Peak District Youth Hostelling Cycle Trip - 2nd day

[@patrickdaly685]

Beautiful countryside ❤

[@RAsadventures-zr1ge]

It really surprised me how beautiful it was. The Peak District always seems quite a harsh or bleak place but I encountered a rich variety of beauty there, even in February.

[@Charlie-sr6dv]

Thanks. 2 wonderful videos capturing some superb off-road and quiet country lanes and cycleways weaving through such lovely countryside. What a delightful route although looks quite challenging with all the hills!

[@RAsadventures-zr1ge]

It was a lovely trip with so much beauty in unexpected corners and I enjoyed making the videos. I probably made a bit much of the hills as I am rather out of condition at the moment - but they are a big contrast to my normal flat cycling area. Thank you for your thoughtful comment - it is nice to know that you enjoyed the videos!

[@michaelfinn1317]

I really enjoyed these two videos. Place I’ve hiked and cycled back in the day. Lovely country. I greatly appreciate all the time and effort to film and go back for the camera.

[@RAsadventures-zr1ge]

Thanks. I really enjoyed doing it actually - it made me appreciate the scenery even more and gave me an excuse to get off the saddle too! I'm really glad you enjoyed them. Thanks for the comment!

[@grahamhaines9931]

Stayed at YHA Hartington on a 2 day pedal - top place. Thanks for sharing.

[@RAsadventures-zr1ge]

It's a very nice place for that! I have just come back from a second visit there, exploring more nice routes and a friendly evening at the hostel. Thanks for your nice comment!

[@davidcollin3808]

Nice video great place to ride.

[@RAsadventures-zr1ge]

Thank you. Yes it is!

[@johnm-wv6bo]

great video, love the peak district but my body hates the hills.

[@RAsadventures-zr1ge]

Mine protests too!

[@stevenorris575]

Link works a treat, thank you.

[@iantaylor7158]

loved the video's. lots of familiar places and some I've not seen. Would you mind linking the Komoot route please, I dont have a Garmin and use my phone for navigation.

[@RAsadventures-zr1ge]

I'm glad you enjoyed the videos - it's really nice to hear! I have edited the descriptions to include links which should hopefully open the route on Komoot. It's the route based on my track including missed turnings. In particular you need to watch out for the left turn into a path through a gate as you are enjoying a fast descent after Bradbourne (on my day 1 video) which I almost missed and had to go back up the hill to it - it leads into a lovely valley before rejoining the road - it was worth going back to! Most of the route was on the national cycle network, so keep an eye open for the blue signs. Thanks for commenting. I hope this helps!

[@philw4625]

You definitely did that the right way round. We did the wyedale bit the other way (on bromptons) and it was basically a long push!

[@RAsadventures-zr1ge]

Yes, I can believe that. But the rail trails must be superb on Bromptons. I may have a go myself sometime!

[@stevenorris575]

Great videos very inspirational. I'd love to try this hopefully at Easter. Would you mind sharing the GPX please

[@RAsadventures-zr1ge]

I'm glad you enjoyed them. I thought the route was really good - mainly designed by SUSTRANS and OS. I'll see what I can do about sharing the GPX file later on and add another reply when I've done it. Thanks for your nice comment!

[@RAsadventures-zr1ge]

Hi I have now put links to the courses on Garmin Connect in the video descriptions (near the end). Obviously you can just use these courses if you have a Garmin but if not, or if you want to use a different app, then there seems to be an option to download the GPX. If this doesn't work for you then do let me know - I haven't tried sharing a GPX file online before so I'm feeling my way here!

[@stevenorris575]

@@RAsadventures-zr1ge Many thanks for taking the time not only to respond but to dig out & linking the files, I'll let you know if the link works 🤟

[@adrianhaswell5171]

What saddle do you use.?

[@RAsadventures-zr1ge]

Brookes saddles mainly - they seem to suit me! I have used a B17 and a Flyer (basically a B17 with springs) and I've also tried a C17 (the moulded rubber version of a B17) because I had problems when my Flyer got wet and stretched a lot, but I do find the leather ones more comfortable. One thing I have found makes a huge difference for me is a suspension saddle post which smooths the bumps on worn tarmac as well as off-road - I prefer the Kane Creek Thudbuster; I have a SunTour sprung post (half the price) which works very well but it is hard to stop it squeaking. I don't usually suffer from saddle-soreness if my legs are strong and take some of the weight, but recent illnesses and arthritis mean they are sometimes weak so the right support is essential.

[@adrianhaswell5171]

Thank you for the reply - I use a Brookes B17 which has always been very comfortable, especially on long multi-day trips, however lately I have been experiencing a sore spot on my left side. I have had both knees replaced over the last 4 years and I am now wondering if that has affected my position on the bike. I've looked at professional bike fits but they are so expensive.

[@RAsadventures-zr1ge]

@@adrianhaswell5171 I sympathise with your problem. My discomfort has always come when I have lacked strength in my legs. When I have been uncomfortable it has always been on pressure points near the back of the saddle - my "sit bones" as I have heard people say. Obviously I am no expert, but things I have found helpful include: - Checking the tension on the saddle is enough to stop it sagging. The top of the saddle is like a hammock and on my comfortable saddles it is pulled tight - nearly straight. When the tension pin on my flyer saddle broke on my tour of the Meuse and Rhone last year, we (i.e. Denis) replaced it with one off an old scrap saddle that was not long enough to be fully tightened so all the support for my weight was on the rear of the saddle near the riveted metal frame and that was very unpleasant after a short while. The slack middle part of the saddle was sagging too much to give support. - Tilting the nose of the saddle upwards. I discovered by accident that this helped me by providing support further forwards under my crotch and taking some of the pressure off my sit bones. I had expected this would make me slide back and put more pressure on the sit bones but if it did then the support further forwards more than compensated. - More padding! I wear padded shorts and, in the winter, padded leggings too, so 2 layers of padding. But the padding slowly crushes (as it is meant to) and after a few hours it is not helping much. So... - Change or add extra padded shorts during the ride. I have tried putting on an extra, fresh pair of shorts for the last few hours of a ride, and that provided some relief. I once saw some shorts labelled as endurance shorts for long rides and the advert said the padding was good for 2 hour rides - that's not long, but it gave me the idea of replacing or adding to the padding during the ride to get multiple periods of 2 hours before each pad gets squashed to nothing. It would be nice if I could also replace my skin every few hours too! The worst problem I ever had was with a pair of shorts that had a very dense foam that seemed to be non-porous - good padding but terrible for my skin! As a result I have never bothered trying shorts with gel pads. As I said, I am no expert on bike fitting etc, but maybe these ideas might help inspire a search for the solution for your problem.

[@adrianhaswell5171]

Thanks for the comments - Ive resisted increasing the tension too much as Brookes mention that you have to careful not to over stretch the leather but I will certainly give it a try. Also I do think age may play a part as I’m into my early 70,s now and although quite fit for my age I’m sure I’m not as flexible as I used to be.