Precipitation & Pasties

4 Early 'Grande', 5 Late 'Medio' and 5 MTB Pedallers, completed yesterday's series of Thursday AVP evening rides. With numbers possibly down due to the forecasted precipitation that was scheduled to fall later in the evening, these 14 hardy souls were not to be put off their weekly fix .. or was it just the lure of the apres ride pasties, chips and beer at the White Hart, Colyford!

I rode out in the early 6:30 slot with Rex, The Near Naked Man, Relay, Handbag and Airfix, to Beer and up Quarry Lane. It was here that Relay and Handbag left us to join up with the 3 later 'Medio' riders, while the remaining 4 amigos chainganged down the A3052 to Sidford. The plan had been to turn north up Harcombe lane at the bottom of Trow Hill, but as 3 slowed, preparing to turn, screams of 'coming through! coming through!!' from Airfix closing in on us at plus 40 mph, put pay to that! I thought his brakes had just given up, but alas no, he'd just not got the memo!

So, it was a right turn at the lights to then start the long 4 mile climb up through Sidbury to the Hare & Hounds. Turning then back towards Seaton, the feeling was that as we had an hour before turning in, we'd time to add a bit more to the route. We doubled back, up to the Honiton Golf Club across Farway Common and then took the drop down into Colyton via Northleigh Hill. It was only seconds after making this decision that the 'precipitation' arrived to dampen our spirits. Visibility and speed dropped as we descended the greasy twisting lanes. The Near Naked Man left at Colyton, for the 3 remaining to proceed on to dry out by the fire, over a much deserved beer!