The "Photos From Today's Ride" thread. (Vol. 2)

[robbiekhan]

Today's 6am ride and a pit stop to collect the senses along with a bit of local "Banksy" lol.

[Piginapoke]

Anyone been out this morning? It was stunning, even Ipswich looked lovely

[Daveyraveygravey]

I did this yesterday, but have been thinking about it for years, and chatting to mates about it. What's the hardest hill in the South East? Barhatch near Cranleigh, Bexley near Midhurst and Bignor, down near Amberley. Haven't been up Barhatch for 3 years, it's a lovely 40 km ride through quiet country lanes with stunning views. The profile of Barhatch is such that it keeps getting steeper so it leaves me wondering if I've left enough in the tank to make it to the top.




My legs felt noticeably weaker after Barhatch, which was a bit worrying as I was less than half way round!




Shillinglee, always worth a photo stop.





The start of Bexley Hill. The road to get here is a lovely roller coaster, but the surface is a shocker and there are little streams along the edges and sometimes across the road.



Made it to the top. Bexley is very similar to Barhatch but I think it's shorter overall and the steep bit is also marginally shorter. You're more likely to struggle for grip though, streams along the road, gravel and stones, and it's narrower so other vehicles could cause you to stop.
The descent to Easebourne is great though, long, sinuous
but not madly steep. Justneedtotakeabitofcareon thenarrowroad.

Burton Mill Pond, another beautiful spot for a rest and snack. Saw two people swimming which I don't think is allowed, and hundreds of fish.



The bottom of Bignor, this one is all about the first 500m, unlike either of the other two. Very quickly, you're in your bottom gear, out of the saddle, balancing power with traction as the gradient goes to 25%, possibly more for short intervals.
I'd got up early thinking it was better to get Barhatch out of the way before the Sunday traffic got going. That was great...but by the time I got to Bignor there were all there. I had two cars on my tail almost as soon as I got on the steep bit, so I pulled over. I probably would have anyway...





So, in conclusion, I think Bignor is the hardest, then Barhatch then Bexley. If I had done them the other way round, might not have made it up Barhatch.
Any other hills to consider? Chalk Pit Lane maybe?

[defblade]

defblade from the what bike bits have you just bought thread said:

Also fitted the slightly smaller chain ring I bought a while back... I'm planning on riding up a mountain tomorrow so I'll need all the help I can get

And I did
Unlike DaveyRG above, I only hit 19%, and that wasn't on the Black Mountain itself... quite enjoyed the ride up, the wind coming down into Brynamman was pretty fierce, though.

New saddle (also on "what bike bits" thread) was really comfy

PH worthy things out - a yellow Ferrari something, a red Porsche something, a Caterham driver with a lid on, what I suspect was a Grinnall Scorpion (how many other serious 3 wheelers are there?), a big Bentley 'vert... and the usual loads of motorbikes having fun

Dryslwyn castle





Caegolwgtribontfach/fawr (something something 3 bridges something/something... my welsh isn't great ), anyway you can kinda see the 3 bridges over the Towy, SW of Llandeilo, from here - you'll have to click the pic and click again to make it big, and then know where you're looking



From a thousand car tests:



And over the top



73.5k and 1157m climbing.

[Maximus_Meridius101]

A lovely morning for a ride.



Customary gate pic.



I found somewhere to have a beer.

[Johnny]

Cracking pics all

Missing the UK a lot right now…

[Bathroom_Security]

Daveyraveygravey said:

I did this yesterday, but have been thinking about it for years, and chatting to mates about it. What's the hardest hill in the South East? Barhatch near Cranleigh, Bexley near Midhurst and Bignor, down near Amberley. Haven't been up Barhatch for 3 years, it's a lovely 40 km ride through quiet country lanes with stunning views. The profile of Barhatch is such that it keeps getting steeper so it leaves me wondering if I've left enough in the tank to make it to the top.




My legs felt noticeably weaker after Barhatch, which was a bit worrying as I was less than half way round!




Shillinglee, always worth a photo stop.





The start of Bexley Hill. The road to get here is a lovely roller coaster, but the surface is a shocker and there are little streams along the edges and sometimes across the road.



