The Windmill Cycle Club

Charles’s house in Chrishall was the focal point for this last CAC ride on a Thursday before Christmas, and what a treat there was in store for the Windmillers who took part. The sun shone, the birds sang and everything seemed right in the world, except for Covid-19 and Brexit of course but we could at least forget those for a few pleasurable hours in the saddle.

Feeling a bit idle, Martin took his car to Chrishall overtaking Brian and Ken on the way and egging them on with shouts of ‘Allez allez’ through his open window. Many others rode to their start point too, putting Martin (and Simon) to shame. Rod also drove to Chrishall but was let off as he had much longer to get to the circuit and also was still without his e-bike. Brian had started from Great Shelford, Ric from Harston, Howard, Geoff, Deborah and Jenni from Saffron Walden, whilst Graham and Mike did their own thing and took a roundabout route from Ickleton via Newton and also managed a trip to Poppy’s Barn again. The prize for the furthest distance of the day probably goes to Brian.

In addition to the aforementioned, Maurice, Andrew, Roger and Alan also took part making 17 in all, a fantastic turnout. Here is the route taken:

https://gb.mapometer.com/cycling/route_5189260

With groups of up to six allowed under the regulations in force on the day, this enabled several small groups to ride together or to join up with others en route. Rod, Simon, Ken and Martin set off together in an AC direction and it wasn’t long before the familiar figure of Ric caught them up on the climb to Duddenhoe End. It was good to see him out again and to hear about what was going on in his garden.

After all the rain in recent days, the roads were inevitably wet and muddy, nowhere more so than between Albury and Farnham, and perhaps Violets Lane as well near Brent Pelham, but Rod’s group chickened out and decided not to even attempt Violets Lane which is notorious for mud and water at this time of year. Ken peeled off towards Clavering and home at that stage leaving the remaining four to continue their journey.

But the sun more than made up for the wet roads. It was just glorious and provided great opportunities for Simon to get creative once again with his photography.

Rounding a corner near Farnham two groups of Windmillers suddenly met and stopped for a socially distanced chat across the road:

Saying farewell to the other group, Rod’s group started to debate where coffee might be had. The Three Horseshoes at Hazel End looked dead to the world, The Yew Tree in Manuden likewise but thoughts then turned to The Cricketers in Rickling Green and hey presto, the lights were on and we received a very warm and efficient welcome as we ordered coffee for all and large slices of cake for Rod and Simon. Sitting outside was pleasantly dry and quite warm in the sun.

Arriving back at Charles’s, Rod’s group realised they had not seen many other riders – perhaps most were going in the same direction or was it because of stopping at The Cricketers? Deborah and Jenni were just departing and so the great display of puppy bonding by Deborah was sadly missed, but here’s a pic of the happy occasion:

The magnificent sum of £100 was raised for our charity fund.

Thanks to Maurice for planning the route, Andrew for his organisation, Charles for hosting the charity box and providing beers, refreshments and biscuits (much appreciated) and Graham for hosting the evening’s Zoom session. A good time was had by all.

Martin

An invitation from Maurice to munch mince pies and wash them down with mulled wine was warmly welcomed by nine Windmillers who stopped off at his house in small groups to enjoy his and Lynn’s kind hospitality. The pies and saucepans of wine kept coming in vast quantities.

Using a CAC route which took in Chrishall, Duddenhoe End, the Langleys, Meesden, Anstey, Barkway, Barley and Great Chishill, enabled Andrew, Charles, Alan, Rod, Nick, Simon, Graham, Suzanne and Martin to call in at steady intervals and to socially distance whilst there. Deborah was hoping to come too but had to pull out due to other commitments, including puppy love.

This is where we went:

https://gb.mapometer.com/cycling/route_5188552

But not all went well at the start for Suzanne. Riding over from Abington and joining up with Graham and Martin in Ickleton, it wasn’t long before she suffered a puncture on the way to Elmdon and with just one tube available the chief mechanic, Graham, had to ensure that it was right first time. So the cause of the puncture required much forensic examination and it took some time and effort, not to mention the effort required to even detach the rear wheel, before a sliver of flint was discovered that had just penetrated the casing. Blowing the tyre up with a CO2 canister then blew the outer casing off the rim and so it was back to square one and a hand pump was used. Whilst all this was going on, Martin called Andrew to say we might be a wee bit late, Suzanne messaged him likewise and so once we got going again the best bet seemed to be to head direct to Maurice’s and get to the pies and the mulled wine before the others arrived.

