Message from Grimpy

Peter,
I am getting some company jerseys placing an order shortly I attach the proof.
It’s with a company called Kalas.
Before ordering I wondered if anyone in the club was interested in purchasing?
A change from condor on occasions?
The sample they sent looks OK ?
I went for a fairly dark arrangement to suit old men like me??
I am afraid I have never done blog stuff and wonder if you can put this item on the blog for me?
Price wise you are looking at approx £35 per item ( shorts or short sleeve jersey)
You can find size guide on http://www.kalaswear.com/products/sizeguide.html
I also have two size samples shorts & jerseys in small & large at PENNINE
Anyway more important how did you do in the Fred Whitton on Sunday.
Brian did a 52 40 (40 something not sure on exact seconds) on Saturday in was it the nunbrook wheelers 25 I think?
I said what position did you finish – not sure there was a few 51’s

John sent me the above e-mail asking me to put it on the blog - he also sent me an attachment with the artwork for his Pennine kit but try as I may I cannot upload it onto the blog so if you would like to have a look e-mail John at jginley@pennineuk.com

Well done to Melvin who knocked about half an hour off his previous best time for the Fred Whitton lowering the Condor record for the route to 6.42.35 giving him 54th overall out of 823 finishers. Dougie recorded 8.19.19 and Martin Croft from the Imps 8.29.06, these times were over an hour slower than my time last year so I suspect there must be a story of misfortune yet to be heard.

News Update

This superb picture shows Brian on his way to recording a 52 minute time in last Saturdays Drighlington 25 mile time trial. An incredible time for an athlete of any age but even more so when you consider that he's 65 this month.

Sunday 11th May, MTB Run

Nigel and Ian climbing towards Scammonden

A great day out, a fantastic route (courtesy of Nigel) and brilliant weather (my sunburnt arms are testamony to that).

Fortunately some kind soul picked up the contents of my saddle bag in Norland and handed them in to the police station in Halifax. I won't make the same mistake again!

Sun 11 May - MTB run

Just out of interest I put "condor" and "mtb" into Google - but I didn't expect to find a picture of a chap on a bike doing an impression of a Condor :)

With various members off enjoying the Fred Whitton ride in the Lakes, this seemed a good weekend to have a change of scene and get the mountain bikes out. Nigel recently treated himself to a new steed so I think he is keen to get his money's worth. Meet 9am at Nige's in Wainstalls or ring me if you've a better plan.

If you'd prefer a road ride then the Imps runs sheets says they will be meeting at Shelf roundabout (by the VW garage) at 0830 for a trip to Wetherby via Bilton.

Yorkshire Cyclo-Cross Summer Series round 1

Richard, John & Steve after Round 1 of the YCCA Summer Series at Oakbank School, Keighley on Wednesday evening 7/05/08
Steve concentrating hard on one of the many tight corners
Grimpy leading the Condor team and en-route to another V60 victory (also 1st V50)
Richard caught putting his foot down on one of the steep bankings

Sunday 4th May

Half eight at Denholme - nine at Keighley for tomorrow's run.

(half an hour earlier than usual - looks like we might be in for a long day!)

Richard

Sun 27th April - Wet in Whalley

We did meet and we did ride out first to Whalley - where Vicar was glad of the ecumenical bacon & egg barm at the Abbey cafe. After that we roamed the lovely little lanes of lancashire before finally heading for home over the herders. Thanks again for waiting for me chaps. Ian.

The plan is to meet at Hebden Bridge at 9.00am, I guess for a ride out to the west but after that I'm not sure!
Might be worth checking with Ian (who's in contact with more of the Sunday stalwarts than me) before you set of to confirm the ride's still on,
Richard

I'll be there Richard (with a jacket on i suspect), sounds like Nigel & Melv will be out and Steve too. Any body else who reads this is welcome to come along.

