NORTHERN NEWS

Number 151                                                                              

 Jan  07

                  

 

                  San Xavier Mission, Southern Arizona

 

 

NEXT COPY DATE – TUESDAY 27th FEBRUARY.

 

HON SEC’S JOTTINGS                                            by John Bedford

Happy New Year to you all. This is our 151st edition. Colour has now been introduced! Comments are welcome.

Newsnet. Would you like to keep up to date with more cycling news? Yannick Read at CTC produces a weekly newssheet every Friday. Just send your name, membership number or postcode, and email address to publicity@ctc.org.uk.

Audax. Now is the time to get your Audax entries in to Geoff Findon.

Details and entry form can be downloaded from www.audax.uk.net

or obtained from Geoff. The date is 22nd April.

Other dates for your new diary

 

SHENSTONE CLUBROOM, 8pm

TUES. 30th Jan.          Pre-jumble Sale. Either sell those bits that are cluttering up your garage, or donate them to the Club for sale on the Club stand on Sat 3rd  March.

TUES. 27th Feb.          French Evening. Further details from John & Mary

TUES. 3rd  April.        Short slide show: ‘Rockies 2. Cycling the highest continuous paved road in the World’ by John Bedford.

 

WINTER CLUBROOM, CARRS LANE CHURCH CENTRE, CENTRAL BIRMINGHAM.

7.30pm. £2 admission. Refreshments.

TUES. 13th Feb           ‘Cycling Lhasa to Katmandu via Everest Base Camp’ by Mark Rutter

                                    Mark rode this ’interesting’ route on a road bike

TUES. 13th Mar.        ‘Why don’t you fly?’ by Chris Smith

Bewdley to Beijing by bike, 16500 miles. More info at www.cycleuktochina.com 

NORTHERN CYCLE JUMBLE

Sat 3rd  Mar. 10 to 1pm, Admission 50p

Erdington Methodist Church Hall, Station Road.

Volunteers required to set up tables Friday evening, 9.15pm, for about 1/2 hour. 

Also help Saturday about 12.45pm to clear away.

As at 17/1/07 still 2 tables available at £7 each. Why not make some money from all those bits & pieces cluttering up your garage?

 

Sunday 11th March. DA 50 miles Standard Ride. South side of Birmingham. Further details later.

 

DAFFODIL WEEKEND at Ross on Wye. 24th-25th March. Come and join us for a weekend away in a new area. Non-cycling partners very welcome. There are numerous interesting attractions that can be visited. Make your own accommodation arrangements in Ross or nearby. The base will be Walford Village Hall. Two members have already booked in to Welsh Bicknor YH and Beryl & I are staying at ‘The Inn on the Wye’ nearby. I have booking forms for the weekend.

 

HEART OF ENGLAND RALLY, MERIDEN. 12th-13th May.

MILDENHALL RALLY. 25th -27th August. Bank Holiday weekend

GOLDEN BEECHES WEEKEND.  The Chilterns, 27th-28th October

 

 

A DAY IN THE ARCHIVES                                  by Brian Langdell

 

The forecast for the next day was for heavy rain and gale force winds, so that ruled out cycling, rambling and gardening. I had noted on the calendar that Wolverhampton Archives were having an Open Day prior to relocating. (Archives are always on the move since they never throw anything away and are always adding documents and run out of storage space). This time they were moving into the old Molineaux Hotel, a listed building recently refurbished and converted (by Ron Tooze and his workmates).

 

The ‘stormy day’ had petered out by 9am, by which time I was on the train. The Archives Dept. had put on an interesting display including a 1650 handwritten account of the Civil War, illuminated manuscripts (monks copying out Bibles all day and every day were lucky if they completed 3 in a lifetime!) Photographs of past industries in the area and a display board with a lorry tyre section from the local tyre factory. There was a large scale map of Wolverhampton in great detail covered in Russian spelling, prepared for their possible invasion during the Cold War! There were several computer and projection screens showing pages from registers of Births, Marriages and Deaths. A conservation laboratory where damaged documents were restored was also shown to us.