Maurice had gone directly from Great Chishill to his house to greet the first visitors, who turned out to be Alan, Rod, Nick and Simon but they had all gone by the time Graham, Suzanne and Martin arrived, Alan reporting subsequently that he had beaten Maurice’s record of climbing from his house to the Barkway radio tower in time of just 9 over minutes or so. Well done Alan – let us know the exact time!

Luckily there were still some pies and wine left. Graham made a quick inspection of Maurice’s immaculate workshop and just as he, Suzanne and Martin were leaving, Andrew and Charles arrived having been circling clockwise. Charles looked particularly festive in his Christmas jumper which blended well with the Christmas decorations that Lynn had put up outside – see above. On the other hand, Martin looked somewhat garish in his new lemon yellow winter jacket from Decathlon.

Suzanne had a flu jab appointment later on in Sawston and so the combination of the puncture delay and a couple of helpings of mince pies and mulled wine (by Graham and Martin, not Suzanne) chief mechanic Graham and his deputy decided to accompany Suzanne back via Barkway, Great Chishill and Duxford to ensure the jab was delivered in time.

This is the time of year when contrasts are made with previous years. This is how it was on 14 December 2017:

Thanks, Maurice and Lynn, for the delicious mince pies and mulled wine and it was great to hear that we raised a further £80 for the charities we support. Let’s hope that December 2021 will see a return to real festivities!

Martin

Take a look at last week’s blog and compare the difference! OK, last week’s photo of Elmdon church was taken at 12.55pm and this one at 3.25pm but what a difference in the weather. Gone are the bright blue skies and suddenly Christmas is upon us with a tree all lit up outside the church. And the roads are murky and muddy – as traditional as Christmas itself.

There were some doubts expressed about whether or not to ride but Suzanne led the way by cycling over from Abington and then WhatsApping from Elmdon to encourage the doubters to give it a try. And so after a faltering start there were seven Windmillers in all who took part, the others being Maurice, Andrew, Charles, Graham, Deborah and Martin.

The route was a reverse of last Monday’s CAC ride, so no need to repeat the map here. Graham, Suzanne and Martin started AC from Elmdon, suitably socially distanced as there can only be a max of two people cycling together, but it wasn’t long before they spotted a lone cyclist sporting smart stripy socks heading towards them. It could only be Charles and so at that point Martin did a U-turn and cycled with him clockwise whilst Graham and Suzanne continued AC towards Chrishall.

But luckily for Charles and Martin it wasn’t raining much – just a few spits and spots at the start and finish mixed with the mud from farm vehicles to make the roads slippery and to coat bikes, shoes and clothing in a fine layer of filth. Charles was wisely taking it very easy on sharp corners having had a spill the previous Thursday and suffering from bruises as a result. Maurice reported rain when he started at 12.50 and Deborah got wet after starting at 2.40, finishing in the dark and wishing she had started earlier.

Meetings took place between Charles and Martin with Maurice near Rickling and then with Andrew, Graham and Suzanne in Stocking Pelham, outside the rebuilt but unopened Cock Inn in Stocking Pelham, where a planning dispute has been going on for years following the previous Grade 2 listed building being burnt down.

Charles and Martin decided to give Violets Lane near Brent Pelham a miss as it is notoriously muddy but the others seemed happy to give it a go – they must just love wallowing in the stuff.

The homeward leg was uneventful and quiet as we just missed the school run and so no Volvos, Mercs or Beemers to contend with. Luckily no tractors either as we already had more than our fair share of mud. Saying farewell to Charles in Chrishall, thanking him for his kind offer of shelter, Martin carried on and having stopped at 3.25 in Elmdon to take the photo of the church he then met up with Graham and Suzanne who appeared at almost the same time after their AC ride. All three cycled back to Ickleton and Suzanne continued in the gloom to Abington having clocked up another impressive 35 miles – another contender perhaps for the mega distance ride per year award? Mind you, Graham will be hard to beat any year.

