What would the Victorians make of this?

The Victorians had great vision and ingenuity. Methods of transportation were expanded exponentially and many of the most ambitious engineering projects were instigated by the Victorians, but what would they make of their legacy? Dis-integrated railway network, gridlocked roads & pointless cycle paths .. 

Yes, OK, a tenuous link to the state of my local, so called, cycle paths but I do wonder what the Victorians would have done differently. Compulsory land purchases akin to that which enabled railways to crisscross the country, lavish bridges and tunnels to keep motor and pedal power apart and draconian penalties for crimes against the cycle. Well, come the revolution, may be! 

Why the angst? Well these 2 videos show what Devon CC have provided cyclists to keeps them off the roads. I appreciate how difficult it is to make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear but has this really been money well spent?

The Axminster Kilmington Cycle Path 

'

On this path cost hundreds of thousands of pounds to put in, but it is neither regularly maintained by the council nor rideable for much of the year, for either being flooded or covered with farm waste. Cyclists are thus forced to take to the busy A35 or ride the equally unfriendly shared pedestrian path, scarily just feet from speeding oncoming traffic!

Seaton Cycle Path

Seaton Cycle Path is more a case of being given permission to use the path than a purpose built and fit for purpose cycle path.

Time for a revolution .. who’s with me?

 

Rapha Cheddar 100

Sticking to my mission for 2017 to ditch the sportives and just cycle with mates, 7 of us coffee clubbers headed out on another epic ride. We met at Kilver Court, Shepton Mallet .. the home of the Rapha Archive store, what a co-incidence! Another co-incidence is that a few months back we did a 100mi ride from home to Kilver which the Rapha CC copied a few weeks later and most of this Saturday's 100km route followed one the Rapha CC did themselves earlier in the year. I do love a theme.

Once the essential shopping was done, coffee knocked back and bikes unloaded, we headed off to Wookey Hole and our first climb. Surprisingly this was far worse than the feared Cheddar Gorge, reportedly 1/100 of the best UK climbs, which we were to tackle som 85km into the ride!

View the ‘Relive Video’ of the ride route here https://www.relive.cc/view/1229973118

Anyway .. apart from me having the our only 2 punctures of the ride and emptying my bank account in the Rapha store, it was a great ride with super company. I’m loving these mates rides.