Arrivée 138 autumn 2017

of A ud ax

th em em ber s’ m aga zine

2017 n/winter utum •a

•1 UK 38

The Devil rides out…

page 10

Audax UK

the long-distance cyclists’ association

Just a Sec

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AGM notice

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Pendle 600

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The Devil rides out

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2017

th em em ber s’ m aga zine of

• 138 UK

er n/wint utum •a

Au da x

INSIDE ISSUE 138

Unforgettable Pacific coast 18 Helmet Wars

The Devil rides out…

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Tweets from the handlelbars 26 LEL international riders

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Bringing up the rear

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Hanger games

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page 12

Audax UK

’ association the long-distance cyclists

Front cover Kevin Presland and companions atop Bone Hill on his 25th anniversary of organising The Dartmoor Devil

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Welcome to the autumn/ winter 2017 issue of Arrivée

FEEDBACK

Thanks to everyone who sent in their feedback on the new design, I have put most of them here on the right.

Thanks too go to the edition editor Peter Moir who has done so much work that I haven’t been able to fit it all in, so apologies to anyone who has been missed, rest assured that all your stories will get Peter Moir published eventually!

We are very keen to have any continuing feedback on the content as it develops, so please feel free to send in suggestions or comment: gedlennox@me.com

● “Just thought I should drop you a line to say how impressed I am with the new-style Arrivée I’ve been a member of Audax for many years and whenever Arrivée arrived it was nice, but frankly, it felt more like a duty than a pleasure to plough through it.

Now we have a clear, well-designed, page-turning format. Layout and content are both excellent.

I appreciate the work that’s gone into all of this.

Many newsstand mags now are garish in the extreme, but new Arrivée has managed to look professional and of a commercial standard without falling into the trap of over-boosted colours etc.

I think it’ll certainly help to build membership too.

Oh, and also the new cover banner design is great!”

Tim Jasper

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● ”We enjoyed reading the summer edition which took much less than half as long as usual for obvious reasons.

Perhaps a bit of extra meat would be good, but otherwise it was enjoyable to look at and leaf through. Obviously, you’ve adopted a more contemporary style which is OK but who is it most intended to appeal to? I guess that a casual browser would find it appealing and would have been put off by pages of text. Probably needs a bit of punchy and longer stuff mixed, but please, just a very occasional 12-pager with every last detail from waking to eventual retirement!

Audax is a long game and some of the content of Arrivée might need to convey this, otherwise, keep the mix of ingredients, you’re doing nothing wrong.”

Alan & Anne Rogers

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● ”You asked for comments, and for a while this matter has been bothering me. I must start, though, by saying “wow”, the new format is stunningly brilliant.

My problem is with the front cover – for a while now it has bothered me the number of photos of riders not wearing helmets. Up until now, the front page has not been ruined by such pictures. For those who feel they can eschew all common and medical sense, fill your boots, or more likely, fill your cap with the contents of your skull. Having seen how a helmet saves someone’s life, it annoys me tremendously that Audax should then parade such abhorrent behaviour on the front cover.”

Dom Ellis – See page 28-29 for Dom’s full perspective ● ”Absolutely love the new look of the revamped magazine and I particularly like the very clever cover masthead – great work.”

Dr Lorna Fewtrell Trustee of the Up and Under Foundation ● ”Oh dear… sorry, but the refreshed look of the magazine did nothing for me. The circular photos made it look like a children’s comic. I was almost expecting speech bubbles with Pow! Splat! Thwack! etc. Too many photo reports had a (very) limited number of photos and seemed such a waste of the resource. The Arrivée title, although a clever use of the letters, was just too vague for me. The “ride reports” and the text generally were quite legible. However, the AUK Calendar font size was right on the limit for my spectacled eyes.”

Ian Barber

The 100-hour Halleluja

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More than a bike ride

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Climb better without losing weight

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Fixed focus

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Membership renewal notice

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The life and times of a cycling Superwoman 46 The French reconnexion

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Acts of kindness on the borders of Fife

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AUK calendar

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Contacts 61

● ”Wow, just received the new Arrivée Summer issue – love the new look.”

Miles Emery

● ”Just received my first copy of Arrivée. New to AUK, the mag has fired up the imagination to ride my first Audax soon, great read – hope to see you on the road soon.”

● ”Just a note to say how much I liked the new style of Arrivée. It’s a great quality publication and I always give it a thorough read. However, the refreshed magazine hasn’t changed in respect of showing all the interesting and varied rides people are doing, while at the same time making me feel guilty for not having ridden them myself! –Keep up the good work.”

Simon Goodwin

● ”As a long-term member, I think this month’s edition seems to have stepped up in quality. Well done.”

Joe Jord

● ”Love, love, love the new design! It’s so much more readable and eye-catching. Fantastic work. Chapeau to all concerned.”

Gill Cooper ● ”My first impression of the latest Arrivée was that it was a breath of fresh air, but, and there always is a but, when I started to read in earnest I found white print on a coloured background on glossy paper, rather hard going. Reflections due to my reading lamp meant I had to be careful about the angle I held the magazine. I had particular problems with the calendar, finding the new format not at all user friendly.

Still a worthwhile read though.”

Brian Mann ● ”The new format of Arrivée is bright and cheerful.

Well done!”

Mark Moroney

● ”Just received my copy. The magazine has always been good but this is a huge jump forwards. Well done!”

Ian McDonald ●”Just come home from work and nearly finished it – really interesting.”

Sharon Jones ● ”Newcastle and Darlington events are rather well covered. As organiser of the Chevy and Mosstrooper, the photo spreads were a complete and rather nice surprise. Next years’ events are all planned and will be published in October. My website has 2018 event dates and descriptions: www.northern-audax.org.uk” Aidan Hedley ● ”Love this edition and really liked the article about the off-road Audax, hope there may be a few more in the pipeline.”

Julie Allum ● ”Looks really good, must get my article submitted!”

Sarah Freeman

● ”Congratulations on the remodelling of Arrivée – it looks fantastic!

A small issue – on page 28 of issue 137, you credit me as being the organiser of LEL. As much as I like to claim the credit for anything successful, I’m afraid I can’t on this occasion.

I just got involved at the last minute trying to drum up a bit of media attention and serving up the odd bacon sarnie at St Ives. Danial, on the other hand, has been living, sleeping and eating LEL for the last four years and is the driving force that makes the difference between it being a shambolic mess and a slick professional world-class event.”

Liam FitzPatrick In answer to Alan and Anne Rogers about the length of the articles, we have no control over the submissions and are hugely grateful for the time and effort our contributors put in, both text and pictures – some are longer than others – the longest article covered eight pages.

Brian Mann worried about the glossy paper, and I agree that it would be lovely to print on a fully recycled matt stock – I have looked into the cost implications and how it might effect the quality of the images, so watch this space…

As for Ian Barber’s comic concerns – not everyone takes perfect pictures. Circular images enable the cropping of detritus that you find on the edges of many photos – so we can focus on the people making the effort. The “very limited” number of photos – about 100 – are pretty much the same as usual.

www.aukweb.net

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JUST A SEC… with Graeme Provan, General secretary, Audax UK

Just a sec…

The end of season administration is currently in full swing. The validation team and our Recorder worked wonders to produce the final results needed for our awards and trophies less than two weeks after the final event of season. Of course, they wouldn’t have these results without the assistance of our fantastic organisers in returning the results to them so quickly in the first place.

I have therefore just written to all of our award and trophy winners to let them know the good news. A full list will appear in the next edition but what was particularly heartening to see was the level of competition among our junior members – the Peter Tandy Trophy for the youngest person to complete a 200k brevet on a solo machine was hotly contested between two 12 year olds who were split by a matter of days.

The awards will be handed out at our Reunion which takes place in Llandrindod Wells on the weekend of the 3-5 November. Mike Lane has worked like lightning to collate various results and order the appropriate awards in time for the event and I am extremely grateful to him for his hard work.

