This year’s London Ride was to the newly reopened Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, to view progress to date on the Olympic heritage for cyclists.
Some 20 riders joined the ride, significantly fewer than the previous 2 years; was it the changeable weather, or the 9am start, or other attractions?
However a smaller group can travel faster in traffic, so we made good progress direct to Wandsworth. Where to cross the Thanes is always a difficult decision in London route planning, and Wandsworth Bridge is among the more challenging for cyclists. However the crossing went without a hitch, a tribute to our riders’ road skills.
Entering Brompton Cemetery we were greeted by Phil Benstead, a CTC councilor who was there with local campaigners about cyclist access to the cemetery, who photographed us enjoying the peaceful surroundings (thanks to David Aylett for the contact).
I was fortunate in have in a team of dedicated “turn markers” who stopped at each junction in turn to guide following riders until the back marker arrived. This worked well in keeping the group moving so we managed a good average speed of just under 10mph, faster than most of the traffic in central London.
11’s stop was at the open-air café in Kensington Gardens, where the only complaint was the 50p charged for a pee – thanks Kensington Council.
Shortly after the 11’s we passed 3 Craven Hill, the site of the first CTC HQ.
I had planned the route to minimise the number of changes of direction to simplify navigation, and only once did Mark, as back marker, have to round up a breakaway.
We passed through a fascinating cross section of London from elegant residential Kensington, through old urban “villages” like Marylebone and Bloomsbury, through the traditional commercial areas of Clerkenwell and Shoreditch to the newly prosperous east, supported by Olympic development, accommodation for City financiers, and the media and fashion industries.
A final turn through Victoria Park, established in the 19th century, and modelled on Hyde Park for the workers in the East End, took us to QEOP, where we took in the distant view of the still-closed (until 2014) Velodrome and Stadium. Lunch was at the Goldengrove in Stratford, the nearest JDW to the park, and one of the area's few pubs not charging astro prices for gastro grub. There, with our bikes in the garden, we were speedily fed and watered by friendly staff.
After lunch we had a further tour through the north of the Park, bounded by the cycle-unfriendly East Cross A12, before diving onto the Lee Navigation towpath for a couple of miles of peaceful riding. We passed under the dreaded A11/A12 Bow Junction on the newly created Olympic legacy path along and over the canal, before emerging at Three Mills Island by the old tide mill and former distillery. After the relaxing canal path it was back to action with an off-road bike-handling test to take us under the A12 and through back-streets to Stepney.
The final part of the tour was straight along CS2 to Aldgate, through the City to Southwark Bride, and straight down CS7 to South Wimbledon; old Roman roads now painted blue but still doing excellent service. Tea was at the Gooseberry Café, noted for its excellent cycle parking, and good cakes.
Along the way I spoke to several cyclists who were interested in our ride, asking about CTC; we must have made quite an impression in our Wayfarers jerseys.
42 miles in total, 9.75mph: a good distance and speed for a London ride. No hassles with motorists; perhaps some things are getting better.
It would not have been achieved without an excellent team, especially Mark and Simon in turn as back markers, and Peter, Jeff, Paul, Toni and Brian, Angie, Helene and Stephanie and others as turn markers. Thanks to you all.
Dave
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