Tandem 2009 (UK National Tandem Rally)
Woodhouse Farm,
Winksley, Ripon, North Yorkshire, England
Saturday, 23rd May 2009 - Saturday, 30th May 2009
| The Event |
After various plans for a National Rally this year (summer 2009) fell through, we finally settled on a venue at Woodhouse Farm near Winksley, west of Ripon in North Yorkshire. The event was run on very much a 'do it yourself' basis with those attending taking the initiative on activities. Each day two route options were offered where the long route was an extension of the short route so that the beginning and ending of all routes was common. It turned out to be a very enjoyable week, no doubt greatly helped by the extraordinarily sunny and warm weather. |
| Saturday, 23rd May | |
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|  Saturday 'Welcome Evening' with Cheese and Wine
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| Sunday, 24th May | |
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|  On the way to Nunwick
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 Tandem team at Ripon Cathedral
|  South west of Ripon on the way to Fountains Abbey
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 On the way to Fountains Abbey
|  Fountains Abbey viewed from the mediæval fair
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| Monday, 25th May | |
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We climbed up yet more hills - this time to the south west with a very long drag up to the turning for the ancient Brimham Rocks. This area is owned by the National Trust and we were told we had to walk our tandems up a long track before being able to refresh ourselves from the kiosk with coffee and some excellent pasties and ice cream. We enjoyed our refreshments on a suitably flat rock in the sunshine before spending a very pleasant time wandering around the strangely shaped and stacked rocks. A lovely south easterly downhill road took us to just outside Ripley where a good bridleway brought us along the south east side of Ripley Castle wall - it looked very busy inside with a falconry flying display and also a custom car show taking place. We opted for tea and cakes in the peaceful adjacent church to sustain us for the hills yet to come to return us to the campsite after a rather strenuous 24 miles. |  Just after the start
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 The first of many hills to Brimham Rocks
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 More hills ahead
|  Closing in on the destination
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 Ice cream reward for all the hills
|  Brimham Rocks
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 On the way to Ripley
|  Tandems in Ripley
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| Tuesday, 26th May | |
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We had just a couple more short uphills before turning east and being able to enjoy a good downhill whizz into Masham and refreshment at the excellent Black Sheep Brewery restaurant. A large group of Tandem Club members enjoyed a guided tour of this small traditional brewery. From Masham it was, of course, down and up many more hills back to the campsite to complete 23 miles. |  Heading to the Druid's temple at Ilton (1)
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 Heading to the Druid's temple at Ilton (2)
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 Heading to the Druid's temple at Ilton (3)
|  The Druid's temple at Ilton
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| Wednesday, 27th May | |
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By early evening the rain had stopped, the sun had come out and the wind had died down and one tandem team joined in the local Harrogate Nova Cycle Club's weekly 10 mile Time Trial. |  Mountain Bike Tandem in temporary Time Trial mode
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| Thursday, 28th May | |
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After the break at Bedale, we made a south west loop to bring us to the beautiful privately owned Thorp Perrow Arboretum. The owner, Sir John Ropner Bt., led us on a very informative guided walk through the arboretum before turning us loose to do our own exploring in the café, falconry centre and children's play area. 38 miles later we arrived back at base via Well - uphill, down into West Tanfield and the various hills of Kirkby Malzeard. |  On the descent from Galphay towards Ripon (1)
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 On the descent from Galphay towards Ripon (2)
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 On the descent from Galphay towards Ripon (3)
|  Between Ripon and Norton Conyers
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 South of Bedale, heading towards Well
|  Sir John Ropner introduces tandemists to
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| Friday, 29th May | |
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We drove into Pateley Bridge, had tea and cakes outside a very pleasant cafe and saw a couple of tandem teams in the town - had they ridden all the way? If so we were full of admiration as the access in and out of Pateley Bridge was truly terrifying with horribly steep gradients and nasty gullies across the roads. In fact it was a local cyclist who had warned us of these gullies and suggested that we do a car-assist ride. The rally was rounded off with a little evening gathering on the campsite. |  On the south shore of Scar House Reservoir,
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 On the north shore of Scar House Reservoir,
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| Saturday, 30th May | |
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Goodbyes and thanks were made before we all went on our separate ways to end a very enjoyable "casually organised" National Rally. Many thanks to Neil, and everyone else concerned, for pulling this one out of the bag. |
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| postscript Sunday, 31st May at Donington Park | |
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JDCycles had issued a discounted invitation to Tandem Club members to join them there. They'd brought their whole tandem stock (30) for people to try out. And people were certainly taking them up on their invitation to try out tandems as we saw many couples on tandems both doing laps around the racing circuit and trying out a little more gently on the grass exhibition field. Ruth & John said they'd had a huge amount of interest over the weekend. There were all sorts of other things going on: Hot Laps (Graeme Obree did one or two), Devil Take the Hindmost race (Stephen Roche took part), interviews with Graeme Obree and Stephen Roche, dual slalom races, dirt jumping, a mountain bike course on which bikes could be taken to try out, trials bikes tricks, there'd been a 12 hour endurance race over Saturday night and floodlit dual slalom racing. Definitely worth stopping off for on our way home. |  Graeme Obree at Donington Park, where
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The photos and narrative on this page are provided by Neville Frost and Tricia Anderson
and are owned by the Tandem Club 2009
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and are owned by the Tandem Club 2009
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