Meanwhile, Paul Rainbow and Mark Gibson have spent the last few months arranging the Reunion itself. Having had to change the date at short notice through

no fault of their own, they have been working under particularly difficult conditions this year. They both also deserve a huge thank you for their hard work.

In an effort to avoid any difficulties next year, the 2018 Reunion will take place over the weekend of 16-18 November. The current intention is to hold the event in central Scotland but, at this stage, it is more important to set the date than the venue.

AGM The formal notice of our AGM is set out below. It will take place at the same venue as last year and arrangements are also in hand for an online voting site to be set up as soon as the resolutions are finalised.

One of the items to be dealt with at the AGM is the adoption of a new modern set of Articles of Association for AUK. Drafts of the new Articles and some explanatory notes are available on the website. If anyone has any questions or comments on these, please let me know by email.

Board meeting Our latest board meeting took place on 11 October.

As part of a full agenda, the board adopted a number of policies which are available on the website. These cover a

number of areas and are part of AUK’s ambition to become the recognised National Governing Body for noncompetitive long distance cycling.

Miranda Smith, one of a number of IT delegates assisting with the new systems upgrade, was on hand to give us a detailed update. The front end of the new website is really taking shape and the board authorised the expenditure for the first phase of the development work for the new system.

As usual, you can find the minutes of the meeting and copies of the directors’ reports in the official section of Aukweb.

CTT AUK is now an affiliated member of Cycling Time Trials, the national governing body for time trials. AUK members may therefore enter CTT events as AUK members.

Correction In my last column I managed to spell long-time LEL finance man Roger Cortis’s name incorrectly. The mistake was all my own and I apologise to Roger for the error.

AUDAX UK NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Notice of Annual General Meeting – Audax United Kingdom Long Distance Cyclists’ Association (“Audax Uk”) Notice is given that the Annual General Meeting of Audax UK will be held on Saturday 10 February 2018, at 12.00pm at Room 101, The Library of Birmingham, Centenary Square, Broad Street, Birmingham, B1 2ND. Graeme Provan, General Secretary secretary@audax.uk Resolutions should be submitted by members acting as proposer and seconder by post or email to the General Secretary to arrive no later than 15 December 2017.

The resolution may include a statement of no more than 1000 words, excluding details of any changes to AUK Articles and Regulations.

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The draft resolutions will then be available at www.aukweb.net for a period of not less than 21 days for review. During this period members may submit amendments to resolutions in the same manner as resolutions. Proposers of resolutions and/or amendments may similarly withdraw unamended resolutions and/or amendments, or otherwise combine, partition or otherwise redraft them so long as they continue to address the resolution’s original subject Elections for the following posts will take place at the AGM: ● Chairman ● Membership Secretary

● Calendar Events Secretary ● Finance Director ● Non-Executive Directors (2) Nominations with details of the members proposing and seconding the nomination and the consent of the nominated person to serve together with a statement of that person’s relevant abilities or experience of no more than 1000 words should be sent by post or email to the General Secretary to be received no later than 12 January 2018.

A detailed agenda including the final resolutions and nominations and annual reports and accounts will be published on the website not later than the 19th January 2018.

All members are very welcome to attend the meeting and tea and coffee will be provided. Alternatively, any member may appoint a proxy to attend, speak and vote in his or her place. Proxy voting will

go live on 19 January. If you or your proxy wishes to attend the meeting, I would be grateful if you could let me know in good time so that I can ensure sufficient space at the venue as well as adequate supplies of refreshments.

It is important that all members ensure that their email details on www.aukweb. net are accurate. Details of proxy voting will be sent to all members with email addresses by Electoral Reform Services.

Electoral Reform Services is the Electoral Services Company who will manage the voting process on our behalf.

For reasons of cost, the final agenda and annual report will be published via the website. Any members who wish to receive the final agenda and annual report by post should apply to the Registrar using the form provided below.

Agenda for the Audax UK Long Distance Cyclists’ Association AGM 2016/17 To be held at Room 101, The Library of Birmingham , Centenary Square, Broad

Street, Birmingham, B1 2ND on 10 February 2018 commencing at 12:00pm 1 To record the names of those present at the meeting.

2 To record apologies for absence.

3 To approve the minutes of the last AGM as a true record of that meeting.

4 Matters arising from the last meeting (AGM 2015/16).

5 To approve the Annual Report.

6 To approve the Annual Accounts and the Finance Director’s recommendations.

7 To consider resolutions.

8 Election of Directors: 1 – Finance Director 2 – Membership Secretary 3 – Calendar Events Secretary 4 – Non-Executive Director (2 positions) 9 Date and venue of next meeting.

10 Close of meeting.

To: Audax UK Registrar, ‘Polvellan’, School Hill, Mevagissey, Cornwall PL26 6TG I would like to register to receive the AGM papers and proxy form by post.

Signed:

Date

Name: AUK Membership No:

THE LEAD MINER’S TRAIL 103km Grimpeur (2AAA) Saturday June 30th 2018 Organised by Alfreton CTC under Audax UK Regulations IT’S BACK!!!

Using a new start/finish café (Cromford Wharf, near Matlock, Derbyshire) and a partially new route omitting the northern (Castleton) section of the original, this new version of an old favourite provides a lovely ride along the lanes and through villages associated with the ancient lead mining trade in the White Peak of Derbyshire.

Stunning views, steep hills, empty lanes, photogenic villages and plenty of cafes for those essential coffee and cake stops, plus the last 10kms are all downhill…

What more could you ask for from an Audax?

Go to aukwewb.net/events for full details

www.aukweb.net

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RIDE REPORT PENDLE 600 2017

Memories of the rugged countryside and fells of his youth seduced Richard Chew into entering this demanding ride with its 10,150 metres of climbing – there are many words to describe the Pendle 600, but relentlessly brutal seems to sum it up…

Pendle 600…

Pain and Perseverance

WORDS AND PICTURES BY RICHARD CHEW Descriptions of the Pendle 600 might include the words “cruel”, “challenging” and “scenically beautiful”, but they all fall short of the full picture. The Pendle 600, now in its fourth incarnation, takes place every two years.

Originally, the depart was from the village of Pendleton which nestles on the slopes of Pendle Hill in Lancashire, otherwise and quite mercifully it avoids Pendle Hill. This year the start was from the luxurious village hall in West Bradford.

Why did I choose to do this? I’d left it too late to book the Kingdom of the East Saxons 400 which had been on my calendar in the build up to LEL for several months and as I had a hankering for the countryside and fells of my youth I decided to enter this 600 at the last minute. It would also complete my Super Randonneur series.

Having a choice of local friends to stay with also helped the decision and kept the costs down.

POLICE AND FIRE SERVICE IN ATTENDANCE

I almost didn’t get there at all.

The train north halted for

three hours near Rugby in a surreal scenario that felt like a kidnapping or some bizarre reality TV show where people are held against their will to watch how they interact.

Power was switched off. The temperature rose uncomfortably. People got tetchy and free food and water was made available.

Announcements were made on progress from time to time, but there was not much news. A trespasser on the line; a suicide jumper on the bridge; police and fire service in attendance. We never got the full story. Finally, we continued and, connections lost, I got off at Preston where a fleet of taxis took us all to our final destinations.

Thankfully a black cab was happy to take me and the bike all the way to Pendleton at the train company’s expense.

I had one hour’s sleep before it was time to get up again. Down to the depart at West Bradford, plenty of Club Hackney riders and some from closer to home. A little intimidated, I got talking to a man on an Elliptigo and was comforted by his courage in tackling this event.

EVENTBRIEF

The North York Moors, or thereabouts

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THE PENDLE 600 When… Saturday 1 July 2017 How far… 609km Starts from… West Bradford Total climbing… 10,150m (10 AAA) Organiser… Andy Corless, Burnley CC Website… www.pendle600audax.com

FAMILIARITY BREEDS CONTENT

The familiarity of the surroundings and the lack of sleep brought tears of nostalgia; leaving the familiar Ribble Valley we crossed into my grandfather’s country around Airton and Grassington, the scenery subtly changing into the Yorkshire Dales.

