Hello 2024! We had a pretty good turn out on the last ride of 2023 so well done to the riders who saw the year out with a decent ride and dare I say it an early new year beer or two!

Hopefully folk are fit and well and ready to roll in 2024, if you are looking to enjoy group rides, kick start a healthy lifestyle change, maintain last year’s fitness gains or catch up with friends new and old then Ivinghoe Velos rides are the place to be! New joiners and returners are always welcome and particularly at the start of the year when riding alone can be tough. We ride road bikes, chunky tires are welcome but they do make it hard to keep up!

We are not a cycle club, there is no membership fees, riders can come along as often or as little as they like. We are a large group of friends enthusiastic about riding bikes with a good knowlege of local routes and the mechanical working of our bikes. We have various distance and pace options to suit most casual riders. While our quickest rides can go along at a reasonable pace, If you are training for the Olympics we are probably not the group for you! Our top speed average rarely exceeds 16mph while our lower mileage rides are often around 14mph, depending on how much climbing is involved! Riding in a group saves a good 20% of your usual solo effort so join the group for some easier miles!

Rides Start and finish in Ivinghoe, at the junction by the church, our general aim is to leave no one behind unless they are dead set on wanting to continue solo (we often hear riders say they are happy to continue on their own but we know it’s always easier in a group so we moderate the pace to get everybody back, or split into pace groups)

While we meet and complete suggested routes each week, we can make no guarentees about traffic safety and road conditions, anyone joining us must be responsible for their own safety, ensure their equipment is in good order and ride with due caution.

This weeks longer rides both start at 10am and head to Chipperfield, there is a shorter and longer option 31 miles or 38 miles (with a bit more climbing). If you are confident of riding 30 miles solo at 14mph or more these rides are suitable for you!

At 10.30 we have a new year ride to encourage returners and new joiners, riden at a pace to get everyone round comfortably and with Dave Bembridge as ride leader, you can join this group if you’d like to test riding with others in a small group. The route is 13.5 miles and avoids any serious hills so the group can keep turning the pedals, come along if you fancy giving us a gentle try out.

10am 38 miles Chipperfield chase Extended https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45286300

10am 31 miles Chipperfield Chase https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45286236

10.30 13.5 miles new starters and returners: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45284748

We often regroup after rides at the Rose and Crown in Ivinghoe where isotonic beverages and health boosting cheesy chips are usually available to purchase, the perfect end to time out on a Sunday morning!

First and Last: We end the year just like we started it riding our bikes. In fact the routes this week are the same published routes as our first outing in 2023. Anyone still pushing to complete a 2023 challenge? This really is the last chance saloon! Rides leave from outside Ivinghoe church at the stated times.

10am 38 miles https://ridewithgps.com/routes/41716239

10am 29 miles https://ridewithgps.com/routes/41715957

10.30am 21 miles https://ridewithgps.com/routes/41715974

Happy new year to all riders who have been out with us over the last 12 months, hope to see you again in 2024. We’ve had some great adventures over the last 12 months, some great Sunday rides, Tuesday evening thrashes, away days, train rides and weekends in other parts of the country, wind, rain, crashes, mechanicals and punctures, sunshine, delicious decents, amazing scenery, coffee and cakes and maybe the odd beer and plate of cheesy chips. Most importantly we’ve done it together, sharing the good times and helping each other when things don’t quite go to plan in life as well as on the road. Lets do it all again in 2024.

Hopefully velos riders can gather together on Friday night (22nd December) for a Christmas drink at the Rose and Crown, 7.30pm onwards, it’s going to be a lycra free zone so safe to bring your better half.

Just in case there is a bit of demand for rides on Sunday we have three options all heading the same way, 20, 30 or 35 miles, depending on the number of keen riders it may be the case that riders group together to make a reasonable group. The weather looks good, there is unlikely to be a frost and it looks dry, just remember those who succeed with their milage ambitions usually find an excuse to get out and ride, while those who don’t find an excuse not to ride.

Little cracker https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45195747

medium cracker https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45195727

big cracker https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45195738

As many people have some time off over the festive period it would be good to have some ad-hoc ride options, if you are planning on a ride please feel free to post an invite on social media channels so others can join in.

After Christmas we usually use the “new year resolution” period as a time to encourage and welcome new and returning riders, what better time to join a ride that January when not much else happens and we evaluate our healthy lifestyles (well maybe July when it’s warmer?)

A Merry Christmas to one and all! Hope santa brings you a few cycling goodies.

Enjoy the ride, enjoy Christmas, stay safe, stay well.

Three routes departing from Ivinghoe church on Sunday morning. Chapeau to anyone who has got some miles in this week, the weather has been a bit grim at times, we are hoping for something slightly more ride friendly on Sunday! Some of this post may look familiar, as we all know recycling reduces the need to grow, harvest or extract new raw materials from the earth, thus reducing the damage and disruption to the natural world, avoiding diverting rivers, cutting down forests and displacing wild animals from their natural habitat. And it saved me 5 minutes.

Social reminder: Friday 22nd Decemeber, a festive get together for drinks at the Rose and Crown from 7.30pm, if you need to eat out to help out please book a table individually before hand. No need to bring your bike.

10am medium long “reach out and I’ll be there” Heath and reach https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45077564

10am medium short Brazen Braziers https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45156242

10.30am short “It’s the real Tring” Local loop skirting round Tring https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45115258

Please arrive before the suggested departure time, picking the pace option most applicable to your abilities (or you will go to jail) watch out for the conditions and enjoy the rides.

