillside to the communication mast at the top of the wold.

Just south of Acklam village is another road heading up to the communication mast. Starting at the junction near Barthorpe Lodge Farm this road has the longest and highest ascent in the area at 3.5 km with 178 metres of height gain. With only one chevron shown on the map and an average gradient of 5% it looks quite easy. However, there are some steep sections of up to 15% on the lower road and a short but steep section of 20% near the top, but there are some level sections where the rider can recover. In spite of its low score this is a great climb. Heading south again the next village is Kirby Underdale. Nestling in the huge amphitheatre of Open Dale there are three roads climbing up the bank through woods and pastures. The first, Hanging Grimston, is not only my own personal favourite but is one of the best climbs on the Wolds. The two single chevrons on the map hide the true statistics of this 1.5 km 153 metre climb with an average gradient of 10% and a maximum of 20%.

Turning off the Kirby Underdale road the narrow lane to Hanging Grimston descends steeply to Salamanca Beck where the climb starts. Immediately the road kicks up at 15% to 20% for 100 metres. Fortunately the momentum gained on the downhill should get the rider up this stretch and onto an easier section where the gradient varies between 5% and 10% as the lane climbs gently though unfenced open pastures. Approaching the farm set back on the right, the climb steepens to 14% before rounding a left hand bend and a gate which may be closed. The rider then approaches the final section of road lined with beech trees, passing the old 1-in-6 road sign for the final 500 metres of 16% before the gradient finally eases. The road surface is quite rough and broken, but not potholed, and by using both sides of the road it is possible to pick a reasonable line. This is a super climb in lovely surroundings.

The next road is another lane through the little hamlet of Uncleby. This is a straight forward and unusual in so much that the gradient is pretty uniform throughout varying between 10% and 15% for a kilometre before easing back approaching the junction at the top. Although the narrow road climbs straight up the escarpment it is an attractive route bordered by mature trees and woodland. When riding this hill I felt it was the easier of the three Kirby Underdale climbs in spite of its high score.

The third climb is the popular Painsthorpe road which ascends from the church and quickly steepens to 17% as it passes the Hall before easing back to 10% approaching the hamlet of Painsthorpe. From here it is an easy 5% to the top of the wold. This route should be familiar to those who have completed the 70-mile version of the George Herbert Stancer standard ride.

Bypassing the main road up Garrowby Hill, which has become a weekend race track for bikers, the next climb of interest to the cyclist is from Bishop Wilton village to Garrowby top. This is a lovely climb up through the mature beech woods of Worsen Dale. Starting in the village, climb gently along the stream past the village church, turn left at the head of the village past the primary school then right onto Worsendale Road and continue climbing, first at 5% gradually steepening to 10%. The road then continues with gradients up to 15% before easing and emerging from the woods at the junction with the main road close to the highest point on the Wolds.

Beyond Bishop Wilton the climbs become easier as more dales cut into the hills. The next climb of any distinction is Nunburnholme which we often climb on our Sunday runs. Fortunately, the steepest section of 14% is at the bottom of the climb, which is then followed by 800 metres of 5% to 10% steady climbing.

Trundlegate

South of Market Weighton we are on home territory as the Wolds become lower. Nestling along the southern edge of the Wolds is one of my favourite climbs, Brantingham Dale. The pretty approach up the dale starts easily enough but the gradient steadily steepens to 10% for the final 300 metres, which includes two steeper ramps of 13% and 14%. The council have recently erected a sign at the top showing a gradient of 11% which is very misleading.

Fortunately I managed to complete all but one of the climbs before the bad weather arrived at the end of November. Since then I have been able to review all the data gathered on the climbs to produce the table below. The list includes a Difficulty Score based on the climbbybike.com formula. This was originally developed for ranking long alpine climbs and can produce anomalies with short climbs, particularly on the Wolds where it can be difficult on some climbs to decide where to set the start and finish lines. It is based largely on the length of the climb and average gradient, not the maximum gradient. Also I have only included climbs of 800 metres or more. However, the results do make interesting reading to compare routes.

Notes
* indicate my own maximum gradient readings
** indicate hills where my own reading was higher than the road sign
? Garrowby is the only hill I did not visit

The maximum gradient shown in the table is based on the higher of either my own reading or the road sign. As the signs are based on the old convention of 1 in 6 (17%) and 1 in 5 (20%) we do not see any signs for climbs of 18% or 19%. My inclinometer only had a maximum reading of 20% and it was difficult to get an accurate reading once over 17%, but I am sure that some of the signed 20% hills were less, and in due course I will be back to check out those hills. A nice ride for next spring.

