One ride starting from Ivinghoe church at 10am for Sunday, the ride can be ridden in the traditional way or you can join a team to solve the ivinghoe Velos Christmas mystery. Puzzle teams will be split up depending on your favourite Christmas sweet rather than a particualr pace, this is a social ride not a race!
Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/48349983
The Puzzle:
Maximus Minium, a new rider with the Ivinghoe Velos, is really looking forward to Christmas. He has bought his granddaughter, Ally, her first bike. Max imagines that in years to come he will be able to see Ally’s pro race results with pride, knowing he started the ball rolling. Max has locked the Christmas bike up at home and written the code down along with his favourite piece of cycling advice to pass onto Ally.
Being security conscious Max has also written down a whole list of dummy codes to throw thiefs off the trail, these codes and associated advice won’t open the lock, keeping the bike safe.
Sounds perfect right? Disaster has struck as “local legend hunters” Richard Bembridge and Grant Mordey have stolen the sheet with all the codes on! They have come up with a cunning route with all the clues to discount each wrong combination, the route keeps riders off the strava segment these guys want to hold as local legend this Christmas!
Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to ride the classic Ivinghoe Velos route looking for clues to help Max get the right code to unlock the Christmas bike. Each clue will give you a four digit number which can be discounted from the list leaving only the correct code, enabling Maximus to unlock the bike and save Christmas!!!
Once you know the correct code just report the piece of advice attached to it to Ivinghoe velos HQ at the Rose and Crown, we can then pass it on to Max and save Christmas!
To help keep things easy on the bike there is an “on road” short version with the clues and the possible combinations supplied at the start of the sunday ride alonmgh with a pencil to mark off the wroing codes.
Things will be tricky though because after the first combination code you find, (listed first on the answers), the rest of the clues are not in the same order as the list of codes, so you will need to cross off the answers as you confirm them and help release Ally’s new bike to launch her cycling career. There is also a gaming “easter egg” to hunt for during the ride.
The Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/48349983
The Clues (long version, a short printed version will be provided at the start of the ride)
- Along Northfield Road find a Bridleway sign on the left as a track leaves the road heading towards Ashridge There was 4 numbers on this public Bridleway sign (including two in a fraction) Note down the 4 numbers to discount this combination code
Background: This bridleway will take you up to the ridgeway, a long distance path running from Ivinghoe Beacon to Avebury in Wiltshire, it’s 87 miles to walk and slightly longer on a bike as there are some sections which are footpaths only. The ridgeway is known as Britain’s oldest road and it’s a track that follows high ground through the Chilterns and beyond, used regularly for over 5,000 years while on it you follow in the footsteps of Celtic druids, Saxon kings and victorian poets. Many Christmas trees can be seen along the route!
2) Into Aldbury turn left at the pond and look for cottage number 39. The name of this cottage, a hint to an old Aldbury cottage industry and a product used in Victorian times to decorate Christmas trees. Use the four letters in the name of the cottage with the code 1=a, 2=b 3=c etc. Use the FIRST number which corresponds with each letter to work out the combination to discount
Background: When you find this answer here you will be uncovering history from 1572 when refugees from France came to the villages of Buckinghamshire and Northamptonshire with their trade, it’s the reason why some of our local villages have a Flemish & Huguenots flavour, In 1791 Amersham was the centre of production for this commodity.
3) Turn round and head for the tea shop on Toms Hill, look for the plaque, your next combination to cross off is the year the Albury Veterans Hall was established. Now head for Wiggington up Hemp lane.
Background: At the start of the first world war troops from the “Inns of Court” training corps came to train at Berkhamsted, nick-named “The Devils Own” the soldiers trained on the common in readiness for the battlefields of Northern France. 12,000 men passed through this basic training. The soil type here is very similar to that on the battlefields, so practice trenches were dug which can still be seen to this day a short distance from Aldbury. Troops heading to the front line in 1914 may have taken part in the “truce of Christmas” when an unofficial ceasefire took place and troops from each side met in no-man’s land, shared presents are played impromptu games of football.
4) Turn left down Wiggington Bottom and soon find a gate which looks like it was used on a railway, to help you identify the gate there is a red Christmas bauble on the gate post. Be careful not to pick up a fine here. Using the code a=1, b=2, c=3 etc, use the FIRST number of each letter to work out the combination from the animal name on the sign on this gate.
