It was an early start to the day with a 7am meet up to load up the bikes and board the minibus to travel to the start line at Richmond Green. The only hitch on the way was our minibus going into ‘limp’ mode on the motorway! After a few nervous moments, we were on our way again to sunny Richmond Green.
The bike ride started well, it was a crisp sunny September morning, and everyone was in high spirits. We all looked like pros in our White Foxley Kingham jerseys. Everyone got off to a quick start and we naturally split into two groups with the forerunners cycling at 13 miles per hour and the second group averaging 10 miles per hour. The first 18 miles or so were flat and easy going and the weather was dry and bright. We had checked the weather forecast and expected showers. However, we had not anticipated that the heavens would open and not stop raining again for 4 hours! We faced what felt like endless challenging inclines and the route was varied riding through towns, pretty villages, woodland, on A roads, crossing dual carriageways and down country lanes.
Every now and then we would come to a junction with the option to turn off onto the shorter routes. With the rain and the cold, it was very tempting, but the group pressed on determined to finish the 57-mile long route. We stopped regularly to eat to keep energy levels and spirits up and we discovered that caffeinated jelly sweets can really make a difference when peddling uphill! We were overjoyed to finally get to Windsor, the home stretch and even caught a glimpse of Windsor castle.
4pm we were all back on the minibus for the journey home. Everyone felt a sense of achievement and there was even talk of putting in a Foxley Kingham team for the London to Brighton 2019.
Well done everyone on the Foxley Kingham Anniversary Foundation London to Windsor Bike Ride.