Although the forecast was dry, Sunday started damp after the overnight rain as we made our way to King's Square, and consequently, numbers were down. The leader of the faster-paced B ride, fresh from the southern coast of Spain, must have been disappointed with the weather and the turnout for he had only two companions for what became a bit of a mystery tour. He had found an old route on "Ride with GPS" and decided to follow it without looking where it went. All went well through Upleadon and...

Our A ride, nice and flat, took seven riders on a winding route to the South Gloucestershire town of Berkeley. Roads were quiet, which made for a pleasant experience, and we were untroubled until just out of Stonehouse when one rider had the misfortune to break a spoke. Fortunately he had 35 others in good shape to keep the wheel true for the remainder of the ride. Coffee was reached bang on 11am, 25 miles covered, largely in October sunshine and on dry roads. The service at the Berkeley Tea...

...we had planned a ride though the seasonal falling leaves. However, the recent spell of warm weather (everyone was wearing shorts! In October!) has delayed the onset of autumn. The opportunity of taking a bridle path through Westonbirt Arboretum to enjoy autumnal colours was deferred and instead, the President chose a route in celebration of his predecessor, replete with unnecessary diversions. The first took a group of nine over Moreton Hill to bypass Stonehouse. Concern about the path...

Six riders left King’s Square, and were joined by a further three in Tibberton. One rider lost a bidon on Huntley Road which really has an appalling surface, not dissimilar to the Arenberg Trench, which is quite an apt reference on the day of the Hell of the North. The silky smooth surface on the A40 over May Hill was a dream by comparison. Two riders left us at Lea to return, and we soon reached Pontshill, where we encountered the sports ride, who were looking for a lost rider. Both the...

Eight members made up the second group riding to Broadway and they set off at a brisk pace. As it was nearly 30 miles to Broadway Tower to get there for eleven was ambitious. Leaving the City was frustrating as the traffic lights were either at red, or changed to red as we cycled past marooning half the ride behind. After Churchdown it was plain sailing (and no traffic lights) with a helpful wind assisting us. We made good time through Teddington and Gotherington and on to Stanway where we all...

The Vice Captain has been criticized for always using Castle Hill to get to Broadway Tower, so today, we used Ham Hill instead, which silenced the critics, to the extent that one rider quietly took himself up the Dowdeswell reservoir climb instead and played tourist bingo while he waited to be caught – fords (2), roadside honesty boxes (2), incongruous statue (1). The climbing didn’t end with Ham Hill, as the climb to Roel Gate is quite nasty, and the road from Lynes Barn towards Cutsdean...

Today being the day of the Club's Autumn open time trial we would normally have enjoyed coffee and cake at the event HQ, rubbing shoulders with the combatants and applauding the winners, but because the event was held under "no touching" rules these were not on offer. In fact, the racers were having to prepare in the car park, all warm-up turbo trainers being in the outside areas, to comply with the HQ Covid regulations. For the same reason, but there were no pushers off to see them on their...