Nonsuch 1-o-clockers to Garson's Farm 28 March

Saturday was a bright morning but there was a chilly and brisk Nor'Westerly.  The forecast threatended intermittent showers.  Twenty four hours earlier the rides list had carried a "tbd" but the new rides list was out before I left home and suggested Hampton Court or Bushy Park.  That was where we went last week so I had a look down the programme and, seeing that Garson's Farm was not due until May and I hadn't been there since before Christmas I opted for that.  Posh garden centre chains packed with every kind of good except what you need in the garden are not my favourite venues but the rides there and back are enjoyable and that is what I needed.

Selling it to the others was not difficult especially as most of the healthy number who turned up at the Mansion wanted to go on a longer, faster ride.  So off I set with just Ken, Nigel and Karen in tow; two experienced riders plus an electric bike, so we had the advantage of not having to hang around too much.  

Ken was fretting about his battery usage but it seems to me that battery indicators on a bike are about as accurate as fuel indicators on a car, so he had ample mileage in the tank.  But he has discovered the accelerator on his machine, so he was right behind me as we made our way at Beginners lickety-spit pace and got to the garden centre in about an hour and a quarter, despite that headwind.

There were only four of us, so we found a table indoors where it was a bit too warm for those who had to go out again and brave the elements.  When we did emerge there were, as forecast, some evil looking clouds on the horizon but the choice was to get on with it or stay there for the night so off we legged it up Lammas Lane and down le Col de Sandown, pausing only for a quick photo outside the school where Ken used to teach music.

Good memories for Ken

The indigo clouds were tailing us but we fooled them with a few little shimmies round the back paths of Thames Ditton.  And that would have been that but for the tunnel on South Lane where it was flooded, and upon emerging on the southern side we had a perplexing slow moving collision in which poor Karen was all but crushed by the hippopotamus which settled as if in slow motion on top of her.  A passing zookeeper kindly parked her car and helped us lift the great beast, which had to be sat down on a wall but insisted it could carry on.

Karen got home safely but was not, it turned out, unbruised and felt a bit unsteady after half a dozen gin and tonics.  I escorted the hippopatamus back to its enclosure.

So, a splendid ride but our thoughts were somewhat concentrated on the lessons to be learned from its ending.  After all, passengers on board the Titanic enjoyed three days of wonderful luxury cruising before their mishap, but everybody forgets that bit.

Nonsuch 2-o-clockers to the Pheasantry, 28 March

Sue B writes

Sue shows true leadership in Bushy Park

Today was a cold bright day for my first official ride leading.  There was just myself, Michael T and Colin L. We went to Bushy Park via South Lane and through the slightly flooded underpass under the A3! It was being cleared on the way back, but still flooded!

We went through Kingston Town centre into the 1^st entrance to Bushy Park. I introduced them to the family of 12 Egyptian Goslings in there! We then went to the Pheasantry for coffee. Our return trip was via the River Thames towpath which we had to ourselves for most of the time and Kingston  Don’t know where everyone was!

A very pleasant afternoon even if there was a biting wind at times! Managed to get them safely back to Green Lane in Worcester Park, where we then all parted company.

Not a warm day at the Pheasantry

Last 1pm ride is this Saturday March 28th

From Saturday April 4th all the beginners rides will be at 2pm from Nonsuch and Beddington Parks.

ALL DAY SATURDAY RIDE: 11 APRIL 2026

 Hi fellow cyclists

On 11th April 2026 there is an all day Saturday ride which I will be leading and hope you enjoy.  We will leave from our usual Saturday starting point next to the cafe in Nonsuch Park at 11 am.  We will then cycle to The Old Moat (where we will briefly stop to allow me to load the rest of the route onto my garmin) and head on to lunch at The Plough Inn in Leigh.  We then head on to Leatherhead for our finish and coffee/tea at a place to be agreed by us all once we get there.  Having recci'd the ride it is a very pleasant country ride in the Surrey Hills and we will go at a gentle pace ensuring no one is left far behind and we all have a great Spring bike ride.

