B Road Fun

They’re the most difficult roads to ride well but can be the most rewarding when you do.

Q? Why? I ride them but rarely smoothly

A: A comment I hear often. B-roads can be the most challenging roads to ride well for a number of reasons. To ride any road well we need information and we need to be able to apply that information to our ride. B roads can be challenging because the view can suddenly go from half a mile down to 20m, you get lots of elevation change, some bits are well-signed and others aren’t, and of course there are lots of corners. That’s also what makes then fun.

Q? Fun? They sound more difficult to ride well than any other road

A:Yes. A-roads are easy because they have so much more traffic there’s been so much money spent on them to design out the dangerous parts. They will be straighter, flatter and more boring.  One of the advantages of B-roads is the speeds you ride at may be lower but in term of fun per mph the reward is higher. You can have a ride that at 60mph on a B road is a real challenge, when you’d have to be doing three figures on an A-road to get the same adrenalin fix.

Q? What’s the secret to B-road fun

A: You want to feel like you are flowing down the road One corner should link seamlessly to the next each line out of the last leads to the correct entry for the next. When you flow down the road the increased pace will come naturally. You shouldn’t have to try too hard.

Q? Where does it most commonly fall apart

Familiarity. They say familiarity breeds contempt well it can also breed laziness. Rider often resort to roads they use a lot and end up riding as we expect them to be rather than what we can see at that instant. Just because there wasn’t anything round this corner last week or the week before that is no guarantee that today there won’t be a cow in the middle of the road. On the other hand if you’re riding a new B-road, your eyes will be out on stalks looking for hazards and you can end up riding much better that a local would. 

Q? Any other tips?

A: On B roads it’s an advantage to know a bit about farming. Farm vehicles are one of the most dangerous vehicles you’re likely to come across. They’re always moving slower than you think, the have lots of sharp bike unfriendly bits on them, and they turn into field just when you don’t expect them to. Bikes don’t come off well if the hit a piece of agricultural machinery. There are often ques of vehicles behind a tractor. They either don’t want to or can’t get past. A bike give you the advantage of size. There are many examples with people over-taking tractors because whichever way an agricultural vehicle is turning, it always turns right first – they need the whole road. When you’re thinking about over-taking, if you’re in any doubt, hold back. It staggers me how often motorcyclists seem to find themselves alongside farm vehicles during the couple of seconds they’re turning right. 

Any other things to watch?

Lots. Road surface, Wildlife, both living or just a carcass, mud horses, walkers, cyclists, you name it these moving hazards are out on B Roads in abundance. Doesn’t make them any less fun though.