London Clarion Cycle Club

Fierce sun and a gusting easterly backdropped the Clarionites fifth annual ‘Deal Or No Deal’ run at Thermidor’s zenith. Taking in 105 Kentish miles from Rotherhithe to the Cinque Port, more than a dozen riders passed hop fields, headlands and holidaymakers on their way to what was once England’s busiest logistics hub. Departing the Surrey Docks at seven, the progressive peddlers cleared Greenwich, Woolwich and Dartford as suburbanites slumbered. Sustaining a blistering pace, they were early...

The story of Charlie Denny, the Battersea joiner and Clarion cyclist who won Olympic silver at the 1908 London Games — after a crash, a puncture and a bike swap in pouring rain.

Every cyclist has a ride that's difficult to explain. In this case it was a tour of East London pumping stations. As we departed someone warned that the ride was going to be full of shit. Leaving South-East London (where we had diverted to see an ancient mulberry tree and a church associated with Christopher Marlow) we crossed the Thames and headed north into one of the capital's most fascinating engineered landscapes. Canals, reservoirs, flood-relief channels and pumping stations appeared...