Ever onward

Come August this year it’ll be 4 years since we created the blog! 4 years since Steve, Will and I journeyed to Anglesey for a weekend of riding… Still one of my fondest memories.

We’ve ridden lots since then, we’ve made new friends and eaten plenty of chips! The bike fettling hasn’t stopped, if anything it’s gotten worse ;-) We’re all different, with our own set of quirks, and the bikes we ride reflect that. The level of bike geekery on the group chat definitely does!

Many benches have been sat upon and many brews/pastries/etc; have been savoured by the trail/lane side. We continue to relish any ride, especially if it includes some lush tufty-ness up the middle. We are (of course) equally happy with it up the sides too :-)

With all that in mind, and to remedy the fact that we’ve been favouring the trails and neglecting the lanes recently, we originally planned to re-visit some old favourites this morning…

Ol’ Pointless and The Tickler!

Alas, it was not to be :-(

Less than favourable conditions early doors led to procrastination, indecision and inevitably… confusion! Despite all this, we finally got our act together and Myself, Tom and Kev were on our way.

We eventually met up with Steve at ‘the bench’ albeit a bit later than we intended when first planning the day, and with the time window cut short we quickly fell into the usual routine. A catch up on weekly affairs and then a ride back to find coffee.

We’ll have to wait for another day to visit our favourite lanes, but they’ll still be there when we eventually manage it!

’Grass Up The Middle CC’ was always meant as a bit of fun, a way to create our own thing and quietly celebrate the many aspects of cycling culture that we enjoy.

There is nothing to join, not in the traditional sense. The CC in the name is merely a nod to terminology of the past. If you’re into what we do, then you’re already a #grassupthemiddler. Simple as that.

We’re so happy to have followers. The blog and the Instagram account have increased (in very modest terms) in popularity and have opened up the ability to interact with like minded people all over the world.

This post, and indeed the blog itself, is dedicated to Charlie Chadwick, David Warner and the Rough Stuff Fellowship. It’s also dedicated to all who’ve pedalled before us and all those with a like mind who ride now.

We pedal, ever onward, on our quest for the Holy Grail…

Words - Paul Rance Pictures - Steve Makin