Friday 30th ride.

[Andrew G]

I'm off on Friday so if you are too and fancy a ride give me a shout.

I plan on doing my Ashdown-Penshurst loop but going to try and change the begining a bit down some lanes I've seen, that just means that there might be a bit of map checking in the first half of the ride. It's about 70 miles (if starting and finishing in Croydon) and fairly lumpy (there's hardly a bit of flat road, but some of it obviously goes down as well as up ) with a few proper hills in it (e.g. Kidds, Groombridge, Toys). I plan on just having a nice spin around though and not nailing it so if you can do 70 lumpy/hilly miles without a stop at a steady pace and ride in the 18s or above then feel free to join me.

A good one if you've got a sportive coming up and want a decent length ride with some hills to test your climbing legs on, you just to need to get the day off work .

[Robbie Dread]

What time are you planing on leaveing Sir,i'll come but if it's too fast i may have to drop out fitness not there fulley as yet,it's comming

[Dominic]

Very interested as I also have day off. Would have to be about 9.30am for me depending where we start as I promised that I will take my two youngest to school on Friday.

[Andrew G]

The link below shows the intended route, but more for the info on the Summary tab where it shows the route profile. This starts and finishes at Lloyd Park but we could meet at GBs. 9.30 is around what I was going to suggest, don't want to get up early on a day off . Can be flexible by a bit of you need a touch longer to get to the badlands Dominic.

Robbie, I haven't seen you for ages mate, how are you doing these days? If you look at the link you'll see it is hilly, 1,300 metres of climbing over 70 miles without a stop, and I would suggest you need to be able to sit on the front of the 18s and tow everyone to the cafe (rather than sit in the pack) as a guide for fitness needed.

[url=http://bikeroutetoaster.com/Course.aspx?course=123641]Link, click on summary for profile map[/url]

[Dominic]

9.30ish at GBs sounds good Andrew.

[Andrew G]

I was joined by Dominic and George for today and we set off from GBs at 9.30.

This Ashdown Penshurst loop is one of my favourites, and I've made it better . I'd had a shufty at the map as although the simple B road down Crockham way is not a busy road it can get a bit more lively at weekends, particularly holiday ones. I'd spotted what looked like it could be a nice run down running fairly parallel with it and it worked well.

Down Titsey, I gave it a bit of welly today for the first time in ages and clocked 53.1mph , and then after the right left at the A25 junction we took the new route and turned down Brick Kiln Lane. This was a really nice road, quality in the middle on the countryside stuff on a narrow road with some good green scenery. A couple of right,left and lefts and we dropped out at Haxted where we turned along to go through Dormansland and down to Hammerwood. From there it was down the wonderfully named Shovelstrode Lane to Forest Row before off to Hartfield and the dreaded Kidds Hill.

Thanks to George for the bit from Hartfield to the base of Kidds as I wasn't sure of that. I certainly wasn't sure of Kidds as I winched my way up that bugger! I haven't ridden up it for about 3 years and I remembered why today. George and Dominic waited for me at the top where Dom let on of his desire for a pasty to sate his fancy for something that wasn't a sweet sticky bar/drink. We said we could grab something in Groombridge or Penshurst after the belting descent from Ashdown, Penshurst as it turned out as I wasn't stopping right at the base of the big climb out of Groombridge to have to start on it from a standstill.

We stopped briefly at the stores in Penshurst and sat on the wall, each of us chewing our meat and pastry based snack of choice, and then set off for the run in. Down to Four Elms and then off up towards Chartwell. just before the climb kicks up I'd spotted on previous rides a road to the right I wanted to try so we did.

It also has a lovely name - Puddleduck Lane . I knew it took us over to Toys but boy is this a tough way to it. It drops down a bit and then kicks and climbs nastily as a real grinding affair before coming out on Toys at the bend so you then get to "enjoy" the steep straight ramp second half of Toys to the top. I said I thought it was perhaps a bit harder than just going up Toys, George wasn't sure but thought it was similar. I told him to go back down and ride Toys again and then let me know which was harder but he declined .

A final fling along the A25 where Dominic carried on for home and George and I turned off up Botley for our homes.

I really enjoyed it today. A good route, if I say so myself, and we rode a decent pace all the way. We weren't racing, George is tomorrow, but did a good steady pace and on this route you get plenty to test you. 72 miles in 4 hours 15 for me.

I think I'll do it as an alternate CR sometime, starting from Lloyd Park so we don't have to go through Purley Cross (twice for some of us) unnecessarily and could have a tea stop at Four Elms.

[Dominic]

Big thanks to Andrew for the route. So nice just to be out riding a bike as opposed to going to work or training. Found the hills a bit tough after 9 straight days of commuting and when I left George and Andrew I really was grovelling along the A25.

Top pasty, good ride and good company. Must do it more often