The group gather their strength at the top of Belmont Hill Click to view full size
Not All Sportives Are Made Equal
The Lancashire Lanes ride has been a firm resident on many North West riders calendars for some years. Its humble beginnings from village hall car parks is now a past memory however the challenge of the route is a constant.
Previous years have seen a large contingent of Southport riders take part, although the size of the group was a little diminished this year the Yellow and Blue was still resplendent in the early morning sun. Most of the group set off from Ainsdale and cycled to the Kirkby start line with the remainder opting for motorised transport.
Having signed on we grouped near the start (where’s Mike?) and waited for the whistle to set us off, Mike Lloyd, Pete Scott, Chris Stone, Geoff Caton, Dave Walsh, Rosie Walsh (guesting), Ray Lyons, Steve Crossen and Neil Robinson. For more picture see Gallery here
Once underway the course took some interesting turns and had clearly been tweaked to avoid as many main roads as possible however the usual climbs had been retained. This year there was plenty of signage and the Southport group only had to improvise once to get back on track keenly followed by some bewildered unattached riders. There seemed to be a good spread of riders over the route from the beginning however it started to bunch up at Ashhurst and then Appley Bridge and Red Rock climbs with groups of 40 to 50 riders lined out on the road. Once Rivington and Belmont were in sight the chatting soon stopped and the hard work kicked in, the group final agreeing to a “top of Belmont” rendezvous. Once all met, including a surprise appearance by Kevin Chicken usual pictures taken and then a fast decent to Belmont village and the knowledge that the worse is over including a 3 mile, 40 mph downhill section into Abbey village.
Brindle village hall hosted the feed stop, a time to gather thoughts and breath, catch up with friendly faces and recharge before the push for home.
There is never more of an opportune time to describe the phenomenon of “Café Legs” the dull feeling after a stop when your legs just don’t want to get started again and protest at the slightest of inclines. Within 100 metres of the stop the road rises up sharply to remind all the riders that it isn’t all downhill from here!
The weather had been quite dull however the occasional burst of sunshine had warmed our backs and the afternoon became a good mix of spring sun and tail-wind which kept the groups spirits up. The signage seemed to run out near Eccleston with the Marshals scratching their heads we pushed on and used some local knowledge to get back on track. Finally as we got to Scarth Hill the group split with some heading back to Kirkby for cars and others heading home to Southport on a more direct route.
Another grand day out, no mechanicals, plenty of miles and loads of smiles.
Text from Neil Robinson, Pictures Mike Lloyd
