Wessex in Saint Lo 2008

Edited independently in our three areas and published quarterlyPlease contact your section or the access the club website for information on any events

DA SECRETARYPeter Loakes Church Cottage West Stafford DT2 8AB (01305) 263272BOURNEMOUTH amp DISTRICT CTCDavid Chesworth 52 Newstead Road Bournemouth BH6 3HL (01202) 432852SALISBURY CTCAlan Clarke ldquoHill Houserdquo Kelsey Road Salisbury SP1 1JR (01722) 322188WEST DORSET CTCMike Durham 74 Westhill Wyke Regis Weymouth DT4 9NE (01305) 770140

Main Calendar Dates For 2008

THE WESSEX NEWSLETTER

Sunday 6th Apr Dorset Coastlet 100km Peter Loakes 01305 263272Sunday 6th Apr Dorset Coast 200km Peter Loakes 01305 263272

Saturday 26th Apr Cycle Jumble Sale Burley Jim Hatton 01425 280889

Sunday 11th May New Forest Challenge 50km John Ward 01590 671205Sunday 11th May New Forest Day Out 100km John Ward 01590 671205Sunday 11th May New Forest 150km John Ward 01590 671205Sunday 11th May New Forest Excursion 200km John Ward 01590 671205

Sunday 18th May Dorset Downs 100km Mike Walsh 01202 429985Sunday 25th May 50 in 4 Shawn Shaw 01202 685014

WE 14th -15th Jun St Lo Twinning in Normandy Norman Payne 01202 695179

Sunday 13th Jul 100 in 8 Shawn Shaw 01202 685014Monday 21st Jul Sunrise at Stonehenge Gill Anlezark

Sunday 7th Sep New Forest 50km John Ward 01590 671205Sunday 7th Sep New Forest and Coast 100km John Ward 01590 671205Sunday 7th Sep New Forest 150km John Ward 01590 671205Sunday 7th Sep New Forest On amp Off Shore 200km John Ward 01590 671205

Sunday 14th Sep Dorset Dirt 50km offroad Ken Reed 01305 772654

Sunday 21st Sep Bournemouth Square 200km Brian Callow 01202 526606

Sunday 5th Oct Gridiron 100km Terry Walsh 01202 247888

ALL WESSEX ACTIVITIES CAN BE FOUND ON

wwwwessexctcorg

Edited independently in our three areas and published quarterlyPlease contact your section or the access the club website for information on any events

DA SECRETARYPeter Loakes Church Cottage West Stafford DT2 8AB (01305) 263272BOURNEMOUTH amp DISTRICT CTCDavid Chesworth 52 Newstead Road Bournemouth BH6 3HL (01202) 432852SALISBURY CTCAlan Clarke ldquoHill Houserdquo Kelsey Road Salisbury SP1 1JR (01722) 322188WEST DORSET CTCMike Durham 74 Westhill Wyke Regis Weymouth DT4 9NE (01305) 770140

Main Calendar Dates For 2008

THE WESSEX NEWSLETTER

Sunday 6th Apr Dorset Coastlet 100km Peter Loakes 01305 263272Sunday 6th Apr Dorset Coast 200km Peter Loakes 01305 263272

Saturday 26th Apr Cycle Jumble Sale Burley Jim Hatton 01425 280889

Sunday 11th May New Forest Challenge 50km John Ward 01590 671205Sunday 11th May New Forest Day Out 100km John Ward 01590 671205Sunday 11th May New Forest 150km John Ward 01590 671205Sunday 11th May New Forest Excursion 200km John Ward 01590 671205

Sunday 18th May Dorset Downs 100km Mike Walsh 01202 429985Sunday 25th May 50 in 4 Shawn Shaw 01202 685014

WE 14th -15th Jun St Lo Twinning in Normandy Norman Payne 01202 695179

Sunday 13th Jul 100 in 8 Shawn Shaw 01202 685014Monday 21st Jul Sunrise at Stonehenge Gill Anlezark

Sunday 7th Sep New Forest 50km John Ward 01590 671205Sunday 7th Sep New Forest and Coast 100km John Ward 01590 671205Sunday 7th Sep New Forest 150km John Ward 01590 671205Sunday 7th Sep New Forest On amp Off Shore 200km John Ward 01590 671205

Sunday 14th Sep Dorset Dirt 50km offroad Ken Reed 01305 772654

Sunday 21st Sep Bournemouth Square 200km Brian Callow 01202 526606

Sunday 5th Oct Gridiron 100km Terry Walsh 01202 247888

ALL WESSEX ACTIVITIES CAN BE FOUND ON

wwwwessexctcorg

3 Cycle Ink 150

Autumn 2008

THE SAINT-LOcirc CONNECTIONThe recent visit and a little historyby Norman Payne President Wessex CTC

The latest twinning visit to Saint-Locirc took place over theweekend of 13th-15th June There were thirty of us an idealnumber for this type of event and it was nice to note that allfour DA sections were represented including that ofBlackmore Vale

Approximately half of us travelled by car taking advantage of a special weekend deal(normally their 24 hour terms) which the Poole depot of Brittany Ferries often makeavailable for a twinning event when a formal charter is in place The other half did thedecent thing went by bike and constructed a mini-tour within an extended weekend orlonger

We all gathered just after 7 pm on the Friday at the Saintlois clubhouse in the rue de laTrapiniegravere and after storing the bikes we were taken to the homes of the various hostsfor an evening meal There were a few new to this type of event who may have been alittle apprehensive but next morning everyone from Wessex enthused about thewarmth of their reception and the level of hospitality afforded to them

The Saturday comprised a choice of rides around 40 or 55 miles which came togetherfor a buffet lunch supplied by the hosts and which was consumed near to CaumontlrsquoEacuteventeacute on the premises of an old slate mine There was also a most interesting tour ofthe mine which has been set up in such a way that providing you walk at a fairly slowpace lighting and a commentary (French or English) were triggered automatically (seehttpwwwsouterroscopecom - a very good web-site) This took an hour was mostinteresting and beautiful in parts but also brought home the working conditions in theage when real work was being performed there

Cycle Ink 150 4

Back to host homes by late afternoon and then to dinner at the salle des fecirctes of thevillage of Cavigny seven miles north of Saint-Locirc As on earlier occasions this was ahappy evening good food plenty of wine and some cabaret supplied by two of ourhosts whose talents went far beyond riding a bicycle We presented the Saint-Locirc Presi-dent Loiumlc Vaudry with a Wessex CTC cycling top which had been framed and wouldmake a colourful adornment to their clubhouse wall It was back to host homes aroundmidnight

Sunday followed asimilar pattern al-though with short-er rides and wewere back at theCavigny hall for abarbecue lunch(those sausageswere delicious)To some extentthe party broke upby mid-afternoonas a number of ourpeople were re-turning to Pooleon the 7 pm boatDespite the factthat the weather

broke up a little as well the others got a few more miles in before returning to theirhost homes for Sunday evening By Monday morning everyone was away either head-ing for Cherbourg and the evening ferry or in some cases a little further afield with areturn to the UK scheduled for later in the week

These are always memorable weekends and this one was no exception there is con-siderable affection between the participating members from both clubs Itrsquos a connec-tion well worth preserving

Cyclos from Wessex DA have been going to Saint-Locirc for ndash twenty years certainlyperhaps thirty or even a little longer The original reason arose from those magnificentCider Festivals concentrations of around fifteen hundred cyclists always held overthe Easter weekend and giving the (wrong) impression that UCT Saint-Locirc was a bigclub It isnrsquot and never was a big club but in those days they had some superb organis-ers latterly one Antoine Godefroy who was the mastermind of the more recent festi-vals Antoine is now long gone from the region living in the Lyon area

My first visit was to the 10th Cider Festival in 1993 but then a year later we invited theSaintlois here and at that stage a twinning charter was signed by the prime movers inthat initiative the then-President Barbara Johnson and the Saint-Locirc President Jean

5 Cycle Ink 150

Vivier This all came aboutbecause twenty-fivelsquoRiversidersrsquo had taken part ina Cider Meet and were veryimpressed by a number of as-pects including the traffic-freeroads The Riversiders were aWessex group centred onChristchurch and followingfurther investigations conduct-ed mainly by Barbara husbandRoger and Duncan Connell itwas agreed to investigate thepossibility of a formal twin-ning arrangement particularly

as the towns of Christchurch and Saint-Locirc were twinned already The DA committeeagreed so the connection was formalised fourteen years ago now

The 11th Cider Meet took place in 1995 This was followed by a twinning weekendwhen Wessex went to Saint-Locirc in 1996 and in 1998 a group of Saintlois came to Eng-land 1999 saw the 12th and last Cider Festival

Twinning interest tailed off a little at the turn of the century and a visit to Saint-Locirc in (Ithink) 2001 was called off However a small group of us went on an lsquounofficialrsquo basisand this served to keep the connection afloat Further exchanges took place - 2004 inFrance and 2006 in England

In 2007 a large group went to Saint-Locirc staying in hotels or camping and joining theSaintlois to celebrate their clubrsquos 40th anniversary This was hugely enjoyed by all whohad travelled from England nevertheless it was not a success from the Saint-Locirc view-point Whereas they never intended to match the Cider Meets they were hoping for upto a thousand participants but for whatever reason(s) they achieved only a small frac-tion of that number Consequently they were most grateful for our support and as Pres-ident Loiumlc Vaudry subsequently commented in his annual report to his club ndash lsquoNouspouvons mecircme dire qursquoil a eacuteteacute sauveacute du ridicule par la preacutesence massive de nos amisanglais du Wessex CTCrsquo (lsquoWe could even say that we were saved from ridicule by themassive presence of our English friends from the Wessex CTCrsquo) In fact they werenrsquotall Wessex people the majority were but a significant number were attracted by ourdistribution of the event brochure to the various DArsquos and Sections in Southern andMiddle England and South Wales and we also enticed a small party from the DorsetRough Riders

