Exactly who is a RiRi I ask myself? I signed up for this ride hoping to find out. Perhaps she’s an exotic bird or animal with interesting hair? Just a guess, but not so far from the mark, I was to discover.
We gathered at The Hoops at Bassingbourn where the landlord greeted us in night-time attire. Coffee was a distant dream and we expected it to arrive after 9.30. It was decided that starting a round of coffee orders would simply result in delay, so we ordered food and offered up a prayer concerning lunch.
The weather was good, the cold wind having dropped, so we split into two groups. Group 1; Rod, Maurice, MartinB, Victor, myself and Neil, headed off at a cracking pace towards RiRi’s in Potton.
Victor had come up with quite a flat route which turned out to be on exceptionally quiet roads. Whether it was the Easter half term or the price of petrol price, something had conspired to give us the roads almost to ourselves.
On the way group 2; Keith, Howard Andrew, Martin, Alan and Brian were a little more sedate and took the traditional Cockayne Hatley photo.
Friends of RiRi’s cafe would undoubtably describe it as ‘unobtrusive’. Which is just what it was, a white, single storey football pavilion, nowhere in particular, surrounded by fields. However Victor had found this all important coffee and cake rest-stop while scouting out the route. It was filled with kids on half term holiday, but they were no match for the big kids who had just arrived on their bikes. We soon had all the toys and the swing, while they looked sullenly on.
Finally I was able to ascertain who RiRi is. She’s a character from Marvel Comics. Very suitable for a children’s playground I thought.
They have come a long way from Spider Man, Captain America, Captain Marvel and the Avengers. The characters are now also incarnated in a form suitable for the adolescent, male readership.
RiRi’s only fault appears to be that she has magically acquired my hair as well as her own.
After refreshment we stopped to admire the packhorse bridge over the Potton Brook as did group 2.
Neil dared to attempt the ‘wet’ route, but we followed Maurice who didn’t want any repeat of falling off incidents.
We returned to The Hoops to find they had got into gear and provided us with some pretty good, basic food. And sometimes that’s all you need after a ride, so everyone was happy.
Overall a nice ride exploring a bit of Bedfordshire. Also a new coffee stop. Thanks go to Victor who sorted it all out. I’m hoping we have had the last of the icy winds and the year will get better and better from here on in.
The Windmill Cycle Club 