Swale CTC are having a swell Christmas time!

Santa builds up some fitness before the Christmas rounds
Swale CTC made the most of the unseasonably weather this week on its annual ​​Christmas Ride yesterday along the north Kent coast. A record 23 riders, many of whom were dressed in festive outfits, attended. Group member Miriam was inspired by the event to write a poem to celebrate.

Miriam from CTC Swale says: "We rode from Sittingbourne to Herne Bay where we had breakfast before returning to Marcus Joy's home for some mince pies, mulled wine and to sing some Christmas carols."

T' was a warm December day
When CTC Swale went their way
After meeting at Tonge Mill
We couldn't wait to get over the hill!
All twenty three of us,
A star, some tinsel, some with a jingle
Novelty jumpers, two deer and a robin,
The walkers thought we were bonkers!
We even had our own Mr & Mrs Santa,
That caused a bit of a banter!
Through Faversham and Whitstable,
With a few undulations
We arrived at our destination.
Herne Bay was the place to eat
But there were too many of us to find a seat
So we split into two
So there wasn't too long of a queue
Full English and a cappuccino
We were as happy as a bambino
But before too long we were back on the saddle
With our bellies full it was a bit of a battle
Through the High Street, we weren't discrete, just a bit loud,
We caused a flurry so we left in a hurry
Past the seafront,
We wish we had a sleigh,
The wind so strong was making us sway.
Keep pedalling they said, never give up,
As they flew past I thought they were winding me up!
At the top they were waiting with a jelly baby
And I said:
"Maybe... if you had let me draft
I would have laughed,
All the way to the top,
Then we wouldn't have needed to stop!"
With no further ado, there was somewhere we had to get to,
Back to the Mill, ready for a refill
Mincemeat, a few nuts and mulled wine
All was getting too much for our waistline.
Marcus was such a great host,
We couldn't but thank him by having a toast:
'Here is to a fab 2016, health, speed and smiles, hope we cover many more miles!'

We'll drink to that too, Miriam - looks like you had an absolutely Swale time!

Why not organise a Christmas ride for your family and friends instead of the traditional walk or rush to the sales? Use our own CTC Christmas mystery ride for inspiration.