The first serious climbing, a long drag to Greenhow Hill, soon came, and it was fortunate I had taken time to tweak my chattering gears a few kilometres back. I met and exchanged stories on the way to Ripon with a few riders.

After the control at Ripon I was forced to ride alone due to my faffing at departure, but from a navigational point of view it didn’t matter. I was suddenly immersed in an area highly familiar to me due to recent business trips. My regular accommodation, The Angel at Topcliffe, went by and then I passed right by the business in Dalton that I come to visit twice a year.

The openness of the North York Moors with the

purple heather stunning in the bright sunshine was a real display of beauty, the most uplifting section of the ride, spiritually and also from a geographical sense.

Some really steep slopes, both up and down, near Robin Hood’s Bay. How would I have coped in the wet? I could feel my rear wheel locking as I negotiated hairpin bends, gripping the brakes as hard as I dared while resisting the desire to force myself off the road to stop and walk down.

Trying to stop could be just as dangerous as carrying on.

The surfaces were rough and in one stretch strewn with rubble as though a rock fall had almost covered the road surface.

Fish and chips for lunch, too warm to sit out, I took refuge inside the café at Robin Hood’s Bay, contemplating the fact that having dropped down to the coast there was only one possible way back. The climb back was by a different route as it happened and there then followed an endless series of main roads and roundabouts towards Teesside.

THE PAIN STARTS TO BUILD

My newly-made friend Valdas from Lithuania was flagging and beginning to talk about giving up as we approached Barnard Castle so I gave him a tow for the last few kilometres to the control and we offered him encouragement at the Co-op; a nice, well-stocked control but lacking a toilet. A number of us crept behind the building to put on base layers in preparation for the overnight Pennine traverse.

As the evening came to a close it was like being in some endless waking nightmare. A day later and it’s almost too painful to write about this experience yet.

Valdas and I helped each other through those darkening stages. The views were still beautiful and inspiring in the fading light.

There was a bleak beauty about those moors near Stanhope, familiar from my earlier Sea to Sea experience but as the pinking sky gave way to darkness I was glad of the company and to have some distraction from the increasingly difficult conditions. It was blowing a

gale up there on the roof of England, on some downhill stretches we were buffeted all over the road. The relief on descending into Hexham was soon replaced by the slight anxiety of a run-in with the locals who were out for fun on a Saturday night. I was informed by veterans of the ride that it really livens up around 3am when the fights start. A girl asked us what on earth we were doing on our bikes at that time. It seemed like fun when we booked it, I replied. I couldn’t manage to eat more than half my 12 inch ham and pineapple pizza and though I would have liked to have taken it away it would have been too messy. Some controls, like this one, were lacking toilet facilities leading to some improvisation from time to time. Access to a clean toilet and wash facility at the overnight stop became something I longed for.

A wise old Audax rider was once asked for his secret to a successful ride. His response was “knife and fork”.

What he meant was, don’t underestimate the importance of having a proper sit down meal during a long ride. I could have done

As the evening came to a ❝ close it was like being in some endless waking nightmare…

❞

www.aukweb.net

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RIDE REPORT PENDLE 600 2017

Still cheerful as we approach the Pennines on Saturday evening

with a few more of those on this ride, but it all takes up time at controls which can eat into your cushion at the end.

WHAT’S THAT IN THE SHADOWS?

We left Hexham as a group, safety in numbers, but as the train of lights gradually disappeared off up the black hill leaving me alone in the dark with the blustery wind blowing in my face, I suddenly imagined myself spending the night in a ditch in my bivi bag awaiting rescue. Giving up was not an option. I had to keep going. I would see the rear lights in the distance every now and then, a glimpse that I was still on the right track. I checked the directions using my head torch.

Another wise fellow once discussed with me the subject of low points during rides. We’ll all have a difficult spell during an Audax, perhaps not in the same place. We’ll feel like we are staring into the jaws of failure and the time spent feeling like that will vary. It may only be a few minutes on a 100km ride, or on a longer ride it could last for hours. Perhaps due to inclement weather or cold, hunger or maybe the overwhelming distance from the end, or from home, you may plunge into the pits of despair. Usually it will pass.

Mine normally comes during the night and I long for dawn, for with the dawn comes renewed hope.

I plodded on and somehow, at some point that 8

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is now unclear to me, I caught up with the same group again and finally after the ascent of Hartside Pass at dawn, Valdas and I rolled into Langwathby together about 5am. Although time was short I took a wonderful shower and enjoyed a cuppa before bed. All credit to Andy Corless who made you feel at home and comforted with his calm and down-toearth manner.

We had to vacate the hall by 8am so I allowed myself two hours’ rest and, finding myself alone in the dorm, decided I had better crack on. In fact some folk hadn’t arrived yet and would get no sleep that night. I’d been lucky to get my two hours.

This was the day I had been looking forward to. Mentally, I had divided this ride into a 400km day and a nice scenic 200km day to follow, with a comfortable rest between the two. It was a tedious drag along the main road to the Lake District, but you do cover some miles quickly on roads like that. I met a day rider, out for a short burst, at the beginning of the Whinlatter Pass climb. He was astonished how far I had covered the previous day. “So, are you staying overnight at Seascale?” he asked.

IT’S A HARDKNOTT LIFE

I remember how kind and helpful the staff were in the corner shop in Seascale where I bought a warm sausage roll, coffee and “all-day breakfast” sandwiches. The fact that the

café was closed meant I would waste less time in there. Now for the main event, the headline passes of the Lakes, Hardknott and Wrynose. I would have preferred to have passed through at 5am and avoided some motorbikes and tourists. I had an argument with my gears right at the bottom which set the scene for the section. I pushed the bike, and that was hard enough, I got on and did a bit on the bike, then some more off it.

Slowly but surely we got there.

I caught Valdas who had got up before me in the morning, which gave me some optimism about my pace and in my head I began to do sums about how I needed to allocate the remaining time to make the 40-hour limit. We made a careful descent, I could hear a motorcyclist behind me say to his pillion, “I’d like to shake the hand of that cyclist in front, he’s a brave man”.

I could see from the route sheet that the next section had plenty of A-roads and would therefore probably not be quite so hilly; a chance then to cover some ground as quickly as possible and keep the average speed over 15kph.

Leaving the Lakes, I put on a spurt, to escape the traffic and the hordes and to build momentum for my finish, get some time in hand. The thought of failing to finish or running out of time was intolerable having survived so much. I’d had this dream before, of racing back from the Lakes, or was it a memory? I

don’t recall ever having cycled in the Lake District before, but it seemed like something I’d done previously.

THE COFFEE BREAK

I looked forward to a really good cup of coffee as a reward for my efforts in getting to the last stage in good time. My hopes of this were dashed at Carnforth services where I uselessly pressed buttons on the machine until someone pointed out the out-of-order sign. A pint of milk instead and a Lancashire pasty with a Bounty as a reward had to do. I thought Valdas was a short distance behind me and would come into view at any moment as I’d seen some cyclists close behind me a few kilometres back. No one appeared and a third piece of advice came to mind that I’d received in the last few months, “sometimes you have to ride your own ride”, the implication being that although it’s nice to have company you needn’t always wait or hang around for someone. Especially if there is a deadline approaching.

My sandwiches from Seascale leapt out of my bar bag on to the road as I tried to save time and eat on the move.

I retrieved them and ate them regardless and a passing motorist, seeing the bike on the verge by the road, stopped to make sure I was OK. A most thoughtful gesture, very different to the attitude of many drivers hastily leaving the Lakes at the end of their weekend.

Bar-biting climbs in the Lake District through Hardknott and Wrynose passes

Which way now, up or up?