Made it to the top. Bexley is very similar to Barhatch but I think it's shorter overall and the steep bit is also marginally shorter. You're more likely to struggle for grip though, streams along the road, gravel and stones, and it's narrower so other vehicles could cause you to stop.
The descent to Easebourne is great though, long, sinuous
but not madly steep. Justneedtotakeabitofcareon thenarrowroad.

Burton Mill Pond, another beautiful spot for a rest and snack. Saw two people swimming which I don't think is allowed, and hundreds of fish.



The bottom of Bignor, this one is all about the first 500m, unlike either of the other two. Very quickly, you're in your bottom gear, out of the saddle, balancing power with traction as the gradient goes to 25%, possibly more for short intervals.
I'd got up early thinking it was better to get Barhatch out of the way before the Sunday traffic got going. That was great...but by the time I got to Bignor there were all there. I had two cars on my tail almost as soon as I got on the steep bit, so I pulled over. I probably would have anyway...





So, in conclusion, I think Bignor is the hardest, then Barhatch then Bexley. If I had done them the other way round, might not have made it up Barhatch.
Any other hills to consider? Chalk Pit Lane maybe?

Nice photos

Barhatch is touted as one of the worst in Surrey. Its on my to ride list this year I just need to adjust my route to accommodate it. Ride past it on my mtb into Winterfold and see the occasional rider just coming over the crest that seems to be in severe discomfort haha.

Pitch Hill is worth a climb up from Ewhurst end for its length if you can shoe horn that in

White down Lane is worth a go if you come out that far, bit of a pig especially at the end of a ride. Right nasty bd bend with a steep climb after. I occasionally do this at the end of a 40 mile, 3200ft ride and it nearly gets the better of me.

[PomBstard]

PB Jnr2 now swims at 0700 twice a week and the pool is just off the local loop, perfect excuse for a lap and some Tuesday morning singletrack...

[Daveyraveygravey]

Bathroom_Security said:

Nice photos

Barhatch is touted as one of the worst in Surrey. Its on my to ride list this year I just need to adjust my route to accommodate it. Ride past it on my mtb into Winterfold and see the occasional rider just coming over the crest that seems to be in severe discomfort haha.

Pitch Hill is worth a climb up from Ewhurst end for its length if you can shoe horn that in

White down Lane is worth a go if you come out that far, bit of a pig especially at the end of a ride. Right nasty bd bend with a steep climb after. I occasionally do this at the end of a 40 mile, 3200ft ride and it nearly gets the better of me.

I've only ever been down Pitch Hill, I should make the effort to go up it some time. I know Whitedown, would love to know more of the history about the pill box after the corner, I guess WW2.
There used to be an event called the Legs of Steel which started at the top of Boxhill and did 8 major climbs in the area. There was a gold standard of 3 hours 15 which I never quite made. I blamed Coldharbour, which was the second climb, I was always below my target average speed by the top of that one. It's demoralising knowing you still have 2.5 hours and 6 hills to go, and you're behind your goal!

[Hugo Stiglitz]

Ah that pillbox was built for the home defence story after Dunkirk I believe when they thought there was going to be a imminent invasion

[yellowjack]

Daveyraveygravey said:

I've only ever been down Pitch Hill, I should make the effort to go up it some time. I know Whitedown, would love to know more of the history about the pill box after the corner, I guess WW2.
There used to be an event called the Legs of Steel which started at the top of Boxhill and did 8 major climbs in the area. There was a gold standard of 3 hours 15 which I never quite made. I blamed Coldharbour, which was the second climb, I was always below my target average speed by the top of that one. It's demoralising knowing you still have 2.5 hours and 6 hills to go, and you're behind your goal!

Some light reading for you about Pillboxes... http://www.pillbox-study-group.org.uk/uk-defence-l...

The one on White Down is part of the GHQ Stop Line around London. There are still "Dragon's Teeth" anti-tank blocks near one of the railway stations in Guildford, and plenty more surviving pillboxes on a "ring" around London. I knew of loads between Wokingham, Fleet, Farnham, Godalming, Guildford, Dorking, Reigate. The line then extends through Tonbridge, Maidstone, Chatham and onto the Isle Of Grain to the Thames.

