Holiday in Hemingby

No long distance riding today which was good news on two counts; firstly when we awoke the heavens had opened and it proceeded to rain for the whole morning, not steady rain but a downpour. We are not fair weather cyclists by any means but it would have been most uncomfortable to ride in.    Secondly the artiste has started to complain about the comfort of his ride and feels that he may be developing a problem with his backside.   This would need care and attention.  The responsibility for the latter does not fall within my remit I am delighted to report. Being so far into the tour now we do not want a problem like this to develop; prevention is better than cure.   A gentle morning with an opportunity to catch up a little on correspondence and administration of the tour.  After a welcome lunch which Di prepared Paul very kindly took me to Horncastle to undertake some shopping  for essentials and then it was time to go to work!  We loaded the bikes and took the short ride to St. Margaret's church about half a mile away. We were not going to hit the 1000 mile mark today. In good time we had plenty to do to prepare for the evening show.   The new show light needed to be fiddled with and a little knowledge is extremely dangerous in this case.  Certainly my capacity to fix and fault find was limited.   We needed the new light to be synchronised with the other two through the control box. In addition there would be a requirement to change the plugs over.   Slowly but surely and with some trial and error the new light came to life and whilst not a perfect match it was  more than adequate for our needs.    Our new coloured solar powered pimping lights were on show for the first time and the bikes were lit up like Christmas trees. The maestro not wishing to be outshone by the new lights enhanced his own performance by borrowing a mandolin from Paul and introducing a completely new piece to the show.    The church was full and this did much build a great atmosphere for the evening. An extended interval allowed a buffet to be served. Donations for the buffet  going directly to Big C in addition to the 20% coming from the ticket sales.  The generosity of the audience therefore raised an extra £166.00 for Big C on the night.   A member of the 70's folk group Amazing Blondel introduced himself to the Stupendous Durrant at the end of the show and they spent much time comparing notes.  Could be that RD was avoiding the clear up.   Packing up has become a fine art and it was not long before we found ourselves in the pub enjoying a late evening drink or, in the case of the artiste, two! It is the one duty I have consistently failed on.  Keeping him off the beer.  We retraced our ride to Di and Paul's, house and shortly before midnight turned in. No rocking required despite the easy day.   A successful one though.  Many many thanks to our generous hosts for all their kindness and support.  

Lincoln and Bardney

Richard playing at Tupholme Abbey

Bardney. 

