Facebook told me that I led a ride to Seale on the late May Bank Holiday last year. I realised I had chosen the same destination for the ride this year. Repeat in 2017 and there could be a new tradition in the making.
Ten of us set off from the Drome. We collected Andrew Murray in Newdigate and then lost Peter Toothill and Graham Haysom who turned back hen we were close to Cranleigh. Fiona and Nick Brookes with daughter, Bethany, came past us in Dunsfold at a speed considerably in excess of the our 'steady' ride.
Just past Dunsfold, the route became lumpy, a series of hills with gradients between 8 and 12% and stayed that way for the next 50 miles. However, there was a welcome tea break in between.
There are new people at the Craft Centre Tea Room in Seale. The choice of food is still limited but sufficient, complemented by an excellent array of home cooked cakes, but the service is now quick and efficient.
The way home had the novelty of a tree across the road. As none of us carry a spare chain saw and my Swiss Army knife was not up to the job, we climbed past the tree leaving frustrated car drivers behind us.
Over the last 20 miles, the old man's legs began to tire but in the traditoin of the Steady club ride, the faster riders waited to allow the group to come together again.
The Seale route is very attractive, more so with some sun and without the cold north wind; the company was great. I finished a tired but happy member of the best cycling club in the South East.
Mike Ormerod