Sadly, following my tumbles last week, this was one I had to sit out. .
. . . . . . . blah, blah, blah, blah. I’m only joking. Of course I went on the
ride. Rule 81 and all that, but as to my rapid recovery, if there are any
children reading this please don’t try it at home. I discovered a strip of
tablets I’d been given some years ago for a bad back hiding at the bottom of
the medicine cabinet. A couple at bedtime found me waking Saturday morning
feeling like a new man (please, no mention of this to my wife, the new man that
is, she already knows about the misuse of prescribed medication).
In time honoured tradition we assembled outside of the Jackdaws Café
where we found early-bird Mike basking in the strong winter sunlight. Among the
regulars was guest-rider John who is hoping to set up a Clarion section in
Swindon. We wish him every success in his venture and look forward to a time
when we’ll be able to meet up with them for the occasional joint-ride.
Setting off down the side of Jackdaws towards Oxford Street, I felt my
bike veering violently to the left. Like a disobedient dog I quickly brought it
to heel. At first I feared a mechanical defect until I quickly realised that it
was just the bike trying to reach the Foxley Road. Sorry, not this week old
friend, the Organic Farm Shop Café just outside of Cirencester was awaiting our
arrival.
The initial plan was to stay as one group, but with an early brisk pace
being set, splitting into two seemed sensible.
A genuine highlight of the outward journey and a first for me was having
to wait at the Minety rail crossing for a train to pass. Please see the picture
above showing a rather dejected group of Clarions disappointed that no one had
bothered to wave at them.
An interesting feature of the route was the suicide mission which saw us
having to dismount and walk (run) across the A419 to reach the other side.
(Very creative Howard. Thank goodness I’ve just renewed my life assurance
policy).
The café is reached at the end of a long lane. Our al fresco days are a
long way behind us now and the chance of any warmth is never wasted. Making
ourselves comfortable in the easy chairs, the banana and sultana loaf scored
very highly with me and George W, but our drinks could have been a lot hotter.
The return journey saw the advance party embarking on an impromptu quest
to find Performance Cycles. Being so close to Poulton it was too good an
opportunity to miss. By more luck than judgement we found them just as we’d
almost abandoned all hope.
The cycle shop was one of those where you feel very comfortable
lingering with no particular purpose in mind. Just being around bikes and other
cyclists felt good. Tim H did buy some spares which at least lent our over-stay
a bit of credibility.
A golden comic moment well worth mentioning, but definitely one of those
where you had to be there to appreciate
the full humour of the situation, was spending some considerable time watching
the failed attempts of the proprietor to load up a program on his computer
which, was linked to a demo bike on a high-tech stand. Dave was very much to
the fore and we incorrectly assumed that he was waiting to try out the bike,
which wasn't the case at all, he was just politely waiting for us.
With some distance to cover we set off with a vengeance riding south
through Down Ampney, the village sign informing us that it is the birthplace of
the composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, before heading west across to Cerney Wick
and back home.
Mileage: 46.2 miles for the route described, but with some variations
depending on the return journey.
The Cycling Monk
It was a great day with a sound group of people. Will not forget having to ring a bell at the level crossing to get the br man out of his hut! Cheers John B
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