There were six takers for a ride out to Knaresborough, including two new faces Andre and John.

Despite the temperature hovering around freezing, there were blue skies and sunshine – making it an ideal winter day for cycling.

It was a steady uneventful ride until we approached the cafe, where we were confronted by a bin lorry struggling to reverse down a road that was only just the width of the vehicle. The driver’s bad day was made complete when one of his tyres exploded with a big bang.

We were feeling hungry after eyeing up the multi bag of Wotsits sat in the bin lorry window, and so it was disappointing when we finally arrived at The Black Mulberry Cafe to find it full.

Eventually we grabbed a table and were grateful to be inside the warm cafe. We devoured our sausage and bacon sandwiches which were as good as always.

The ride back was steady and enjoyable until we approached Rawdon and experienced a brief freezing rain shower but with only three miles to home it didn’t dampen our spirits.

Total distance was 53 miles for me, with 3500 feet of climbing and my average speed was 13.4mph.

Cheers, Steve