Part Deux : Pre BBR and BBR-"Do ya think I'm sexy?

' Did you know I'm doing the Ride London next week?',  said Peter B

'Oh, you were lucky then? ', I said

'No,  I got one of the club places from the' 'Colonel'

' How did you wangle that then? '

'I was 'nice' to him! '

' Well I'm always nice to him and I didn't get one! ', I protested.

' Well maybe you wasn't 'nice' enough', he said.

I decided that I wouldn't delve any deeper and just let the matter drop.

It was just the two of us for the Pre BBR and it gave us the opportunity to have a' catch up. Patrick had texted me last night to say he couldn't make it because he had three punctures in the torrential rain of last night and needed to check his tyres. On the way back I asked Peter if I could just 'sit on his wheel' as I wanted to save energy for the BBR, and although he was quite obliging he did point out that his ride home was no cinch.

We were the first back to De Paolos, followed shortly afterwards by Chris, on his mountain bike, and Pippa. Then Neil arrived, Tom F, Ian Fabian, Mal C, Steve and his friend Steve Sherwood, Ivan,  Mal D - quite a turnout. We sat in the bright morning sunshine and savoured our coffees.

Neil Shows Off His manly Chest!

We got onto the subject of cycling kit, and Peter B asked Neil if he found his Gabba top a bit warm. Neil said he was pleased with his. They then started to get all 'girly' and he wanted to know what size Neil's top was; he said  that he is also a  fan of Castelli. As I was explaining to Peter that despite the 'rave reviews'  I had resisted the urge to join the Castelli club on the grounds of their omnipresence ( I did admire and  consider buying the skinsuit that Matt Schubert wears, but: '58 year old man in skintight lycra,  mmm?') I looked across at Neil and was shocked to see that he had stripped to the waist! I had mentioned in a previous blog that arm warmers had a strong 'S and M'  look, and this was confirmed by the sight of Neil - he just  needed a leather cap and spiked necklace to compliment the look. He claimed he was trying to find the size, but I wasn't convinced.

Fully refreshed and recovered we set off in two groups : Chris had said that we shouldn't wait for him and Pippa and that we would meet them at Chilley Farm.

All Smiles but A few Minutes later two Riders were Down!

The ride was quite uneventful until we passed windmill hill . I was at the front of the group chasing Neil, Ivan and Mal when a car pulled in front of, braked hard and indicated 'right'! I slammed my brakes on so hard that as I did so it seemed to suck the air out of me and I didn't managed to yell out a warning.  Ian crashed into me and I looked around to see him lying on the road with other riders in various stages of forced and voluntary dismounting.  Ian was the main casualty with blood running down his shin. Steve's friend, Steve Sherwood
took control of the situation and said:

Steve S Comes To the Rescue!

'There's a post office over there, I'll see if they've got anything that might help '

He disappeared for a few moments and returned waving a book of second class postage stamps and said :

' All they had was this, I thought we could use them as little sticking plasters !  '

(only joking) He had a couple of rolls of kitchen towels and set about cleaning up Ian's
leg. It wasn't long before a ' good samaritan' in a van stopped and offered us his first aid box which enabled Steve S to do a proper job. 'Good samaritans' are like buses, you wait ages for one to turn up and then two turn up together. A very nice lady in a car pulled alongside and also offered help, and then the lady from the PO arrived with a bottle of surgical spirit:

'Is this any help? ', she said .

By this time, Ian's leg was wrapped up quite nicely, so we thanked her but declined her offering.

Shaken and bruised we continued onto Chilley Farm. Mal D and Ivan had been waiting patiently at the junction just past the garden centre.

Chainring gash For Ian

Swollen Knee For Malc C

We were quite spread out on the way there, and when I arrived I saw Neil sipping his coffee;  he seemed a little sheepish having just found out what had happened. Of course I was quite keen to 'milk' the situation :

'As long as your OK, that's the main thing!'

'Oh, yes, I'm fine  thank you for asking ', he replied.

All Together At Chilley Harm  And More Or Less In One Piece!

I do love the social side of the BBR, the banter and convivial atmosphere makes a great end to the ride.

I seized the opportunity to have a
chat with Ivan before Setting off home as I haven't seen him since the French trip. He was in the full throes of explaining the benefits,  or otherwise, of full suspension over hardtail  when he suddenly 'let rip' with a real 'corker'.

'Oh, pardon me, too much red wine last night! '

I had seen him ' perform' in France so I knew he could be quite 'gaseous' and so I wasn't too shocked, just grateful that I wasn't 'downwind' of him.

I collected two pieces of carrot and orange cake to take back for Vicki and headed off with the others for the final leg home. Another great BBR!

The Post BBR 'Standard Rush' For Ivan Et Al

Peter Buss