A Week in the Life of the Clarions

The Severn Bridge.

On Tuesday I had the pleasure of accompanying Mike on a ride over to Wales. The purpose of the journey was so that Mike could try out the course he's devised for the Sunday ride on 5th July 2015.

Without wishing to steal Mike's thunder, it's an absolute cracker! There are two crossings of the River Severn (there and back), a coffee stop at the Chepstow Garden Centre where the Manager has given permission for bikes to be wheeled through the store and safely left outside of the cafe, and some absolutely stunning scenery in a loop around Chepstow which, ends in a long exhilarating descent into the town. 

The course is being trimmed to just under 90 miles, but if anyone would like a shorter excursion of around 60 miles, there's always the option of spending a couple of hours in Chepstow whilst the loop is being ridden and then meeting up again for the trip home.

The start time and course for what promises to be a truly epic ride will be circulated later in the week.

A Wednesday evening ride last year.

For the second week running just 3 riders (this time Phil, Karine and Peter C) took part in the Wednesday evening training ride. Some recently absent members have already promised to be there this Wednesday and so hopefully we can start getting back to the sort of numbers we enjoyed last summer. 

Clarions waiting their turn.

Thursday evening was the 'Come & Try It' 10 mile TT at Latton hosted by Swindon RC.

I cycled with George over to the Bradstone Sports Pavilion at Ashton Keynes uncertain as to whether I was actually going to take part, but once we'd arrived and I'd seen people pinning their numbers on, I was in.

Entry was only £2 and although we'd arrived in good time, 48 riders had already registered. There was a real mix from those wearing pointy helmets on proper TT bikes to some fairly senior cyclists smelling strongly of liniment. 

For a complete novice like me I can't tell you how exciting it is to be clipped in on the line with someone holding your frame keeping you upright whilst being counted down.

As the word 'one' died on his lips I drove my right leg forward and set off trying to pick up speed as quickly as possible. Glancing down at the Garmin I saw that with just under a mile completed my average speed was 24.5 mph. My lungs soon told me that this was unsustainable and so I eased off slightly on the pedals and settled into a more manageable tempo. My finishing time was 00.28.11, which gave me an average of 21.29 mph.

Meanwhile, George who had breezed past me after a couple of miles recorded a finishing time of 00.24.33, relating to a 24.44 mph average.

Afterwards, back at the Bradstone Sports Pavilion, tea and cake were served whilst participants poured out reasons why they weren't able to ride faster. I relied heavily on the fact that because George was wearing a skin suit and so had no pockets, I'd had to carry his spare inner tube and tools. Who knows how quick I could have been without the burden of his equipment. George concentrated his fire on a lack of equipment, namely a pointy hat and a TT bike.

Relish at Cotswold Water Park.

I'm grateful to Tim H for the following report covering Saturday's club ride:

13 Clarions departed for an appointment at Relish Coffee shop at the Cotswold Water Park.

Unfortunately OGL (our glorious leader) Howard only managed to ride out for the first 5 miles as he had to get back for family commitments. Good job Howard had his Garmin with him or he would undoubtedly have kept riding!

There were two groups, the first took a leisurely direct route whilst the other group took a loop north of Tetbury.

It was a lovely day for a ride and there was a great vibe at the cafe when everybody got together. it was good to see Jim and George W pitch up at the stop and there were also a few new faces who we hope to see again.

Riders listening to the pre-ride briefing at Beech Hill near Reading.

Further afield on Saturday, me and Mike rode together on Alan Furley's Up the Downs 202km Audax from Beech Hill near Reading. The ride is in memory of Alan Furley who was a member of Reading CTC and a former president of CTC.

The course takes a very scenic route through Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Wiltshire and Hampshire, and has just under 7,000 feet of climbing, most of which seemed to be in the afternoon.

The weather was glorious, the views spectacular and the company was top notch too!