Perfect Day?

Scenes of Southill

It wasn't quite like the song, the day wasn't really perfect but the end certainly was.

Weather was excellent, company was stimulating and as for the route...

A variation on an old favourite, we headed out to Maulden, up Limbersley lane and across to Ickwell via Old Warden before turning for home via Southill and Ireland . Picking up the newly surfaced cycle track along the A507 we cut through to Clophill and the Stone Jug.

The rolling landscape around Southill and Old Warden must be some of the nicest in Bedfordshire and with the evening sun reflecting off the ripening corn it was easy to imagine we were in far more exotic climes.

Having remarked earlier in the season on the novelty of being a group of more than 10, it now seems to be the norm; this week there were 12 of us. With the majority wearing club colours and, for once, managing to stick in something resembling a peleton, we cut an impressive dash across the Bedfordshire countryside, cruising at a steady 20 mph for much of the ride. 


Where's my bike?

 



This felt pretty good until we we joined the route of Bedford CC's weekly time trial on the edge of Old Warden- and realised  we couldn't keep up with the "real" cyclists.  Mick & Gary had a very good go- trying to catch an attractive female rider as she sped past the main group. I'm sure it wasn't the first time these two have been left as broken, breathless wrecks by a woman and it probably won't be the last.

The previous week the Stone Jug had been swamped by Morris Men and their groupies so we'd decided to ride on to the White Hart at Maulden. This felt very alien but it was quite nice to ride up Badger Hill without a pint of beer in each leg for once.

Don't Try This at Home!

I'm not sure what attracts grown men to dress up in brightly coloured silly clothes and travel around the pubs of England making lots of noise but the Morris Men probablyy think pretty much the same about us.
It was nice to see the Chairman in the pub, chauffeured by Madame Chair. He's recovering from a pretty nasty mountain bike accident that involved a face plant and and resulted in two broken fingers (See opposite). Although unable to ride for a month or so, he can at least still hold a beer glass and he's been able to type enough to send off the latest order for club kit. It's incredible how excited middle aged men can get about the buying of new clothes and we must have looked like a bunch of women at a Tupperware Party as we compared orders. It will be interesting to see how Mick copes with his new bib tights when he gets caught short on the way home from the pub.
Not for the first time, we decided the beer and the atmosphere in the Stone Jug was too good to leave so we had another pint before tackling the dreaded Badger Hill.
A very pleasant 24 miles in great countryside and great company.