Thanks once again to Maurice and Andrew for their planning. Well done to all for turning out.

Martin

In the absence of a Christmas lunch this year, Maurice chose today to announce the distributions to be made to the charities that The Windmill Club supports. An amazing £4,737 has been raised so far this year, as at 26 November, with £,4,600 distributed to charities closely associated with some of our members. The photo above, taken during a coffee break at Burwash Manor, shows Maurice handing over cheques to Deborah, for The Samaritans, and to Charles for Pets as Therapy. A complete list was provided by Andrew in a WhatsApp post which is repeated here:

Windmill Club Charity donations 2020
Maurice and I would like to thank you all for your amazingly generous donations to various Windmill Club charities in 2020 – As of last Thursday 20 November we have received £4,600 in donations and with nearly 5 weeks until the year end, we’re confident our target of £5,000 will be beaten.
To keep you informed here is a list of the charities we are supporting
Marie Curie Cancer £500
Arthur Rank Hospice. £500
East Anglian children’s hospice. £1000
Eve appeal for cancer. £1000
Samaritans. £1000
Pets as therapy. £500
Addenbrookes charitable trust. £150

We supported Arthur Rank follow the death of our dear friend Vernon.
The Samaritans are supported due to the sterling work Deborah does on a voluntary basis, working throughout the night and after a couple of hours sleep she out on one of our Thursday rides -amazing !!
Pets as Therapy are supported due to the wonderful work Charles undertakes, with weekly visits to Addenbrookes Hospital and two residential homes in Saffron Walden, unfortunately curtailed due to Covid. Well done Charles!!
We will keep you full posted of the final total and in the meantime a heartfelt thanks from Maurice and I for your contributions and support throughout 2020.
Andrew

And with more rides still to come in 2020, there is every chance we might achieve our target of £5,000 for the year. In such a difficult year for fund raising by charities, Windmillers have dug deep into their pockets to raise this magnificent sum – over double the amount of £2,000 raised in 2019! Well done to all!

This ride was a repeat of last week’s ride in most respects, except the weather which was nicer on the whole but very cold, icy and slippery in places, as Charles found to his cost whilst rounding a corner in Haslingfield at the junction with Chapel Hill, but luckily escaped without injury. And there were thorns to contend with too, as Roger dicovered early on between Chrishall Grange and Ickleton Old Grange where several Windmillers stopped to lend a hand, Andrew supplying assistance and pliers in particular whilst others offered mainly sympathy. What a horrible task it is fitting a new tube on a cold frosty morning! Bad luck, Roger. Did Andrew mention Schwalbe Marathons by any chance?

It was a large gang of 17 Windmillers on this CAC ride, and it could have been more if Brian wasn’t still suffering from a bad back and if Victor had been able to make it. The forecast of freezing weather clearly doesn’t put off hardy Windmillers. Besides the aforementioned, the others were Lindsey, Ken, Howard, Graham, Geoff, Mike, Rod, Lawrence, Alan, Simon, Jenni and Martin, riding in ones and twos, and this is where we went:

Burwash Manor in Barton proved to be an excellent place, once again, to stop and warm up with good coffee, mince pies, scones and cakes. It’s well organised with lots of outside tables and clean toilets, so much to recommend it. Situated approximately half way around the ride, there was quite a large gathering of socially distanced Windmillers at one time.

