Ipswich Brompton Monopoly part 2

New Year’s Day 2015 set itself nicely to complete the challenge of cycling to and visiting every square on the Ipswich Edition of the popular board game Monopoly. A free day in the calendar of a busy training and work schedule, aided by a hangover free morning saw Jayne the Hat and I meet at mid-morning to return to the Foundation Street NCP car park to resume our circumnavigation of the board.

 Wet and muggy conditions were a change from the icy temperatures experienced when we completed the first two sides of the board, which if you missed it you can find HERE.

 The first red property was easy enough to reach in a short time with the majority of the town’s population most likely sleeping off their late night with Jools Holland’s Hootenanny. The Cornhill was peaceful with just a few pedestrians as we parked the bikes beneath the arches of Lloyd’s Avenue in view of the grand Town Hall and LED Christmas tree in the Cornhill at the centre of town.

 

Another Chance card followed and after hollering and bell ringing in the echoing underpass beneath the Civic Drive/ Norwich Road Roundabout, we arrived at the broadcasting buildings of BBC Radio Suffolk, where we were watched through the window of ‘Perfect Fried Chicken’ by three lads enjoying a plate of chips, as we took  photo evidence of our arrival.

 

The properties on this side of the board were all in fairly close proximity and were easy to reach through the town’s peaceful streets. Another weave through the bus station took us back to the familiar steps of the East Anglian Daily Times, which is located in the same building as the Ipswich Star.

 

We knew a very long journey between two locations beckoned on the next side of the board, so it was a relief to be ticking of the final red property after only twelve minutes of day two. The Buttermarket Shopping Centre which we visited at the end of the first half is located on the Buttermarket Thoroughfare between Queen St and Northgate St. Another journey to the Giles Statue was in order as here is located the Butter Market road sign attached to Barclays Bank.

 

The Hat lands at the Buttermarket

Enjoying the silent town centre roads, we were quickly on our way out of town. Leaving the Butter Market we were soon heading over the brickwork roadway of Sir Alf Ramsey Way, which caused vibrations to rattle through my bike until reaching the smooth tarmac passing the Bus depot and out onto Wet End Road. In pursuit of the Riverside cycle path, the busy crossroads by the Mermaid pub were traversed and we picked up the cycle path to Sproughton before weaving through Whitehouse and arriving at our third station.

 The Bury Road Park and Ride sits at junction 53 of the A14 alongside the Asda superstore. It was perhaps the sacrificial lamb of the Park and Ride schemes as it has now been derelict for several years. This was evident as we cycled around the bus access road to find simply boarded up doors, smashed windows and some suggestive graffiti. Approaching the terminal building from the customer entrance was a good test of the Brompton’s manoeuvrability as we dodged concrete barriers and piles of glass in the quest for the evidence of our presence.

 

 

As the Costa Coffee juggernaut seems to have engulfed Ipswich in recent years, with now a building at every A14 interchange from Whitehouse to Nacton, we decided to stop in for some refreshment. As we were hastily folding Bingo and Bessie outside the shop, two children leaving with a group of adults looked on in wonder as our bicycles got smaller and smaller. The two ladies in the group were clearly impressed and proclaimed “what a novel idea” and “how wonderful!” As Jayne got the drinks, I sat looking at the two bikes curled up in the corner of the store beside the wooden child seats. I sat with a smile on my face, recounting the ladies’ words as I thought what a truly impressive machine the Brompton is.

 

The bikes certainly come at a price, but I think that the going rate is more than reasonable. The bike is not just about how small and compact it folds. Nor is it about how fast it can be ridden. The versatility is what is truly unique about the bicycles. Once we had our hot mugs in front of us, mine a Mocha with a mountain of cream, Jayne’s a skinny decaf Americano AKA a “why bother”, we agreed that we feel as comfortable and in control of our Brompton’s as much if not more than any other bike we own. The Brompton engineers have really got it right. The fold doesn’t compromise the ride, and the ride doesn’t compromise the fold. And they continue to improve and develop it too.

 I have seen all types of cyclist riding a Brompton bicycle, from old ladies with hips courtesy of the NHS to speed demons careering around the streets of Smithfield Market in the JupiterLondon Nocturne Folding Bike Race. The bikes really are feat of engineering and art and are suitable for all kinds of cyclists despite initial pre conceptions that they are “quirky, gimmicky clown bikes”. I’ve heard them all!

 

With caffeine now coursing through my bloodstream we remounted and made our way back into town along the Norwich Road as far as the roundabout at Civic Drive at which point we turned right and weaved through the silence of the town as far as the imposing black glass Willis building on the corner of Friars Street. The building which is synonymous with Ipswich has a leafy urban garden upon its roof and was visited during an episode of the BBC’s ‘Top Gear’ by ‘Captain Slow’ himself James May. Incidentally, James May is a Brompton owner too, and has been for several years since, in his own words “before they were cool”.

Friars Street is the main channel by which the town’s bus services reach the Old Cattle Market Bus Station, and is regularly heavily trafficked. On this day fortunately the only movement was the wind whistling through allowing for a wide photograph of the building as I struggled to get it all in shot.

