FNRttC Night Ride Cardiff to Swansea Friday 18th September

[velovoice]

@Flying Dodo grew up in Reading. Is that enough to gain a stay of execution? (On second thought, no, it's a tip. Room 101.)

 

[StuAff]

@Flying Dodo grew up in Reading. Is that enough to gain a stay of execution? (On second thought, no, it's a tip. Room 101.)

Apart from the University (my alma mater) and Sweeney & Todd, I'd agree.....

 

[anothersam]

Now that is a shame.

After giving the story you linked to a proper reading [not the town], it kind of is:

Efforts to maintain the small fenced-off patch of concrete, previously filled with a handful of flower pots and a couple of wooden benches, have failed despite ongoing talks for around two years with a local florist.

Sounds like the beginning of a joke, to be sure.

The garden has been largely unused for years, and Louise Joachim, of Wendy House Flowers, approached the station manager towards the end of 2013 to offer her services.

There are worse kinds of product placement than flowers...

Florist Louise had been keen to revitalise the area after her son developed a keen interest in trains, and she found herself spending hours on the platforms.

The article doesn't say how old her trainspotting son is. If he's reached the age of majority, she may be attempting a slow-moving intervention.

“There should be things people can touch and smell, where they can indulge themselves,” she said, setting out her ideas. It could be a quiet little haven where people have a place to enjoy nature.
“I just think it should be somewhere people can enjoy. It would not just be pretty flowers – I want to make the garden live up to its name. I want it to appeal to all the senses, so I would like to grow flowers, herbs and fruit plants.

It's difficult not to feel real sympathy at this point, even for small dramas in Swindon.

Train stations can be pretty soul-sucking places. Our local is minded by a very good sort who does his best. It's because of him that there is a karmic lending library ("Please leave a book for every one you take"), large pots of healthy flowers which no doubt he has to clear of litter every day, and clean toilets. It is his usually thankless task to placate delayed passengers annoyed to find that he doesn't actually have a controlling interest in the railroad.

Just this morning my wife and I stopped by with a card and a box of chocolates, a small token of our gratitude.

None of which I admit has anything to do with what promises to be a splendid ride to look forward to if I can get myself there; as @theclaud is able to make this journey in the opposite direction, it should theoretically be possible, even allowing for the lack of tectonic shifts in the near future.

 

[User482]

Adam B
Andy E
Andrew F
Claudine C
Dave W
Gordon P
Guto E
Jim C
Jo O
Kath E
Mark E
Martin B
Michael G
Nicola E
Peter L
Rebecca O
Rich P
Sam W
Simon M
Steve R
Stuart A

 

[Flying Dodo]

Train tickets with bike reservations now bought for £18 each on the train arriving at Cardiff 23:40, which is my bailout if I don't cycle there. They don't seem to have released cheap seats for the return from Swansea yet.

 

[swansonj]

Weekends always lag behind a little.

When I encountered the same thing last year, I assumed it was just because Swansea is that much further away from Railway HQ, and the carrier pigeons took longer to make the trip... or something....

 

[Gordon P]

They don't seem to have released cheap seats for the return from Swansea yet.

I think they have.
I've bought a ticket from Paddington on the train arriving Cardiff 2340 & also one from Swansea at 1126 to London costing £15.20 with a railcard: it won't get cheaper than that

 

[anothersam]

Train tickets with bike reservations now bought for £18 each on the train arriving at Cardiff 23:40

This is what I'm looking at too, but

We depart the Millenium Centre in Cardiff at midnight (meeting 11.30pm latest)

and Cardiff Central is a short ride from the Millenium Centre. Have never cycled in Cardiff, already getting in late to the meetup, I'm wondering if I'd even make the midnight departure, never mind if the train is delayed...

 

[theclaud]

It's about five minutes from the station to the start, Sam, and in the event of a longer delay just text me - Team Dodo could head the ride off at the pass...

 

[anothersam]

Splendid. Tickets booked, email sent, Copperopolis here I come.

 

[User482]

You're on the list!

 

[StuAff]

Looks there are going to be no cheap tickets between Swansea and Pompey. Still listed as £95. There are advance discounts from Cardiff but those will not be an option on account of the dreaded rail replacement buses (Romsey to Salisbury's too far to ride in time for resumption of train service anyway). So, booked on the 10.28 Paddington-bound service, as far as Reading (£21.50), from where I may get home via Amazingstoke or Guildford. Works out cheaper than going via Waterloo and a fair bit quicker. Advance fare into Paddington on that same train is £23 at the moment...!

 

[theclaud]

Do you take FFCT (the French CTC)?

I'm around that neck of the words around that time and it'd be kinda nice to put faces to names. If I can work my travel plans out to include this then well and good, and springing £18 for CTC membership would be no biggy either.

I don't know the answer to that! We might need to ask His Nibs. I believe we can take up to five non-CTC riders so have traditionally reserved those spaces for BC members or suchlike. Does FFCT membership give you third-party cover for cycling in the UK?

Good. Then in principle one of the five slots has your name on it. I'll check the small print and confirm.

Sorry to take ages to look into this. Apologies, but His Nibs says no to any form of insurance other than those mentioned. This is not to suggest there's anything wrong with the FFCT cover, but I don't intend to argue as we'd like to continue the rides under the FNRttC banner and this entails doing it a certain way. There is a programme of rides under construction for 2016 so hopefully you won't feel the CTC affiliate membership is wasted.

 

[StuAff]

There is a programme of rides under construction for 2016 so hopefully you won't feel the CTC affiliate membership is wasted.

Needs a thread methinks......

 

[theclaud]

Needs a thread methinks......

No hurry.