INSIDE THE WORLD OF MEETUP

  I found a free carpark and a walking area that had only been open to the public for a couple of years. Better still it was close to home, also an experiment on how many people would turn up. The answer was about half a dozen. Weather was perfect as we set off along the lane to the outskirts of the park. It was a good mixture of open fields and woodlands. A 30 minute break was taken at the Harvester where it was warm enough to sit outside. Then into the park proper before heading back into Shepshed.

  Admittedly this was too soon after the last one with a very similar itinerary. Over 120 were on the list with 3 organizers sorting it all out, rather them than myself. Starting at the pitcher and piano is was good to catch up with people if the venue itself was over familiar. The good news as the next venue blind rabbit had big screens up for the boxing where we watched A Joshua get stuffed. Only a few dozen made it to Mojos which didn't surprise me, I lasted until around 1:30

  I'd heard about this for years and finally got the opportunity. 5 pubs and one bus for a tenner. Unfortunately, loads dropped out leaving just the 3 of us. A 30 minute delay occurred when one of the buses was cancelled but they found another. Our first stop was a beer festival at Thorpe Langton. We had an hour which sounds a lot but the queues were big. We then went to a few village pubs including Burton Overy and Kibworth Beauchamp. A great day and as the beer flowed people got more social. Unfortunately the journey home was a nightmare.

A 2 hour debate between about 20 people in an upstairs room in a pub. Not as heated as the previous one about the pharmaceutical industry. I provided the following...... Police show minimal interest in lower level crime especially when it involves juveniles. Part of the problem is the amount of paperwork they have to complete in order to process. Then the courts will often give minimal punishments. Easier to brush it under the carpet, as a result more people don’t bother reporting it. Crimes unreported as public lose faith in police - BBC News Coronavirus lockdowns . Police openly admitted they didn’t have the resources to enforce the rules and many lockdown fines went unpaid. Regardless of your opinions on covid/lockdowns it doesn’t paint the police or justice system in a good light. OPINION: "There simply aren’t enough police officers to enforce a lockdown" (wiltshire999s.co.uk) Majority of coronavirus fines unpaid in some parts of England, data suggests | ITV News Use of ...

  The weather wasn't great and it was an event I was generally lukewarm about attending. It was closer than home to most and I used the journey to plan future walks.  We visited a few stalls located near the clock warehouse but I felt we spent far too long hanging around. As usual I was one of the youngest in this group. Then we headed up the canal for coffee and some nice but overpriced chocolate orange fudge. A stop at the Malt Shovel pub followed where we chatted for around 45 minutes. We went down to the boathouse for more of the same. By that point I'd seen enough and headed home.

  Slightly disappointed with only 4 people turning out, free carpark, on a bus route and great scenery. Apart from a short section being overgrown (I was prepared with pruners) it was a clear walk all the way round. Everyone seemed to like the route along with the stop in the Star pub at West Leake. One of the girls was autistic and hadn't had much contact with anyone outside of family and one friend in 6 months. She chose my walk as the first thing to do and was exchanging contact details. Good to have made a difference. 

  3 venues and over 80 people on the list. Rather them than me organising !!!!! Got to the Pitcher and Piano first and was quickly joined by most of the others. Expected more people in town for a bank holiday weekend.  Second venue was All bar one which I don't recall having been before. Upmarket and a bit on the expensive side even by city standards. The annoying thing was that the 40 plus meetup crowd and filled the place and they only has 2 bar staff on which was poor. Finally onto Mojos where several of us felt that we go too often. I lasted until around 1:30am.

  Back to another daytime pub crawl in Leicester. The idea was to throw a dice at each pub to decide the next venue. Bit strange but it worked out ok. Starting at the old horse on the other side of the train station. Nice place with a massive beer garden. Second stop was Loaded dog, a sports bar with loads of screens. Where photo was taken. It was a bit of a trek back into town but we followed NEW WALK a path I don't think I have ever been down. The grand union was only a small place and we seemed to fill it us, there was around 20 of us by this point. Next door was the Kings head, we sat outside upstairs. On the main road was the Barley Mow, several described it as a "rough pub" but it seemed fine on arrival and we stayed longer than expected. The beer was also cheap by city standards. Finally I finished at "spoons" and was clockwatching for public transport.  A good day out.