 

Then the Chief Archivist took us into the strongrooms. He explained they like to store items in cardboard boxes but this was not always possible e.g. the leather bound book of the 1880’s council meeting minutes, just a bit bigger than A4 but 15 inches thick! Also a civil engineering drawing of a sewer pipe route through Tettenhall 2 feet wide and 45 feet long!

 

Back in the main room I was looking through some leaflets with another man, there was also a lap top computer on the table. A lady assistant asked if we had ever used one, to which we both said “No”. He added “I would rather be out on my bike than in the house looking at a screen”. (He was in the Wolverhampton Wheelers but now rode with the Wombourne Section of the CTC). The lady insisted she would like to demonstrate it and asked for a subject to enter. Quick as a flash he said “Stallard” explaining to her that Percy was a top racing cyclist in his day and had a cycle shop in Wolverhampton. So the name went in to reveal that in his will he had left piles of documents to the Archives which they had catergorised into 109 groups. He said

“My name was in Percy’s will, he left me money specifically to organize a happy party for all his old cycling pals, which I was very pleased to do”.

 

Before I left I was interviewed by a journalist from the Express and Star. One question he asked was “Why did you come today?” I didn’t tell him it was because of the weather forecast!

 

The next day the forecaster actually apologized for getting it wrong; I’m glad he did, I may have missed out on a very interesting day.

***

PERCY THORNLEY STALLARD 1909 - 2001

If you want to see what Percy got up to in his lifetime and get an insight of life the other side of the counter in a bikeshop go to:-

www.Blackcountryhistory.org   Search:- Stallard.

Items covered:- shop orders and invoices, workshop records, frame design, frame register numbers/purchaser, photographs, race write ups of the many he rode in (2 World Championships), formation BLRC, War records in Home Guard, down to receipt for a bed!

Obviously for detailed information you would need to consult the actual document.

TRAIN ASSISTED RIDES                                          by Tom Moore

Since receiving my Centro Senior Citizen’s travel pass I have been on several train assisted rides using Central Trains’s services. Cycles are carried Free of charge on local services and trains can carry four bikes on a first come basis. I am preparing details of some of these rides and can provide copies if you would like one. The rides include the opportunity to visit places of interest. Rides so far documented are:

1. Starting from Kidderminster (add-on fare £2.10 -2006)   27 miles

   Visiting Witley Court (English Heritage), Gt. Witley Church and tea         rooms (the finest Baroque church in England – exquisite).

2.  Starting from Dorridge.   25 miles. To Hatton Locks (for tea rooms & picnic tables) with the opportunity of visiting Packwood House and Gardens (National Trust) on outward or return legs and/or Baddesley Clinton Hall and Gardens (NT) on return leg.                                    For the more energetic both rides can be extended.

MINERS & MEMORIALS                                     by Beryl Bedford

 

On New Year’s Eve, Dave Frost took the C Riders on a most interesting ride. Firstly, we were taken to see Dave’s favourite statue, which was of an enormous glittering (stainless steel?) miner, at the northern end of Brownhills. Very impressive.

 

From there, we went to Chasewater Railway Station café for a nice hot coffee and tea-cake. They had an interesting shop and a blazing coal fire, and made us most welcome.

 

Then we continued north through Norton Canes to Hednesford. Here we were shown a memorial to miners who had worked in the various local pits. This consisted of a large ornate miner’s lamp and a long brick wall. When Sue and I arrived, a lady was explaining that each brick had the name of a miner and the colliery where he had worked. She pointed out the one with her father’s name on it and said that he had died of a lung disease aged only 46. Ron was of course a ‘mine’ of information about the type of brick used and how they were cut and fitted.

 

Next was a steady climb up to the Tower on Cannock Chase, and on to the war-graves cemeteries. Dave pointed out the various types of headstones which were curved or pointed at the top to denote which of the fallen were Polish or New Zealanders (many of whom had ironically died of ’flu after the war).

 

We then cycled up the drive to the German cemetery, entering a brick building to go through to the sculpture of ‘The Fallen Warrior’, and then to the graves outside. Fortunately there was a table and chairs inside the building, which we used for a hasty and draughty picnic.

