Eurygnomes
Active Member
- Location
- London, UK
Ouchy! Was impressed previously; awestruck now.
FNRttC Friday Night Ride to the Coast - te 'Genteel' ride to Brighton on 23rd July 2010
- Thread starter dellzeqq
- Start date
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oooops, got it wrong, it was more like 175
arallsopp
Post of The Year 2009 winner
- Location
- Bromley, Kent
Glad to hear you're on the mend Stu. Am on baby detail, but just wanted to post my congratulations to Martin, Halo and M Grant. That was an excellent effort. FNRtBrighton remains one of the best platforms for staging an attack on the virgin hundred, and pretty much all of us 'old timers' who accompanied today won ours on that very route. But today was your ride, folks. An awesome performance. Extreme kudos to the Leggendary Simon, and everyone who had a hand in the birthday effort. The camera is chuntering through footage now, and the new boom mount (gaffa assisted) seems to have held the time lapse rig pointing (vaguely) forwards for most of the night. Should have some good pics to share. Pootled around Bromley to round it up to an even 130. Goes to show I'm getting more sensible, as last year I'd have wanted to round to the next hundred 
Lastly, apologies. First to the unknown rider recognising me as we set off from Turners Hill. Gravity stole the conversation we would have shared. Second to the good folk of Brighton, who not only lost their Doctor Bike session but are also probably still trying to eject the drunken rabble we left behind in its place
Lastly, apologies. First to the unknown rider recognising me as we set off from Turners Hill. Gravity stole the conversation we would have shared. Second to the good folk of Brighton, who not only lost their Doctor Bike session but are also probably still trying to eject the drunken rabble we left behind in its place
arallsopp
Post of The Year 2009 winner
- Location
- Bromley, Kent
Oh, and echo that request for the GPS track. Apparently there was a pond just down the road from us at one point. Be interesting to see if Rich or Ian can find it. I'll try to get a description.
slowmotion
Quite dreadful
- Location
- lost somewhere
StuAff, it was my first FNRttC , and I but I came upon your accident seconds after your off and , like a lot of people behind, stared at a your immobile helmet with mounting alarm from forty metres distance . It looked increasingly bad as the minutes passed. Kinder people closer than me covered you with their clothing, but , OMG, you did remain still for what seemed forever. It was a fantastic fluke that the Constabulary was on the scene so quickly to cone off the road and do their stuff. All credit to them. I hope your wounds heal quickly.
Very best wishes.
Very best wishes.
StuAff
Silencing his legs regularly
- Location
- Portsmouth
Aches & pains update- not sure about the elbow or the hand yet (left them alone for quite a while) but the thigh's eased up considerably, walking much easier now. Looking forward to seeing the pics!
StuAff
Silencing his legs regularly
- Location
- Portsmouth
Blimey - I thought this was the genteel ride!
I came within a gnat's whisker of signing up.
Sounds like a tale of carnage in the Sussex countryside
Hope everyone's OK
Carnage? Naaah. More roadage in my case
I'm on the mend, anyway....
Thank you one and all I had a superb time.
I've got some video footage to edit. Some great stuff from Ditchfield Beacon. Rather unfortunately when I raced ahead with Andy and then waited for you all to pass didn't record. I do have us leaving HPC and also the Cafe. Feeling a little tired at the moment as I've not slept yet.
In another unfortunate incident I forgot to start my Garmin as we left Hyde Park. It has my home to HPC and then from the hill before Ditching and onwards to the journey back.
http://connect.garmin.com/player/41646258
Thanks
Abs
xx
I've got some video footage to edit. Some great stuff from Ditchfield Beacon. Rather unfortunately when I raced ahead with Andy and then waited for you all to pass didn't record. I do have us leaving HPC and also the Cafe. Feeling a little tired at the moment as I've not slept yet.
In another unfortunate incident I forgot to start my Garmin as we left Hyde Park. It has my home to HPC and then from the hill before Ditching and onwards to the journey back.
http://connect.garmin.com/player/41646258
Thanks
Abs
xx
martint235
Dog on a bike
- Location
- Welling
Thank you one and all I had a superb time.
I've got some video footage to edit. Some great stuff from Ditchfield Beacon. Rather unfortunately when I raced ahead with Andy and then waited for you all to pass didn't record. I do have us leaving HPC and also the Cafe. Feeling a little tired at the moment as I've not slept yet.