The steepest way, obviously

At last the part I had been looking forward to most, the final short run through my beloved Trough of Bowland. I didn’t have my imaginary companion with me to recount the stories of my cycling childhood, so it was all in my head, or observations made to myself under my breath.

Blackpool Tower was visible – a truly lovely evening to end the ride. Some steep climbs next to the chattering brook followed and a haul up to the cattle grid summit.

On to one of my favourite sun-dappled roads near the Inn At Whitewell before turning for the final climb of Cow Ark. I had already mentally prepared to walk and push but, urged on by the two riders in front, we all rode to the top, rather fitting that I could still manage that local climb after an absence of 25 years.

Finally, back into Waddington and the distance between the villages seemed endless, longer than my childhood memories

suggested. A sandwich and a cuppa at the hall, 10,003m of climbing and 612km according to Garmin which I had used only to record the ride; hardly a wrong turn and all navigation done by the route sheet.

A call came in from a guy who I’d ridden with – his titanium frame had cracked in a big way. Also, Valdas had arrived in a taxi from Lancaster.

Only around 19 finishers. The elation of being one of the few began to sink in.

VICTORIOUS… PENDLETON

Finally, at 9.30 back painfully on the bike to Pendleton for last orders with the locals at the Swan with Two Necks. Two pints and a chance to tell my story to the flabbergasted regulars. For their part, they commented on the large size of my hands and my habit of looking over the top of my spectacles at them. We talked about old friends I remembered from the village and the current goings on.

Forest of Bowland, nearly home

Finally to bed. How long would I have slept if I had not been obliged to get up for my train? It was a fight to refit the rear pannier rack in the morning, and to repack everything in its right place, but I made it through Clitheroe to the station with only the commute home to cope with now.

Would I do it again? Not likely. If I talk about doing it in two years please stop me. Any

friends who want to do it please go ahead and I’ll support you all the way though. You too can join the few that start this ride and if you are lucky and the weather is kind you may finish the Pendle 600 too.

❝ Would I do it again? Not likely –

if I talk about doing it again… please stop me

❞

www.aukweb.net

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DARTMOOR DEVIL 25 YEARS IN THE SADDLE

Kevin Presland looks back over his 25-year tenure as organiser of the Dartmoor Devil, one of AUK’s longestestablished, best-loved and most fiendishly difficult events…

Kevin in 2004

The Devil rides out…

Tough at the top… cresting Bone Hill on the 2017 event

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WORDS KEVIN PRESLAND PICTURES GRAHAM BRODIE & KEVIN PRESLAND

EVENTBRIEF THE DARTMOOR DEVIL When… Sunday 29 October 2017 How far… 103km Starts from… Bovey Tracey Total climbing… 2,500m (2.5 AAA) Website… dartmoordevil.co.uk

Today, as my tenure of The Dartmoor Devil draws to a close, I can but reflect on a 25-year journey, the growing pains, the anguish, the joy of successes, and the potential for so much more to come. As I reflect and hand over the baton, I share recollections of the event that has been a part of me for almost half of my life, and has involved my growing family along with so many friends.

Born of a different era of Audax, in many respects it was far simpler then. It was autumn 1993, there was no internet or GPS, all entries were postal, the AUK calendar had 160 events, and only 13 of these were in October.

So how did it all come about? I was living in Plymouth but riding out with Torbay CTC. Graham Brodie had voiced the idea of creating a Dartmoor Devil Audax, based on the principles of the Quantock Killer. However, he was busy on the organising committee of the National 400 in Devon, so magnanimously left me to get on with his idea.

My concern was finding a formula that would attract at least 50 riders, and so a few thoughts were conjured to develop the type of event I wanted. A few of these ideas have lasted to this day: Halloween is the natural date for ‘The Devil’ – or as close as possible.

It would be the final ‘gold’ AAA event of the AUK year.

October can be cold, so soup to be included in the entry fee.

The event should be run on a Sunday, as fewer are available on a Saturday due to work commitments.

Start from Bovey Tracey, a town I knew well.

The outpost should be Princetown, to provide a café as respite from the weather.

Homemade cakes provided at the first control to raise money for good causes.

www.aukweb.net

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DARTMOOR DEVIL 25 YEARS IN THE SADDLE

The cartoon drawn by Graham Brodie to publicise the first Dartmoor Devil in 1993

FURTHER IDEAS FOLLOWED:

1994: Create new routes to keep interest alive (for me and entrants).

1994: Provide an event badge and adopt the horned pumpkin logo.

1996: Having developed four routes over four years, the time had come for repeats and settle for a cyclical three.

1996: Offer the 6 times award, and thereafter to offer the two and the three 6’s awards.

2004: Starting the ride up Hind Street – its 1-in-5 gradient effectively spreading the field.

2005: Our growing children George and Anna were old enough to wave off riders at the start, using a flag made by my wife, Dawn.

2006: Graham Brodie launches the website.

Now that the calendar season ends on 30 September, we no longer hold the privileged position of last event of the year. Revised AAA rules would have required more climbing to retain the ‘gold’ status, but using GPS to calculate altitude rather than totting up contour lines, the routes achieved 2,500m with no adjustment – ideal!

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DEVISING THE ROUTE

The applicable AUK rule is that the shortest route between controls defines the distance, and it is here that the geography can be of so much help – particularly Clifford Bridge, as the lack of bridging points forces a large loop.

The first route led riders away from Dartmoor, into the Haldon Hills to Kenn (to my

brother’s house), then back over the Haldon Hills and around to Drewsteignton and Princetown. Distance was slightly down, so the loop was required to Rundlestone Cross before returning via the 1-in-5 Dartmeet, Ponsworthy and Widecombe Hills to Haytor.

There were a few parts of this route I did not like, so it had a bit of an overhaul for

1996, 1999 and 2002, adopting the far more pleasant climb of Haldon via Gappah, and the delightful spot of Kenniford Reservoir for the cake control.

The route for 1994 was only ever run once. After Chagford, a vicious set of 1-in-4 hills led to the first control at Gidleigh. By this time, the forecast storm was brewing, making for an arduous hike from North Bovey over the moor, and gale-force headwinds decimated the field.

The 1995 route is the earliest of the current series and for me the best, including my three favourite Dartmoor roads. The outward route followed the Wray valley to Moretonhampstead before the climb and swoop to Clifford Bridge, next to Drewsteignton and North Bovey before the wonderful road to Cold East Cross that picks its way through Dartmoor Tors.

Dropping off the moor to Ashburton results in a lengthy series of climbs back on to the magnificent road over Holne Moor and on to Princetown.

The trick to this route was to head the opposite way over the high moor, resulting in the marvellous Grimspound road, finishing with Widecombe Hill.

In 1997, I added a littleknown hill that happened to be the steepest on Dartmoor – its name now well-known to Audax cyclists: Pepperdon. It is signed ‘Unsuitable for motors’ due to gradient, vicious hairpins and autumnal debris.

Consequently, the majority of cyclists find it unsuitable for cycling and take a stroll.

UPDATING THE ORIGINAL ROUTE

2005 Our growing ❝ children George and Anna were old enough to wave off riders at the start, using a flag made by my wife, Dawn

❞

It was not until 2005 that I challenged myself to replace the original route, as half of the ride was not within the National Park. We headed out to the western moor, taking the ride through my home village of Ilsington, and including the monumental Old Town Hill, a road I used to slave up with a bag packed full with college books. At the top of

the most distant climb is Cross Furzes, from where the ancient Abbots Way headed out into the Dartmoor wilderness. This led to a remarkably lumpy section including the mammoth climb out of Spitchwick, then on up the Grimspound Valley and on to Chagford. Thus we have today’s third route, to be used in the 25th and my final event, but as a parting shot a variation utilising the relentlessly steep Bone Hill instead of Widecombe Hill.

Despite my endeavour to have just three routes, there was not a full repeat of an event for about the first 15 years, most of the changes being forced on us by the controls…

THE START

The anticipated scale of the first year was such that a decorating table in the town car park seemed sufficient.

