South Coast Nemesis 2015

This halfway point in my 3 month sabbatical from full time project management has been odd one, mainly because of the unusual weather we've experienced this week. Being British, we naturally have a constant interest in the changing weather so why should this week be so different? For me, the reason this week is simple, in that it has frustrated and pleased in equal measure.

At the start of the week I was itching to get out on the bike, but my destiny lay with a paint brush and my front door, which meant that leaving the house was not an option until the door was dry. These first two days of painting went well as the sun shined brightly. With the bike prepared for its first outing since the 100 miler, for at least a Wednesday wibble, what did our British weather deliver .. yes, continuous rain. It was not content to just upset Wednesday's plan, but both Thursday evening's APV ride and the Friday Flyer's morning spin were both certified washouts! The next planned outing was a Friday evening ride over to Sidmouth to see the celebrated return of the Red Arrows after a 10 year absence. All through the day, I had been following Red10 on Twitter to see whether, as with the Lyme Regis and other displays, they would again be grounded. Red10 spoke of the South Coast Nemesis 2015 as being the rain and low cloud which this year had prevented so many coastal displays from taking place.

Arrows over Sidmouth 

Having had no negative confirmation from Red10 and not to be put off by the worsening conditions, I saddled up the Roubaix and joined up with 3 other Pedallers overlooking a misty Sidmouth, our heads touching the clouds. Unbelievably almost dead on 6:30 pm we heard the distinctive roar of the 9 Rolls Royce Adour engines coming in from sea.  They had to, however, be right on top of us before we got sight of them as conditions required them to fly low over the sea which was obscured from our vantage point by trees! On a clear day, they would have risen high above the tree line and fly down the valley which was now also unfortunately hidden under a layer of mist and cloud! While the ride home was a damp one, it was great to be out on the bike again with my fellow Axe Valley Pedallers (AVP).

Test riding the Fat Bike!

The next key event of the week was Sunday's Great Outdoors Festival to be held on Seaton seafront. The AVP were to have the gazebo and flags out and the attractions of 2 spinning bikes donated by the local Axminster gym and an American Fat Bike loaned by Soanes Cycles. The weather during Saturday night through to Sunday morning was that of torrential rain, but the Met Office reported a break in the clouds from around 2pm through till late evening. It took great courage of the organisers to press ahead as we set up our displays under grey clouds and falling rain. Amazingly, just as forecast, the rain ceased and clouds cleared bathing us in a summer sun we had almost given up hope on seeing for another year! The festival was a absolute success, with much interest shown from from all ages in both the spinning and fat bikes and the cycle club in general.

AVP at the Great Outdoors Festival 2015

Although I did not get another ride out, meaning that this week was my worst for miles covered since the winter, the South Coast Nemesis 2015 did not get the better of us in the end, the Red Arrows visit was strangely entertaining and the weekend saw one of the club's most successful events. I'm now looking forward to seeing what next week brings, and if it means that I have to stay in out of the rain all week, at least I have the Vuelta to watch!