February 3rd 2010 Shock, Horror - Club Run to Ipswich via A14

Wednesday February 3rd

The BBC’s weather forecast at 8am was preceded by a general warning of icy roads after an overnight freeze, following the previous day’s rain. The signs didn’t look good as 8 riders assembled in the bus shelter to discuss possible routes. Justin thought it best to be cautious and postpone the ride as the risk of injury was too great.

As if on cue Stephen rang Justin to say he’d come to grief on black ice on the way in, was injured and would struggle home. We later learned that Peter Gay had struggled manfully from Rickinghall but he too then came crashing down around Bardwell, found it difficult to even walk and set off for home on foot, eventually remounting at Walsham. Result for Peter was a bruised hip, (the good one), and thumb, with some road rash.

Stephen meanwhile made it home and went to the surgery where his damaged knee was dressed; he was later able to get to work in his studio as the ‘walking wounded’. Stern stuff the Wheelers you know. So the forecast was right then Julian!

Meanwhile back in the shelter, feet shuffled, gradually becoming colder and colder. The mood was sombre and it was generally agreed to postpone the ride until the following day. Gareth had taken some trouble to make arrangements with his wife so he could get to the ride with colleague Darren, and looked disappointed, Sharon likewise but she had already worked out with a client that morning. Tony and Justin were keen to call things off, - so the ride dis-assembled, as Richard Balaam rode away.

Tom-Tom rode round with Peter to pick up a magazine and ponder a safe route when he said, “Shall we just do it?” Peter glanced at his Airborne bike leaning against the wall of the house and the model name, ‘Carpe Diem’ seemed to take on a new significance. ‘Seize the day’ it spoke to him. It was settled; a higher authority had intervened and lit the way. We would indeed seize the day and make for the Dance Eats Café in Ipswich. We would uphold the honour of the Wheelers by refusing to be brow-beaten by a little black ice.

We thought that if we could negotiate Tostock Hill we would be home and dry, except for finding an ice-free route to Stowmarket.

Richard had it in an instant; “We can drop onto the A14”! Peter baulked, - “Onto the A14”? thinking Rich had lost the plot.
“ No it’ll be alright, if we go down the slip road from the Woolpit island there is a long run-on and just as we make the A14, there is the turn for Haughley!

And so it was that a Wheelers Club Run actually and deliberately turned onto the A14, but with a certain knowledge and sense of purpose. Sure enough, just as Peter was becoming fearful of the speeding HGVs, coming ever closer, all was peace and quiet again as we turned for Haughley. We had made it. Alive! Tom-Tom had triumphed again.

The rest, as they say, is history, totally ice free roads through Stowmarket, Needham Market, Great Blakenham, Claydon and through the outlying estates surrounding Ipswich. We celebrated our arrival on the Ipswich waterfront at 11:05 by ordering cheese and fruit scones with the tea in the Dance Eats café. Once again we were made welcome with a “Where are the rest of you?” We made excuses, making sure not to use the word ‘Wimp’ at all. Well not often anyway.

On a quality note the cheese scones were delightful but the fruit scones contained cinnamon and were not to our liking. Peter made a mental note to let chef Andrew know of our displeasure but he was too busy with serving lithe, long-legged, dancers; not that we noticed of course. This leaning towards an American scone recipe was logged for another visit; we really must put this café on the road to at least standing a chance of one of our awards.

After a pleasant hour the intrepid pair returned through Sproughton, Bramford and on to Great Blakenham for home. At Sproughton, Peter learned that Richard had moved into the village just after the second world war, and used to cycle to school in Bramford. In those days he said, children living outside a radius of 3 miles from the school were provided with cycles for their journey to school! How enlightened were the authorities then and when did it all go wrong? Just think of kids now being provided with cycles, what a difference that would make to their health and wellbeing. Richard pointed out that Kesgrave High School currently has one of the highest levels of children cycling to school in the country so it’s not all bad news.

At Stowmarket we boldly took the road for Onehouse, deciding to risk the road from there to Woolpit. We only saw ice at the road edges and sailed smoothly into Richard’s home village, where we sampled the delights of a10 year old Bushmills Malt, followed by Rich’s homemade Damson Vodka, just the thing for warming the cockles, all washed down with lashings of tea. Peter can recall little of the ride home via Tostock hill but arrived safely at 2:20pm after a gloriously sunlit 51 miles.

We wish the day’s casualties a speedy recovery.

Carpe Diem!

Peter Heath