This is the link to the gpx route from Nonsuch to the Old Moat:

 https://ridewithgps.com/routes/54395306?privacy_code=IUHeNhEwPgcoHIa03Bdnh2dKI1DjdRnu

And this is the link to the gpx route from the Old Moat to Leatherhead via Leigh, ie the rest of the ride:

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/53904069

If anyone has any queries or problem with the route or its downloading you can whatsap or telephone me on: 

07453912049

Or e-mail me on

de_prado@hotmail.co.uk

Have a great weekend

Bernard P

URGENT - new Hon Sec required

 

From Sue F

Following on from my blog post last month, we have not yet had any applicants to take up the role of Hon Secretary which will become vacant when Dave F steps down after the AGM next month. This is an extremely worrying situation as the Hon Sec role is one of the official roles required by Cycling UK and without a secretary we cannot function as a club. I quite understand that most of us, despite being largely retired, have lots of other commitments so with that in mind I have asked CUK if the role could be shared which they have agreed to. If this puts a different complexion on your thoughts about applying, please email me ASAP and remember, ‘a job shared is a job halved’, as they say!

Dave has kindly agreed to handover / assist / mentor his successor for their first full year cycle of duties so there will be plenty of support available.

A full description of the role can be found here

Secretary's toolkit | Cycling UK

With best wishes

Sue F

sue.foster39@gmail.com

California Here We Come; Beddington 1-o-clockers and Nonsuch 2-o-clockers to Belmont 21 March

By Roger 

It was a fine spring day to be riding along the Wandle en route to the AGM at The California pub at Belmont.

Sue, Colin, Mick, Anna and Roger were joined at the mansion by Paul, Roland, Ken and Sharon who had met as usual on the third Saturday of the month at Beddington at 1pm.

We set off heading for Carshalton High Street and Spilt Milk.  Having ridden the route the day before and aided by Beeline we soon threaded our way through Sutton and Rosehill Park and via Robertsbridge Road onto the Wandle trail.

It was an easy relaxing ride, alongside the river; even the flies took the day off, as we made it along the trail all the way to Carshalton Park and the prospect of coffee and cake at Spilt Milk.

Sue decided to make her own way on from Carshalton and despite us telling them that the best was yet to come, the coffee and cake got the better of Colin and Mick, so it was a somewhat depleted group who headed uphill all the way to Belmont, weaving our way and climbing steadily until Roland left us at Langley Park road and so missed out on the long fast drift down Chiltern Road and eventually the ample bike parking at The California.

An interesting ride to a venue that made us very welcome, along a sometimes hilly route of about fourteen miles, which was made easier by having ridden it previously and recorded it on Beeline.

50% of the requirements met; Nonsuch Park to Molesey, 14 March

It is Spring; is it too much to ask for a dry day and seasonal temperatures?

On Saturday at least we got the dry day.  Indeed, had you been indoors looking through the window, or in a sheltered spot in the park, or anywhere except on the bike, it might have appeared the perfect day for cycling.  But there was this Northwesterly wind and I got only a short distance from home before turning back and putting on an extra layer and there were downhill moments when I wished I had brought a newspaper to stuff down my front!

But rain is the worse enemy and we certainly had none of that.  Fourteen turned up at Nonsuch Mansion and although the rota named Bushy Park or Hampton Court as the day's destination, Steve had led the faster riders to Bushy Park the previous week, so he decided this week to go out to Walton on Thames.

I was not sure our lot would make it back from Walton in daylight, so I offered a ride to Moseley and had seven takers.  Not only no rain, but no punctures either.  And only one of us had an engagement that evening and she only had to get back to Worcester Park, so we were under no pressure and enjoyed a ride along the usual route through Tolworth and Long Ditton to Eight on the River, which was warm and comfy for our tea and coffee.

Witnesses to a high speed rowing accident at Moseley. 

Back through Weston Green and Surbiton, and a splendid time was had by all, except those affected by the cold.  Good company as always, a lovely day out, and a decent 45Km ride.

Rubber Hole; Nonsuch 1-o-clockers' coffee bar crawl

Having for the first time this year achieved a decent weekly mileage before the weekend, I was looking forward a pleasant Saturday spin.  The rides list said Richmond Park, and why not?  A good 45-50 Km round trip with a few inclines to keep us warm on a cold day and perhaps a new way round the park.  Left at Ladderstyle, down the hill, right at the corner up to the track to the Pen Ponds kiosk then past the Ballet School and down the hill for tea at Roehampton Gate.  Back home through Robin Hood Gate.

