B group ride report 8th January 2025 Cobham to Seven Stars at Ripley

Ride Leader Paula: 

My first ride lead and the first ride of the year in sub-zero temperatures and a forecast of 90% rain and snow. What was I thinking? 

 As it happens I had 2 willing (and very lovely) helpers, only a hardy band of subscribers and a forecast that remarkably improved as the day approached. 

 

So the Brave Hearts and the Die Hards (great group names if only I had thought of them sooner) aka Gill's Group and Paula's group set off from Cobham after a lengthy discussion about the route (or technically you could say risk assessment) and some welcome coffee and cake to celebrate Gill and Dave V's recent birthdays (thankyou both). Lovely also to see Ian and Ken at coffee. 

 

Gill's group were off first...

From Gill:

A cold but enjoyable ride through Surrey countryside today.  The ice was nowhere near as bad as expected, but we were cautious and avoided the Greene Dene ascent and Staple Lane descent.  As it turned out Greene Dene was closed to traffic, possibly due to flooding, so staying on the main road to East Clandon had been a good decision. Our merry band had stuck together well, but part way along the call came to ‘go faster’ as the chill air was getting to us and lunch beckoned because we were cruelly paused outside the pub with the extra loop of 9 miles still to go. I offered an early lunch, but in my hardy group there were no takers! We also had the new bridge at Wisley to look forward to!

When we did eventually get inside, the Seven Stars pub was very welcoming, we were served at table, all the fires were lit and we had an extra fan heater by us.  Food was good. 

Back on the road it was a short hop to tea for those partaking, at Stoke d’Abernon.

Thanks Mick for marvellous back marking and my whole group for your lovely company.

Well done Paula for your first lead, it was brilliant!

From Paula:

 

My group, Sue F (mentor), Tim G (back marker), Julie, Fixie Dave, or should if be faffing Dave :) (Maddie had a nose bleed and met us at lunch, Terry sensibly didn't brave the cold and Paul and Geoff didn't make it either) pedalled non-eventfully to Effingham, managed to survive the travellers' dogs at Calvert Road, to brave the main A246 (thereby avoiding the potentially slippery Green Dene and Staple Lane - to Julie's delight!) joining the planned route at East Clandon. From then on it was plain sailing (operative word) on lanes and small roads to pass the Seven Stars in preparation for the stupid loop which brought us past Wisley and floating over the A3 on the new super smooth cycle path back to Ripley for a warm up and nice lunch served by 'beautiful people' at the Seven Stars. Here we are in the warm:

 

We decided on Barbara's at Stoke D'Abernon for tea by which time things had warmed up a bit (the rain held off but Maddie was prepared!) and we wondered what all the fuss had been about!  All in all a good day out with no shipwrecks and nobody drowned!

Well done on your first ride lead Paula and as Dave F commented, excellent ride leading skills in re-planning the route according to weather conditions.