B Ride on the 25th March 2026 to Hillingdon

 I am sorry but the link I used to email me was in correct, the correct email address is,  ryoulden@virginmedia.com. Please can you resend the emails to this correct address. 

Thanks Ray.

Invitation to A group ride 25th March from Molesey Boat Club Cafe to Puttenham

 The route is some 25 miles and 750 ft of ascent, mainly up Westwood Lane to the Hog's Back, before descending to Puttenham. The return is 17 miles to Cobham and 809 ft of ascent mainly up Down Lane to The Mount where we descend to Guildford. There is a certain amount of off road outward on the Wey Navigation towpath and Brooklands Park in order to avoid main roads. There is also the track on Cycle Way 22 which goes from Downs Lane towards Guildford, which is rough and dry, but with deep puddles to negotiate.

If you would like to join the ride please choose your lunch order from the menu of The Good Intent pub at Puttenham. They are doing a special price for Burgers and Bar classic meals reduced to £10.95.

The Menu can also be found here MENU

Please let me know if you would like to join the ride by Monday 6 pm. Contact me HERE. Look forward to seeing you.

Steve D.

B Ride on the 25th March 2026 from the Boat Club to Hillingdon

 

This Wednesday Tony, Maddie and myself will be leading the groups up to a new location, the Red Lion Pub, Hillingdon. We are using a large number of paths and off road tracks, all are quite doable on a road bike. We are stating from the Boat Club in Molesey and travelling through Bushy Park, Fullwell, along the River Crane, Hounslow Hearth, Cranford, West Drayton, and onto Hillingdon. Coming back via Hayes, using the Grand Union Canal, and then on to Heston, and finishing at the Pheasantry at Bushy Park. A total of 29.1 miles. There are no major hills to conquer.

The route can be found on https://ridewithgps.com/routes/54056382

If you would like to come, please email me at ryoulden@virginmeda.com by 18.00 Monday 23^rd, stating your preferred starting time and who you would like to start with. There is no need to consider pre ordering lunch, but it may be worth thinking about what to eat. I have been there twice and found that the sandwiches are pricey but include a portion of chips plus the sandwiches are rather large, so sharing with someone makes sense. Look at the menus and decide,  https://www.redlionhotelhillingdon.co.uk/food/menus

The 2026 London Ride to Silvertown, 18 March. A sunny day with shadows.

 

There were forty eight riders on the start list for this year’s London Ride, but that was because the organiser had missed two more because he did not check his spam folder.

The victims were in a generous mood, however, perhaps because it was a beautiful Spring day and the coffee at Pembroke Lodge kiosk is pretty good and comes promptly.

Early birds at Pembroke Lodge

Obviously, the main purpose of the London Ride is to give us all a nice day out on the bike headed into the Metropolis rather than, as on most other Wednesdays, away from it.  But it also gives us all a chance to ride with club members we do not normally go out with; this year, though the bulk of riders were A and B groupers, there were regulars from every other part of our club; Cheam and Morden, Saturday Beginners and Easy Riders.  The idea for this year’s ride was for us all to try out the cycle shuttle service in London’s newest sub-Thames road tunnel at Silvertown but on the way we went through Mortlake and Barnes, Hammersmith and Holland Park, Kensington Gardens and Hyde park, Marylebone and Bloomsbury, Covent Garden and Embankment, Blackfriars and Tower Hill, Whitechapel and Limehouse to lunch at West India Docks.

A few bikes having lunch at The Ledger Building, West India Docks

It was a pity that Wetherspoons had not banked on the warm weather, for a pub which on every recce had been well-nigh deserted, was packed to the gunnels, sans curry, sans zero Guinness sans garden peas, sans half of everything.  That was trivial, though, compared to the fact that Clive’s group arrived with the news that David J had had a serious tumble and was on his way home with Jennie on an Uber.  Broken collar bone, broken shoulder blade, Tottenham season ticket holder.  Get well soon, Dave. 

Singing in the sun.  Covent Garden

Evolution gone mad.  The traffic light tree.

I had been fretting that the river crossing would be awkward but John’s group went early, the bus drivers were flexible and the only modest wait was undergone by the group whose leader made a tiny directional error enabling the crafty lot following behind to nip in and take that waiting bus.  By then we had suffered a second accident, when Chris H was wiped out by a reckless madwoman on a Lime Bike doing a quarter of a ton over the bridge spanning Bow Creek.  Unlike the perpetrator, Good Samaritans Bob and Mick A stayed behind to help Chris out, Mick taking him to St George’s A&E on an Uber.  Dislocated shoulder blade.  Get well soon, Chris.  Bob finished the ride on his own, which was a shame, for him and for us.

The accident put a real damper on my group for a shuttle bus ride in silence and for the ride back through Greenwich, Deptford, Millwall, Walworth, Kennington, Vauxhall and Pimlico to cross the river for a fourth time and finish at Battersea Park.

