Iain Cowden

Aye, another good day on the bike despite it being a bit colder and damper than anticipated. We were happy to make it a non-stopper given the conditions, tho' needless to say it was quite dry by the time I reached Glasgow! Just over 84 miles for me (and I knew it)! Thanks to all for the company - will post again midweek for a run next Saturday. Iain

Great Boyd - see you in the morning! Sorry for the late post - a few folk indicated last week that to-morrow was a non-starter for them, but I am expecting at least four including Boyd and I. So if there are any folk still thinking/swithering about it, there's the option of company for a Saturday run if you fancy it. Iain

Forecast is looking pretty good - mild even by recent standards, so I'll be out for more of the same. 9.30am Miller St. 50 - 60 steady miles, average speed approx. 16 mph. Company welcome for those the Saturday suits. Thanks Iain

Fantastic result - well done Hamish! Iain

No Alan - I was the weary and mud spattered rider in a cream top - we passed just about the stone bridge at the Cart just after the lights/metal bridge. Aye, it was an easterly wind alright! Iain

Another fine day on the bike in good company! Ian McG, Alan F, Kenny C and I met at the Smiddy in good time to ride over to Miller St for 9.30. All went well till Crosslee where I carelessly ran over a shard of glass with inevitable consequences! At the clubrooms we met lots of faces, some of them new to me. Apologies if I miss anyone or get a name wrong, but in addition to the above mentioned there was Emma, Andrew, another Alan, Bill T, Boyd, David T,Peter and Robin. So 12 of us set off. I held us up again just before Bowfield with another flat due to a dogdy valve on a new tube! Thanks to Kenny C for assistance and Andrew for the magic gas cannister (for the tyre sadly, not me)! We climbed Bowfield at our own pace, re-grouping at the top in misty conditions. From there over to Lugton, Dunlop (where AlanF headed off to Neilston due to time constraints), then on to Stewarton. From Stewarton we took the Irvine road as far as Cunninghame Head where we took a right on thru' Benslie, skirting Kilwinning, up the sharp hairpin, before crossing the Lugton/Irvine road, then on to the White road back to Barrmill. From there down to Beith, taking the B road from below the cemetery over to the Hungry Monk and down to Lochwinnoch - one further puncture ( for Boyd) and a minor mechanical along the way. At Lochwinnoch some returned via the track, whilst Emma, Andrew, Bill T, Boyd, David T, Kenny, Ian and I headed over Johnshill towards Kilmacolm. Once over the tops David, then Emma peeled off - David for home, Emma to head over the track to Kilbirnie, returning to BOW "for some flat miles". Chapeau indeed! At Kilmacolm, Andrew and Boyd headed homeward via the track, whilst the rest of us headed over Westglen road. At the end of that we parted company with Bill, with the remaining three headed over to Bishopton via the Monkey House to Bishopton. That was home for Ian and Kenny peeled off for the bridge and home to Milngavie, with me heading home via Renfrew, where I saw Alan McLean heading in the opposite direction. So another good run despite minor mechanical irritations and the rain mainly stayed away . Folk declined a cafe stop preferring to head for home . I had almost exactly 80 miles door to door. Thanks again to all for the company and patience with the punctures. Rider of the day was Emma in my book - coped well in the bunch, pedalled efficiently and seemed strong thru'out - then set off for more. Will post again for next Saturday if it suits anyone. Iain

Excellent folks! See you in the morning. Chung - have a great day wherever you decide. I have never had a day's fishing in my life - must put it on a to-do list! Iain

Forecast looking not too bad at present so I'll be out again for some 50-60 miles at 9.30am from Miller St on Saturday. Pace average about 16mph - route determined by conditions/suggestions on the day - if it's frosty again a variation on the coast most likely - many more of those and I'll be coming in and out with the tide! Company very welcome for those it suits. Thanks Iain