I like the reflection of the town's buildings in this picture.

 

After the lengthy ride to and from the Park and Ride, we were relieved that the next few locations were all located centrally in town, although to reach them all would require lots of criss crossing of town, snurgelling through alleys as well as several traverses of the smooth Falcon St on which the Bus Station and Vodka Revolution nightclub sit, looking on peacefully on this sleepy new year’s day.

 From Friars St and Willis was just a short pedal to TheWolsey Theatre, and after approaching from the back, we rolled along the boardwalk outside to the front door. Both Brompton’s were lined up for their photograph as the wind howled and blew Jayne’s ‘Bessie Brompton’ crashing to the ground. I was busy laughing at her instability until my own ‘Bingo’ was sent crashing to the floor tumbling down two steps. Picked up and steadied we quickly took our photo and made our way for the second time today to the Willis building and beyond as our next property to collect was the board’s second utility usually reserved for the water company.

 

Labelled as ‘Park and Ride’ we opted to visit the Old Cattle Market Bus Station as the town’s three Park and Ride terminals were already in use as stations. With the lack of Bus services on this day, not for the first time, we felt a little bit suspect as we lined our machines up to take a picture of an empty bus station. Spotting an old wooden sign in an archway across the road, we also took an opportunity to photograph this location as we commented on the cleanliness of the area despite the festivities which would have been in full swing just twelve hours earlier as hand’s were linked for Auld Lang Syne.

 

 

 

Another short journey followed as we visited our last yellow property and second theatre of the day at the Ipswich Regent on St Helen’s St. I had never been to either of the town’s theatre venues until the second half of 2014. That absence was quashed within one week back in October as I was entertained by the endearing anecdotes of John Richardson at the Regent and a showing of Romeo and Juliet which included some interesting street dance whilst taking me back to my GCSE days. Because of the star crossed lovers, not the street dance.

 Panto season was coming to a close, as the advertisement on the building shows as it had begun to slowly peel itself away from its mounting, signalling the end of the Christmas season and a return to normality as it was soon after replaced with six grinning male faces starring in ‘The Full Monty’. Once again, a usually heavily trafficked route in to town laid peaceful even after midday as I crossed the road in order to accommodate the whole building in my photograph.

 

It was a relief to have completed another side of the board relatively quickly in under an hour knowing that we had an epic of a journey fast approaching, the longest of the whole game in fact.

  Our ‘GO TO JAIL’ square was to be the Magistrates Courts located on Elm St, sitting inconspicuously adjacent to the enormous AXA insurance building, the only sign of its use was a sign over the door and a list of opening hours on the locked door.

 

Three of the next four locations would all be within sight of each other, and we started our tour of the Ipswich waterfront by visiting Suffolk New College. I had attended an open evening at the college as a school leaver in 2006 and held vivid memories of the building being gargantuan in comparison to my high school and also particularly dreary. What is has developed into was a stark contrast to my initial misconception.

 

The SuffolkNew College is in fact bigger than gargantuan but is far from dreary. Jayne the Hat is well versed in the layout of the campus being a regular visitor through her work. She ushered me down a shortcut as we passed the cheering and whistling of lots of football games underway at the all-weather floodlit football facility ‘GOALS’ and through the modern and spacious terrace before reaching the high rising college logo in the centre of the area. The bright flowing colours flowed neatly into the eye catching tones of our bikes folded neatly below.

 

University Campus Suffolk is an impressive curving glass structure on the dockside. After rolling along some juddering decking away from Suffolk New College, we crossed the road in pursuit of an interesting sculpture of whose meaning I am unsure. It is art after all so I figure the meaning of it is at your own discretion. The wind was now blowing strongly from the south and as I tried to balance my bike on the ‘Question Mark’ the crib sheet on which I had been recording all of our ride statistics on was blown form the grip of my teeth, prompting me to chase it like a child hoping not to lose seventy kilometres worth of data. Fortunately after a comedy chase I secured it and proceeded to take our photographs of evidence in between strong bike wobbling gusts of wind swooping in over the water, rattling the yacht masts as it went, creating an orchestra of dings and pings.

 

 

The next green property was tantalisingly close, but we had another Community Chest card to turn before that. Weaving up Fore Street over the unsettling cobbles, I caught sight of a local treasure obscured from view but worth a look. Surrounded by social housing and the NCP car park which provided our ‘Free Parking’ lays the ruins of the Blackfriars Church. A few stone walls are all that remain, but fortunately an information board provides information on the structure which dates back to the thirteenth century. I was pleased to stop for a quick look at the Friary before heading on our way around the Wolsey Theatre and through the underpasses below Civic Drive where more echoing bike bells were excitedly rung.

 

This brought us to Hubbard House, the former home of ITV Anglia for as long as I can remember throughout my childhood, before its relocation. Now home to a gym and lots of office space, but short of travelling to the headquarters in Norwich, this building would suffice for our final Community Chest card, allowing us to return to the Waterfront and the SalthouseHarbour Hotel, to collect our final green property and enjoy a comfort break. Necessary given what was to follow.

