M7 Cycling Club

Look no hands

Blue sky cycling

Off road detour

A mystery cyclist

Cycling is green

Thirty Seventh Ride; Sunday 21st October 2007
Routemaster; Doug Freeman
Riders: Doug Freeman, Ian Hartland
Total mileage: 29.12 miles
Average Speed; 11.92 mph
Fastest Speed; Ian entering the Antelope car park

The M2 met at Harbury Village Hall for a 10am start, on a fine sunny but cold autumn day, 6c with almost no wind (2 mph from the south west). Obviously the rest of the M7 were suffering from World Cup Rugby final blues or excesses, but Ian and Doug are made of sterner stuff. The ride had been published as 25 to 30 miles returning to Harbury by 1pm, so with these objectives in mind the M2 set of into deepest Warwickshire.

Our outward route went past the now proud looking Chesterton Windmill, well done Pete, and up Bromson Hill the first of many hills. Before reaching Ashorne, we turned left and tackled the climb through Moreton Morrell to Moreten Paddox. We where then rewarded with the fast and long downhill stretch towards Wellesbourne. At the Kineton Road (B4086), we turned left and then right into the road leading to Walton Hall. Officially I think this is a private road for the wealthy to access Walton Hall, but nobody seemed to mind a couple of young fit cyclists using the road.

The trees in the woods were beginning to show their autumn colours as the M2 speed past the magnificent hall and headed south on Walton Road. We climbed the piglet hill which starts under the disused railway bridge up to the Fosse, and then made our way to Pillerton Hersey. Doug persuaded Ian to try the green lane route through the ford and onto Oxhill Bridle Road. The theory was to try and cut across to the Tysoe Road near Priors Lea Farm, but after a mile and half of scaring a horse rider, dog walker, some ponies and many sheep, we decide to back track and scare them all again.

We rejoined our original route and went via Butlers Marston, Little Kineton into Kineton. Ian declined the offer of a coffee at the “real” coffee stop saying that he did not want to sit in a café full of cyclists. We instead tackled the south easterly slopes of Compton Verney via the Lighthorne Road, past Lighthorne Rough and downhill into Lighthorne. Here Ian’s bike developed a fault which had him veering right into the Antelope tea rooms’ car park. We ordered our Earl Grey and sat outside and chatted to the cyclists of a 20 mile cancer charity ride from Bishops Itchington. Some of these cyclists looked the worse for wear, but we suspect that was from the previous nights training rather than the ride itself.

Refreshed, we whizzed up the hill out of Lighthorne and made our way back to Chesterton and Thwaites Estate. At the entrance to Thwaites we had to overcome the locked gate, but Ian being tall lifted our bikes over with ease. We arrived back in the village just a couple minutes after 1pm, with nearly 30 miles under our belts, so mission accomplished.

A perfect autumn ride, good company, testing hills, and only one cup of tea.
Doug.

# posted by M7 Cycling Club @ 10:39 am