Despite the very cold start, all of the riders for the day turned up promptly at Teddington - chapeau to you all.
We were the first group to depart (Frances with Simon, Paula, Keith, Dave, Peter) with Geoff kindly backmarking with his usual efficiency.
The crossing through Bushy Park was very pretty, crisp and sunny but we soon hit fog heading through Chertsey - fortunately we all had good lights and on we went.
There were some lovely long stretches of road near Virginia Water and again on Drift Road, through Fifield. We broke with tradition (no pub photo) as we stopped at the bridge near Dorney as it was so picturesque. We had a good pace and arrived at the pub around 12.40pm.
The pre order went to plan and it allowed all the groups to get away. We passed Janice in Eton waiting for a rider and we stayed with the original route (including a nice spin up Crimp Hill) slightly adjusted to avoid a busy roundabout at Egham. The group arrived for tea at Walton Bridge at 3pm (saying goodbye to Keith) where we met up with the other groups.
Overall a lovely ride, lovely company and thanks to Janice and Dave W for sub leading together with input on route before the day.
Janice led the second group:
It was a bitterly cold ride to Teddington but with the promise of sunshine and milder temperatures my group comprising Fiona, Patrick, Neil W, Jon, Ged and Dave V were all raring to go!
Patrick and Fiona had both been off their bike for a while and were worried about their fitness. As it turned out, they had no need to worry and it was a job to stay in front of them!
There was little traffic on the way to The Pineapple and the sun came out bringing a some warmth with it, apart from a couple of areas where mist brought plunging temperatures. Nearly there we crossed the bridge to see a mix of brilliant blue sky, sunshine and mist over the water. A good photo opportunity!
The sandwiches at The Pineapple were as good as ever and no one ordered a side of chips. However, had they arrived with the sandwiches as in the past we would have happily eaten them. Dave’s arrived a little late but he managed to catch up for a fairly swift departure.
The conservatory was cool over lunch but Fiona managed to find a way to keep warm.
We were first away and decided on ‘the usual route’ back to Walton. In fact it turns out that there are 2 usual routes and we’d taken a different one to the other groups. I think ours was a couple of miles (and Crimp Hill) shorter but this was just a well as Neil had a puncture outside Windsor. He repaired it with a tube that had seen better days so then had to replace that with another tube.
On the road again, still with little traffic, we made good time to arrive at Walton where most of us stopped for a hot drink and snack.
A great route for a cold day, thanks to Frances and also to Ged for back marking.
Dave Ward led the third group:
The 10.45 group (Sue, Dave E, Dave B, Brian, Richard, Hans, Mike and me) set off promptly and made good progress until Chertsey where Brian suffered a rear wheel puncture. Despite some problems, Brian got it sorted very speedily and we were soon back on the road, a pity in some ways as we had been enjoying the warmth of the sunshine while we waited! Despite the short delay, we still arrived at The Pineapple before 1.00 pm. Service at the pub was very efficient and the food was good. We were back on the road by 1.45 pm and got to tea without any further problems. Thanks to Dave B for back-marking all day, and to Mike and others for assistance with gates! Everyone enjoyed the ride and appreciated Frances's very efficient organisation. Despite an uncertain and foggy start, the weather also turned out to be rather pleasant.
~Frances
1 comment:
I think the spare tube was fine, after the 2nd sapre failed to inflate it was the Topeak pump that had seen better day (& breathed its last). Now have new pump.
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