With Jason away on Big Silver Bird for a week to the cooler climes of Rhodes (where, obviously, he intends to find a bike to ride), John and Terry managed to entice David out for his first ride in five weeks. This was all down to circumstances, however, with family and cricket commitments getting in the way.

All we did this time was to try and plot some off-road routes between our respective new houses - David in Hadrian Park, Wallsend, Terry in Holystone and John in Whiteleas, Cramlington. We more-or-less succeeded with only some messy diversions through Killingworth to spoil the reasonably direct line between all three. The plan was to make future meets easier for all, not so much for weekends where we now tend to venture out of town, but for the midweek rides where time is of the essence after work and to maximise the daylight hours.

We started this trek at John's, using the cycle paths until crossing the B1505 at the XXXXXX then through the underpass beneath the A189 into the fields on a bridleway. This took us down to the back of Seghill and out of the south side of the village onto the A190, which we pedalled along to the Fordley roundabout. We turned left up towards Burradon and just at its edge took another left onto a bridleway past Burradon House. Have a look here if you get the chance - there's a very strange old tower here - maybe a peel tower, I don't know yet.   We followed this bridleway through more  fields until it plonked us onto the A1056 across the top of Killingworth. We followed the trail straight over the road, where the idiot with the new Super-Long Marzocchi forks tried to ride over the foot-high wooden barrier at the entrance to the bridleway. All he succeeded in doing was re-injuring an old rib injury on the steel gatepost. Prat. Into Killingworth now where somehow we managed a full loop of the estate just behind (north) the Old Village! Eventually we made it out, and headed east on the B1317 towards Backworth.

At East House Farm we took a right onto another bridleway which takes you down into Holystone through the farm with that name, emerging at the side of the Holystone public house. We pedalled along the now traffic-calmed Whitley Road, ducking in behind Asda into the Rising Sun Country Park.   We followed this trail to Davids to join up the links of our planned route, then headed into Battle Hill and under the A1058 Coast Road into Wallsend Dene back to the ranch at Walkerville. Just as well we did, as Terry's gears were going ape on the Kona Bear so he was able to swap onto the spare Barracuda, but worse, John suffered a flat rear tyre just as we arrived which turned into THREE separate punctures! What a week he's had with those!  Here's two of the culprits - Hawthorns yet again - 15mm and 10mm long. 

Have you Killed A BIKE THIEF TODAY?

 Keep watching and if you fancy a ride out with us, drop us a line here: bailout@midaircrisis.org.uk