Sunday was gloriously warm... hot in fact... riders wearing less and less... and basking in the shade under the pagoda (is that the right word for the wooden edifice?).

Sunday was gloriously warm... hot in fact... riders wearing less and less... and basking in the shade under the pagoda (is that the right word for the wooden edifice?).

 

It was good so see several new faces. The mid-week session at nearly Merstham Primary School triggered interest from Ryan, aged 8 and resplendent in a silky Argentina football top, and class-mate James. We also got nine-year-old Pia into action after seing her older sister in the previous session. Welcome to you all.

 

First Session

We at last got an opening exercise that works that involves parents (riding as engines) and each with a line of youngsters in tow. Two dads each took a train of youngsters and at the whistle the one right behind the 'engine' looked behind, moved aside and eased up and went to the back of the line of ‘carriages’.

 

The third dad, meanwhile, was told that his young rider would say either 'faster' or 'slower' according to how he felt. He drew the short straw (and so perhaps he'll never come again) as his rider was seven-year-old Jamie Pullen who constantly said 'faster, faster, faster' so they spent all their time in overtaking mode…. and steering their way round merry muddles.

 

We had our own try at the schools skill challenge which involves everyone spending 12mins completing as many laps of a tricky circuit as possible, weaving round a slalem-run of cones on the way out, then negotiating to right-angled narrow straights on the way back.

 

The upside was 120 laps completed in the 12mins while the downside was 15 cones knocked over (so 30 penalty points)... giving a score of 90.

 

The normal 'sumo' exercise with everyone riding in a ring and not putting a foot down as the ring gets gradually smaller was modified.

 

It became a 3-ring exercise....a case of adjoining fish ponds all linked together.

 

Younger riders were put in the shallow water pools and given three lives to start with rather than just one......and then sent into the middle pool.

 

Meanwhile the 'sharks' (or should that be king prawns) were locked in the third pool until they had reduced themselves to just one... then also sent into the middle pool.

 

I think Lily was best pleased to be the final rider in the middle pool when big brother Will came out of the sharks' pot and promptly tumbled over... leaving her as the winner.

 

Final race - first session - handicap 5 laps.

1 Jamie Pullen

 

2 James Langley-Matthews

 

3 Callum Pringle

 

Green Jersey: awarded to Catherine Knight for willingness to demonstrate on the skills circuit to large group of school-mates

 

Three groups of 20 riders from Merstham Primary School were mad keen to get started on the circuit without a clue what they were doing. Restoring order was a full-time job, so being able to stand alongside them and have a rider who knew what they were doing was wonderful. Thank you Catherine.

 

Green Jersey search party… where are the others?

To make sure that we can award a suitable size of Green Jersey there are three in total… small, medium and large. Catherine ended up with one that was too big because it was the only one in the box.

 

I’m trying to work out where the other two are. One was posted back a few days ago. I’m thinking Alice will have the small one from two weeks ago. And the other? Did I see Christian wearing it recently?

 

Group Family Ride on Sunday – cancelled

The plan was to visit Eastbourne to see how Clive Copeland is getting on with a Raiders-style group on his doorstep (don’t know how they all fit on it).

 

He has asked if we can go later in the year. Probably best if we bring our own doorstep with us.

 

Coaches on the move

Tim Sales is currently with group pedaling their way through Spain on an epic Redhill-Gibraltar ride (thought they get the ferry to some port in north Spain). Some are even cycling back – Freddie’s dad Andre Roux being one. And I’m off for a week in the Alps… including a 6-hour event next Sunday taking in the Col de Madeleine (2,000m). The Tour de France will be racing up it on 13 July (if you watch the Tour on tv).

 

John