2008 Great Yorkshire Bike Ride
The Great Yorkshire Bike Ride is a fantastic day if you are wanting to test your cycling skills and raise some money for local charities at the same time. This year was the twenty-fifth time the Great Yorkshire Bike Ride had been staged and is organised every year by the Wetherby Lions. It was also the first year that we had actually entered and after ten weeks of intense training, we were very much looking forward to the day. The weather forecast predicted showery rain at times but the sun was shining on our arrival at Wetherby Racecourse, so fingers were crossed for a dry day. The cycle route starts at Wetherby and runs east through the Howardian Hills to Malton and then onto Filey, approximately seventy miles.
Once we had registered and indicated the amount of sponsorship money we had attracted, there was one final check of the bicycles and then down to the starting line. The first stop would be Great Ouseburn which was thirteen miles away. The first part of the route takes you up the old A1 one from Wetherby up to the Marton-cum-Grafton from which you drop down across the Boroughbridge-York road to Great Ouseburn. This first part of the ride is probably the most uninteresting because there is very little scenery on the old A1 and it is nice to turn off and get on some country roads.
After about an hour, the first stop was upon us and a good opportunity to take in some fluid and chew on a Mars Bar (the first of many that day!). Next stop on the route is Stillington (26 miles into the route). The stage from Ouseburn to Stillington is nice and flat, so is an easy route for most and very picturesque as we cycled over the River Ouse at Aldwark, through Youlton, Alne, Easingwold and up to Crayke before dropping down a nice mile downhill stretch and onto Stillington. From here the route goes onto Sheriff Hutton Bridge and then left towards Terrington, at which point we encountered the first of two killer hills. Terrington Bank is not for the faint hearted and knowing beforehand what it was like, I was straight off the bike and walking! There were some who chose to pedal up, but as it's not a race there is not much point. Terrington is the lunchtime stop, and at 37.5 miles into the route, the half-way stage.
Up to now the race organisation had been first class, and this is further exonified by the lunch arrangements and the selection of food on offer such as hot pasta, sandwiches, energy drinks and fruit. It was at this point that we experienced a brief shower, but so far we had been lucky as it looked very black to the south.
After lunch, it was back on the bikes and onto Malton via Castle Howard. Malton can be a bit of a traffic bottle neck, so care must be taken, but it was not too bad and you are soon back on quiet country roads only to be presented with the second of the killer hills, Settrington Bank, which is most definitely not for the faint-hearted. Once again I was quickly off the bike and pushing, but it seemed to go on forever. However after that it is a nice steady decline towards East Lutton for a much deserved respite as it was almost seventeen miles since Terrington. It was at this point about fifteen miles from Filey, that the sky looked distinctly black, and news quickly went round the pub car park that it was chucking it down in Filey.
The final stop on the route is Wold Newton where we were informed there would be cakes but as it was only seven miles from the finishing line, many people like me cycled on towards the end without stopping. Three miles to go and suddenly the heavens opened, but at this point I did not care as I knew the ride was nearly over and just kept going even though I was soaking wet.
At about 3.45pm, I crossed the finishing line with a great sense of achievement, it was still pouring down but it did not matter, nor did it spoil the day. I have to say that the whole day was superbly organised and great fun. Seventy miles might seem like a long way, but with the right training and bike, anyone can do it. Our team of four five raised almost £1000 so there is a lot to be gained by entering.
This entry was posted on Sunday July 6th, 2008 at 10:31 AM and is filed under Places to Cycle. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response.
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