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The meeting point for the pre-lunch run was the Dartmoor Diner and we arrived a little late as the GT steadfastedly refused to start. But eventually we got her going and trundled into Tesco’s to fill up en route. Having arrived at the Diner Alan issued us with our route details just as Clive and Wendy pulled into the car park. At this point although it had been raining earlier it was bright if a bit blustery so it was hoods down and sunroofs open. We set off across Roborough Down heading off via Abbey Cross passing Buckland Abbey and by then Clive & Wendy had caught up with us just before we had to slide the roof shut because of a very heavy shower. Strangely they disappeared again having had to stop and put their roof up! As soon as the rain cleared the sunroof was open once more. We crossed over the lovely Denham Bridge and headed on towards Gulworthy, Chipshop where Clive & Wendy had caught up again. Carrying on through another shower we arrived at the Royal Inn at Horsebridge – a genuine Tamar Valley location. The Run was lovely and pretty despite the occasional monsoon conditions – thanks to Alan and Alison for organising this – and of course the pub. As there were so many of us – 36 in total and a record attendance for a TVMGOC Sunday Lunch – we had commandeered the whole of the pub’s dining room. The landlord was very organised, taking our orders table by table and by name to come up with individual bills for everyone. He was also a very cheery chappie and kept us entertained with quips and jokes about sports cars. As you can imagine with the numbers involved the hum of conversation was deafening until the excellent food start to arrive when the hubbub died down gradually as everyone was served. And although some of us were on diets – I will mention no names to save the embarrassment of those who weakened – there were lots of takers for the delicious puds on offer. Truly well fed and watered we all started to drift away and made our way back to our various cars – in the car park and spread along the roadside near the pub. We stopped to admire John’s new addition to the MG family – he proudly mentioned that happily he had not suffered the usual puncture problems during his trip to lunch. Through Alan I later heard that as he pulled away for the journey home Alan had to shout after him that his rear tyre was flat –again!!! Well at least he kept his 2009 tradition of flat tyres on club outings intact. All in all another enjoyable event of good drink, superb food and sparkling company. Tuscany’s Club at Brixton was the venue again for this club social evening. We arrived quite early, never sure how long it takes to drive to that side of the city! Other members soon started arriving and we settled ourselves alongside the alley for the fun to begin. John took on the role of keeping score and we had soon gone through three cycles of bowling. Competitiveness and a small amount of aggression was beginning to emerge, to be put on hold while we tucked into the very good buffet. After being fed there was a noticeable improvement in skill. After another three rounds Naomi emerged as champion having put in a very impressive performance. Clive and Martyn were not too far behind but it was a victory for the ladies. The finale was to be a game of “killer” and having won last year I was being threatened with a ban. I lost one life quite quickly and people began to be eliminated one by one. Gwenda devised her own unique bowling style and managed to get all nine down in one go! Having tried to demolish the alley (you had to be there) I found myself at the end competing with Keith! He knocked down a solitary pin and I thought “easy, I can do this again” Not quite, I missed all nine and Keith won the kitty! Time to head home after a very enjoyable evening, marred only by lower numbers than last time. Many thanks to Hugh & Bridget for organising a fun evening for us, John for being score-master and others for being brave enough to pick up skittles at the dangerous end. Those who have never had a go should really come along, it’s a great laugh with good company. ***************************************************************************************** It’s getting to be an annual event, the club Sunday lunch at the Eddystone Inn. This year there were only 21 there, but we still had a very nice time and food. We got there at midday, having miscalculated the time it would take to make a detour to Halfords. Sally & Keith soon arrived, following a detour to B&Q. It was good to actually park in the pub carpark with great views towards the Eddystone lighthouse and we chatted in the sunshine until the rest of the party started arriving. I found out two things, one is that the “new” lighthouse was built next to the old one (Smeaton’s Tower) and you can see a stump. The rest of the structure is on the Hoe, I knew that much. The second is that seafaring folk call it the bus stop. We were able to get a better look when Hugh arrived with his binoculars. After a group photo we made our way into the upstairs room with our drinks for our very good carvery lunch. There was a choice of three meats and I think most of us avoided choosing and sampled some of each. Plenty of veg and gallons of gravy, very good value. Mandy popped in from Down Thomas for her annual chat with us all. Some members had joined us from quite a long way away. The view out to sea is a bonus, especially as the weather stayed clear for us. At about 2:30pm we started to drift away having been well fed and looked after. I have no doubt we will be back there in 2010, there’s room for a few more to join us. The next lunch is on 22nd November *************************************************************************** | |
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