Ian

Spring into the Dales - first reports

Not feeling particularly strong after a serious lack of miles so far this season I took the short-cut from home straight over Top Withens to Oxenhope to miss out Hebden Bridge and the first long climb of Keighley Road/Cock Hill. My lone start meant an easy ride at my own pace over the Herders to Laneshaw Bridge - although turning into the headwind up to Black Lane Ends made me (almost) wish for a wheel to follow. I'd expected to be caught in Earby and loitered there for a good few minutes chatting before getting a bit cold and riding on to Gargrave on my tod just to keep warm. Still, I was far better dressed than the triathletes at West Marton - it was no whether for sleeveless tops, especially if you'd just jumped out of a warm swimming pool somewhere.

I was just about to set off at Gargrave after a few words with the Kershaw family marshalling the control point there when the first of the 'proper' riders turned up - some looking more weary and haggard than others. The look on Melv's face told everything about their ride up to that point but he soon revived and we rode together to Cracoe. However, it wasn't ever going to last for me at that pace and I gratefully let the bunch go to dive into the cafe. The tale is that they then had a lovely time and rode together at a brisk pace all the way to the finish - sorry, that was just a fairy tale.

Riding on through Thorpe and back down to Burnsall I passed many riders and then spotted a couple of decent looking wheels a little way ahead. It turned out to be Irish John (Dogerty) of VS Cycles with his mate "very Irish" Justin on a visit here for a few days from Ireland. Now this meant good company all the way back over Addingham Moorside and on through Keighley. Since Justin's legs had blown somewhere back near Gargrave it also meant that I could stay with them without going too far into the red myself and finished the ride back over the same short cut feeling fine and looking forward to the next outing.

Meanwhile, Robin and other vets were pinning on their race numbers for 12 circuits of Norland Moor in the LVRC event. A small group including Sean Smith went away on the second lap and stayed out of reach. Sean finished third I think. Robin did his bit to lead out the sprint for the main bunch - and then found out why they were all so keen for someone else to go first into the headwind as his legs faded within sight of the line...

20 Apr 08 - Spring into the Dales

I said SPRING dammit. Rode home tonight into a chill north wind and a sprinkling of rain just for an extra fun topping. Still wearing gloves and full tights!

After last year's fantastic weather I can pretty much guarantee that this Sunday's "S-i-t-D" will be colder and/or wetter. Still, anyone want to join me in a steady-ish potter round? I fear that I may have to let the fast lads go pretty early on and save myself for Cock Hill on the way back.

Here (almost) is a picture of the fast-moving Condor bunch on this ride in 2005. I'm at the back - just hanging on!



Mind you I could just ride by myself like Vicar did last year poor chap ... http://condorroadclub.blogspot.com/2007/04/spring-has-sprung.html

Ian

Sunday 13th April

Pretty poor showing for the Hebden Bridge and all points West run. I was determined to ride because next weekend is a write off for me (daughter's 21st) and I was encouraged by a text from Ian on Saturday evening that suggestetd that he'd be out in the morning.

It would seem however, that the snow dusting the tops changed Ian's mind - and for that matter Robin's and Steve's - as I was the only rider sheltering in the cinema entrance when Nige rolled up en route to Lancaster to meet his wife and son.

As Nige so sagely said as we pressed on into the drizzel, you don't regret the times you ride but you do regret the times you don't (well something like that) and he was right, the further west we got the dryer it got and the dryer it got the happier we were - to the extent that by the time we entered the red rose county we were able to shed a layer and start to enjoy the day.

13 april - hebden bridge @ 9am

It all seems a bit quiet recently. Is it just that everyone is STILL waiting for spring? I've dusted down my best bike and looked lovingly at all the carbon, but not had a chance to ride it yet. Good weather must be coming soon ...

This week we're meeting at the traffic lights in the centre of Hebden Bridge for a run out west - wherever the fancy takes us. All welcome.

Ian

distant friends ...

A quick "hi" from Philip just to show how the other half live ...

[If that is TWO bottles of wine on the table then it must have been some lunch - Ian]

30 March - what is going on?

Here is a snap from the BC website of our heroines in action on the way to a gold in the women's pursuit. It has been great to see the track cycling on ordinary BBC2 television. It is even on at a sensible hour. How good is that!

Again I have to give the club run a miss this week. For those of you who are out, how about meeting 9am at Denholme for a run up the dales. Don't forget to put your clocks forward by the hour!