Thanks are due to my five co-leaders; Clive, Simon L, Madeleine, John A and Tim G.  Thanks also to Maggie, Clive, Simon , Dave W, Tim G, John, Madeleine and Dave V who each accompanied me on at least one of the recces and who provided important input.

Thanks, too, to everyone for your good humour and patience, but we all agree that especial thanks must go to the Met Office for the weather they provided.

Here are the reports from group leaders.

Clive's group

.....at the tree sculpture

...at Greenwich, the old Naval College

....and looking back across the river to Canary Wharf

Simon’s group.

It’s a special pleasure to lead a beautiful ride through London, especially on a sunny day.   Credit goes to Paul for route design, and successive London mayors for creating surprisingly quiet cycle routes through the city, on a route that passed so many interesting sights and superb views.  My group was a mixture of A and B group riders and we all enjoyed a relaxed ride through the heart of London, only encountering traffic at Shaftesbury Avenue, where an ambulance crew were treating someone who I think was hit by a bus.

.....on the river at Greenwich

...weaving along the river on the Greenwich Peninsula

After a sunny lunch we went a bit off-piste through the heart of Canary Wharf, down past Billingsgate and the traffic light tree sculpture before rejoining Paul’s route for a smooth bus ride under the tunnel, and more outstanding views of the city from Greenwich.   Thank you to Dave B for back-marking, and especially to Paul for devising such a varied and scenic route.

My group

....at the Cable Street Mural commemorating the so-called riot of 1936 when the dockers confronted Oswald Moseley's Nazis

Madeleine’s group.

....at Cable St

• After all the rain and lack of inviting cycling weather, it was great to be back in saddle ride and test those winterised thighs
• Lunchtime sun basking was glorious, as were the wonderful building and marvellous toilets at the lunch stop
• We followed the post-lunch route to a blind alley in Silvertown, which luckily I recognised as the wrong place to be. After backtracking, we rejoined the correct route - just behind the group that was supposed to be behind us! So we had a little more basking at the Silvertown Shuttle stop - and plenty of time to get organised on the next bus
• After an attempt at an early finish (to let the legs rest at last) the whole group - with the exception of their valiant leader- voted to take the uber boat from Greenwich to Waterloo. The leader went on alone, but was soon caught up by the rest of the group when they discovered the waiting time for the boat. All made it onto trains at Vauxhall, a little later

John’s group.

The fifth group started out from Pembroke Lodge in splendid sunshine and made good, enjoyable progress through the south London suburbs, except for a very lengthy wait at the Sheen level crossing.

When we reached Holland Park we found that we had caught up with the earlier group and so we passed them and had a very pleasant ride through the London parks. 

When we got to our lunch stop we found that there was a considerable wait for food and so we decided to ride on to the shuttle and seek lunch south of the river. We stopped at the riverside Cutty Sark in Greenwich and then rode into the final stretch of an excellent and well planned route.

                             

.....on the Silvertown shuttle

When we got to Kennington we began to split up, one going for the train from Vauxhall, two more making their different ways across Clapham Common, two more splitting off in Tooting, leaving one more heading via the Wandle Trail to catch a train in Sutton.

A splendid day out.

Tim’s group

Over fifty cyclists must have met at Pembroke Lodge today to enjoy a day in what proved to be the warmest temperatures this year so far. Our chief leader had organised us into six groups and I was to lead the last group out. We welcomed Gareth W who joined us for the first time today and together with a couple of others ten of us left for today’s adventure. 

 All went well as we left Richmond Park, crossed the river and made our way through to Holland Park where we ran into two other groups who were availing themselves of the public facilities. Having rallied them along we continued on-route to Kensington Gardens for a group photo opportunity. Cycling on past a variety of landmarks and places of interest we eventually got to the river where we picked up the cycle path that took us all the way to Canary Wharf. 

....in Kensington Gardens

The main hazard seemed to be the unpredictable behaviour of those riding the black e-bikes who didn’t seem to adhere to any accepted road etiquette or safety standards. We narrowly escaped a few potentially dangerous collisions. 

The ‘Ledger Building’ was surprisingly busy compared to when we did the recces but we all had a welcome break and got suitably fed and watered. After a brief group reshuffle nine of us set out on the afternoon ride towards the Silvertown Tunnel. As we approached we caught sight of a previous group who had seemingly made a slight detour which meant that we arrived at the cycle shuttle first and immediately boarded without delay. The driver was particularly cooperative and accommodating as we swiftly passed through the tunnel to emerge on the other side. A new experience for most of us !

The rest of our ride went smoothly as we passed though Greenwich and other areas south of the river to reach our final destination at Battersea Park for tea. Many thanks to everyone who contributed to making today’s ride a success and to all in my group for being so kind and appreciative. Always a pleasure to lead an eager and enthusiastic group of cyclists. A good day had by all my group.

2026 London Ride runners and riders

All riders should have received an e-mail

But just in case........