Aye, commiserations Charlie and apologies for the mis-diagnosis - as Chung says they obviously breed 'em tough in BOW! All the best for a speedy recovery. Andrew, Bill, Chung and I headed out along the Georgetown, which was indeed treacherous in places, then round the coast to Largs, up the Haylie and back via the track from Kilbirnie. Other than Charlie's mishap, and some areas with frozen run offs across road or track, we had a great run - fantastic views down the coast/over to Arran and, from above KIlbirnie you could clearly see Tinto hill to the south - incredible visibility. I had about 78 miles door to door, which rapidly became 82 after a 2 lap tour of Newlands as Mary made her way back from M & S! Thanks to the others for good company - will post again for next week for those a Saturday suits. Iain

Fine Chung - cu then. Iain

Good stuff folks - see you in the morning! Iain P.s. I am not the guilty party on this occasion Mr McGinty... the joint householder is the happy recipient this time!

Excellent Chung! Will look forward to it. In regard to your P.S - the answer is Yes! Personally I blame you and that Kenny C one. I even tried "Buddies Anonymous"... a worldwide freephone service, available only to those born and bred in Paisley... how it works is that if you are considering buying anything - anytime, anywhere, you just ring in and a highly trained counsellor will talk you out of it! As my granny used to say... "save 100% - keep walking!" Usually works... but not this time. Iain

Forecast looks like it will be fine if pretty cold on Saturday. I am certainly planning to be out, so will be at Miller Street for 9.30am - looking for 50-60 steady miles (average pace about 16 mph) from there as usual. Company very welcome for anyone it suits. If it's as cold as some forecasts the coast will probably still be the best option. If any of the usual suspects are planning to ride over from Glasgow and want to meet up just let me know. Thanks Iain

Glad you folks made it out (eventually)! More than I managed in Lancashire - blizzards, then heavy squalls yesterday - brought a clean bike home so turbo beckons today! Great to see Tony C out and about. Will post later in the week to see interest for a Saturday run again. Iain

I will miss out this week as I will be travelling to Lancashire. Others are keen to keep the Saturday run going and Chung I think is happy to suggest a possible route! So, same time (9.30) same place(Miller St) same house rules! I hope the weather is kind and you have a good run out. I'll take my bike with me and hope to do likewise! The next week-end takes us up to the Sunday Reliability Series. Folk may understandably prefer to ride those. Nevertheless, there may be some who a Saturday suits best, or who are happy to ride both days. Weather permitting, I will be up for a Saturday over the next few weeks so will post as usual. Iain+

Another good run out today in fine company - more good base miles! Six of us left Miller St.; Andrew, Boyd, Bill T, Chung, Jody and me. Out along the Georgetown and round the coast to W Kilbride, where we had a cafe stop, some food and much needed heat up! Jody, without much recent time on the bike, was going well and left us at Inverkip to return via IBM. We were caught and passed by the Renfrew bunch around the Cloch and caught up with them again at the communal comfort break at Largs (JWCC much in evidence). Some of us had benefited from last week's miles, with Bill taking long pulls at the front down the coast and Boyd firing along at an admirably efficient cadence! Back via Dalry, Kilbirnie and the track into a cold easterly headwind. Just over 87 miles for me and a bit more for Chung for sure. Thanks to all for the company and again working well together. My whereabouts next week-end are a bit uncertain but I'll post again midweek - hopefully we can keep a Saturday run going for those it suits. Iain

Even mair betterer! Fine Chung - Bella it is. Goodo Boyd - Richard is working to-morrow I think. Iain

Excellent! Weather wise looks like more of the same to-morrow, so best thermals and we should be OK! If we wake up to anything unexpected I'll post by 8am, otherwise 9.30am/Miller St it is. Jody, as Andrew says pace was 15-16 mph last week, mostly into a slight headwind. As you say, if we go out thru' Bishopton there are a number of options to bail out if anyone wants to, or is pushed for time. Hope to see you in the morning. Chung, if you you're able to make it and are riding over, we could meet at the Hurlet if that suited - say 8.55 am ? (should have a tail wind). I'll look here again later and in the morning. Iain

