Solstice26 was a group of three, heading off on a planned 100 mile ride. Lee joined Mat for his first whole night ride, with Gareth F back for his second solstice ride.

The beauty of this ride is always that the goal is getting to one place at a set time, so the route and distance can be whatever, as long as it gets you there. This year we had a route heading down to Malvern, Welland, Tewkesbury, Broadway and Stratford before the reservoir for sunrise.

The weather was perfect with a steady sunset and fading light all the way to Malvern. The dark bit had a proper dark about it making first light amazing. But the overall feeling of the ride was how silent the world was.  Barrelling along side by side, chatting with no cars or people about.

Gareth F landed the ride of the night, however, as having developed a knee issue from Stratford, the pace dropped and he battled through, all enjoying first light and a great sunrise over the reservoir

I never tire of the solstice ride and as a club, the growing number of members who have used it as a first chance for a whole night ride is a great thing.

If you haven’t yet been able to join us, next year it’ll be Sunday 20th into Monday 21st. And don’t worry a day of work after the solstice pedal is always memorable!