Ay Up! it's the UCI Worlds in Yorkshire.
The 2019 UCI Road World Championships was the 92nd edition for road bicycle racing. It took place between 21 and 29 September 2019 in the historic county of Yorkshire, the fourth to be held in the United Kingdom.
Watching the very wet worlds on TV did not fill me with much hope of a sunny ride up north to take part in the excitement of the UCI worlds coming to the UK.
I traveled from London on the 28th to join up with Rapha and ride part of the course and watch the racing live at a pop up cafe they had arranged in town. The sun was out when I arrived to watch the women’s race which was won by Annemiek van Vleuten of the Netherlands.
It was predicted to rain the next day and rain very hard like it had done earlier in the week. And on this prediction the Rapha ride was canceled and the routes was shortened for the professionals. I decided to get the next train home and watch it from the dry comfort of my living room.
I changed my ticket no problem but was told the bike reservation was full. This did not make sense as I was leaving early evening and most people I predicted would have stayed to watch the racing anyway. I risked it and mine was the only bike on board!
You can find more info and results here
Itinerary:
Travelling with your bike on the trains can be painful. Try to be prepared as much as possible and phone ahead to confirm that there is space and that the route you have chosen accepts bike travel. Some local trains may not.
LNER train from Kings X to Leeds. Journey time 1h 44m. Bookable for bikes. Best bet is to phone them and book to confirm that there is space and get a reservation number.
Northern Rail train from Leeds to Harrogate. Journey time 35m. Bikes cannot be reserved on this train but the do provide space.
I stayed in a very nice Airbnb near the centre if town. Expect prices to be high for this event. Book as early as you can.
The Little Ale House on Cheltenham Crescent did a great Ale and pork Pie.
It was easy to change my train ticket with LNER to get home early but I was told the bike spaces were full. They were not and I am glad I risked it to avoid the weather!
