Club run reports - 24th October

Category 6 ride led by Daniel Horn

A pleasant day was expected with a small group of seasoned riders starting from Much Hadham.

It wasn’t long before it was noted that there was some rough terrain ahead and all were required to switch to off road mode to survive the serious potholes/sinkholes along the farm track.

Bikes dirtied and all survived, we made our way north towards Braughing.

Taking the lanes obviously meant we had an opportunity to enter a bike cleaning stage i.e. 30m of flooded road over which one or two waded through and got nice clean bikes. The rest of us took to the field adjacent and added more mud to our shoes.

Along this part of the journey a certain person (unnamed due to data protection) was making his usual moans and groans. However he was accompanied this time, with his own bike joining in with the noise of clicking and clacking and slipping gears. Needless to say just as we got to Braughing his chain failed, and that was his excuse to bow out.

Next, an unscheduled stop at a pub with some skeletons drinking outside and a photo shoot.

The next part of the journey went to plan with a very hilly 1^st half arriving at The Pheasant pub in Great Chishill, where many savoury sausage rolls and cakes were consumed.

Peter W demonstrated a rapid tyre inflation with a gas bomb – very impressive.

Return journey was uneventful except for the wind and me coming off my bike, doing a Mai Thai knee kick into the ground – ouch that hurt. 

Climb 2159ft

Average speed 13 mph

Distance 36.5 miles

Category 4 ride led by Peter Bloomfield

Seven of us started out from Ware with an immediate route change  -  word on Slack was that Cold Christmas Lane was in bad condition so we diverted through Wareside and Widford before picking up the planned outbound route in Much Hadham.  We also picked up an extra rider, Suj V having been delayed with baby duties had thought to catch us up through Cold Christmas only to think he missed us completely and he was in Much Hadham just pondering his next move when we rolled by, a lucky catch.  So a pleasant group of eight now made its way through Upwick Green and Hazel End to Stansted Mountfitchet.  From there Elsenham and Molehill Green led us around the perimeter of Stansted Airport and then through Takeley and on to Thremhall Park.

Arriving spot on prediction at 11:30 (that was a good guess!) we arrived in time to be seated and served before large numbers of other punters arrived so we were not unduly delayed and were soon back out for the return journey  -  and the sun came out!  Slightly shorter return brought us through Hatfield Forest then Little Hallingbury and Spellbrook (got caught at the level crossing, bah!).  Green Tye and Perry Green brought us back out on to the Widford road where we retraced our steps to Ware, shedding riders along the way as people took more direct routes home, with the result that three of us finally wound up back at Allenbury’s after an enjoyable ride of 44 miles  -  the diversion at the start knocked a mile off the advertised distance.  

Oh yes  -  the crashes!  That’s what you’ve been waiting for, isn’t it.  Two occasions during the second half saw bikes in the road.  I won’t bore you with the detail but one involved Pete E not being able to unclip at a junction and toppling sideways, Lisa R was beside him and attempted to keep him upright but the difference in their sizes was too much and both bikes went down.  I don’t know more than that because I arrived just afterwards to find both of them picking their bikes up and Pete hopping about without a left shoe because it was still clipped into the pedal!  The second crash involved yours truly, a fast-moving, yapping dog requiring evasive action, a damp road and an oncoming car on a downhill bend.  At least the dog didn’t get me, nor did the car, but I did end up crashing to the road where I left some of the skin off my knee, some of my shorts and a fair bit of my dignity!  Ah well, it could have been worse, the bike survived with only cosmetic damage and I managed to ride the last seven miles back to Ware without further incident.

Let’s hope the biggest problem next week is the rain!