And now wersquove had the 2008 gathering so what of the future Well thatrsquossimple for we have invited them to Wessex in 2010 No firm date as yetwe can rest a while but we will need to establish the timing and startmaking preparations at some point in 2009

Cycle Ink 150 6

Whatrsquos On

Informal Wayfarers Rides to BurleyThis ride happens every Saturday and is completely informal There is noleader and no back up but generally an experienced cyclist somewherearound The route is designed for beginners but joined in by all abilities

Start 0845 at Pioneer Supermarket Christchurch every Saturday

Or just make your own way to the New ForestTea Rooms Burley for 1000

Blackmore Vale Section RidesCycle Rides arranged by Richard amp Margaret Nicholl All rides meet at theCafe at 1000am for coffee departing at 1030am Please note that some

rides are on a Saturday and some on a Sunday Details (01963) 32840

Sat 20th SEPT MEET STOURHEAD National Trust Cafe LUNCH Brokerswood Woodland Park TEA StouheadSun 5th OCT ldquoGridironrdquo or MEET SUTTON MONTISBramble amp Sage LUNCH Lytes Cary ManorSat 18th OCT MEET CASTLE CARY The Old Bakehouse High Street LUNCH Wells

Tue 28th OCT AGM - 1930hrs at 14 Les Rosiers Grove Wincanton

Sun 2nd NOV MEET SHERBORNE Castle Garden Centre LUNCH Yeovil Morrisonrsquos SupermarketSat 15th NOV MEET EAST STOUR Udder Farm Shop LUNCH Shroton The CricketersSun 20th NOV MEET WINCANTON Morrisonrsquos Supermarket LUNCH Yeovilton RNAS MuseumSat 13th DEC MEET WINCANTON Memorial Hall LUNCH Mystery RideSun 28th DEC MEET GILLINGHAM Waitrose Supermarket LUNCH ShaftesburySat 10th JAN MEET STALBRIDGE Dikersquos Supermarket LUNCH Sherborne

5 Cycle Ink 150

Vivier This all came aboutbecause twenty-fivelsquoRiversidersrsquo had taken part ina Cider Meet and were veryimpressed by a number of as-pects including the traffic-freeroads The Riversiders were aWessex group centred onChristchurch and followingfurther investigations conduct-ed mainly by Barbara husbandRoger and Duncan Connell itwas agreed to investigate thepossibility of a formal twin-ning arrangement particularly

as the towns of Christchurch and Saint-Locirc were twinned already The DA committeeagreed so the connection was formalised fourteen years ago now

The 11th Cider Meet took place in 1995 This was followed by a twinning weekendwhen Wessex went to Saint-Locirc in 1996 and in 1998 a group of Saintlois came to Eng-land 1999 saw the 12th and last Cider Festival

Twinning interest tailed off a little at the turn of the century and a visit to Saint-Locirc in (Ithink) 2001 was called off However a small group of us went on an lsquounofficialrsquo basisand this served to keep the connection afloat Further exchanges took place - 2004 inFrance and 2006 in England

In 2007 a large group went to Saint-Locirc staying in hotels or camping and joining theSaintlois to celebrate their clubrsquos 40th anniversary This was hugely enjoyed by all whohad travelled from England nevertheless it was not a success from the Saint-Locirc view-point Whereas they never intended to match the Cider Meets they were hoping for upto a thousand participants but for whatever reason(s) they achieved only a small frac-tion of that number Consequently they were most grateful for our support and as Pres-ident Loiumlc Vaudry subsequently commented in his annual report to his club ndash lsquoNouspouvons mecircme dire qursquoil a eacuteteacute sauveacute du ridicule par la preacutesence massive de nos amisanglais du Wessex CTCrsquo (lsquoWe could even say that we were saved from ridicule by themassive presence of our English friends from the Wessex CTCrsquo) In fact they werenrsquotall Wessex people the majority were but a significant number were attracted by ourdistribution of the event brochure to the various DArsquos and Sections in Southern andMiddle England and South Wales and we also enticed a small party from the DorsetRough Riders

And now wersquove had the 2008 gathering so what of the future Well thatrsquossimple for we have invited them to Wessex in 2010 No firm date as yetwe can rest a while but we will need to establish the timing and startmaking preparations at some point in 2009

Cycle Ink 150 6

Whatrsquos On

Informal Wayfarers Rides to BurleyThis ride happens every Saturday and is completely informal There is noleader and no back up but generally an experienced cyclist somewherearound The route is designed for beginners but joined in by all abilities

Start 0845 at Pioneer Supermarket Christchurch every Saturday

Or just make your own way to the New ForestTea Rooms Burley for 1000

Blackmore Vale Section RidesCycle Rides arranged by Richard amp Margaret Nicholl All rides meet at theCafe at 1000am for coffee departing at 1030am Please note that some

rides are on a Saturday and some on a Sunday Details (01963) 32840

Sat 20th SEPT MEET STOURHEAD National Trust Cafe LUNCH Brokerswood Woodland Park TEA StouheadSun 5th OCT ldquoGridironrdquo or MEET SUTTON MONTISBramble amp Sage LUNCH Lytes Cary ManorSat 18th OCT MEET CASTLE CARY The Old Bakehouse High Street LUNCH Wells

Tue 28th OCT AGM - 1930hrs at 14 Les Rosiers Grove Wincanton

Sun 2nd NOV MEET SHERBORNE Castle Garden Centre LUNCH Yeovil Morrisonrsquos SupermarketSat 15th NOV MEET EAST STOUR Udder Farm Shop LUNCH Shroton The CricketersSun 20th NOV MEET WINCANTON Morrisonrsquos Supermarket LUNCH Yeovilton RNAS MuseumSat 13th DEC MEET WINCANTON Memorial Hall LUNCH Mystery RideSun 28th DEC MEET GILLINGHAM Waitrose Supermarket LUNCH ShaftesburySat 10th JAN MEET STALBRIDGE Dikersquos Supermarket LUNCH Sherborne

Cycle Ink 150 6

Whatrsquos On

Informal Wayfarers Rides to BurleyThis ride happens every Saturday and is completely informal There is noleader and no back up but generally an experienced cyclist somewherearound The route is designed for beginners but joined in by all abilities

Start 0845 at Pioneer Supermarket Christchurch every Saturday

Or just make your own way to the New ForestTea Rooms Burley for 1000

Blackmore Vale Section RidesCycle Rides arranged by Richard amp Margaret Nicholl All rides meet at theCafe at 1000am for coffee departing at 1030am Please note that some

rides are on a Saturday and some on a Sunday Details (01963) 32840

Sat 20th SEPT MEET STOURHEAD National Trust Cafe LUNCH Brokerswood Woodland Park TEA StouheadSun 5th OCT ldquoGridironrdquo or MEET SUTTON MONTISBramble amp Sage LUNCH Lytes Cary ManorSat 18th OCT MEET CASTLE CARY The Old Bakehouse High Street LUNCH Wells

Tue 28th OCT AGM - 1930hrs at 14 Les Rosiers Grove Wincanton

Sun 2nd NOV MEET SHERBORNE Castle Garden Centre LUNCH Yeovil Morrisonrsquos SupermarketSat 15th NOV MEET EAST STOUR Udder Farm Shop LUNCH Shroton The CricketersSun 20th NOV MEET WINCANTON Morrisonrsquos Supermarket LUNCH Yeovilton RNAS MuseumSat 13th DEC MEET WINCANTON Memorial Hall LUNCH Mystery RideSun 28th DEC MEET GILLINGHAM Waitrose Supermarket LUNCH ShaftesburySat 10th JAN MEET STALBRIDGE Dikersquos Supermarket LUNCH Sherborne

7 Cycle Ink 150

Burley Village HallSaturday November 29th

10 am to 2 pmAdmission 50 pence

Light Refreshments Available

To book a table ring Jim Hatton (01425) 280 889

Closes for maintenance on 22nd SeptemberReopens during week commencing the 17th November

httpwwwwessexsrtalktalknetnewsunscafelist[1]html

Is in compilation at the above addressAdditions and updates are requested please

Cycle Ink 150 8

QuestionlsquoWhat has a new Sunday CTC group to offerrsquo

NewsunS SectionThe aim is to offer rides that will entertain

For those who want to

ride further afieldride a tad fasterride a jot furthertake shorter breaksshare favourite ridesenjoy Weekend tours

Where possible different lanes routes and places ofinterest will be incorporated (amp Car assisted too)

NB ndash starting times and places will vary - See the Runs ListJust turn up and give us a try

Shawn

9 Cycle Ink 150

A Ride from Dunkirk to De Haan David ChesworthIt was when we were halfway across the Channel at the start of our weekrsquos holiday inBelgium that my wife said to me ldquo you didnrsquot mention that the Gare Maritime at Dunkirkis about 18k to the west of the town centrerdquo What Ma foi It wasnrsquot so much the extradistance late in the afternoon It was also partly the fact that theNorfolk Line ferry was about 30 minutes behind schedule as a result of thick fog in theChannel outside Dover (and this in June ) and I hadnrsquot booked any hotel for the night thinking it would be easy to find somewhere when we arrived Never mind I had a lookat the Michelin map and although It wasnrsquot the best of routes I could see a route throughan Industrial estate for the first part which would be much better than tangling with carsand 5 axle artics fighting their way to the Autoroute

The Gare Maritime isfor wheeled traffic only There are no foot pas-sengers on the boat andthe port is a specificentity in itself and iso-lated to the west of thetown We arrived at theport about 6pm and af-ter the Industrial estatesection we had to do ashort section on the N1Although there were nocycle lanes the trafficwas light and it wasnrsquottoo long before we hitmetaphorically theoutskirts of DunkirkThe road via the

Grande Synthe and the Petite Synthe was quite busy but there were cycle lanes and itwas OK Since I had obviously planned this part of our week with the greatest efficiencyI didnrsquot have any street map of Dunkirk

