We began with Pete Hogg's tale of an out of saddle experience riding home last week. LifeCycle at Bildeston was closed, so our hero had to make the best of what must have been a painful experience. He told us how he rested his hind quarters on the cross bar (as we used to call the top tube back in the day). For some reason this reminds me of young tykes riding fathers' bikes with one leg going under the cross bar to reach the pedal. I've just tried to draw this - and I can't work out how it was possible. Anyway, Pete proudly showed off his disturbingly modern, black seat pin, leaning nonchalantly on his now-secure saddle. There was a pleasing amount of red in our group (Ron's must've been in the wash) which was composed of TomTom, Justin, the Peters Gay, Heath'n'Hogg, Jeff, Ron, SJH and Jonathan, as we headed south-ish via Sicklesmere, Gt Welnetham, Hawstead, Whepstead, Chevington, Whickambrook and Stradishall, thence over the hill via Hundon then hurtled down to Chilton St and Clare and Sarah.
All this was accomplished on a one-stop strategy - the site chosen, however, was quite surprisingly bleak for otherwise glorious Suffolk. Every one seemed to have been so mesmerised by my 130rpm escape to take the Clare sign that they all stayed behind me. Thanks guys.We left Clare by a route usually used for the outward journey, turning right as we left No1 Delicatessen, then left past the Priory and left through Hickford Hill to Pentlow and then Cavendish - thus avoiding the main road. I notice on the map that lies on the desk beside me, that there are no fewer than three Pentlows. We turn left just before the main Pentlow to reach Cavendish at another Pentlow - and there is a third, Pentlow Street on the B1064 that goes from Cavendish to the A134 at Rodbridge Corner, via Foxearth. This detour (of course) courtesy of TomTom. From Cavedish it was up Water Lane to Glemsford, and the rest you can probably guess. Our average was 15.7 (4mph slower than Sunday) and our distance I seem to remember nudging sixty (56, actually - I just checked)
Next week it's going to be
SOMEONE'S 75th BIRTHDAY
