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Published: February 4th 2007
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Outdoor Centre at Calver
Calver crossroads, where we made our first stop at an outdoor centre for camping accessories and a 15 minute break. 7-am saw me up and taking the dog out for his walk on this frosty morning, the grass white over and the ground hard but despite that the sky was clear and the sun was rising. Today was to be the first ride out of the year with the Three Shires branch of the Honda Owners Club. Most of the party had camped out over the night at a farm on the B6056 near Eckington, Sheffield, but at this time of year I preferred to be a little warmer so I decided just to join them for the run out on the bikes on the Saturday. With the dog back at home, I changed into my leathers with thermals underneath and text the group to let them know I was on my way. I was un-certain which bike to take on the run, I’d recently done quite a bit of work on the Pan and had a couple of runs out on it to Leeds and Huddersfield so I was happy with the way it was running plus I wanted to take the VFR out for a blast. However the Pan does have heated hand grips to keep my fingers warm,
Hartington
Finally we arrived at Hartington and headed toward a tea room for refreshments. It was a beautiful day and we sat outside on benches at tables in a grassed area for a drink and a slice of cake. The service was very slow but it was a lovely day so it didn’t matter, I was so chilled here I forgot to get the camera out and take a picture. Sat-Nav to help me find the group and a good screen to keep the wind off me, plus my MP3 piped into my helmet… So the Pan it was to be. So off I went on my way calling at the cash point en-route and within 45-minutes I met up with the group.
I’d been there for about 45-minutes, had a pot of tea, seen a few a familiar faces, scrounged a sausage and a slice of bread and listened to a few plans for the days ride, then we headed for the open road. On ride outs the club use a buddy system which consists of a lead rider who knows the route and a last man rider who has knowledge of the route. The rest of the group ride between the leader and the last man, nobody passes the leader and the last man does not pass any of the group. When the leader come to a road junction and pulls out, be it right, left or straight on, he continues and the next person in the pack stops to indicate the direction to the rest of the pack. As the last man comes along the person that stopped pulls away in front of him until the next junction when the whole process is repeated, gradually a rider works his way through the pack then drops back towards the back of the pack and so on. Once you get used to it it’s quite easy really.
After leaving the farm we headed through Old Brampton, Cubar to the Calver crossroads, where we made our first stop at an outdoor centre for camping accessories and a 15 minute break. The sun was out and not a cloud in the sky. The roads were drying up nicely with the only dodgy spots been in the shade and the day was looking promising. From here we headed down some really narrow lanes towards Winster then on to Hartington. Some of these lanes required a lot concentration, one road we rode along had an area of about 50-mtrs of ice where water had run over the road and frozen overnight. Here all I could think was if the guy in front of me lost it, where was I going to go to avoid him, braking was not an option, although we had all seen it early enough and slowed up in plenty of time. Other bits of single track road had gravel and bits of branches in the centre were car wheels never touches, cut onto these on a corner and it would be like riding on marbles, so watching the road surface was just as important as watching the road ahead and the other conditions. At one point we came across a van coming the other way which pulled hard to his left to give us space, in fact his front bumper was in the banking on his near side. He waited for the 9 bikes to pass. As I came to pass him I looked at the little bit of tarmac available on his offside and assessed whether I could get past using the tarmac or whether I’d need to go on the grass, what I didn’t want was to be half and half. I have a theory about the Pan and narrow gaps, if it’s wide enough for the mirrors to go through, then the rest of the bike including the panniers should follow okay, just like cat’s whiskers. Finally we arrived at Hartington and headed toward a tea room for refreshments. It was a beautiful day and we sat outside on benches at tables in a grassed area for a drink and a slice of cake. The service was very slow but it was a lovely day so it didn’t matter, I was so chilled here I forgot to get the camera out and take a picture. Slowly people started to get up and pay for their refreshment and then we walked back to our bikes. After a few visits to local shops and a few pictures we continued our journey.
Leaving Hartington on the road we came in on, we joined the A515 for a short while before turning right towards Monyash then on through Taddington and on to the B6049 towards Tideswell. I wasn’t sure exactly where I was at this point but soon we were travelling along a road that looked familiar. There was a high ridge on my right then I spotted a wind sock and I realised this was where my wife Julie bought my 40th birthday present, a trip in a glider. This was soon confirmed when we came to the next junction and turned right towards Bamford and Hathersage on the A6187. This was a road I knew well some 15-years since with a 30-ton truck to the cement works at Hope. Now turning right and over cattle grids and heading through Grindleford, Baslow and onto the B6012 towards Beeley. Exactly what route we followed next, I’m not sure but eventually we turned left on to a main road which I soon recognised as the A61 north towards Chesterfield. Staying with the A61 we paid a visit to Crusader Leathers near to the Sheepsbridge round-about. After a cup of tea and a look around the shop, I was conscious of the time and didn’t want to be riding home in the dark so I said my goodbyes and headed for home.
Arriving home I checked my mileage to find I’d done 149 very enjoyable miles. If it’s just as nice tomorrow, I might just take the VFR out for a run into Lincolnshire
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