Hastings meets Dordrecht off and on the road

Hastings Urban Bikes hosted a group of 16 from DTC de Mol for the Bank Holiday weekend. Dordrecht Touring Club have a membership of some 260, subs 90 euros a year to include some club kit. From March their main ride is either Saturday or Sunday, some 120km averaging some 25 km/hour (70 miles at 15mph). There is a DRC de Mol too, Dordrecht Racing club. The origins of the sister clubs goes back to to the 1930s when there was a bike manufacturer in the town: Mol.

HUB members were hosting the visitors who arrived on Friday with a large van packed with bikes. The welcome function was a great evening do in the back room of the Stag with added entertainment from the folk music in the main bar later on.

I joined HUB and DTC de Mol for a ride Saturday morning. I am a great believer in the saying rain before 7 fine before 11. At the 10am meeting on the Old Town Stade there was still some light rain that just about warranted rain tops. The Dutch bikes were not what traditionalists would expect of a British touring club! Several full carbon Eddy Merckx, a full carbon Pinarello, all clip less pedals, close ratio blocks (their club runs involve very little in the way of climbs!) and no mudguards although about half had crud catchers fitted to their seat posts. I felt a little under equipped on my Giant with touring wheels and wide ratio block with three tooth jumps!

It always good to go on a ride lead by someone different: Bernie and Sheena from HUB. The zig zag route was Bexhill, Cooden, Hooe, Wartling, Boreham Street, Tilley Lane and lunch at the White Horse Bodle Street Green. A pub I have always wanted to visit these last 28 years. We had a good lunch and I enjoyed a local ale that I had not come across before. DTC were all drinking coca cola, again something not expected of most British traditional tourists! I will not leave it 28 years before my second visit .....

After lunch we cut across to Gingers Green, then down Cricketing Lane to cross the Marsh to Rickney and on to Normans Bay. DTC were well used to riding in large groups, their regular runs are often 80 strong, and very organised for waving cars past when safe on country lanes. Many of them have ridden the routes of the Benelux Classics and had done many of the Alpine climbs such as Ventoux, the Telegraph etc.

In the evening HUB and DTC plus me and some 300 or 400 others were in St Mary in Castle for a ceilidh. The bar had ales from the Filo so all was set for a great evening of dancing, but the floor pretty packed so I left that to others!

Hopefully I will get a photo to add to the posting to show DTC all turned out in their club kit. Very smart with all their sponsors names prominent, I really liked their more plain red rain jackets.

HUB do a great job campaigning for cycling in Hastings and environs. Join them for just £6 a year! We were involved many years ago in providing views on the proposed prom cycle path and I first heard of the Greenway concept some 15 years ago in Transport Planning meetings. But HUB now have the people to get really involved so voice your support for the Greenway to back them up.

Next Saturday 12 May HUB plus Bexhill Wheelers etc are going for the "kissing bikes" record on the grand opening of the Hastings - Bexhill cycle path. More info to follow so you, friends and family can turn out and be part of a world record attempt! the HUB web site might have info on it, check their site out.

Chris Parker