Yet another excellent Saturday morning club run ? this time on dry surfaces with a bright and sunny morning and a good turn out for the time of year. Feeling a bit rough, I opted for the second group with the expectation of a ride that I might manage without feeling too stretched. As we set off, someone joked that we might find Connor left out there from last week ? probably a tad unkind but at least he was missed!
Part 1
Not having been in the Monty brigade for a while, I had forgotten the steely discipline of riding the 5 minute through-n-off rotation. But by sneakily filling the near side gaps left by other riders I managed to stay off the front without anyone noticing ? this is a trick I learnt from Ajay whose seminal advice to me to ?do no work Alan? still gives me heart. Unfortunately, it was the same advice that I forgot completely when it came to the sprint, going for it far too soon and being passed easily just before the signpost with nothing left but empty promise.
Anyway, the convivial atmosphere of the café revived my spirits and I had a nice chat with a lady tri-athlete with 2 children under 5, and a Millwall supporter ? not sure of the connection here and failed to get the names. We pointed out cool Tim Liquidgas as a very ?fit? young man, having just returned from Mallorca brimming full with confidence and coiled acceleration and clearly the rider to beat in part 2 of the run.
Part 2
The ride back was pretty good and as usual the pace quickened past the golf club and on the hill before the church. Tim, as predicted was very fast with spurts of crushing acceleration ? The implacable Hugh was already off the front and I just managed to stay with the group and hug Tim?s wheel. Just short of Merstham, one rider had gone off the front ? I think the Millwall supporter because he needed to get back to claim his season ticket place ? I hope they won and it was worth it. I decided to pretend to be a seasoned pro and I closed the gap in a feat of super human effort and then sat on his wheel until the Merstham drag. I knew that those behind, Hugh, Tim, Jackie, Steve and A N Other would soon join me.
As we climbed the hill the rider in front slowed and I decided to at least share some of today?s work but I was soon aware that I was towing a phalanx of riders behind me, something that wasn?t in the script. After a reasonable period on the front, I slowed sufficiently to annoy them enough to come past. Millwall now seemed out of the picture but the other 5 came through at a brisk pace. At this point memories Toks? punishing pace last week and Jackie dropping me flooded in and invoked sufficient nervous energy for me to catch the wheel of the last rider and stay on it up to the top of the drag. After that I even shared a few moments at the front of the group as we sped all the way to Couldson S station with unusually very little traffic to stop us. A pretty good and enjoyable ride that made this afternoon?s penance of carrying the Christmas shopping bags round Croydon almost bearable.