Great Read - Not sure if someone has posted before ???

[Craig196]

those images are fantastic, what location were they taken in?

Hi Northy - shoot location was the Forest of Bowland (west leg - Longrigdge > Inn at Whitewell > Trough of Bowland > Quernmore > Bentham). It's a proper Lancashire hidden gem and perfect "Trophy Territory". Nice and quiet, tight, bumpy and twisty, plus open and flowing sections too. There is a lot of single track at times, however once you get up on top of the fells you can see far ahead

 

[NickReilly063]

On the doorstep for you that is Richard (Northy) - maybe you could do us a shoot with one of your legendary Renaults

Hi Northy - shoot location was the Forest of Bowland (west leg - Longrigdge > Inn at Whitewell > Trough of Bowland > Quernmore > Bentham). It's a proper Lancashire hidden gem and perfect "Trophy Territory". Nice and quiet, tight, bumpy and twisty, plus open and flowing sections too. There is a lot of single track at times, however once you get up on top of the fells you can see far ahead

 

[photo_ed]

Hi Northy - shoot location was the Forest of Bowland (west leg - Longrigdge > Inn at Whitewell > Trough of Bowland > Quernmore > Bentham). It's a proper Lancashire hidden gem and perfect "Trophy Territory". Nice and quiet, tight, bumpy and twisty, plus open and flowing sections too. There is a lot of single track at times, however once you get up on top of the fells you can see far ahead

Some of my favourite driving territory that.

 

[Big Dave]

I know the area well....Its on my doorstep...

 

[NickReilly063]

I’ll bet your Z4 4.0i is fantastic on those roads Dave.

 

[Craig196]

Planning to be up there this Sat with a Megane Trophy R - providing the weather holds. Fingers crossed

 

[Big Dave]

I’ll bet your Z4 4.0i is fantastic on those roads Dave.

It sure is Nick...

 

[Titan]

Planning to be up there this Sat with a Megane Trophy R - providing the weather holds. Fingers crossed

Well if you have the keys to epic cars like that,why not

 

[SharkyUK]

Hi Andy

How do I change my original post for Craig ??

cheers Nick

Nick - you won't be able to edit historic posts sadly. When you create a post/reply, I believe there is a limited amount of time only in which edits can be made. After that time is up, the post is effectively locked in. At that point, it requires moderator/admin intervention to make changes.

 

[Craig196]

Thought I'd share some of the images taken of the Megane Trophy R (compressed for the web):







Unfortunately, it was far too cold and grim to perform a proper assessment of the car given the conditions, but instead of letting the images go to waste, I've updated our guide to driving around Bowland, which I thought some here might be interested in:

---> Bowland route map <---

Whilst out, a complete stranger came up to us and complimented my 182 Trophy as "the best thing ever", which was a nice boost to the spirits on a soggy morning!

I've also learned how to do a 301 redirect on that original post, so it should now link straight to the refreshed Clio Trophy page. Every day is a school day!

 

[NickReilly063]

Wow amazing images Craig and a Great writeup - PhotoEd has now got some competition.

What's next on the list to do and where ???

 

[Titan]

I think you can be pretty sure your not going to be meeting too many of them on the roads.

Probably the last of the breed in relation to bonkers,stripped out,throw everything at it,hooligan hatches...unfortunately.

 

[photo_ed]

Great article @Craig196. Your Bowland route just happens to be one of my favourites too and more or less the one I took the Trophy on for a dawn run on Easter Sunday last year!

I first encountered the Bowland roads on bicycle rides with my Dad as a young lad, then, when a school friend and I passed our tests at 17, we used to borrow his Mothers burgundy mk1 Renault 5 1.4TL for improvised 'night rallies' through those lanes, so many fun driving memories are tied up in the whole Bowland area for me.

Look forward to your next instalment of great driving roads.

 

[northy]

Wow amazing images there Craig!!! Is the Trophy R yours?

