Dear fellow Friday's
With just over 10 days to go until the first Friday Night Ride to the Coast of 2016 we now have 70 people signed up with 14 people experiencing the magic of our rides for the first time.
Last Friday night 6 of us reccied the route and I am pleased to say once we leave the services at Junction 31 we will be travelling mainly along some new delightful quiet Essex lanes on our way to Southend on Sea. Though I would describe it as a pretty flat ride there will be 600m of climbing over the 60 miles we plan to cycle. None of the hills are that long but a couple do bite so be warned but I am sure there won't be any problems. The first half will be following the previously well ridden but very urban route out through East London.
Junction 31 is warm and seating is plentiful but sadly food choice will be limited. I imagine we will be spending about an hour there. There are some local options available locally but it might be wise of thinking about bringing a small picnic with you to avoid the expected queues.
For those who would like to know where they are going please use the following Ride with GPS link. Though this will be subject to change as my spies supply updates about the route and if the weather turns really inclement then we may follow a shorter route.
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/12587091
David of Beaches Bistro and Café(
http://www.beachesbarbistro.co.uk/ ) will be looking forward to our arrival around 8am in Southend to serve us breakfast. For those who like the idea of drinking beer with your breakfast then this will also be possible. The more observant of you will notice that he doesn't serve a vegetarian breakfast but if you would prefer this option please reply to this email putting vegetarian into the title so I can gauge numbers and let David know.
It's still too early for an accurate weather forecast but I will be sending a further email early next week with the predicted weather and any other relevant updates.
In the meantime please check those tyres and replace them if they are a bit worn and puncture prone. If for whatever reason you find you are unable to attend please reply to this email and put 'not coming' into the title. Finally remember the ride is on Thursday 24th and not the normal Friday night.
See you all next week,
Titus
Southend Ride Leader.