Great to see the re-emergence of the restricted gear event which I think hasn't been run since 2010 . Carol & Dave were asking me a bit about it at the Velodrome last night - for once I was reasonably well informed due to some recent reading. The following is from Tim Hilton's delightful and meandering "One More Kilometre and We're in the Showers- Memoirs of a Cyclist" (Harper Perennial), Chapter 111, page 71, when discussing British club cycling and the pattern of the year. "The new cycling year begins after the club dinners. ...In February we find "reliability trials", fast training rides, open to all comers. Then come the first time trials of the year, often on restricted gears, and two up events..." So, the shape of the confined calendar follows a wider tradition it seems. Due thanks to Kenny C for steering the book in my direction - a great read and valuable reference! Iain

Hi Folks! Latest forecasts I've looked at suggest it will be very cold but hopefully we may miss much of the snow! Plans necessarily provisional as yet, but if it's safe I would be up for some more miles on last week's basis. So, weather permitting 9.30am at Miller St. Given the low temperatures a coastal route seems the only likely option - maybe last week's in reverse? I promise to come up with something more imaginative in future/as weather allows! I'll post again to-morrow early evening when we have updated forecasts. Safety paramount but hopefully we can get out - otherwise duvet & turbo day beckons!. Company very welcome. Thanks Iain

Great run out today in fine company. Some 9 of us turned up at Miller St, including the lesser spotted Mr. Howard © - great to see you back on the bike Colin - it's been too long! Colin, Boyd, Chung, Ian McG, Andrew ( more that capable of "purposeful" and a few notches up from that I'd say!), Kenny C, Bill T, Richard and me. Reports had it that the track was icy so we headed out to Howwood by the main road, taking the back road to Lochwinnoch - near there Colin headed into the high hills for some secret altitude training, whilst the rest of us took the main road from Lochwinnoch, through Kilbirnie to Dalry. From there up and over to West Kilbride. We agreed to take the climb out of Dalry at our own pace, re-grouping at the top. There we agreed to head up the coast into the easterly wind, stopping at Gourock for coffee & grub. Thereafter, we joined forces with a Lomonds Road group to Bishopton, where we parted from Bill and Ian. Andrew and Kenny turned off at the Red Smiddy and Boyd at Renfrew whilst Richard, Chung and I carried on to Glasgow. It was a really good club run, with riders co-operating and supporting one another - I actually don't like the coast road much at all, but it was a good shout today given obvious concerns over ice and some time constraints - I felt comfortable and safe throughout. For me it was 78.4 miles door to door (so maybe 58-60 from the clubrooms?), averaging 15.6 mph. I was never out of the wee ring but know I've had a good workout and some much needed mileage. So, thanks to all for turning out on an enjoyable day - just what I needed! Nice to meet Andrew and ride some miles with Bill & Boyd again. A number of folk seem interested in a regular Saturday club run over the next couple of months, so I'll post something similar for next week and see how it goes. Given time of year I'm again happy to leave the route choice until the day - tho' more than happy for others to suggest routes - a couple of possibilities mooted today were: Roseneath/Kilcreggan and maybe a wee trip across the water from Gourock. Thanks again Iain

Even Better! Chung - have heard from Richard and will intercept you folks at Bella, according to Richard's timetable! Andrew, look forward to seeing you at Miller St. Alan, thanks - will see what the panel thinks route wise. Iain

Excellent folks - looking forward to it! Richard, if you are riding over solo via Paisley RW and fancy meeting at the usual Bella corner, drop me a text & time. Otherwise, Cus at Miller St. Iain

Thanks again for this Dennis - will confirm nearer the time but hope to make it along again. Great to hear you're back in business! Iain

Well done indeed to all Jets and JWCC - onward and upward! Iain