Background: Folklore suggests that in the 18th century London ejected all the pimps and prostitutes to Wiggington, giving it the nick-name, “Wicked Wiggington”. By the 19th century Straw Plaiting was a popular industry in Wiggington, so maybe the Londoners calmed down and earned an honest wage through providing material for local hat making?
5) While in Wiggington Bottom check out the three houses on the left with cream fronts there are dates on these houses, which is the most popular year, this is the next combination you can discount
Background: Wiggington Bottom has less than 20 houses, but there is a house numbered 243. This is because the first Lord Rothschild built many properties in the Tring Park estate and they were numbered according to his records rather than their adjacency to other properties. The Rothschild family have had a big influence on Tring and the surrounding area but for Christmas a Trip to The Rothschild owned manor at Waddesdon for the Christmas festival makes a great day out.
6) In Cholesbury can you find information about the Hillfont? (by the hall on the green) The next combination you can discount is the year at the start of the decade when excavations took place
Background: Cholesbury Camp is a prehistoric hill fort hidden in a beech wood within the village of Cholesbury, Constructed on high ground with two water sources, pottery and stones used to grind crops point to regular habitation in the late iron age. As time moves on the hill fort will have seen many Christmas traditions come and go.
7) Still in Cholesbury, opposite the turn for Rays Hill, the pub and the windmill, there is a Stone erected for Queen Victoria, what years was the stone put in place? Discount this combination
Background: Cholesbury likes to use stones to please queens of England, as well as this obelisk on the boundary between Cholesbury and Hawridge, close by there are some pudding stones dedicated to Queen Elizabeth for her diamond jubilee. Hertfordshire pudding stones are a rare formation of glacial sediment dating back 50-60 million years ago. The flints within the rock look like plums in a Christmas pudding hence the name.
8) Stopping by St Leonards church there is a sign post, your next combination is the distance to Aston Clinton, then the distance to Wendover, followed by the number of the cycle route
Background: Saint Leonard of Noblac is the patron Saint of barrel makers among other things, his day of feast is 6th November, so after a hearty meal on this day there is plenty of time to fill those barrels with booze ready for Christmas celebrations!
9) On the road back towards Wendover Woods you will pass Chiltern Dog Rescue, can you spy the year this charity was established?
Background: “ A dog is not for Christmas” was first coined in 1978 by Clarissa Baldwin, the chief executive of the national canine defence league. So if you are thinking of being a dog owner please make sure you train them well, keep them on a lead near bikes and clear up their poo.
10) Descend down the hill but slow your progress at the entrance to Wendover Woods, look up the drive for two numbers of wooden posts, make sure you are not speeding and note down this combination
Background: Haddington Hill in Wendover Woods is the highest point in the Chilterns at 876 feet above sea level. The 325 hectares of woodland at Wendover are managed by the forestry commission. Christmas trees grown within the woods are on sale at Christmas tree farm in Chesham and Christmas tree place in Berkhamsted.
11) Heading down towards Wendover stop to admire some old cottages next to the pack horse pub, from left to right as you look at them your next combination is the numbers of the two Coldharbour cottages nearest the pub
Background: Coldharbour lane was a song recorded by anti racist and LGTBQ+ campaigner Tom Robinson, he also recorded a collaboration with Peter Gabriel for Capital radio “Merrily on high” for Christmas 1978 as usual for Christmas songs, it’s pretty awful. Now it’s time to get on the 2,4,6,8 motorway for the next clue!
12) Ride into the centre of Wendover take a break on the friendship seat, you are invited to chat to strangers here but don’t be distracted, for your next clue you are looking towards chocolate. What year was the redevelopment of the manorial waste? While here how about a group selfie in front of the Wendover Christmas tree?
Background: Manorial waste is not the mayor’s poo, it’s a piece of land within manor grounds which is not enclosed, often of low value, it retains the rights of a common. The 1925 properties act gave rights of access for air and exercise to the memorial wastes. Here in Wendover there is usually a lovely Christmas tree up for December.
13) Time for some Halton Heritage! Find the sign board on a grass verge, and use the year Sir Frances Dashwood bought the Manor to remove another code from your list.
Background: Sir Francis Dashwood was a Tory MP and founder of the notorious hell fire caves in West Wy combe. The caves were a product of mining chalk for the A40 road, Numerous illicit activities took place in the caves including sex parties, drinking, wenching and mock rituals. Sounds to me like any other office Christmas party?
