The Abingdon Cycling Festival took place today, Sunday, the 4th of June, with over 20 rides starting from a sunny Market Place.

From 9:00 to 11:30 in the morning, participants signed up and embarked on an array of rides.

Organized by the Abingdon Freewheeling cycling club, the festival returned this year after a three-year gap. The club’s mission is to encourage the local community to participate in cycling, regardless of ability.

Most rides ended at the Loose Cannon Brewery, where riders were treated to refreshments and musical entertainment.

The festival rides ranged from sporty runs

to off-road challenges;

and from social group rides and family-friendly jaunts to the latest developments in cycling with an E-bike ride.

It looked a great day.

On 10th June, at St Helen’s Church.  Abingdon & District Musical Society will be performing two symphonic pieces from Smetena’s Ma Vlast, and all of Brahm’s German Requiem.

Every year (except for Covid), the drama festival is at the Unicorn Theatre. Different acting groups perform plays from Tuesday to Friday, after which an adjudicator will critique the performances. The adjudicator selects three plays for the Saturday Gala Night.

Music at the Unicorn continues to bring acts to the Unicorn Theatre. There are two concerts in June: Bossa Gringo and Moonrakers.

Last week, Abingdon Library had a special Bee Day. Following that, David Busby will talk on Bees at Abingdon Library next Tuesday.

On Bank Holiday Monday, a series of walks were organised by The Friends of Abingdon Civic Society. Five were guided, and there were ten themed trail leaflets.

The Friends had their AGM last Wednesday at the same time as the Town Council cinema meeting. In the last year, the Friends have organised Heritage Open Day, and walk days like today. They also have a project to produce a photographic archive of the town. They were active in looking at planning applications and notifying both the town and district council of concerns. They are involved in the Conservation Area Appraisal for the Albert Park area, and the Abingdon neighborhood plan. They also act as a pressure group on major issues and have worked with local residents to press the District Council to resolve problems over the derelict Upper Reaches hotel site.

Most of the Monday Market was also on the Market Place despite it being a bank holiday.

The World Poohsticks Championship was held on the bridge near Sandford Lock on the River Thames today.

At 11 am, Tigger was bouncing with excitement, wanting to see the first pooh sticks dropped into the gentle current. The championship involved a series of heats. Participants leaned over the bridges edge, prepared to release their different coloured sticks. Then at a signal, they dropped the sticks upstream of the bridge and crossed to see whose stick emerged downstream and crossed the finishing line first.

Umpires from the Abingdon Rotary Club, who organised the event, watched the finishing line like owls.

At about 1 am, Tigger could not contain his excitement as just two players were left in the final, waiting to drop their sticks.

The red stick finished a few lengths ahead of the blue stick.

The red stick’s handler was congratulated as the World Poohsticks Champion for 2023. He is Bertie S (age 9).

The next world championship is a year away but that does not stop people playing the game at any time, whatever your age, just as Pooh Bear played it with with Christopher Robin, Tigger, and Eeyore.

The annual World Poohsticks Championships was previously held at Day’s Lock on the River Thames from 1984 to 2018. There has been a gap of four years with no competition because of lack of resources and then Covid. This was the first time at Sandford Lock. It has moved from downstream to upstream of Abingdon.