Club run reports - 17th March

Category 6 ride led by Mike East

A brief smattering of hail was the only negative on this category 6 ride to Vanstone’s Orchard Cafe, where both food and service have improved significantly. Its popularity is evidenced by three other cycling clubs making it their destination while we were there. There was nothing more of note, other than to welcome back Marcia and to welcome Russell on his first ride with us. Thirty four miles by eight riders. Well ridden, the Vanstone Cowboys.

Category 3 ride led by Tony Howard on St. Patrick’s Day

Today’s ride could have been broken down into 3 sections, “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly” to the Blackmore Tearoom! I could have easily categorised the 5 riders into these 3, but I wouldn’t dream of doing such a thing, so instead my definition is as follows:-

The Good, from Ware to Blackmore 25 Miles via Epping, Toot Hill (I do love a hill), around the back of Chipping Ongar and Stondon Massey, with a beautiful 15 mph wind up our backsides, and it was Sunny as well! The service and food at the Tearoom was good sitting by the window in the Hail and Sunshine, how lucky was that!
The Bad, from Blackmore to White Roding 10 Miles via Norton Heath and Beauchamp Roding, with a cross wind, which wasn’t so beautiful!
The Ugly, from White Roding returning to Ware 20 Miles, via Hatfield Heath, Sawbridgeworth, Allen’s Green and Widford, and now the beautiful wind was downright Ugly, straight into our faces.
To be sure, to be sure, to be sure 55 miles, thanks for your company.

Category 5 ride led by John Farnham

After weeks of ridiculous winds today provided a calmer but still breezy day. We were therefore able to do our first ride to the new café stop at High Roding, postponed from two weeks ago. A good size group of nine Wheelers took the start at Ware and headed out through Wareside, Much Hadham, Spellbrook, Hatfield Forest, Hatfield Broad Oak, where shortly afterwards a much deeper than expected puddle proved the value of waterproof shoes and overshoes - anything deeper would have required flippers and snorkel. After a certain amount of abuse was directed at the leader we carried on via Hellman's Cross and Great Canfield to Dore's Kitchen at High Roding. A fairly small café run by ex racing cyclist Russell Dore, it is unsurprisingly cyclist friendly and we were lucky to arrive just before two other cycling groups, who more or less filled the place up. Good food and drink and efficient service. Return by a slightly different route through Hatfield Forest although this time into a persistent but manageable headwind back to Ware. 45 miles. No punctures, mechanicals or tumbles.