Club run reports - 16th July

Category 6 ride led by Tony Dos Santos

The forecast was warm but windy, with a chance of rain. Only six riders showed up. Nice to meet Oliver Lea, lovely guy and definitely not a cat 6 rider. He will climb up through the cats pretty swiftly. 

One of Carolyn’s routes today,  which takes us through some lovely lanes. All I have to do is lead it. Simples eh! Off we go through the Hertford back roads, avoiding Port Hill in true Carolyn style. 

The usual banter ensued. Ian was out with his lovely clean bike, NOT. In fact his bike looked like it had been dragged through a field backwards, forwards and sideways. The said field was obviously muddy. Naming and shaming here, eh. I reckon if Ian removed all the mud, he could be a TT champion! 

Now, if you know Carolyn and her routes, she does like putting in a hill or five.  We rode up one (can’t remember it’s name), but I kid you not, it was like eighteen miles long and had a 25% ratio! At the top of the hill, we were all back slapping and cheering. Oliver looked on as if we were mad, as he didn’t even recognise it as a hill! 

We got to the Vanstones at around 11, and who was waiting there for us, yes, it was our beloved Routemaster, Carolyn. She had a beaming face and it was lovely to see her. Someone had stuck what looked like a three pronged fork into her knee. Obviously, it was from her operation that, by the looks of things has been successful, and Carolyn was in good spirits. She hadn’t just come to see us, she’d also come to buy a hydrangea (that took me hours to spell that you know)! After a good laugh and a long tea stop, we set off again at 12.30. Well worth it though, to see Carolyn’s cheeky chops again.

When we started our return, all the main hills had been traversed (another big word from me) and nothing really eventful happened, apart from a slipped chain from yours truly. 

We arrived back in Hertford at around half past two.
Obviously, written on the throne. Love and kisses.

Category 2 ride led by Laura Firth

Good turn out for the inaugural revamped Cat 2 ride on Sunday. There were four of us in total and it was great to see former members tempted back into the HW fold! Although it was a little blustery than we'd have liked it didn't stop us having a great ride to the Paradise Cafe in Great Dunmow. 

It was a social group ride (no drop) averaging just shy of 18 mph over 65 miles with 800m climbing. 

There is room in the category 2 peloton for more riders, and it would be great to see new faces to give it a try. 

Category 3 ride led by Graham Knight

Cat 3 made a return for the first time for several months - though perhaps it would be fairer to call it a re-badged cat 4. Anyway, three cat 4 regulars were joined by two from cat 3 to set off on a slightly circuitous route to Café Moreno in Royston. In Hertford we picked up Graeme Hill who has not been category anything much of late, though he had been putting in some long hard rides in preparation for a crazily hilly ride in Yorkshire.

A stiff south-westerly breeze was mainly helpful as we headed up to Baldock then Ashwell and east to Royston with Graeme helping regular pace-setter Peter Kelleway at the front. Morenos provided their usual selection of fried delights with Denis's giant American-Style pancakes plus ice-cream being especially eye-catching. There was some good fortune here as this was the café's last business day before a two week holiday break.

After that we took to the hills towards Barley. In order to avoid getting back too soon we ignored the direct route home via the B1358 and climbed up through Little Chishill looping back to Hare Street via Brent Pelham and Hormead.

Back in time for most of the tennis.