CYCLEFEAST 2005 REPORT

Cyclefeast was conceived as a follow up to the popular Cyclefest at Lancaster, when John and Pat decided to take a well deserved retirement from festival organising. The basic premise was similar – put a load of cyclists in tents or rooms at an educational establishment, give them a few interesting places to go and some evening entertainment, light the blue touch paper and retire to a safe distance…

On the first day, a hardy core of 20 or so arrived determined to enjoy as much of the week as possible. Arriving at Longridge Towers school with a ‘newbie’ to the festival season in tow (we met getting off the train at Berwick – hello Michael!), I had time to pitch my tent before the first ride set off at 11. Our opening destination was the nearby Honey Farm, which boasts an attractive new feature this year – a café in a double decker bus, with a number of rather nice honey flavoured cakes and biscuits. Having cycled all of 2 miles from the school, we were ready for some sustenance… Then it was off and over the Chain Bridge over the Tweed and into Scotland, and a meander the back way into Berwick in time for lunch. Berwick was a bit of a shock to the system – being market day, the traffic resembled central London! Scattered to various pubs and cafes, we regrouped just outside the town and took the coast path south, an interesting mix of grass and gravel, and at one point a hidden ditch into which co-organiser Philip Stanbury managed to tip his Anthrotech trike, much to the amusement of the rest of the group. No damage done, we carried on and rejoined the road at Scremerston, from where it was a short hop to the Oxford Tea Rooms, famed for its scones and heroic sized pots of tea, a destination which was to feature heavily in the week’s itinerary. Finally it was back to the school, where a few more familiar and new faces had gathered.

After dinner (and Longridge is famed among regulars at Bikeright for its excellent and generous portions), we retired to the multi-media presentation suite (common-room) for a little opening presentation by Ken Davison on the sort of things to expect and a talk by a mad archaeologist (yours truly) on the Archaeology of the Bicycle, proving that even the Neolithic people of Britain had Penny Farthings. We were also treated to a delightful film by Ross Lowell, narrating the experiences and emotions of a man looking back on 70 years of cycling.

Thursday saw a mass ride of cyclists to Etal (after a generous cooked breakfast of course), with groups taking different routes according to their preferred distance. We had all gathered at the Etal Post Office/Lavender Tea Rooms within about half an hour of each other, but the staff managed to serve us all pretty promptly, something for which they should be highly commended! We filled the front lawn, and our bikes sprawled across both verges of the road! The highlight was a special Cyclefeast chocolate cake dispensed at the end of the meal, very sticky and quite delicious! I then set off with a few others to take the narrow gauge steam train to Heatherslaw, and have a look around the watermill. Other groups cycled to the mill direct, or struck off to admire the hillier parts of the local scenery. Evening entertainment was a filmshow, a ride to the pub or a video of the recent 2CV World Gathering at Kelso – not to all tastes, but a feast of vintage Citröens.

On Friday we took on the might of the tides on our trip to Lindisfarne. This island is separated from the mainland by high tide, but at low tide a road causeway allows easy access. Due to the tide times that week, we knew we had to be off the island by 2.15pm, or we’d be stuck there until the evening! Great views were to be had as we swept down to the causeway and across, with a wind behind us, something that didn’t bode so well for our return. After the obviously essential tea and bun stop at the first café we came to, we wandered around the island, taking in the Castle, the Priory, the display on the famous medieval Gospels and the Mead gift shop (mead, for any who don’t know, is a strong alcoholic drink brewed from honey, tradionally by the monks of the Priory). After a short discussion on the most ridiculous souvenir to take back on a bike (a three foot high wooden Celtic cross was a strong candidate), we all dispersed for lunch in the sun. To be on the safe side we set off across the causeway at 1.30pm and were all safely across before the waters closed in. Once again there was a choice of routes back according to ability, but needless to say, mine involved the most direct route and the Oxford Tea Rooms.

After dinner, we saw a selection of slides of a small fluffy tiger called Seamus (in honour of our much missed human friend – get well soon!) enjoying various cycling and eating activities, and then Geoff Apps gave us an illustrated talk on the recent dismantling and rebuilding of the Anthrotech. As Jason remarked, only a bunch of cyclists would sit and look with interest at a chainset soaking in a bowl of Gunk…

Saturday saw a wide range of rides, with something to interest everyone. John Turvey led a small group of hardy souls off on a hilly 50 or so miles, while others visited an open artist’s studio, a local wildlife centre for a Bird of Prey display, or the resort of Seahouses for crazy golf, and an level of competition rarely seen outside the Masters Tournament. I went to see the birds of prey (at Fenton, via Ford), and was able to come face to face with a Harris Hawk, summoned to my gloved hand with a scrap of meat. It was remarked that some people were surprised that the bird got to the snack before me, and I seem to have somehow gained a reputation of liking my food. I can’t think why. We circled round to Millfield for tea (!) and then back to the school in time for some daft souls to take part in the Hill Climb competition. I am proud to report that I came 3rd in the final of this. Out of three. At the same time there was a chance to tryout two Rainbow Recumbents left for the week by …………… Regrettably my legs weren’t long enough, but many people had a go, some for their first time on a recumbent.

In the evening we were treated to some lovely accordion music along with slides of the week so far, and then I showed my slides from a recent visit to Orkney, which I’m afraid went on a little longer than I thought it would, but seemed to keep people interested. Finally (partly due to me overrunning) the film was changed at the last minute to the ever popular Belleville Rendezvous, which still managed to be a revelation to some. A splinter group set up an impromptu pub on the campsite.

Sunday was the final day for a lot of people, and there were once again various rides – a couple of different routes to St Abbs, or my easy pootle, which planned to take in the Oxford Tea Rooms for morning cakes AND lunch. However it turned out that they were heavily booked for lunch, so a little conference over the maps decided on Berwick for lunch instead. The general feeling of the ride remained relaxed, apart from a small delay getting a Leitra/Kettweisal tandem combination over a level crossing and through narrow gates! After a circuit of the Berwick Ramparts, we ate at a café housed in a building still proudly bearing a CTC plaque.

Back at the school, those who had to get back for Monday morning gradually departed, although there was one more highlight when ………. Turned up to collect the recumbents and brought a couple of ‘Q’ bike mini-penny farthings, a laid back cruiser and a bike with 36” wheels for us to play on. After that I headed off, with a regretful glance at the Yorkshire puddings ready for dinner….

I had a great time. We were lucky with the weather, always a bit of a lottery in this country, but the only serious rain fell in the evenings or overnight. The hills are unavoidable in this part of the world, and were always a feature of Cyclefest as well. Anyway, hills are just nature’s way of telling you to slow down and look at the scenery! And scenery there was, from the flat plan of the coast to the east to the mountainous hills to the west and north.

In all, I believe well over 100 cyclists gathered at Longridge (Editor's note: Actually it was just over 50, but it was obviously twice as much fun as that!). Not as many as Cyclefest, but this was the first year, and I for one would like to see it grow. The lively campsite at Lancaster was replaced by a sociably packed dining room – it would be nice to see the field covered in tents one day. With luck this event could pick up the Cyclefest baton and run (ride?) with it, and thanks must go to Phil Stanbury and Jason Patient for organising the whole event, and Ken Davison for taking on the role of Entertainments Manager.

See you all next time?

Sue Archer