April Events for your diary

First let me congratulate Andy Marshall who followed up his 3rd place in last weeks Featherstone Hilly with his first (I think) open time trial win yesterday in the Yorkshire Road Club hilly 10 which was run on a circuit from Addingham.
Brian was also in the thick of the action with 17th place overall and 3rd on age standard from 78 finishers in the North Mids 18k time trial in Nottinghamshire on Saturday, an event won by current British Best Allrounder Kevin Dawson.

I hope the mountain bikers had a good day on Sunday, the weather being better than forecast. I managed to break my Racelight frame on the Gargrave run on Saturday so had ride my cross bike on Sunday. I've shod it with 35mm Schwalbe touring tyres which make a comfortable but heavy ride. I was only going out for the morning to do a circuit round Skipton, Embsey, Bolton Abbey, Ilkley, Otley & home for lunch. I did get involved in some bib & bit with a couple of whippersnappers on the back road from Beamsley to Otley. We were joined briefly by Grimpey who'd been going the other way. He showed us how hills should be climbed but after taking the Askwith prime turned round again and went on his way alone, serching the lanes for a club to go out training with.

I then came across Neil, the two Paul's and JK coming out of the cafe in Otley. Neil was asking what has happened to the famed Condor Sunday training runs, in fact I'd seen Damien in Gargrave Cafe on Saturday and he was asking the same. All I can say is that at the begining of Feb I did suggest having some brisk Sunday group runs, unfortunatly the group element seems ending too soon in the day, I know the runs have always wound up and split up towards the end but it seems that we're not getting much further than Keighley these days before the hammer goes down. I've been thinking that for a while but presuming its probably just me thats getting old and knackered so I've just chosen to go on a brisk solo ride. Seeing Ian's blog last week makes me think perhaps it is'nt just me, in fact it reminded me of a paragraph from one of Matt Seatons excellent columns in the Guardian a few weeks ago in which he wrote -

'Cycling, done rightly, is a collaborative, social exercise: when you're in a group, you take your "pull" on the front and feel the wind on your face, while the rest sit in your slipstream, recover and chat. Then you peel off, and the next rolls through. In this participatory democracy, everyone gets to be a leader, everyone a follower. Riding on the front is a burden you take up willingly, a chance to show your mettle, but in a controlled, disciplined way. You just want to set a nice tempo: it's not about showing off, but about style and form and an instinctive awareness of what's right for the group.'

Ahhh! those halcion days.

That reminds me, the reason I logged on was to remind people of some forthcoming events to put into the diary.

Sunday 20th April 'Spring into the Dales' 8am from Hebden Bridge, good weather guaranteed entries to Chris Crossland, details on Audax UK website.

Sunday 27th April Kirklees Sportive An interesting 80 mile route starting and finishing from the YMCA at Salendine Nook starts by going over Buckstones, then back over the Floating Light to Marsden, right to Meltham, up to Wessenden Head, down to Holmfirth, over Holme Moss, Dunford Bridge, Jackson Bridge, Denby Dale & Colne Bridge. £15 entry on-line includes 2 feed stations. I understand that 120 have already entered including many of our local riders. I think its a local ride that will be worth supporting.

In search of some new lanes I've also entered a 200k Audax on April 6th, the Ironbridge 200, HQ at Holmes Chapel in Cheshire. If anyone fancies joining me let me know and we'll share transport.

16 march - road to nowhere

Robin has a full-day pass to play out on his bike and nothing has been arranged. I've had an enquiry from young Johnny too. What are we going to do?

STOP PRESS: a flurry of phone calls has come up with a plan. 9am at Nigel's on mountain bikes. All welcome to join in!

9 March - Silverdale conquered at last

The storms and snow that were threatened didn't arrive and a big bunch of well over a dozen riders set off from "base camp" through Keighley. However, like all epic tales, there were casualties and detours along the way. By the time the final assault began on the summit of the Silverdale climb only three riders remained ...

