Central London CTC blog

A crow landed on a bleak stretch of lonely country road.  On either side there were turned fields of mud stretching to the horizon.  Overhead dark grey clouds hung heavy with rain.  Some of it had already fallen.  More would fall very soon.  Into this gloomy scene three figures appeared, dancing on the pedals as they crested the rise.

The Flandrian Three had not been put off by the forecasts but, inspired by the weather and landscape, had set off that morning on the ride through the undulating Bedfordshire countryside.  The road beneath their wheels was grey and sullen but they mastered it.  Above them the dark sky threatened but they ignored it, pushing on through the barren landscape.

This was a landscape remniscent of their Flemish exploits – grey, muddy and industrial.  Luckily this time there were no sharp cobbled climbs but the Bedfordshire lanes offered their own challenges such as long gradual climbs and false flats.  But they also offered their own unique experiences – sudden descents into small hidden villages, such as Newton Blossomville, where a peephole had been built into the church wall as a last line of defence during the Second World War. Or, riding along the sunken lane into Harrold with its huge church looming over the Great Ouse.

Lunch was at the Bell in a small village called Odell where we were made most welcome by the staff and where we were able to dry ourselves off on the open fire.

After lunch we headed off again.  But this time the rain was harder and even the Flandrian Three were daunted.  We discovered the quickest way back into Bedford and, aided by a tailwind, were able to be on a train home within an hour of leaving the pub.