This year the Rough Stuff “Corral" was even bigger than usual with a variety of tents, a camper van and my caravan acting as “chuck” wagon “for the many - not the few!”
After a very enjoyable group barbecue on the Friday night we set up the stall in the marquee and were ready for business by opening time at 10am. A steady trickle of members old and new came along to introduce themselves and sign our members’ attendance book and we were kept busy chatting to cyclists keen to find out about our club and even signed up a few new members and sold some club merchandise! The Rally itself is full of interest and surprises round every corner, tent or stall and well worth a visit.
We put on two rides, myself leading the Saturday afternoon ride to Dunnington and Geoff following the solar system out towards Ricall on the Sunday morning.
The Saturday afternoon ride takes us over the Ouse at the Millennium Bridge then through Walmgate Stray, a strange piece of common agricultural land a cockstride from the city centre, and then round and through the two campuses of York University. We pick up the Way of the Roses into Dunnington where it has become a tradition to enjoy a pint of Timothy Taylors in the Cross Keys. We bade farewell to a couple of cyclo-cross riders keen to get stuck into the rough stuff whilst we got stuck into the Taylors!
When all glasses were drained we set off again leaving Eddie, Joan and John behind to figure out the best route for Eddie’s electric tandem and were soon riding on more agricultural tracks but missing the poppies adorning the fields of previous years - more use of herbicides or just later in the year? The tricky crossing of the A1079 behind us we picked up the Minster Way which we followed pretty well all the way back to York. Most disappointingly the nettles in Rabbit Warren Wood had already been beaten down thus depriving us of one of the highlights of this ride!
The Minster Way doubles as the Wilberforce Way (I wonder when there will be calls to rename it?) as it heads north alongside the rough pasture of Heslington Tillmire which gives way to the manicured greens of what must be one of the thinnest and longest golf courses in England before taking us back to the University Campus and hence back home to the Knavesmire. Seventeen set off and eleven came back - all in a day’s work!
Geoff’s Sunday morning ride is another York Rally traditional. Out along the Solar System as part of the Trans Pennine Trail:
and then back again only waiting for Geoff to hand over the baton to another ride leader when he finds a suitable watering hole. This year it was the pub in Ricall and John Hitchen duly brought those not joining Geoff in the pub back safely to the Knavesmire.
Thanks to everyone who pitched up and took a turn on the stall and crucially for good cheer and company throughout the weekend.
A few more photos on Flickr here:
If you have any more, please send them to me and I'll put them up.
Rob Newton