Sabbatical Day 2/65 : Wet & Windy Crewkerne Circuit

I found myself driving through Crewkerne at the weekend and thought this would be a great destination for one of this week's rides. It's about 20 miles from Seaton and has two routes one can ride in and out of, both of which I always seem to drive; via Axmouth on the way out and Lyme Regis on the return. The roads are also smooth and well covered, a novelty for around our lanes and perfect for the Tarmac.

I awoke this morning to rain .. yes rain! This was not in the plan. I had set today aside for this Crewkerne ride, Wednesday being the Wibblers, Thursday the Club, and Friday the Flyers. By 10 am,  thankfully, the sky over Seaton had miraculously cleared and all was well again. I saddled up and rode out towards Axminster, moving more swiftly than in yesterday's strong winds, getting a new PB on the Boss Hill to A35 segment.

Rain on the road from Axminster towards Chard

As I crossed the single lane bridge over the river at Weycroft, no more than 5 miles into my ride, the rain returned and over the next 10 miles I became quite soaked. On every turn of the pedals my feet sloshed in my shoes and water ran relentlessly down my back. Confident that this would blow over and once the sun shone again I would soon dry out, I pressed on. Just after Tythleigh and before entering Chard, I turned off the main A358 down the quieter and more direct Roman Road to join up with the A30. I'm not one who likes riding the major roads, getting buffeted by speeding vehicles has never been a favoured pastime of mine. This, however, is a quieter stretch of the A30 but the road width and surface is perfect for cycling on .. I just wish that, as in France, we could have a clear metre or two of space at either side of the carriage way for bikes to ride in. I appreciate that we have less open land than on the continent but for such major roads, I can not see it making that much difference.

The drop into Crewkerne came up before me quicker that I had expected and after such a time riding on my own, it was a shock to the system to be thrust into the throng, dodging cars, lorries and a parade of tourists who seemed to be on a walking tour of the town; it was bedlam. I had thought of seeking out a friendly cafe for an alfresco coffee. I had visions of slipping out of my damp shoes and drying my socks in the sun, but the state of traffic control and rammed streets led me to make a b-line for the road to Lyme and out of Crewkerne.

A quick stop between Crewkerne and Lyme

The quiet and calmness of the countryside soon returned to me as I climbed out of the town and up to Clapton; it's name making me chuckle as I imagined how different this was from its North London namesake. The road I was now riding on, the B3165, would take me all the way to above Lyme Regis, no turnings to make, no risk of a navigation error, I could just sit back and enjoy the scenery. I was also starting to finally dry out, the process being enhanced by the now higher winds and warmer air. There would be those pieces of clothing which would need longer than I had left to cycle; my cap was still dripping, perspiration now combining with the rain water, my feet were still damp but it would be a few days before I would be at risk of trench foot and most uncomfortable were my shorts and the soggy chamois pad!

The final 10 miles from Lyme flew by, the Tarmac had performed well, albeit over some of the less even ground it jared every sinew, bone and tooth in my body and totally justified me having the two bikes; the Tarmac for the smooth quick flat circuits and the Roubaix for the rough lumpy lanes. All that remains to be decided, is which bike joins me on the Wednesday Wibble tomorrow.