It was what used to be known as the 'urban ride to mum's' and it was great because the weather was good. I say it was great (and it was) but the ride itself is one that varies as there are many permutations and on this occasion I think the route was completely different from previous incantations. Perhaps 'completely different' is misleading as there were little bits that were the same: I did ride along Foxley Lane in Purley, but instead of riding towards Woodmansterne Green (like Andy and I used to when we went to see my brother Jon) I filtered off earlier on to a road called, I think, Green Lane and should have wound my way further around these lovely quiet roads at the top end of Wallington before coming out (briefly) on the main road leading down to the top of Wallington High Street. I think it's Woodcote Road as I remember when I was a kid I used to do a milk round with "Dynamic Norman" a film buff milkman. In fact, I turned left and found myself virtually on the round and the memories came flooding back, the hot weekends of childhood summers as I found myself at the top of Boundary Road heading north and eventually branching left and riding up and along Stanley Park Road, turning right into Crichton Avenue (or Crichton Road, I can't remember) and finding myself in Carshalton Beeches, passing the Village Bakery before turning right, riding past the railway station, down the hill and then left and first right down to the gas station before another left and right and then along Westmead Road to mum's.
The ride back was similar although I found myself travelling a little too far up Boundary Road to where it joins Briar Avenue (where mum and dad once considered buying a house) and then taking a long single-track road through the smallholdings which eventually brought me out on Woodmansterne Lane where I turned left and headed towards Foxley Lane again, retracing the steps of my outward ride.
Mileage-wise it was longer than Andy and I used to think. We always put the ride to Woodmansterne Green as a 12-miler and I always thought the same for Carshalton and a ride to mum's, but no, it was just over 15 miles in total.
