I have to say I was dreading the prospect of spending much of a Sunday on the Push Bikes stand at City Ride. I still have memories of doing the same at the awful first Bikefest. And this time around I was going to be responsible for getting the entire stand to Victoria Square, because the Push Bikes committee has very reasonably taken the view that we should get ourselves and our kit to cycling events by bike.

I had previously borrowed and modified David's cycle trailer to carry the Push Bikes gazebo to the Bike Picnic, but we were told we wouldn't need one as there was space for us. On the assumption we would need a table (something we lacked at Bikefest), I bought a camping table from Amazon. This weighs just a couple of kilos, and folds up into a small bag (unfolded it is stable and strong enough). I also strapped a camping chair on to the trailer. David met up with me at my house, and we took the tow path into the city centre. It turned out we had not only been provided with a gazebo, but also a table and four chairs. They were padded, too. Not that we had much time for lounging around on chairs. There was an almost constant stream of people, and myself, David, John, and Bracken were all kept very busy talking to people. One of those who turned up at the stand was the man who ran Selly Oak Cycles until he retired many years ago (it took me a few minutes of thinking "I'm sure I know him" before the penny dropped). I still use a Suntour front mech he sold me about twenty or twenty five years ago. Like that mech, John is still alive and well and on a bike.

Since the day was so busy, I was not able to go on the ride route until the very end. Unlike at Bikefest, there was a light touch, and so myself and Kim turned up randomly at the start point and rode in the sunshine down the outside lane of the Hagley road with no helmets and no worries, chatting as we went. Rich22222 posted an excellent photo of others doing the same. It was a great end to a lively and pleasant day.