 

Thankfully it was all downhill for a while, so we returned to the same café for tea and mince-pies, and just got back home as darkness fell. Unfortunately it poured with rain as we approached Streetly, but we had all still had a great day. Thank you, Dave.

 

THE ROAD TO SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA by Don O’Gorman

Over a year ago a friend of mine, Mark Clinton, who had been to Santiago in northwest Spain, courtesy of Ryanair, expressed a wish to cycle part of the historic French route ( The Camino Frances ) which stretched across northern Spain from the Pyrenees to Galicia. With another colleague from Boldmere, Peter Bird, we decided to plan a trip following the old pilgrim route from the city of Leon. Before long, two more friends, Sean and Tony, decided to join us. As the five of us were in the age group 63 - 73 years, we felt we could not undertake a challenge as demanding as the Camino without a long period of preparation as all five of us were inexperienced cyclists.

The pilgrimage, which dates back to the 10th century, has seen a great revival of interest in recent times. What are believed to be the relics of St. James, the Apostle, are buried under the altar at the great Romanesque cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. Most people who complete the pilgrimage walk the route, but 20% are cyclists. For cyclists to qualify they must cycle, at least, the last 200 kilometres of the pilgrim route. Most do considerably more, with many starting at St. Jean-Pied de-Port on the French side of the Pyrenees, a distance of between 8-900 kilometres. We decided to do a modest 312 kilometres from Leon. Before we left home, we were being asked what arrangements we had put in place to have our bodies repatriated!

People from all backgrounds and corners of the world are to be found along the Camino. The motivation varies enormously. Most have a religious reason but many are seeking space and time to address issues of a personal/family nature. Some like the physical challenge, others are attracted by the impact of the many cultural and artistic treasures which are to be found along the full length of the Camino but, whatever the motivation, the experience of the pilgrimage leaves no one unmoved.

The logistics of reaching our point of departure (Leon) were quite involved. We left home on the 8th October flying, with our bikes, from Stansted (Ryanair) to Compostela. We had booked a couple of nights accommodation in a back-packers hostel off the Plaza de Galicia in the historic quarter. The assembly of the bikes took us longer than expected as, collectively, our mechanical expertise was limited.

On the 10th October, with our bikes fully laden, we rode to the train station in Santiago. The day before we had purchased rail tickets to Leon via Ourense on regional trains. We had booked two nights accommodation in Leon. The hotel was comfortable and was to be our last bit of indulgence before the more penitential side, of what we were about to begin, impacted. Leon was impressive with historic buildings of great significance. The city has the finest Gothic cathedral in Spain with stained glass of a brilliance to rival Chartres in France.

Early on the morning of the 12th October we started our bike ride to Compostela. Yellow arrows mark the route of the Camino and can be seen on roads, trees, walls, buildings and point the pilgrim inexorably westward. We left Leon in glorious sunshine and faced a steep pull out of the city. The route soon flattened out and the five of us had a relatively easy run to Astorga, crossing an historic Roman bridge at Puente de Orbigo. Storks were nesting on the nearby church roof.

We booked into a pilgrim refuge in Astorga. Most refuges/hostels are inexpensive (around 10 Euro a night). The pilgrim refuges in Galicia do not charge but will accept donations. That first day was a gentle introduction and in no way prepared us for the next stage of the Camino from Astorga to Ponferrada. On the outskirts of the cobbled-stoned village of Castrillo de los Polvazares we purchased scallop shells from a wayside entrepreneur. The scallop shell is the symbol of the pilgrimage and can be seen painted on walls and sculpted on buildings, both secular and sacred, along the route of the Camino. With the scallop shells secured to our carriage bags no one could doubt our pilgrim credentials. There is a wonderful sense of comradeship and friendship along the route. Pilgrims are not viewed as intruders but are warmly welcomed by the local people. Along the route one is greeted with the salutation “Buen Camino “. Inevitably, there is constant contact with fellow pilgrims, mainly walkers, and the same warmth and spirit of openness is evident.

