With Metcheck predicting rain it was perhaps no surprise that Sunday saw us getting wetter than a sackful of cod. It rained, persistently and without let up for most of the ride, providing hazardous riding conditions and testing our general resolve.

I was out mainly to welcome a couple of new riders, Danny and Cathy and to meet up with our other regulars, including Tony who I had hitherto not had the chance to meet. So eight of us headed out onto the Ranmore Hills.

With conditions so bad we decided to keep things relatively simple, especially as with new riders and my own hazard radar on full alert it seemed the sensible thing to do. Even so we successfully tackled the Land Rover descent in all it’s wet, rooty glory before heading back up to Ranmore and across to Box Hill.

Unfortunately, with such mucky conditions we had to say goodbye to Danny as his brake pads were shot, so he headed back along the A24. After that, Jez and Jason suffered commitment issues (though not before taking on some cake at Box Hill!) and the rest of us carried on across Headley after briefly meeting Epsom Dave out on a solo ride. All in all, pretty hard work.

By the time we arrived back at Bockett’s we were cold and very wet and I was glad I only had another mile to go. Fair play to all who came out on such a miserable day, it was one of those occassions when just covering the miles was a result in itself. Hopefully we’ll see everyone again soon when the conditions might be more favourable.

At least I finished the day feeling a bit more confidant about my riding after gettng down Land Rover and generally getting more acquainted with the slippery conditions.