'A' group Teetotal ride from Banstead to Tulleys Farm (non-Spond event) - Wednesday 17th June

 Twenty-two miles in the morning & half a mile of NCN 21 (off-road)

 

Twenty miles in the afternoon with about 1½ miles of off-road (Worth Way & NCN 228).

  

Lunch at Tulleys Farm Tearooms.

Tea at Knights Garden Centre, Betchworth (closes 4.30pm).

Menus:

 https://www.tulleysfarm.com/uploads/page_1_stage_3_import.jpg 

https://www.tulleysfarm.com/uploads/page_2_stage_3_import.jpg

Pre-booking not required.

You WILL NOT receive an invite from Spond.

Please reply in the old fashioned way....email & by Monday evening.

andycoxhill@ntlworld.com 

Offers to lead a moderate &/or slow group is much appreciated.

I hope you can join me. 

Invitation to B Group ride from Banstead on 17 June

You are invited to next Wednesday's B Group ride from Banstead.

We have a fairly hilly morning in the North Downs, but we have all been practising hills on the way to Shoreham and back, and there is a refresher course on Wednesday by simply getting to Banstead for elevenses.

The morning ride includes green country lanes most of us have not ridden before, and a trip around RAF Kenley, the best preserved of the Battle of Britain airfields.

Lunch at the Wattenden Arms just tucked under the airfield.

After lunch it is back to Wimbledon Windmill for tea, at first along roads seldom travelled, then along the Wandle Trail to Earlsfield before turning through Wimbledon Park and up to the Common by the gentlest route.

Unfortunately the pub wants us to pre-order.  Menu attached here.

I will publish the final route after a bit of recce work this weekend to minimize the unavoidable afternoon climb over Woodcote.

Please let me know by e-mail by Monday evening if you would like to come, and your choice from the menu. 

Paulandrewjames1949@yahoo.co.uk

Ride report A’s to Shoreham 10 June

 The forecast showed showers were likely for much of the day and we had a new untested pub for lunch. However, the route was mainly our tried and tested one, tinkered slightly to divert through the pretty village of Bramber which then put us in the right place to enter Shoreham using the new underpass and an old bridge.

Fiona’s group was first to leave at 10.15:

We were the first group off from Tanhouse and almost got to Bramber before the heavens opened and we were rushing to put on our wet weather gear. The rain didn’t last long and the ride into Shoreham dried us out. The Crown and Anchor served us a good lunch and were efficient.

Dave and Mike sat out the next shower before heading to Brighton to get the train. The rest of us set off in freezing wet, windy weather - we didn’t even make it onto the beach for the customary photo. At Horsham Patrick and Clive went to the train station. Leaving Steve, Guy and I to make it amongst intermittent showers to Leatherhead .

Thank you to Janice for a good route, my group for cheerful company and Dave for back marking.

My group was away next with Neil W, Karl, Richard B, Dave E and Brian.

 It was a bit windy but the sun was often shining and we made steady uphill progress, pausing to admire the pond and fine show of waterlilies at Warninglid.

The ride continued and around Small Dole the sky darkened, the wind increased and after the first few spots of rain we stopped to put rain jackets on. We had 3 miles of busy and very wet road before things improved again.

Somewhere around Botolphs we passed Fiona’s group as they had stopped to fix Steve’s snapped chain so we were first at the Crown & Anchor. The pub proved to be a success as it was reasonably priced and service was both friendly and very quick.

We left in sunshine and we stopped at the beach for a photo, by which time the weather deteriorated and for the next few miles it was a howling gale and torrential rain. Never mind as we dried off in sunshine by Horsham. Brian, Richard, Neil and I stopped at the leisure centre intending to cycle on but the weather changed to torrential rain again and as a train was due to depart all but Richard headed to the station where our journeys home continued in sunshine. There was just one more downpour just before we got to our front door.

Dave’s was the final group and here’s his report.

My group (Sue C, Gina, Dave F, Neil C, Steve W and new to Wayfarers Rob) gathered at Tanhouse in pleasant sunshine. As we set off the clouds gathered and the temperature fell. But we kept dry until around Wineham, where the first of several showers forced us to pause to don waterproofs.