By now we were climbing steeply into the Marageteria country and ahead lay the imposing mountains of Leon. Before long we began to realise that our training runs around the country lanes of Staffordshire were no adequate preparation for very steep mountain climbs. Tony, whose bike was not performing well, was finding the going very rough. To compound our problems, the chain on my bike broke on a steep uphill climb. My friend, Peter, managed to fix it but we were considerably delayed. Ahead lay the intimidating climb to Cruz de Ferro, reaching an altitude of 4,888 feet, the highest point between the Pyrenees and Santiago.

After an exhausting and muscle-cracking climb Peter and I got to the summit where, as tradition dictated, we each placed a stone on the great mount of stones built up by passing pilgrims over a millennium. Surmounted on top was a simple iron cross. The views, en route, had been stupendous. Eventually our 3 colleagues joined us at the summit. After a rest we set off, anticipating an effortless descent to Ponferrada. The descent was quite problematic as we were hit by vicious cross-winds on rounding bends at speed and had to take great care to avoid losing control and ending up in a crumpled and bruised heap in the deep culverts along the road margins.

After a refreshing stop in the mountain village of El Acebo, where there was a much needed intake of energizing liquid, we continued the descent. Unfortunately, we had only proceeded a few kilometres when we were confronted with a police road-block. The police informed us that the road was inaccessible because there was a car rally in progress. We were diverted onto a mountain track which was almost impassable. If the climb to Cruz de Ferro had not introduced a penitential aspect to our pilgrimage, the next 5 kilometres were almost unimaginable. Cycling was impossible; we had to physically lift the bikes over rocks and boulders which were liberally strewn along the track. By the time we rejoined the road at Molinaseca a whole new chapter had been added to the lexicon of expletives, despite our pilgrim status. By the time we crawled into Ponferrada, we, unanimously, confessed it had been physically the most demanding day of our lives. We hoped St. James would forgive our verbal and mental indiscretions!

The following day our progress was very limited as Tony had not been feeling too well. The previous day’s effort had left its mark. We reached Villafranca del Bierzo where we booked into the local pilgrim refuge. Our next goal was the mountain-top hamlet of O Cebreiro (altitude 4,225 feet). This stage was extremely difficult with very steep ascents, most of which had to be walked. By now, Tony’s physical resources were increasingly depleted. We decided to stop short of our goal and spent the night in a local village. Collectively, we decided that it would be imprudent for Tony to continue any further and he accepted our advice graciously. The next day we bade him farewell, having seen him onto a coach which took him (and his malfunctioning bike) back to Compostela. As it was now late afternoon we rode the short distance to O Cebreiro, a very small settlement guarding the mountain pass into Galicia. O Cebreiro has a special place in the spiritual geography of the Camino. There has been a religious community in O Cebreiro for more than a thousand years. Personally I found it the most spiritually atmospheric place along the Camino. In its 9th century church, built by Benedictine monks in 836, the spirit of the pilgrimage seemed to touch one almost tangibly. Here was a community which had survived terrible mountain winters and was maintaining the tradition of serving and sustaining pilgrims and the pilgrimage itself.

The following morning we started the descent from O Cebreiro. By now it was raining heavily and keeping the contents of our panniers dry became a priority. The rain was unrelenting for the next 60 hours. On the steep descent it was necessary to brake sharply to keep control of the bike. By the time we reached Sarria my back brakes were completely worn and had to be replaced.

The final two stages were uneventful, if still requiring considerable physical effort. Despite the hardships of the pilgrimage, there was a wonderful sense of fulfilment as we cycled into the Plaza de Obradoiro, the great square in front of the baroque façade of the cathedral in Santiago. The pilgrimage ends when the pilgrim enters the cathedral and places one’s hand on the central pillar (representing the Biblical Tree of Jesse) of the great sculpted doorway known as the Portico de la Gloria. We ended our pilgrimage by performing this ritual as millions of pilgrims have done since the 10th century. This was a very humbling moment at the end of our journey.

