Today wrapped up the official 2025 Gravelton Events calendar despite Storm Claudia doing her best to scupper it on Friday. Thankfully, Routemaster Chris was ahead of the curve. He anticipated the biblical rain forecast and re-routed us onto trails that held up really well despite a months worth of rain two days ago. Credit to him, he compiles these routes around an area I have no idea about and always conjures up a blinder. He does the cool stuff, I’m just a platform for him, so thanks man! Your route knowledge is appreciated and will always bookend the calendar because I love riding around there.
Back to the ride. I woke up at 7.30am and devoured an unusually large bowl of weetabix, granola and a banana washed down with fresh coffee. I was set and ready to go. Kit in the car, bike on top I was away at 8.30am for the 45 min drive to Hicks Lodge. I deliberately got there early so I could have a coffee in the cafe and hook up with my ride buddy Claire who’d emotionally blackmailed me to ride with her again after we’d done the same last month at The Broadway Grinder lol (only joking!). I can’t be too mean because she bought me a coffee!
Sitting there, sipping my Americano, I had eyes on the traffic inbound into the car park and I watched car after car with a bike on it enter so it looked like a good turnout was probable. Graveltonians are a tough bunch! Just before 10am I rounded everyone up and did the standard welcome speech…and it was a good turnout again but I forgot to take a group photo like the amateur I am ffs. Nice to see some new faces alongside some regulars though.
We all rolled out together which is just a great feeling. Inevitably the group gets stretched though and splits and smaller groups form which is not so bad as it eases the congestion at pinch points like gates which there were a few early on. Then I realised some KM in, I’d started my navigation but wasn’t recording and I hadn’t downloaded a map to cover the whole of the new route either ffs. So I was on just a blank screen and a breadcrumb for some of it. It was definitely amateurville today.
As we exited Hicks Lodge and skirted Willesley Wood we rode through Oakthorpe where I took everyone off course briefly. Taxi! But I was quietly glad everyone else missed the turning onto the disused railway line just outside the village. Redemption! Here I stopped and took a few photos of the big group riding past and then caught up.
Exiting Measham we skirted the brick works which is one of my favourite trails. Slimy and technical in places it has old skool cyclocross vibes written all over it. Then In Snarestone we jumped onto the Ashby canal but had to turn around as a ‘Police Incident’ has closed the towpath further on. No bother though. We retraced via Derby Lane which runs parallel and picked the route backup at Shackerstone where we jumped back onto the towpath for a few metres, just to get our canal fix in!
Off up the steps we were off again via Barton-in-the Beans and Nailstone battling a tough, cold headwind here. After the Nailstone village we tackled a lengthy section peppered with puddles and the first steep uphill test onto an exposed plateau, on the outskirts of Battram, but we were rewarded with an equally steep descent aside some steps which I did see a rider tackle successfully. Very impressive!
It was a short section of busy road now then offroad again on a trail that skirted the perimiter of a big warehouse. These were all new trails for me but just great to ride. We popped out onto a busy road again briefly and had take care crossing the A511 before the highlight of the day fo me, a trail that tracked the perimeter of Bardon Hill quarry. What a trail! Here I lost Claire and had to retrace and found her uncharacteristically suffering from cramp. I gave her an isotonic gel and we set off just spinning lightly to try and counter it.
We regouped at the end of the sector and then it was tarmac initially up then down to the outskirts of Coalville to pick up a familiar sector into the woods and out into a housing estate in Whitwick. We initially found the next sector but went offcourse briefly before regrouping and finding the right trail into Snibston Country Park. Here we seemed to go our own ways. I think I missed a little bit of the MTB trails then we picked them up and were back on track. At Ravenstone, Lee and Stef were waiting for Claire and me. We climbed out of the village and hit the Spring Lane byway where I offered Claire a shortcut skipping the Queen Elizabeth wood section which everyone seemed keen to take. At Packington though she locked up with cramp again and had to dismount and we gave her time to stretch it out. ‘What a pleb!’ …her words, not mine lol
Luckily it wasn’t far now and after crossing back over the A42 and dropping through Willesley Woods, Stef and Lee turned right and completed the route while Claire wisely took the shortcut straight back with me because in the cafe she locked up again in pain ‘….worse than child birth’. Her words lol. We’ve all been there so it was a win getting back to base with cramp that bad. Well done mate x
Another great day out, thanks to my ride buddies, thanks to everyone who rocked up and supported the event.
My unedited photo album is here
Adios
Great write up Paul, sounds like you had an eventful & interesting day. I decided not to carry on to Hicks after QE2, but go home having already ridden to Hicks in the morning, I didn’t fancy another 20 miles chasing the last light of the day! Pleased everyone had a good day and got back to Hicks for a recovery drink!👏
Looks another great one – sorry to keep missing them – maybe another year – my mate came 4th in the over 50s in the National CX champs so was a worthwhile reason to miss!