I was heading for Malo les Bains to the east of the town as this would give us a goodstart the following day as we continued to the Belgium border We crossed the canal andwith guidance from local people we eventually found our way through the labyrinth ofsmall streets in the old town Our excitement was to continue though as the first threehotels were full I gathered there was some business conference on at the Palais deCongregraves At the fourth attempt and at 8pm we found a small hotel which had one roomleft a four bedded room ( quite palatial ) which the proprietor was prepared to do a dealon Since beggars canrsquot be choosers I snapped his arm off We ate in and the mealmatched the surroundings I was back in favour

Cycle route alongside the Veurne Nieuwpoort canal

Cycle Ink 150 10

The next day saw us riding through quiet residential roads to pick up the D60 headingfor Bray -Dunes and the Belgian border The old border building was still there nowsporting a Leonidas sign and all of a sudden we were in Belgium At the outskirts of DePanne we turned right to head for Veurne where we had a short break before picking upthe cycle path alongside the VeurneNieuwpoort canal I had purchased a cycle map ofWest Flanders before we left and this gives all details of the cycle paths and theirnumbers It makes navigation pretty easy Part of this canal path was used for the grazingof sheep but they were completely unfazed by us as we cycled past Our lunch stop wasNieuwpoort and we homed in on a small barcafeacute empty apart from an elderly couplehaving a drink The barman eased over to take our order He wore a gold earing and hada thick gold chain around his neck There was a ring on each finger the rings on the littlefingers containing a colouredstone one red one green The whole ensemble was set off by a pair of gold lameacute shoesHmm Interesting

Our route then turned to the coast heading for Middelkerke and Ostende with our firstproper sight of the North Sea on our left We rode throught the middle of Middelkerkewith the tram track alongside This tram goes from De Panne in the west to Knokke inthe east and is an excellent way to get along the coast if you want a day off cycling andwant to see other places Itrsquos 5 euros for a day ticket covering the whole route The cycletrack to Ostende stretched ahead Dead straight Dead flat No wind Easy-peasy Werode past the old WW11 German gun emplacements to reach Ostende where wediscovered it wasnrsquot necessary to ride on the road at all Cycle tracks in pink brickpaviours abounded and cyclists were all over the place Once more without a street mapit was a bit difficult to pick up the route number which seemed to disappear but we sortedit out and crossing the canal we headed for Bredene and the coast route Despite somemajor road works attention was given to the needs of cyclists and we were waved anddirected across the road to Route 5

I had been told that if I was in Belgium it was more than likely I would see a cycle raceand coming into Bredene-aan-zee we saw the marshalls It was time to stop for a drinkPicking the sunny side of the street we squeezed into a couple of seats on the terrace ofa cafeacute packed out with onlookers Ordering warm apple tart and coffee we waited fordevelopments which werenrsquot long in coming Irsquom no expert on cycling races but this racewas a ldquoround the townrdquo race - a criterium I think seemingly for younger riders It waswell supported with much cheering and very much a fun event despite the effort thecontestants were putting in and after we had seen what were the last four laps the Tannoyannounced the results and everybody got back to normal

Finishing our drinks we unlocked the bikes to finish the last 6 miles on the paved cycletrail to De Haan our final destination where we to spend the next five nights Thedistance from Dunkirk to De Haan is about 40 miles and the the cycling had been apleasure With light and respectful traffic indicated routes and dedicatedcycle paths I felt sure we would enjoy our holiday (which we did)

11 Cycle Ink 150

Irsquod almost done it twice before but failed atthe last hurdle This time I knew I neededcompany for the night section and late in theyear and fairly last minute Ray (Haswell) of-fered to ride the event with me

Preferring to avoid a busy Weymouth andPortland we agreed a 300 am start from theBP garage in Poole (as an aside what superstaff they have at that garage Many a timeIrsquove returned from Dorset Delight Coast orHardboiled and collapsed in a heap demand-ing lsquogive me a receipt pleasersquo and they are sohelpful and completely unfazed) It was aclear night and as hoped a full moon lit ourjourney through the lanes of Bloxworth West Knighton and into Weymouth Therewas next to no traffic on the narrow steep climb and we arrived at Bill by 630 Ashort feed break across the causeway and out of Weymouth before the tourists got upand got going

Hardyrsquos monument marked our route and then having struggled up to it (yes a bit onfoot) we lost the height gained by dropping to the Bredy valley Joggers and dogwalkers began to join our route Height had to be attained by climbing out of LittonCheney and my legs were complaining but then it was a lovely descent with morelumps (out of the saddle) over Mount Pleasant on the way to Beaminster Sundaymorning ndash but a shop was open so drinks and food were bought and consumed

Taunton Dene is the next control (lunch for us) but just a few ups and downs be-tween Ray left me in Chard (he knew a cut through to the High Street) It wasnrsquot asbusy as Irsquove seen it previously and at least this time the roads to Coombe St Nicholaswere not being gritted AND the long downhill section to the services was open I willnot dwell on the walks (up and for me sometimes down) in case you The Readermight be considering undertaking this challenge Somehow the pain of hills and push-ing a heavy bike soon fades but the super views and images of dawn breaking etc re-main in the mind Roads were wet but wersquod been dry to this stage ndash not warm thoughand it was only at the services that I took off my longs (Ray having done so in Chard)Mashed potato and beans and lots of tea were the order of the day BUT I hate motor-way canteens ndash too many people and the loo was like a sauna

Then followed the long drag back up the hill and up and up and up Down down anddown followed of course but the lane was nowhere near as bad as I remembered Infact I actually enjoyed that downhill section A short food stop at Kingstone (by thelsquoinforsquo church) lower regions were beginning to complain now almost 12 hours after

253 Demanding Miles of the PorkersMargaret Phillpotts

Cycle Ink 150 12

wersquod set off The village of South Perrott had an lsquoopen dayrsquo and the mayor seemed toforget the road was still open He crossed infront of me totally oblivious to the madfemale cyclist hurtling down the hill Gave Ray a laugh though The pub at Cors-combe was a long time coming LOTS of long steep ups Then the 1 in 5 drop to thepub Irsquom not brave enough to let the bike go on that sort of drop so shoulders armsand hands were aching Pub open and full of lsquolocalsrsquo who wanted to know what wewere doing and where we had been Ray bless him had to see to the drinks order as Iwas shaking so much from the release of tension I just had to sit down This didnrsquothappen anywhere else getting up the long hills into a cross wind almost all day hadsapped my energy Anyway coffee coke and 2 bags of salted peanuts (which I NEV-ER normally eat) seemed to bring about recovery and apart from the climb out of Hal-stock the next section was almost enjoyable I think familiarity helped here as theroute goes through Yetminster to Duntish through Ansty to Milton Abbas and on toWinterborne Whitechurch The view of Milton Abbey was gorgeous There was evena glimmer of sun We reached the pub from the lovely descent at around 645 pmLost time here because the sandwich order took so long to fulfil (the restaurant areawas busy) and confusion ensued over the till receipts When you are shattered tryingto sort out lsquoproofs of passagersquo is a major hassle Again the lsquolocalsrsquo were friendly andencouraging lsquoYou can do itrsquo they cried as we set off with 10+ hours to complete Rainand dark were threatening and we had said at the outset we would try to get as far aspossible in the light Almost an hour at the pub does not help

Got over Turnworth I only sound so pleased because Irsquod ridden it 3 times recently andwouldnrsquot have liked to have to get off We got to the other side of Gillingham beforethe rain set in and waterproofs had to go on Itrsquos a bit confusing and scary aroundHorningsham in the dark and it was a while before I realised the lane Irsquod just gingerlycome down (to the pub) was the lane Irsquod struggled up towards the end of The Wilt-shire Cycleway 300 earlier this year Crossing Salisbury Plain on the exposed dragthrough Chitterne to Shrewton the rain came down in torrents I lost Ray as I had tostop towards the top of the final climb and walk a few yards We reunited under theshelter of the garage forecourt in Shrewton at 0015 am Yes it was now Monday andwersquod ridden over 200 miles in 21 hours (Authorrsquos note ndash 200 miles ridden andwalked no records being set here)

We had just under 6 hours left to ride only 70kms but what a stage this one is Be-tween us and Sixpenny Handley are 7 hills (one very steep down) and Irsquom afraid Iwalked part of each and every one of them There was no moon it was pouring galeforce winds and we were soaked to the skin Getting out of the saddle was a constantnecessity and is fine when I have some light but in sections where trees and hedgestake away any sense of light I find the bike just goes out of control Finding a hedge inyour face is neither exciting nor appealing

It had been suggested I wear my glasses in daylight and my lenses for the night sec-tion This seemed to help a lot as I coped much better with headlights and didnrsquot sufferfrom steamed up glasses in the rain Poor Ray found he could see not a lot comingdown through Garston Woods My worry was that I knew the road surface was very

13 Cycle Ink 150

broken at the end section (I normally like to race this road) but was unable to slow thebike Very frightening a wet slippery road and a wind hurtling you ever onwards Ihad to stop to compose myself and was convinced we were well out of time (We hadagreed we both wanted to finish the ride to record an event time whatever happened)When I linked with Ray he said lsquoWersquove got over 2 hours left We can make itrsquo I saidlsquoIrsquoll do my very very bestrsquo

Well ndash we flew all the way to Wimborne Boy was I hurting ndash everywhere It seemedto take forever and at Gravel Hill I suggested to Ray that he go on I didnrsquot think Icould keep up that pace to Poole His reply lsquoWersquove only 5 miles to go and frac12 hour leftrsquo

We got to the BP garage with only minutes to spare ndash in fact my receipt says exactly600 am

We had done it At last I had conquered () Porkers

But it would have taken just a puncture (as Irsquod had last time) and a few minutes inhand would not have been enough All that effort would have been for nothing Thereare 7 stages to this ride and we had arrived at each control with time inhand We had left each control lsquoon timersquo ie as if starting a new event fromscratch We were that close to our limit

PS Irsquom told Porkers is so named because lsquoIt is a pig of a ridersquo I think I agree