All that remained to be done was to make our way around to the nearby Pilgrims Office where we presented our “ Credential “ (Pilgrim’s Passport) which we had duly got stamped and dated in churches and refuges along the way. We received our “Compostela“, the certificate awarded to those who complete the pilgrimage. No doubt, it will become part of the family archives and an heirloom to show our grandchildren. The Camino was a unique and memorable experience. There were times when confronted with immense mountain climbs and penetrating rain that the words of the prophet Isaiah came to mind….”make his paths straight, every valley will be filled in, every mountain and hill be laid low, winding ways will be straightened and rough roads made smooth”. But, on reflection, it is essential, for posterity, to maintain the physical integrity of the historic Camino. In many ways the last steps or revolutions of the bike wheels into Santiago are the first steps or revolutions of another journey. There is an old saying that one’s pilgrimage does not end in Santiago ……it begins there!

GHOST RIDER OF THE A38                                by Brian Langdell

New Year’s Day 2007 dawned with a cloudless sky and strong sunlight. I decided to go to Neville’s ‘Open House’, or should I say ‘Open Cottage’, at Whittington. Passing through Little Hay I headed for the new bridge over the A38. Cycling up the ramp with the sun shining brightly on my right, I noticed what a strong shadow I cast on the left hand metalwork. Then I saw that someone had caught me up, his shadow was on the backwheel of my shadow. I turned round to speak to this cyclist but there was no one there! I looked to my left again and sure enough there were two shadows, one behind the other. Puzzled, I stopped on the bridge looking for an explanation for this spooky experience and decided to look at the ramp. The sun was low down and at a critical angle. The first shadow was the normal one. The other one was caused by the sun being reflected on the bright metal panels on the left hand side across to the right hand side panel which then acted as a second light source generating another shadow on the left side. Because the sides of the ramp were not exactly parallel the shadow was displaced by a bike length. Mystery solved, I was able to continue the ride in a relaxed state of mind to Neville’s for a very pleasant coffee stop.

FOR SALE. Orbit 22” Caraway, 21 speed with 26” touring wheels @ £495.

Orbit 19” Ventura, 21 speed with 700c wheels @ £495.

A selection of part-built touring bikes at various prices.Just contact John on 353 5136.

FOR SALE. All bikes must go as I can no longer balance. These include Expedition Tourers, . Folders and All-Terrain – Phone me for details. Also clothing, luggage etc, including many unused items.  WANTED. 22”/23” Trike. Phone Phil on 07980 420 445

 

 

SOUTHERN ARIZONA                                            by John Bedford

 

We seem to be running out of suitable warm areas to cycle during the winter months, so it was a relief to realize that south of Phoenix could be a possibility. The internet showed that the average temperatures for Nov/December might be 70 degrees, but with cool mornings and evenings and little rain. Initially the temperatures were in the 80s, but as we got into the mountains we did experience a very cold spell, with some ice on one of the rivers. The only rain we had was overnight. The downside was that it would be dark by 5-30. We get round this by getting out early in the morning, and going to bed between 9 and 10 at night. A route was duly prepared and a booking made in the British Airways sale. So once again it was down to Heathrow for an overnight stay at Colnbrook Quality Hotel. This is convenient as on-site parking is included at a reasonable price. Next morning we tried a new route into Terminal 4 which was a big improvement on other routes we had tried.

 

By the time we got out of Phoenix airport after the 10 hour flight it was just dark, so it was fortunate that we’d got lights. It was only 5 miles to our pre-booked Best Western Hotel, but it was 2 or 3 o’clock in the morning, British time, so we went straight to bed.

 

By using the internet I had found it easy to sort out the local bus routes and times. So next morning, to avoid town cycling, we took advantage of the buses with their bike racks, covering about 15 miles to the outskirts for about 30p as seniors.

 

Soon we were leaving Chandler and getting out into the countryside. This is a desert region, but quite green with its scrubland and cacti. Some flat areas were well irrigated so we saw cotton being harvested by large machines, and then compacted into bales as large as a room.

There were also fields of hay, and horses grazing. We saw numerous green golf courses – and one that was sand, with strategic shrubs adding interest(?) for the golfers.

