08. August 2023

Findon Gentlemen’s rides on August 2023.

Saturday 5th August 08.00am ride

No record of any rides.

Saturday 12th August 08.00am ride

All abroad! KBS, PT, MA

KBS: FGCC ride to Kalvehave for live music. 18.2 miles and 512ft

PT:Windy outing to ferry point and back (on Hayling Island), but only recorded the return leg due to incompetence. 11.1 miles and 36ft

MA in Gwynedd, South Wales. Total 17.6 miles and 1,212 ft

Wales – it was wet!

TAMITS? PT for the horizontal ride record award.

Saturday 19th August 08.00am ride

PT, RT, MB & MA from Pond Green

CB in Italia

Jr In Brockenhurst

ZA in Salisbury

PT writes:

Bad weather in the Channel has not left the Continent completely cut off, as reports have flooded in via Strava of the exploits of the Italian Stallion, who completed a qualifying ride this morning, even as the home peleton laboured over the Downs. His ride was shorter but considerably more vertical than ours at 12.4 miles and 1810 feet, due to the prevailing crinkliness of the Italian alps:

The map draws a veil over the no doubt numerous Signorinas and Signoras swooned out on the roadside following the passing of CB’s reciprocating calves.

Back in Blighty, after an initial blinking at the extreme shininess of Matthew’s new bike (a clear commitment to continuing membership of the FGCC if ever there was one). A muddy route was selected, steeds were mounted and the home peleton of RT, PT, MA and MB set off for Arundel, as the wind was firmly SW. The intention was to rv with a tsetse-stricken Andy at Littlehampton Marina, but a time constraint foreshortened our ambition. AM duly appeared at the Moat House well after the peleton had placed its order, but by dint of “That Ole Mead Magic” was served first by about twenty minutes! Maybe his new bike computer was a head-turner in the MH kitchen!

Due to the uncharacteristic slowness of the MH kitchen, a rapid return route was adopted following the line of the old and current A27 to Mill lane, then up through the Gallops and Bost Hill to the Superhighway. 20 miles and 1360 feet (MA) or 1200 feet (the rest).

JR adds: I too had the pleasure of representing the FGCC yesterday in Brockenhurst, venturing as far south as Boldre on the way to Lymington using a previously tried and tested route taken by The FGCC a few years ago when returning from a pioneering/ key-searching expedition to the IOW.

..and from ZA:

Accompanied by My Good Lady, or rather trailing in the wake of MGL astride her ebike, I made my way – as indicated on the attached map – from Summerdown Caravan site where we’ve been staying since Wed – to 406 Devizes Rd, Salisbury on Sat, returning via the same route. We were visiting a friend with whom we later made our way into town on foot.

Saturday 26th August Nepcroft Trek ‘n Brek

TK, RK, ZA, PT, TB, Philip T, RT and AM on road.

Shortish ride with a target of arriving back at Nepcroft by 10.30. Down Findon valley gallops and south to Grand Avenue and the seafront. East along the seafront with the intention of going to Shoreham with return via Lancing College, but change at Lancing Green to head north across the A27 and up the near vertical (or so it seemed) Mill Lane to Lancing ring. By this time rain had arrived making for a slippery return along the usual route back to Cissbury car part. Fortunately by this time the rain had stopped and the warm wind meant that we arrived at Nepcroft in a reasonably dry state. AM appeared just as the peloton had got to the bottom of the green having been on a seafront ride in a westerly direction.

Total 14.7 miles and 813ft.

Another “multi peleton” Saturday, with the home peleton augmented by a Peak District ride from Nigel, and a Danish ride from Kim;

Nigel covered 20-odd miles and climbed over 1000 feet, from Wirkswirth to Bakewell and Matlock:

while Kim covered 6.4 miles, climbed 68 feet with a swim in the sea at the halfway point: