Report by Julian 

I had a good sleep in on Saturday so was keen for hills session.  Ten of us gathered for the ride, with Brendan the only one I knew – a sure sign we’re getting lots of interest in the rides.  The newer riders had come across the web site and were pretty impressed with the general layout and organization of the club, which means we’re doing something right.  Obviously a big part of this is the work by Peter, and shows being off the bike has its benefits. 

We tackled the Kahuna first with Brendan setting a good pace on his recovery ride.  After dodging some chickens before the climb started, I sat with him on the climb and was serenaded by gradient calls at various points.  He let me have the points then turned around and went home. We also lost another early rider so that left 8 for the last three climbs. 

On the Roleystone climb John made a couple of good attacks but wasn’t sure of the finish.  He did a couple of laps at the roundabout allowing Michael and I to catch up.  I managed to outlast Michael on the last hill.  We lost another two riders at the regroup, which left 6 of us to complete the course. 

The observatory climb was very uneventful but the last hill was anything but.  John made the first attack and I managed to wheel him in and decided to keep going.  In the last 600 m I noticed the gap was getting noticeably smaller and I was soon passed by Dean and John.  John spent all his tickets in the chase so I got by him again but Dean held on for glory, helped by the confusion that the 50 km/h sign on the left hand side of the road had been removed.  Hopefully it will return soon as it was hard to concentrate on the finish line without it there.  Adding to the drama, Michael got a puncture courtesy of a staple, so he had been tailed us in after making the change.  We caught up with Mark D at the top, who had slept through his alarm but still managed to get out.  

We then headed for coffee at the café down the road from Paris Brest, based on Matthew’s recommendation and it was well worth it.  The service was very prompt, 3 marshmallows were supplied with the large hot chocolate and the sandwiched Michael and Ben had looked pretty good.  I would recommend it again and it has plenty of space for us.  The wait staff were easy on the eye but lacked french accents! 

On the way down we had a bit of drizzle and the new SPR jacket was fantastic in keeping out the wind.  The last stretch was a struggle for me as my Trek is in desperate need of a service after a few weeks of commuting in the wet.  All the more reason to get a second bike, which has now been agreed to by her indoors. 

The KOM points are listed below and the table has been fully updated. 

KOM 1 – 1. Julian,  2. Brendan,  3. Michael,  4. Dean,  5. John

KOM 2 – 1. Julian,  2. Michael,  3. Matthew,  4. Dean,  5. John

KOM 3 – 1. Julian,  2. John,  3. Michael,  4. Dean,  5. Matthew

KOM 4 – 1. Dean,  2. Julian,  3. John,  4. Matthew,  5. Michael/Ben 

Footnote:  I can’t make Cyclosportif this weekend and will also be unavailable for the Sunday ride.  Will anyone be heading out to keep points??