Spooky business - an Xmas Gift

What’s this then Ian, a blog post? Where is the update about all the rides from the summer? What about the write up about the Norfolk tour, Cycle Sheffield launch and all the other stuff. What’s that? You’ve been too busy on twitter, oh give over…...

The blog has been inactive for months, for which I apologise, and this isn’t even a cycling post. If your a fan of Spooks , have an unhealthy geeky interest in old Goth tunes then read on , otherwise carry on with the present wrapping………


Jump back to Series 6 of Spooks, Ros is working within the Yalta group and they’re planning to use a weapon called “Floodland” to defeat a superpower. I thought it was just coincidence that it also happened to be the title of the second Sisters of Mercy LP. Later on Juliette (aka duck face) talking to Harry starts a sentence with “First and Last and Always”, the title of the first Sisters LP. So the script writer is having a bit of a laugh with those (sad enough) to be in the know.
Jump forward to series 7 finale and the script starts name checking the Sisterhood LP “Gift” (same script writer it seems).

Please don’t set lawyers on me as a lot of time has passed but from what I remember, and sniffing round on various web sites here follows my very brief account of the Sisterhood

The Sisterhood was a project created by Eldritch to prevent Hussey and Adams using that name after the Sisters of Mercy had split. From what I remember Hussey and Adams were already touring as the one version of the Sisterhood (I remember seeing posters in Leeds for their incarnation of the band) but it’s said that the first band to actually produce a record would receive an advance from the record company and have the name rights. Eldritch appeared with a single “Giving Ground” and an LP called “Gift” under the Sisterhood name and laid claim to it (some sources claim the LP was made in 11 days and the advance for the record was £25000). I actually quite liked “Gift” and more than 20 years on it still a fresh industrial sound, unlike the jangly guitars of SOM.

I also remember a Janice Long session when Hussey and Adams were simply billed as the “Hussey and Adams” band due to legal reasons so maybe the accounts aren’t so far from the truth. Hussey and Adams finally used the name “The Mission”, and Eldritch slips back into the “Sisters of Mercy” name for all subsequent incarnations of the band (touring yet again in 2009 and I aim to see them)

So what’s all this got to do with series 7 episode 8? Well several name checks to the Gift album

Russian sleeper agents have just been activated in the UK, they are about to release a nuclear weapon called “ Rain From Heaven”, which just happens to be the final track from “Gift”

When Malcolm is monitoring Russian radio traffic he picks up a call sign “Finland Red, Egypt White”, followed by repeating numbers “2..5..0…0…”
“ Finland Red , Egypt white” is track 4 on “Gift”, and the numbers “2..5..0..0…0 “are repeated at the start of track 1, “Jihad” (and are supposed to- be a reference to the record companies advance on the album) While Im on it the Finland Red reference is read out from the manual for an AK47 but you already new that.

Finally (or not quite) when Connie is diffusing the bomb in the tube station Lucas starts a sentence with “what you have lost can never be found”. Now that bugged me for hours as I knew it from somewhere, then I remembered, it’s a line from “Giving Ground” track 3 from “Gift”

Now there is one other link to all things Sisters that Ive spotted on forums but Ive not gone back through the episode to check yet (oh come on I may be sad, but Im not that bad…yet).
The sleeper agent is supposed to come from Faversham in Kent, and the early haunt of the Sisters of Mercy and their followers was the Faversham Arms (the Fav) in Leeds……..

So I hope that’s enough geeky trivia for you, normal cycling service return in the New Year.

Merry Xmas and all that

before and after

In two weeks time Ill be cycling down to Norfolk with @wildnorthlands and anyone else who tags along. Today I've been converting the dayride / audax bike into a light tourer.

Here's the before shot...
















Ive swapped the back wheel for one with a lot more spokes, and a 28C tyre, fitted the Carradice Long Flap bag and bag carrier. Ive swapped the carbon fibre seat post for an alloy one to support the bag and fitted A Maxx Joystick front light and some Ayeup lights with 6 hours burn time . I swapped the bar bag for the bigger one from my touring bike but decided that was over the top so Ive stuck with the small Ortlieb. Just got to swap the pedals over at some point so that I can use shoes that I can walk (to the pub) in. Finally i put the race blade guards back on What have I missed out then?