  Another walk with another reasonable turnout (10). We met at Newton lane carpark and followed an anti clockwise route. It was hillier than I expected since I always plan the opposite way around. The group kept getting strung out due to 4 being a bit slow which was a minor annoyance. Otherwise the rain held off until we reached the pub in Kimberley. After a good chat we headed off down the old railway line and back to the starting point via the canal.

Second pub crawl II hosted, this time around Trent bridge. Unfortunately a far right protest and counter protest was in town. While this didn't affect us directly, several people dropped out as a precaution. We started at the Trent bridge inn, where half the group joined and the rest came later on. We sat outside at the embankment and the brewhouse.  Wetherspoons was packed due to the lower drinks prices and we struggled to find a table. We then moved on to the Waterside which was a popular choice. The weather was good, drinks were flowing. Finally we ended up at William Gunn which was another good choice. A few were planning their nights out from here but I was done for the day. It was another great afternoon and I had the motive to plan more in the future. 

  An opportunity to visit a pub in Sawley which I'd never been to before. The weather wasn't great (cloudy) and the group was a bit subdued. The "garden party" consisted of us sitting in a large beer garden while some DJ played Ibiza tunes. The meetup group as usual with Derby Sociables consisted mostly of an older crowd.  It was ok for a couple of hours as the sun came out, drinks flowed and a younger crowd started to arrive. 6pm I had to make a decision between getting the last direct bus home or staying longer and taking 3 buses. It was an ok afternoon but nothing special so I got the direct bus.

 I usually enjoy a night at the dog racing despite being terrible at picking winners. It was a tight schedule to get to the track after finishing work. The place was busy as usual and our group consisted of 8 people. I got a couple of winners and didn't lose as much as usual. Overall the atmosphere was a bit subdued due to everyone being slightly tired from work. Saturday night would have been better.

  Another simple flat walk with a mixture of canal, woodland and open fields. A turnout of 10 out of 13 so percentage wise it was excellent. We headed down the canal where a few stopped to assist a boat going through a lock. An inexperienced man was shouting at his very upset daughter. Thankfully several of the group had experience. We headed into the woods where mud was minimal and the sun was out at the Malt pub. A few miles over fields where we encountered an unexpected display of blue flowers. No after walk drink but everyone seemed happy and I got good feedback.

  I wasn't "feeling it" today, didn't turn up at the very beginning as usual due to hospital visit. We met at the Distillery with a turnout of around 20 people. After an hour we moved on to the Rutland and Derby. Everywhere was packed solid due to the England match and the Kasabian concert. At least some left for the concert but it was still busy. Next stop was café Bruxelles, nice place but empty for a reason. They didn't have the football on, the group didn't seem interested in watching it and the ones who did started leaving. After missing the first half it was obvious most of the pubs on the high street were not letting any more in. I left the group after a slightly disappointing afternoon. Watched the second half and penalty shootout at the salmon pub near the bus station alone.

  Another music night with minimal travel. Only 2 others turned up, I can't figure out why this is often the case since it's a good venue. The numbers were lower than usual since it was a paid event. The singer was good although some of the songs were a bit subdued.  Steady night overall finished around 11.

  Probably not the sort of event I'd have attended by itself but seen it as an opportunity to plan a walk. I went from Ilkeston stopped at the festival for a few hours, then planned the rest of the walk on the way back. There was about 8 people turned up, all older than myself. Coupled with music that was subdued I quickly decided that I wasn't hanging around for too long. Enjoyed the food, had a bit of a chat and left after 2 and a half hours.   

