“Shiver me timbers, it’s cold out there” thought Captain Pugwash as he arrived at Market Cross where ready, keen and waiting was the latest addition to the fleet, cabin boy Cueball Dave. A hardy looking soul judging by his choice of outfit. Next to join the assembly was quartermaster Brainfeeder Brian who’d never sneek up without being heard given the rattling noise made by his freewheeling cassette (or should that be castanets). Timing his arrival to the exact second was able seaman Paul Blackbeard. No doubt not wanting to hang around any longer than necessary before the fleet set off.
Today’s ride saw the fleet seeking the flavours of the east at the Hornsea Mere cafe. Taking the Weel road to Tickton the fleet cruised steadily with a fair wind in the sails. The sun shining, while extremely welcome, did not do much to raise the ambient temperature as it stubbornly hovered around 1-2°c.❄️
Sailing happily along the cycle path Brainfeeder came under attack by a barrage of thorns and suffered a breach in the hull. After careening his vessel it was time to effect some repairs. This was easier said than done. Despite all the videos showing how easy it is to remove a tyre, Brainfeeder struggled to carry out the said removal, eventually breaking his plastic “tyre lever” in the process. The look of horror on his face as Captain Pugwash offered metal levers was a picture to behold. “I can’t use those on my carbon rims! ” he exclaimed. Things always seem more difficult when there is an audience and you are trying to do the job as quickly as possible. When he’d eventually removed the tyre, it turned out the valve on his spare tube was the wrong size for the deep rims so now he needed to repair the damaged tube. On completion of repairs we were off again.
We did not get far before it became apparent the repairs had not been successful and Brainfeeder decided reluctantly to call time and return home to effect repairs in the warmth of his home. The now diminished fleet continued on to Long Riston and then headed for Great Hatfield. It was at this point that Captain Pugwash led the fleet astray, taking the wrong turn and ended up on the outskirts of Withernwick. Realising his mistake the fleet then changed track through Cowden before picking up the main coastal route to Hornsea.
Progress on the final leg was swift with a light breeze on the port quarter as Captain Pugwash led the way. We soon arrived at our designated anchorage at the Mere cafe where it was time to refuel. Just as we finished, the fleet Admiral arrived to inspect the colours and meet Cueball.
Our return route saw us passing the Honeysuckle Farm and on to Bewholme before turning back into the wind towards Catfoss and Brandesburton. Despite the head wind, a good pace was maintained with each taking turns on the front. On reaching Hull Bridge it was then time for each to head to their home port. An enjoyable ride with conditions slightly better than expected given the temperature.