Rickmansworth to Towcester, Breakfast Run - Sunday 22nd August
06-30-2021, 02:44 AM
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Rickmansworth to Towcester, Breakfast Run - Sunday 22nd August
This is a regular driving meet from Rickmansworth to Potterspury, near Towcester, usually on the last Sunday of each month.
The route is a lovely drive on a mixture of A, B and C-roads, I try to make sure that the pace is dependent on the slowest driver, and we do wait to let folk catch up if necessary. We stick to the 30 and 40 limits through the villages. I have SatNav files and Google Maps links if people want to navigate it solo.
To avoid the traffic, we leave early in the morning from Christ Church Chorleywood Car Park.
It's on the A404 about 1/2 mile from junction 18 of the M25. The postcode is WD3 5SG.
At junction 18, take the A404 exit to Chorleywood/Amersham, past the Shell garage on your right, then past The Gate pub, also on your right. The church is opposite the pub and the entrance to the car park is a sharp left at the end of the churchyard wall.
Google Map of Christ Church: https://goo.gl/maps/XpWZoaA6Pry
Our destination is the Super Sausage Cafe, winner of "Britain's Best Café, 2016", which is on the A5, just North of Potterspury
https://goo.gl/maps/rSD3zPwdcoz
We then eat a hearty breakfast.
Time: please aim to arrive by 6.45am. We will not wait if you are late.
Fuel: Please arrive with sufficient fuel for the drive (it's about 70 miles to the Café - I usually use just under a quarter of a tank). As mentioned above, there is a Shell garage a couple of hundred yards from our meeting point but be warned that this is sometimes closed for a delivery, so it's best to fill up the night before. There is a BP near to the Café, so you can fill up if necessary once we get there.
Weather: If the weather is forecast to be bad, I'll cancel the run by 4pm on the day before. Please check before travelling.
SatNav: I have a TomTom/Garmin file of the route, so PM me your email address if you'd like a copy. I really want as many folk as possible to use these please, as they make the run a lot safer by removing some of the "keeping up" pressure, so if you have a SatNav, please PM me your email address, type of SatNav and I'll send you the relevant file.
Simon
List of attendees here (please do not say you are coming and then not turn up, it's annoying for everyone else to have to wait for someone who is not coming)
Definite
1) I try to keep the pace reasonable, if you feel that it's too fast, please feel under no pressure to keep up. Drive to your limits, not mine, or anyone else's. We will wait at the next turning.
2) Overtaking - getting 5 or more cars to overtake can be a tricky business. Patience and safety are key here.
3) It's your responsibility to make sure you can overtake safely. If you're unsure, then don't overtake. Do not feel pressured into overtaking to keep up. Chances are that I am stuck behind another vehicle half a mile up the road, so you'll catch up anyway. Err on the side of caution at all times. Remember, We will wait at the next turning.
4) One other thing to remember, given the roads are quiet, certainly on the way there, it means that there isn't much traffic coming the other way so overtaking opportunities are plentiful. There's no need to take any sort of risk when overtaking.
5) If the cars in front have overtaken and it's been a couple of minutes before you've been able to overtake, there is no need to drive at excessive speeds in order to catch up. This is especially relevant in light of this ruling https://www.motorcyclenews.com/news/...ading-rideout/ where a lead rider was fined on the basis of the speeds following riders were doing. I do not want to be fined for your actions, so please be considerate and bear this in mind. And if not for me, then for anyone else using the roads.
As mentioned above, the lead cars will either be stuck behind someone else just up the road, or will be waiting before the next turning (or perhaps in the next village where appropriate), so simply stay on the same road at a similar pace until you catch up. Even if you're unable to overtake, you'll only be a couple of minutes behind at the most, so there's no pressure at all.
6) Think of it this way, the leaders overtake a car doing 40mph on an 60mph section. After 5 minutes, the leaders will be 1.7 miles ahead. At 40mph, that means you'll only be 2 1/2 minutes behind, which is not a lot in the grand scheme of things, so there's no need to worry about keeping people waiting. Most NSL sections on this run are only a few miles, so it's even less of a worry.
7) If you are "stuck" behind someone who is going a bit slowly, please keep a safe distance and do not try to push them along. Backing off a bit on the straights and then enjoying the corners is a good way to approach things.
