The Long and Winding Road

Well, as you will no doubt have learned from Sians last blog the next Belles adventure sets off on June 9th – plenty of time for us girls to get into shape and conquer the South Downs!!

You may recall my last training ride was not the happiest, with icy conditions causing me a few problems that I’ve not forgotten, so it was with a little trepidation I entered the weekend with training firmly in my mind. On that occasion events required me to leave my bike down at Amber’s house so, before I could even begin to take on Sundays training, I needed to go and get my bike back.

One of the disadvantages of living out in the sticks is nobody has a pick-up truck when you need one, so 10am Saturday morning Steve and I set off on the two mile walk to Westcott to recover my trusted steed. Despite the cold rain and wind the walk down was easy enough but I was reminded on the way back just how daunting the ‘long and winding road’ up to Ashendon looks like when you’re heading up from the bottom.

When we arrived back Andy was out in the driveway doing the kind of things men do in driveways on Saturday mornings – more to the point a jet washer was conveniently plugged in and ready to go. A quick flutter of the eyelashes and the promise of cold beer from the fridge and “Hey Presto” – my bike looked as good as new. All I needed to do now was repeat the charm on Steve and the bike would be oiled up and ready for Sunday.

Saturday night was never going to offer suitable preparation for Sundays training session – Claire Cooks birthday party down in Cuddington was always going to be a test, particularly as all of the Belles had been invited along with partners who didn’t have to get up and cycle the next day. In the end we all decided that the best thing to do was to take it easy. Whilst it was many months ago we all still remember the wild Saturday night that ended up with a rather hung over cycle the next morning.

The Sunday morning weather seemed to be a great improvement on Saturday as I headed up to meet Vicky on the bench at the top of the hill. Sian and Amber were otherwise engaged today so just the two of us – ‘do we cycle or do we go and sit in the coffee shop for a couple of hours and say we’ve just done fifteen miles?’

We threw the idea round for a while and having decided we’d never get away with it Vicky and I headed off down Dorton Hill towards Ludgershall – meet ‘Wimp’ and ‘Wimp’ the two new Pollicott Belles.

As we began to gather speed and enthusiasm I pointed out two positives to Vicky. Firstly the sun had come out and it was actually feeling quite pleasant, secondly Steve was going to have a Full Monty ready for us when we got back (the English breakfast kind, not the one where he whips off his underpants wearing a police uniform).

Vicky was perhaps even more impressed with the four men I’d managed to accumulate on my way up to meet her, and not just any old four men - men with tales of the South Downs. It turns out these guys had cycled the very route that the Belles were going to take on this coming June – in the words of Chief Brody in the film Jaws “we’re gonna need a bigger bike”.

In no time at all Vicky and I was powering our way back up Dorton Hill. So much power in fact that when we met a sweating, gasping, dehydrated, fellow cyclist at the top who was amazed we’d arrived so cool, calm, and collected – I quietly owned up to having a little walk. Oh well, I tried.

Soon we were back in Pollicott, bikes parked up, boots off, and into the kitchen ready for Steves Full Monty – da da da, da da da da, - what a disappointment, we thought we were getting bacon, eggs, sausage, grilled tomato, and toast.

Now before I go a quick, yet important, reminder – the Pollicott Belles fund raising bingo night is this Thursday 3rd March up at The Gatehangers, hosted courtesy of Andy and Hilary.

Eyes down, look in, and see you Thursday.

Alex

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