The Tour de Berkshire & Wiltshire

Two of our very keen cyclists took to the road on Sunday 17 July, and took part in the event organised by Reading Cycle Club in memory of Anthony Maynard who died in 2008.

Our two cyclists were Andrew Gray and Chris Maffey. The weather wasn’t particularly kind for the 110 kilometre ride; in old money that’s just under 70 miles, so not just a stroll in the park.

It was a tough day of cycling through the beautiful Berkshire and Wiltshire Downs, with a fair amount of up hills and down dales. There was a high rate of punctures and mechanical problems.  Just how many spare inner tubes should a cyclist carry? Well our own Andrew Gray had to endure three punctures on the round – a lesser person might have given up, so fair play to him for continuing and finishing the course. Naturally, there are only so many spare tubes you can carry, and on his third puncture fortunately he was able to borrow one from Chris, but we’re not sure if he has yet returned it!

Andrew’s sheer look of determination:

Chris making it look very easy:

The True Food Co-op, which is a not-for-profit organisation based in Reading, and has recently become a client of Kirkpatrick & Hopes, laid on the food for the day.

Total cycling time was around 4.08 hours for Chris, but with food breaks and puncture stops the overall time was around 5.25.

I think all those who took part deserve a well-earned pat on the back.