Ride report by Ian A
On yet another chilly morning with a northerly breeze keeping the lid on the temperature, five riders met at PC for the ride to Badersfield and the Javabean Cafe at Scottow Business Park (formerly the site of RAF Coltishall). Chris told us his legs were feeling the effects of last night’s Wheelers 25km Time Trial. This was a good thing as it deterred him from making his usual ‘sprint off the front’ during the ride which normally manages to scatter the peloton along the road!
A tailwind in the morning meant we made good progress and Gresham, Sustead and Hanworth were little more than a blur. Then it was across the busy-ish A140 at Thorpe Market and on to Trunch where we spotted signs for the upcoming Bank Holiday weekend beer festival. Well what thirsty cyclists wouldn’t be interested… Dreaming of cold beers (actually probably a nice warm coffee given the weather) we pedalled on to Knapton before swinging south and skirting North Walsham to arrive shortly afterwards at Worstead and onwards to Ashmanhaugh. Here we swung west to Coltishall before then heading north for the push to Badersfield (now into a headwind and a taste of what was to come on the return leg). Turning into Scottow Business Park (as quiet as ever) we arrived at the cafe with the RAF Jaguar jet parked up alongside.
The coffee is good here, and most of us opted for the very good value Big Baps with a choice of bacon, sausage, egg or hash browns. Or in Mark and Chris’s case, all four fillings… Andrew went off piste with a brie and bacon toastie (that’s ‘Blakeney Posh’ for you) but which left him room for cake. The cafe looked to be roasting coffee beans while we were there as there was some whirring coming from the machinery and lots of sacks of beans around, but after Ian enquired it turned out it was just the roaster ‘heating up’ (which takes a while apparently). The grinding is a bit noisier but the ‘stone removal thingy’ is the noisiest. (Note: There are no stones in coffee beans, just unwanted detritus that collects as part of the picking/sacking process we guess.) Anyway, you don’t want stones in your grinding machine. After lunch, there was a quick inspection of the Jaguar while Mark re-secured his saddle bag and made running repairs, as one of his straps had worn through. I believe he also adjusted his stowed cable lock as it had been interfering with his bottom on the way out. (Not sure if that’s a ‘mechanical’ or a ‘mecharsical’?)
After lunch the route went via Skeyton, Tuttington and Banningham where we crossed the now even busier A140 to Ingworth where we continued between the River Bure and Blickling Park.
At Itteringham Common we stopped to wave Andy off but he was having none of it! He was enjoying our company so much that he stayed with us through Itteringham and up to Little Barningham where he took the Matlaske Road to head back home to Corpusty. The remaining four riders continued on to Plumstead, Baconsthorpe and the Bodham Hill climb (notorious for causing an unnecessary sprint to the top!) Bizarrely, Andrew stopped and said he had to take a call shortly before the climb and that we should carry on, thus he missed out on the chance to take the day’s “Polka Dot Jersey”. Or not wanting to get involved? Who knows. In the event, there was no sprint so honours even. At the foot of New Road, Ian turned left for High Kelling leaving Mark and Chris to head back to PC.
A good day’s ride in chilly but dry conditions and no crashes. The oilseed rape flowers are mostly over, but it was nice to see the poppies coming out and several fields of linseed in full bloom. Andy has a ‘stag weekend’ in the Peak District and Chris is off on a three week Motorcycling Tour to Europe so we wish them well – not sure which activity is the most dangerous.
PC to PC was 55.5 miles
Average speed 15.4 mph
Riders: Andrew B, Andy S, Chris S, Ian A, Mark M
Upcoming Rides –
Saturday 24th May – Litcham Deli
Wednesday 28th May – Heydon
Routes for rides on the website under Dates and Destinations: https://nnwheelers.co.uk/club-runs/
Visit the Clubs Runs Gallery for larger and more photos: https://nnwheelers.co.uk/club-runs/club-runs-photo-gallery/
North Norfolk Wheelers 