Fortunately, the morning was still and dry, and the unimaginably large field of 153

were checked in and ready to roll. Not a risk to be repeated, so in the two subsequent years I hired the Tourist Information Office (really a hut).

With the idea of fried breakfasts, we started from the Brookside tea rooms in 1996.

However, the business soon changed hands, and we were no longer welcome. We moved to the Riverside Inn for one year, before a two-year slot at the Dartmoor Inn. Accommodation was rather basic, but we were made welcome until the business was sold. We then returned to the Riverside Inn for six years – loads of space, big car park, ideal. It was another case of lasting there till the business changed hands. In 2004, we moved up the high street to The Cromwell Arms, and have been welcomed by three different landlords. This arrangement came to a close after 12 years and we have now returned to the Brookside Restaurant for a successful start in 2017.

The anticipated scale of the first year ❝ was such that a decorating table in the town car park seemed sufficient.

Fortunately, the morning was still and dry, and the unimaginably large field of 153 were checked in and ready to roll

❞

Signing on at the start of the inaugural Dartmoor Devil, 1993

As featured in the Western Morning News, 2003; AUK stalwart Ian Hennessey is seen centre left

THE SOUP CONTROLS

The New Inn at Drewsteignton was the first soup stop, but when the business was sold, we headed up the road to The Rising Sun, outside South Zeal.

It was an ideal location as it enabled a fine loop toward Throwleigh, but it did not last long after the opening of the A30, so I back-pedalled to The Post Inn at Whiddon Down.

Following a tragic occurrence at the inn, it closed for a couple of years, so I tried The Northmore Arms at Wonson in 2009, which proved an eye-opener for all who visited, but did add to many ups and downs in the small lanes. Fortunately, The Post Inn has reopened, so we continue to visit this much-improved establishment.

Our Ashburton soup stop was initially at a popular musical venue called The Lanterns. When the pub changed hands, I found the country estate of River Dart Country Park. The drawback was that we had to take soup from a hatch and use the outdoor picnic benches. We moved back to the old Lanterns, now The Lavender House Inn.

THE LUNCH STOP

A tale of two establishments.

For the first five years we frequented Lords Café, but sadly they went into administration, so we moved up the road to the Foxtor Café and have stayed there. This outpost of the ride is a highlight of the event, with their excellent service and Halloween-bedecked staff and buzzing atmosphere.

THE FINISH

To finish in the hills was an essential component lifted from the Quantock Killer, and www.aukweb.net

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DARTMOOR DEVIL 25 YEARS IN THE SADDLE

Contented quartet, 1998

the perfect place was The Moorlands Hotel, until it was sold to a holiday club. We moved on to The Kestor Inn at Manaton, which offered the advantage of using the terrace road from Haytor, and a dramatic finish. It remains a fine place to share stories over a beer and meal before the marvellous descent to Bovey.

HIGHS AND LOWS

High: Anne-Marie Winter (née Manley) and Sandra Shaw take the AAA battle to the final event of the season, the Dartmoor Devil in 1996. Both ride and arrive at a draw.

Low: In 2010, Gerald Woodley’s accident in the rain on the descent from Coombestone Tor left him with life-threatening injuries.

Fortunately, a window in the weather enabled the Air Ambulance to fly, and he was

able to receive treatment; unfortunately, his spinal injuries and paralysis have prevented him from cycling again.

High: In 1996, the BBC turned up at the start and recorded a slot for local television.

Low: After many had not followed the mudguards requirement in the first year, I enforced bike checks.

Unfortunately, many had not read the small print and I was on the receiving end of a fair bit of abuse when I refused to hand them brevet cards. I took a lower-key approach in following years.

High: The first two riders achieving the three 6’s award. Amazingly this was achieved without them missing a single event. I was also delighted to reach this award myself the following year, having dropped out in 1994.

Low: The storms of 1994. On that long trudge over the high moor, the south-westerly gales and torrential rain broke the field. Experienced cyclists were observed descending Haytor

After many had not ❝ followed the mudguards requirement in the first year, I enforced bike checks.

Unfortunately, many had not read the small print and of course I was on the receiving end of a fair bit of abuse when I refused to hand them brevet cards

❞

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George Presland waves off riders at the start, 2006

Anne Learmonth and the late Dave Lewis, 2001

Hill with feet on the road, while on the short climb to Princetown, cyclists who took to pushing found the flow of

After the storm, 2002

Anne-Marie Winter in a squall, 2013

water running down the hill was coming over the tops of their shoes!

High: The first Halloween event. Not only were all controls marked by carved pumpkins, but the culture of the fancy dress began in earnest. Perhaps most memorable is the image of local quarryman Ian ‘Blaster’ Glendinning dressed as an angel, complete with halo!

Low: Loss of the Moorland Hotel and Lords Café as controls.

High: The first year that the sun came out to awaken the beauty of Dartmoor for the riders. It took seven years for this to happen.

Low: An Atlantic storm forecast to hit in the afternoon of the event, and police warnings to stay at home, led me to recommend that riders should not head out. In the end, the storm didn’t arrive until the following night, after all entrants had returned, but did then bring a mature oak down across the descent from Manaton.

High: Discovering that many treat the event as the target to train for all summer, and that lots of the fitter fraternity would use the event as the closing ride for the year.

Low: The threat arising from a clash of dates with

The Devil’s Kitchen, Drewsteignton, 2007 www.aukweb.net

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DARTMOOR DEVIL 25 YEARS IN THE SADDLE

the neighbouring Exmoor Beast Sportif. I am grateful that this event has now been moved, allowing riders to enjoy both.

High: The shock of getting an entry of 153 in the first year.

Low: The aggressive legal attitude from Teignbridge Health and Safety, requiring provision of private ambulance facilities and marshalling of all junctions. I did not follow this advice.

High: Having the cover picture in the Handbook in 2005, the cover picture of Arrivée in Winter 2009, and my own photo on the back of the Spring issue.

FAUX PAS

The trophy maker misread my writing, so the first years’ medals were emblazoned with ‘ZAAA’ instead of ‘2 AAA’.

Route sheet errors – fortunately not many, but most painful was not picking up the renamed Moorland House Hotel, and with signposts going missing, some found themselves in Bovey Tracey rather than Manaton, facing a 350m return climb to the finish…

My first route sheet was hard to read for those requiring reading glasses. At the time, as a 20-something, I did not understand the problem, but time takes its toll and I certainly do now!

THE DEVIL’S HEROES

My wife Dawn, who has helped every year, and for the first 19

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years ran the finish control, enabling me to complete 18 events.

Mike Steer (Plymouth), who has only missed running the Princetown control once, the year he rode the event.

Geoff and Joyce Sharpe, who looked after entries and returns for 12 years from 2000 to 2012. In addition to this, Geoff has ridden or helped since 1997 and Joyce has helped most years over the same period.

Rob and Lynda Swayne, who have baked a lipsmacking array of cakes for us and helped at the soup control since 2004.

We have been lucky to have 20+ helpers every year.

There are too many names to mention, but among those who have appeared regularly are the late Pete Luxton, Jean Brierly, and Lisa Pash.

Other faces you will be familiar with are my children George and Anna. In recent years, Anna has helped with organisation at the start and finish controls. The other face that has popped up all over the place behind a camera lens is Graham Brodie who I can’t thank enough for his constant support and encouragement.

Riding heroes are oh so many, but at the top of the pile is Mike Steer (Exeter), who has never failed to complete a ride, and therefore has 25 events completed. But I must also mention the John Sharp aged seven who stoked his mother’s tandem this year, various fixed

wheel riders, Sturmy 3-speed riders and the phenomenal efforts of our single-legged entries. And while there are the headlinegrabbing performances, those that have given me greatest joy are the riders who train all summer for this, the hardest challenge they had ever faced.

