Ride report: 6 January 2013 – Moles in the Mist
Moles may not be as interesting as gorillas but in the mist you might not notice the difference… err… no. It was a bit of a grey old morning for me to stage a come back!
The 6th of January marked the end of a ride drought for me. I had hoped to rack up some miles over the Christmas break but the only thing broken seemed to be my back! Well my SI joint was giving me enough pain to make being still very painful but better than trying to move too much. Luckily some strong painkillers from the quack and a bit of manipulation and advice from Helen and Jan at Finefettle soon had be back on track. Even so this was a bit of a test for me and I fully expected to turn off from the ride part way through.
The air was damp and the mist was thick but patchy as we set off with a mind to ride to Peaslake via Ponds Lane. We encountered deep water on the Admiral’s track out of Bocketts farm but that was the worst we encountered in terms of depth and we made our way to the top of Ranmore where we opted to miss out Badger run and instead head for McPherson’s andcome into Westcott from the East side.
Mud wasn’t too back but with the previous year we’ve had maybe I’m immune!
We kept up our pace as we headed fro Dearleap woods and then somewhere near Abinger Roughs we regrouped and decided time was pushing on and Raikes Lane was looking like a better option. At this point Phil appeared (Ex Cycleworks mechanic and Team Kinesis Movelo rider) appeared with some mates and prompted me to shout “it’s not as bad as Mountain Mayhem” which was the last time he blasted past me at speed!
The climb up Raikes Lane does seem to have got longer though as Lloyd and I grumbled up the rear to catch the waiting pack. Passed the Volunteer pub and through the small car park we rode onwards towards the Trig point to see if YP was open. It wasn’t so we posed for a photo instead.
Big Al then led us on to the top of BKB via a windy route and finding much mud on the way.For some Moles who had speent too much time on 700C last year this had been a long time since their last trip down BKB.
I have to say that it still rode really well, well it much have as my GPS was inaccurate enough to give me a PR and propell me ahead of JR in the rankings!
So with grins all round (apart from the odd moan from the GrandMole) we headed to the cheese straws and shortbread. Peaslake stores was a busy as ever and it was comfortable enough temperature wise not to be too worried about making it a quick stop.
The trip back was quickly interrupted by the RoadMole turning up on one of those 700c bikes but we were soon off again to hit the mud big time on the return leg. a puncture by KC gave Lloyd and myself a well welcome breather before heading up Low Med to then take in the delights of Rip Van Winkle. A first for me and one for a tad more grip I’d say! Certainly the got the better of the GrandMole who had to take a breather a few metres after the end.
Luckily he was warm enough to wait for JR to get his camera out.
Sitting here today typing this my back seems to be fine so it’s a year of stretching for me and hopefully much more of the same quality of riding!
Happy New Year!
About the author
Dave's been riding seriously since about 1997 and is one of the founding Molefathers — along with Matt and Mark — that came up with the idea of a MTB website for Mole Valley riders.
He's had several different bikes but it's now mainly 29ers in Dave's stable, apart from an Orange 5.
Current Bikes: Orange 5, Salsa Spearfish and Kona Big Unit
There are 8 comments on ‘Ride report: 6 January 2013 – Moles in the Mist’
We love to get comments from our readers - if you've spent a few moments to comment, thank-you.
If you haven't had a chance yet, jump to our comments form if you have something to say.
Leave a comment…
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Andrew AKAK says:
Nice ride, just need a teeny bit less deep sticky mud! Good work with the pics John.
Add a new comment, or
Posted on January 7, 2013 at 9:47 pm
MuddyJohn says:
Good to see you’re able to get out again Dave, and a well deserved advance up the rankings on BKB.
Also nice to see KC taking a break from the 700C and getting muddy – but not as muddy as the Grandmole.
Add a new comment, or
Posted on January 7, 2013 at 10:15 pm
LordOnOne says:
A most enjoyable ride, made even better by the unexpectedly fun Rip Van Winkle. It’s also worth mentioning that my choice of a homemade cookie from the Peaslake village store was delicious!
Add a new comment, or
Posted on January 8, 2013 at 2:01 am
Matt says:
I thought about this ride but just didn’t have the energy for an early morning Sunday ride in January! Shame, looks like fun and great to see some photos from John.
I nipped out PM for a road ride and had in mind to pass through Peaslake myself and on to Ewhurst – instead I took a wrong turn and ended up hauling myself up the long, steep hill over Winterfold (Hound House Road).
OMG! Nearly killed me, not doing that again!!
Add a new comment, or
Posted on January 8, 2013 at 9:46 am
Big al says:
Great ride , conditions slightly better than they have been . Good to see Dave back out , and also great to see Keith as well .
Add a new comment, or
Posted on January 8, 2013 at 12:22 pm
KevS says:
Despite the relentless dogs abuse I have endured from Muddy (Grumpy) Dave, it was great to be back out on the trails and ride off the Xmas lard that seems to have glued itself to my midriff!
An exceptional highlight of the ride was watching with shock and awe as Big Al ordered 3 cheeses straws from Peaslake stores and then made em ‘disappear down his neck in an seconds! Surely this could be classed as a Strava KOS? (King of Straws) … ok I’ll get my coat …..
Add a new comment, or
Posted on January 8, 2013 at 4:03 pm
Dandy says:
Good Lord, GuacaMole getting muddy! Surely that’s more of a harbinger for a plague of locusts rather than the longed for drought? Glad to hear you guys enjoyed RvW, a cracking little trail with a sting in the tail 😉
Add a new comment, or
Posted on January 9, 2013 at 8:36 pm
MuddyJohn says:
What the Yoghurt Pots trail pixies were up to on Sunday:
http://hurtwoodtrails.co.uk/700/trail-report-6th-january-2013/
Looks like they will be busy again on 3rd Feb.
Add a new comment, or
Posted on January 11, 2013 at 12:43 pm