Last week, Simon cruised around in wet weather but found the time to compose a poem about Hannibal, the Alliterative, Little Lecter of Littlebury who served a prison sentence for murdering the pigeons that had been eating his produce, but he didn’t care. (See last week’s blog!) This week, to be fair to the pigeons, he thought they should have their say and so here it is:

Being a kind pigeon isn’t easy they say
Up on this bare wire, amongst cold winds all day
No being a pigeon isn’t so easy as that
There’s hawks and starvation and that terrible cat

When you’re a pigeon and you get really old
You stand on a wire since your feet get quite cold
After flying around they can feel just like ice
Please turn on your kettle, because that feels quite nice


Mum taught me to stay until my feet were quite dried
Not too long though, since sadly my Dad, he got fried
At school for pigeons the teachers did not mention
Never told him, avoid ones labelled high tension

We know we’re a noisy, nuisance eating your grain 
But it’s dark and its winter, it even might rain
Now I can’t sleep, the next bird, loudly is snoring
We ate all your buds, because lock-down is boring

Little did we know that Simon is a professor of poetry as well as chemistry!

Another reason for celebrating was that it was Lawrence’s birthday but, sadly, there was no pub available for him to buy a round of drinks. Don’t worry, Lawrence, we’ll add you to the long list of non-celebrated birthdays this year particularly as pubs will need all the support they can get post-Covid.

Geoff was still shaking with cold when arriving back at Martin’s gate and was warmed up with a mug of coffee before continuing his journey home. Others enjoyed a beer, and many thanks to Graham for kindly topping up the beer supplies.

All in all a very special day and an eventful day all rolled into one. Thanks again to Maurice for being the inspiration behind The Windmill Club and Andrew for all the time he spends organising us.

Martin

Bringing the departure time forward to 1.00pm enabled a pleasant CAC ride to take place in good light on this late November day. Maurice created an interesting circuit, resembling a map of England (minus Devon and Cornwall), Scotland and Wales, and it was joined at various places by nine Windmillers.

The C brigade comprised Maurice, Andrew, Lindsey, Martin, Suzanne, Nick and Deborah, whilst the ACers were Rod and Charles, which explains why the C brigade didn’t meet many others. Martin and Suzanne were mainly responsible for this, having disobeyed orders by going Clockwise, Martin’s excuse being that he was getting giddy going AC in recent weeks.

This is where we went:

Despite the lovely weather, this proved not to be the ornithological extravaganza that we had the previous week when 10 red kites were seen circling over Anstey. The occasional buzzard was spotted but that was about it, at least as far as Martin and Suzanne were concerned. Perhaps the others had better luck but there have been no reports on WhatsApp of anything special being spotted. We are so lucky to have such a beautiful area to CAC around in. (Note that CAC can be used as both a verb and adjective but has not yet made the OED.)

Maurice cycled alone which generally results in faster speeds as there is no opportunity to get stuck into a discussion /debate with a cycling companion, which seems to reduce the average speed. He therefore did some overtaking in Berden and was then seen chatting briefly to Rod and Charles before accelerating away at high speed.on his e-bike.

Ending the ride by 3.00pm enabled Suzanne to cycle back in daylight to Abington, clocking up a total of 35 miles in the process, which was a big improvement on the previous week when it was cold, dark and wet.

Thanks go as always to Maurice for planning the route and Andrew for his organisation. Where would we be without those stalwarts?

Martin

According to Wikipedia, the village of Chrishall marks the highest point in Essex, at some 147 metres above sea level. Atop these lofty heights lives our Windmill chum, Charles, who on Thursday was hosting the Club charity box.

Victor and Brian, having cycled from home, had already clocked up 40 miles and stopped to help a stranded cyclist, so we arrived at Charles’ somewhat later than expected. Just as the Union Jack flies over the Palace to signify the queen is in residence, we were hoping the Cross of St George flying over Chalky Lane meant that somebody was home. Letting ourselves in through the side gate, we found the place strangely deserted. Charles was probably walking his many dogs or otherwise airing his cavalry twills. No matter, stuffing our contributions in the charity box, we mounted up and headed back down the hill towards Great Shelford some ten miles distant.

We had enjoyed a delightful outing; perfect autumn weather, beautiful countryside, quiet roads and, every so often, a cheery wave – or a few brief words – exchanged with a Windmiller going the other way.

Our notable moments had included:

• Graham passing us on the circuit not once, not twice but three times. The man is a machine!

• Judging by the many photographs posted, the big log on the roadside between Little Hormead and Furneux Pelham proved a popular spot to pause for refreshments; we trust everyone sanitised the log before moving on.

