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Sunday ride to Bampton and Lechlade

Sunday, 2 April 2023 - 9:30am

A spring ride to enjoy some of the Cotswold back roads and the Vale of White Horse. Any post lunch complacency will be treated with the climb up to Coleshill after lunch.

Ride report

It was a cold north head wind as we headed into Oxford. Fortunately the forecast said it would warm up later – it did but not as quickly as hoped. A few observant souls noticed on my arrival that my new bike was finally finished. Progress to coffee was helped by the wind, so maybe it was more of a northeast wind. The plan was to take a slightly circuitous route via Cote to Bampton Garden Plants for coffee. Just after Cote a lady warned us the road was flooded “…to about 4 inches “. A quick group discussion reckoned 4″ was alright, so we carried on. The first flood was in accordance with 4″. Shortly after, a 2nd short flood was somewhat borderline 4”. The 3rd flood sort of started with a 4″ fail, but then continued as far as the eye could see along a 1/4 mile straight stretch of road. A few bravely/rashly gave it a try, but soon stopped. Adrian gave it a more determined try, but stopped with the water over his hubs and bottom bracket – have you checked your bearings yet Adrian? Despite having been in over 12″ of water, Adrian deemed his new cycling shoes “more water proof” that his old ones. So we retraced our steps, some with slightly damp socks, some with soaking socks. The plan was to get to coffee via Aston and Bampton, but the fact we had to cycle past Aston Pottery to get there was too temping, so Aston it was for coffee. On arrival it was remembered that they sell dry socks at Aston, so Rosey, Helen and Phil P went shopping. Phil B took his socks to the hand (or sock) drier. A smaller group continued on to lunch in Lechlade, looping west before entering Lechlade. The general impression was that Lechlade seemed closer than remembered. After lunch we realised of course Lechlade wasn’t closer; the all afternoon headwind reminded us we’d had a tail wind before lunch. The return through the Vale of the White Horse saw the weather brighten and the sun appear.

The map is an embedded link from Ride with GPS. You can zoom in to see the route in as much detail as you like. For example, you can zoom in (using the + sign) to see exactly where the start is. If you'd like to see the distances, go to the Ride with GPS website by clicking on 'View Full Version' (top left of map).

Ride leaders

Role Name

Full ride leader

Leader back from coffee

(No leader)

Ride venues and times

Venue Time Notes

Start

Broad Street, Oxford 9:30am

Please arrive 10 minutes before the start time (especially if you are new, so that we can say hello and sign you up).


Coffee

Bampton Garden Plants, Bampton 11:00am

For about half an hour.


Lunch

The Riverside, Lechlade 12:50pm

For about an hour.


Finish

Oxford area 4:00pm
All of the times (apart from the start time) are approximate only, as weather or punctures may affect them.

Ride options and attendance

Ride option Distance Pace Attendees

Full ride

99km 20kph

Half day ride

Ride to coffee and back again.

54km 20kph

The pace listed above is the average pace we do, so in general when cycling along the flat we will go a bit faster than the average pace. Please be aware of this if you are wondering whether you will be able to keep up on the ride.

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