The White Down section uses the ridge as a natural defence, strengthened with Pillboxes and other man made defences at strategic points. In other places it used canals and rivers, and railway embankments/cuttings to present a difficult obstacle for German tanks to cross. There were other (Divisional) stop lines too. One stretched from the Bristol Channel at Burnham-On-Sea to Seaton on the South Devon coast via Taunton and Ilminster. And another from Burnham-On-Sea east along (mainly) the Kennet And Avon Canal through Devizes and Newbury to Reading (where it met the GHQ Stop Line).

This was the proposed extent of the Stop Lines...

https://lightwater.wordpress.com/2017/08/10/what-d...

I have a book, published in 1985, where the author placed adverts in local newspapers and then curated a map-based list of surviving pillboxes from responses recieved from 1,000 people. But you need to find the box "on the ground" (or on an OS map) and get a grid reference for it before you can access the index to find out the type of box. Without an accurate Grid Reference I'm guessing at TQ 113487 which is described as a "Polyagonal, mixed construction (brick/block with reinforced concrete) pillbox facing South".

There are more of them all along the face of that hill/ridge. Look for them in places where road bridges cross railways or rivers, or where roads cut through terrain with steep banks either side. The plan was to use the terrain to funnel attacking German forces toward pillboxes built at gaps in ridges or where roads crossed rivers, etc, to effectively contain them. Infantry and armour would have been held in reserve initially, the hope being that one of these Stop Lines would do it's job and then the reserve would be moved in to counter-attack and drive "the wicked Hun" back to the invasion beaches and into the sea. The Germans, of course, would have tried to bypass such defences using their Pioneer Battalions to cross rivers, canals, etc in places where there were no (or much weaker) defences. In the end they were never put to the test. And none of them should really have survived. Land owners were paid £10 per pillbox to demolish them after the war, in order to put things back as they had been. But most landowners pocketed the money and left the pillboxes where they were. Farmers, for instance, where they had a box in a field, would simply plough, sow, and harvest around the structures.

There are two pillboxes in this view, extreme left and right of frame, either side of the railway line... https://www.google.com/maps/@51.2832053,-0.9291344...
...and on one side of the bridge over the railway are these "Dragon's Teeth"...
https://www.google.com/maps/@51.2827353,-0.9293648...

This one... https://www.google.com/maps/@51.2450241,-0.8325835... ...is part buried under someone's garden.

And this one (near Farnborough airfield) was "lost" the whole 20 years I lived in the area because it was hidden by woodland on private land... https://www.google.com/maps/@51.2456721,-0.8245139... ...but the last time I drove up there to collect my son for a trip down to stay with us in Bournemouth, I noticed the trees had been cleared and a "new" pillbox had been revealed. This, though, was in an area where some design and testing work had gone on, so there are five (that I know of) pillboxes in a small area, along with at least three structures that have long been demolished. Notice again how this box overlooks a road constrained by steep banks, positioned where it was hoped to stop enemy vehicles from advancing along roads, and to at least make them dismount and fight, thereby giving reserve forces time to position to face them.

Sorry if it's a long-winded reply, but pillboxes (and other home defence measures) are one of my interests.

Oh, and this one doesn't show the pillbox, as it is down below the bridge at canal tow path level... https://www.google.com/maps/@51.2670422,-0.7194161... ...but the pillbox here has been built as an extension to the brick bridge abutments, so as to cunningly disguise it as a part of the bridge itself. It's all bricked up now, but the structure is still there.


ETA: (Holy crap! Is he still going on...?) https://unidoc.wiltshire.gov.uk/UniDoc/Document/Fi... ...and... https://www.hiddenwiltshire.com/post/wiltshire-wal... ...are about Wiltshire, but you may, if you are interested, be able to dig around on the internet find details of local history groups that can help you to interpret WW2 defence structures near you.

Edited by yellowjack on Tuesday 1st June 18:31

[Fossilthe4x4]

Guess who didn't think to put any sun cream on!