This set the pattern for the rest of the day with much stopping and starting to don and un-don. At Small Dole it was clear we had missed a major downpour, with surface water everywhere. That and the unpleasantly heavy traffic on the approach to Upper Beeding caused us to reassess the route, and get off the roads for a while. So we took the traditional gravel track to Shoreham, a bit puddly at first, but later givingus a smooth ride, where we could exchange greetings with a party of B riders.

Lunch was excellent at the Crown & Anchor. Thanks, Janice for finding a pub with reasonable food, reasonably priced, speedily served too. And we were allowed to park our bikes safely on the terrace. Can we go back next year please.

However at lunch we learned that other groups had not been so lucky, and to avoid getting soaked we delayed our departure by 15 minutes. Getting to the beach for the traditional photo, we managed to capture a patch of blue sky.On leaving we met Steph, completing her own solo marathon trip.

Sue had planned to return direct from Shoreham, but the rest of the group headed back, this time taking the tunnel route, shorter and less wind exposed than the road. I had hoped for a wind assisted return, but it was not to be. No takers for ice cream at Partridge Green as we decided to make the most of a dry spell and ride on.

One more rainstorm around Copsale, before we arrived at Horsham Leisure Centre around 4.30, ahead of the café’s 5pm closure. There were no takers for the train, so it was onto the last climb of Old Holbrook with leaden legs, followed by the pleasure of descending from Rusper, with legs encouraged by thoughts of home. We all parted company at or just before Leatherhead, with nobody stopping for tea.

My thanks to my group for their unfailing good humour, and especially to Neil for back marking all day. It appears that we were the lucky group, seemingly always behind the worst of the rain, which meant that we could “enjoy” the full Shoreham Experience.

A memorable day out. Well done to all those who completed the ride all the way to Leatherhead despite the weather, hitting 100 plus miles. 

Thanks to everyone’s cheerful perseverance and especially to Fiona and Dave for sub-leading.

Wisley Lane status and route to Byfleet

I went across the new Wisley cycle route again on Sunday primarily to see whether the cycle path on Wisley Lane had been restored after the addition of the new airfield site roundabout.

It has, though there was a short section with a temporary (tarmac) surface but rideable all the way. I also used the signed route at the Ockham roundabout from Ripley to Wisley going under the bridge counter to traffic. This is fine, with cycle/pedestrian lights crossing the Portsmouth Road out of Ripley, but there are no such lights across Ockham Lane North and it's tricky to see when any stationary car might be about to get a green light.

I found I had a bit of spare time (but sadly not enough to do a full recce) so decided to explore towards the northern Clearmount bridge over the M25 which supposedly links to Byfleet though I had been told that there was a locked gate.

I followed the signs from the Green Bridge towards Pond Farm / Birch Scout camp. As you come across the Green Bridge from Ockham Bites this leads away to the right (but don't take the next right back towards the A3), The tarmac soon ends but the track is wide and hard gravelled. At the scout camp it turns right (with FP sign) onto an old concrete road leading in 100m or so to the new ramp onto Clearmount Bridge. 

I went over and turned left, signposted to Byfleet as a bridleway. The track continues past some iron posts 200m after the bridge ramp (ignore the path to the left) and soon comes to a signpost by some fencing. This is where the bridleway leads slightly left for about 700m to Mill Lane and Byfleet. The presence of two cyclists coming the other way, one on a gravel bike with slick tyres suggested that I could easily have made it on my Tricross. 

A conversation with a walker and mountain biker confirmed that it was straightforward in dry weather. 

Unfortunately I needed to get home so turned back at this point to Ockham Bites. My further exploration will have to wait until I return from holiday but if any of you try this please let me know.

 The route in ridewithgps

It is best mapped by OSM Cycle. 

B Group ride to Shoreham - 10th June '26

John A writes :

Thank you to TimG and Francis for taking on the significant task of leading groups on the long ride from Tanhouse to Shoreham-by-Sea. Thank you also to everyone who joined us for the day. I hope that, despite the changeable weather, you had a good day out at the seaside.