Three routes departing from Ivinghoe church on Sunday morning. Chapeau to anyone who has got some miles in this week the weather has been a bit grim at times, we are hoping for something slightly more ride friendly on Sunday!

10am medium long “reach out and I’ll be there” Heath and reach https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45077564

10am medium short “I hate you Butlers” Butlers Cross Loop https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45115247

10.30am short “It’s the real Tring” Local loop skirting round Tring https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45115258

Please arrive before the suggested departure time, watch out for the conditions and enjoy the rides.

Riding our bikes on a Sunday morning gives us the chance to socialise and enjoy a drink or two after the activity. Another good reason for getting together to enjoy a chat and a beer is Christmas! Don’t worry we won’t be putting out rides on Christmas day but if you’d like to meet for a festive pint the evening of 22nd December is the night for you. Meeeting around 7.30- 8pm at the Rose and Crown, if you’d like to have a meal at the pub please book independently and aim to finish so you can join the crowd at 8. Cycling to the pub is purley optional.

This week we have three routes. As we are now in the chilly season rides will begin at 10am at the earliest until the spring, if rider numbers are low at 10am groups can join together to ensure everyone is riding with a group. As (nearly) always rides start and finish in Ivinghoe outside the church and we will split into pace groups if rider numbers are large. Although we aim to leave no one behind having a good idea of the route either committed to memory on plumbed into your headset computer will help avoid lost souls. Rides are designed for road bikes with the occational need to adapt for road closures and dare I say mapping errors.

The longest ride with week, starting at 10am, is a 38 mile trip to Heath and Reach taking in the climb into Great Brickhill, enjoying the end of the autumn colours through Stockgrove while cunningly avoiding central Leighton Buzzard. At 10am the medium short riders embark on a 28 mile ride out to Rocky lane and then a bit of a wiggle home, this ride has the highest hill climb ratio this week. At 10.30 the short route riders will loop round Tring before following the finale of the 10am route. Keep an eye of the forecast, stay safe and enjoy!

10am medium long https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45077564

10am medium short https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45080778

10.30am short https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45080828

Three routes to choose from this weekend. There is no better feeling than sitting in a warm pub after tackling a challenging bike ride, the reward is all the sweeter for putting the effort in! This week the short and medium routes provided by Dave B head north while the longer 9am ride takes riders south through Amersham. The temperature is dropping away with light winds, it might be a bright start but please be aware of the risk of frosty roads.

9am Flaunting Flauden https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45038609

10am Out to Drayton https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45037511

10.30am Cubblington https://ridewithgps.com/routes/45037529

December is just round the corner and it’s time to think about a seasonal get together for an evening where bikes and lycra can be left behind! I’m sure the tribal elders will be coming up with a date in the near future. The idea is to drink your annual milage in calories while discussing festive 500s and what’s on your letter to cycling santa.

Roll on Sunday!

Three routes to choose from this weekend, Sunday seems to be the better day for weather this weekend, some blustery winds, so riding with friends in a tightly formed peleton is the order of the day. This weeks routes are small but perfectly formed to get riders back into the warm embrace of the pub in good time! All three routes have a common final 6 miles, so if riders are at “par pace” groups may see each other for the sprint finish.

9am https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44991842

10am https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44991765

10.30am https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44991883

This week our rides start at Ivinghoe church and loop back there to enable riders to join the external part of the rememberance service just before 11am. Due to the sensitivity of timings please arrive EARLY for the rides and set off on time to ensure riders return at the correct time at the church.

Once the service is over we will ride a short local loop before returning to Ivinghoe to finish close to the Rose And Crown.

Depending on numbers on the rides we may need to leave our bikes over the road by Ivinghoe lawn when attending the service, so we don’t block the entrance to the church. If riders are able to wear their Ivinghoe Velos kit this weekend it will be a nice touch to see the group together.

9am https://ridewithgps.com/routes/41398716

10am https://ridewithgps.com/routes/41396166

10.30am https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44869993

11.15am https://ridewithgps.com/routes/41398716

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

This week we ride on 5th November, bonfire night. Anyone who knows their history will remember that Guy Fawkes spent a lot of time in Spain fighting against the Dutch Republic, it was here that he developed his love of cycling, enjoying many a thrilling decent in the Pyrenees. Fawkes was a yorkshire man, so probably had a good grounding in hill climbing in his early years, many said he could have been a pro cyclist if he didn’t let politics get in the way. On the night of 5th November 1605 Guy’s cycling career came to an end as the plot to blow up the house of lords was uncovered. In January the following year, while his bike was still chained up outside the Palace of westminster he was hung drawn and quartered, sustaining injuries too severe to make a comeback.

Whilst you can’t always trust everything you read, we do promise the offer of three bike rides starting from Ivinghoe church on Sunday morning. Please arrive before the start of the rides and have a good idea of the route, or a version plumbed into your bike computer.

9am Skyrockets- quick climbs and then it’s great coming down https://ridewithgps.com/routes/37879524

10am Roman Candle: Pretty lights, a few bangs but hopefully no crashes https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44869845

10.30am Catherine Wheel, goes round and round and sometimes makes a pretty pattern https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44869915

Next week we will endevour to get rides to the church for 11am, for rememberance, so shorter local rides will be the order of the day