Cumbria TRF arranged a visit to the Isle of Man for the group last weekend, two of the lads, both called Ian have been many times in the past and know the lanes well, so we were all in good hands...
I drove down to Lancaster, caught up with a mate for some beers and Thai meal, then mooched around the Heysham area as I don't really know the place at all. I haven't been to the Isle of Man for nearly 30 years, the last time was with horses that needed some R&R. We used to go every year before I was into bikes and the TT was always on at the same time, we used to curse that the roads were closed!
I travelled light onto the ferry with just an old road bike bag with a change of clothes in it. It was a little disconcerting to see how the bikes were tied down with a bit of oily rope, but they were in one piece when we got to the island, so all good!
Once there we checked into the place we were staying at in Douglas and went for some beers!
The place we stayed at was a little quirky, lovely people, nice and chilled out and great breakfast, but don't touch any of the fittings in the bathrooms!
Saturday dawned wet and full of drizzle, a proper dreich day and forecast to stay that way all day... hey ho, everyone got geared up and bikes ready, then we set off to do a loop around the south of the island. Around 85 miles saw us up in the mountains and down at the sea, some great little lanes and some beautiful long lanes.
Lunch was in Peel at a lovely big visitors cafe, where we dripped all over the floor as we ate hot paninis and drank tea to warm up. We especially liked the longer rocky climbs and the fact that in every farm there were old vehicles stacked up in hedges and any nook and cranny. It's apparently really expensive to scrap vehicles over there, so the owners just pile them into the hedges and let the bushes grow over them!
We had our first ride around some sections of the TT course, which is always good fun
The night was spent out in Douglas, a visit to the casino, some restaurants and the odd bar or two, with some of the lads rolling in at 3am like teenagers all over again!
Sunday was a much better weather day, with some lovely views and even blue skies. This improved the riding conditions a lot, which was a good thing as the northern route for the day went up high and into the mountains on the island. Some really great trails, all well sign posted and even maintained. There is a clear management programme set up here, something several counties in England could do with installing!
Lane after lane passed under our wheels, we bumped into a couple of other groups out for the day, had the usual chat and banter and then was off again.
For me, I really enjoyed the place, it was great fun, the riding was superb coupled with the fact that the local people were really genuinely friendly and welcoming. I really enjoyed the Viking history and all the place names that made you feel like you were much further afield. It's a place I'll happily go back to and hopefully next time Lucy will be able to visit too
happy trails...
I drove down to Lancaster, caught up with a mate for some beers and Thai meal, then mooched around the Heysham area as I don't really know the place at all. I haven't been to the Isle of Man for nearly 30 years, the last time was with horses that needed some R&R. We used to go every year before I was into bikes and the TT was always on at the same time, we used to curse that the roads were closed!
I travelled light onto the ferry with just an old road bike bag with a change of clothes in it. It was a little disconcerting to see how the bikes were tied down with a bit of oily rope, but they were in one piece when we got to the island, so all good!
Once there we checked into the place we were staying at in Douglas and went for some beers!
The place we stayed at was a little quirky, lovely people, nice and chilled out and great breakfast, but don't touch any of the fittings in the bathrooms!
Saturday dawned wet and full of drizzle, a proper dreich day and forecast to stay that way all day... hey ho, everyone got geared up and bikes ready, then we set off to do a loop around the south of the island. Around 85 miles saw us up in the mountains and down at the sea, some great little lanes and some beautiful long lanes.
Lunch was in Peel at a lovely big visitors cafe, where we dripped all over the floor as we ate hot paninis and drank tea to warm up. We especially liked the longer rocky climbs and the fact that in every farm there were old vehicles stacked up in hedges and any nook and cranny. It's apparently really expensive to scrap vehicles over there, so the owners just pile them into the hedges and let the bushes grow over them!
We had our first ride around some sections of the TT course, which is always good fun
The night was spent out in Douglas, a visit to the casino, some restaurants and the odd bar or two, with some of the lads rolling in at 3am like teenagers all over again!
Sunday was a much better weather day, with some lovely views and even blue skies. This improved the riding conditions a lot, which was a good thing as the northern route for the day went up high and into the mountains on the island. Some really great trails, all well sign posted and even maintained. There is a clear management programme set up here, something several counties in England could do with installing!
Lane after lane passed under our wheels, we bumped into a couple of other groups out for the day, had the usual chat and banter and then was off again.
For me, I really enjoyed the place, it was great fun, the riding was superb coupled with the fact that the local people were really genuinely friendly and welcoming. I really enjoyed the Viking history and all the place names that made you feel like you were much further afield. It's a place I'll happily go back to and hopefully next time Lucy will be able to visit too
happy trails...