A SAD FAREWELL

In the days before online photo albums I took sharing of the photographic record seriously. All photos were collated in albums, which I still have, should anyone be interested.

I am sad, but relieved, to pass the baton on, and grateful that it will continue. I feel so privileged that the event has enjoyed such popularity and am grateful for all the wonderful messages I have received over the years. I was taken aback by the mantle display Drew Buck had made and presented to me in the profile of the 2017 event with the words ’25 Years of Agony and Ecstasy’.

Spot on, there is so much reward from all of the hard work, so if you have been contemplating organising your own event, why not give it a try and get in touch with your local AUK representative.

I was taken aback by the mantle ❝ display Drew Buck had made and presented to me in the profile of the 2017 event with the words ’25 Years of Agony and Ecstasy’

❞

DARTMOOR DEVIL IN NUMBERS

The event has run for 25 years 114 riders have completed the event 6 times 27 riders have completed the event 12 times Seven riders have completed the event 18 times: Mike Steer and Ian Hennessey (2010), Kevin Presland (2011), Graham Brodie (2012), Andy Keast (2013), Robert Crow (2014) and Drew Buck (2018) 1,989 different cyclists have entered An average of 80 first-time riders have entered each year Highest number of starters: 195 (in 2014) Highest number of finishers: 181 (also in 2014) Average number of starters: 151 Average number of finishers: 122 Highest percentage of finishers: 93% (in 2016) Lowest percentage of finishers: 37% (in 2000)

www.aukweb.net

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TRAVELOGUE THE PACIFIC COAST OF THE USA

WORDS AND PICTURES BY EWAN JOHNSON

From the coast, across a desert, through forests – in a 10-day trek Ewan Johnston cycles from Portland to Los Angeles, along the…

unforgettable

Pacific coast

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To some extent, America is a known quantity to us Brits.

My sense of the country has long been channelled by films and TV and, having watched episodes of Portlandia, my expectations were already set when I arrived in Portland Airport.

And, as it turned out, the TV series seemed to be the perfect embodiment of the Portland for real (or vice versa).

Tattooed hipsters served me coffee, gave me cycling advice and offered vegan, gluten-free alternatives to every dish.

It dawned on me that I could probably have a very happy holiday just relaxing in that one city… but too much planning had gone into this ride.

I had an adventure to get done.

LIFE UP-SCALED

On my first day, wide-eyed and fresh, I was enthused by every passing road sign, shop-front and vehicle: “Highways”; “Waffles”; “Pancakes and free coffee refills”; “Gallons”; people carriers; 4×4s. After a couple of stops, it became clear that every diner would remind me of the opening scene of Pulp Fiction. They were the US that I already knew – it felt like I was reconnecting with an old friend.

What I was not prepared for was the extent to which life on the road had been so dramatically up-scaled. Rather than being squeezed onto the side of a UK road, I cycled, in what felt like relative safety, on a hard shoulder the same width as a full lane. Initially, I stuck to the main highways and, although the flow of passing traffic never abated, it passed with a cruising calmness I wasn’t used to – 40-50mph, rather than with a roaring acceleration nearer to 70. I passed green and yellow road signs; and turned right (legally!) on red lights.

This was a country built upon road transportation. The highways bulldozed straight from A to B, through towns and over rivers – rather than dabbling around them like they do at home.

Rather than peering round one turn after another, I got used to reorientating myself at an intersection to see my route road disappearing off to the horizon, tarmac shimmering with hazy mirages in the sun.

Up-scaled too was what I was trying to achieve. My plans demanded around 250 kilometres of cycling every day and, from the very start, I treated these

distances with a nervous respect.

Rather than racing breathlessly to my rest stop each night, I cruised, rather more in keeping with the feel of the traffic, and stopped frequently, always aiming to carry more food and water than I could possibly need. I was racing no one, but was there instead to breathe in the sights.

It took me almost most six hours of cycling to actually get to the Pacific Coast and then I smelt the sea before I saw it. One more small hill later, and suddenly it was there: The Pacific Ocean – out as far as the eye could see. It would become my orientating compass for the next 10 days; the huge, featureless mass to my right.

Throughout my tour, a steady, inland breeze drifted in from its waves.

Each variation of landscape had in common this same sense of overwhelming scale – from the beaches, to the hills, farms, ranches and forests. Even the sky felt bigger as it played out its daily pattern of pre-dawn moon and stars; post-dawn-mists; and then a steady rise in temperature to a deep afternoon blue. I wasn’t used to seeing so much of it at once.

It’s a paradox of cycling touring, though, that at the very same time my world was growing, it was also shrinking down to the minutiae. The road surfaces ebbed and flowed and drove my moods: from the sleekest of new tarmacs that I floated over; to cracked and blistered old road coatings that had been scrunched up and wrinkled by the elements. At its worst, every passing metre jarred my bike and rattled its frame.

I wiped tiny grains of sand from my drive-train each time I passed close to a windswept beach; and I eeked out my small tubes of suncream and saddlecream so that they would last the trip.

WILDLIFE

In the early stages of my tour, I also began to wonder whether the closest I’d come to seeing some American wildlife was an exotic spread of road-kill. I slalomed through squashed raccoons, deer (one enormous one, I assumed to be an elk?), squirrels, possums, chipmunks, snakes and even skunks (which stank as much as I’d read as a boy). I went past what looked to me like a large porcupine and an armadillo.

Riding through Oregon I did hear

the raucous bark of sea-lions; and saw the speckled dots of seals out on a rock (but these were black dots even to my telescopic camera lens).

Even the sight of whales spurting out their plumes of water ended up being a rather deflating encounter: with the jolly tone of someone that had spent too long in my own company I gate-crashed a guided group of whale watchers. When asked if I knew what I was looking for, I quipped, “Something like a big fish…?!”. My humour was met with such deadpan distain that I reversed my bike back out on to the road somewhat crestfallen that I’d lost the ability to communicate with my own species.

But, by the end of my journey, I’d had to cover my face as I rode through a flapping group of vultures picking food at the roadside; stood pin-dropquiet within touching distance of a group of deer; and even accidently created a road-kill of my own as I rode straight over a sun-basking snake (despite my best efforts to jump it). I’d watched raccoons and chipmunks steal food from a veranda where I sat, as humming birds buzzed around them; and I’d photographed big herds of wild elk (although this did involve pushing other tourists aside...). The scariest wildlife was, perhaps, best left to hints and suggestion: roadsigns revealed the presence of bears and coyotes – but the closest I got was hearing the tale that a cyclist had ridden into a bear only two weeks earlier and had a broken arm to show for it.

ROADS AND NAVIGATION

Early in the ride, I also began to wonder whether I was destined to be stuck on the larger highways throughout. But those early thoughts soon became distant concerns. The ride took me on a sliding scale of minor roads, down to the far end of the spectrum where the tarmac disappeared and the surface turned to gravel, and then sand.

But Highway 101 was certainly the main artery of the route and, at times, it was a big, brash speedway – but I was often grateful to it for sucking away some fast miles.

Highway 1 was its little brother. The not so big, not quite so brash, tributary, that often dipped closer to the cliffs and waves, and ducked through smaller towns less brazenly.

Then there were all those other www.aukweb.net

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TRAVELOGUE THE PACIFIC COAST OF THE USA

… from the sleekest ❝ of new tarmacs that I floated over, to cracked and blistered old road coatings that had been scrunched up and wrinkled by the elements

❞

…The Redwood Pines, ❝ and Humbodlt National Park, took me two days to ride through: a day and a half of steady climbing; then one great, rushing descent…

❞

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roads that weren’t deemed deserving of a number. These were nearly always the most scenic, but were also the most haphazard.

Navigation could have been made easy by just staying on the 101 but that would have meant 10 days on a dual carriageway so I took the detours in good humour.