There were nine of us at Nonsuch and they who had not been sidelined did Richmond Park last week, so Steve led a group to Bushy Park.  That left Anna, Roger, Maggie and me to go to Richmond Park.  Ideal, with two electric bikes we could establish a good pace to combat the cold.  Richmond Park, here we come.

Somewhere on Dewsbury Gardens I heard the rhythmic hissing noise and wondered why, every revolution of my wheel, there was a ticklish draught on my leg.  Doh!  I made the announcement and stopped, but then the hissing stopped and the tyre was still very rideable.  My companions were interested in warmth, so we decided to detour to Hookey Street Cafe at New Malden where they could get their warmth and have a coffee and I could mend my puncture.  Maggie brought me a coffee.  My tyre had in it two holes each large enough to accommodate a thick nail but we found nothing inside the tyre.

The puncture repair could not have gone better; ten minutes at most and the tyre went on without too much hand pain and in I went to announce that we were rejoining the route and resuming our ride as planned.  We had just gone under the A3 and were still on South Lane when the steering became difficult  and I looked down to see my new inner tube flat as a Beddington Park Beginners ride.

This time it was Woodies, where you can sit inside in the warm with your coffee and watch your leader through the window as he repairs his puncture.  As before, Roger stayed with me at least until the analysis stage.  There was no inner tube puncture and it seemed to be a faulty valve.  My easy repair luck had run out and the tyre resisted being removed.  My electric pump was running out of juice and Anna's did not seem to pump air in properly (set for a schroeder valve!) and boy, did the tyre resist being put back on.  

When I had done I just decided that someone up there was determined to stop me getting my ride, and I knew from committee meetings that I was within ten yards of a pint of Youngs Ordinary.  So I had a beer and we went home to Wallington Cycles, where I left the bike and asked them to fit a new tyre for Monday.

Lesson.  Electric pumps are great but they only do two inflations, so in future I will always carry a hand pump for back-up.  

Royal scandal in Ashtead; Nonsuch 1-o-clockers 28 February

Not for the first time this month some of us had an evening engagement, so we offered a shorter ride alternative, to Ashtead.  Roger and Anna took up our offer and the four of us enjoyed a short breakaway ride on a dry but cold Saturday afternoon.

Across the muddy pot-holed The Avenue in Nonsuch Park, up the pothole-strewn cycle track of Woodcote Green Road behind Epsom Hospital and along Rookery Hill, whose broken, uneven concrete would not be out of place in the remote regions of Nepal, and which ends with a truly spectacular pothole by the gates on to Dene Road.

Coffee at Handley's Cafe and a trip back through Ashtead and Epsom Commons, stopping only to take a picture of the Edward VIII postbox on Overdale.

Roger, Maggie & Paul embarrass the Royal Family by pointing to the symbol of a naughty king.

Anna took the picture.

A pleasant, if shortish ride.  Thanks for the company.

Change of venue for the Beginners AGM on 21 March

The Beginners AGM on 21 March 4.30 - 6.00 will be held in The California, 267 Brighton Road, Belmont SM2 5SU. They are generously allocating a room for us and hope we will take advantage of their food and drink menu. There will be parking for bicycles at the front. The afternoon rides will aim to finish at The California.

Conspiracy! Beddington one-o-clockers to Merton Abbey Mills, 21 February

There was a conspiracy afoot on Saturday.  The Famous Five were going to see the Irish Guards Band in Epsom that night so the plan was to go on a fairly short ride so that everyone could safely get home and turn around for a night out on the tiles.  But we had a pleasant surprise in store, for we had a newcomer, Roland.  He had ridden from Nonsuch last week and wanted to try out Beddington this.

The general consensus was to go for a trip to Merton Abbey Mills, which is not our shortest ride at all, but from which we knew we could get home in time.

And so that is where we went.  A day of pleasant weather after another wet week and we had a lovely ride, even if the leader (ho had planned to go to Elmers End) made a couple of brief mistakes en route.

Perhaps becsause of the lack of snow or a named storm, M.E.D was unusually busy but it was nice enough (just) for us to sit outside, once we had mopped up the standing water from the tables and benches.

Four conspirators and Roland at M.E.D.  Maggie took the picture.

The Wandle was in full flood and apart from a particularly unpleasant glass trap on the riverside in Poulter Park we had an uneventful trip.

A pleasant afternoon for everyone and Roland seemed to enjoy his ride as much as we enjoyed his company.  Come again, Roland!