Wessex CTC 100 in 8 July 13th 2008

Cycle Ink 150 14

I have just written a book about my cycling trip around the North Sea Cycle Route toraise money for Cancer Research UK after very sadly losing both my mother andmother-in-law to brain tumours within just 12 months of each other I made the trip asa tribute to them and to beat my own fears and travelling phobias It may sound likedepressing material for the razor-to-wrist brigade but is the complete opposite - an up-lifting tale of two wheeled therapy on an inner and outer journey through northern Eu-ropes obscure cycling backwaters with kind and quirky strangers on the road helpingput a smile back on my face It does just what it says on the tin

Thanks for listening

CYCLING BACK TO HAPPINESSADVENTURE ON THE NORTH SEA CYCLE ROUTE by Bernie Friend

Dont let your biggest fears stand in the way of your dreams even if your biggestdreams happen to be your biggest fears

That was exactly Bernie Friends attitude when he ditched medication and group thera-py to overcome a very unwanted companion - paranoia A complete novice to long dis-tance cycling Bernie confronted many demons on his epic journey - a coastal cycleroute which circles 6000 kilometres of the Netherlands Germany Denmark SwedenNorway Scotland and England

Arm wrestling drunken trawlermen a geriatric half marathon Viking bring-and-buysales decapitated pirates burning witches Shakin Stevens mega mixes sea crossingmotorways walking sand giants and remote islands which most people canrsquot even bebothered to mark on a map are just some of the secrets coughed up by the North SeaCycle Route

Michael Palin and Bill Bryson watch out Bernies very personal story told in an easy-going travelogue style will have you hooked from start to finish

Published by Pen Press (ISBN 9781906206710) Cycling Back to Happi-ness is available to buy and order in all book stores or onwwwberniefriendcom

New Cycling Book

9 Cycle Ink 150

A Ride from Dunkirk to De Haan David ChesworthIt was when we were halfway across the Channel at the start of our weekrsquos holiday inBelgium that my wife said to me ldquo you didnrsquot mention that the Gare Maritime at Dunkirkis about 18k to the west of the town centrerdquo What Ma foi It wasnrsquot so much the extradistance late in the afternoon It was also partly the fact that theNorfolk Line ferry was about 30 minutes behind schedule as a result of thick fog in theChannel outside Dover (and this in June ) and I hadnrsquot booked any hotel for the night thinking it would be easy to find somewhere when we arrived Never mind I had a lookat the Michelin map and although It wasnrsquot the best of routes I could see a route throughan Industrial estate for the first part which would be much better than tangling with carsand 5 axle artics fighting their way to the Autoroute

The Gare Maritime isfor wheeled traffic only There are no foot pas-sengers on the boat andthe port is a specificentity in itself and iso-lated to the west of thetown We arrived at theport about 6pm and af-ter the Industrial estatesection we had to do ashort section on the N1Although there were nocycle lanes the trafficwas light and it wasnrsquottoo long before we hitmetaphorically theoutskirts of DunkirkThe road via the

Grande Synthe and the Petite Synthe was quite busy but there were cycle lanes and itwas OK Since I had obviously planned this part of our week with the greatest efficiencyI didnrsquot have any street map of Dunkirk

I was heading for Malo les Bains to the east of the town as this would give us a goodstart the following day as we continued to the Belgium border We crossed the canal andwith guidance from local people we eventually found our way through the labyrinth ofsmall streets in the old town Our excitement was to continue though as the first threehotels were full I gathered there was some business conference on at the Palais deCongregraves At the fourth attempt and at 8pm we found a small hotel which had one roomleft a four bedded room ( quite palatial ) which the proprietor was prepared to do a dealon Since beggars canrsquot be choosers I snapped his arm off We ate in and the mealmatched the surroundings I was back in favour

Cycle route alongside the Veurne Nieuwpoort canal

Cycle Ink 150 10

The next day saw us riding through quiet residential roads to pick up the D60 headingfor Bray -Dunes and the Belgian border The old border building was still there nowsporting a Leonidas sign and all of a sudden we were in Belgium At the outskirts of DePanne we turned right to head for Veurne where we had a short break before picking upthe cycle path alongside the VeurneNieuwpoort canal I had purchased a cycle map ofWest Flanders before we left and this gives all details of the cycle paths and theirnumbers It makes navigation pretty easy Part of this canal path was used for the grazingof sheep but they were completely unfazed by us as we cycled past Our lunch stop wasNieuwpoort and we homed in on a small barcafeacute empty apart from an elderly couplehaving a drink The barman eased over to take our order He wore a gold earing and hada thick gold chain around his neck There was a ring on each finger the rings on the littlefingers containing a colouredstone one red one green The whole ensemble was set off by a pair of gold lameacute shoesHmm Interesting

Our route then turned to the coast heading for Middelkerke and Ostende with our firstproper sight of the North Sea on our left We rode throught the middle of Middelkerkewith the tram track alongside This tram goes from De Panne in the west to Knokke inthe east and is an excellent way to get along the coast if you want a day off cycling andwant to see other places Itrsquos 5 euros for a day ticket covering the whole route The cycletrack to Ostende stretched ahead Dead straight Dead flat No wind Easy-peasy Werode past the old WW11 German gun emplacements to reach Ostende where wediscovered it wasnrsquot necessary to ride on the road at all Cycle tracks in pink brickpaviours abounded and cyclists were all over the place Once more without a street mapit was a bit difficult to pick up the route number which seemed to disappear but we sortedit out and crossing the canal we headed for Bredene and the coast route Despite somemajor road works attention was given to the needs of cyclists and we were waved anddirected across the road to Route 5

I had been told that if I was in Belgium it was more than likely I would see a cycle raceand coming into Bredene-aan-zee we saw the marshalls It was time to stop for a drinkPicking the sunny side of the street we squeezed into a couple of seats on the terrace ofa cafeacute packed out with onlookers Ordering warm apple tart and coffee we waited fordevelopments which werenrsquot long in coming Irsquom no expert on cycling races but this racewas a ldquoround the townrdquo race - a criterium I think seemingly for younger riders It waswell supported with much cheering and very much a fun event despite the effort thecontestants were putting in and after we had seen what were the last four laps the Tannoyannounced the results and everybody got back to normal

Finishing our drinks we unlocked the bikes to finish the last 6 miles on the paved cycletrail to De Haan our final destination where we to spend the next five nights Thedistance from Dunkirk to De Haan is about 40 miles and the the cycling had been apleasure With light and respectful traffic indicated routes and dedicatedcycle paths I felt sure we would enjoy our holiday (which we did)

11 Cycle Ink 150

Irsquod almost done it twice before but failed atthe last hurdle This time I knew I neededcompany for the night section and late in theyear and fairly last minute Ray (Haswell) of-fered to ride the event with me

Preferring to avoid a busy Weymouth andPortland we agreed a 300 am start from theBP garage in Poole (as an aside what superstaff they have at that garage Many a timeIrsquove returned from Dorset Delight Coast orHardboiled and collapsed in a heap demand-ing lsquogive me a receipt pleasersquo and they are sohelpful and completely unfazed) It was aclear night and as hoped a full moon lit ourjourney through the lanes of Bloxworth West Knighton and into Weymouth Therewas next to no traffic on the narrow steep climb and we arrived at Bill by 630 Ashort feed break across the causeway and out of Weymouth before the tourists got upand got going

Hardyrsquos monument marked our route and then having struggled up to it (yes a bit onfoot) we lost the height gained by dropping to the Bredy valley Joggers and dogwalkers began to join our route Height had to be attained by climbing out of LittonCheney and my legs were complaining but then it was a lovely descent with morelumps (out of the saddle) over Mount Pleasant on the way to Beaminster Sundaymorning ndash but a shop was open so drinks and food were bought and consumed

Taunton Dene is the next control (lunch for us) but just a few ups and downs be-tween Ray left me in Chard (he knew a cut through to the High Street) It wasnrsquot asbusy as Irsquove seen it previously and at least this time the roads to Coombe St Nicholaswere not being gritted AND the long downhill section to the services was open I willnot dwell on the walks (up and for me sometimes down) in case you The Readermight be considering undertaking this challenge Somehow the pain of hills and push-ing a heavy bike soon fades but the super views and images of dawn breaking etc re-main in the mind Roads were wet but wersquod been dry to this stage ndash not warm thoughand it was only at the services that I took off my longs (Ray having done so in Chard)Mashed potato and beans and lots of tea were the order of the day BUT I hate motor-way canteens ndash too many people and the loo was like a sauna

Then followed the long drag back up the hill and up and up and up Down down anddown followed of course but the lane was nowhere near as bad as I remembered Infact I actually enjoyed that downhill section A short food stop at Kingstone (by thelsquoinforsquo church) lower regions were beginning to complain now almost 12 hours after

253 Demanding Miles of the PorkersMargaret Phillpotts

Cycle Ink 150 12

wersquod set off The village of South Perrott had an lsquoopen dayrsquo and the mayor seemed toforget the road was still open He crossed infront of me totally oblivious to the madfemale cyclist hurtling down the hill Gave Ray a laugh though The pub at Cors-combe was a long time coming LOTS of long steep ups Then the 1 in 5 drop to thepub Irsquom not brave enough to let the bike go on that sort of drop so shoulders armsand hands were aching Pub open and full of lsquolocalsrsquo who wanted to know what wewere doing and where we had been Ray bless him had to see to the drinks order as Iwas shaking so much from the release of tension I just had to sit down This didnrsquothappen anywhere else getting up the long hills into a cross wind almost all day hadsapped my energy Anyway coffee coke and 2 bags of salted peanuts (which I NEV-ER normally eat) seemed to bring about recovery and apart from the climb out of Hal-stock the next section was almost enjoyable I think familiarity helped here as theroute goes through Yetminster to Duntish through Ansty to Milton Abbas and on toWinterborne Whitechurch The view of Milton Abbey was gorgeous There was evena glimmer of sun We reached the pub from the lovely descent at around 645 pmLost time here because the sandwich order took so long to fulfil (the restaurant areawas busy) and confusion ensued over the till receipts When you are shattered tryingto sort out lsquoproofs of passagersquo is a major hassle Again the lsquolocalsrsquo were friendly andencouraging lsquoYou can do itrsquo they cried as we set off with 10+ hours to complete Rainand dark were threatening and we had said at the outset we would try to get as far aspossible in the light Almost an hour at the pub does not help