• Pulling up for a breather in Nuthampstead, we found ourselves outside Bridget Tarrington’s house – and there was the lady herself tending the garden. We had a lovely chat – hopefully overlooked by the lockdown police – separated as we were by Bridget’s garden gate. She sends her love to all and hopes to join us on a Monday ride in the spring.

• The aforementioned stranded cyclist was Suz, who we found mending a puncture by the roadside in Great Chishill. Helping out, we realised we had a mutual acquaintance; Suz lives in Wendens Ambo and is a near neighbour of Andrew’s. She was interested to know more about the Windmill Club and, who knows, we may even see her join us on future outings.

Finally, we must thank Maurice for the fine route, Andrew for logistics, and Graham, Simon, Martin and Deb for the many fine photographs.

This should have been Vernon’s memorial ride but instead it became a CAC ride as a result of the new lockdown. 18 responsible Windmillers therefore set forth singly or in pairs on clockwise and anti-clockwise rides around a route which had been used during the previous lockdown, enabling almost all to join near to where they lived. Those going clockwise were Geoff, Andrew, Howard, Alan, Brian, Graham, Mike, Simon and Roger whilst those going anti-clockwise were Martin, Ken, Lawrence, Charles, Maurice, Rod, Deborah, Jenni and Nick. There was plenty of waving to those passing in the opposite direction.

This is where we went:

The weather was nearly perfect for a November day – a misty start in places which soon cleared to reveal bright sun on higher ground, no wind and quite mild. Maurice hosted the charity box, which added a further £107 to the magnificent sum of £4k+ already raised this year but, as Rod said recently, ‘Let’s make it over £5k by the year end’. Maurice also generously provided some beers, in return for a larger donation to the box of course. But lugging a 500ml bottle of Adnam’s Southwold up the hill to Barkway was Martin’s excuse for taking longer than usual. (10.45am just seemed too early to consume a beer at Maurice’s but it went down a treat at the end of the ride.)

Rod also observed recently that CAC rides can lack the support of others when things go wrong, as they did on this ride for Alan (puncture, but he got home after several pump-ups) and Geoff (unknown problem but he got home ok). All being well, there should be someone heading in the opposite direction or coming from behind, depending on the start and finish times.

Different Windmillers see different things when out on a ride. How did Ken and Martin, and perhaps others too, miss the pumpkin field? Deborah and Jenni not only saw it but Deborah got amongst them too (see photo above) and Simon stopped to take some really arty farty photos which make the field look more like a lunar landscape:

And here are some more taken on Simon’s ride:

Graham was clearly in a photogenic mood too:

Ken and Martin meanwhile were spotting the wildlife:

And here are some pics of some of those taking part:

All got back to base safely and to end the day Graham organised a Zoom session at 6.00pm to recount tales. A good time was had by all.

Thanks to Maurice and Andrew for organising the day and to Simon, Graham and Brian for some of the pics. And thanks again to Maurice for the beers.

Martin

After several happy weeks under the Rule of Six and Tiers 1 and 2 which enabled almost normal rides and pub lunches to take place, but requiring some CAC adjustments at times, this ride involving just six Windmillers was about as normal as they come. However, the debacle over the lockdown announcement on 31 October instead of 2 November, due to a leaky Minister, meant that we knew before setting off that this would be the last ‘proper’ ride for at least a month. Sadly, this meant having to cancel Vernon’s memorial ride scheduled for 5 November but we will look forward to arranging a new date once we can all get together properly again.

In the expectation of Maurice being able to present Moira with a lovely framed photograph of Vernon this week, Brian, who very kindly organised the printing and framing of the photo, cycled from Shelford to The Red Cow in Chrishall with it on board. But due to the imminent new lockdown Moira had very sensibly decided to spend the month with her daughter and so the photo will be presented to her at a future date. Here it is in the back of Maurice’s car:

So, it was Maurice, Andrew, Rod, Lawrence, Alan and Martin who set off in a group of six from The Red Cow around our lanes on this sunny autumnal day. This is where we went:

All went well as far as the Shaftenhoe End / Little Chishill junction where there was a significant traffic jam, the likes of which we have never seen before, caused by a large delivery vehicle, a tractor and several cars not to mention six cyclists all of whom had to reverse / do a U-turn, to enable the delivery vehicle to pass, with a very harrassed-looking driver at the wheel. Astonishingly, we saw the same vehicle coming towards us again on a narrow lane in the vicinity of Meesden with the driver looking even more unhappy, having nearly ended up in a ditch to avoid us. Let’s hope he wasn’t on commission of 50p per delivery.

