Friday, 28 November 2014
Nigel writes: This evening I took part in the #CamRideHome, a short after-work evening ride around Cambridge which takes place on the last Friday of every month.
It's organised by Rob Turner of Ben Hayward Cycles, and is intended to be a gentle, fun, ride around the back streets of Cambridge, lasting about an hour. There's
more information here.
The starting point was outside The Mill in Mill Lane at 6pm, and I turned up to find about ten others waiting to start. The ride is intended to celebrate "ordinary" urban cycling, and we were all wearing ordinary clothes and almost all of us were on ordinary city bikes. One rider, Tom, was with his young son who was sitting in a child seat behind him.
First stop on the ride was the Ben Hayward Cycles shop in Trumpington Street. Rob explained that he had just taken delivery of a number of fancy power-assisted Moulton cycles, and he was keen to get us to try them out. So several of us left our bikes in the shop and set off on shiny brand new Moultons instead, which was great fun. More about the bikes
here.
We continued into the city centre, rode around the market and stopped for a quick photo in front of the Christmas Tree.
#CamRideHome riders in Market Hill, Cambridge (Photo: Rob Turner)
For the next hour we were led on an ingeneous route around the back streets of Cambridge, first riding east to the station cycle bridge and then back west to Jesus Green and Castle Hill. It was a dry and very mild evening and the pace was relaxed and the atmosphere chatty and sociable.
After an hour we returned back to Mill Lane and stopped for a drink in The Mill, where a plate of mince pies was waiting for us.
Overall this was a relaxing and enjoyable way to end the working week, and I'll certainly be back when the rides continue next year.
Mince pies in the pub afterwards
(Note that the next CTC Cambridge monthly moonlight ride is next Wednesday, 3rd Dec. Meet at 6.30pm at Brookside for a 30-35 mile ride along quiet country lanes with a pub stop in Quy. Details
here.)