A left turn in Crosshills onto the back road to Gargrave was my plan - it is just that very few wanted to follow and that left four riders going one way and the rest heading out on the main Skipton road. The gang of four who put in the extra hill had to dig deep in the hope of catching the bunch by Carleton ... only to find that Steve and Robin had already blown the group apart chasing non-existent ghosts up the road. I doubt that they ever caught us, cos we weren't ever ahead of them. Nigel, Damien, Dougie and one or two more had waited for us and for a short while we were back into a group. Nigel then announced that he had an urgent appointment back at home with some cardboard boxes, Dougie went straight on in Gargrave - presumably straight to Cracoe because he was never seen again. The rest vanished into thin air.

On through Bank Newton, Paythorne and Rathmell we were making good progress into Settle with a tailwind, plus the odd hail shower to keep us on our toes. Damien was the next unfortunate to be taken by the gods of the road. He was with us going into Settle, but didn't come out the other side and there were no wheel marks to show where he might have gone. Was he taken by the Naked Man?

Having started out with so many riders, sheer bloody-mindedness at this point meant that we just had to complete the stated aim and go over Silverdale. The final three of Ian, Melv and Richard were left to enjoy a great wind-assisted climb over the 'dale and take in the fabulous views of Pen-Y-Ghent before dropping down to Halton Gill. A run down Littondale (on the left-hand side, of course, Peter) took us on past Kilnsley to the cafe at Cracoe and some award-winning butties. Fuelled up we then had a short final leg back home.

Now, if only we can find a way of riding together for more than five minutes we might be able to start some sort of cycling club :)

HCA: the very short one

It doesn't sound like Peter had a great ride, but he battled round the long route anyway and gets respect for that.

I was still standing around chatting at the start when I noticed a couple of Condor jerseys sneaking off up the road. This was the signal for all and sundry to jump on their bikes in a very disorganised start. Realising that the long hard ride was beyond my ability , I hung back and waited for John Lumb to catch me up. Meanwhile, Sean Smith passed me going the other way after a puncture had delayed his ride out, then not very long after he passed me again - this time going full gas to catch the lead bunch! el Presidente & I led a good group of Star Wheelers along to Elland, only to see those same wheels go away from us up Salterhebble. The lights by the hospital changed against us and that was the last we saw of anyone. This opening section of this route is just too hard to have a hope of staying together. Come on Mr Kay - give us something better next year!

After climbing steadily back up to Wainstalls it was time to cape up for the old road over Top Withens and down to Oxenhope, then a steady ride on to the deserted Dalseman cafe in Gargrave for butties and tea. John is teaching me all he knows about taking it steady and we abandoned the short route at this point and made our own very short route straight back to Keighley, up Ingrow and on to the Pineberry to see how everyone else had got on. JK was there to welcome us and hopefully he'll get the idea that this ride is just too much - it makes the 140 miles of the long North West Passage seem like a walk in the park.

