It was dark at 7am as I rode up Reigate Hill to find it covered in fog. The car park was busy with cyclists as another 2 groups were preparing for their own adventures. Dave, Brian, John, Keith & I (Richard) set off across the ridge and the golf course to Headley. A fair pace was set, no one complained, so we maintained our speed. The fog was really thick as we climbed up to Ranmore with visibility down to just 100m. It was also very cold. Jon joined us at Ranmore where we continued on our way to Newlands Corner. Avoiding the really muddy bits, we got into a rhythm that was only hampered by the sudden arrival of deep mud or puddles. On reaching Newlands corner we had covered the 18 miles with an impressive 11mph average speed.

There was time for a quick cup of tea, and bacon butties for those that need the boost, before we embarked on Lee’s ride.

At Peaslake, a larger group split from Lee’s ride to get back to Reigate. Elegantly lead by Fran, we made it back by 2pm having covering 46 miles in total.

It was wet, very cold, extremely muddy and a chance for us to do what we love doing – being on our bikes!

Richard Sterry