Written by David J Miller
The wheel is a circular (it’s in the name) route around Wakefield West Yorkshire. It’s a ride that has been put together by the guys and girls at the Wakefield cycle forum and covers approximately 40 miles.
The good thing about this ride is that it passes my house and it is 75-80% off road so really suited to mountain bikes, it’s a ride I’ve always wanted to do. But due to lower back issues, my fitness level and max time/distance in the saddle wouldn’t allow for the ride. I have a herniated disc and time is the saddle is limited to 3 hours max or 20-25 mile depending on terrain before I hit a wall.
When I collected my SDURO HardSeven 4.0 from the guys at Haibike I knew that the Wakefield Wheel must be one of the target rides on my hit list and so after a few rides getting used to the bike I decided to have my first attempt.
I did it !
Toe paths, tracks, woodland, footpaths and bridleways all tackled in a minute over 3 hours.
I used the bike in eco and tour mode for the majority of the ride, only utilising the eMTB setting for some of the tougher sections when I started to get tired. It was perfect terrain/distance for this bike to handle with ease and still have a couple of bars left on the battery when I got home.
I was on my limit by the time I returned home too, I’m not going to lie but without the SDURO I wouldn’t have made it. I know that sure now. I got back to Ossett tired, cold and wet through from the deluge of rain that had started at about halfway around, but it didn’t matter. The warm feeling of accomplishment far outweighed any negatives.
40 miles may not seem a lot to some people but to me this is huge, and by far the furthest I have ever gone on a bike.
I plan on doing the ride again soon but not on my own this time, I’m sure with a crew it will be even better.
Shout out to the Wakefield cycle forum for signing up this ride well enough so no maps are required.
I love this bike.
Dave.
p.s. The eMTB setting = ENTHUSIASM MATCHING TURBO BOOSTER, well that’s my take on it anyway.