Will have to drive that route some day. Thanks for the guide

 

[Big Dave]

Just quickly read your article about the Bowland roads...

Nicely written, with some stunning photos to accompany it..

I too know most of the route pretty well, as I reside near Blackpool, so its on my doorstep...

Yes I can agree with you that the route is fab in either a Trophy, or TVR as both have been used to navigate around the roads, both different driving styles, but great none the less.

I just hope the route doesnt now become a magnate for lots of ,,,"nutters", like the EVO triangle has....

On a side note,,

How did you get the photo of the Megane, the low down shot at speed , looks like its on the road up to jubilee tower.??

I do like that photo...

 

[Craig196]

Hopefully not, the mag and area remain under the radar, and the article has been around for 18 months + (originally shot with a TVR Chimeara/camera phone). If anything, the roads are dominated by armies of cyclists since Bradley Wiggins mentioned it was his favourite training ground for the Tour de France. Like anywhere, need to pick your time well

You're correct about the road up to Jubilee Tower @Big Dave . The shot was captured from a tracking car, usually an estate, preferably with a split tail gate. Photographer is anchored to the car by wearing a rock climbing harness which is attached to the isofix points etc. Will only capture such images on wide-open roads like this one.

@northy , how I wish the car was mine, but sadly not

 

[Craig196]

Wow amazing images Craig and a Great writeup - PhotoEd has now got some competition.

What's next on the list to do and where ???

Thanks Nick. North Wales and the "oopnurthring" (Peak District Snake pass etc) are already on the site. Could do with better images as I've scavenged ones from articles performed on the roads (M3 CSL / Mini GP).

I have a North Pennines / ecoty 2022 route I'm sitting on. Some of the best roads I've had the pleasure of driving, but as Dave mentioned above, might not be worth popularising as you can actually get up to some big speeds there, unlike Bowland, which attracts the nutters. A more driving roads "NC500" route is on the cards, Scottish borders, Oban/Loch Lomond, Yorkshire Dales, Elan Valley.

I'd love to document them all, but the mag already costs a fortune as it is and I have a wife to keep happy!

 

[Big Dave]

Yes your correct in saying that LOTS of cyclists like the area.
I try and navigate around the roads in the evenings, as most of them have gone by then...

Good to know how you got the Jubilee tower road picture... Ill leave that up to the professionals...Dont fancy hanging out the back of my X5 tailgate.

PS, keep the Elan valley route on the QT... Even though i think lots already know it...

 

[GrahamO]

Hi Northy - shoot location was the Forest of Bowland (west leg - Longrigdge > Inn at Whitewell > Trough of Bowland > Quernmore > Bentham). It's a proper Lancashire hidden gem and perfect "Trophy Territory". Nice and quiet, tight, bumpy and twisty, plus open and flowing sections too. There is a lot of single track at times, however once you get up on top of the fells you can see far ahead

Slaidburn to High Bentham must be one of the very best Trophy roads there is. In fact the whole of the Trough of Bowland is a match for anywhere, it is virtually all owned by the Duchy of Lancaster ( Charles III is the Duke of Lancaster) and Duke of Westminster. It would make a superb weekend car meet.

 

[Craig196]

As mentioned previously I'd like to proudly announce that I'm taking the plunge and self-publishing Rush. Dubbed XP1, this is a pilot issue to test the market and is thus limited to 1,000 copies. It features a collection of some of my favourite material from the digital mags, mixed in with some new content.





The price is £10 which includes delivery (UK) and the mag runs to 160 pages with no adverts (so mods I hope that makes it ok to share, but please delete if this contravenes any forum rules). I want this to be collectable so I've chosen some really nice paper.

The Trophy article will not be included sadly (Megane R26.R is included for Renaultsport content), however that's because if this is successful, I have plans to get every generation of hot Clio together for a monster celebration. I'd love for this project to transition to print permanently, your support and any shares really would mean the world

Please check it out here

Thanks so much, Craig