A version of this post originally featured in the Winter 2010/2011 edition of the Woldsman and appears here by kind permission of Roger England.

Simon Warren since wrote a follow-up book, Another 100 Greatest Climbs, which included Hanging Grimston. Seven hill climbs of the Yorkshire Wolds subsequently featured in Warren’s later ‘Cycling Climbs of Yorkshire: A Road Cyclist’s Guide’

It's back! An oldie but a goodie, and from the days when @100climbs was the new kid on the block, Roger England's excellent 'Hill Climbs on the Yorkshire Wolds', used by kind permission. Huge motivation for @sensisuperstar, @CharlieRispin, me & many more:https://t.co/f0adH4pmcU pic.twitter.com/HCVrarewyh

— Cycling the Yorkshire Wolds (@CycleTheWolds) April 2, 2021

An early – and wet – start for the Yorkshire Wolds Cycle Route ride in aid of Hull Ionians

Once everybody arrived and stored bags in the support van we pedalled to Beverley Market Place for the official Grand Depart. A passing early morning pedestrian kindly volunteered to take a group photo. There were five riders (with one taking turns to drive the van).

It’s a shame that on a 146 mile road cycling route that there are two miles of off road section. Previous riders of the route had said that it was ‘passable’ if dry but still a real puncture hazard. It had been decided to ‘bomb’ it down the A1079 from Walkington and miss this section out. The early start meant there wasn’t a lot of traffic and the few cars on the road were difficult to see because of the fog!

A sharp right (missing sign) took us onto our first of many lanes that were perfect for cycling, virtually traffic free and a real ‘rustic’ feel.

Simon (the ride organizer) had arranged a number of stopping points to access food supplies and to swap over van drivers. The first of these was Pocklington RUFC. We arrived on schedule but there was no van. Tony Boynton (ex-racing cyclist with an impressive palmares) had positioned himself en route to take photos. Unfortunately he had chosen a spot that was missed out to avoid the off road section. Mobile phones now mean situations like this can be rescued (how did we manage without them?). When Tony arrived I had my first – but by no means the last – of Simon’s most excellent homemade banana loaf. Tony swapped his trainers for cycling shoes and Simon jumped into the driver’s seat. With no sign of the sun making an appearance I opted to keep my early morning leg warmers and neck buff on.

Towards Thixendale

The next section was where the hills came into play. Whilst not mountain TdF stages it was a chance to warm up a little as the sun was still not coming out to play. Josh is a fit mid-forties rugby player but whilst he can belt it out on the flat his conversation becomes limited when the road begins to incline. Tony showed his race class and was soon on the front tapping out a good average both on the flat and climbing.

In to Westow

We met up with the van in Westow. I’m not one for remembering places that I pass through but this village is absolutely stunning. Virtually every house would not look out of place on the cover of a property magazine. I commented that I would love to live there if only there was pub – then I saw the pub (I’m off). Bizarrely the only shop appeared to be a bespoke tailors. The owner was just opening. None of us felt the need for a new suit (despite an impressive number of cloth rolls) so we set off once more.

Sledmere House. Opportunity for another photograph, but no cafe

Our next scheduled stop was at Sledmere House where I was looking forward to eating something that was not from a plastic wrapper (banana loaf aside). Horror of horrors – café closed! I did consider marching up to Lord Sledmere’s front door and demanding Beans on Toast but calmed down as nobody else seemed too bothered. In fairness their food supplies were a lot better than mine. I looked longingly at Tony Waudby’s (Tony II) chicken and beetroot sandwich but his fingers were clamped tightly round it. He was kind enough to donate his van for the day but he had eyes that suggested ‘try it’ as regards the sandwich. I sent an update text to Chris he replied with a couple of café options a bit further down the road. Josh took the option to do the next stint of van driving and Simon gladly cleated up.

The café option we decided on was The Yorkshire Wolds Gallery near Staxton (80 miles in). A lovely barn type building housing the gallery and café. On a warmer day we might have sat outside but still no sun meant we piled inside. A limited menu is the kindest thing to say. Cream scones and flapjacks in a large display case were supplemented by a snooker table sized blackboard that boasted the choice of soup or a ham, cheese & pickle panini. There was no way I was going any further without a coffee so I opted for the panini. It was, I have to say, excellent supplemented by a huge amount of coleslaw and a few crisps. The food and the coffee brought me round from my ‘mini mood’. I also fancied a hit of sugar and was pleased that the waitress picked out a can of Coke emblazoned with ‘love’ – I think she was torn with that or the one that said ‘gorgeous’.