And, yes, we all made the concert in good time.

Social Media and Communications Policy

 

From Sue F

We now have a club Social Media and Communications policy approved by the Committee. More and more of our communication both for practical ride information and other cycling related issues are conveyed via social media and email. This Policy is intended to provide guidance to help understand acceptable standards of use by members and to assist everyone in understanding what the potential risks are in using social media and how these can be avoided and managed.

You can access the policy via the link above or from the Information Hub on our website.

There went the sun; Nonsuch one-o-clockers to Long Ditton on Valentine's Day

There was romance in the air and overpriced restaurants overbooked when Saturday dawned with - and you'll never believe it - sunshine in the air.

My plot was essentially a selfish one.  First time on a bike since caressing the tarmac two and a half weeks ago, see if the old joints still worked, make sure I hadn't forgotten how to ride, turn up at Nonsuch and if necessary just go home on the train.  

But it went well.  Who doesn't get the odd twinge?  The patisserie in Cheam was packed but we still got a table, Tim turned up for club business and to save me a ride, Anna and Roger were there, Nigel rolled up as we were leaving, and we all went to the rendezvous at the Mansion.

A veritable throng at Nonsuch Mansion

There a vertiable throng was waiting and Steve was there to lead a ride down south to Brockham.  I assumed, rightly, that most would want to go on his proper ride while Maggie and I decided that a modest paced pedal to Long Ditton would be as far as was sensible for me.  But Ken, A&R, Sue and Nigel (a fellow casualty, nursing a bandaged foot) slotted in behind Maggie and me, and off we went over well worn tyre tracks through the new safer route around Worcester Park Station, under the A3 tunnel at Tolworth and on to sunny Ditton.

Nice Buns

I didn't think I'd qualify and get past the quality control at the Nice Buns cafe, but there was no age or shape discrimination and they let us all in; they even had red paper roses on the table for us.  So we had a leisurely coffee and made our way back through Surbiton to Worcester Park and thence went our various ways home.

Good company, a lovely day and a problem-free ride.  But next morning the sun was just a wierd memory.  Had it been real or was I dreaming?  Is there really a dazzling orange-yellow fireball in the sky to be seen above the greyness, or is it just fake news?

Invitation to our 2026 Annual Lunch

CTC South West London Annual Lunch and Prizegiving

4th March 2026 at 12:30 for lunch at 1 p.m.

We are delighted to tell you that Jennie has booked the Ristorante Sorrento (379 Ewell Road, Tolworth, KT6 7DE) for our annual lunch.

This has proved to be a most popular venue for the occasion since our first visit in 2018 and we are pleased to be able to hold the event there again.

The set price for our three-course lunch will be £25.25. This includes a 10% service charge, but does not include any drinks, coffee or tea. This is our menu:

Click on menu to enlarge

Please book by placing your order, and pay in advance by Sunday 15th February.

We expect the occasion will be attended by over 60 members, as it has been in recent years.

Please send an email message to Tim Court with your order for (i) a starter and (ii) a main meal. The waiters will take your orders for dessert after the main course on the day.

The preferred method of payment (£25.25) is a direct transfer via your online banking facility, but we can also accept cash or a cheque. For online payment please ask Tim C for our bank details if you don’t already have them. For a cash or cheque payment please check with Tim or your section representative. For anyone who has yet to pay their 2026 club subscription please consider adding your £3 when you pay for your lunch.

Any food allergies, dietary disorders or Vegan requirements must be notified to Tim when you advise your order so that these details can be noted and passed to the restaurant staff.

All ride leaders please note that your teams should be delivered to the restaurant by 12.30 p.m. so that everyone will have time to buy drinks, chat, and browse the photography exhibition, and settle down ready to confirm orders with the waiting staff.

Thank you

Tim C

The Famous Four discover the NorthWest Passage; Beddington Saturday riders 17 January

It has been freezing or raining for weeks except this week for the club rides on Wednesday and Saturday.  Yet on a coldish but sunny day folk cried off.

Thus there was only the core of Beddington Park riders, the Famous Four, at the Pavilion Cafe but this meant we could go on a ride entirely of our own choosing, and with a full evening diary we decided that good old Elmers End was the place for us; the other option being Merton Abbey Mills, but that would involve slipping and sliding on the saturated banks of the mighty River Wandle.

