Exton Economics

John’s early arrival meant that we could enjoy a leisurely cup of tea and a couple of bourbon biscuits before the off, debating the question ‘to dunk, or not to dunk’. The summer seemed to be holding out as John and Al kitted up for a Hambledon ride; offered a choice of route John opted to take the run to Exton via Old Winchester Hill that Jon P and Al had dusted off a couple of weeks before.

We only got two hundred yards down the road before Al had to haul his bike onto the pavement in the village to change an inner tube – it was obvious that the slow puncture festering in the back tyre for a few weeks had finally decided to become a proper leak. With parity restored the pair resumed the ride and took a small section of bridleway towards Chidden across a field of stubble. Having joined the road it was John’s turn to report a malfunction – he had somehow broken one of the right-hand gear-shifters. Thankfully only the very end of the lever had sheered off so John still had full use of the rear mech. and we were able to continue despite the mishap.

Mercifully we had an uneventful climb cross-country to the ridge of the south downs. Having reached the road we then turned west and climbed gently towards Old Winchester Hill at a sociable pace (after all it had been three weeks since the pair had been ona ride together and there was much to catch up on). A sign on the boundary fence of the reserve notified visitors of precautions which should be taken in light of the recent foot and mouth outbreak just a few miles north. We continued on towards the summit of the hill after disinfecting our wheels and shoes with the brush and solution provided . A clear, sunny evening afforded excellent views through 180 degrees from the Isle of Wight in the south, towards Beacon Hill in the West and north towards the Hog's Back.

John decontaminates his bike

Al decided it was about time we found the correct way off the hill (rather than proceed in a westerly direction as usual directly off the hill using the footpath). Al knew there was an alternative bridle path but had never had the inclination to find it on previous outings. After a Wizard-of-Oz-esque debate we plumped for the middle of three tracks and fortunately happened on the bridal path which eventually joined the footpath into Exton at the bottom of the hill. An alternative route into Exton follows the dried-up stream running alongside the footpath, or so it was when Jon and Al last used this trail. This evening the stream was about 6” deep so the pair adopted amphibious mode as they ducked under the overhanging vegetation (bringing back memories of ‘watery lane’ in East Worldham from TCA outings of yesteryear for Al). John seemed to relish this technical challenge and was beaming from ear-to-ear as he hauled his bike out of the stream when it finally became unnavigable.

Al and John enjoy the view from Old Winchester Hill

It was around the time we were decontaminating our bikes that it dawned on us that we had only £5 between us: Al had cleared out his back-pack and forgotten to top up the emergency cash pocket;e John had neglected to replace the fiver in the secret pocket of his jersey. It was therefore left to John to scrape together his loose change and see if he could buy the essential TCA refreshments. Quite impressively John returned with two (full) pints of Wadworths, explaining that a kind gentleman at the bar had overheard the tale of our predicament and bailed us out the 40p we were short. Enough to restore one’s faith in human nature! These two pints tasted particularly satisfying as we drank them overlooking the mill pond, watching grey wagtails and a kingfisher going about their business in the evening sun.

Finishing our discount ale we left Exton and rode the short distance to Meonstoke where we could pick up the disused railway line towards Soberton. Leaving the railway line we then cycled forlornly past the White Lion without stopping due to our depleted funds – no Palmers 200 for us tonight. Instead we headed up the hill directly towards Hambledon and the turkey jalfrazi that awaited our return. We watched a young Bruce Willis in The Last Boy Scout as we enjoyed our dinner, vowing that in future we should heed the Scout motto we both repeated weekly as boys; ‘Be Prepared’. Emergency funds will be double checked from this day forward!

Route Map (click to enlarge):

Elevation Profile:

(Posted by: Al)

Summer Sun and Modern Morals

We were back to two again this week as Jon H took an evening out to put the final touches to his fancy dress outfit for the weekend's Harley Davidson rally. Jon P and Al fancied a gentler ride after the rigors of the weekend - legs were still aching from the Chichester Challenge - as we set off on a bumble up to a favorite focal point for the TCA; Old Winchester Hill, a site of special archaeological and natural interest. We took the gentle ascent to the ridge of the South Downs by country lane and farm track; the pace was gentle and sociable on a glorious summer evening.

Jon and Al take a shady break in Chidden

We followed the road towards the nature reserve keeping a bird list as we went, although we also admired the flora which we could identify - for example rose bay willow herb in full bloom within the overgrown hedgerows.

Jon rides into the sunset

We turned off the road and onto the track which leads to the summit of the hill. There were a number of other couples enjoying the rare glimpse of the sun this summer (we suspected however that they had different motives to the TCA duo). We hung around to admire the view (that is the vista, not the other couples) and for the customary photos before descended the hill to the west.

On top of Old Winchester Hill

The bridle path off the hill is part of the South Downs way and is an excellent fast descent. The other bonus is that it leads directly to the Shoe Inn at Exton which has arguably the best beer garden of any of our regular haunts. Jon headed for the bar and came back with two pints of the excellent Wadworth's Summersault. We sat in the garden overlooking the mill stream enjoying the essence of a good summer's ride.

Jon gets the beers in: The Shoe Inn (above)
and it's picturesque beer garden (below)

From Exton we had a few hundred yards to do along the main A32 to Meonstoke where one can join the disused railway line. Once on this well-ridden track we cranked the pace up a little for the 3-mile dash to Soberton. We commented on the dark clouds gathering to the east when we were on the hill but the skies had darkened even more all of a sudden. Sure enough, as we emerged from the railway line onto the road at Soberton, there were the characteristic occasional large droplets of rain preeminent of a thunder storm. We did what any man would do: hammered the last couple of hundred yards as if our lives depended on it - up the hill and over the village green - for the shelter of the White Lion's covered patio.

Sure enough by the time we'd ordered our regular pints of Palmers 200 the rain was lashing down as thunder rumbled in the distance - summer 2007 had obviously suffered another relapse. We sat in the shelter of the pub and counted our blessings as we had for once avoided a soaking. By the time we had downed our beer and set of over the hill back to Hambledon the rain had stopped completely and we knew a home made curry waiting at home would complete a near-perfect summer ride.

As we sat in the White Lion with our pints of ale we considered a problem of modern morals that we now canvas our readership to solve: The previous week Al had asked Jon P's permission to take a promotional insert from inside his mountain biking magazine. The flier advertised a special offer for a bike computer that Al thought might appeal to John H. Having passed the details on to John H Al subsequently realised that there was a unique number on the reverse of the flier that could be used to enter a competition for a £4500 mountain bike. Here's the dilemma: Would Al be entitled to keep the bike if he won? Should he give the bike to Jon, or should some compromise be reached? Your suggestions are invited in the comments; how we resolved the problem over a pint will be explained before our next posting...

Route Map (click to enlarge): Elevation Profile:

(Posted By: Al)