FNRttC Reading Curry Ride Friday 23rd September 2016

[StuAff]

There is a select gathering in the south entrance lobby. Where is everybody?

 

[lazybloke]

I wasn't free for the curry ride, so was looking forward to seeing pics and anecdotes today.
The silence is deafening, how did it go?
Have I got the wrong date?

 

[Pale Rider]

Everyone has been sworn to silence.

I see you've just popped up in Malton as well.

Are you riding two bicycles in different places at once?

http://glympse.com/!scarborough2016

 

[Fab Foodie]

Just home ....
193km on the clock for the round trip from Abbers.

Great night out! Thanks to all that participated and especially to @AKA Bob for excellent organisation and sweet route.


Part 1.
I departed Abingdon at 1900 for the ride to Reading over the hills and 25 miles away, the small roads across the Chilterns are in a parlours state, hugely potholed and scattered with a lot of very flinty gravel. With full light-age it made progress slower than it should have. Regardless I arrived at the Curry house first and managed to get a sneaky pint in. About 10 souls for the curry, a few arrived late. Chicken Jalfrezi, pilau rice and cucumber raitha was washed down with a second pint.
Station rendezvous worked fine, but one of our number had a visitation, so I watched the Reasing wildlife and chatted to the Street Pastors.

And then ... We were off into the night!

The beauty of this ride is that you leave the city and enter the darkness with barely a pedal stroke. The sky was clear with a crescent waning moon (so @User said). But it was cold, seemingly much colder than anyone expected.

Out of Reading, the route gently climbs mike after mile. Potholes, gravel moraines called-out. The stars shone and owls hooted.

We stopped to see the Mahrajah's well, the site of the windmill in Chitty Chitty bang bang and the village where the Vicar of Dibley is set.
We descended to the beautiful Hambledon valley, going downhill just adding to the chill then across the Thsmes at a very long weir with bazillions of wildfowl quacking. Quite a commotion!

 

[Dogtrousers]

What a splendid night! And day.

After a rather delayed train ride, I arrived at the curry house just in time to order. And a very nice curry it was too. And it had no ill effects during the ride.

The start of the ride was all climbing. Much of it gentle, some of it not. There were some beautiful lanes with classic FNRttC sight of a long string of red dots under a bright moon.

The weir was really interesting and there were, as @Fab Foodie says, bazillions of grumpy geese or ducks or something not too happy at being disturbed. Then some cold downhill bits. Winter is icummen in, Lhude sing Goddamm.

Lunch (I always call it that) was at Velo Life Cafe nice sandwiches and tasty cake.

Then we meandered merrily around as the sun came up.

I dropped off the ride and started my homeward journey somewhere near Twyford. I had grand plans, and I was feeling good, zooming along. The problem with zooming along is that every now and then you look at your GPS and realise you have zoomed in the wrong direction, requiring a stop and a replan. Then up the hideous hill (Crocknorth Rd) on to Ranmore common, after which I didn't feel so good. Through Dorking. Eventually a closed bridge forced me to divert via Redhill and the temptation of a train home was too much. 180-odd km on the clock. Not sure exactly how much because of a GPS blip.

Does anyone have a GPX of the ride. My GPS cut out for the first few miles, and as I was just following the rider in front I didn't notice, so a bit of splicing is called for.

Here's an accidental picture, that I rather like.

 

[Fab Foodie]

Pa

What a splendid night! And day.

After a rather delayed train ride, I arrived at the curry house just in time to order. And a very nice curry it was too. And it had no ill effects during the ride.

The start of the ride was all climbing. Much of it gentle, some of it not. There were some beautiful lanes with classic FNRttC sight of a long string of red dots under a bright moon.

The weir was really interesting and there were, as @Fab Foodie says, bazillions of grumpy geese or ducks or something not too happy at being disturbed. Then some cold downhill bits. Winter is icummen in, Lhude sing Goddamm.

Lunch (I always call it that) was at Velo Life Cafe nice sandwiches and tasty cake.

Then we meandered merrily around as the sun came up.

I dropped off the ride and started my homeward journey somewhere near Twyford. I had grand plans, and I was feeling good, zooming along. The problem with zooming along is that every now and then you look at your GPS and realise you have zoomed in the wrong direction, requiring a stop and a replan. Then up the hideous hill (Crocknorth Rd) on to Ranmore common, after which I didn't feel so good. Through Dorking. Eventually a closed bridge forced me to divert via Redhill and the temptation of a train home was too much. 180-odd km on the clock. Not sure exactly how much because of a GPS blip.

Does anyone have a GPX of the ride. My GPS cut out for the first few miles, and as I was just following the rider in front I didn't notice, so a bit of splicing is called for.