Got over Turnworth I only sound so pleased because Irsquod ridden it 3 times recently andwouldnrsquot have liked to have to get off We got to the other side of Gillingham beforethe rain set in and waterproofs had to go on Itrsquos a bit confusing and scary aroundHorningsham in the dark and it was a while before I realised the lane Irsquod just gingerlycome down (to the pub) was the lane Irsquod struggled up towards the end of The Wilt-shire Cycleway 300 earlier this year Crossing Salisbury Plain on the exposed dragthrough Chitterne to Shrewton the rain came down in torrents I lost Ray as I had tostop towards the top of the final climb and walk a few yards We reunited under theshelter of the garage forecourt in Shrewton at 0015 am Yes it was now Monday andwersquod ridden over 200 miles in 21 hours (Authorrsquos note ndash 200 miles ridden andwalked no records being set here)

We had just under 6 hours left to ride only 70kms but what a stage this one is Be-tween us and Sixpenny Handley are 7 hills (one very steep down) and Irsquom afraid Iwalked part of each and every one of them There was no moon it was pouring galeforce winds and we were soaked to the skin Getting out of the saddle was a constantnecessity and is fine when I have some light but in sections where trees and hedgestake away any sense of light I find the bike just goes out of control Finding a hedge inyour face is neither exciting nor appealing

It had been suggested I wear my glasses in daylight and my lenses for the night sec-tion This seemed to help a lot as I coped much better with headlights and didnrsquot sufferfrom steamed up glasses in the rain Poor Ray found he could see not a lot comingdown through Garston Woods My worry was that I knew the road surface was very

13 Cycle Ink 150

broken at the end section (I normally like to race this road) but was unable to slow thebike Very frightening a wet slippery road and a wind hurtling you ever onwards Ihad to stop to compose myself and was convinced we were well out of time (We hadagreed we both wanted to finish the ride to record an event time whatever happened)When I linked with Ray he said lsquoWersquove got over 2 hours left We can make itrsquo I saidlsquoIrsquoll do my very very bestrsquo

Well ndash we flew all the way to Wimborne Boy was I hurting ndash everywhere It seemedto take forever and at Gravel Hill I suggested to Ray that he go on I didnrsquot think Icould keep up that pace to Poole His reply lsquoWersquove only 5 miles to go and frac12 hour leftrsquo

We got to the BP garage with only minutes to spare ndash in fact my receipt says exactly600 am

We had done it At last I had conquered () Porkers

But it would have taken just a puncture (as Irsquod had last time) and a few minutes inhand would not have been enough All that effort would have been for nothing Thereare 7 stages to this ride and we had arrived at each control with time inhand We had left each control lsquoon timersquo ie as if starting a new event fromscratch We were that close to our limit

PS Irsquom told Porkers is so named because lsquoIt is a pig of a ridersquo I think I agree

Wessex CTC 100 in 8 July 13th 2008

Cycle Ink 150 14

I have just written a book about my cycling trip around the North Sea Cycle Route toraise money for Cancer Research UK after very sadly losing both my mother andmother-in-law to brain tumours within just 12 months of each other I made the trip asa tribute to them and to beat my own fears and travelling phobias It may sound likedepressing material for the razor-to-wrist brigade but is the complete opposite - an up-lifting tale of two wheeled therapy on an inner and outer journey through northern Eu-ropes obscure cycling backwaters with kind and quirky strangers on the road helpingput a smile back on my face It does just what it says on the tin

Thanks for listening

CYCLING BACK TO HAPPINESSADVENTURE ON THE NORTH SEA CYCLE ROUTE by Bernie Friend

Dont let your biggest fears stand in the way of your dreams even if your biggestdreams happen to be your biggest fears

That was exactly Bernie Friends attitude when he ditched medication and group thera-py to overcome a very unwanted companion - paranoia A complete novice to long dis-tance cycling Bernie confronted many demons on his epic journey - a coastal cycleroute which circles 6000 kilometres of the Netherlands Germany Denmark SwedenNorway Scotland and England

Arm wrestling drunken trawlermen a geriatric half marathon Viking bring-and-buysales decapitated pirates burning witches Shakin Stevens mega mixes sea crossingmotorways walking sand giants and remote islands which most people canrsquot even bebothered to mark on a map are just some of the secrets coughed up by the North SeaCycle Route

Michael Palin and Bill Bryson watch out Bernies very personal story told in an easy-going travelogue style will have you hooked from start to finish

Published by Pen Press (ISBN 9781906206710) Cycling Back to Happi-ness is available to buy and order in all book stores or onwwwberniefriendcom

New Cycling Book

Cycle Ink 150 10

The next day saw us riding through quiet residential roads to pick up the D60 headingfor Bray -Dunes and the Belgian border The old border building was still there nowsporting a Leonidas sign and all of a sudden we were in Belgium At the outskirts of DePanne we turned right to head for Veurne where we had a short break before picking upthe cycle path alongside the VeurneNieuwpoort canal I had purchased a cycle map ofWest Flanders before we left and this gives all details of the cycle paths and theirnumbers It makes navigation pretty easy Part of this canal path was used for the grazingof sheep but they were completely unfazed by us as we cycled past Our lunch stop wasNieuwpoort and we homed in on a small barcafeacute empty apart from an elderly couplehaving a drink The barman eased over to take our order He wore a gold earing and hada thick gold chain around his neck There was a ring on each finger the rings on the littlefingers containing a colouredstone one red one green The whole ensemble was set off by a pair of gold lameacute shoesHmm Interesting

Our route then turned to the coast heading for Middelkerke and Ostende with our firstproper sight of the North Sea on our left We rode throught the middle of Middelkerkewith the tram track alongside This tram goes from De Panne in the west to Knokke inthe east and is an excellent way to get along the coast if you want a day off cycling andwant to see other places Itrsquos 5 euros for a day ticket covering the whole route The cycletrack to Ostende stretched ahead Dead straight Dead flat No wind Easy-peasy Werode past the old WW11 German gun emplacements to reach Ostende where wediscovered it wasnrsquot necessary to ride on the road at all Cycle tracks in pink brickpaviours abounded and cyclists were all over the place Once more without a street mapit was a bit difficult to pick up the route number which seemed to disappear but we sortedit out and crossing the canal we headed for Bredene and the coast route Despite somemajor road works attention was given to the needs of cyclists and we were waved anddirected across the road to Route 5

I had been told that if I was in Belgium it was more than likely I would see a cycle raceand coming into Bredene-aan-zee we saw the marshalls It was time to stop for a drinkPicking the sunny side of the street we squeezed into a couple of seats on the terrace ofa cafeacute packed out with onlookers Ordering warm apple tart and coffee we waited fordevelopments which werenrsquot long in coming Irsquom no expert on cycling races but this racewas a ldquoround the townrdquo race - a criterium I think seemingly for younger riders It waswell supported with much cheering and very much a fun event despite the effort thecontestants were putting in and after we had seen what were the last four laps the Tannoyannounced the results and everybody got back to normal

Finishing our drinks we unlocked the bikes to finish the last 6 miles on the paved cycletrail to De Haan our final destination where we to spend the next five nights Thedistance from Dunkirk to De Haan is about 40 miles and the the cycling had been apleasure With light and respectful traffic indicated routes and dedicatedcycle paths I felt sure we would enjoy our holiday (which we did)

11 Cycle Ink 150

Irsquod almost done it twice before but failed atthe last hurdle This time I knew I neededcompany for the night section and late in theyear and fairly last minute Ray (Haswell) of-fered to ride the event with me

Preferring to avoid a busy Weymouth andPortland we agreed a 300 am start from theBP garage in Poole (as an aside what superstaff they have at that garage Many a timeIrsquove returned from Dorset Delight Coast orHardboiled and collapsed in a heap demand-ing lsquogive me a receipt pleasersquo and they are sohelpful and completely unfazed) It was aclear night and as hoped a full moon lit ourjourney through the lanes of Bloxworth West Knighton and into Weymouth Therewas next to no traffic on the narrow steep climb and we arrived at Bill by 630 Ashort feed break across the causeway and out of Weymouth before the tourists got upand got going

Hardyrsquos monument marked our route and then having struggled up to it (yes a bit onfoot) we lost the height gained by dropping to the Bredy valley Joggers and dogwalkers began to join our route Height had to be attained by climbing out of LittonCheney and my legs were complaining but then it was a lovely descent with morelumps (out of the saddle) over Mount Pleasant on the way to Beaminster Sundaymorning ndash but a shop was open so drinks and food were bought and consumed

Taunton Dene is the next control (lunch for us) but just a few ups and downs be-tween Ray left me in Chard (he knew a cut through to the High Street) It wasnrsquot asbusy as Irsquove seen it previously and at least this time the roads to Coombe St Nicholaswere not being gritted AND the long downhill section to the services was open I willnot dwell on the walks (up and for me sometimes down) in case you The Readermight be considering undertaking this challenge Somehow the pain of hills and push-ing a heavy bike soon fades but the super views and images of dawn breaking etc re-main in the mind Roads were wet but wersquod been dry to this stage ndash not warm thoughand it was only at the services that I took off my longs (Ray having done so in Chard)Mashed potato and beans and lots of tea were the order of the day BUT I hate motor-way canteens ndash too many people and the loo was like a sauna

Then followed the long drag back up the hill and up and up and up Down down anddown followed of course but the lane was nowhere near as bad as I remembered Infact I actually enjoyed that downhill section A short food stop at Kingstone (by thelsquoinforsquo church) lower regions were beginning to complain now almost 12 hours after

