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gravel rides peak district - 15 gravel bike adventures in the dark & white peak. hetty kingston. vertebrate publishing paperback. 110pp illus. £15.95

a few months ago, not long into my saturday cyclocross bike ride, i suffered a rear wheel puncture, which i dutifully catered to by installing a new inner tube that i had cunningly concealed in my seatpack. unfortunately, a matter of metres later, the replacement tube punctured. the naysayers will immediately enquire whether i had had the foresight to check the inside of the tyre for whatever caused the original puncture, but as soon as the inner tube had been removed, that's the first thing i'd done. to this day, i have no idea why either tube flatted, but whatever the reason, two punctures in quick succession subsequently entailed a ten kilometre walk home.

but, it must be pointed out, islay being the community it is, i had several offers from passing motorists of a lift back to the croft. all of these i graciously refused, principally on the basis that the 'cross bike was hardly in pristine condition, having already acquired a certain amount of mud along the way. i harboured serious concerns that they would all have had regrets on discovering the mess my bicycle had made of their cars' upholstery. walking seemed the more prudent option.

however, not everywhere is like islay, and if i'd actually been ploughing through the undergrowth, there's every possibility that i'd have had a lengthy walk prior to reach some point from which i might actually be seen by passing motorists. that sort of scenario would appear one you ought to take in to consideration should you harbour notions of becoming a serious (or considerably less than serious) gravel biker. it's an aspect of riding the trails in the peak district that author, hetty kingston, has taken into account in her introduction to this excellent compact and bijou publication.

under the recommended kit list: "Off-road adventures often require more 'stuff' as they're more remote: five kilometres might not feel that far on a bike, however it will when you're jogging back to the nearest road to find signal or flag someone down."

it has frequently been said that within every group of cyclists, there's likely to be one who not only possesses an impressive level of mechanical knowledge, but is keen to demonstrate it to the rest of the peloton. that, however, is a sweeping generalisation, and one that applies not at all if you're in a peloton of one, and you don't know one end of a tyre lever from the other. for simple reasons of the terrain across which you may perambulate, things are more likely to go wrong or fall off when riding offroad: "Don't skimp on tools and spare parts, but make sure you know how to use them before you go - they won't be nuch help if you're clueless!"

the attractions of gravel riding (even if not on actual gravel) are many: as the mighty dave-t has often said, "it's just like being out in the country", it's often well away from vehicular traffic, the scenery can be magnificent, and you can ride until you no longer know where you are. however, that latter attraction might be one you're keen to avoid, unless your name is jenny graham or markus stitz. for the rest of us, a guide book such as this can prove all but essential.

for those who failed geography, or only know where london and glasgow are, the peak district is south west of sheffield, surrounded by towns with idiosyncratic names such as chapel-en-le-frith, wheston, sparrowpit and great hucklow, a region in which the author has identified "15 of the best gravel rides". these range from a mere 18 kilometres in length, to rides of over 60 kilometres, culminating in a 105km bonus route, all of which are clearly explained and illustrated.

aside from an introduction to each route, beneath each is a route profile, augmented by distance, total amount of ascending, where the route begins and ends, brief hints as to the terrain, and the nearest access to public transport. it does not, however, end there, with the route clearly overlaid on an ordnance survey map, wheel by wheel directions, photographs and a sidebar which includes details of any bike shops within range, just in case any mechanical malfeasance is outwith your repair skills, or you simply had none in the first place.

should the foregoing be insufficient, each route, graded in terms of difficulty, is downloadable as a gpx file for use in your gps device. the author, however, recommends that you don't rely on the latter, investing sufficient time in learning to read a proper map. and carry a compass too.

i cannot deny; i would have chosen a different typeface for the body text, but that possibly says more about me than the book. it's small enough to fit in a jersey rear pocket, or under the clear flap that often features atop a bar bag. with gravel riding currently flavour of the month, there's every likelihood that those possessed of very little outdoor or even cycling experience will be heading into the hinterlands because the bicycle manufacturer's website said they could. in which case, we should be eternally grateful not only to vertebrate publishing, but to authors like hetty kingston for placing it all in a pragmatic perspective.

gravel rides in the peak district

thursday 4 july 2024