The first group got a bit wet going south and again cycling towards Horsham. But the main wet weather was a very heavy burst when we were riding westwards along Shoreham’s Beach Road. We then made it for the hourly train from Horsham with seconds to spare.

Team JA

Lunch at Brighton City Airport cafe

Francis D'S writes :

The annual Shoreham ride to the coast is always one that club riders look forward to in the summer. Usually, in lovely sunshine. It's great that my middle group of seven was a mixture from different groups - the Wednesday group, Saturday group and the C&M group so it was so good to ride and talk with people I’ve not seen recently or at all. 

Team FD'S

We set off from Tanhouse Farm under foreboding black clouds and optimistic that we’ll beat the rain to Shoreham. Soon we hit the first significant hill, Tower Road and once over it, Eric our back maker, loudly announced to the group that it was now all down hill to the coast. That’s more of a porky-pie that I’m used to telling!!

About halfway there !

Unfortunately, around noon, the rains came on and off but it was still pleasing to ride on Mark Gladwyn’s fabulous route through quiet and picturesque lanes most of the time. 

Soon, a sight of sea gulls over the Downs Link gave us an indication we were very near. At the Swiss Cottage pub, a couple stayed for lunch, as the waiting time had halved to 20 mins whilst the rest of the group sought other venues for lunch before heading homewards by train. 

Thanks John for organising the ride groups etc and my group of John, Anne, Karen, Christina, Lilian and Eric, my back marker, for your company. 

Nothing like the sea air at the beach in Shoreham after a long day’s ride. 

...and Tim G writes ;

After a group reshuffle four of us left in the last group for our trip to Shoreham. A smooth ride south followed the familiar annual route and led us via Faygate, Colgate to Warninglid where we stopped for a photo opportunity courtesy of a couple of local walkers. 

Team TG

We cycled with a sense of optimism as the weather had been very kind to us. Sadly this was short lived as we headed into a heavy downpour just north of Upper Beeding causing us to take shelter under some roadside trees. 

Scenic Warninglid

Undeterred we soldiered on only to be met by further heavy rain along the Downs Link, eventually arriving at the ‘Swiss Cottage’ soaking wet ! We were surprised to find only three fellow cyclists inside who were waiting patiently for their food order. Everyone else seemed to have sought sanctuary elsewhere. 

Further grey skies persuaded me to think twice about heading to the beach for a glimpse of the Shoreham coast so instead headed straight to the station to get my train home. 

Thanks to everyone who made today’s ride a success. A good day out despite the changeable weather. 

A group ride to Shoreham 10 June

This is the annual ride from Tanhouse to Shoreham to Leatherhead.

There’s a slight change to our usual route as we approach Shoreham so that we can use the new underpass.

Also different from previous years is that we’re using a new pub in Shoreham, the Longshore, and the B’s are going elsewhere in the hope that this will lead to a swifter lunch experience. 

There are the usual options to catch a train home from Shoreham, Horsham or Dorking for those who’d prefer to shorten their ride.

I intend setting groups off from Tanhouse by 10.30.

The ride will be posted on Spond around 6pm Friday evening. If you’d like to join me please ‘accept’ on Spond and if you have any preference to which pace group you’d like to join please indicate in Spond comments. 

The Garmin Connect route is 

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/course/469436341

B Ride to Shoreham - Wednesday 10th June '26

I am posting this notice a few days earlier than usual so that riders can have a chance to ponder with others their preference for our annual ride to the coast, next week.

Our groups will set out from Tanhouse Farm a bit earlier than usual to allow for the longish journey to lunch in Shoreham. 

You do not need to commit yourself, but it would be helpful if you could indicate, when booking, your probable option from the following:

Ride from Tanhouse to Shoreham [30 miles]

1. and then train home
2. and then cycle onwards to Horsham and train home from there [30 + 22 miles]
3. and then cycle all the way back to Leatherhead [72 miles].

I shall try to arrange morning groups from Tanhouse according to these options or other comments you may wish to make regarding speed (no B group will be ‘fast’!) 

or earlier / later or with a particular person.

Please contact me by the evening of Monday 8^th June on

johnaustin04@yahoo.co.uk

Take care,

John A.