I haven't been out for a couple of days so tried to beat the weather this morning. Route was Condover, Acton Burnell, Folly Bank, Cardington, Kenley, Acton Burnell again and retrace my steps to home.
I set out in cool, sunny but rather breezy conditions and got along fairly well at the start despite the wind. Things slowed down a bit after turning towards it at Cantlop then after Acton Burnell slowed to more of a plod as I was now going directly against the wind which often seems to get stronger as you get close to the Stretton hills.
The climb up Folly Bank was okay but I knew I'd have the wind helping once over the other side of the hill, which it did, leading to some quite fun riding.
The pothole on the crossroads by Longville is still untouched which is annoying.
As I headed along the road towards Church Preen School I could see that there was a lot of cloud to the west so I decided not to do the longer route I'd originally had in mind. At Kenley it looked possible I'd get back before the rain arrived but by the time I reached Acton Burnell again I knew that it was just coming in too fast so I took the opportunity to don waterproofs before it actually started and it turned out to be not a moment too soon.
The trip back was a mix of crosswind and headwind which had become quite squally with the arrival of the rain, reducing my speed to 7mph at one point while fighting against it. It felt like skipping straight from summer to a winter storm and I find that my waterproofs need to be retreated.
Getting back I went to put the bike away and (with excellent comedic timing) as I carried it through the doorway the sound of heavy rain on the roof stopped as though a tap had been turned off.
30.8 miles, the last seven of which were very wet and windy, at 13.3 mph average.
Quick drink stop on my way south. The Lawley as the backdrop.
Looking towards Caer Caradoc on the way up the Folly Bank climb.
Bit of a pothole at the Longville crossroads. A dangerous one this as it's at an angle across the middle of the junction and just on the line a fast cyclist or a motorcyclist would want to take.
On the way to Kenley. Where did the blue sky go?
A couple of miles from Acton Burnell, looking at Sham Castle in the distance and some impressively threatening cloud.