Daily Mile

A quick catch up between Olympic events.

Recent rides, Lincolnshire to the In laws in Fillingham, tram assist to Kilamarsh, then some quick miles with Rob and Simon to Clumber Park, then onward to Fillingham, 66 miles.

Rode back on the Monday, 55 miles, was keeping up at almost 20mph average as far as Worksop until the heat and the hills got to me.

Since then the weather has played some havoc with the rides and Ive had a week in Norfolk kite flying but Ive done some Rivelin off roading and finally made a full western circualr ride this Thursday. It is an excellent route, dunno how Simon's done it but i feels to have more downhill than uphill!

A few of us have joined the daily mile social web site.

Come and join us on

http://www.dailymile.com/

A Stanage Pole Story (or Jags in the Mist)

I hope Jon Fyne doesn't mind me posting his rather amusing little story, over to you Jon with the lost land of the Jaguar........

Just before I went on my hols a week last friday, I was cycling towards Stanage Pole (en route to Hathersage) by the side of the wood above Redmires. At the top of the (now) smoothbyway (by the gate that leads to the rough track up to the pole), I noticed an AA van and a police car. As I approached, I was stopped by one of the boys in blue (actually flourescent yellow) who wanted to know if I has seen "a grey jag" anywhere on my travels. Replying in the negative, I asked what the problem was. I was told that the driver had "got stuck" somewhere in the vicinity and had called the AA, but was nowhere to be seen. Suspecting what the driver had tried to do (probably with the help of a sat-nav), I suggested that they should check the other side of the pole. Would do, he said, but as the track was evidently too rough for either of their vehicles,he said he would walk over.I would mention this to the driver if I saw him, I said, as I cycled off on my merry way.

Sure enough, as I approached the really rough part of the causeway (the so-called'bear pit' - which even necessitates a dismount for all but the most technical of MTBs) on the descent, the way ahead was blocked by a large grey jag. I sauntered up to the top-of-the-range jag (replete with buff leather seats) with, it has to be admitted, a decided sense of schadenfreude, with the intention of telling the driver that the old bill were looking for him, to be greeted by an empty vehicle (the driver, realising finally that his trusty steed wasn't as capable as he had originally thought, or been led to believe, had ignominiously abandoned it). I would have liked to have stayed around to see the exchange between the driver and the AA chap / copper concerning recovery of the vehicle, which would be nigh impossible by conventional means, but I contented myself with the thought that there isn't a positive correlation between wealth and IQ / commonsense

Sunday Rides - Part 2

A dry but very blustery Sunday and I'm meeting Alan Moffat at 9.30am in Broomhill. Now I know that's not early but for me on a Sunday it counts as an early start. Its good to see Alan, its been a couple of years since we've been on a ride together and he looks his usual chiselled well tanned self putting my pipe cleaner legs to shame.

Off to Fulwood, then a stiff climb up the from Mayfield Valley to join the Route of the Peak District anniversary ride. Alan suggests my route may be much steeper than his preferred Brownhills Lane. From Ringinglow the only way is up to Burbage (did I mention that Burbage valley is my favourite view in England..maybe even the world!) , bloody hell it was windy. Couple of lads on touring bikes come past us into the wind , one chap spinning an incredibly low gear on a Dawes Super Galaxy but keeping up a good pace all the same. Slip in behind for a rest then we set off at a higher speed before the cattle grid and off to Stanage Edge.

Over Bamford moor and a fast run down to Yorkshire Bridge, back toward Bamford and on to Hathersage. Hathersage is packed, cars and cyclists every where. There is some kind of event on as numerous triathletes with race numbers on are descending into town at daft speed.

We've got the strong wind behind us now so a relatively easy ascent up to Surprise. We are joined by a young lady from Chesterfield on a serious locking Scott bike. She asks if she can take a breather behind us for two mins, then disappears up the hill in a cloud of carbon fibre (BTW it wasn't Victoria Pendelton!).

Uneventful trip back via Fox House apart from Family Guy in his Ford Focus attempting to wipe out his whole tribe by overtaking a queue of cars on the double whites, what's the point? You don't need to make this years Darwin Awards.

