10 Jul: Centenary tea and rides
On Sunday 10th July we held a special social event to celebrate the end of the club's centenary year (so 101 years since our first ride), with multiple rides of various lengths, all leading to a classic club tea at Haslingfield Village Hall.
After several months of planning, Haslingfield village hall was booked for the tea, Sue, Sarah, Angela, and the Barrington Rainbow mums were on hand to bake cakes, and we had six rides lined up:
Yasmin would lead a 14 mile family frendly ride from Brookside. Read Yasmin's ride report.
Ian would lead a 35 mile afternoon ride from Brookside
Shiela would lead a 40 mile afternoon ride ("for tea" miles !) from Haslingfield
Ray would lead a 101 km (62 miles) leisurely-plus ride from Brookside via Furneaux Pelham. Read Ray's ride report.
Rachel would lead a 101 km (62 miles) moderate ride from Brookside via Clare
Simon would lead a 101 mile ride from Brookside via Sturmer (sadly
cancelled due to the heat!)
Rupert and his team had planned the routes, which you can find in the route library as the 101 Birthday Collection.
When the rides arrived at Haslingfield Village Hall, freshly-made sandwiches were scoffed, complemented by delicious homemade cakes.
Huge thanks to all involved! Angela, Sarah, Sue and others for giving up their day to make sandwiches and serve hungry cyclists; Ray and Rupert for their route guidance and sorting the technical side; Ian, Rachel, Ray, Sheila, Simon and Yasmin for leading rides on the day.
Everyone seemed to enjoy the event, and the opportunity to meet up with club friends beyond their regular riding groups. After the success of this event and the one at Wicken last year, we hope to make gatherings like this a more regular occurrence rather than waiting another 100 years to hold the next one!
John Seton, Ray Miller, Yasmin Emerson
Our rides in the "new normal"
Our programme of rides is starting to get back to something like it was before the pandemic. It's been a long time since we were last operating normally so we thought it would be a good idea to give you an overview and update of our plans for club rides over the coming months.
We are hoping to get back to a regular programme of weekly rides, featuring all our old favourites. But we also want to continue with some of the changes that have emerged during the last two years such as smaller groups and the use of booked rides. We'd also like to continue to offer shorter one-stop rides and some new intermediate-level rides.
Here's a summary of the current plans.
- Our popular Saturday Social rides now take place every week. We want to keep this as a regular weekly ride.
- We want to have two rides every Thursday: one ride starting from Cambridge, and a second ride starting from a village to the south.
- We want to have the traditional Sunday club ride as a regular fixture in the calendar.
- We want to add more of our new easier rides to cater for a wider range of interests and abilities.
As we come into spring, we are introducing some longer rides to visit some of our favourite cafes a little further afield. This means you'll see more Thursday and Sunday rides with two stops. We know that some of you prefer a shorter ride so there is also the option of leaving a ride early and making your own way home after coffee: just make sure the leader knows your intention. Ask the leader if you would like help planning your route home.
Here’s a quick introduction to some of the new rides that you may have missed:
Social meet on second Tuesdays
We have a monthly club social event on the second Tuesday of each month, There are no led rides - just make your own way to coffee and meet up for a chat. There's usually the option to join with others for an ad-hoc ride on the way home. Our next social gathering is on September 13th, meeting at Hot Numbers Roastery in Shepreth at 11am.
Social ride on first Thursdays
On the first Thursday of each month, Yasmin is offering an additional Thursday Social ride: these set off from Brookside at the same time as the Thursday city ride so there's an opportunity to chat with the other riders at the start. These rides are slightly longer and faster than the Saturday Social rides, but slower than our usual rides on Thursdays, so are a good intermediate ride for anyone wanting to step up from the Saturday Social or returning after a break from riding.
Sunday Loiterers
The Sunday Loiterers rides offer another intermediate ride for new and returning riders: like the Thursday Social rides, they are a bit faster than our Saturday rides but slower than the usual club rides. They start from Brookside at the same time as the normal ride and often share a coffee stop with it. The loiterers will then return to Cambridge while the normal ride carries on to lunch.
Taking a Lead
Our programme of rides is dependent on a small pool of volunteer leaders and we are always on the lookout for new people to lead rides. If you are new to leading rides and want to get involved, or would like to return to leading after a break, please contact Rupert, the Runs Secretary. We'd love to offer a Thursday Social on the third Thursday too if someone was up for leading that, and John and Ian would welcome some help with the Saturday Social rides - between the two of them they have managed to lead a ride almost every week over the last two years!
Find Out More
Keep an eye on our Rides list for details of forthcoming rides. Join our news and discussion email group. Follow us on Twitter.
Our next rides
Please read our Key guidance for riders. Booking is required for some rides.
Saturday 20th Aug: Saturday social booked ride (leisurelyThis ride is graded as "leisurely". We aim to go at a pace suitable for anyone who can ride a bike, slower than our "moderate" rides. More, approx 35 miles/56 km: A longer ride than usual) Meet at 10.00am at Brookside. Coffee is at Wicken Fen, Docky Hut Cafe. Booking essential. Leader: Ian Wright (07907 774939).
Sunday 21st Aug: Sunday morning ride (moderateThis ride is graded as "moderate". We will go at a steady touring pace, averaging around 12 mph. More, approx 50 miles/80 km) Meet at 9.00am at Brookside. Coffee is at Old Hurst, Johnsons Farm Tea Room. Booking not required. Leader: David Secher (07989 380148).
Latest ride reports
11 Aug: Ride to Balsham and Fowlmere
Some Like It Hot! Greg writes: Well, I have been told that Some Like It
Hot. This is not a review of a 1970's sitcom, nor a review of a Marilyn
Monroe film (though the latter is far better than the former, if you're
interested... (full report)
24 Jul: Ride to Finchingfield, High Easter, and Ashdon
Ray writes: I had volunteered to lead one of the club's classic longer
summer rides today and was joined by Nigel, Peter, Ivo, Clancy, Phil,
Liz, and Mike at Brookside. I didn't need to do much planning as the
route was one of Alex's from the route library: Finchingfield, High
Easter, and Ashdon... (full report)
21 Jul: Ride to Reed and Stansted Mountfitchet
An anonymous participant writes: It was just like old times. A 2-stop,
113 km 70 mile Thursday ride. All manner of shenanigans ensued with
defections, mutinies, accidental separations and the usual comings and
goings... (full report)
14 Jul: Ride to Balsham and Great Bardfield
Greg writes: "Deliver Us..."
One up on my last write up which quoted Julian of Norwich, we now have
the Lord's Prayer. What on earth (or in heaven) has this to do with a
bike ride? Well the obvious start to discussing a ride on 14th July is
Bastille Day & co... (full report)
10 Jul: Centenary ride (family-friendly) to Haslingfield
Yasmin writes: On the day, we gained riders before the ride had even
begun! A few of Ian's riders decided to sit in the shade of the trees at
Brookside, and join the family ride instead.
10 Jul: Centenary... (full report)