Lincoln Cathedral 

The Tennyson Hotel

Hemingby Express

We enjoyed a delightful breakfast at The Tennyson Hotel. Probably the best one of the trip so far our leader declared. He must have been feeling in a good mind.   Richard was keen to complete video blog number six and get it launched on the various media outlets. There were various chores to be attended to in the city. We moved off at about 10.30     I had very few clean clothes left and a laundromat was a priority otherwise people would start to refuse to stand next to me.  We were able to arrange a service wash which left us free to find a bicycle shop to address the continuing problem of Richard's back wheel.   He can't have many spokes left that have not been replaced.  Cyclesport was the first bicycle shop we came across as we rode down the long Lincoln high street.  We agreed to leave the bike there and once again excellent service was delivered immediately.    From there we found a quiet corner in  Carluccio's Italian Restaurant to complete some administration work.  There was more to this Cycle Tour than just peddling.  Richard had an appointment for an interview on BBC Radio Lincoln with Nicola Gilroy at 13.00   We continued up the high street past the Cathedral  in good time.     We received a warm welcome from all the staff at the BBC. Nicola was not sure about greeting  Richard with a kiss as after so many miles on the road she did not know how fragrant he would be.   I had to assure her that we were clean living chaps and we took a shower or bath at least once a week whether we needed it or not!     Interview went well and Richard was able to play a couple of South American pieces as well as giving away all the secrets of the tour live on air.    We both felt that we deserved a treat and we had this in the form of Earl Grey tea and a piece of cheese cake at a patisserie at the bottom of the cathedral hill.    A few miles would have to be covered to get that off. I have been informed back at my work that  "a moment  on the lips is a lifetime on the hips".  I will never forget that one Lou!  My hips are still padded enough so too many cakes will not help.   We returned to our bikes and once again they were in the right condition for duty when I promptly knocked my bike over and smashed the wing mirror. Captain Calamity or what?     We found the Bardney road with ease and proceeded east in the direction of Hemingsby.  Conditions were ideal; a gentle wind on our backs, a flat road and bikes in good order. We lifted our best average speed for the tour to 13.5 mph.  We were delighted with the performance.    We paused at the village of Bardney for a while as this was the site of the 1972 Pop festival which I attended.  The festival was organised by the actor Sir Stanley Baker on the land around Tupholme Hall and Abbey.  The line up for the four day festival held forty two years ago included; Beach Boys, Faces, Slade, Lindisfarne, Wishbone Ash, Rory Gallagher, Joe Cocker, Monty Python's Flying Circus to name just a few.  Apart from the line up the other thing the event can be remembered for was the appalling weather.  There was no let up.  With the history of the area in mind we stopped the bikes and filmed for the video blogs. Richard played Kemps Jig.     I am so glad this is not a dancing tour!  Despite the forecast we had no rain and in fact we ended the day with a stunning sunlit evening ride through the Lincolnshire countryside all the way through to Hemingsby.  Just to keep us on our toes my chain came off again as we looked for Di and Paul's house.  A dirty job getting it back on.    A warm welcome in a delightful spot on the edge of the Lincolnshire Wolds.    Di served us a super supper and following an evening chat we opted for an early night.  25 miles to go before we hit the 1,000 mark. Getting closer.  A celebration will be in order I think. 

Norco under repair

www.gainsboroughcycles.co.uk

Many thanks again Trevor. 

Lincoln

The Holiday Inn was ideal.  Comfortable, clean and good value on a Sunday night. The breakfast was most enjoyable and set us up for the day.   There had been rain overnight but no need to start with the wet weather gear on.  We have been lucky so far. Long may  it last. I studied  the map in some detail in order to establish a route which would keep us well off the beaten track. No performance tonight so we had all day to reach the city of Lincoln just forty miles away.  We hoped to get to Maplin Electronics as my light show was fading fast and we needed to keep our star turn in the spotlight.    I fairly late departure a little after 10.00    Back towards the city centre and then out past  the racecourse and on my chosen route. My bike felt pretty sluggish but I just put it down to the wear and tear on the rider himself.   I had started to think that secretly Mr.D had succumbed to the temptation of taking a little something to enhance his performance on the road.  He was well ahead of me as we exited the town. I battled on.   Twice before I have stayed in Doncaster.  Once in the early seventies my car, a blue blue Vauxhall Viva, broke down travelling back to Manchester on the A1 and I was forced to spend the night here. The second occasion, few years ago now, I attended a balloon meet around New Year.  I think it was called The Brass Monkey Meet.  Along with many friends, John and Debbie, Andy and Maggie to name just four. Did the unsteady well into the night. Those were the days!    I struggled on in second position towards our midway point at Gainsborough.   Due to an accident, we hope nobody was seriously hurt, we had three miles of dual carriageway all to ourselves on the run in.  My bike was not in good order the back wheel buckled again and a spoke out. Could be something to do with my weight!! Used the Around Me app on the I phone. Telephoned Gainsborough Cycles and Trevor Halstead answered. Just a mile off our route.  What is it about cycle shops and mechanics? Cycling angels. Travel and trust comes to mind. We have not been let down yet. Once again he dropped what he was doing to get us on our way.  This time a new back wheel was required together with a tyre. The poor old Norco really has been in the wars on this trip.    Thanks Trevor.  He also gave us a good route into Lincoln with the last four miles on a cycle path taking us directly into the centre of the city.  Need a bike shop in the Gainsborough area  www.gainsboroughcycles.co.uk. After the pit stop I was back on form. It was not the body after all,  it was the bike. Through the afternoon I was able get the bike going at full speed.    Lincoln was soon on the horizon.  A great view of the wonderful cathedral from six miles out lit by the sun. This pm the artiste felt something go and once more his back wheel threw a spoke and this slowed him up for the run into the city.  Another bike shop in the morning would be required.   The cycle path was wonderful and took us close to Maplin where, without authority from base, money was liberally spent on upping the lighting equipment.    As chief lighting technician much would be expected of me at the forthcoming performance in Hemingby on Wednesday night.     The maestro spotted a smoke machine in the store.  I think he was tempted.  Oh dear.   This is getting very like Spinal Tap on two wheels.   I quickly established where the hotel for night was and we had no difficulty locating it.  Louise must be mentioned here for booking it.   A delightful place with a warm welcome. Nothing too much trouble including bringing the bikes indoors for security.   It seemed to come well within the criteria and standards required by our ever picky artiste.   I only hope we have fresh coffee at breakast for if not the place will be given a very low rating indeed.    We enjoyed a Chinese before returning to work on a new video blog.     On this tour the show is never over even if the fat lady has sung.  I got back to my room at 11.30.    953 on the clock. Gradually we creep to the 1,000 mile point. 