  After hosting a few successful walks it was time to try a pub-crawl. I picked a route inspired by the website  https://www.designmynight.com/nottingham/beer-gardens-in-nottingham   The route was Junkyard, Cross Keys, Magic Garden, Blind Rabbit, Pitcher & Piano and The Canalhouse. The junkyard was not a bad start apart from the weather which was awful. After an hour the numbers had built up to around 8. I went by 75 minutes per venue and people were messaging to say they were joining later on. The weather improved by the cross keys enough to sit outside. Most of them were impressed by the magic garden and we bumped into another group we knew at the blind rabbit. By the  Pitcher & Piano people were starting to get hungry and left so we never did the Canalhouse. Some came back for a later meet but I left by then. Got good feedback.....

Somewhere completely new was long overdue even though it required 3 buses. Starting opposite the gold course we headed towards Breadsall via Cloves Hill , Brackley Gate and Drum Hill. It was a great combination of rolling hills, t racks, fields and woodland . Breadsall seemed an upmarket type of place where we stopped for coffee and cake. From there we headed back to the starting point via Broomfield Hall, Morley Church and the Golf Course.

  Got up to 30 by Thursday, 20 by Saturday morning and 16 turned up which is my best to date. We set off from Rushcliffe park following the railway line south. Admittedly the narrow track wasn't good for having conversations with everyone in the group. This changed when crossing the fields towards Bunny. We had an interesting mixture of people. Everyone like the pub I choose for the usual half hour break. We followed the last 2 miles through the fields where a problem with my phone meant having to navigate from memory for half an hour. 4 of us went back to the pub in Bunny for an hour after the walk.

  This night out consisted of 2 places I'd not been to before followed by an old favourite, Mojos. We met at at King Willian IV an old style pub with a nice rooftop area which was good for a warm summer evening. Nice change but my first pint was a hefty 7.50. Then headed to Bustler a modern style place with loud music. We should have stayed longer to be honest as it was dead in Mojos on arrival. It did however pickup after midnight and went to being completely packed out. A good night that ended around 3:00.

  A well planned walk in my opinion but I ran into a problem, only 4 people signed up. With an average dropout rate of 50% I was seriously considering cancelling the walk. I hatched a plan B where if nobody turned up I'd use the time to plan another circular walk in the area. Thankfully everyone turned up, we headed out of Keyworth through fields and the villages of Plumtree and Tollerton. I already got good feedback as we walked. I also noticed that 4 people were a lot easier to keep an eye on than a dozen. Especially when we crossed a busy main road.  We stopped for 30 minutes at the Goose pub before following the canal back to Trent bridge. We then stopped at the Brewhouse for an hour. Despite the low turnout I considered the walk a success.

  I'd been saying for years that meetup should so a day at horse racing. So I jumped at the chance to have an afternoon at Nottingham.  The biggest disappointment was only myself and the event organiser turning up. We spent the hot afternoon alternating between bets, cold drinks and watching the races. He had a couple of winners and I had absolutely nothing.    Thankfully we met a women's meetup group and a couple of them recognised me from some of the walks we had been on. Got the first bus back after the last race.

  The 3rd annual Camden pub crawl didn't disappoint as it was another busy afternoon in one of the most touristy parts of London. According to my bank statement we did 11 pubs which was much more than normal. I also didn't get back until after midnight instead of the usual 9PM. 

 3rd walk I hosted and there was over 30 people signed up at one point. Only a 40% chance of rain but around 10 dropped out on the morning of the walk. There was 13 of us a the start. We headed out the castle grounds in an easterly direction, then followed the river to Ambaston. Down the country lane to the Harrington arms pub. Taking a half hour break before going back into the grounds. Overall the walk went well and the weather held off, some of them panicked towards the end due to the 4 hour carpark limit. But I improvised a shortcut and got them back in time. Nobody stayed for coffee and cake but I didn't mind.