Here's an accidental picture, that I rather like.
View attachment 145300

Don't know if this works but this was my entire ride ....

https://www.cyclechat.net/attachmen...3/?temp_hash=344d6107c70260c000b0ab16fa2dfcad

 

[Dogtrousers]

@Fab Foodie thanks. I should be able to splice in the missing points.

Edit. Yes it worked

 

[StuAff]

Cracking night. Splendid route, fantastic cafe stop, nippy but otherwise excellent weather. Much to like. Well, I'd have preferred that wind turning 180 degrees after breakfast, I could have got another ton in......

 

[Dogtrousers]

A couple more pictures

His Highness the Maharajah's thingummy

On my way home

 

[velovoice]

His Highness the Maharajah's thingummy
View attachment 145362

I like that, @Dogtrousers. Please may I use that on the Fridays website? if so, please could you PM me with your preference as to how you'd like the credit to read.

 

[Neophyte]

What a splendid night!

Here's an accidental picture, that I rather like.
View attachment 145300

Really like the accidental picture by Dogtrousers of a Brompton in action.

Great account of a fun introduction to Fridays rides. Chapeau to Titus for choosing a wonderful route.

 

[srw]

@Dogtrousers, I love this:

According to wikipedia it turns out to be Ezra Pound - I thought it was someone else.

Winter is icumen in,
Lhude sing Goddamm,
Raineth drop and staineth slop,
And how the wind doth ramm!
Sing: Goddamm.
Skiddeth bus and sloppeth us,
An ague hath my ham.
Freezeth river, turneth liver,
Damm you; Sing: Goddamm.
Goddamm, Goddamm, 'tis why I am, Goddamm,
So 'gainst the winter's balm.
Sing goddamm, damm, sing goddamm,
Sing goddamm, sing goddamm, DAMM.

Appropriate for the night, because Sumer is icumen in is known as the Reading Rota - the manuscript in the British Library originates from Reading Abbey.

(Acknowledgements to wikipedia for telling me the first and reminding me of the second.)

 

[StuAff]

As usual, I was just following the one in front, and consequently I have no idea where we went. The GPX file is no use to me as I can't read it. Can someone post a list of places we went through, please?
@Dogtrousers, I love this:

Try this, in map form https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1376332602
Roughly: Reading, Kilmore End, Stoke Row, Nuffield, Christmas Common, Stokenchurch (not long after we'd reached the most northerly point and turned south-east), Turville, Hambleden, Cockpole Green, Warren Row (Velolife), White Waltham, Cranbourne, Winkfield, Waltham St Lawrence, Twyford, Sonning, Reading.

 

[AKA Bob]

For @User13710

Reading
Caversham
Kidmore End
Stoke Row
Christmas Common
Stokenchurch
Ibstone
Skimett
Aston
Warren Row
White Waltham
Winkfield
Shurlock Row
Waltham St Lawrence
Twyford
Sonning
Reading

 

[Fab Foodie]

Part the second ....

After the scary Waterfowl scene at the Weir, a short and final climb for the night took us along a plateau to the lurvely Velo-life cafe, which was most welcoming, well organised and warm!
I took the lead of the experts in these things and made a slick move onto the big cosy leather sofa for a kip.

Suitably refreshed, we set out into the cold .... and it was really cold after the warmth of the cafe. But as described by @User13710 we kept hitting these warm and cold pockets until hit by the warm moist blast on one particular bend instantly steaming the glasses! Weirdness.
The sun duly rose in fine fashion, the warmth continued and layers were removed and the rest of a very fine ride completed.
Weatherspoons brekkie, 3 pints with chat and the ride home. I confess to a clipless moment in Reading trying to find the direction of the cycle path ....
The climb back-up the hill occured with an annoying warm head-wind, however, once over the tops, the wind changed and blew me nicely home at a goodly pace. I had a road-range incident with a 4x4 wankpanzerpickupcunt by telling him he was a twat as he virtually forced me off the road with no intention of slowing down (I was going uphill, he downhill). I heard the brakes screech, he got out and hurled abuse telling me to come back and call him a twat again. I hoped once was enough, but he then tried to reverse back up the road after me with the spinning of wheels, before he realised his tossmobile was too big and he was a shoot driver. I waved him goodbye and he sped off. Ho hum.
Fair shot home for a smug 120 miles and a sunburnt face!
Ate, dozed, got up for tea, dozed .... passed-out.

It was all good as people say these days.
For me circular ride like that worked just as well as going to the coast ... the only missing element being the sea .... so we improvised with a canal.

Once again, thanks all, I had a great ride :-)