Earlier hailstones had formed a solid clump around my windscreen wiper pivot. This was going to be an icy morning for cycling. I eventually arrived at Meadow Lea to find a convivial group consisting of Ivan, Clive, Ken, Trevor and Julie, Jim and Diane, Keith and Big Ray. Only Keith and Ray were dressed for cycling. Having enjoyed the socialising, the potential cyclists concluded that although it wasn’t very wise, we would give it a go. This wasn’t without precedent, as the same characters had ridden in pairs or a three before in ice and snow, with Steve Tan and sometimes George. Steve was under doctor’s orders on this occasion.
I had a plan, but we would be prepared to adjust dependent on
the state of the road surfaces in front of us. As we set off toward Morley
Bridge my face felt as cold as a fishmonger’s slab. The pleasant little road up
to Dunham Heath looked treacherous, so we took extra care to ride steadily and straight.
After passing Manley Mere we climbed up Siddall’s Hill to Mouldsworth, which helped
to warm us up properly. Drifting down past the Goshawk was a breeze, taking a
chance on the quiet lane out of Ashton past Ashtonhall Farm was a more precarious
undertaking. The weather was fine and the sun was out, but the high hedges on our
offside had ensured that the uneven surface remained frozen and confirmed the
extra risk of straying from well-used lanes. Through Kelsall we passed Steve
Haywood’s house by mistake, which had the unfortunate result of us having to pass
a thorn- spewing hedge cutting outfit to reach Willington Corner. No punctures
were incurred, and apart from the dark, rough stretch past the Willington Hall
Hotel, the riding and scenery in the sun was making us glad we had not driven
home from Meadow Lea. We still had to be careful the other side of Clotton, as
I recalled sliding horizontal down the road at one of the corners, having been deceived
by a thin film of mud that looked dry but was icy. That incident was over
thirty years ago and resulted in me riding back to Runcorn with a buckled wheel
and disconnected front brake. At Huxley
a decision had to be made whether to venture further south to, say, the
Cholmondeley Arms or to head across to Alison’s at Tattenhall. We certainly had
no intention of climbing up the north-facing road from “The Shady” to Beeston
Castle which resembled a ski slope last time we used it in freezing conditions.
It was agreed not to push our luck, so we chose a speeded-up extra circuit past
The Ice Cream Farm and Owler Hall before turning into Alison’s. Alison’s was friendly and spot-on as ever.
There were the now familiar road closures due to flooding west of Tattenhall,
so instead of contriving a detour the guys voted for a quickish direct return. For
a change, we chose the Shropshire Union Canal route to Waverton rather than the
Greenlooms loop. On our way through Guilden Sutton we gave a shout to Ivan sorting
out his window blinds, but I doubt that he clocked us. Ray had to get back to
the end of The Wirral, but Keith and I had time for coffee and cake at Meadow
Lea. It had been a very enjoyable thirty miles in relaxing company, and well
worth the risk, (as it turned out!)
DH
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