9am Medium Clubrun - Aug 8 2010

Either everyone is on holiday, or you all got up early for the 8AM run, and there were just six of us at the Queen Vic for 9AM. So Trevor, Ian & Debbie R, Tim Harris on his new custom steel Condor, prospective member Mark and Jason from Barbados headed out for the usual delights of South Oxfordshire. It was overcast with a slight headwind as we headed up through Goring Heath to Woodcote where the sun first emerged.

A mountain biker provided a good target on the fast descent of Catsbrain Hill, and it was then through the Stokes and on to Cholsey and Cholsey Down. I always love going up this little hill, as the road surface is great and the views are lovely - at least until you get to the top and experience the full frontal of Didcot Power Station.

On past Wittenham Clumps, Burcot, Berinsfield, and the rarely-travelled road through Drayton St Leonard, which must surely qualify as THE flattest piece of road around. That put us outside Newington Nurseries at 10.50am, where it was time to sample the recently reopened cafe. It's certainly not cheap, but very nice indeed, with friendly service, although my decision to go to a tropical greenhouse for tea was by then looking a little dodgy, given how hot it it was. We should go back again in the winter.

We came back on a shorter route via Berrick Salome, Ewelme, Swyncombe where, climbing the hill, we passed some guys struggling on MTBs who asked "Is this a race" ? "No" I gasped, immediately having second thoughts about my reply. Then a blast down the usual Route 1 into Emmer Green. My stats when I got home were 93km@26.8kph.