We ride with Ronde CC
A club with an eclectic mix of professions... and one shared passion
ith a roll call of members including artists, architects and lawyers, Ronde CC may not fit the typical image of traditional cycling clubs, but the sense of camaraderie is no less tangible.
As we negotiate Edinburgh’s excellent bike path network out of the city centre, newlyqualified lawyer Chloe Watson tells me: “There’s a great sense of community. From students to millionaires, we are all here to ride our bikes and enjoy the social side of it.”
To reinforce the point, she and fiancé Paul Hill, an architect, are busy arranging the details of a party later that night with other members of our peloton.
One of these is Catriona Munro, who joined the club to make friends after she moved to the city after graduating from Aberdeen University. “The social side is really important,” she says. “I could have gone out with the fast group today, but I wouldn’t have enjoyed the ride. With this group, I can mix with riders of different levels.”
Today’s “fast group” includes artist Craig Mitchell, who has just started sculpting cycling figures from clay. “I had a studio set up during the Fringe Festival and just sold my first piece for £2,000,” he says. “It was a 60cm sculpture of a rider on a turbo called, ‘Winner of the Tour de Garage’.”
Fellow artist Cornelius Wright paints famous cycling cols — the Stelvio is his favourite — and recently returned from a spell living in France. “I wasn’t a member of a club out there because they are very race-focused, there isn’t much of a social side to them. I much prefer the relaxed atmosphere here,” he says.
Echoing the point is legal consultant Charlie Middleton. “It’s all about a work-life balance,” he says. “I know if I’m away because of work, I can slot back into one of these rides and it’s as if I’ve never been away.”
Road buzz
Audio engineer Peter Lee is the only rider still with a smile on his face by the time we reach the summit of Linlithgow hill. “I was a bit of a raver in my late 20s and early 30s, I’d be out clubbing twice a week, but now I get just as big a buzz from riding my bike, except it’s much healthier,” he says. “The club’s also got a great social side, and I’m their official DJ at events.”
We wait at the top of the hill for Kenny Cruickshank, who suffered a flat at the start of the climb. By the time he arrives it is raining heavily and he is looking distinctly miserable. “This 9.20 group can be a bit fast, especially when you haven’t been on your bike for four weeks because of a crash. But at
least they always wait for you,” he says. Cruickshank took up road cycling only a year ago after injury forced him to quit running. “I watched a mate in the Etape Loch Ness and got a buzz from seeing them all crossing the line, so made a bet I’d be in next year’s event. I’d bought a bike and all the Lycra within a few months, but felt very self-conscious leaving the house in daylight wearing it until I’d got used to it.”
Duncan Brown is still smiling despite the rain. An IT manager, he joined the club after riding a sportive and “enjoying the sensation of riding in a group”.
“I’ll go out in all weathers now. If I don’t go out on a Saturday, I’ll start getting twitchy by the end of the day,” he says.