Back home , nearly 30 miles and back well before 12 but Sarah wants a trip out on the trailer bike. I hook it up to the Cannondale. Two trailer rides later, one down the Rivelin Valley trails is much harder work than the morning ride and I start thinking maybe a tandem is going to be easier. At least she pedalled hard on the hills and I got my bike cleaned!

Sunday rides - part 1

Just catching up...the weeks seems to have whizzed by and its a Sunday later. So back to last week.....

After a blustery but successful Dr Bike at the Walkley Festival we actually had some warm summer sun for the Sunday ride. I met Richard, Chris and Simon, the mathematician, not our venerable dead head who has spent the summer in the Pyrenees, Norway, France, anywhere it seems to get away from Sheffield rain

Original plan was to head out to Hope Valley but there was a late change when Chris and Richard had to get over to Barnsley later in the day, so we headed out to high Bradfield in quite a hurry as we needed to meet Rob D in 30 mins.

We reached Bradfield in time but entered the phone dead zone so didn’t realise Rob was up on the top ridge road till we set off looking. General consensus was to avoid that bastard hill at Ewden Bridge, saving it for “Phil and fiends” so we skirted round Broomhead reservoir and up the hill to Bolsterstone and the first stop of the day.

From Bolsterstone it was back towards the Phil and Friends route via Midhopestone and then on to Langsett to join the dozens of other cyclists from clubs from all over the for some food (i saw Doncaster CC, Cheshire Wheelers and others). Despite the warning that we would have a long wait I had my sausage butty and pint of tea in less than 15 mins.

After Langsett it was time to take Gilbert hill up onto the opposite side of the Valley, followed by a swift wind assisted thrash across to Green Moor.



Quick stop for Photos, then an uphill to Wortley and to the pub where we received
three pints of something I wouldn't even grace my chips with, the beer was very off, but exchanged for 3 pints of drinkable landlord. After a sit in the sun we split up, Chris and Richard in a Barnsley Direction, Rob back to Oughtibridge, and a swift hack down to town and back up to Walkley for me

Enjoyable ride and good to come home feeling weather beaten by the sun for a change.

photo tracking in the rain

Last week I manged to borrow a GPS photo tracker from my mate Sue who runs the North Sheffield CLC (hope you enjoyed Glastonbury Sue!).

Didn't find the time to try it until Sunday when I found I had a spare hour between swimming with the family and the visit of in laws in the afternoon. So installed the software, got the GPS to find its location, synched it to my digital camera and set off toward Rivelin in the sunshine.

Going down by the allotments first near disaster, the tracker detached itself from the supplied lanyard and lodged in someone’s rhubarb. Retrieved and relocated it to cycling top pockets. Stopped to take various shots on the way, opted to wade through the ford rather than cycle it when I saw it was almost over the dog walkers wellington tops.

Just got to Coppice Lane when the weather comes in of the peaks. Driving rain now but opted to carry on up to Stannington just to keep warm. By now office camera was getting a bit upset at the weather so hasty trip down the valley side and back up through the woods. Almost dropped the camera in the river at one point which would have taken some explaining today at work.

Saw a newly cleared bridleway so headed down it for some shelter from the rain , only to realise it was rapidly taking me all the way back down to Rivelin Valley road. I didn’t want to have to come back up Hagg hill so I opted to head off the trail into the woods.

Now technically I wasn’t lost, I mean i had 3 GPS units with me (Garmin, Nokia N95 and the Photo Tracker) and i could hear Rivelin valley traffic but I did end up dragging the bike up a rocky outcrop and through a particularly sharp hedge to get back to Hagg Lane.

Reunited with the route I set of back home and had my one near disaster, my handlebar got caught on that new metal gateway which i supposed to keep motorbike off the trails. This pitched me sideways and I had that dreadful fraction of a second when the pedal decided it would be load mire fun to hang onto the shoe cleat.

Home safely, dried off, and then came the fun bit trying to get the supplied software to tag the pictures. I was getting nowhere till I twigged that the GPS was still using GMT not GMT +1 (British summer time...allegedly)

Uploaded the results onto Google earth where they worked perfectly. Then went ahead and added them to my Flickr map.

Here's the results, a rather damp but beautifully located set of photos



This is the little GPS unit.

http://flickr.com/photos/walkleyian/map/

Definitly need a new rear tyre on my cross bike as doesn't grip ot all in wet mud now.