The sun was low in the sky by the time we reached Langley Upper Green, which enabled some fine photographs to be taken:

At this point, Martin’s new chain and cassette started slipping a gear or two and so engineer Andrew said he would tweak the cable adjuster half a turn which should sort it out. Result: some improvement but more tweaking / investigation needed.

It looked like a good sunset was in store, and indeed it was:

Back at The Red Cow we received a warm welcome and enjoyed a socially distanced pint on 3 separate tables, followed by some ordering fish and chips from the van outside before departing for home with a full moon to light the way.

Thanks as always to Maurice and Andrew for organising the ride.

Martin

The CAC acronym, invented by The Windmill Club, is now generally known by Windmillers as meaning Clockwise Anti-Clockwise and has proved to be a most useful way of continuing our rides during periods of lockdown whilst obeying all the rules. But what is it about CAC rides that seems to bring members out in larger numbers than on normal rides? Is it a reaction against being told to lockdown (but are we really a rebellious lot?) or is it the convenience of starting and finishing a ride near to home and being convivial at the same time? Perhaps CAC could also stand for Convenience and Conviviality? Other suggestions on a postcard, please.

So we had 10 Windmillers setting out either singly or in pairs on a route devised by Maurice, who went clockwise along with Charles, Deborah / Jenni, and Simon. Those going anti-clockwise were Andrew / Lindsey, Nick and Lawrence / Martin. This is where we went:

https://gb.mapometer.com/cycling/route_5172574

Maurice was the first person that Lawrence and Martin met, in Heydon, followed by Charles near Barkway golf course and Simon near Meesden, who had time to remove his helmet and get stuck into a big debate with Lawrence about the role of consultants in life. The consensus was that they are generally ripping off the taxpayer but Martin said why not become one if the Government chooses to throw our money around liberally? Ten minutes later we decided it might start to get dark and so we pedalled on. Then we met Deborah and Jenni who were clearly enjoying a nice autumnal ride. Here they all are:

Meanwhile, Andrew was on the look out as usual for roadkill, having been known in the past to stuff anything that looks tasty into his bike bag, dead or alive, including a solitary onion once. But on this occasion it wasn’t a pheasant or partridge or even the deer which he was seen eyeing up in a ditch near Chrishall recently, but some lovely looking quinces and an Ice Plant:

We didn’t see Nick but he reported having had to modify the route due to not having charged up his battery beforehand. But it appears he needn’t have worried as he got back with plenty of oomph left. The range of some of those modern e-bikes is just amazing.

Thanks to all for taking part and particularly Maurice and Andrew for their organisation and Simon who provided the wonderful topiary photo above – enough to scare off any nasty virus.

Martin

Once again, it was The Red Cow at Chrishall for the meeting place on this autumnal Monday ride. Is it the convenient location, is it the cosy interior now that the evenings are getting chilly or is it the fish and chip van in the pub’s car park which gets going just as a ride finishes that makes it so popular? Whatever the reason, it resulted in another good turnout of nine Windmillers to enjoy a circuit of local lanes, in two groups, one going clockwise and the other anti-clockwise making this another CAC ride.

With the clocks having just gone back an hour, 3.00pm was pushing our luck a bit for setting off, given that we started at 3.30pm the week before. But the weather made all the difference – a bright, sunny afternoon which lasted for a couple of hours compared to a cloudy end to the previous Monday.

