Saturday MB Ride 17/12/11

If anyone is interested I am lying in a ditch just down from Black Rocks with a broken neck. Just so you know.

Edwin

We thought the dodgy blokes digging the grave had got you!

It's getting bloody cold up here now could someone come and get me?

Edwin,

As club sponsor and present on the ride on Saturday I was appalled to hear of your plight. As I had already left to go straight home after Black Rocks, I was already in a warm bath when your incident occurred. Had I known we were a rider missing, I would not have hesitated to look for someone to send to find you.
The designated safety officer and trained first aider was clearly remiss in his duties.
A minority 'Lycra Lout' mentality appears in all group rides, with scant regard to rider ettiquette, the highway code and rights of way.
Generally these elements are not actually club members.

I hope your neck gets better soon.

Dear Offpiste,

Thanks for the reply. I have spoken to Tony Holmes and I understand that people did in fact return to Black Rocks to find me but I must have taken an alternative route down the mountainside. (Via that ditch I told you about earlier.)

I have made a few suggestions to him which I will repeat here.

a) mobile phone numbers are exchanged between the leader of the group and the slowest member (ie me).
b) The final rendezvous point is agreed at the start of the ride so at least the slowest rider (me) does not loose out on tea and cake at the end.

My only concern is that if as a club we are not seen to be taking all reasonable care of people on what at first sight appears to be an "organised event" we (the club) could find ourselves liable for any death or injury arising from that event.

Generally I find the riders who take part in the Saturday morning MB ride a courteous and obliging group if a little difficult to keep up with at times and I am looking forward to my next ride with them.

Regards,
Edwin (aka Headwind)

P.S the doctors say I should be walking again in a few weeks.
;)

I was actually toying with the idea of making an innaugral 'guest' appearance at the MTB ride this Saturday (if there is one?). However, I think I may:

a) need to take out improved insurance cover
b) need to see if my mobile has coverage (I know it doesn't in Cromford)
c) need to swot up on my sarcasm

I am sorry to hear about your terrible ordeal, I know what it is like to have missed a cafe stop.

They are some very good ideas that we should take on-board when going out on a Saturday ride, the only problem is mobile phones where band on Saturday rides as I kept texting various girls and Peat Sharky kept taking business calls which has got him lost many times. To be fair was texting to make sure she saved me big slice of cake.