[MiltonBaines]

Interesting post on pilboxes, I spent many sunday mornings 'pillbox hunting' with my Dad when I was a kid in the mid to late 80s, he was very interested in the home defences of WW2 and he co-wrote a book on what we found in and around Herts, Bucks and Middlesex. Very small print run I think.
Was great fun searching for them using old maps he had or sometimes just guessing where they may be hidden based on features like canals and roads. Used to love getting inside them, usually up to my ankles in mud or cow poo.
Today with my kids I still point things out as we drive by, concrete blocks and pilboxes ignored by most drivers always catch my eye. Lots around the Watford area still.
Just last week we were driving down a narrow lane, on one side was a concrete block with holes in it, the wall on the other side also had holes in it. My Dad told me metal bars were inserted into each hole to form a crisscross barrier to slow down the invading army.
Amazing what is still around if you look.
If this subject interests you, come on admit it... there is a great series on the Yesterday channel about it at the moment, The buildings that fought Hitler.
Anyway, back to bikes.

Edited by MiltonBaines on Wednesday 2nd June 00:02

Edited by MiltonBaines on Wednesday 2nd June 00:02

[Master Bean]

Fossilthe4x4 said:

Guess who didn't think to put any sun cream on!

[seiben]

Attempted a Johnny.



Nailed it.

[Daveyraveygravey]

Thanks for the info on the pill boxes chaps! There's a couple on the River Adur near me, it's hard to think of the Germans landing at Shoreham then working their way up the tiny river and that these seemingly exposed pill boxes would have held them up for long.

I would have thought the landowners thought a tenner to destroy one wasn't enough. even though it was worth a lot more back then.

[yellowjack]

Daveyraveygravey said:

Thanks for the info on the pill boxes chaps! There's a couple on the River Adur near me, it's hard to think of the Germans landing at Shoreham then working their way up the tiny river and that these seemingly exposed pill boxes would have held them up for long.

I would have thought the landowners thought a tenner to destroy one wasn't enough. even though it was worth a lot more back then.

An interesting investigation of a gun emplacement near Shoreham here... http://www.pillbox.org.uk/blog/245387/

It's clear from reading the piece that the author is certain that there is a great deal of confusion as to the placement of defences due to there being gaps in the physical history. He also seems convinced that there is a great deal of information still to be unearthed in archives. Which makes sense as there is a limited pool of people with enough interest and resources willing to devote time to pulling these old records and reading through them.

One thing to remember with pillboxes, though, is that what they look like now is not how they'd have looked when completed and properly camouflaged. The brick exterior is not factored into the pillbox's protection, either. It simply serves as permanent shuttering for the reinforcing steel and concrete. And they would often have been disguised as other structures, like sheds, barns, ice cream kiosks, beach huts, etc, or they'd have been effecively buried under soil and grass to try to blend them in to their surroundings. You often see smal infantry pillboxes with a thick layer of turf on the top. Some were then "dressed" with camouflage nets, and some had earth piled up in a slope at the sides too, but on farmland especially, this was often dug away after the war to maximise field space without demolishing the box.

This is a good example...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/barryslemmings/28053...
...where the soil and turf on top has survived 75+ years of weathering, but any sloping earth sides it had are long gone, exposing that brick shuttering to weather and nature. Which means it's broken away revealing the reinforced concrete that the box derived it's protection from. More about camouflage and concealment of pillboxes and other defences here... http://www.pillbox-study-group.org.uk/defence-arti...

ETA: Another one I've found through a bit of study this afternoon while it's been raining... http://www.pillbox.org.uk/blog/250548/

Edited by yellowjack on Wednesday 2nd June 15:34

[Johnny]

seiben said:

Attempted a Johnny.



Nailed it.

Are you… naked?

[seiben]

Johnny said:

seiben said:

Attempted a Johnny.



Nailed it.

Are you… naked?

Is that not how it's done?!

[take-good-care-of-the-forest-dewey]

Perfect weather, perfect trails...had a shocker... Just Not feeling the love today... Should have listened to my subconscious... Gap jump over a stream and landed nose heavy into the mother of alll tyre burping tank slappers .... Idiot.