It was a complete surprise for Jan and she really enjoyed her birthday meal surrounded by her children, grandchild and friends. My only regret was that I hadn't managed to smuggle a Konditor and Cook birthday cake with us!
Next morning, after a long breakfast it was time to continue the ride. For todays leg I would be joined by our old friend Kevin.
The plan was that we would ride to Meriden "The village at the centre of England" and visit the Festival of Cycling that was supposed to be taking place there. However, when we got to the village green it was pretty much deserted, with the only other cyclist heading off to the fish and chip shop. There are a couple of memorials on the green, one commemorates all the cyclists killed during the First and Second World Wars, the other one (pictured above) is an ancient cross that indicates the middle of England. Technically however, the centre of England is a few miles to the north north-east. With nothing going on, Kev and I continued riding, there were no severe hills but sometimes a long drag can start to become hard work:
Do you lke my saddle? - it's becoming more comfortable by the day - I think my bottom has won the battle!
On reaching Nuneaton, we went onto a canal towpath to follow NCN52. Whilst we were taking this photo a bus went by that had been named "Larry Grayson". It made me chuckle but Kevin explained that Larry Grayson came from Nuneaton.
After a while NCN52 switches from the canal towpath to the course of an old railway which took us on for another couple of miles until it goes under the A5:
From here it was but a short ride to our intended lunch stop in the village of Stoke Golding, but as we got near I had a text to tell me that we were going to lunch elsewhere. It transpired that Jan and the others had stopped at a pub called the White Swan and had received a less than friendly welcome - in fact it was downright rude. The pubs loss - they would have sold seven dinners and drinks if they'd had any manners (or business acumen), instead we went a mile or so further on to a much, much better place - The Dog and Hedgehog. Here we had superb food and drink and friendly, attentive and excellent service. If you're ever in the vicinity of Stoke Golding (self-styled "Birthplace of the Tudor dynasty"), don't bother stopping there, go on to nearby Dadlington and visit the Dog and Hedgehog.
After lunch it was but a short ride on through Barwell and to our next overnight stop with our friends Julie and Kevin.
Stats:
Mileage: 25 miles
Average speed: 15 mph
Maximum speed: 29 mph
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