Doncaster In Pictures

Darting for Doncaster

I was up very early and fortunately the Station Road Farm B and B had a guest sitting room so rather than disturb the exhausted sleeping riding partner I went downstairs to write the blog and have a cup of tea.    Breakfast was taken at 09.00.   With a short ride to Doncaster there would be no need to have a swift departure.   For the first time I tucked into a full English breakfast.   Tasty.  It is always important to balance off the need to have energy to ride and not riding on a full stomach.     Just for once on this trip I was slower of the mark and took  longer to get out and pack the bike up. Not good to keep anybody waiting though.    Despite the negative feedback from Mr. D I felt that the B and B was most satisfactory.  The bathroom was a little small but certainly adequate.  Clean and tidy cottage environment.     We set off in full sunshine heading south on the side roads. I must confess to feeling slightly more sluggish than is the norm.   Nonetheless progress was more than acceptable. We were in coal mining country. Sadly, this is an industry in steep decline and some of the settlements we passed through were worse for wear and in need of an upgrade. We were met with a road closure and this resulted in a fairly long detour.   When riding, detours are very frustrating,  as are wrong turns and doubling back.   We do our best to study the route and get it right.   Passed through the tiny village of Womersly and expected to find no services at all.  How pleased were we when we noticed a sign for the Courtyard Tea Room?   This could not be passed without sampling the goods.   This turned out to be the very best tea  / coffee shop we have visited in 900 miles of travelling on the bikes.  Even our man with such exacting standards could find no fault. Having broken the back of the day's ride we moved on towards Doncaster.   Perhaps the lure of the greasepaint and the call to performance did it but I lost contact with Richard who sprinted into Doncaster.  Who would really want to go to that fast to Doncaster?   I eventually trundled into the town.  Found my own way to the centre, another one of those rebuilt totally soulless redevelopments.   Arrived at The Cast, the venue for the evening show. This modern new arts centre has been built to a high standard and makes for a popular social meeting point and performance space.   Doncaster was in the middle of hosting a cycle race festival outside the venue so the fun of the fair was in progress when I arrived.   On a hot day it is deceptive just how much liquid you need to take on board to prevent yourself becoming dehydrated.  This has always been a weakness for me and I never measure the intake very well.      In good time there a break was possible before putting up the show.      Ticket sales were rather disappointing but for those who did arrive to enjoy a summer Sunday evening show they went away more than delighted with the range and nature of the performance.      Due to the hard work of Louise, back at base, we had rooms at the Holiday Inn Express on the south side of the town.  Convenient for the ride in the morning.   Good welcome and bikes stowed in the conference room we enjoyed a post show drink before bed.   I decided to have a J2O just for a change.   £3.00 please!    They must be having a laugh....     And so to bed pretty tired. 913 miles on the clock.   We're certainly getting up there now.   Steady as she goes.