Tomorrow we depart from Pembroke Lodge in Richmond Park.  It is about 150 minutes to lunch, so there is a loo stop in Holland Park (roughly half way).  Lunch is at the Ledger Building at West India Dock (don't get too excited, it's a Wetherspoons, but an amazing building).  Tea at the kiosk in Battersea Park.  

There are one or two places where we have to dismount for a short push; Holland Park and the approach to Kensington Palace being the ones that come immediately to mind.

Because of the Silvertown crossing (where the bus, running every thirteen minutes, only accommodates 8 bikes), I have set us up in groups of 8.  The idea is to mix up members so once a year we get to ride with people from other groups, but this is only partially realised.  With the exception of Madeleine's group, all of whom said they wanted to finish at Vauxhall and therefore presumably to get home early, the groups are aligned in order of my perception of the likely speed of the leaders, to minimize the risk of catch-up, but this is a (very) urban ride and there are few places where anyone will be able to zing along.  Nevertheless, if anyone wants to change group feel free to arrange a bilateral swap (to keep to 8 per group) and tell both leaders.

I could not accommodate all the Vauxhalleers in Madeleine's group but the ride passes under the arches beneath Vauxhall Station and it will be easy for them (and anyone else who has got tired) to peel off at that point.  I have picked three Vauxhalleers who are experienced enough not to fret about doing this and put them together in John's group.

The Silvertown crossing comes two easy miles after lunch and presents a challenge because unless we are lucky (the bus was empty for the first recce but only nearly so for the subsequent ones) not all of your group will be able to board at once.  So please be patient at the shuttle service if you do not get on the first bus; we will operate a first-there-first-on-the-bus policy and you will join some of the follow-up group and continue the ride with them.  Think of it as one of those dinner parties where you have to change places for dessert to meet new people!  I have taken the precaution, in case it is needed, of asking several members used to leading off a GPS device to be ready to take a group onward from Greenwich to the finish.

I have been in touch with the Met Office, slipped them a back-hander and fixed some decent weather, so please enjoy the day.  And stay safe.

Paul.

Runners and riders.  

Group One departs 10.05

Leader Clive Janes

Steve D

Patrick W

Richard B

Gill H

Dave F

Jennie & Dave J

Dave W (to lunch only)

Group Two departs 10.15

Leader Simon Lambourn

Peter B

Sue Ch

Stephen H

Anne W

Steph W

Andy C

Mike R

Group three departs 10.25

Leader Paul James

Chris H

Simon W

Jane F

Bob P

Stuart A

Geoff G

Mick A

Group four departs 10.35, goes as far as Vauxhall

Leader Madeleine Shearer

Julie B 

Mary L

James & Jane G

Ian W

Dawn

Ray Y

Group five departs 10.45

Leader John Austin

Karl M to Vauxhall

Helen T to Vauxhall

Carolyn B to Vauxhall

Frank C

John & Sandra B

Chris McC

Group six departs 10.55

Leader Tim Gibbons

Sabina W & Bernard

Tim C

Gareth W 

Anne & John C

Lilian Ch

Route here

Why you shouldn't jet-wash your bike

It's quick and easy, but it's bad for your bike.   So says GCN (Global Cycling Network) in their new video, which reverses their earlier advice issued eight years ago.   

Does it matter to regular cyclists like us?   In a word - yes.  A couple of people I know have had mysterious failures of their new-ish bike.   The freewheel mechanism stopped working, so they could either freewheel in both directions (awkward) or not freewheel at all (challenging).    A long walk to a bike shop followed.

Here's the video: 

Invitation to the joint A & B Groups 2026 London Ride to Silvertown, Wednesday 18 March

You are invited to join the London Ride on Wednesday.

This year's ride will start at Pembroke Lodge in Richmond Park and take us over Hammersmith Bridge, through Holland Park and Kensington Gardens, through Marylebone and Covent Garden and then out along the river and through the East End for lunch at West India Dock Wetherspoons.

After lunch we take the cycle shuttle bus through the Silvertown Tunnel, and we return westwards through Greenwich Naval College, Millwall, Kennington and Vauxhall to finish at Battersea Park.

The route is 31 miles with lunch half way.  The final recce group left the start at 10.25, was at lunch just before 13.00 and at Battersea Park by 16.15.  We can offer a loo stop half way through the morning.  Once you have climbed to Pembroke Lodge for elevenses the ride is flat.  There are a couple of short stretches of cobbles but the rest is tarmac or hard gravel.

The shuttle bus is free; you do not need a travelcard.  It also takes electric bikes.

Dave Ward has a commitment in the evening and if there are any takers will be happy to take a group from lunch back to Waterloo via the Greenwich Foot Tunnel.  He will not be riding the Silvertown Shuttle.  

Madeleine will take a group home on train assist (we pass Vauxhall Station).

Please let me know by E-mail Paulandrewjames1949@yahoo.co.uk by Monday evening if you want to join in and please be clear if you want to go with Dave Ward or Madeleine.

 Click here for the route.