HCA ride

2008 HCA RELIABILITY RIDE - THE CONDOR SQUAD AT THE START

This is about the last I saw of them untill the Pineberry some 6 hours later. Grimpy and I tried to sneak off from the start outside the Ritz quietly, but unfortunatly by Brookfoot were towing a heafty weight of riders behind us. We stayed at the front till the top of Salterhebble then moved over. Melvin & Damien went through upping the pace by 2mph, they opened a small gap, the followers upped the pace to close the gap and I went off the back. I watched them dissappear in to the distance through Norton Tower & Mount Tabor, they were out of sight by Wainstalls. It began to rain, by Withens it was pouring down. I stopped to cape up and then teamed up with John Lancaster from Hudds Star over Fly Flatts, through Oxenhope, Keighley & Steeton where we caught Peter from the Imps.
Riding along the Aire Valley several riders, riders with reputations such as Dicko and Birdy had been beaten by the weather conditions and were spotted forlornly limping back towards Keighley.
At Crosshills we passed Grimpy, he'd been discarded by the bunch and left by himself at the roadside in the pouring rain with a puncture, it was a sad sight to see the British Champion & Worlds bronze medalist looking so frail and dejected, but I suppose thats what happens in the HCA ride.
We rode together through Gargrave and Hetton to Cracoe where Lanc & Peter happily announced that they had entered the 70 mile route, turned right and left me to plough my lonely furrow towards Kettlewell.
Just after the short climb beyond the Skirfare bridge I saw the lead group heading south at the other side of the dale, they were single file, obviously still giving it big licks and about 15 minutes ahead of me. I had hoped that they may take a comfort stop at Kettlewell (perhaps they had), anyway there was no catching them now.
Through Kettlewell and down to Grassington, Burnsall and Bolton Bridge. By Addingham I was feeling the effects of bonk. I had to engage the granny ring for Cringles, what a relief it was to freewheel down to Silsden. 2pm, Silsden, 5.5 hour time limit = half an hour to get over Robin Hood, Micklethwaite, Cottingley, Sandy Lane and Egypt................more like 3 and a half hours in the state I was in ...............so I packed.............limped to the Pineberry where I was too weak to get to the bar, Ian took pity on me and supplied a pint of liquid recovery drink.
I was surprised how fresh Ian and Lumby looked, I'm sure they can't have done all the 85 mile route.
I don't know just how the ride unravelled at the front, I gather from the chat in the pub that Damien sneaked away when Martin punctured near Prune Park but he was chased down by Melvin who took maximum points.............next year I hope to be around to see.
Neil and John Doherty finished at about the same time as me, Neil sporting an ear to ear smile having entered the 85 in 6 1/2 but qualifying for the 5 1/2 hour certificate.

HCA Ride - 23 Feb 08

This Sunday is the regular HCA Reliability Trial organised by John Kay of the Imps and starting 9am PROMPT from The Ritz, Bradford Road, Brighouse. There is a small entry fee of about a pound so bring some small change.

Now, as you know, Brighouse is at the centre of the turning universe as far as members of the Condor are concerned and is our spiritual home. I'd happily guide any uninitiated western riders living in, say, Hebden Bridge (Steve) or Cragg Vale (Peter) or even Booth (Robin) to the gates of these Elysian fields so that they may better experience the joy, nay exultation, that is Brighouse and its pinacle of architectural enlightenment - a.k.a. The Ritz Ballroom, just off the roundabout next to Tesco.

I'm hoping for another slow and steady ride on the short course of usually 60 miles or so whilst the racing lads can hammer each other in a repeat performance of last weekend on the long one (usually 80 miles) on whatever develish course JK has laid out for us this year.

"The short one"

Peter has just given a great account of the long NW Passage, so here is a suitably shortened account of the short version.

Paul Gower and Ian from the Condor joined forces with Paul Hickey and Neil Dyson from the Imps plus another three or four others from parts hereabouts to form a sociable peleton. Setting off at the leisurely hour of 9am and even at a correspondingly leisurely pace, Paul H soon had us on the front of a big bunch of riders drawn from the 70 or so starters. We waived goodbye to Criss Crossland and fellow CTC-ers on the outskirts of Rochdale and settled into a steady rhythm of 14 to 15 mph which was to persist all day.

Maybe a dozen or so escaped up the road the Blacko climb and we happily let them go, although the majority were content to sit in behind Neil and Hickey still doing sterling work on the front. Gisburn fell just under 40 miles from the start and was time for a spot of elevenses in the cafe at the other end of the village - leaving the main bunch to continue on their way. This proved a good move. By the time we got to the control at Waddington cafe many of these guys were still waiting in the queue to be served, whilst we quickly had our cards stamped and set off again.

Owd Betts has never been easier for me. Usually I'm on my knees by this stage but this time round conversation didn't pause all the way to the top. The descent into Rochdale and a final bit of routefinding through those delightful streets saw us safely back at the pub for around 3pm. Plenty of time for a pint and the rather small portion of pie and peas (but I can't argue since it was free - included in the bargain admission price of £4). In fact we were just starting on a second round of drinks when the fast lads rolled in looking rather tired and pale in some cases, unless your name was Andy, Martin or Brian each of whom looked as if they had just stepped out of a car rather than ridden 200K. Brian's new non-training regime seems to be paying huge dividends!