253 Demanding Miles of the PorkersMargaret Phillpotts

Cycle Ink 150 12

wersquod set off The village of South Perrott had an lsquoopen dayrsquo and the mayor seemed toforget the road was still open He crossed infront of me totally oblivious to the madfemale cyclist hurtling down the hill Gave Ray a laugh though The pub at Cors-combe was a long time coming LOTS of long steep ups Then the 1 in 5 drop to thepub Irsquom not brave enough to let the bike go on that sort of drop so shoulders armsand hands were aching Pub open and full of lsquolocalsrsquo who wanted to know what wewere doing and where we had been Ray bless him had to see to the drinks order as Iwas shaking so much from the release of tension I just had to sit down This didnrsquothappen anywhere else getting up the long hills into a cross wind almost all day hadsapped my energy Anyway coffee coke and 2 bags of salted peanuts (which I NEV-ER normally eat) seemed to bring about recovery and apart from the climb out of Hal-stock the next section was almost enjoyable I think familiarity helped here as theroute goes through Yetminster to Duntish through Ansty to Milton Abbas and on toWinterborne Whitechurch The view of Milton Abbey was gorgeous There was evena glimmer of sun We reached the pub from the lovely descent at around 645 pmLost time here because the sandwich order took so long to fulfil (the restaurant areawas busy) and confusion ensued over the till receipts When you are shattered tryingto sort out lsquoproofs of passagersquo is a major hassle Again the lsquolocalsrsquo were friendly andencouraging lsquoYou can do itrsquo they cried as we set off with 10+ hours to complete Rainand dark were threatening and we had said at the outset we would try to get as far aspossible in the light Almost an hour at the pub does not help

Got over Turnworth I only sound so pleased because Irsquod ridden it 3 times recently andwouldnrsquot have liked to have to get off We got to the other side of Gillingham beforethe rain set in and waterproofs had to go on Itrsquos a bit confusing and scary aroundHorningsham in the dark and it was a while before I realised the lane Irsquod just gingerlycome down (to the pub) was the lane Irsquod struggled up towards the end of The Wilt-shire Cycleway 300 earlier this year Crossing Salisbury Plain on the exposed dragthrough Chitterne to Shrewton the rain came down in torrents I lost Ray as I had tostop towards the top of the final climb and walk a few yards We reunited under theshelter of the garage forecourt in Shrewton at 0015 am Yes it was now Monday andwersquod ridden over 200 miles in 21 hours (Authorrsquos note ndash 200 miles ridden andwalked no records being set here)

We had just under 6 hours left to ride only 70kms but what a stage this one is Be-tween us and Sixpenny Handley are 7 hills (one very steep down) and Irsquom afraid Iwalked part of each and every one of them There was no moon it was pouring galeforce winds and we were soaked to the skin Getting out of the saddle was a constantnecessity and is fine when I have some light but in sections where trees and hedgestake away any sense of light I find the bike just goes out of control Finding a hedge inyour face is neither exciting nor appealing

It had been suggested I wear my glasses in daylight and my lenses for the night sec-tion This seemed to help a lot as I coped much better with headlights and didnrsquot sufferfrom steamed up glasses in the rain Poor Ray found he could see not a lot comingdown through Garston Woods My worry was that I knew the road surface was very

13 Cycle Ink 150

broken at the end section (I normally like to race this road) but was unable to slow thebike Very frightening a wet slippery road and a wind hurtling you ever onwards Ihad to stop to compose myself and was convinced we were well out of time (We hadagreed we both wanted to finish the ride to record an event time whatever happened)When I linked with Ray he said lsquoWersquove got over 2 hours left We can make itrsquo I saidlsquoIrsquoll do my very very bestrsquo

Well ndash we flew all the way to Wimborne Boy was I hurting ndash everywhere It seemedto take forever and at Gravel Hill I suggested to Ray that he go on I didnrsquot think Icould keep up that pace to Poole His reply lsquoWersquove only 5 miles to go and frac12 hour leftrsquo

We got to the BP garage with only minutes to spare ndash in fact my receipt says exactly600 am

We had done it At last I had conquered () Porkers

But it would have taken just a puncture (as Irsquod had last time) and a few minutes inhand would not have been enough All that effort would have been for nothing Thereare 7 stages to this ride and we had arrived at each control with time inhand We had left each control lsquoon timersquo ie as if starting a new event fromscratch We were that close to our limit

PS Irsquom told Porkers is so named because lsquoIt is a pig of a ridersquo I think I agree

Wessex CTC 100 in 8 July 13th 2008

Cycle Ink 150 14

I have just written a book about my cycling trip around the North Sea Cycle Route toraise money for Cancer Research UK after very sadly losing both my mother andmother-in-law to brain tumours within just 12 months of each other I made the trip asa tribute to them and to beat my own fears and travelling phobias It may sound likedepressing material for the razor-to-wrist brigade but is the complete opposite - an up-lifting tale of two wheeled therapy on an inner and outer journey through northern Eu-ropes obscure cycling backwaters with kind and quirky strangers on the road helpingput a smile back on my face It does just what it says on the tin

Thanks for listening

CYCLING BACK TO HAPPINESSADVENTURE ON THE NORTH SEA CYCLE ROUTE by Bernie Friend

Dont let your biggest fears stand in the way of your dreams even if your biggestdreams happen to be your biggest fears

That was exactly Bernie Friends attitude when he ditched medication and group thera-py to overcome a very unwanted companion - paranoia A complete novice to long dis-tance cycling Bernie confronted many demons on his epic journey - a coastal cycleroute which circles 6000 kilometres of the Netherlands Germany Denmark SwedenNorway Scotland and England

Arm wrestling drunken trawlermen a geriatric half marathon Viking bring-and-buysales decapitated pirates burning witches Shakin Stevens mega mixes sea crossingmotorways walking sand giants and remote islands which most people canrsquot even bebothered to mark on a map are just some of the secrets coughed up by the North SeaCycle Route

Michael Palin and Bill Bryson watch out Bernies very personal story told in an easy-going travelogue style will have you hooked from start to finish

Published by Pen Press (ISBN 9781906206710) Cycling Back to Happi-ness is available to buy and order in all book stores or onwwwberniefriendcom

New Cycling Book

11 Cycle Ink 150

Irsquod almost done it twice before but failed atthe last hurdle This time I knew I neededcompany for the night section and late in theyear and fairly last minute Ray (Haswell) of-fered to ride the event with me

Preferring to avoid a busy Weymouth andPortland we agreed a 300 am start from theBP garage in Poole (as an aside what superstaff they have at that garage Many a timeIrsquove returned from Dorset Delight Coast orHardboiled and collapsed in a heap demand-ing lsquogive me a receipt pleasersquo and they are sohelpful and completely unfazed) It was aclear night and as hoped a full moon lit ourjourney through the lanes of Bloxworth West Knighton and into Weymouth Therewas next to no traffic on the narrow steep climb and we arrived at Bill by 630 Ashort feed break across the causeway and out of Weymouth before the tourists got upand got going

Hardyrsquos monument marked our route and then having struggled up to it (yes a bit onfoot) we lost the height gained by dropping to the Bredy valley Joggers and dogwalkers began to join our route Height had to be attained by climbing out of LittonCheney and my legs were complaining but then it was a lovely descent with morelumps (out of the saddle) over Mount Pleasant on the way to Beaminster Sundaymorning ndash but a shop was open so drinks and food were bought and consumed

Taunton Dene is the next control (lunch for us) but just a few ups and downs be-tween Ray left me in Chard (he knew a cut through to the High Street) It wasnrsquot asbusy as Irsquove seen it previously and at least this time the roads to Coombe St Nicholaswere not being gritted AND the long downhill section to the services was open I willnot dwell on the walks (up and for me sometimes down) in case you The Readermight be considering undertaking this challenge Somehow the pain of hills and push-ing a heavy bike soon fades but the super views and images of dawn breaking etc re-main in the mind Roads were wet but wersquod been dry to this stage ndash not warm thoughand it was only at the services that I took off my longs (Ray having done so in Chard)Mashed potato and beans and lots of tea were the order of the day BUT I hate motor-way canteens ndash too many people and the loo was like a sauna

Then followed the long drag back up the hill and up and up and up Down down anddown followed of course but the lane was nowhere near as bad as I remembered Infact I actually enjoyed that downhill section A short food stop at Kingstone (by thelsquoinforsquo church) lower regions were beginning to complain now almost 12 hours after

253 Demanding Miles of the PorkersMargaret Phillpotts

Cycle Ink 150 12

wersquod set off The village of South Perrott had an lsquoopen dayrsquo and the mayor seemed toforget the road was still open He crossed infront of me totally oblivious to the madfemale cyclist hurtling down the hill Gave Ray a laugh though The pub at Cors-combe was a long time coming LOTS of long steep ups Then the 1 in 5 drop to thepub Irsquom not brave enough to let the bike go on that sort of drop so shoulders armsand hands were aching Pub open and full of lsquolocalsrsquo who wanted to know what wewere doing and where we had been Ray bless him had to see to the drinks order as Iwas shaking so much from the release of tension I just had to sit down This didnrsquothappen anywhere else getting up the long hills into a cross wind almost all day hadsapped my energy Anyway coffee coke and 2 bags of salted peanuts (which I NEV-ER normally eat) seemed to bring about recovery and apart from the climb out of Hal-stock the next section was almost enjoyable I think familiarity helped here as theroute goes through Yetminster to Duntish through Ansty to Milton Abbas and on toWinterborne Whitechurch The view of Milton Abbey was gorgeous There was evena glimmer of sun We reached the pub from the lovely descent at around 645 pmLost time here because the sandwich order took so long to fulfil (the restaurant areawas busy) and confusion ensued over the till receipts When you are shattered tryingto sort out lsquoproofs of passagersquo is a major hassle Again the lsquolocalsrsquo were friendly andencouraging lsquoYou can do itrsquo they cried as we set off with 10+ hours to complete Rainand dark were threatening and we had said at the outset we would try to get as far aspossible in the light Almost an hour at the pub does not help