14) As you cross the Wendover canal stop momentarily to find out what year the canal was built, the blue sign on the start of the towpath will help you
Background: The Wendover arm of the canal was built to supply water to the summit level of the grand junction canal, water from springs in Wendover was carried to Bulbourne in Hertfordshire, after a few years around 1800, the same time as Good Queen Charlotte introduced Christmas trees to the Queen’s lodge in Windsor, it was widened to allow boats to transport coal, wood, straw and maybe even Christmas trees.
15) As you dash into Aston Clinton have a look for the date the Rothschild Arms was established, you should have too much trouble locating this as you ride past.
Background: Would you believe it! The Christmas cracker was invented in the same year this pub was opened! Tom Smith invented the cracker while trying to add some excitement to his bon bon sweets which he sold at Christmas along with love mottos written on tissue paper. The “crackle”, later to become the cracker, came from a chemical reaction from friction as the wrapper was broken.
16) Into Marsworth for your last clue, looking for the lovely old sign on the canal bridge (Watch out for Miquel Indurian’s ghost here, we may not have performed the exorcism yet!) What is the first year of the motor car act shown on the sign?
Background: Talking of ghosts, Charlies Dickens “a christmas carol” is a story about ghostly visitations to Ebenezer Scrooge teaching him the true lesson of life that kindness and compassion are more important that selfish money making, I’d like to think there is one ghost missing from the story, the one who tells Scrooge the n+1 bike rule.
At this point you have ridden the route so should have crossed out 16 combinations leaving only the one correct code that will unlock the Christmas bike and start Ally’s cycling career! I can see the headlines now “Tour De France Femme winner 2035 Ally Minium from the Ivinghoe Velos” Report back to Ivinghoe Velos HQ @ The Rose & Crown with the piece of advice attached to the correct combination to confirm you have solved the mystery. Thank you for your efforts! Merry Christmas
The Codes & advice (lose 16, keep one)
4934 The mileage is the key! Putting the effort in all year round brings cycling success, a bike is not just for Christmas & school holidays!
1515 Moderate intensity aerobic exercise is the best for fat burning, while higher intensity efforts are good for building muscle mass.
1930 When riding in poor conditions a slightly wider tire at a lower pressure makes for a safer, more comfortable ride, carrying a pump to inflate tires will stop you having to involve strangers with pushchairs.
1135 When taking a turn on the front on a group ride don’t increase the pace so that you blow up yourself or other riders, steady pacing is the successful way to ride as a group
1920 Carry a couple of new innertubes on rides to replaced punctured ones. If you are tubless and don’t carry spares make sure you have a direct line to international rescue (the wife)
1977 You are not too pro to wave.
1897 Cheesy chips have been proven to have highly effective virus repelling properties, they are an ideal post ride snack when gathering as a group.
1911 Spinning your legs in a high cadence and an easy gear helps protect your knees, but don’t rely on this too much as you also need to condition your legs to deliver the power needed when climbing steep hills.
1963 If your other half criticises you for being out too long on the bike, just suggest that you look at buying a faster bike.
1012 Riding with cycle specific cycle shoes gives you more power, It’s been found that using “clipless” pedals returns a 16.6% increase in maximum power compared to flat pedals with everyday shoes.
1720 Riding in different areas can reinvigorate your cycling, plan trips away on two wheels, the best way to see new places! If you ever get lost you can blame “garmin issues”
2690 Cycling is better with friends, try to join others for at least some of your rides, so you can have a break from the wind, have a chat and share knowledge of routes, cafes and other cycling tips.
1847 If you work hard you can become a legend, you have to be born into the right family to be a king.
1896 Practise turning your head back while cycling in a straight line by relaxing your elbows and dropping the opposite shoulder to the direction you want to turn your head
4530 Whilst riding into a headwind is a bit of a pain, it’s actually pretty good resistance training, forget the speed and concentrate on the power (the first pint at the pub will taste better after a bit of hard work)
1974 Most riders don’t mind getting caught in showers, the general consensus is that you shouldn’t start a ride in heavy rain. Some other riders use zwift, or other computer games when the weather is poor.
1112 When the start of the ride includes a really big hill it’s probably best not to go for seconds of a full English breakfast.