Sunday 13th October 2024

I had my £1.56 ready............"£1.04 please".

One pound four?

Wetherspoons coffee guess the price game & I failed.

I handed over £1.05, & waited for that penny.

Who waits for a penny?

Well me at least......I make my pension work for me which I started contributing to on this very site way back in 1978.

Replacing the counter shop (who remembers that?) in London Road.

My career in food retail came to an abrupt end in the building next door.....but enough about that!

Incidently, Sainsburys opened the current store in the mid-nineties & Wetherspoons redeveloped the site as we see it today.

Brocks, the firework company had a factory close by too.

So to the ride & we said goodbye to Graham, & Diane who had more pressing duties back home...ironing, but also recovering from her (successful) ride to the coast with the Beginners the day before.

Read here: https://swlctcbeginners.blogspot.com/

Colin G & Sue B heeded my advice & also went their separate ways.

Because today we went in search of climbs.

The first, a right turn off the A22 that climbs to Kenley's airfield where we spent a few minutes reflecting on past lives lived but mostly lost.

Motorised aircraft are banned but the airfield is used by Ministry of Defence for glider training which we witnessed today.

Dave left us shortly after & we descended rapidly to cross the A22 & commence the second climb past Woldingham Golf Club.

Slines Oak Road rises to the Limpsfield Road & earns its single chevron on OS 187 (1 in 7 to 1 in 5).

An explainer:

The gear I was using had 28 teeth on the chainring (front) & 28 teeth on the rear sprocket (largest).

A gear ratio in inches of 27.

https://www.bikecalc.com/archives/gear-inches.html

The higher the gear ratio the harder it is to turn the pedals, conversely the lower the number, the easier it is.

Bernard who had to get off was geared much higher but didn't have the muscle strength to turn the pedals.

After lunch at Seasons café in Knights Garden Centre, Chelsham we took a short detour to enjoy the view.

If I had decent photo editing software, I could put these pics side by side to create a panoramic single shot.

Dobbies, Woodcote Green provided afternoon refreshment & free tea to holders of their Club Plus loyalty cards.

Fast forward to Monday morning, thanks to Bernard's help, I successfully had my first perculator coffee!

Thanks to my supporters today on the coldest October 13th for 22 years.