Peaceful Road cycling in the Midlands?
Re: Peaceful Road cycling in the Midlands?
Shropshire is not far away - posesses a dense yellow road network.
Re: Peaceful Road cycling in the Midlands?
There are tons of quiet single track lanes and they start immediatly after the conurbation ends. Also Birmingham has the best canal network in the World which is excellent for such riding
I do most of my miles on a race bike , though also possess Audax, Touring and MTB bikes. A spec allez is not the best choice for quiet lanes, they tend to have rough surfaces and can be wet, so you may want fatter tyres and mudguards , I would not do canal towpaths and the rougher single track lanes on a road bike, though its all a matter of choice. Is it a triple . I race so am reasonably fit , but the quieter single track lanes have rough surfaces and are less graded in terms of gradient. You often need a better gear range
I personally dont mind the more aggresive position of a race bike and the more reactive stearing , but that maybe a minority choice.
I personally find the degree to which you pump your tyres up has the biggest effect on ride comfort , more so than frame materials and frame angles etc
I work in Kingswinford and live near Telford and the roads between the two are very quiet as long as you do the single track lanes, sounds like you are riding A roads ???
I do most of my miles on a race bike , though also possess Audax, Touring and MTB bikes. A spec allez is not the best choice for quiet lanes, they tend to have rough surfaces and can be wet, so you may want fatter tyres and mudguards , I would not do canal towpaths and the rougher single track lanes on a road bike, though its all a matter of choice. Is it a triple . I race so am reasonably fit , but the quieter single track lanes have rough surfaces and are less graded in terms of gradient. You often need a better gear range
I personally dont mind the more aggresive position of a race bike and the more reactive stearing , but that maybe a minority choice.
I personally find the degree to which you pump your tyres up has the biggest effect on ride comfort , more so than frame materials and frame angles etc
I work in Kingswinford and live near Telford and the roads between the two are very quiet as long as you do the single track lanes, sounds like you are riding A roads ???
- CyberKnight
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- Location: Derbyshire
Re: Peaceful Road cycling in the Midlands?
tykeboy2003 wrote:I live in Swadlincote (South Derbyshire but only 5 miles from Burton on Trent) and there are loads of quiet country roads round here and East Staffordshire. Its particularly good round Abbots Bromley also further north towards Ashbourne and east into Leicestershire towards Loughbrough (Charnwood Forest).
Basically have a look at Google Maps and avoid the green roads where possible.
+1 to that.
mercia CC rregulary heads off in that direction from burton upon trent on a sunday morning and we have 3 groups to cover a range of abilities , riders always welcome.
John Wayne: "I won't be wronged, I won't be insulted, and I won't be laid a hand on... I don't do these things to other people, and I require the same from them."
Re: Peaceful Road cycling in the Midlands?
If you're looking for organised rides, you could take a look at www.goskyride.com and search by your area. They do a wide range of speedy to very slow rides.
I haven't tried them myself but I've not done a CTC group ride either.
As for recommendations of areas with lovely lanes - north of Atherstone is nice and the railway station makes ride out train back a good option for some.
I haven't tried them myself but I've not done a CTC group ride either.
As for recommendations of areas with lovely lanes - north of Atherstone is nice and the railway station makes ride out train back a good option for some.
- CyberKnight
- Posts: 920
- Joined: 18 Dec 2009, 4:44pm
- Location: Derbyshire
Re: Peaceful Road cycling in the Midlands?
pau1ine wrote:If you're looking for organised rides, you could take a look at http://www.goskyride.com and search by your area. They do a wide range of speedy to very slow rides.
I haven't tried them myself but I've not done a CTC group ride either.
As for recommendations of areas with lovely lanes - north of Atherstone is nice and the railway station makes ride out train back a good option for some.
Member of mercia CC runs these i believe from shobnall fields
John Wayne: "I won't be wronged, I won't be insulted, and I won't be laid a hand on... I don't do these things to other people, and I require the same from them."