This was an organised ride, run alongside a live music festival in Flitwick, to raise cash for leukaemia charities- (see http//giveatomarrow.org.uk). Last year a similar ride coincided with Ampthill Festival, the Cambridge to Ampthill event attracting over 100 riders despite torrential rain. This year a circular route, following much of Sustrans Route 51, led us through Bedford, Sandy & Biggleswade and back to Flitwick. The ride was well organised and marshaled so it was disappointing that only around 60 cyclists took part.
As for much of the summer, the weather forecast was mixed but in the end we were lucky. Other than brief, light drizzle late in the morning it kept dry. Five of us (Brian, Richard B, Oliver B, John & Chris H) were amongst the last to leave Flitwick. Back through Ampthill and down Hazelwood Lane, we were approaching 40 mph when the sight of the first yellow shirted marshals caused us to grab handfuls of brake and take a sharp left along the drive towards Ampthill Park House. Continuing his recent run of form, John managed to find a gravel trap and fell off. Fortunately this was the only mishap of the day.
After climbing through Millbrook, we headed out to Maston Vale, picking up Route 51 around the lake and under the A421 at Marston, then on to the first checkpoint at Wooton. Here we were caught by a father-and-son team who, having started even later than us, were clearly on a mission to get back and enjoy the hog roast. Despite their speed, we were to pass them at least twice during the day as they overshot turnings in their haste.
After Kempston, we picked up the River Ouse and followed the embankment through Bedford. This is certainly the nicest way to see the town and it looks quite grand when the sun shines. I think we were supposed to leave the river and ride through the centre but this was not clear so we stuck to the tow path. As we stopped to review the map we saw the srangest sight of the day- An ancient new aged traveller ( a walking oxymoron!) was headed towards us in miniskirt and knitted tights. He was about 65 with sparrow legs and looked for all the world like a bearded Zandra Rhodes. I think we've finally found something in a skirt that even Mick wouldn't chase.
Heading out through Priory Park, the wind helped us along, although our rhythm was disrupted by frequent gates. We were soon at checkpoint no. 2 at Danish Camp after which we began the gentle
climb out of the river valley towards Sandy. Before Blunham we hit the first stretch of cross country riding, as the gravel path gave way to a dirt track- "Good job it's dry" was the prophetic quip.Like many of our fellow riders, we lost the route somewhere on the edge of Sandy but a bit of local knowledge soon got us back on track. Heading out into the countryside towards Biggleswade, the path again deteriorated and we wished we'd brought our mountain bikes. Things got worse after Biggy and the route under the A1 was all but impassable. Obviously the route is chosen to avoid major roads wherever possible but an advanced warning that there may be protracted stretches of unsurfaced track and/or mud would be useful next year.
Having crossed the A1, we were just about back on home territory as we entered Broom. For years the famous Cock has been a regular destination for our Thursday night rides. It's one of the most unusual pubs in the area, with ale being served directly from barrels on stillage in the cellar, but our last few visits have been disappointing. Needing sustenance, we decided to try the White Horse in the centre of the village. This turned out to be a great choice; food, service and beer were all excellent- hand carved ham, egg & chips washed down with Tiger Bitter is definitely recommended.
We stayed in the pub rather longer than anticipated and the combination of a couple of pints and a full-on headwind made the afternoon session heavy going. Nevertheless we managed to overhaul several of our fellow riders as we ambled through Southill & Old Warden. This is an area that we ride frequently and in truth I think we probably followed our own route rather than the official one-opting to stick to the side roads and avoid Maulden/Ampthill by-pass.
Before we knew it we were back at the Millennium Park where we collected our medals and sat and watched a couple of the bands in the afternoon sun.
Like the ride, the festival was well organised with bungee jumps for the really stupid and stunt bike demonstrations for the slightly less foolhardy- (I stopped doing that sort of thing when I realised falling off hurts more as you get older) Latest estimates are that they raised a fantastic £8.5k for the nominated charities.
All in all it was an excellent day out. It would have been nice to stay and see the headline acts but we had a date with a curry and some more beer.
The official route was 43 miles but we managed to clock 50+ at a very leisurely 13.5mph. Thanks to all of the organisers and marshals.
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