Things started well, for the first time ever in bike club history we left on time, got an ASDA shop in and arrived at the hostel in good time. Dinner was prepared (which was fantastic both nights thanks to the dedicated catering team) and we all sat round the table and ate our brilliant curry.
Continuing this years trips theme, the weather was horrendous. As we washed up and made our way to the log fire in the sitting room something was hard to miss - it had snowed.
Credit: @harry_engels
Undeterred we enjoyed the evening and got some sleep ready to make the most of the next day. The snow had just got worse by morning so after getting the vehicles out the snowy hostel we headed south and found somewhere nice just west of cardiff. We split into three groups and made the most of our new scenery. I personally had a great ride and we found some beautiful snappy climbs getting a quick 50 miles in. We headed back to the hostel to find the snow had cleared from most of the roads and had another great meal. Unknown to us, we needed all the energy for what was going to unfold the next day.
Credit: @harry_engels
We got up and had breakfast, after a quick recce the roads were looking good enough to ride. It was however only just pushing 2 degrees. The first climb planned was the Tumble - a beautiful 5km climb that looked over the valley below. This snowy landscape was enough to get anyone up the climb and we quickly gathered at the top. The cold had however taken its toll and group split into two with one group heading home to the warm. Myself and five others carried on down the mountain determined not to let the crazy temperatures affect us. It wasn't long before we hit an open section with some ridiculous cross winds and then had dismount to walk over a section of snow that had blown across the road. After a further bit of bitterly cold decent we had a look at Tom's gps to find out it was a balmy -5 degrees. Time to cut the route short. We headed the most direct route home and worked furiously to keep warm.
Credit: @harry_engels
A few minutes after arriving home Duncan got a call from a group who had cut out the Tumbler, they had carried on with the route as planned and hit icy roads as they went north. Duncan and Fiona jumped in the car to pick them up and the rest of the party turned to clearing up the hostel.
In the middle of a snowstorm and loving it!
An hour passed and the riding group and the guys at the hostel hadn't heard anything from Duncan or Fiona. The riders had found a cosy b&b so another car and van headed to pick them up.
"I saw my car being reversed towards me followed by a 10 year old driving a 4x4 with Fiona in the passenger seat and a bulldozer just behind!" - Duncan Clark We later found out that Duncan and Fiona had hit the ice that the riders had found. They'd got stuck and after 20 minutes of trying Duncan went to find help. He returned empty handed to find a welsh man reversing his car down the road followed by a 10 year old driving a 4x4 with Fiona in the passenger seat and a bulldozer just behind! Only in wales. | 
White fields, black tarmac.
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Amongst the cold, snow and wind we certainly made the most of things. A great weekend was had by all and we're looking forward to the summer term!
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