Here's an alternative bit of waffle about the GabyCon - this time from my perspective :)

Having attended my first GabyCon last year and enjoyed it so much, I readily signed up to this year's. Despite not having ridden (rode?) a bicycle for the best part of 16 years (since going to uni), I was brave / foolish enough to volunteer to take part in this year's bicycle ride. But more on that later.

I set off at about midday Friday, briefly stopping off at the Midland Oak in Leamington, which for many years was considered the centre of England until the Ordnance Survey declared the exact centre to be several dozen miles North, between Nuneaton and Atherstone.

Skip forward a few hours, and I join up with the others at the Italian restaurant in Dorchester, where we had a nice meal and planned the day ahead - a visit to the Tank Museum.

Saturday dawned and we all met up at Ang's house, and after saying 'Hi!' to Izzy (Bonzi had evidently decided to seek refuge from the invaders to his house!) we set off. Somehow I (almost) kept up with the gang on the first leg, but as the journey continued, my stamina decreased until even slight rises defeated me. Mercifully the others were very patient.

So, the tank museum itself. I can't speak for the others, but what attracted me were the defensive capabilities (trying to stop incoming fire before it reached the occupants), the problem solving (e.g. the design of tracks / suspension to aid traversing soft ground while gradually improving conditions for the occupants), the variety of camouflage designs and some of the more quirky designs of tank / armoured vehicle.

I attempted the journey back by bike, but realised by the time we reached Wool that my stamina hadn't returned, so I wimped out and took the train back (the local train company are evidently used to cyclists, with accommodation for bicycles in two of the carriages).

Once the others returned, we parted ways to get ourselves cleaned up ready for the evening meal, held (as with last year) at The Black Dog in Broadmayne; where we had our first set of readings.

On Sunday, we piled into cars and headed West - first of all, to the Hardy monument (Vice Admiral Thomas Hardy, Horatio Nelson's colleague - not to be confused with the novelist Thomas Hardy, who also lived nearby). Although we couldn't see much of it as it was covered in scaffolding to undergo repairs, we did take in the views of the countryside and read about the numerous barrows (as in neolithic burial chambers) in the area. From there, we headed on to Abbotsbury and St. Catherine's Chapel, a surprisingly large chapel built on a hill overlooking the village. While en-route up and down the hill, we watched the local farmer round up part of his flock of sheep and took photographs of both the village and The Fleet (the lagoon behind Chesil Beach). From Abbotsbury, we proceeded to West Bay (the far end of Chesil Beach and site of a harbour, protected by recently rebuilt walls) and finally to Lyme Regis; where we examined The Cobb (a harbour that starts half way down the beach, without a connecting river), explored a fossil shop and visited the museum. Finally we darted back to Dorchester and had some readings in the Borough Gardens (the sky threatened rain, but mercifully it stayed dry!) before heading to a pub for the final meal of the GabyCon. Following the meal, I sliced and distributed the fruit cake I'd brought with me (Bev somehow managing to persuade the management to supply a stack of napkins to wrap the slices in) before we departed and said our goodbyes.

I left for home on Monday, but not before exploring Weymouth and Portland. Despite the weather forecast's gloom and predicted strong winds, by afternoon the sun had appeared, so it was 4pm by the time I eventually set off, and 10:30pm by the time I arrived home.

-oOo-

All in all, it was another enjoyable few days, and I'm already looking forward to next year.

Oh, and I've promised Ang that if I volunteer for taking part in next year's cycle ride, I'll schedule plenty of appointments with an exercise bike to build up my strength / stamina!

-oOo-

And here are some photographs for your enjoyment / amusement - feel free to leave a comment on them :)

GabyCon 2011 Gallery (i.e. the photos I took en-route to and during GabyCon)

Dorset 2011 Final Day (i.e. the photos I took on Monday)