Day 6 To Well

   Day 6 To Well

We didn't want to drag ourselves away from 'the last
homely house' , the name I had given our retreat in
Matlock. It was magical living above the rooftops of
town.But three of us were keen get to our homes
tonight near Ripon where we had heard a reception was awaiting usat 4.30. It meant another. long fast 86 mile ride. We made excellent progress, leaving Matlock via the beautiful Chatsworth estate.
We seemed to get through Sheffield,
Barnsley and Wakefield far quicker than expected,
but by Leeds, some of us were feeling the strain of two
days of racing, so we made another split with four of
us dashing for Ripon with the remainder coming along at
a sensible touring speed. As we came through Harrogate, I received a message to say that the RV had been changed
to 5.00. We had time to spare; time for an ice cream at
Ripley Castle.
We arrived in Ripon to an amazing reception in the      ancient Market Square, famed for its 1100 year old tradition of the Hornblower setting the watch every night at 9.00pm
by blowing his horn at all four corners of the market square and then at the Mayor's House. The Deputy Mayor was
here to greet us as were a host of families, supporters and
Parkinson's Officials. We posed for hundreds of photos.
I later discovered that the whole reception had been planned and arranged by my lovely wife Kath. It was very special.
We still had a further ten miles north to my home, before we could relax and enjoy a night in the village pub, the Milbank     Arms with forty plus invited guests sampling the excellent food. Thanks Chris for opening specially for us.

1, Early morning mist over Matlock rooftops
2. Last farewells to our hosts
3. Last minute breakfasts

The Ripon Reception

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