I really shouldn't be posting this as I wasn't the ride captain, but I really want to post my excuses for being pretty hopeless. The weather forecast was for a clear early morning but then rain spreading from the West. And so it did, but quicker than I had anticipated. I was feeling positively ill as I set out with Dale from Moseley and 9:15 in overcast conditions. The route was attractive at about 25 miles in the morning and only 17 in the afternoon, with lunch in Ullenhall at the Winged Spur. Arriving at Earlswood I was in two minds whether to carry on, but in the end decided at least to make an effort.
By the time we set off it was drizzling and this turned to snow after about a mile. This I was not enjoying, and as we approached Hockley Heath my rear gear cable snapped. Guy offered my a spare from his voluminous bag and although it wouldn't have taken five minutes to thread in a new one I rather took the view that the gods were telling me something. After some persuasion the peloton carried except for Dale who obviously thought this an opportunity not to be missed to back out gracefully. I wound in the high setting on my rear derailleur to align the chain with my middle sprocket and set off home with my front double giving me a bit of flexibility.
It's amazing how well you can get along with just two gears (yes, all right, you fixed aficionados). Today, Thursday, has been cold but with clear skies all day. It's just not fair!
