2011-04-03 Sun - Cambridge ride. Fixed-wheel bicycle required

He also didn't have a lock ring! Total badass!

Neither did Winge, which I found out when I had a go on his bike....

Remember kids, play safe!

Sorry meant Winge actually.

The one about your beautiful arms??
Yup :-)

Hey team, Peter from Classic Lightweights is wondering who the blonde lady was who was asking him about a friend's Hetchins Super Special in Cambridge. If this is you, you can contact Peter on peter.underwood(at)tesco.net.

I am surprisingly un-achy this morning. Other than sore hands, I'd be up for doing the ride all over again. I need to conquer my fear of bombing down hills and go less slowly next time...

Probably Kate (Playing the percentages).

Yes it was me... What r the odds? I'd say 30% as I reckon this is how many Kates there were (I think 5 if we count katrina).

Lol. thought it was you Kate.

thanks everybody i had a really good time. can t wait the next ride!

I'd like to echo all the above thanks to Skully and Skive for organising the ride and to everyone for keeping it all together. A top day out, and considering how I felt at the end of the ride I feel surprisingly fine today.

Thanks also to Chainbraker and Jim for the cake. It went down a treat with the chocolatey stout from the Devonshire Arms.

I had a blast! Great weather, great company, great organising and a pleasingly high Kate-quotient. Let's do it all again soon!

Alex here. Thanks for your comments everyone! Makes me realise how little I know about bikes and how naive I am about cycling in general. What the hell is a lock ring and do I need one?

@Shoot You're right I think I will be looking out for a new bike... Having seen what's on offer on Sunday maybe a nice titanium one :) Bit £££ though.

In keeping with the university town theme we should maybe give Oxford a go - sounds like it might be a bit nicer than Southend. I've cycled along part of the route before. Taking the B roads to Abingdon (v. close) from Great Missenden and it was very flat maybe even flatter than Cambridge was.

If anyone has doubts about coming on a forum ride I would say I can't recommend it highly enough. Expect to see me on many future rides.

by coincidence I was checking out the sustrans Thames Valley route to Oxford this morning (not in person), it's a wiggly century ride. could be a nice summer ride through middle england...

I was thinking just earlier that London-Oxford looked rideable. I like the idea of getting some more practise on longer rides! A century though, gosh, that sounds epic.

Can't we just go to Croydon College instead?

for those who are asking, london to cambridge/oxford/southend/brighton/camber sands are all part of forum long ride history, and in all likelihood will be ridden again this year.

that was a brilliant ride. my legs were already feeling sore on the way to the meet up and i succeeded in destroying them completely throughout the day.

had fun at the front with skive - cheers for leading us all. he is as bad as me at keeping the speed down and we kept getting told off by skully for riding too fast and splitting the group. we both had 2 guinnesses at the pub stop to try and slow ourselves down. it didn't work. but fun trying. also good to see hillbilly up the front leading us astray...

there was one memorable flat out 5 mile section not far from cambridge with dimi3 on the front, followed by pinky and myself (and others behind)... mate, you are a machine - i was struggling to stay on pinky's wheel towards the end, spinning like crazy.

thanks to katrina for her lovely cookies :-) mmm... it is making my mouth water just thinking about them... or is that just my mouth still strugglinh to return to normal moisture levels after eating one?? although to be fair, i did try the peanut ones later and they were niiice.

nice to meet some new people and great to see some old school forum faces out there.

smoking spliffs and drinking guinnesses on the grass at mill pond at the end was brilliant.

the forever alone guy punting on his own was funny. everyone else was there with friends, partners and family and there he was. alone. forever.

also "four to a door" waiting for the packed train was funny too :-) that was a phrase (i think kate fluff) came up with as a way of fending off other hopeful cyclists off from our carriage. blackfoot ignored the rules of course. thank's for letting me sit down, kate. i was dead on my feet. i then fell asleep on a little chinese woman's shoulder... she was quite comfy.

on the ride back from kings cross i was getting dropped by everyone. i had nothing left in my legs. a curry and snooze at kat's helped a bit and i could ride home. but still walked up gipsy hill. not ashamed.

big up skully for starting this thing.

let's do a brighton ride next! has to be my favourite...

let's do a brighton ride next! has to be my favourite...

i always love a good brighton run.
i'll get on with some dates.

any ideas?
7 or 8th May
4 or 5th June

that's all the space i have in my calender for the next 4 months.
if a couple of people state a preference for a date i'll get this rolling.

he is as bad as me at keeping the speed down and we kept getting told off by skully for riding too fast and splitting the group. we both had 2 guinnesses at the pub stop to try and slow ourselves down. it didn't work. but fun trying. also good to see hillbilly up the front leading us astray...

this.

i always love a good brighton run.
i'll get on with some dates.

any ideas?
7 or 8th May
4 or 5th June

that's all the space i have in my calender for the next 4 months.
if a couple of people state a preference for a date i'll get this rolling.

7th may is GSIAD V - 8th could work... with a hangover!

can't do anything in june.

lets go for 8th may I reckon.

June for me please.

brighton ride UP! more fixie-skidding action for ya!
https://www.lfgss.com/thread62795.html

june is good for me too.

after a little deliberation it is going to be may 8th.

darn! we will be riding from berlin to london at that time

after a little deliberation it is going to be may 8th.

could be very, very dodgy :)