Central London CTC blog

I had tried to lead this ride before, in the winter, but torrential downpour had deterred all but three riders and forced an early finish.  A summer Sunday (18 July) finally brought compensation.

Eighteen riders were ready at Tunbridge Wells to head out through the High Weald for a morning of climbs and descents though wooded hills.  By lunchtime I had only lost two of the group (we arranged to meet them again at tea) and we took a break at the Blackboys Inn in the village of that name.

Then a cycle through the town of Uckfield and a long but gentle climb on a quieter route to the top of the Ashdown Forest. As ever there, we found spectacular views of heathland and the surrounding countryside, today in bright sunshine, slightly marred by the many drivers who see the 40mph  limit clearly marked as there only for decoration. more »

The weather held up but the tyres let us down. Seven turned up last Sunday for the easy two star ride run as an alternative to the tougher two/three star event in Kent. The weather forecast had been dire and I was half expecting the ride to be rained off but in the event we had some light drizzle but nothing worse. Our problems came from another source. more »

Seventeen cyclists set out from Haywards Heath on 16 May, to see what lay to the west.

The morning ride took us through the High Weald. After a first busy section we took in a succession of small hills though villages, past ponds, farms and woods. The group maintained a strong pace and we arrived at the Black Horse at Nuthurst before opening time.

Entering the village at Slaugham

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Puncture repairs near Pleshey

I’ve put a few photos from yesterday’s  two-star ride in Essex into the photo gallery.

There’s also a map of the route here.

Pictures from Dave Newman’s two-star ride yesterday. You can also find a map of the route here.

On Wisley airfield (click for full gallery)

An unusually early train from Paddington with only two coaches, but a Birdy and six full sized bicycles squeezed on, followed by another at Ealing. We met our leader David , who had cycled out to Burnham.

A bright, sunny but chilly start and the mornings ride found ice patches on the route through the Beeches, with plenty of pot holes on the back roads. There were only Snowdrops as the first sign of Spring. We made good progress through the hills, and were ahead of schedule for the planned lunch stop, so continued to “The Whip” beside the windmill at Lacey Green.

Richard left after lunch, avoiding the hills that David had planned for the afternoon. Over Bledlow Ridge and across the grain of the Chilterns, then down into the Hambleden valley. We crossed over the weir there with the Thames in full flow, then south to Twyford.

The train back had grown to three crowded coaches. Fifty quality miles on the first ride in March, with plenty of good hills: well worth the early start.

950m total ascent!

I had led a record number of two-star riders before but that was at the upper limit. Now we made another season record, as only four of us proved to be all-weather cyclists.

The forecast was highly accurate: heavy rain began early morning and continued without break through to lunch. The advantage for us was lower traffic levels and the fun of occasional large puddles; the disadvantage was that we were cold and damp. At least we were able to test our wet weather gear and find out what worked (and more often what didn’t).

Our route was south from Tunbridge Wells across the High Weald. There were slow climbs and quick descents, mostly on quieter roads, with water flowing downhill in the roads along the way and flooded fields in the valleys. We took our roast lunch at the Blackboys Inn in the village of that name.

We continued on to Uckfield but took our northward journey back by train, honour satisfied that we had made our usual Sunday ride despite the hills and rain, even if just 36km this time.

A few photos to capture the flavour of today’s damp but cheerful two-star ride by Paul Lohr:

Map of the ride here.