On my first day, as if to dispel any danger of overconfidence in my whereabouts in the world, I rode past a concentration of tobacco stores – reminiscent of a tax-dodging border crossing, I mused – before I passed a “Welcome to Oregon” sign. All very well – although I hadn’t realised that I’d ever left that state…

I only got badly lost once – predictably trying to escape the conurbation of San Francisco. I found myself, firstly, trying to climb a single track Mountain Bike circuit (as several riders descended at break-neck speed towards me); then, potentially more seriously, at the entrance to a long road tunnel having just passed a sign stating that “cyclists take alternate route”.

Following a tiny pink line of a cycling GPS computer has its own drawbacks (and bonuses). A couple of times I emerged from the deep cover of “inland” forests to suddenly find myself atop an ocean cliff (on one occasion, I did so at such pace that I almost found myself through the barrier before I could compute my surprise that I’d hit the coast).

CHANGING FACES

The towns, like the roads, changed in character the further South I went.

In North Oregon, the flatter coastal plain lent itself to enormously long bridges as the 101 traversed one river mouth after another.

A couple of these constructions looked

like a packet of drinking straws held together with blu-tac – and as though they’d been built by arguing factions, so dramatically their style changed half way across.

The many inlets held towns trying themselves to bridge a gap – between half fishing industry; half tourist-chique. Some cafes were staffed by hipsters straight out of Portland; others, more aligned to the rough and tumble of industrial fishermen.

As the shoreline steepened into more pronounced bays, surfers and surfing competitions appeared, straight out of Point Break. These beachfront roads were often awash with sand and I pedalled carefully. As I sat eating my morning porridge, among young athletes squeezed into their own versions

of lycra-cladding, I reflected on how much cooler surfers were compared to an equivalent set of breakfasting Audaxers.

It wasn’t until I approached San Francisco that a new type of culture appeared. Roadside diners started to air their menus in Spanish and the oatmeal and omelettes of my early days were replaced by burritos and fajitas. The price of burritos plummeted from a $13 hipster snack to a $5 working lunch – served in a dense wrap the size of my own forearm.

I was very consciously focusing my diet on proteins – yoghurts, shakes, bars (and chicken burritos) and as the days went past I grew in confidence that I’d get the mileage done.

During the course of my tour I actually lost 2.5kg but, overall, this felt like it was a healthy weight loss, rather than a physical deterioration.

Unlike the majority of other cyclotourers I met, I was not camping. Instead, I was holing up in the cheapest accommodation I could find each night, usually booked on AirBnB. The eclectic range of places I lay my head could be a blog unto itself – during the trip I checked into a: campsite, mobile home, flat, condo, garage, farmhouse, motel, cottage and RV site. All I needed was a bed (and ideally a shower) – but I’ll perhaps give some better reviews than others (!)

EAT RIGHT, SLEEP RIGHT

Although the sea was the predominant feature of my route, it did have its other “chapters”: forests, farmlands and even desert (which I’ll come on to).

The Redwood Pines, and Humbodlt National Park, took me two days to ride through: a day and a half of steady climbing; then one great, rushing descent.

The feel of the air was almost magical: windless, still and silent; the smell of the pines; and their dappled light. These trees did indeed feel like giants – “The Avenue of the Giants” an apt name. Here the roads were emptier too – on the morning of the long descent I barely saw another vehicle.

As I passed through the forest on the tarmac, I pondered how magical the woods must have been just 100 metres to either side.

I was eating more than 6,000 calories a day, and making sure that I slept for eight hours a night.

Perhaps I’d learned these necessities the hard way on previous tours – but, riding on my own, these were easy rules to follow. After a few days, I’d built up a … I rode fairly dependable daily past a pattern consisting of a large breakfast, concentration mid-morning coffee, of tobacco stores early lunch, a mid – reminiscent of afternoon sugar stop, then a large dinner, with a tax-dodging further snacks after I’d border found a bed for the night.

❝

Reedsport, Oregon

crossing

❞

FORESTS AND FARMLANDS

… As the shoreline ❝ steepened into more pronounced bays, surfers and surfing competitions appeared, straight out of Point Break. These beachfront roads were often awash with sand and I pedalled carefully

❞

On the Oregon Coast Highway, looking south towards the Yaquina Head Lighthouse

www.aukweb.net

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TRAVELOGUE THE PACIFIC COAST OF THE USA

…In North Oregon, ❝ the flatter coastal plain lent itself to enormously long bridges

❞

Astoria – Megler Bridge, over the Columbia River

For me, these were the highlight of my trip. I was moving from A to B at the pace set by my itinerary – but this was the area that most demanded to be revisited.

Even the intimidating passage of large logging trucks left behind, not the smell of polluting diesel, but the scent of resin and timber – not unlike a five-star sauna.

Whenever I left the cooling breezes of the coast, the temperatures quickly rose from the comfortable low 20s to above 30.

Rather than the ascents being little and often, they became more substantial as I flirted with the mountain ranges parallel to the sea. Nearer to San Francisco, I passed through ranch country and saw groups of actual cowboys, riding actual horses, with actual lassoes. It crossed my mind that they were probably tourists on a “cowboy tour”. This, again, felt like an America made familiar by Hollywood films: I rode alongside a long chain of single-file, brown cattle as they plodded across a dusty, dry grassland.

Only 30 miles inland and the feel of the country was very different.

I was served by a man wearing a t-shirt: “#1 gun safety rule? OWN ONE”; flies attacked me when I stopped, and for the first time I began to run out of water before I reached the next town.

I stayed the night in an “RV Site” on a simple mattress. My host’s vest read “My momma told me I could be whatever I wanted? I chose to be an ASSHOLE.” I could tick-off a couple of Simpsons characters 22

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from my list of must-see America. Where the inland was flatter, crop farming displaced the cattle. Enormously vast irrigated fields stretched as far as I could see.

Perfectly coiffeured rows of grapes, asparagus, lettuce, artichokes and sod (turf) filled the air with their respective scents. The roads here were incredibly flat, and remarkably straight. But, perhaps surprisingly, my speeds never seemed to rise on these stretches. There was no shelter from the winds and the surfaces were grainy compared to the highways, but in around two days of riding I never felt boredom at their repetition. I found myself fascinated at the never-ending rows of geometric precision and the sheer scale of production.

THE CHALLENGES OF 250KM A DAY

My itinerary comfortably allowed for detours and photo opportunities; espressostops and shopping trips; but also demanded steady progress. I set my alarm at 5.30am every day and was on the road soon after 6. I typically would start to set up for the night around 12-13 hours later; get a shower; clean my bike; then chill out for barely 15 minutes before sleep.

Over and over again I’d do a mental checklist of body and bike: Bike… tyre feeling a tad soft; brakes perhaps slightly misaligned. A gear or two grating; a strange creaking – I think from

the seat post? The headset needed retightening; the tri bars had come slightly loose; a bottle-cage was rattling Body… my right metatarsal niggled away; my left achilles began to grow sore.

My calf muscles took turns in feeling fatigued and needing a stretch; and, by the end of my trip, both my knees were worsening with tendonitis.

A strained muscle deep in my right thigh caused the greatest concerns – early in the tour I strapped it once, then twice, and eventually added a third bandage before that pain started to subside around days 4 and 5. My right hip hurt periodically (probably linked) and my lower back during extended periods in an aero position. Shoulders and neck grew stiff and my biceps tired when the road surface was poor. The palms of my hands developed tender blisters and my wrists went numb. Despite a slightly obsessive application of suncream, the back of my neck, cheeks and knees all burned in the sun. I got a toothache, and a sore throat.

My saddle sores steadily worsened with each passing mile. On one day, I had to pick out a large fly from my right eye and smarted for hours afterwards.

I listened to them all. Adapted where possible. Assessed their messages, and split hairs between complaint and damage.

This wasn’t a race. This was a quest for steady progress – I just had to keep my arms around the various risks at play.