8) Remember to have fun
The route is a lovely drive on a mixture of A, B and C-roads, I try to make sure that the pace is dependent on the slowest driver, and we do wait to let folk catch up if necessary. We stick to the 30 and 40 limits through the villages. I have SatNav files and Google Maps links if people want to navigate it solo.
To avoid the traffic, we leave early in the morning from Christ Church Chorleywood Car Park.
It's on the A404 about 1/2 mile from junction 18 of the M25. The postcode is WD3 5SG.
At junction 18, take the A404 exit to Chorleywood/Amersham, past the Shell garage on your right, then past The Gate pub, also on your right. The church is opposite the pub and the entrance to the car park is a sharp left at the end of the churchyard wall.
Google Map of Christ Church: https://goo.gl/maps/XpWZoaA6Pry
Our destination is the Super Sausage Cafe, winner of "Britain's Best Café, 2016", which is on the A5, just North of Potterspury
https://goo.gl/maps/rSD3zPwdcoz
We then eat a hearty breakfast.
Time: please aim to arrive by 6.45am. We will not wait if you are late.
Fuel: Please arrive with sufficient fuel for the drive (it's about 70 miles to the Café - I usually use just under a quarter of a tank). As mentioned above, there is a Shell garage a couple of hundred yards from our meeting point but be warned that this is sometimes closed for a delivery, so it's best to fill up the night before. There is a BP near to the Café, so you can fill up if necessary once we get there.
Weather: If the weather is forecast to be bad, I'll cancel the run by 4pm on the day before. Please check before travelling.
SatNav: I have a TomTom/Garmin file of the route, so PM me your email address if you'd like a copy. I really want as many folk as possible to use these please, as they make the run a lot safer by removing some of the "keeping up" pressure, so if you have a SatNav, please PM me your email address, type of SatNav and I'll send you the relevant file.
Simon
List of attendees here (please do not say you are coming and then not turn up, it's annoying for everyone else to have to wait for someone who is not coming)
Definite
- lovegroova
- S40
- JammyJ
- .
- soupdragon
1) I try to keep the pace reasonable, if you feel that it's too fast, please feel under no pressure to keep up. Drive to your limits, not mine, or anyone else's. We will wait at the next turning.
2) Overtaking - getting 5 or more cars to overtake can be a tricky business. Patience and safety are key here.
3) It's your responsibility to make sure you can overtake safely. If you're unsure, then don't overtake. Do not feel pressured into overtaking to keep up. Chances are that I am stuck behind another vehicle half a mile up the road, so you'll catch up anyway. Err on the side of caution at all times. Remember, We will wait at the next turning.
4) One other thing to remember, given the roads are quiet, certainly on the way there, it means that there isn't much traffic coming the other way so overtaking opportunities are plentiful. There's no need to take any sort of risk when overtaking.
5) If the cars in front have overtaken and it's been a couple of minutes before you've been able to overtake, there is no need to drive at excessive speeds in order to catch up. This is especially relevant in light of this ruling https://www.motorcyclenews.com/news/...ading-rideout/ where a lead rider was fined on the basis of the speeds following riders were doing. I do not want to be fined for your actions, so please be considerate and bear this in mind. And if not for me, then for anyone else using the roads.
As mentioned above, the lead cars will either be stuck behind someone else just up the road, or will be waiting before the next turning (or perhaps in the next village where appropriate), so simply stay on the same road at a similar pace until you catch up. Even if you're unable to overtake, you'll only be a couple of minutes behind at the most, so there's no pressure at all.
6) Think of it this way, the leaders overtake a car doing 40mph on an 60mph section. After 5 minutes, the leaders will be 1.7 miles ahead. At 40mph, that means you'll only be 2 1/2 minutes behind, which is not a lot in the grand scheme of things, so there's no need to worry about keeping people waiting. Most NSL sections on this run are only a few miles, so it's even less of a worry.
7) If you are "stuck" behind someone who is going a bit slowly, please keep a safe distance and do not try to push them along. Backing off a bit on the straights and then enjoying the corners is a good way to approach things.
8) Remember to have fun
Last edited by lovegroova; 08-20-2021 at 07:16 AM.
? missing the good old days