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@Emma_S
Hi
I was never in the Paddington but my parents were very good friends with John Austin and still are, John brought a house in Spain near to my parents and lived there for half of the year for a while still going out on his bike. He is still as other people have said living in North Wales and still has a keen interest in trains and is also a qualified pilot. Although a little bit smaller he still looks very fit.
My sister and I went to Bangor one year with the Paddington, we were in bed every night by 7! It wasn't quite what we expected......
Max Reeve, Ben Graham, Chris Hariades, Richard Girdlestone, Andre Wagner, Stefan (someone) and Jan (someone) and Oliver (someone!) were all members of the club.
I was in the North Road Cycling Club which John was also a member of and we used to go on joint club events, one youth hostel weekend I remember was to Castle Hedingham when Max Reeve rode through a village pond thinking it was a ford!
I only raced on Paddington once, but stayed at John Austins one night after he gave Charlotte and I a lift home from a Leicester track meet, Char and I had to cycle home the next day to Hertford on fixed wheels with spare wheels on wheel carriers, and kit bags on our backs, being from Hertford we had absolutely no idea where we were going! John didn't give us any clues either!
Loads of happy memories of good times with the Paddington and John!
John once came on a hostelling holiday with my Family to Scotland, he and another cyclist shared the driving in his Volkswagon Camper Van and whilst going up a very steep hill he was in his sleeping bag catching some sleep and rolled on top of me, and was unable to move as his arms were in his sleeping bag! On the way home the other chap doing the driving fell asleep at the wheel and we drove across the central reservation until he woke up with the alarmed shouts from the back.......John was very good at swearing and the air was bright blue!!