My wife suggested that I look to see if anybody had read my piece about working at Rory's in the mid 60s' Being a technophobe of the highest order I had to wait until she had turned the machine on and I was so pleased to read the response from Pennyjane. The last that I had heard was that you were a head teacher at a school in East London is that correct? Your dad had an enormous effect on me as a 15 year old and I remember so clearly the day that my parents turned up at the shop unannounced to discuss my future with Rory; he did of course put their minds at rest and when I got home that night they were full of "Mr O'Brien"! a few months later I left to go into the printing trade as a trainee; but I will always remember my first employer with great fondness. In my last piece I forgot to relate the tale of the well known cyclist whose wife was not very keen on her husband's expenditure on bike stuff; it was Rory that suggested "A" should always have the same colour bike and that way "A"s wife would never know that he had a new bike and he could pay a set amount weekly, so every Friday night on his way home from work "A" would pop into the shop and pay his dues and generally go out with something new; and Mrs "A" never sussed"! rche7k mentions on the forum about his grandfather being a member of the University CC. The "Uni" was my first club. I joined in October 1963 when I was 14 years old. The clubroom was above the Greyhound pub in, I think, Leabridge Road. I was so keen I used to get there at 5.30 and had to wait until other members turned up at around 7.00! The club runs on Sunday mornings were the highlight of my week, in the summer we would do 80 mile rides, meeting at Wanstead through Epping, lunch at the Cosy Café in Sawbridgworth (The "Cosy" was a wooden bungalow set in a long piece of ground and lunchtime on a Sunday there would be scores if not hundreds of cyclists queuing or already having their lunch. I seem to remember there was a piano that was occasionally played whilst customers waited to be served) Afternoon tea would be at the Epping Roof Gardens Café and then home to Ilford. Mum always gave me five shillings (25p) for my lunch and this was usually enough but she did insist that I always had fourpence in case I had to phone home in an emergency; a bit different to today's 15 year olds I reckon. Cycling has been the central thread in my life, where I lived, my work, my friends and my attitudes to life, so much of which was forged in my time in the "Uni" John Patston, Bill Caton, Terry Barnes were the fast men at the time usually racing on a Sunday. The club runs were usually me, Steve May (my chum from school, now living and still riding regularly in Spain) Tom Osborne "Tom Oz". Charlie Mucklejohn "Muck" and Charlie Slater; these three always had a story to tell and were always ready to have a good laugh. "Muck" was about 5' 4", very wiry with enormous ears, we were stopped by the police once and when he was asked his name he said "Charles Sebastian Mucklejohn" in his best Noel Coward voice he was also the only man who could say "indubitably" in a sentence without hesitation. I was also told that "Muck" had been a good rider before the war and had won the Viking "50" without toe clips! I started racing in 1965 on the old E1 often staying at the "Uni" hut the night before having ridden up from Ilford after work. The "huts" were members of the 32nd Association and, I believe, subject to peppercorn rents from a bequest by a philanthropist pre war. Arthur "Art" Restell was the driving force behind the refurbishments and I think a lot of building supplies were re-directed from local councils. Steve May and I helped with the groundworks and I must say that without our help they would have been completed much sooner. Rod Walker was a very active member of the Uni and it was Rod that extended the back of Rory’s shop in Romford. I believe Rod is in his early 90s now. There are so many other names from the "Uni" that I cannot remember but will probably recall five minutes after this piece is sent into wherever it goes. So many of the old clubs have fallen by the wayside and have been replaced by sponsored or dotcom clubs they just don’t have the same “ring” when spoken about. The first time that we were introduced to Paul O'Kelly from the Buccaneers CC the shout went up "where's the Buccaneers"? and the reply came "on me Bucking 'ead"! this was pretty racy stuff for a 14 year old but one of my favourites had to be when a passing group of Becontree riders went by the call was "Urinals" at the top of their voices! As a greeting it leaves something to be desired but it still makes me smile. The piece by rche7k regarding the refurb by Lipscombes reminded me of 1964/5 when it ceased to be a legal requirement to have a bell fitted to the handlebars riders from all over gave their bells to Frank Lipscombe who filled his shop window at Markhouse road with them amazingly, so many of the bells were drilled for lightness they could not possibly ring but made a dull “thunk"
My wife wants the machine back now. I will get her to press the relevant buttons to fax or whatever it is to pass this on. See you up the road.... Old Roly........ And if it's not too presumptious a X for Pennyjane
