Mid-life gap year Tanya and Craig

When talking to cyclists about their preferred cycling locations, Yorkshire is never mentioned but maybe it should be.   The Yorkshire area is always included in the Tour of Britain; it hosted the opening stages of the 2014 Tour de France and a few weeks ago it was where the 2019 UCI world championships were held. It obviously has something going for it. Yorkshire has no really tall mountains like the Alps, Pyrenees or the Dolomites but what it does have is beautiful rolling hills, very steep pinches and miles of secondary lanes through beautiful country side. In September I was lucky enough to experience a variety of these. We overnighted at Kettlewell and in the morning I rode up the steep 1 in 4 climb (25%) to the undulating plateau across paddocks. It was a beautiful serene place to ride. My return was blocked by a stubborn highland cow which would not move off the road and I was not game to get too close. Luckily I was rescued by a farmer who scared the cow...

The Paris to Roubaix cycling race was first held in 1896 which makes it one of the oldest cycling races. The French call it L’Enfer Du Nord (The Hell of the North). In cycling terms it is a spring classic; a difficult one day race early in the season which anyone can win if they have fitness, courage and luck. Unlike most cycling races where mountain climbs sort out the contenders, the P-R travels through almost flat terrain. What separates the P-R from other races is the cobbled stoned roads through the forest of Arenberg. The route varies slightly each year but in 2019 it was 257 km long with 52km of cobbled roads over 29 sections. So the riders are cycling on cobbled stones. “Big deal” I hear you say, “Thousands of cyclists commute every day on cobbled stones in Europe”. We decided to try a section and see what all the fuss is about. Our friend Bartzie (AKA Gert-Jan De Baets) is a professional photographer for Bahamontes cycling magazine . He recommended the sect...