Sunday the 26th, A Good Yarn

As the Pheasantry in Bushey is closed for refurb, a change of 11's venue was called. So the golden Grill in Ashford was deemed a suitable replacement, it is also nearer the lunch stop, The Good Yarn in Uxbridge.

There was a good turnout of Ed, Simon, Pam, Dave W, Dave E, Graham, Diane, Lillian, Bernard, Sabina and Geoff, and all were joining the ride, The route to lunch was roughly 21/22 miles, which in the end I did shorten to around 19.

It was a route we had used parts of in years gone by, and I added some sneaky extra miles. The distance did take its toll on Ed, who bonked a few miles short of Uxbridge. However, he did make it to lunch with the assistance of Dave, Simon and Geoff.

The lunch venue was packed, but luckily most were just there for the booze, so food service was prompt.

Ed and Lillian headed for the station to catch a train home, while the rest of us headed South, I took a shortish route through Heathrow to Bedfont where Pam left us for her route home, on and through Hampton where I left the group and Simon guided the remaining few to Hampton court to make their own ways home. A really good day on the bike but somewhat still too chilly.

Thank you all for your company and especially to Simon for back marking

Tony..

 

Please Note - Change of Lunch Venue for Sunday 5th March

In the expectation of dry weather next Sunday, I've planned a slightly longer hillier route from Cafe Barbera in Stoke D'Abernon which will take us across Bookham Common as usual but then turn through Little Bookham and Effingham before going steadily up Critten Lane to Ranmore Common, where hopefully we can enjoy a nice view before heading back down to Leatherhead for lunch at The Running Horse. About 15 miles to lunch and then heading towards Epsom and beyond for afternoon tea at Cobham or Tolworth, to be decided on the day.

Hope to see you then,

Diane 

Sunday the 26th

Next Sunday's ride will be 11's from the Golden Grill, Ashford, as the Pheasantry is closed for renovation. Lunch will be at the Good Yard, Wetherspoons, Uxbridge.

Ride to Woking - 19 Feb

After a bit of a kerfuffle at elevenses, which I won't write about here, nine of us left Leatherhead fairly promptly, having decided to go to Woking after all, leaving Bob, Geoff, Graham, Terry and David W with cups of unlimited coffee.   

Ready to go

It was a nice spring day with a bit of sunshine, and the climb up to Effingham got us warmed up for the downhill delights to follow, as we whizzed down towards Ripley, with a few extra detours on quiet lanes.  Ed and Grant left us near Effingham Junction, having other destinations in mind.   Then the back streets of Woking delivered us almost to the pub, our second Wetherspoons of the day, where David rejoined us a bit later.

The Martians have arrived!

The afternoon was gorgeous, a bit warmer and with full sunshine and a following wind we followed the Basingstoke canal to New Haw and then through Addlestone, Walton and on to Molesey cricket club for an outdoor tea on the riverbank.   It really felt like spring - Lilian even had an ice cream!   About 30 miles in total.  Thanks to Keith and Diane for back marking.

Molesey

Ride report 12 Feb

We had a lovely warm ride to Bagshot before enjoying an al fresco lunch in the sunshine.   But that was last year.   Today was different.

It was a windless, sunless, cheerless sort of day, with a prickle of drizzle now and again.   The forecast was for a balmy eleven degrees - lovely - but that never materialised.  Despite Apple Maps saying that the Golden Cafe at Addlestone was "permanently closed", a goodly crowd of riders turned up in their warm weather gear, to find the cafe very much open as usual.   Ed, Pam and Terry stayed in the cafe for tea and chat, while Tony, Graham, Diane, Liz, Ray, David & Jennie and myself set off towards Chobham, through a blizzard* of road works.

It was cold.  One by one, like frostbitten toes, riders dropped off.  First Tony had a disagreement with his legs about whether he wanted to go on the ride.  Then Ray remembered some shopping he had to do.  Everyone else blindly followed me on many roads that promised to lead to Chobham but never arrived.  We did a sort of pirouette around Chobham, dodged the ford at Pennypot and then a near miss with Windlesham found us arriving at Bagshot.  The Kings Arms was a little short on the bargains of previous visits, but we all managed to find something reasonably priced and reasonably filling.

Graham left us to find his own way home, and the surviving five returned through Sunninghill and Windsor Great Park to tea and warmth at Nauticalia.  Thanks to Jennie for back marking and to all for your company.

* What IS the collective name for road works?   Answers in the comments please.

Ride Report - Sunday 5 February

 

In the good old days of yore, I remember school masters banging on about 'intelligent Martians'.  I suspect this is now an 'outmoded concept' since it is not inclusive of less intelligent Martians, or those who are just plain stupid.  But I digress, my point was that a putative if outmoded intelligent Martian who had landed in Epsom today, and who happened to join the Cheam and Morden ride, would have taken back to his, her or their planet a completely wrong impression of one of our club rides!   For a start, it was sunny, dry and not too cold all day.   Secondly, not even one visit to a branch of Wetherspoons was involved, and thirdly, and almost unbelievably, we climbed up and crossed over the North Downs!

From a pleasant elevenses at The Old Moat Garden Centre we made for Headley bathed in sunshine, and were only briefly thwarted by the unexpected closure of the railway bridge at Castle Road.   After Headley Heath we zoomed down Pebble Hill, then ambled through Betchworth to reach  Leigh.

We had not booked for The Plough but they were able to find us a table and offered a full menu, including sandwiches, unusual these days for a Sunday.   It should have been a straightforward ride back through Brockham and the Mole Gap to Leatherhead but, embarrassingly, I had mudguard problems en route which delayed us a bit, although there was still plenty of time for tea at Leatherhead for those who wanted to stop.

Bob, Graham, and Ed were at elevenses only, but Mark (making a welcome return after a few weeks absence), Diane, Keith and Geoff joined me to lunch along with Simon who very kindly back-marked all day).  Many thanks all for your company!