 

 

The next trip would see us collect the final station square of our tour around the board. The knowledge that it was coming had been looming in our minds since the start of the day and challenge. The Martlesham Park and Ride would require a long jaunt out of town through the winding cycle lane dissecting Grange Farm on which I travel home nightly. Followed by the longest cross town journey of the whole board game as we would be required to then travel to the Whitehouse Industrial Estate and the final Chance Card being the studios of SGR FM.

 

The ride out to Martlesham was fairly pleasant as we were able to enjoy a helpful tailwind as we ate up the miles riding side by side whilst chatting. We arrived at the deserted transport hub in a little over thirty minutes, and got our tyres dirty as the photo booth was set up at the entry sign, seemingly set in quick sand as the bike wheels dug deep as they were plonked onto the dirt.

Retracing our steps we followed the quiet of the cycle lane back towards town before breaking off the route at Kesgrave to begin riding on the road towards SGR. We had accepted that this part of the journey was going to be fairly unpleasant as the rain had started, and a stiff breeze blew straight towards us making progress difficult. A good understand that Jayne and I share is that we don’t need to bother with small talk, and when necessary, we can just put or heads down and ride. It was beginning to feel a lot like hard work, and I was confident that we would feel better once we arrived at our destination, knowing that completion would be imminent. We finally navigated the Whitton estate and were spat out on Norwich Road allowing us to follow the sign post the SGR FM. I was fully aware that the radio station no longer broadcasted from here, but we were disappointed to not see any paraphernalia that would suggest they had ever been there. A little frustrating after the long ride, but not a big issue to us as we were ready to embark on our last journey into town to complete our circumnavigation of the board.

 

Formerly the registered address of SGR FM

The evening was closing in now despite it being only three in the afternoon. With our lights set to flash, we took the quickest route towards town along the spacious bus lane of Norwich Road, before altering our route at the troublesome double roundabout setup which causes me a fright every night whilst returning from work as drivers either hesitate or are far too assertive, making for danger for an exposed cyclist either way. We were bound for Portman Road, the home of Ipswich Town Football Club which we had visited on our first excursion on the opposite side of the board to visit Sir Bobby Robson and Sir Alf Ramsey. We were now into the Park Lane and Mayfair territory of the board and in the money.

 

 

Fortunately the following two properties laid in order than we would pass them. From the football stadium, we cycled through the town centre which was now even more deserted then in the morning as the sale shoppers had now left leaving an eerie silence to the usually bustling town as darkness set in.

The Ipswich Building Society is located within Tower Ramparts Shopping Centre and with this being New Year’s Day it was closed and on lockdown. We could only peer in through the glass doors and test the iPhone camera to its limits by maximising the zoom in a desperate attempt to capture the shop front.

 

Desperate but it counts

The feeling of relief rather than joy was engulfing both of us now. Whilst the journey had been enjoyable and educational, we were both cold and wet and wanted to sit down and drink tea.

The final property was to be Christchurch Mansion, an imposing Tudor brick Mansion within the boundaries of the spacious Christchurch Park on the edge of the town. We had just about made our way to the park in time. As we stood at the end of the sprawling lawn, debating as to whose photograph was better, the park ranger completed his circuit in a golf buggy with headlights ablaze, clearly making his final checks for the day ahead of locking up the gates as dusk fell.

 

 

Challenge complete.

 

We simply then made our way to the Giles Statue marking GO for a celebration photograph before pressing stop on the Garmin and returning home for a hot drink.

 

Below are included some statistics for the ride. I was surprised that we ended up cycling over sixty miles in order to reach all of the properties. Another way to complete the challenge would be to simply visit all of the locations but not in order. This would be relatively straightforward as several locations could be ticked off in short time periods. There would not be two separate trips to Martlesham Heath, for example, and three properties could be bagged within a minute in the case of Portman Road and its two legendary statues

 

Overall Distance – 104.8km

Overall Time – 5hrs 40mins

Longest Journey – 13.9km 41min55secs (Martlesham P & R to SGR)

Shortest Journey – 93metres 22seconds (Sir Bobby to Sir Alf)

 

Completing this challenge was great fun for us both and quite an achievement. Having lived in Ipswich my whole life, except for a short stint of 5 years when I joined the circus, there were still many corners that I had not visited or seen. Cycling the course allowed me to see sleepy back streets and interesting buildings, with some ancient architecture that are simply not accessible or noticeable by car. I was a little baffled by some notable omissions from the board, and thought some of the repetitive locations could have been replaced by options such as Crown Pools Swimming, The Ipswich Hospital and Vue Cinema on Cardinal Park.

 If you would like to learn more about the Brompton Bicycle, visit THIS page, paying particular attention to the BikeBuilder. Great fun.

I will sign off this entry with the famous words from the MyOrange Brompton blog which sowed the seed of this whole affair…

If you have a Monopoly edition for the city you live in, perhaps you could try something similar?