Touring the Banburyshire pubs on a bike: The final column

Pub pedals 22 by Miles Doughty

The final column

My excuse for not cycling last week was that my pedals were going round and not turning the wheels. Now one of my pedals isn’t even going round, my bike is definitely telling me enough is enough. In reality after 22 weeks I have basically completed my project to cycle to all the village pubs within five miles of Middleton Cheney and find out how they had survived the pandemic. I may have missed a few pubs but I’ve been to all the villages and I think I’ve cycled every country lane in that area, a total of 350 miles. What has been most enjoyable is sharing these experiences with 20 different friends and family, aged 7 to 75. It was particularly satisfying to encourage less experienced riders like Gerri, Celia and Ben out on their bikes. Perhaps they know how to use their gears now, although they never minded getting off and pushing anyway. It was also lovely to ride alongside my parents and particularly my Dad. It was my turn this time to say “how about a little bike ride”.

The rides have ranged from the first little pootle of 8 miles with Celia to about 28 miles. My favourite was probably number 10 through Culworth, Moreton Pinkney and Sulgrave (with an option to miss out Moreton Pinkney). Throughout it all I particularly enjoyed researching some of the history of the area and sharing snippets it with you. However, the project was all about supporting the pubs, so it is a little bit like déjà vu that they are just opening again after lockdown 2. What was great to see was the resilience of these pubs and their owners to keep going. Some had undergone amazing makeovers including the funky lounge in the Three Conies in Thorpe Mandeville and the converted Barn at The Red Lion, Culworth. The food was also very good at many of the pubs and it seems that I have a particular love of sea food and unusual potato dishes such as the Frito Misto and Patatas Bravas at the Crewe Arms, Hinton-in-Hedges which was my favourite. They even had their own beer. Speaking of beer, I did really take to the Cotswold Pale Ale by Hook Norton Brewery so it was great to visit the brewery. However, the prize goes to my old favourite 6X by Wadworth which I used to serve in a pub many years ago and I enjoyed at the breweries most northerly pub, the Plough, Bodicote. A particular mention should be made for the Invisible Beer from the Pickled Ploughman, Adderbury as part of their highly successful fundraising campaign for Katherine Hospice House. Please support this wonderful local charity.

I hope you have enjoyed my pedals and it has encouraged you get on your bike with benefits both to your health and the environment. It also partly justifies the food and drink consumed at the pubs. I hope you continue to support them, it would be a real shame if any more closed down. You can find previous articles by searching on-line for “Touring Banburyshire pubs” or visiting www.facebook.com/ruralmiles. Merry Christmas and eventually a happy New Year.

Favourite Route – 23.6 (or 14.9) miles https://www.maps.ie/map-my-route/viewMap.php?route=156948

Note: We would like to give a huge thank you to Miles for completing all these routes, in all weathers, to help support local businesses.

We hope you enjoyed them. (Phil Hibble, head of news).