I'm not sure if it was anything to do with the date, but this ride was dogged with mishaps throughout. Bad luck particularly seemed to bug John, who, having arrived home late, set off for Ampthill as we were headed for Maulden to pick him up. After a brief interlude while he and Kieth, another late starter, caught up, we set off for Southill via Clophill, Haynes, Northill & Old Warden.
Later, John was to lose his chain, bend his valve and burst a tyre- but at least he didn't fall off this time.
The weather was perfect and our group of ten included a debutant in Mark the Fireman- riding the first mountain bike seen on a road ride since last year's tour.
As it happened, the MTB was better suited to large chunks of the route than most of our road bikes. The Highway Authority are in the midst of their annual road "repair" programme. This entails spraying vast stretches of road with liquid tar, throwing a few tons of chippings at it and hoping at least some will stick. Some three or four miles of this week's route had been treated thus, making it virtually un-rideable in places.
This is a very un-bike friendly method of maintenance. Not only does it provide a poor surface, at best it fails to repair underlying potholes and at worst it disguises them , leaving traps for un-suspecting cyclists.
Anyway, enough of a rant and back to the ride.
This is a well worn route for us, through some beautiful countryside & picturesque villages. The sun on our backs and a decent tailwind made for a very pleasant outward ride, even if it was punctuated by John's puncture and another stop while Richard & Brian redeemed the various bits of Mick's rear light from the road.
Brian, riding his racer for a change, was absolutely flying- even giving Everton a run for his money on one climb. CP was clearly missing the additional power of a stoker as he rode solo for the first time this year, but he still managed to keep with the pack for the most part.
As ever, the tailwind became a headwind as we turned for home- Funny how it always feels stronger when it's in your face, but we still made decent time back to the Stone Jug.
This was our first visit for several weeks. Despite Mick causing mayhem while ordering, we got the usual warm welcome and the Haybaler was so good we decided to stay a while and forsake the Old Sun.
The final mishap of the night befell Loren who managed to ride into a traffic cone in the roadworks in Maulden! Fortunately, other than pride, there were no serious injuries this time, but let's hope it's not an omen for the forthcoming tour.
Later, John was to lose his chain, bend his valve and burst a tyre- but at least he didn't fall off this time.
The weather was perfect and our group of ten included a debutant in Mark the Fireman- riding the first mountain bike seen on a road ride since last year's tour.
As it happened, the MTB was better suited to large chunks of the route than most of our road bikes. The Highway Authority are in the midst of their annual road "repair" programme. This entails spraying vast stretches of road with liquid tar, throwing a few tons of chippings at it and hoping at least some will stick. Some three or four miles of this week's route had been treated thus, making it virtually un-rideable in places.
This is a very un-bike friendly method of maintenance. Not only does it provide a poor surface, at best it fails to repair underlying potholes and at worst it disguises them , leaving traps for un-suspecting cyclists.
Anyway, enough of a rant and back to the ride.
This is a well worn route for us, through some beautiful countryside & picturesque villages. The sun on our backs and a decent tailwind made for a very pleasant outward ride, even if it was punctuated by John's puncture and another stop while Richard & Brian redeemed the various bits of Mick's rear light from the road.
Brian, riding his racer for a change, was absolutely flying- even giving Everton a run for his money on one climb. CP was clearly missing the additional power of a stoker as he rode solo for the first time this year, but he still managed to keep with the pack for the most part.
As ever, the tailwind became a headwind as we turned for home- Funny how it always feels stronger when it's in your face, but we still made decent time back to the Stone Jug.
This was our first visit for several weeks. Despite Mick causing mayhem while ordering, we got the usual warm welcome and the Haybaler was so good we decided to stay a while and forsake the Old Sun.
The final mishap of the night befell Loren who managed to ride into a traffic cone in the roadworks in Maulden! Fortunately, other than pride, there were no serious injuries this time, but let's hope it's not an omen for the forthcoming tour.
Chris H/Brian/Richard B/Chris P/Mark the Fireman/Everton/Loren/Mick/John/Kieth
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=ampthill&daddr=Maulden+to:Water+End+Rd,+Maulden,+Bedford,+Bedfordshire,+MK45+2BD+
Approx 26.5 Miles @ 14.7 mph
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