New Year's Day ride

(l to r)Yasmin, Diane, Sabrina and Bernard at Roehampton gate café, Richmond
Park on New Year's Day 2019.

Three of our Saturday afternoon regulars, Yasmin, Diane and me,  met at Spring Tavern in Ewell at 9.30 this morning for our first ride of the year.  We headed through Stoneleigh and Worcester Park to Motspur Park, where we met Sabrina and Bernard, friends of Diane, out on their first ride with our group.  What a great start to the year!

We headed through Raynes Park and up to Wimbledon Common, making a brief detour to say happy new year to the lovebirds and cockatiels in Cannizaro Park's aviary.  The common was beautiful in the gentle sunlight this morning and we enjoyed the mild weather and our easy route past the windmill and down to Roehampton, following the cycle paths all the way.  Downhill to Richmond Park is always fun and we arrived at the café more than ready for our coffee and snacks. 

It was lovely to meet up with other members of our CTC; there were two tables of mostly Midweek Wayfarers already there and more friends arrived while we enjoyed our break.



A nice gathering and good turnout for our first event of the year...some 25 in all over two hours was reported by Tony on the Midweek Wayfarers blog.

Our little group headed home across Richmond Park via Ham Gate, Teddington Lock bridge and Bushy Park.  Here Sabrina and Bernard peeled off for Kingston, while the original three headed over Hampton  Court bridge, through the Dittons, Hook and Chessington and via the Bonesgate and Hogsmill greenway back to Ewell.

Diane clocked 24 miles for us at Ewell Court Park, a respectable morning ride for we three to start the year.