Tales from The
Ponderosa |
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| Up on Glenshane we're used to assisting travellers. During the winter we provide food and shelter for stranded motorists. At the height of summer we do a steady trade in water for overheating radiators. A few years back we come to the aid of a distressed traveller in a rather unusual way: It was a moonless, autumn night. One of our neighbours was riding his brother's bicycle across the Glenshane Pass to a dance 700ft below us in Maghera. Now it must be said that this old bicycle had seen better days. The handlebars were slack, the brakes worked only some of the time, and the dynamo wasn't working at all. Consequently he was having difficulty seeing and staying on the road. This was before the modern road across Glenshane was all it's catseyes and reflective markers was built. A few hundred yards before the Ponderosa he and the bicycle abruptly parted company, and they both ended up in a drainage ditch. The bicycle survived the immersion, but not so our neighbour. With his big night of dancing apparently in ruins he staggered sodden into the Ponderosa, leaving behind a trail of wet footprints. For the resourceful staff in the Ponderosa this catastrophe was all in a day's work, and help was soon at hand. As his own socks hung steaming in front of the big turf fire to dry, we sent him on his way again, wearing the barman's socks! The next time you visit the Ponderosa, have a quick look to see if the barman is wearing any socks. If he isn't, you can probably guess the reason why!
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