Many thanks to everyone that rode and helped to support the South Salopian yesterday. It was great to see new faces as well as old.
I would like to thank Simon Walker, Noel O'Dwyer Andy Terry, Claire Dignon, Mike Haddon, Rob Wade and Dave Cox for helping out yesterday.
The weather was kind with a developing breeze to blow people home. Somebody told me that in French, “salop” is a French word of abuse. I will let you look that one up. Abuse is certainly something well connected to the reputation of July’s Kidderminster Killer but fortunately, I hope you weren’t cursing the South Salopian. Salop refers to Shropshire and I hope the newbies to the county found it a place worth revisiting. Whilst not necessarily ‘easy’, it is one of the easiest audax routes heading west into the county. The Marches is certainly my favourite destination, hence so many of my audaxes heading in that direction. I learnt that the South Salopian even crossed into Wales for just 100 metres or 15 seconds of riding.
Most people’s highlight yesterday was the passage over Duckley Nap on the Long Mynd. This should hopefully dispel the myth that there is no easy way over the Long Mynd. I did once think routing this event via Asterton Bank but my worth would not be worth living.
Nobody seemed to miss the second information control in the middle of no where but there were a few overshoots at the railway bridge in Leebotwood. Next time this control will be move to possibly somewhere more obvious.
We had 69 starters yesterday and 23 non-starters. I shut down entries to the event early in order to avoid hot meal catering probelms.
A small number bailed due to sickness or mechanicals, including one catastrophic wheel failure. There was no lost property yesterday, in case you can’t find that lost pair of valuable cycle glasses.
VOTE FOR NEXT YEAR’S AUTUMN AUDAX
If you want to post pictures of your ride and would like to vote on next year’s Autumn Audax route, please visit the following Facebook Group page:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/kidderm ... illeraudax
• Salinae & Cotswold: 12th November for Droitwich Cycling Club. Taking entries.
www.droitwichcyclingclub.co.uk
• Sunrise & Snowdrop Express: end of February. Beacon RCC. Watch out for announcements.
• Hay Skivers: 5th May. Droitwich Cycling Club. Watch out for announcements.
• Kidderminster Killer: 22nd July 2023 for Beacon RCC. Taking entries.
• Friday Ferlix: 11th August 2023 for Beacon RCC. Taking entries. Brand new no facilities event using rarely ridden routes.
All the best for happy cycling.
Kind regards
Philip
