Our first Thursday outing of the year and, alas, Graham, the poor chap who’d planned the ride, tendered a sick note. Undeterred, we wished him well and set off from The Black Horse, Brent Pelham, following the GPX route Graham had kindly supplied.
The ride featured a new – to us – coffee stop, Crumbs Bakery & Café in Watton-at-Stone. “Muddy boot walkers are welcome, cyclists can have the perfect refuel, and we love a good dog!” says the website. All bread and pastries are baked on site and I can personally vouch for the excellence of the Eccles cakes. That said, it is a small establishment and while the six of us were comfortably accommodated I fear they would struggle to fit in more than ten of us given a larger turnout.
Notable along the way was the old garage at Dane End. Now converted into a home, the petrol pumps have been retained and the frontage has featured in several TV period dramas such as Grantchester and Foyle’s War.
Don’t tell Graham but at Roger’s behest we cut a corner towards the end, allegedly to save a mile and get to the pub more quickly. But, don’t tell Roger, there were mutterings in the peloton about it being muddy and, in Brian’s case, puncture inducing. That said, Roger did the decent thing and drove back to pick him up, so all was forgiven and Brian, this week’s birthday boy, was decent enough to buy everyone a beer.
For the record, the turnout was: Alan, Andrew, Brian, Howard, Gareth and Roger – and Geoff joined us for lunch in the pub. Get well soon, Graham.
The Windmill Cycle Club 