A Thursday with wall to wall sunshine and no wind, what could be better for a CER ride? Following what seems like months of grey and dreary Thursdays a number of CER riders made the trip to Holt. There were sufficient riders to facilitate three groups. Neil threw his hat, metaphorically speaking into the rings with a nice lanes ride to Plassey. Little did we know Neil had not one but two routes up his sleeve.
So the intrepid bunch consisting of Big Roy, Steve T, Fiona, Elwyn, Alan, Neil T and Steve H set off. In addition Fiona & Elwyn had invited Stuart a M&G rider to join us, welcome Stuart. So bading our colleagues in the mod group good bye we set off down Castle Street out of Holt past Bellis’s garden centre. At this time our esteemed leader Neil announced he had navigation issues and needed a re boot. Was it Neil or his Garmin that needed the boot, possibly the former LOL LOL!
Armed with an alternative route we retraced our steps and briefly rejoined the mod group, who were leaving Holt for the first time today, not the second like ourselves. By now we were on our way on this windless day, through Crewe in Farndon on out into the countryside. The sun was out the roads were quiet and the suggested vote of no confidence with the leader was long forgotten.
We quickly zoomed into Shocklach and took the quiet roads out to Chorlton and then onto Threapwood. As we crossed the busy Whitchurch road many of us recognised we were on the reverse route we use from Hawarden to Bangor on Dee. A brief zoom down the busy road from Overton into Erbistock saw us take the sharp left over the Dee and parallel the river. This section of the ride probably accounted for fifty percent of the climbing of the whole ride. As we left Twining Hill, Fiona’s dulcet tones could be heard suggesting we had lost some riders. Apparently Stuart's derailleur hanger had broken and fortunately just outside a pub. So Stuart had retired for some lunch and Elwyn had headed directly for Plassey.
The lunch stop was excellent as normal and afforded an opportunity for a group photo. Talk over lunch was as per usual varied from wonder drugs to Phantom jet aircraft. Neil's route took us through Cross Lanes and then onto the outskirts of Wrexham Industrial Estate. Whilst as ride leader Neil had spent the day in the middle of the pack chatting, however at the industrial estate he chose to lead the group down to one roundabout and then back up the same way. I think he just wanted to witness the majesty of the athletes who were accompanying him today.
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| Photos by Steve Hu |
Not content with parading Neil then decided to take to the small pavement to avoid the busy road. However students of algebra and maths will remember the use of converging lines and the path certainly converged. When it was about nine inches wide with brambles tearing at our £200 cycling tops Steve T must have been thinking about Clyde in the Clint Eastwood film Every Which Way but Loose, and threw in a right turn, straight into the undergrowth! Other than surprise Steve T was uninjured and we carried on. A quick plunge into Marford raised the question of a coffee at Alf's, however the consensus was to carry on into Rossett where Elwyn and Fiona left us. There are two routes around Trevalyn and the peloton split. On joining Rossett Road it was clear Roy Philippo Ganna was using his time trial bike for its intended purpose. The feisty domestique Alan Pogacher O was quickly on his wheel and surfed Roys power all the way into Holt. The remaining peloton had in Phil Liggets words “burnt their matches” and dribbled into Holt.
The group assembled in the early afternoon sun for a closing coffee at Maggies before Neil caught a bus, sorry rode home to Tattenhall. Thanks for making it an enjoyable route Neil and enjoy Anglesey
See route map and/or gpx file download
Steve Hu
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