Our destination, The Angel House Tea Room, High Street, Sherston
A strong case for the renaming of our club, with ‘and
District’ being added, was made this morning when three times as many members
from the outlying villages rode, as did those from Malmesbury itself. However, some
would argue that Cowbridge is most definitely a part of the town, in which case
there was an equal number. The mathematicians will by now have worked out that
there were four riders.
A thought did occur to me whilst gliding down the High Street, that back in the day, as schoolboys,
we’d probably have gone to find our missing mates and seeing our excited faces
bobbing at their door, they would have eagerly come out to play. Why do we stop
doing that when we become adults?
The three that set off from the Cross Hayes, of which I was
one, only got as far as the Silk Mills before we stopped to take shelter from
the downpour. The option of retiring was
given short shrift and so we scuttled out when something close to a lull arrived.
Meanwhile, Simon who was waiting for us at Cowbridge, having
arrived a few minutes late, thought that we must have already ridden past and
so embarked on a mission to catch us up.
By the time we reached Little Somerford, Gary and I were
already as wet as we possibly could be, and so it no longer seemed to matter.
Phil on the other hand had obviously spent wisely, as the beads of rainwater merrily
bounced around on the surface of his rain jacket before tumbling harmlessly
away.
On Seagry Road, at the junction with Five Thorn Lane, Phil
pointed out the work which has started, to erect a memorial to two Spitfire
pilots who died in April 1941, when their planes crashed over Seagry Mill
whilst dogfight training.
A dedication ceremony to
mark the installation of the memorial is due to take place on 14th September,
which it is hoped will feature a fly-past from two Spitfires.
On the theme of Spitfires, Gary added an interesting anecdote. You
might be aware that to help the war effort people were encouraged to club
together to fund the construction of the Spitfires. During the planning for his
village’s millennium celebrations, the committee realised that they were short
of money. The gloom was soon lifted when an elderly resident remembered that there
was still cash left in the Spitfire Fund!
We Love Cyclists, the Sign Outside of The Angel House Tea Room
After a soggy, but otherwise pleasant ride, we arrived at The Angel Tea
Rooms in the High Street at Sherston, where with the rain having briefly
stopped, we found Simon sitting outside. The staff made us very welcome and I
enjoyed a pot of tea (£2.50) and a guilt-free, delicious light finger of shortbread, for
just £1.
Alfresco Outside of The Angel House Tea Room
With the crackle of thunder overhead and the first few spots of rain
splashing into the remains of our hot drinks, we decided to make tracks. Again,
giving up wasn't on the agenda and with the rain hammering down on our
backs, the four of us headed northwards up to Leighterton, before returning via
Westonbirt and Shipton Moyne.
Garmin reference: http://connect.garmin.com/course/7281234
Distance: 35.68 miles
Well done all of you and I hope the trench foot clears up soon! We had a nice dry ride to Marlborough today and thought of you brave souls often.
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