Got over Turnworth I only sound so pleased because Irsquod ridden it 3 times recently andwouldnrsquot have liked to have to get off We got to the other side of Gillingham beforethe rain set in and waterproofs had to go on Itrsquos a bit confusing and scary aroundHorningsham in the dark and it was a while before I realised the lane Irsquod just gingerlycome down (to the pub) was the lane Irsquod struggled up towards the end of The Wilt-shire Cycleway 300 earlier this year Crossing Salisbury Plain on the exposed dragthrough Chitterne to Shrewton the rain came down in torrents I lost Ray as I had tostop towards the top of the final climb and walk a few yards We reunited under theshelter of the garage forecourt in Shrewton at 0015 am Yes it was now Monday andwersquod ridden over 200 miles in 21 hours (Authorrsquos note ndash 200 miles ridden andwalked no records being set here)

We had just under 6 hours left to ride only 70kms but what a stage this one is Be-tween us and Sixpenny Handley are 7 hills (one very steep down) and Irsquom afraid Iwalked part of each and every one of them There was no moon it was pouring galeforce winds and we were soaked to the skin Getting out of the saddle was a constantnecessity and is fine when I have some light but in sections where trees and hedgestake away any sense of light I find the bike just goes out of control Finding a hedge inyour face is neither exciting nor appealing

It had been suggested I wear my glasses in daylight and my lenses for the night sec-tion This seemed to help a lot as I coped much better with headlights and didnrsquot sufferfrom steamed up glasses in the rain Poor Ray found he could see not a lot comingdown through Garston Woods My worry was that I knew the road surface was very

13 Cycle Ink 150

broken at the end section (I normally like to race this road) but was unable to slow thebike Very frightening a wet slippery road and a wind hurtling you ever onwards Ihad to stop to compose myself and was convinced we were well out of time (We hadagreed we both wanted to finish the ride to record an event time whatever happened)When I linked with Ray he said lsquoWersquove got over 2 hours left We can make itrsquo I saidlsquoIrsquoll do my very very bestrsquo

Well ndash we flew all the way to Wimborne Boy was I hurting ndash everywhere It seemedto take forever and at Gravel Hill I suggested to Ray that he go on I didnrsquot think Icould keep up that pace to Poole His reply lsquoWersquove only 5 miles to go and frac12 hour leftrsquo

We got to the BP garage with only minutes to spare ndash in fact my receipt says exactly600 am

We had done it At last I had conquered () Porkers

But it would have taken just a puncture (as Irsquod had last time) and a few minutes inhand would not have been enough All that effort would have been for nothing Thereare 7 stages to this ride and we had arrived at each control with time inhand We had left each control lsquoon timersquo ie as if starting a new event fromscratch We were that close to our limit

PS Irsquom told Porkers is so named because lsquoIt is a pig of a ridersquo I think I agree

Wessex CTC 100 in 8 July 13th 2008

Cycle Ink 150 14

I have just written a book about my cycling trip around the North Sea Cycle Route toraise money for Cancer Research UK after very sadly losing both my mother andmother-in-law to brain tumours within just 12 months of each other I made the trip asa tribute to them and to beat my own fears and travelling phobias It may sound likedepressing material for the razor-to-wrist brigade but is the complete opposite - an up-lifting tale of two wheeled therapy on an inner and outer journey through northern Eu-ropes obscure cycling backwaters with kind and quirky strangers on the road helpingput a smile back on my face It does just what it says on the tin

Thanks for listening

CYCLING BACK TO HAPPINESSADVENTURE ON THE NORTH SEA CYCLE ROUTE by Bernie Friend

Dont let your biggest fears stand in the way of your dreams even if your biggestdreams happen to be your biggest fears

That was exactly Bernie Friends attitude when he ditched medication and group thera-py to overcome a very unwanted companion - paranoia A complete novice to long dis-tance cycling Bernie confronted many demons on his epic journey - a coastal cycleroute which circles 6000 kilometres of the Netherlands Germany Denmark SwedenNorway Scotland and England

Arm wrestling drunken trawlermen a geriatric half marathon Viking bring-and-buysales decapitated pirates burning witches Shakin Stevens mega mixes sea crossingmotorways walking sand giants and remote islands which most people canrsquot even bebothered to mark on a map are just some of the secrets coughed up by the North SeaCycle Route

Michael Palin and Bill Bryson watch out Bernies very personal story told in an easy-going travelogue style will have you hooked from start to finish

Published by Pen Press (ISBN 9781906206710) Cycling Back to Happi-ness is available to buy and order in all book stores or onwwwberniefriendcom

New Cycling Book

Cycle Ink 150 12

wersquod set off The village of South Perrott had an lsquoopen dayrsquo and the mayor seemed toforget the road was still open He crossed infront of me totally oblivious to the madfemale cyclist hurtling down the hill Gave Ray a laugh though The pub at Cors-combe was a long time coming LOTS of long steep ups Then the 1 in 5 drop to thepub Irsquom not brave enough to let the bike go on that sort of drop so shoulders armsand hands were aching Pub open and full of lsquolocalsrsquo who wanted to know what wewere doing and where we had been Ray bless him had to see to the drinks order as Iwas shaking so much from the release of tension I just had to sit down This didnrsquothappen anywhere else getting up the long hills into a cross wind almost all day hadsapped my energy Anyway coffee coke and 2 bags of salted peanuts (which I NEV-ER normally eat) seemed to bring about recovery and apart from the climb out of Hal-stock the next section was almost enjoyable I think familiarity helped here as theroute goes through Yetminster to Duntish through Ansty to Milton Abbas and on toWinterborne Whitechurch The view of Milton Abbey was gorgeous There was evena glimmer of sun We reached the pub from the lovely descent at around 645 pmLost time here because the sandwich order took so long to fulfil (the restaurant areawas busy) and confusion ensued over the till receipts When you are shattered tryingto sort out lsquoproofs of passagersquo is a major hassle Again the lsquolocalsrsquo were friendly andencouraging lsquoYou can do itrsquo they cried as we set off with 10+ hours to complete Rainand dark were threatening and we had said at the outset we would try to get as far aspossible in the light Almost an hour at the pub does not help

Got over Turnworth I only sound so pleased because Irsquod ridden it 3 times recently andwouldnrsquot have liked to have to get off We got to the other side of Gillingham beforethe rain set in and waterproofs had to go on Itrsquos a bit confusing and scary aroundHorningsham in the dark and it was a while before I realised the lane Irsquod just gingerlycome down (to the pub) was the lane Irsquod struggled up towards the end of The Wilt-shire Cycleway 300 earlier this year Crossing Salisbury Plain on the exposed dragthrough Chitterne to Shrewton the rain came down in torrents I lost Ray as I had tostop towards the top of the final climb and walk a few yards We reunited under theshelter of the garage forecourt in Shrewton at 0015 am Yes it was now Monday andwersquod ridden over 200 miles in 21 hours (Authorrsquos note ndash 200 miles ridden andwalked no records being set here)

We had just under 6 hours left to ride only 70kms but what a stage this one is Be-tween us and Sixpenny Handley are 7 hills (one very steep down) and Irsquom afraid Iwalked part of each and every one of them There was no moon it was pouring galeforce winds and we were soaked to the skin Getting out of the saddle was a constantnecessity and is fine when I have some light but in sections where trees and hedgestake away any sense of light I find the bike just goes out of control Finding a hedge inyour face is neither exciting nor appealing

It had been suggested I wear my glasses in daylight and my lenses for the night sec-tion This seemed to help a lot as I coped much better with headlights and didnrsquot sufferfrom steamed up glasses in the rain Poor Ray found he could see not a lot comingdown through Garston Woods My worry was that I knew the road surface was very

13 Cycle Ink 150

broken at the end section (I normally like to race this road) but was unable to slow thebike Very frightening a wet slippery road and a wind hurtling you ever onwards Ihad to stop to compose myself and was convinced we were well out of time (We hadagreed we both wanted to finish the ride to record an event time whatever happened)When I linked with Ray he said lsquoWersquove got over 2 hours left We can make itrsquo I saidlsquoIrsquoll do my very very bestrsquo

Well ndash we flew all the way to Wimborne Boy was I hurting ndash everywhere It seemedto take forever and at Gravel Hill I suggested to Ray that he go on I didnrsquot think Icould keep up that pace to Poole His reply lsquoWersquove only 5 miles to go and frac12 hour leftrsquo

We got to the BP garage with only minutes to spare ndash in fact my receipt says exactly600 am

We had done it At last I had conquered () Porkers

But it would have taken just a puncture (as Irsquod had last time) and a few minutes inhand would not have been enough All that effort would have been for nothing Thereare 7 stages to this ride and we had arrived at each control with time inhand We had left each control lsquoon timersquo ie as if starting a new event fromscratch We were that close to our limit

PS Irsquom told Porkers is so named because lsquoIt is a pig of a ridersquo I think I agree

Wessex CTC 100 in 8 July 13th 2008

Cycle Ink 150 14

I have just written a book about my cycling trip around the North Sea Cycle Route toraise money for Cancer Research UK after very sadly losing both my mother andmother-in-law to brain tumours within just 12 months of each other I made the trip asa tribute to them and to beat my own fears and travelling phobias It may sound likedepressing material for the razor-to-wrist brigade but is the complete opposite - an up-lifting tale of two wheeled therapy on an inner and outer journey through northern Eu-ropes obscure cycling backwaters with kind and quirky strangers on the road helpingput a smile back on my face It does just what it says on the tin

Thanks for listening

CYCLING BACK TO HAPPINESSADVENTURE ON THE NORTH SEA CYCLE ROUTE by Bernie Friend

Dont let your biggest fears stand in the way of your dreams even if your biggestdreams happen to be your biggest fears

That was exactly Bernie Friends attitude when he ditched medication and group thera-py to overcome a very unwanted companion - paranoia A complete novice to long dis-tance cycling Bernie confronted many demons on his epic journey - a coastal cycleroute which circles 6000 kilometres of the Netherlands Germany Denmark SwedenNorway Scotland and England

