So the day started it with The NEV Broxbourne to HMSBelfast Off Road Trip, loading their trusty steed’s on to the Iron Horses being driven by Tony (the SATNAV) Wood and Paul (I can’t stay upright) Fournaise.
The first 10 miles or so were fairly uneventful as we cycled along the canal on a variety of cycles, there were two mountain bikes, one hybrid and a cyclocross.
Our first stop saw us replenish our water bottles and devour some bacon rolls. We then navigated our way to the Thames where we took a well earned rest on a Deck Chair made for 4.
It was time for some sightseeing and we took in some of the iconic landmarks of London (including HMS Belfast, the Tower of London and many more) calling on a variety of David Bailey wannabes to assist in cataloguing our day (see the photos). Lunch was served with a variety of international cuisine next to the Cutty Sark and so far the whole experience had been enjoyable, but relatively uneventful.
However, after lunch Paul F decided that he needed to spice up the day by tripping up over a watering hose … leaving him sprawled across the cycle path … in true NEV camaraderie style, we quickly grabbed our phones to record the event for posterity. After taking in the Thames Barrier and returning to the North Bank via the Thames underground walk way at Greenwich we proceeded to navigate our way back to Broxbourne, we again replenished our water bottles at another cafe stop, when Paul H felt left out as Paul F was getting all the attention with many amorous females giving him magic kisses to heal his wounded arm.
So he decided to have a blowout with his tyre about three miles from the end of the ride. Despite the best efforts of all present, fixing the bike was not going to happen. So whilst he limped his way to the nearest carpark the other made their way back to the Iron Horses and came and picked him up before heading back to Braintree. A great day had by all and a definite desire to have a return ride with a greater number of NEV members in tow.… Nick was feeling really dejected at the end of the day as originally his heroic effort at cycling up a couple of step was not mentioned in dispatches. So just to say Nick was a really brave boy, and managed to ride up a 2% climb with 3 steps on … well done Nick 👏🏻
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