In another unfortunate incident I forgot to start my Garmin as we left Hyde Park. It has my home to HPC and then from the hill before Ditching and onwards to the journey back.
http://connect.garmi...player/41646258
Thanks
Abs
xx
Oooh can it really be counted as a ton then???
Well done Abs, glad to have been a witness.
M
Aye quite special having a number of us with special mile stones.
Aperitif
Meme bar
- Location
- ...I don't have much idea - really.
His name is Paul, funnily enough...dellz will have the full details.
well done everyone - yes, Ian, Lee and I did th HPC to HPC run via Whitstable last year.
well......I'm still recovering from my bewilderment.....
the happy crew gathered at HPC, and, having endured the safety talk, set off under patchy cloud on what might have been the warmest night of the year, those of us in short sleeves feeling not one bit underdressed. Aquaintances new and old chatted through Sloane Square, across Clapham Common and down through Tooting, and it was no effort to keep the ride together all the way to Figges Marsh and on to Mitcham Common. The Wayfinder thing is now so slick that it takes no effort on my part - people just take junctions and see the ride on it's way before whizzing (particularly in ILB and DanB's case) to the front again. Once on to Mitcham Common people swanned off at their own speed, gathering at Wallington, Portnalls Road and Chipstead.
I realised that I hadn't pushed the 'strip the bike down' message enough, and that some of the slower riders were pulling too much stuff along, but, even then we were made good time across the darkness of the North Downs and there was a general feeling of well-being when I delivered the 'don't take the piss' message at the top of Reigate Hill.
Boomp. Stu came off, phone calls were made, Mike Morley and Andrij took the lead of the group, I rode back up the hill, and shooshed most of the remaining riders down, Des having already made his way down to take up the TEC duties for the main bunch. Adam's gruppo set off in pursuit, and, I think, caught them pretty easily, leaving Adrian and I with the police and the ambulance crew, who were trying to persuade Stu that, no, it wasn't sensible to resume the ride with a bandage on your head (the police informed us that they had no powers to compel him to go to hospital unless they invoked section 136 of the Mental Health Act....). Stu was in the back of the ambulance attempting to reason them to death, and at one point it looked as if he might succeed, but we called a taxi, popped him and the Viner inside, and, while he was transported to Gatwick, Adrian and I pounded down the A217, Adrian peeling off to go to find Stu while I whizzed in to Horley to meet the happy throng at Planet Sweet......
And happy they were. Bulent had put on a seriously nice spread, and it took some effort to haul them all out of the bistro and back on to the road. Once on we resumed that smooth FNRttC groove, interrupted only by a foolish attempt on my part to take the ride down an old CTC route to Copthorne, which was flooded. We did do the old Wallaby trail, which is a good deal longer, but nobody seemed put out, and it was a cheery bunch that rolled over Turners Hill and down to Lindfield. I gave the second supplementary safety talk/kiss of death at the top of Slugwash Lane, although this time the consequences, (a grazed buttock) were less serious, and on we went to the Greenhouses where Hatler and mini-Hatler emerged from the mist to serve coffee....
All the while I'd been receiving and relaying messages from Stu, who was, by this time, on a train to Corsham where he would be met by his mum and driven home. One of these messages now makes a good deal more sense than it did at the time. 'Tell me when you're on top of Ditchling Beacon'....
I've tried to put the story together, but it appears that Claudine had masterminded a coup de theatre for my benefit that every one of you buggers knew about. All of you. Apparently my organisation of the departure from the Greenhouses was nothing of the sort - people were engaging me in conversation to delay my departure, so they could get to the top before me. So, as I turned the last corner having, as I thought, almost kept company with ILB (who had really been sent down again to see me up the hill) I came across a road covered in TdF style chalk and rode under the Birthday Banner, before coming to a stunned stop and being handed a glass of fizz. It took me some time to work out that some familiar faces were those of people who hadn't been on the ride, and that the prosecco was not from a single bottle, but from an ice-filled barrel with a dozen bottles in it. Adrian was there, having seen Stu off and zipped up from Brighton.
So it was a slightly (more than usual) confused Dellzeqq that wandered down to the seafront, and sat down to his breakfast. My nap was enlivened, so I'm told, by RichP's helpful suggestions about waking me, but when I did wake, presents and the most extraordinary collection of pictures inserted into a photo album were put on my lap, and, once again, bewilderment knew no bounds.
