Around Burford

On Thursday Frances Tim and coach Pollyanna met up with Anne and David Snowden at Burford for a ride around the Oxfordshire Cotswolds.


We set off at a good pace through Taynton, and were soon joined by another cyclist( seen here in black) whose name we didn't catch but he seemed to know Pollyanna.



Heres David going at high speed, looking very professional.


















And here are some horses.


On through the pretty village of Leafield.







Then up hill for quite a way through the Wychwood Forest, this seemed to be quite a struggle for me so far, and I was begining to think I must be ill, but as we climbed Pollyanna noticed that my brakes were catching on the wheel. I had dismantled my bike to put it in the car last week and obviously put it back together all wrong.



So heres the view from the top, a quick fix for my bike and we were off. I can't tell you how much easier it was, 10 miles with the brakes on including going up hill is no fun, but probably quite good for my fitness.







Next up through the lovely little town of Charlbury, we took a short cut through the church yard here.



Still going up we stopped for Tim and Anne to check maps before going on through Coombe and stopping for lunch at the Cock inn, I don't remember the village where the pub is but Tim said it would be quicker for him to go home from there than to carry on with the ride, but then he would be stuck without a car so he thought better of it.



Pollyanna had the biggest chip so far in training and I thought the chips deserved a score of 4 Saddles but the average came out at 3.5 Saddles on this occasion.



Just a few miles further on through North Leigh we passed this pub called the Saddlers, the sign showed the Worshipful Company of Saddlers coat of arms but David said the motto underneath was incorrect, unfortunately the photo isn't clear enough and I can;t remember what it says or what it should say. David please comment below the blog.






Then just a few miles, through Swinbrook and back to Burford, and now Tims turn to look like a professional, which just proves that the camera does lie. He says hes going to get cleats fitted before the next ride as everyone else has them, lets see how many times he falls off before we next see him.
This ride was a very beautiful and not too difficult 34 miles, highly recommended.