JUST FOLLOW THE CYCLISTS.....
Then it was our turn but not before a sit down and a glass of iced coke and orange juice.It's hot and exhausting work driving the few miles to Weybridge from Shepperton and we wanted to be fresh, ready for the next section of the Hard Top's journey.
![Image](http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx69/Timmgf/Hard%20Top%20Relay/DSC_0725.jpg)
Tim & Liz raring to go ....but not before a little sit down and some refreshments!
This section would bring us immediately in to touch with one of the themes of the Hard Top Relay, to mark and support the London Olympics 2012. So it was off to Weybridge Station to pick up the southerly part of the Olympic Cycle Races which take place next weekend. There are plenty of yellow signs about now warning of the road closures and that if you are foolish enough to leave your car on the route it will be towed away!
From Weybridge we headed along the route past union jack festooned houses and Olympic flags hanging from lamp poles. Surrey certainly seems in the Olympic mood and it was great driving past them all and we could pretend that they were all out for the Hard Top Relay !
We headed through West Byfleet out to Pyford, Ripley, West Horsley then across the North Downs stopping for a great view back across North Surrey, that's a long straight steep climb for the cyclists and I don't envy them !
![Image](http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx69/Timmgf/Hard%20Top%20Relay/DSC_0739.jpg)
Plenty of Olympic flags along the route
![Image](http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx69/Timmgf/Hard%20Top%20Relay/DSC_0796.jpg)
More Banners strung across the roads
![Image](http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx69/Timmgf/Hard%20Top%20Relay/DSC_0752.jpg)
It's a long steep climb up on to the North Downs but there's a great view of Surrey from the top. Yellow Tow Zone board just behind the F, better not stay here too long!
We descended down to Shere and Gomshall and along to Dorking before heading for Box Hill. I thought we had actually joined in the cycle race at this point as the zig zag road up the hill was absolutley covered with racing cyclists, some getting up there faster than we were. At least all the speed bumps have been removed and the road resurfaced, so it was brilliant to drive up here for the first time in many years without getting bumped around ! There's lots of infrastructure being built up here and it looks as if they have gone in for it in a big way. No wonder though as the Mens race will actually go up Box Hill on a circuit no less than NINE times, I bet they're looking forward to that one.
![Image](http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx69/Timmgf/Hard%20Top%20Relay/DSC_0773.jpg)
Cyclists beat us to the top of Box Hill
![Image](http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx69/Timmgf/Hard%20Top%20Relay/DSC_0775.jpg)
The view from the top of Box HIll, Olympic Rings just out of sight !
![Image](http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx69/Timmgf/Hard%20Top%20Relay/DSC_0801.jpg)
But not anymore as here they are as seen from the garden of the Watermill Pub in Dorking, one of our favourite venues for South East evening meets
From Box Hill it was post haste to Westerham in Kent and the Grasshopper Pub. This was chosen as a handover point because it has a lot of relevance to the South East MGF Register being the first location that we ever held a South East meeting back in 2003. For our group this is all where it started and it was a great place to hand over the Hard Top to Darren who had driven all the way from Sevenoaks....er about 10 minutes up the road!
![Image](http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx69/Timmgf/Hard%20Top%20Relay/DSC_0787.jpg)
Tim and Darren about to perform the Handover Ceremony
![Image](http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx69/Timmgf/Hard%20Top%20Relay/DSC_0789.jpg)
The Hard Top being placed on Darren's TF ready for the next stage in the South East journey to Rochester.....