When the weather permits, our August Origami Ride is to the nearest thing to the seaside that we can manage from Meriden - Kingsbury Water Park! The weather was distinctly gloomy first thing, with something between a drizzle and a thick mist (damp, but no restriction on visibility), and I even put on my most waterproof cycling boots as a result. Conditions had only slightly improved when I reached Birmingham International by train, from whence Paul Evans and I rode to Meriden.
A group of 9 folder enthusiasts gathered in the Tea Rooms, although 4 of these were not riding with us on this occasion, and Tony Hadland and Dick Hanson sent apologies - both were ill. By the time we were due to leave on the ride, conditions had improved to the extent that it was dry, and after some discussion we decided to start fro Kingsbury, but with an option to shorten the ride if conditions got worse. With only five riders, for once Bike Fridays outnumbered all the other cycles put together, the odd ones out being Paul on his Brompton and Mike Roberts on an AM Moulton.
The ride to Kingsbury proved very pleasant, and the weather improved rapidly, to the extent that the sun came out and we all started feeling too hot. We lunched at Kingsbury, where 2 birdys unexpectedly joined us.
These were the feathered type of birdy, not the folding bikes!
After lunch we decided to take a ride around the Water Park itself, but despite studying the map carefully, we mad a couple of mistakes in the route, and it turned out that what we had taken for a proper path involved some riding over grass and quite rough ground. Back on the road for the return journey, it remained sunny and very warm all the way back to Meriden, though by the time Paul and I had ridden to Hampton in Arden station, it was clouding over again.
By the time I got back home I had covered 55Km, which means the main ride was between 35 and 40Km. All the bikes performed faultlessly during the main ride, but the Newt disgraced itself on the way back, with the chain coming off twice in Meriden itself, once on the way from Meriden to Hampton in Arden, and then once more riding home from Tipton station. As yet I haven't managed to find any explanation for this sudden bad behaviour.
Copyright (C)2002 Ferrets Anonymous
URL: http://www.foldsoc.co.uk/origami/200208.html
Last updated: 11 August 2002