So we stuck to the tarmac to exit Beddington Park.  The traffic seemed inordinately heavy around Purley Way but otherwise the trip through central Croydon, past the Croydon Stadium and through South Norwood Country Park was fine.  Elmers End, though, was as clogged with traffic as we have ever seen it; no matter, we got to Branching Out, where for the price of a chat with Maggie a lovely fellow vacated his table so we could sit together indoors.

The route home was familiar through Shirley Oaks and we nearly but not quite forgot to take a photo.

On Gladeside, between Elmers End and Shirley Oaks 

It was heading west out of Croydon that it got a bit interesting.  There was an horrendous traffic jam on Waddon Road with several buses in front of us on a busy but narrow road and as there were only four of us we elected to go exploring.  So we took the path by the tramway North from Waddon Park and crossed the Purley Way at the Sainsbury's lights, hoping to find a way through the industrial estate to the Asda car park and Beddington Lane.  We had nearly given up when Maggie saw a path behind the fence and our leader remembered passing the entrance, so we retraced our steps and ventured on this path, which turned and twisted between the car parks and warehouses and spewed us out in Beddington Village.  Thus we had discovered a hitherto unexplored way through territory we thought we knew like the back of our handlebars.  

We were so pleased with ourselves; why go to Majorca or Japan for cycling adventures when such excitement is awaiting discovery on your own doorstep?  We're going to be spending our Summer holiday meandering through the Beddington Park Industrial Estate to seek out any other unknown routes. 

Invitation to take part in the 2025 Photo Competition

During the year of excellent rides in  2025 I know that several of you have taken excellent photos. Therefore please feel warmly invited to take part in the 2025 Photo Competition via this link to the invitation which I have posted on the Wayfarers blog.

The invitation includes instructions on how to submit photos via my Dropbox. 

Yours in anticipation

Tim C

Your 2025 mileage scores please

This is a request to submit your mileage totals for the last twelve months (1st Jan. 2025 to 31st Dec. 2025) for consideration towards the annual awards for the greatest distances cycled. Your scores will be entered into the Big Spreadsheet where, since the dawn of the 21st century, the precious records of your accomplishments in the club have been maturing.

There are two shiny trophies, one for the woman who has cycled more miles than any other woman and one for the man with the highest mileage amongst the men.

And we have a special award, the Mark Roy Trophy, for the person recording the largest increase in mileage over the previous year. So anyone who has posted their mileage for both 2025 and 2024 is eligible. 

To summarise the rules, your miles must have been clocked up whilst riding your bicycle, tricycle, tandem or eBike on or off road. Mileages achieved on turbo trainers, Watt bikes or any other static contraption don't count. We know that this is something of a blow to members who have been riding through virtual alpine landscapes with Zwift or Rouvy but we only consider miles actually, rather than virtually, travelled.

For the competition, contenders for the prizes must be regular riders in the club though we are happy to collect mileage data for everyone who is a paid up member of CTC South West London. And we wish to continue recording mileages for our several members who ride eBikes.

If you are curious at all about how many miles you ride in the course of a year please start recording your distances for 2026 in a diary or spreadsheet.

Just one word of warning; several riders who use a GPS enabled device such as a Garmin, or smartphones running apps like Strava or RideWithGPS have experienced rides when their devices stop communicating with the satellites, sometimes for quite a while, and this can lead to totally unreliable data. So please verify the accuracy of your data. The evidence of this known problem is a long straight bee-line between two points on your ride where you know the road really had many twists and turns.

Fixie Dave's Garmin nodded off for a while with this result!

In my opinion this is not a problem which is specific to Strava or other phone app but is to do with the phone and its own software, memory resources perhaps. This erroneous data can also accumulate if you have hopped on a train with your bike but forgotten to stop recording 😏. Fancy doing that!

Please write to me with your total mileage:

Tim Court (Associate Bean Counter*)

We hope to be able to present the prizes in our traditional awards ceremony at the Annual Lunch, this year on Wednesday 4th March.

A very Happy New Year to you all and if you haven't been collecting your mileage scores please start now, from January 1st, 2026.

The Bean Counters need your numbers!

~ Tim C

*Nota Bene: The Bean Counting committee comprises Mick Arber and myself. Mick's primary source of fun is collecting the weekly attendance scores for Wayfarers and crunching the figures for all groups to identify the winners of the attendance trophies.