The caffeine really worked and as we set off again – all aches, pains and niggles hid themselves well. We were now heading towards the coast and the sun finally came out to play. There are a couple of ‘in and parts’ to the route which we had planned not to do – but by just following the signs we did end up at Humamby Gap car park. Still it was only a mile back to the main road.

A bit of a climb near Grindale

At Bempton we met up with the van in the car park of the brand new village hall. I did think the locals had arranged a welcome party but it was just two dozen balloons that had escaped from a recently finished kids’ party. I was still quite full after my panini but did manage another piece of banana loaf. Josh relinquished the driving duties but spent 10 minutes deciding on shorts or leggings. During the week I had ‘tweaked’ my knee whilst on a ride. I had largely ignored the little niggles that had been happening, but was worried as we had now done 100 miles it might get worse as my pedalling style might not be so fluid. So I treated myself to the Tramadol pill I had pinched from my wife’s medicine box. If they were good enough for Team Sky then they’re good enough for 50% of South Cave Road Club.

After getting through Bridlington it was onto roads I was bit more familiar with (especially as I had been camping at Rudston only a few weeks previously). It’s hard to describe but I felt a little bit disappointed to be on familiar tracks – a kind of ‘it’ll soon be over’ feeling. After a mad scramble over A614 in Burton Agnes, Simon discovered he had a puncture. Not really worth noting apart from the fact whilst changing the tyre he fell into a hedge of ‘sticky balls’ and came out looking like he had been machine gunned with them. As he was about to start the long arduous task of trying to reach 100psi with a mini pump I produced my CO2 trigger and did the job in two seconds. None of the other three had seen one before and if I had said it was solar powered they would have believed me.

Between Nafferton & Driffeld we rode as a quintet as Tony had parked the van up at Bell Mills and rode to meet us. When we arrived at Bell Mills it was déjà vu as the café was closed. The workers were trying to get the gate closed and go home. We were supposed to meet some other cyclists to accompany us on the final leg but they had gone and left word that there were now at the Blue Bell pub. Simon shot off in the van to collect them but returned empty handed (but I’m sure I smelt beer on his breath) as they had already gone. Simon caught up with them at Hutton Cranswick and we cycled the final leg eight strong. Any thought of coasting the final 20 miles quickly disappeared as they rode at a quicker pace. Whilst coming down Bracken, Josh said he was finding it tough going but didn’t want to be the one to ask for a slowing down, so by stealth I found my way to the front and then lowered the pace a little without anybody realising (I think I got away with it).

Only a couple of miles outside of Beverely we saw Simon at the side of the road. He had parked the van up and rode out to meet us so we could cycle in at full compliment. Despite a plea from somebody to ‘take the f***ing pavement’ we rode round Beverley’s one way system to arrive in the market place. Simon’s wife and children were there with a homemade flag (the banana loaf was better) and a shop bought bottle of Sherry. I think the concept of sherry drinking came from one of their previous rugby/cycling adventures. Mrs Simon did complain that she was told we would finish at 6pm and it was now 6.13. She was joking (I assume)! High on Croft Original/Tramadol and the joy of completing my longest day ever in the saddle I ‘ran’ to a nearby shop and bought a packet of Marlboro Lights to celebrate.

I had given little thought to getting home other than I might cadge a lift off somebody (one of the hardships of my current financial plight is having to sell my car and Mrs B had kids to ferry around to parties). ‘Luckily’ one of our last leg cyclists lived in South Cave and was riding home. In a perverse way I was glad to be doing a few extra miles. We didn’t leave straight away as everybody decided it would be rude not to have a pint to celebrate so we decamped to the Standard pub. The joyous feeling was heightened by seeing the end of Liverpool losing to Aston Villa.

I did have lights on my bike but only ‘be seen’ not ‘to see’ ones. The descent down Beverley Road into South Cave was interesting. The only time we could see the road was when cars came past – so it was a slower than normal descent. Arrived home at 8pm, fourteen and a half hours after leaving it.

Overall the day was superb. 149.7 miles cycled at an average pace of 15.0 mph – that in itself was enough to be happy with. The route was very well signposted with only a couple missing (I would advise to have a hard copy of the map with you). My only niggle is the pointless off road section. It was a change to ride with different people and not have the normal Wiggle vs LBS conversations. I understand that they raised around £3000 for the rugby club and I’m glad to have helped in my small way.

I spent most of the next day trying to find recipes for banana loaf.

All smiles at the finish of the Yorkshire Wolds Cycle Route one-day challenge

All images courtesy of Simon Cowling.