Evening all. Sorry to be so late in adding to the fray. Had a bit of a moment finishing off the miles. Anyway, I'll keep that in another
thread...
So, yes, marvellous day out. Up bright and (exceedingly early) to meet Djtheglove, Tdr1nka, Topcat1, and Radius in Clapham. Tried like fury to take an intelligent and direct route, but ended up lost and on my reliable (but excessively hilly) commuter roads. It seems cycle routes in SE London work on the following checklist, with many scoring all four:
- Is double parked
- Has speed bumps
- Concedes right of way at every junction
- Is viciously indirect.
Peaking Crystal Palace just as the sun finally struggled over the horizon, I descended to The Windmill whilst the sun got all shy about the mist and bugg3red off for a few hours. Introductions were made, and for once, my bike wasn't the butt of all the heavyweight jokes
On to Kingston in good company, pausing briefly in Richmond park to be seriously out-blinged by the locals. Fortunately, Topcat1 fought our corner well, even smuggling a cyclechat shirt under his normal head to toe Assos cladding.
Trading our otherwise lightning pace to the fairer sex with gentlemanly aplomb, we spun South out of the park to pick up a very chirpy CoG on an entirely beautiful fixie. Attracted by the clean lines (and not put off by the evidently loose chain), the sun made another go at it, warming our troup for the rest of the day.
Arriving at Staines, we found Daveywalnuts and Redjedi sheltering in the shadow of two very large, but lycra clad oak trees. Finally recognising Aperitifs legs, we set a good pace Fleetwards. The 'rolling' road gave ample opportunity to test the new bent's hill climbing abilities and I've got to say that the boys at Challenge have done me proud.
In my experience, there are only really two ways of climbing a hill on a recumbent.
- Gather whatever velocity you can on the way down leading into the climb, powering up the other side in a big gear hoping to crest before running out of momentum.
- Crawl.
Compared to the SMGTe, the Furai lets me hang onto that big cog for longer and she got me over most of the hills without needing granny's services. With the hills just not letting up, the pack were very good about my constantly having to dart forwards and back, messing with the pace and appearing under people's bars.
Just as well really, as I was soon calling on their services to collect my seat bag whose enthusiasm for the bumps led to a spontaneous leap for freedom. Extra credits go to Redjedi for not only finding the various parts of my rear light, but also collecting (and testing) the batteries
Very shortly picking up Bollo, MacBludgeon and our leader, the group set off for a very pleasant ride around rural Hampshire. Suffice to say if I find a wealthy benefactor prepared to sponsor a new lifestyle, I will be moving there. Absolutely stunning scenery (and a wonderful pub lunch) dominated the next four hours, closing with Bollo's handy practical on the similarities between a "I'm going home now, see you later, bye" wave and the "come this way, follow me" beckoning.
Eventually decoding things, we swooped left for the final lanes with all showing impressive climbing prowess. Immensely surprised to pop out at Fleet Station, we gave thanks to Peter for an excellent loop.
Rediscovering traffic, the London contingent ploughed home towards our centuries, collecting 5 before the group thinned out to Topcat1 and myself. With casualties to pubs and geography taking the last of our companions, we rolled East towards town. Relying entirely on the benevolent guidance of Aperitif and RedJedi's navigation skills, we reached our split point a few miles later, with Topcat1 aiming South at Kew Bridge.
Alone with the setting sun, I whipped on towards the A4, sighting my office and tagging on to the commuter route which had delivered me in the morning. In my belief, a road ridden regularly takes no effort, but I was certainly missing the company of the CC brigade.
With a commitment to bag 300km and failing light, I swung back between Crystal Palace masts and traded the flashing LEDs of the Furai for the hub dynamo SMGTe. Warning Mrs arallsopp that I'd be doing a hit and run for tea, I set out for the final 45 miles entirely recharged by thoughts of a perfect day. It was an honour to share the company, scenery, and daylight with you all.
Rolling in just after midnight, I'd logged 281.25km, and that is near enough for me