 I thought I'd try my hand at hosting a non walking event so picked a live music night at a venue I'd attended several times before. I posted the meet 6 weeks before the even and waited. One person signed up then quickly dropped out. Not one single other person out of over 14,000 members joined. This I thought was very strange. The good news was that the Derby group was also hosting the event so I closed the RSVPs on the last day and joined theirs instead. Derby only had half a dozen turn up by the venue was busy and it turned out to be a great evening.  https://www.facebook.com/thecastleinndonington/videos/417064477632494/

  Oakham falls firmly into the category of towns that made me think “why have I never been here before”. We started off near the train station at the grainstore pub that sells craft beers and went from there.  Heading around town we visited 7 venues from traditional pubs to sports bars and more upmarket venues finishing around 7PM.

  I'd not been to Castle Donnington for a long time, but since I was hosting my own event at this venue, I thought it would be a good idea to go to this meet up. The Castle Inn is a great place for live music. I was initially lukewarm on the band but they grew on me over the course of the night. The rest of the group were middle-aged women from Derby, but it was still a good night. 

  I started out 6th on the waitlist with 30 people on the walk. Mothers day combined with slight rain reduced the list drastically to 14 on the morning to only 5 people turning out for the walk. I went for the simple reason I'd never been Long Eaton before and it was convenient for the buses on Sunday. We headed along the canal north and turned west onto a footpath that went towards the M1 bridge. The walk was good so far if a little muddy but then a few problems began to occur. 1) The 3 others were too slow for the group leader and I got the not so subtle hint he was getting annoyed by this. Under normal circumstances with a bigger group slow walkers get the memo but not this time. 2) I mentioned in conversation that I started walking with this group at the end of covid lockdown. The conversation drifted towards anti vaccination and other conspiracy theories. I have a very low opinion of these people but couldn't be bothered to argue so ended up walking ahead alone for aroun...

  It was a rare (4th in a year) meet with Derby socials but I'd not been here before. Nursing a painful back injury walking was one of the few activities I could do. It didn't help when the organiser didn't put the map pin in the correct place and I was searching for the start point a couple of hundred meters down the road.  We followed the nutbrook tail for around 3 miles to the excellent coffee shop for a break. One of the group had a drone which he briefly flew to take this picture. The rest of the walk had a "make it up as you go long" feel but it was ok.

  A night out in the city centre was slightly overdue it involved 2 venues the cosy club followed by the Hockley arts club. Over 70 people were on the list but typically half that number turned up. The first venue was a nice place if not massively overpriced. I caught up with a few old faces and got talking to a few new ones. The second venue was had loud music although they kept mixing the styles often to ridiculous levels. It was a good night until I returned from the toilet to discover 90% of the group had left.  A good night overall and I managed to arrange to go to a gig with another member outside of meetup thanks to this night.

With 5 star reviews and excellent feedback I quickly started planning the second walk to host. I opted for a circular walk this time (to help the motorists) and also found a starting point with free parking. We started in Shardlow and headed north doing a circuit of St chads nature reserve before heading towards Breaston via coffin walk. I was worried about the mud that I encountered on the test walk but it turned out to be a lot drier. One of the group happened to live in  Breaston and recommended the Chequers inn on the high street which turned out to be a nice place to stop. It got a little too comfortable and we all had to persuade each other to move on.  We had to take a detour for a mile due to mud but that was pre planned. Then followed the canal from Sawley back to the starting point. Had a few drinks and a good chat in the new inn after.

  I'd done beat the streets a couple of years earlier. We met in the Horn in hand for breakfast before heading to the venues. First stop was whiskey stain at the red room which I didn't plan to watch but were ok. I then made a dash to Rough trade to see Grain who to be honest weren't great but that was the only time I went that venue.  Cam mannix who I'd seen before at splendour put on a good show at rock city. From that point on all the bands I wanted to see were at rescue rooms. Bloodworm were ok, but lacey were far too heavy for my taste so I went back to the horn in hand for a diet coke and a rest. Others from the group were also taking a bit of time out. By the time we went back the cost of living were on at 19:00 and the crowd were getting louder. Unlike last time I didn't spend long alone due to losing people. The publics and The chase put on a great show the crowd got very rowdy with crowd surfing and concerned security. It was a good end to the day. As peop...