Arm wrestling drunken trawlermen a geriatric half marathon Viking bring-and-buysales decapitated pirates burning witches Shakin Stevens mega mixes sea crossingmotorways walking sand giants and remote islands which most people canrsquot even bebothered to mark on a map are just some of the secrets coughed up by the North SeaCycle Route

Michael Palin and Bill Bryson watch out Bernies very personal story told in an easy-going travelogue style will have you hooked from start to finish

Published by Pen Press (ISBN 9781906206710) Cycling Back to Happi-ness is available to buy and order in all book stores or onwwwberniefriendcom

New Cycling Book

13 Cycle Ink 150

broken at the end section (I normally like to race this road) but was unable to slow thebike Very frightening a wet slippery road and a wind hurtling you ever onwards Ihad to stop to compose myself and was convinced we were well out of time (We hadagreed we both wanted to finish the ride to record an event time whatever happened)When I linked with Ray he said lsquoWersquove got over 2 hours left We can make itrsquo I saidlsquoIrsquoll do my very very bestrsquo

Well ndash we flew all the way to Wimborne Boy was I hurting ndash everywhere It seemedto take forever and at Gravel Hill I suggested to Ray that he go on I didnrsquot think Icould keep up that pace to Poole His reply lsquoWersquove only 5 miles to go and frac12 hour leftrsquo

We got to the BP garage with only minutes to spare ndash in fact my receipt says exactly600 am

We had done it At last I had conquered () Porkers

But it would have taken just a puncture (as Irsquod had last time) and a few minutes inhand would not have been enough All that effort would have been for nothing Thereare 7 stages to this ride and we had arrived at each control with time inhand We had left each control lsquoon timersquo ie as if starting a new event fromscratch We were that close to our limit

PS Irsquom told Porkers is so named because lsquoIt is a pig of a ridersquo I think I agree

Wessex CTC 100 in 8 July 13th 2008

Cycle Ink 150 14

I have just written a book about my cycling trip around the North Sea Cycle Route toraise money for Cancer Research UK after very sadly losing both my mother andmother-in-law to brain tumours within just 12 months of each other I made the trip asa tribute to them and to beat my own fears and travelling phobias It may sound likedepressing material for the razor-to-wrist brigade but is the complete opposite - an up-lifting tale of two wheeled therapy on an inner and outer journey through northern Eu-ropes obscure cycling backwaters with kind and quirky strangers on the road helpingput a smile back on my face It does just what it says on the tin

Thanks for listening

CYCLING BACK TO HAPPINESSADVENTURE ON THE NORTH SEA CYCLE ROUTE by Bernie Friend

Dont let your biggest fears stand in the way of your dreams even if your biggestdreams happen to be your biggest fears

That was exactly Bernie Friends attitude when he ditched medication and group thera-py to overcome a very unwanted companion - paranoia A complete novice to long dis-tance cycling Bernie confronted many demons on his epic journey - a coastal cycleroute which circles 6000 kilometres of the Netherlands Germany Denmark SwedenNorway Scotland and England

Arm wrestling drunken trawlermen a geriatric half marathon Viking bring-and-buysales decapitated pirates burning witches Shakin Stevens mega mixes sea crossingmotorways walking sand giants and remote islands which most people canrsquot even bebothered to mark on a map are just some of the secrets coughed up by the North SeaCycle Route

Michael Palin and Bill Bryson watch out Bernies very personal story told in an easy-going travelogue style will have you hooked from start to finish

Published by Pen Press (ISBN 9781906206710) Cycling Back to Happi-ness is available to buy and order in all book stores or onwwwberniefriendcom

New Cycling Book

Cycle Ink 150 14

I have just written a book about my cycling trip around the North Sea Cycle Route toraise money for Cancer Research UK after very sadly losing both my mother andmother-in-law to brain tumours within just 12 months of each other I made the trip asa tribute to them and to beat my own fears and travelling phobias It may sound likedepressing material for the razor-to-wrist brigade but is the complete opposite - an up-lifting tale of two wheeled therapy on an inner and outer journey through northern Eu-ropes obscure cycling backwaters with kind and quirky strangers on the road helpingput a smile back on my face It does just what it says on the tin

Thanks for listening

CYCLING BACK TO HAPPINESSADVENTURE ON THE NORTH SEA CYCLE ROUTE by Bernie Friend

Dont let your biggest fears stand in the way of your dreams even if your biggestdreams happen to be your biggest fears

That was exactly Bernie Friends attitude when he ditched medication and group thera-py to overcome a very unwanted companion - paranoia A complete novice to long dis-tance cycling Bernie confronted many demons on his epic journey - a coastal cycleroute which circles 6000 kilometres of the Netherlands Germany Denmark SwedenNorway Scotland and England

Arm wrestling drunken trawlermen a geriatric half marathon Viking bring-and-buysales decapitated pirates burning witches Shakin Stevens mega mixes sea crossingmotorways walking sand giants and remote islands which most people canrsquot even bebothered to mark on a map are just some of the secrets coughed up by the North SeaCycle Route

Michael Palin and Bill Bryson watch out Bernies very personal story told in an easy-going travelogue style will have you hooked from start to finish

Published by Pen Press (ISBN 9781906206710) Cycling Back to Happi-ness is available to buy and order in all book stores or onwwwberniefriendcom

New Cycling Book

15 Cycle Ink 150

Herersquos what Martin Lucas and I got up to last weekend on BrimstoneGeorge Rushing off amp leaving my bag with Danny Fisher amp John Barkman wasnrsquot inthe script but Brimstone was as close to an armchair ride as you can get with B 052xstart Cool Sat with 10-15mph headwind across S plainto turn a few and I mean 3dozen total spots of rain all told Exmouth tesco at 1830 arrived Taunton Deane2100 Drewrsquos house 1240 Jan kindly got up and did us a Cottage Pie then a cookedbreakfast so I left with groaning stomach after 2 full meals and 4 hours sleep As warmat 0900as it had been at 1600 the day before We made it 4 meals in 12hrs including Malmesbury where I had my first coffee since france Sunny with high cloud all daySunday and we counted down the rollers until Fontmell Magna Knowing ouraverage was 238kph there I took off at teh top and eased up 90 mins later as Martintook over for the run in to Poole Back 1710 in good time for the 1732 train I satwhiffily on that with 4 bikes in the 3 car space and had a lot of space for somereason Up for Porkers instead of Dorset Coast to complete my Wessex series

Martin Lucas Well I was suffering on Saturday due to not sleeping properly onFriday night after tea and cakes when George arrived at chez Lucas and the 1 x 100km audax in previous 4 weeks didnrsquot help either It was a slog from Abbotts Ann all theway Beaminster with the headwind I wasnrsquot looking forward to the hills + headwindcombination to Exmouth and could easily have packed at Beaminster Things gotbetter from Exemouth though -) and was a great evening ride to Taunton After thefood and a good sleep at Drewrsquos I felt much more positive about the remaining 200km So a weekend of lows and highs really Expert navigating from George kept us ontrack I drove back late yesterday evening after a meal with my folks and 3 hourssleep It feels good to have cracked the Brimstone again Next weekend Irsquoll be at afestival at Lulworth so may try the Porkers a week today

Spotted in ldquoPrivate EyerdquoPseudrsquos Corner

August 2008

Cycle Ink 150 16

For SaleDahon (USA) Lightweight Folding Bike (MUP8) 20rdquo wheels inc Cateye wire-less computer (worth pound50) spare higher gear front chain wheel kick standmultiple riding position adjustments high velocity pump in seat tube 8 geartwister hand control (sram) handle post with telescopic adjustment Rear rackfitted Folds in 15 seconds Cost new (pound575) Has only done 250 gentle milesItrsquos in excellent as new condition and only 9 months old Ill health forces genu-ine sale pound375 for quick sale Telephone Paul 01202 745841

17 Cycle Ink 150

ADVERTISEMENT

Cycle Ink 150 18

Editor

The committee meeting date is the deadline for Newsletter contributions Editorialpolicy is to print all contributions with minimal editing for the purposes of layoutonly Contribute by email disk CD-ROM typed or handwritten Photographs arenow welcome in any form We can scan them and they will be returned safely

httpwwwwessexctcorg

ldquoCycleInkrdquo is the Newsletter of the Bournemouth amp District Section Wessex District Association of theCyclistsrsquo Touring Club Published four times a year for members Views expressed are not necessarily

those of the club

CTC Parklands Railton Road Guildford Surrey GU2 9JXhttpwwwctcorguk

Contributions and Photographs

Dates of next Meetings

17 Cycle Ink 150

ADVERTISEMENT

Cycle Ink 150 18

Editor

The committee meeting date is the deadline for Newsletter contributions Editorialpolicy is to print all contributions with minimal editing for the purposes of layoutonly Contribute by email disk CD-ROM typed or handwritten Photographs arenow welcome in any form We can scan them and they will be returned safely

httpwwwwessexctcorg

ldquoCycleInkrdquo is the Newsletter of the Bournemouth amp District Section Wessex District Association of theCyclistsrsquo Touring Club Published four times a year for members Views expressed are not necessarily

those of the club

CTC Parklands Railton Road Guildford Surrey GU2 9JXhttpwwwctcorguk

Contributions and Photographs

Dates of next Meetings

Cycle Ink 150 18

Editor

The committee meeting date is the deadline for Newsletter contributions Editorialpolicy is to print all contributions with minimal editing for the purposes of layoutonly Contribute by email disk CD-ROM typed or handwritten Photographs arenow welcome in any form We can scan them and they will be returned safely

httpwwwwessexctcorg

ldquoCycleInkrdquo is the Newsletter of the Bournemouth amp District Section Wessex District Association of theCyclistsrsquo Touring Club Published four times a year for members Views expressed are not necessarily

those of the club

CTC Parklands Railton Road Guildford Surrey GU2 9JXhttpwwwctcorguk

Contributions and Photographs

Dates of next Meetings