Kinder Trespass 70th anniversary - a 'Ride to Roam?'

[Mark]

Kinder Trespass 70th anniversary - a 'Ride to Roam?'
Ride to Roam action
Time for a Critical Mess?
http://www.ridetoroam.org/action/anniv.html
http://www.ridetoroam.org/action/readme.html

Ride to Roam received this idea from Howard Peel....

"I notice that the 70th anniversary of the famous Kinder Trespass is
coming up on 27 April (2002). Apparently back then you could not take good
honest exercise in the Peak for fear of being assaulted by the sidekicks
of the landed gentry and the working man had to break the law in order to
get access to the hills. Nowadays it seems that much the same situation
exists, only it is MTB riders who are the enemy!

"Anyone fancy celebrating the real spirit of the Kinder Trespass and going
out for an MTB ride on some of the 'banned' paths in the Peak on 27 April.
I'm sure that a good route could be put together even if we stick to those
paths that should really be designated as bridleways but have been
misrecorded by the landowners and Local Authorities as being 'footpaths'.
I'm sure that even the red socks brigade would welcome such an honest
celebration of the spirit of the original Kinder trespass. (I really do
live in dream world don't I?).

Isn't that just a brilliant idea?

Some people seem to be under the mistaken impression that this is Ride to
Roam's idea, that we thought of it or that we're organising something. So,
to put the record straight: However much we like the idea (Normally, we're
wary about mass protest rides off road, because although a shit load of
bikes will cause no more damage than the same number of walkers, a hundred
tyre marks is a pretty powerful picture amongst people who would normally
ignore an image of two hundred footprints), we can't take any credit for
having it. Because we didn't. Also, no-one is "organising" anything as
such (other than a nice bike ride, as below), to the best of our
knowledge.

True, some people will be meeting up at Fairholmes car park (top end of
Ladybower reservoir) on Saturday 27th April at 10am, with the intention of
going on a nice, peaceful, respectful and above all enjoyable cycle ride
in the glorious Peak District. Beyond that, we have no idea, although it
is possible (as it always is) that said ride might go somewhere close to
Kinder, or maybe Derwent Ridge, or who knows, maybe even Stanage Edge.

Word has reached Ride to Roam of a Peak Park Ranger who was talking to
some cyclists on Sunday 21st April. He is reported as saying, "We"
(presumably the Peak District National Park Authority) "have been trying
to contact the organisers for some time, but we've had no reply". At the
same time, he made references to this website which lead the cyclists he
was chatting to to believe that this particular ranger was under the
impression that Ride to Roam were organising something. (Confused?)

The Ride to Roam Group can categorically state that no-one even remotely
official, from any authority of any description, has contacted us
regarding this at the time of writing and certainly not prior to Sunday
April 21st. Which is just as well, because, as per above, we're not
organising anything.

However, no-one else with whom we are in contact has heard anything in
this vein from the PDNPA or any other official body either, which leads us
to believe that either the ranger quoted above was mistaken in some
regard, or that someone of whom we have absolutely no knowledge *is*
organising something of which we also have no knowledge.

So, for the record:

We're off out on Saturday for a nice quiet bike ride in lovely scenery, as
normal.
We'll respect the country code, as ever.
We'll be pleasant to everyone we meet, even miserable gits to whom we'll
simply smile and bid good day, as usual.
We'll close gates behind us, as always.
We'll help old ladies across the road*.
Coincidentally, we'll celebrate the bravery of the late Benny Rothman and
all those who followed him in 1932, as he made a stand for the freedom of
access to the countryside that some people now take for granted.
*In the unlikely event that we meet any old ladies in the middle of the
Peak District who, having gone out for their daily brisk walk / cycle /
horse ride, suddenly find themselves unable to cross a road.

If you wish to join us on these terms, please do, we'll see you at
Fairholmes at 10am. Your safety and personal well-being is entirely your
responsibility, just as it always is when you ride a bike off-road. If you
don't like big rocks, the Peak District is not the place for you...

If you have no car, it's feasible to ride out from Sheffield in the
morning. Or, if you're one of the very few lucky people able to book your
bike onto the one train per hour each way through the Hope Valley, with
it's lousy one bike space per train, get off at Bamford station and ride
up through Bamford, over both the reservoir bridges, and up the Derwent
valley road.

Unfortunately, for some reason we can't fathom, the excellent Rural Bus
that comes out from Sheffield complete with a 4-bike rack on the back,
only runs on Sundays and not Saturdays as well. No, we have no idea why
Saturday is not deemed worthy of a tourist bus service, but there you are.