JAN BAM https://strava.app.link/vba9aqdkOGb
66.9 road miles
6799 ft
7.03 hr riding time 2H sleeping
8210 calories used.
So I'd planned on a double metric century to Bowland. Last I was there was my first ever attempt at loaded biking. With my Condor and 35L Deuter packs over the wheels. How the heck did we uaed to live.
I'd decided to call it Isha (night prayer) til Fajar (morn prayer) ride. As I tried to dodge needing to do my compulsory prayers out there in the cold
In reality though I missed out by about 15 mins and they'd have become expired, so I made ablution in a car park just 3 miles away from home. That pic taken just 15 mins before that, SubhanAllah (Allah is Pure/Perfect).
The bivy spot I chose for myself was after about 20 miles. Took some consideration of a bvy near the water at the bottom, but decided on this huge tussocky hill.
Walked n walked thinking I'd reach the plateu at the top but gave in. Decided to just bivy there on the slope but had to think how I'd stop from sliding. Next pic is with flash on, so makes it appear deceptively lit up. It wasn't!!
I'd say the slope was adjacent to lots of 7% hill. But, during the moments of thinking through how I'd keep my boots dry/positioned, I had a genius idea. Why not use them as wedges on the side of the bivy. To stop me from sliiping down to the road at the bottom - 200m of tussocks away. It worked well.
Now, I'd brought my deep winter gloves (by the people who's name we do not speak); a Criterion down jacket as backup; some bamboo longjohns packed away and my Tundra -5 bag. I put the mat inside the bivy sack (excellent, thanks Colin) and set the Flextail to do itsinflate thing. Then I rolled the Tundra inside and carefully laid a rock at my headside to position my helmet/headtorch.
Didn't wanna use the Criterion or Longjohns as that'd mean I was in 'proper cold'. But, it was! 2330 the time and I just needed to get a few hours kip. The mat being in the bivy bag though, meant it wouldn't properly loft. I'd also placed my 2L water bottle at the foot end to try and keep/make it warm. In case of ablution needs in the morning.
Though the 2 Shimano boots worked well as structural support (knew they were good for something), the sleeping bag obviously had some serious cold spots due to (un)loft. So the mat was removed and put under me. WTH, now I became an ice-rink, so had to just counter balance my body to stop from slipping. In actual fact I probably needed a structural engineer.
Got 2 hours of solid kip and then I was up and away. Forget 130 miles -which was one of my yearly targets of a 200km each month - so I shortened it to 63 miles (my other ambition of making every ride a metric century!! It was blooming cold and the hill was steep. Walked the first few 100m just to get the blood back in the feet (great tip, forever thanking Jon/Lazarus for it) then started riding.
It was steep and I recalled the very first hill back near home. The total elevation of the 130 miler was 11k of ft and that first hill was where the Liverpudlian had once told me (on the Ronde Von Calderdale cobbled classic), pick an easy gear and drop down one (for the upcoming 70 miles of 7000 ft of elevation).
Got to the top and realised why it was so tough and where I'd been sleeping the night.
Managed to dodge riding down Doghouse Hill to Todmorden (thankyou Lord) and got a pic of this. My first ever job when I was merely 14 years old, 30 years ago. It was the takeaway next door which was now something else... In Hebden Bridge. I'd survived a frosty derelict ride across the valley/mountains and past Gorple Res. It was all rather gorgeous but most shots the camera just could capture.
Frost everywhere once I'd hit the town, which explained why I'd been freezing near Gorple (abd would be later)..
Another pic of the moon which had followed me all night (Alhamdulillah) and this was actually probably taken at the start of sleepy-sleepy.
THE END (for now).
1 out of 12.
2 consecutive streak (or however the professionals like Reg n Pete pronounce it).
) but I need them so I can issue awards!
when I bivi Thursday nights.