Jason and his wife Judith Richards cruising through Ilkley
It’s not the destination, it’s the glory of the ride, according to artist Edward Monkton’s Zen Dog.
And there can’t be anything more glorious than ripping through the Dales on a Yorkshire Boom Trike.
What a blast!
Wind tearing at your clothes, surrounded by the sites and smells of the beautiful countryside, this is an experience NOT to be missed.
The trike, affectionately named Lottie, is owned by Yorkshire Trike Tours – a brand new company setting up in Ilkley.
It’s owned by Ilkley born Jason Richards and his wife Judith who will be offering thrill-seekers a choice of up to 25 breath-taking journeys through the Dales aboard their trusty Trike.
We meet outside Ilkley Library, where Jason takes us through a list of safety procedures before we climb aboard.
The Trike doesn’t go unnoticed. All around us passers by point and stare -they can’t help it – ‘Lottie’ is a looker and she knows it. In fact she has even caught the eye of celebrities – Nick Baines (Peanut from the Kaiser Chiefs) was one of the first to take the tour.
Jason hands us our very own bandanna (Sons of Anarchy style) before giving us our über cool helmets – complete with Bluetooth so that we can chat to each other throughout the ride.
We are to be taken on Tour 3, Jason explains, through the town centre to Addingham Moorside, following the line of Rombalds Moor, dropping down into Airedale, passing Silsden, Riddlesden, before travelling over to East Morton, through Eldwick and back down past the Cow and Calf into Ilkley.
It has been said that driving a car is like watching a film, whereas riding a motorbike is like being in one.
Now I know exactly what that means. We are only minutes into the tour when we turn up at Addingham Moorside and I suddenly catch a whiff of what smells like home cooking.
“That’s the wild garlic,” explains Jason – “It’s powerful stuff isn’t it?”
Further up the hill I sense a less fragrant aroma coming off the fields – but it’s all part of the experience (and besides I can’t exactly roll up the window).
We stop high up near Rombalds Moor and look out over towards Airedale – it’s a cloudy day but we can just make out the wind-farm at Ovenden.
The view is incredible – the roads are quiet and it’s clear that Jason, a Yorkshire man through and through has put a lot of thought into the tours.
“I love the Dales,” he explained. “It doesn’t matter how many times I come up here, the view is always different, depending on the season, the weather, it’s incredible. “I couldn’t say which Dale was my favourite – I love them all. I know a lot of Dales history too and can talk clients through all sorts of local landmarks.”
A former IT whizz, Jason’s interest in Trikes grew during a ‘midlife crisis’.
“I hit 40, I sold my business and thought to myself what am I going to do now? I wanted a Harley Davidson and did consider it but I thought to myself, no, I’ll kill myself.
“Then I saw Scots comedian Billy Connolly’s tour of Scotland, England and Ireland and I thought that’s it – that’s what I want. So I bought a two-seater, which I called Chloe.
“Judith and I went touring all over and one day she suggested I combined my love of trikes with a touring business – and Yorkshire Trikes was born!”
Judith’s insight is certain to prove a winner. Already Yorkshire Trike Tours is booking up with wedding parties (groom and best man, no bride….yet), birthdays, anniversaries and large events.
We drive on, passing a group of envious cyclists pedalling up hill as we cruise by.
An elderly couple taking a walk in the open air stand to one side and wave wistfully – you can tell they just want to climb aboard and join the fun.
And who could blame them? Even the sheep are curious, turning their heads to find out where the noise is coming from.
If you’re planning to take a tour in the cloudy weather – shove on a pair of thermals under your jeans, the wind whips up around my legs but I don’t care – excitement is pulsing through me.
The only other time I’ve been on a motorbike was during my late teens. I loved it then, but motorbikes are notoriously dangerous whereas in the Trike I feel completely safe.
It’s a sturdy machine and Jason is an expert driver – he knows just when to speed up and when to apply the breaks to provide a smooth even ride.
He dodged a pot hole and I thank God I chose to sit on the left – my other half gets splashed by a rather large puddle. But his discomfort doesn’t last long – in seconds his jeans are wind dry.
Jason is apologetic – “It was the pothole or the puddle, I had to make a choice – it was either your wife getting bumped around or you getting a bit wet,” he jokes. Lucky for me, chivalry wins through!
As we whirl round past the Cow and Calf, Jason slows down to let us take in a familiar view.
We have parked up at this point in the car for a picnic on numerous occasions but this time it’s different – we feel part of it all.
They say only a biker knows why a dog sticks its head out of a car window – well now I know too.
This tour was the experience of a life-time and I can’t wait for the second run.
For more information on visit www.yorkshiretriketours.co.uk. The tours will run every year from Spring until October. Here are some of the images Jason has taken during his adventures.
Yorkshire Trike Tours 