Another successful ride today - if a little strange for me (read on!).

Woke up to cloudy skies and a very damp atmosphere - so packed the waterproofs, just in case. By 9:30 I was on the road and by 10am I had arrived at the start (Poplar 2000) to find Joe and Gary already there. You all know Gary - Joe is a new member who has only just passed his test and has a very tidy CBF1000. By 10:30 the rest had arrived and by the time we set off (after breakfast in McDonalds, of course), we had 12 riders and 1 pillion (welcome to Malc and Val on their first ride of the year with us).

I set off early to take some pictures as the rest rounded the A49 bend and then joined the end as the "back marker" of the buddy system. It soon became apparent that Joe wasn't going to keep up so plans changed. I would stay with Joe and guide him from the front and Neil would be back marker for the rest of the group. This worked very well and, due to the range of the radios, we never really lost touch.

Lunch was soon upon us and we stopped at a very pleasant pub. By this time the sun had come out (just as well I had my waterproofs then!) so we all sat outside in the freezing wind, pretending we were "well 'ard". Once that was done, we toddled off to the National Memorial Arbortum, which is a national monument to the fallen of the Armed Forces.

If you've never been, it is well worth a visit - very pretty and very moving at the same time. We spent a while wandering around and then all gravitated to the tea shop (as all good Manhoc members know). The sun continued to shine and it actually got warm enough to take jackets off. But soon it was time for the return journey and we meandered back to the bikes ready for the trip home.

We set off - same formation as before and had a very pleasant ride back to another pub just outside Leek. Gary very kindly phoned me to tell me which pub it was - shame he was in the middle of the road with a howling gale around him - so I got one word in three... But we were soon all together again and enjoying our last stop before we headed home.

So, a lovely day out - the weather was just about perfect for us - and here's some pictures to keep you all amused. On the Animated tab at the left, I have tried to create some "Moving Pictures" from the ones I took. Please tell me if they are OK.