2002 Wylye Wylde One - 30.5 mile Trail Quest by Eric Wilcock.

Saturday the 28th December 2002 was one of those beautiful crisp bright winter days, perfect for a mountain bike ride over the Salisbury Plains and the beautiful Wylye Valley. Andover Wheelers Dave Gumn and Eric Wilcock did just that by entering the 2002 WYLYE WYLDE ONE - 30.5 mile Trail Quest.

The pair met up at the ride headquarters at Codford Village Hall. Codford is a small West Country village that has the Wylye Valley to the south and the vast expanse of Salisbury Plain to the north. It is sited just off the A36 with Salisbury 14 miles east and Warminster 7 miles west.

The Village owes its name to the river that in 906 AD was known as "the ford of a man called Codan" shortened over time to "Codan Ford" then finally to "Codford." Although the day of the event was fine and dry the rain over the previous days had left the ground sodden and the low lying tracks very muddy. In fact the village has earned the nick name "Codford on the Mud" due its propensity of the outlying areas to flood and turn into a quagmire in times of heavy rain fall.

The Chitterne Brook that runs through the village starts at the lost village of Imber on Salisbury Plain. It then flows for thirteen and a half miles before joining the Wylye, the 'tricky stream' (which gave the county of Wiltshire its name). The nick name "Codford on the Mud" originates from the 24,000 WW1 soldiers that were garrisoned in area surrounding the village in September 1914. They were housed in tents and make shift huts. The weather at the time was atrocious, and 98 soldiers died of pneumonia as a result!

Enough about the local history and back to the ride. After signing on we were issued with a control card and an ordinance survey map outlining the route and control checkpoints (red & white flags with unique punches to mark our control cards and provide proof of we followed the marked route). The ride was over bridle paths, rights of way and water meadows. Not particularly challenging, technically, although there were few fast lumpy descents to get the adrenalin going. We were about ten miles into the ride when we realized we hadn't bothered to look out for the checkpoints; we were to busy chatting and admiring the views to worry about looking for little punches in the hedgerows. We carried on regardless and completed the 30.5mile course in a time of 3:18 placing us joint 4th in the Elite Class! But the day was not about times or finish positions, it was about being on your bike in the enjoying beautiful countryside. Watch out for this event in future Andover Wheelers Newsletter Diary Dates or the Trial Quest Website.