‘’Never before in the history of SAR, has so much been owed to so many by just a few!’’
March is the month of mad Hares, and some such mad hares turned up at Eccleshall Fire Station in pouring rain, that was verging on sleet.
Low temperatures and standing water, failed to deter 10 members from turning up to enjoy the weather. A phone call from Jon Cook (from his fireside),
suggested that it might be prudent to cancel the event, but as the numbers grew it became apparent that people had put a lot of effort into turning up. Fiona Carter had already travelled some 20+ miles, Gill Galpin, known more for her sun worshiping, had donned waterproofs, Arthur Broadhurst had found out his baby grow, and Richard Bowman set aside his normal stance, and allowed his GS to get wet and dirty for once!!
So a decision was made to do a short ad-hoc trip, to include just a breakfast stop. After a little discussion it was decided to head for McDonalds (other fast food outlets are available, just Google it!), at Whitchurch in Shropshire. This way most of the route would be on fairly major roads, and least likely to suffer too much from the weather. Gary Galpin would lead and Simon Clegg took up the Tail end. The group headed off from Eccleshall towards Newport where they picked up the A41 and headed north. Spray from other vehicles and large puddles were some of the hazards presented to the riders, and a good awareness was essential. The route was not the most exciting ever undertaken, but served a purpose, so in about an hour the stopping point was reached.
Everyone headed into McDonalds to dry out their sodden clothing and have a welcome hot drink and food. People had now discovered the failings of their clothing and a dry out and warm up were just what was needed.
Although the rain had now eased, and some members were willing to venture further on, it was decided that most were keen to return back to Eccleshall, all be it by the B roads through Audlem and Woore. Again about an hour of riding saw the group returned to Eccy from where folks headed home for an early bike wash.
Although only a short ride, everyone had at least had some reward for their effort of getting out. Many thanks to everyone who had the bottle to support the event and make it worthwhile.
Gary
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