pubrunner
Legendary Member
A grand day out !
I was up at six o’clock and drove over to Al-Fresco’s for 7.15am – Al only lives a couple of miles away. We then drove on another mile to pick up my brother-in-law (Rob).
By 7.30am, we were on our way towards Shrewsbury/Ludlow and then Hereford. It seemed odd to be travelling by car with Al-Fresco; the previous times that we’d travelled together to Shrewsbury, had been by train - to make our annual trip to the beer festival (I did it for 11 consecutive years). A lot of money spent and beer drunk
.We amused ourselves by talking the usual kind of entertaining b*llocks that guys do
. Actually, Al did come out with some intellectual stuff, but most of what I came up with, was a load of nonsense 
. Why, I even told Al & Rob the ride would be at a very easy pace 
.We met the other guys at Hereford Station – introductions were made and we immediately realised that we were in the company of like-minded individuals. The slight difference, was that they had better bikes and were far more experienced riders.
When we set off, the pace seemed brisk, to say the least. My bike didn’t even have a speedo, but I was told later, that we were doing 17/18mph. I settled down into last position and decided to bide my time – I was aware that hills couldn’t be too far away. It has to be said, Dr Squirrel & Luke’s Dad make frequent checks to ensure that all was well with the group.
From my position in the pack, I was able to make an assessment of the other riders; Dr Squirrel seemed to be an awesome cyclist. Up hill, down hill, on the flat – he could pull out a gap on the rest of us in a moment. From the start, TrickyDicky sometimes made a break and took the pace on; at times, I think that we were doing over 20mph. And all this, in the first few miles. Al Fresco commented to me, that this wasn’t what I’d told him to expect. He didn’t quite put it as ‘delicately’ as that.
Fortunately, it wasn’t too long before we came to a hill, which slowed the pace somewhat. Sapper and AngelFishSolo remarked that they didn’t like hills; I was glad that they didn’t like the hills. After all, everyone else was quicker than me on the flat & on the descents; it was only on the hills that I could get near some of them. On the flat, I couldn’t get near Sapper or Angel.
I didn’t find the hills to be too bad; the first hill was the hardest; far more difficult than Gospel Pass (imo). Gospel Pass was long, but was perfectly manageable. There were great views on the top and it was well worth the detour.
My travelling companions coped well with the ride; I was amazed at the cadence of Al-Fresco’s pedalling, he rarely used the big chainring and was spinning like a demon all the way round. Rather irritatingly, Rob (my b-in-law) seemed to handle it all with ease.
Luke’s Dad appeared to be a very strong & experienced cyclist and an absolute nutter (verging on suicidal pace) on the descents. I don’t know how people can go down hills like that ! Everything seemed effortless to him; I was particularly impressed on learning that he was cycling to & from the ride . . . . another 50+ miles !
It was great to be in a small group of riders, as it provided the opportunity to have a chat to all of them . . . . . . . when I could get near them, that is. BrumJim told me about his forthcoming half marathon (I expect to hear of a pb); Banjo and I decided to see which of us can get down to 12 stone in the fastest time and discussed such weighty topics as children being allowed in pubs.
Towards the end of the ride as we approached Hereford, Dr S & TrickyDicky swept past me. I decided to ‘tag along’ and I was soon doing what seemed to be an incredible pace in their slipstream. Afterwards, TD told me that we were doing over 25mph !. To some on this forum, that might not appear to be quick, but it was to me ! After less than half a mile, I had to ‘back off’; Dr S & TD vanished over the horizon – fit b*stards
.To anyone considering doing a CC ride, I would say ‘have a go’. I had a great time, with a great bunch of guys. It is just a shame that they all live so far away
. Ta v. much to Dr Squirrel for organising it all - your efforts were much appreciated !
