Next ride: Saturday 11 September

 

It was a pleasure to see many familiar faces on our first post-lockdown ride last month. This was a limited ride with some Covid precautions still in place. In order to keep the numbers manageable, we decided not to publicise it widely. And we made a point of staying out of doors the whole time. Thank you all for your cooperation in that respect.

I am pleased to say that our September ride (details below) will be much more like a normal ride. We are not placing a firm limit on numbers, so feel free to invite your friends. If a large number turn up, we will split into two groups, with ten minutes or so between them. We still encourage you to bring a picnic lunch, but there will be a cafe option for those who prefer.

Details

The ride will take place next Saturday, 11 September. We will meet at our usual spot at the north end of Middle Meadow Walk, near the junction of Lauriston Place, in time for a 10.30 start.

For this ride, our leader, Alan, has plotted an interesting and unusual route through the west of the city. Most of the route is on well-surfaced paths and quiet roads, although there will also be one or two rough paths, as well as a couple of short stretches on main roads that might be busy with traffic. There will some gentle hills, and one fairly steep climb just before lunch. The total distance will be about 22 miles. Most of the mileage will be in the morning, with a fairly short run home in the afternoon.

Lunch stop

Our lunch stop will be at Craigie's Farm. The cafe there is now open again, but there have been some changes since our last visit. They now only do table service with a reduced menu, and there is a limit on the number of people sitting at each table. This means that the service is likely to be slower than before. For that reason, you may prefer to bring a packed lunch. There are picnic tables outside the cafe.

Covid precautions

Please keep in mind that the pandemic is not yet over. We will continue to maintain a measure of social distancing where possible, even though this is no longer a legal requirement (out of doors). And of course you should not join the ride if you or any members of your household have Covid symptoms, have recently received a positive result from a Covid test or have been told to self-isolate or go into quarantine.

I think that covers everything. I'll look forward to seeing as many of you as possible on Saturday.