Maurice’s group included Charles, Sandra, Nick and Simon whilst Andrew’s group included Alan, Rod and Martin. As usual, Maurice shot off at high speed on his e-bike, anti-clockwise, leaving the others trailing in his wake whilst Andrew’s group freewheeled merrily down to the Wendens Ambo road before climbing up to Duddenhoe End. This is where we went:

We are used to seeing a wide variety of wild life on our rides but Andrew’s group were thrilled to spot a very large stag near Meesden, thanks to sharp-eyed Alan, strutting his stuff (the stag not Alan) on open fields looking for his next conquest. He was a magnificent beast and was seen again close up the other side of Meesden with a smile on his face. Had he just had a quick rut we wondered? Martin was slow on the draw with his camera and the stag soon galloped off having presumably got a whiff of his next romantic encounter, but this is what he looked like:

With decreasing light, Andrew’s group decided not to call in at Maurice’s house but, in any event, whilst rocketing down the long hill from the Barkway ridge we saw the others crawling up in the opposite direction. They still had a long way to go, no doubt due to Maurice’s hospitality, and indeed they returned to The Red Cow some time after Andrew’s group.

The sun was just setting behind the Great Chishill windmill as Andrew’s group climbed up to the village, which enabled the featured photo above to be taken. Of all the windmills we pass on our travels this one seems to have a majestic beauty about it.

Portions of chips with spicy mayo and tomato sauce washed down with a pint of Wherry proved to be a very good end to a rutting good ride.

Thanks go to Maurice and Andrew for planning and organising the ride.

Martin

P.S. What do you call a deer with no eyes? No idea.

Was this, the last day of summer in 2020 (if you believe that the Autumn Equinox marks the first day of Autumn), the reason why romance remained in the air for a second Monday running? Not only did Maurice plan the route to ensure that we went by the same field of flowers but he picked some flowers together with Martin and they were then snapped by Deborah and Simon plighting their troth! Very worrying indeed, until it became apparent that both posies of flowers were for their wives and not each other. Gasps of relief all round!

Starting once again from The Red Cow at Chrishall, nine Windmillers set off on a delightful cruise around the lanes, the others being Andrew, Rod, Lawrence, Deborah, Nick and also Lindsay who it was a pleasure to see again. It was also great to have Simon rejoin us only a few weeks after his hernia op and to see him charging up hills. This is where we went:

https://www.mapometer.com/embed/79fc91e1b153e08b47b05e5ab86bf3cc

Although this was the last day of summer it didn’t really feel like it – it was very warm, sunny and quite balmy when we got back to The Red Cow. What a good ending to one of the strangest summers ever experienced, and a pleasant contrast to daily news about Covid-19. It wasn’t long, however, before we lost Lindsay who took a right towards Great Chishill at the bottom of the hill from Chrishall, down which the other eight went at high speed, but hubby Andrew and Deborah went back to find her and we all reconvened at Langley Upper Green.

Passing The Bull at Lower Langley, which we haven’t visited for a while, we passed close to Nick’s house and then through to Brent Pelham and down to a gravel strewn, but dry, Violet’s Lane and back up to Washall Green. (Violet’s Lane is generally avoided in the winter as it floods at the bottom end and can be icy.)

At Starlings Green the prolific plum tree was devoid of plums. We were probably just a bit too late although there were suspicions raised that Andrew had got there before us. But then he discovered it last year, so fair enough.

Passing Stickling Green and skirting Clavering, it wasn’t long before we were picking flowers again near Duddenhoe End. This time, Simon and Martin dived in first but Simon took a distinctly scientific approach by getting up close with his camera and listening intently to the sound of buzzing bees, and impressed too at the environmental contribution this farmer was making.

Meanwhile Martin got picking another bunch of flowers for Deborah, who was a short way back with Lindsay, and was ordered by Rod to get down on one knee to present them. But then he had to dash back to pick a second bunch for Penny, who had very much enjoyed receiving last week’s bunch, whilst Maurice did the same for Lyn.

Andrew and Lindsay took a short cut back to The Red Cow whilst the others returned via Elmdon and we all enjoyed refreshments outside, Lawrence having to leave first as it was bedtime story time by Zoom for one of his grandchildren.

Well done to Simon for getting ride-fit again so quickly and for taking some pics. And thanks to Maurice for planning the romantic route and Andrew for organising us.

Martin