 

Basically we headed south to Tucson and then down to the Mexican border at Nogales, before swinging northeast to Tombstone of OK Corral fame. Then back to Tucson and a more mountainous route back to Phoenix. The scenery was very varied. We climbed to about 5000 ft at Tombstone and most climbs were fairly gradual except when approaching Superior. Some days there were quite long distances between towns and villages so we always made sure that we had some cake available in the panniers. Petrol stations were a main supplier for coffee stops, though unfortunately few had any seating.

 

Half of our nights were spent at Best Westerns, usually costing only £40 to £50, including a good breakfast. The cheapest motel was only £20 without breakfast. It was a good job this was available as we’d done a hilly 42 miles, and there wasn’t another motel for many miles.

The most expensive hotel was at Sonoita, at £65 with breakfast. This building had originally been built in 1980 as a large barn for ‘the world’s most celebrated thoroughbred, Secretariat – the famed racehorse who in 1973 won the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont’. I hasten to add that the building had since been tastefully converted! The deceased husband of the lady who ran this hotel was a renowned saddler, and she even knew about Walsall Saddlery Museum.

Just before Tucson we passed through the Saguara National Park with miles of cacti before visiting the Desert Museum. This was really a zoo with the desert animals in natural surroundings. Unfortunately it

was hot so many of the animals were hidden away in the foliage. This was compensated for by a flying display of Harris Hawks which was excellent. Later in the tour we came across some wild Javalinas (like a small black boar) which we were able to identify.

 

Two Spanish Missions were visited. San Xavier, just south of Tucson, had the builders in, but we were still able to see most of it. The mission has been called the finest surviving example of a Spanish colonial church in the New World. It was founded in 1692 by Jesuit missionary Father Francisco Kino, priest and frontier trailblazer for colonial Spain. The following day we visited the Mission at Tumacacori. Once again this had been built by Father Kino, but was now in a poor state of repair.

 

There were a number of small towns such as Tubac, Tombstone, and Patagonia where we were able to amble around or sit and drink coffee. Tombstone was the most touristy, but at this time of the year there are no coaches and few tourists. We didn’t see any other touring cyclists either. Whilst we visited Tucson twice we saw little of its attractions as both times it was dark when we arrived. One oddity on the tour at the town of Superior was The Smallest Museum in the World. This building was about 7ft x 10ft. You walk through and there are displays either side. These were mainly old mining bits and pieces, along with some old household articles.

 

Of course there aren’t the country lanes that we are used to. Nevertheless, most roads had a good hard-shoulder so we felt safe. There were one or two times when we had to cycle on the Freeway, just like our motorways, but with the hard-shoulder and little traffic this was not too onerous.

 

Before returning to Phoenix we spent two nights at Apache Junction. The main attraction was to cycle the Apache Trail with its Goldfield Ghost Town, and to visit the Arizona Opry. This is a theatre which holds a dinner show. This has been going for 25 years and has five different shows throughout the year. A roast dinner is served at 6-30 and the music begins at 7-30. The group is very talented and gave a very varied programme which we thoroughly enjoyed. An excellent evening for only £13 each!

 

We had a couple of unusual incidents. The evening was bitterly cold at Mammoth so we turned on a wall gas heater. Unfortunately the bike was parked just in front of it, and unbeknown to me my pump was warped by the heat. Two days later I got a puncture in Apache Junction, only to find that the pump would not work. Fortunately another cyclist came along at that moment and took us to his nearby home where he was able to lend us a pump. I dread to think what would have happened if one of us had punctured whilst out in the wilds! In the second incident I climbed up a bank to take a photo of a particular cacti. Jumping down afterwards I stumbled into another cacti. The result was that a large piece of cacti broke off, the spikes being firmly embedded in my leg. Now these spikes are all at various angles and have barbs on them. The pain was excruciating when I tried to remove them. I later learnt from a cyclist that they usually cut the spikes from the parent cacti so that they can easily twist the barbs out.

 

We covered the majority of the roads south of Phoenix in the fortnight.

There was more to see than we expected, so despite these two incidents, we had a thoroughly good time and covered just 600 miles in the fortnight.

 

 

 ARIZONA

 

         

OK Corral, Tombstone                                             Saguara Cacti

 

      

Arizona Opry                                       Museum at Superior

 

                    Sonoita Inn