The danger of thankyous is that you leave someone out, so I'll stick to a general thankyou to the Conspirators, Cakebakers and Fizzbearers who made my 56th birthday so memorable. You're all so very sweet. I've got a job on to live up to all this friendship.....
the happy crew gathered at HPC, and, having endured the safety talk, set off under patchy cloud on what might have been the warmest night of the year, those of us in short sleeves feeling not one bit underdressed. Aquaintances new and old chatted through Sloane Square, across Clapham Common and down through Tooting, and it was no effort to keep the ride together all the way to Figges Marsh and on to Mitcham Common. The Wayfinder thing is now so slick that it takes no effort on my part - people just take junctions and see the ride on it's way before whizzing (particularly in ILB and DanB's case) to the front again. Once on to Mitcham Common people swanned off at their own speed, gathering at Wallington, Portnalls Road and Chipstead.
I realised that I hadn't pushed the 'strip the bike down' message enough, and that some of the slower riders were pulling too much stuff along, but, even then we were made good time across the darkness of the North Downs and there was a general feeling of well-being when I delivered the 'don't take the piss' message at the top of Reigate Hill.
Boomp. Stu came off, phone calls were made, Mike Morley and Andrij took the lead of the group, I rode back up the hill, and shooshed most of the remaining riders down, Des having already made his way down to take up the TEC duties for the main bunch. Adam's gruppo set off in pursuit, and, I think, caught them pretty easily, leaving Adrian and I with the police and the ambulance crew, who were trying to persuade Stu that, no, it wasn't sensible to resume the ride with a bandage on your head (the police informed us that they had no powers to compel him to go to hospital unless they invoked section 136 of the Mental Health Act....). Stu was in the back of the ambulance attempting to reason them to death, and at one point it looked as if he might succeed, but we called a taxi, popped him and the Viner inside, and, while he was transported to Gatwick, Adrian and I pounded down the A217, Adrian peeling off to go to find Stu while I whizzed in to Horley to meet the happy throng at Planet Sweet......
And happy they were. Bulent had put on a seriously nice spread, and it took some effort to haul them all out of the bistro and back on to the road. Once on we resumed that smooth FNRttC groove, interrupted only by a foolish attempt on my part to take the ride down an old CTC route to Copthorne, which was flooded. We did do the old Wallaby trail, which is a good deal longer, but nobody seemed put out, and it was a cheery bunch that rolled over Turners Hill and down to Lindfield. I gave the second supplementary safety talk/kiss of death at the top of Slugwash Lane, although this time the consequences, (a grazed buttock) were less serious, and on we went to the Greenhouses where Hatler and mini-Hatler emerged from the mist to serve coffee....
All the while I'd been receiving and relaying messages from Stu, who was, by this time, on a train to Corsham where he would be met by his mum and driven home. One of these messages now makes a good deal more sense than it did at the time. 'Tell me when you're on top of Ditchling Beacon'....
I've tried to put the story together, but it appears that Claudine had masterminded a coup de theatre for my benefit that every one of you buggers knew about. All of you. Apparently my organisation of the departure from the Greenhouses was nothing of the sort - people were engaging me in conversation to delay my departure, so they could get to the top before me. So, as I turned the last corner having, as I thought, almost kept company with ILB (who had really been sent down again to see me up the hill) I came across a road covered in TdF style chalk and rode under the Birthday Banner, before coming to a stunned stop and being handed a glass of fizz. It took me some time to work out that some familiar faces were those of people who hadn't been on the ride, and that the prosecco was not from a single bottle, but from an ice-filled barrel with a dozen bottles in it. Adrian was there, having seen Stu off and zipped up from Brighton.
So it was a slightly (more than usual) confused Dellzeqq that wandered down to the seafront, and sat down to his breakfast. My nap was enlivened, so I'm told, by RichP's helpful suggestions about waking me, but when I did wake, presents and the most extraordinary collection of pictures inserted into a photo album were put on my lap, and, once again, bewilderment knew no bounds.
The danger of thankyous is that you leave someone out, so I'll stick to a general thankyou to the Conspirators, Cakebakers and Fizzbearers who made my 56th birthday so memorable. You're all so very sweet. I've got a job on to live up to all this friendship.....