… where the inland was ❝ flatter, crop farming displaced the cattle. Enormously vast irrigated fields stretched as far as I could see

❞ CROSSING THE DESERT

As I planned my route, the one day that stuck out most ominously was just south of San Francisco. Because a landslide had closed the coastal road, I was forced inland, through the desert from Salinas to Paso Robles. I was nervous about the distance (my longest day); the climbing (biased entirely to the end of the day); and the temperatures (which were likely to be in the mid-30s).

Although that day indeed proved to be the toughest, as so often with cyclotouring, the greatest challenge was actually an unexpected one – and it brought me as close to quitting as I got.

Advised against the 101 for this stretch, I had picked a route on minor roads, but, although I diligently started very early to try to mitigate the day’s heat, their cracked and ruptured surfaces almost brought me to my knees. It felt as though I was riding over a sea of cobbles that went on and on, mile after mile, as the sun rose ominously in the sky and the temperatures rose. My speed on the flat dropped to 11, 10mph.

On occasion I’d hit a stretch of resurfaced road and, with no greater effort, would accelerate up to 18, 19 – before hitting the cracks again and dropping right back down.

I stopped at a railroad crossing and to

my delight ticked off another couple of my must-sees. Firstly, a steel Amtrak passenger train creaked past. Then the huge long snake of a commercial goods train. It groaned and squealed past for carriage after carriage, perhaps a mile long. My resilience picked up.

Then, after I’d barely seen a car all day, a utility truck drove past – on its flatbed was a pile of inflatable rubber rings and two bikini-clad women (one wore the stars and stripes – tick). They hollered at me – “Hey baby!” – before leaving me in their dust (perhaps they were heading to LA as well?).That was enough to bring back the humour to my predicament. I pushed on to Paso Robles and was soon ordering a large iced coffee as I sat by its lush green, irrigated town square.

FINISHING-LINE LA

If San Francisco hung on my experience of riding over the iconic Golden Gate Bridge (anything from Hitchcock’s Vertigo to Michael Bay’s The Rock), my arrival in LA was the procession of iconic place names and beaches as I rode into movieland.

The ocean road felt plucked straight from the opening credits of Big Little Lies – and the seafront houses grew in glamour and glitz. I thought of Sharon Stone’s sea-top mansion from Basic Instinct, and I

passed through Malibu, Santa Monica, Venice and Muscle Beaches. The beach towers were quintessentially Baywatch and I took a photo of their wide expanses of sand. And – yes – I saw the famous Hollywood letterboards.

I’d spent so many hours in relative seclusion, meditating and day-dreaming, that the busy LA roads felt foreign and jarring.

For days I’d been able to smooth over all the many mental stresses of my life: I’d rolled them over and over in my mind – like pebbles in the Pacific swash – until their rough edges had smoothed, smoothed, then smoothed away. Some disappeared entirely – but none jarred any more.

I’d got to a state of inner peace that I’ve rarely known before – left in the isolated bubble of my own devices, my yin and yang were more balanced than ever. Past regrets, future stresses, hopes and fears had all dissipated and, as car horns sounded in the LA streets, I felt a sadness at having to leave this new equilibrium.

My tour was coming to an end.

A few more busy intersections, then the house of one of my old friends. He opened his front door and smiled.

This was where the cycling stopped.

The Pacific Coast. Unforgettable stuff.

… for days I’d been able to smooth over ❝ all the many mental stresses of my life: I’d rolled them over and over in my mind – like pebbles in the Pacific swash

❞

Coast Highway 1 – North of Jenner, California

www.aukweb.net

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OPINION WEARING HELMETS ON AUDAX RIDES

Dominic Ellis has written to Arrivée to compliment the new design. He is, however, less than gruntled about the cover picture! His objection is the featuring of a non helmet-wearing rider on the London-Edinburgh-London 2017 Here’s his point of view…

I saw the great new look of the Arrivée magazine, but felt the urge to complain about the front cover picture. Ged Lennox suggested I might write on the subject. So here goes, tin opener in hand, let’s attack the can of worms that is helmet wearing…

Lifesaver… Nicki’s shattered helmet

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Let’s start off with some facts – if I hadn’t been wearing a helmet, I wouldn’t be alive to write this missive. If my wife hadn’t been wearing a helmet, she would have been injured more badly than she was. Eight years ago, I came off my bike due to incompetence and the inability not to get too close to the kerb. I fell off at about 20 kph and hit my head on the pavement.

Thankfully a piece of my helmet, the size of my palm, came away but only left me with a very sore neck. If I hadn’t been wearing the helmet, it would have been my head that smacked into the concrete. My wife, Nicky, was injured in a completely separate incident where she was catapulted into a hedge having been hit by a car. Her face was horribly ripped open by the branches but the helmet, which was badly damaged, stopped further damage to the top of her head.

Now, I don’t have a problem with other riders deciding what they want to wear, or not to wear; it is entirely their choice – but I do think a responsible organisation shouldn’t promote, or condone, not wearing a helmet.

I recognise that a helmet is not

Dom Ellis + helmet

always going to save you, but in the circumstances when a slow speed tumble occurs, it most certainly will stop injury or possibly death. You can topple over, through forgetting to un-cleat, and hit your head on the road. Falling from that height is enough to fracture your skull.

People need to be encouraged to cycle as it contributes to longevity of life through exercise. The subject, though, certainly seems to polarise opinion. Very few people I speak to have no opinion on helmet wearing. I certainly don’t subscribe to the notion that because I wear a helmet I can go faster down a hill, or can negotiate a dual carriageway more safely. I wear it because I know that in some situations it might save my life. The weight of helmets nowadays is almost insignificant. It also provides a convenient

Chris Crossland comments Chair of Audax UK I believe I was at least partly responsible for this photo appearing on the cover of the last issue. Ged Lennox shared his intended front cover with me and I commented that the photo he was using wasn’t really strong enough. He suggested a few alternatives and I went for this one, showing the unique northern light illuminating a rider’s progress on the LEL. The rider’s intended progress uphill would draw the reader’s eye into the re-designed magazine.

Like many other cyclists who’ve been around for a while, I’m familiar with the arguments for and against the wearing of cycle helmets, and the evidence base from which they are derived. I don’t want to get involved in any helmet debate or war, but for the record, I think that wearing a helmet when cycling is a good idea. I also think that not wearing a helmet when cycling is a good idea too. Dominic has put his views well and I’ve no intention of arguing either for or against.

What matters to me is that Arrivée continues to reflect in words and pictures the highs and lows, the mundane, the exciting, the exhilarating and life-enhancing achievement of long-distance cycling, which I think this cover picture does.

So – let’s hear it for Ivo Miesen who took the photo.

10 Wattbike studio based in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire Full range of Fitness Testing available Suitable for complete beginners to club racers Over 65 different workouts Choice of 15 training plans

place to attach lights or video cameras. How many people would get on a motorbike and not wear a helmet (despite this being illegal)?

As far as Arrivée is concerned, I would like it if the front page in particular, but maybe the whole of the magazine, doesn’t display pictures of those riding without a helmet.

Or if it is to be allowed could there be a statement that says that Audax leaves it to the individual but doesn’t advocate not wearing one?

What does everybody else think, am I on my own here, or is there a wider amount of support for my suggestions?

● Hats off to Dom for starting the debate… this divisive issue will certainly excite response, so we look forward to hearing from you – email: gedlennox@me.com

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25

TWEETING LONDON-EDINBURGH-LONDON 2017

WORDS AND PICTURES BY ADAM YOUNG

Adam Young doesn’t know if his dad was inspired to ride LEL 2017 after volunteering at Moffat in 2013 or from hearing stories of the various long-distance rides he’d done. It was probably a bit of both, but the end result was a plan for them to ride LEL together, with his mum volunteering at Alston. He used Twitter during the ride to keep people abreast of their progress…

Tweets from the Saturday 29th July 18h35 I’m registered for #LEL2017. Preparation going well [by drinking beer] 20h00 Back home after registration & getting ready for LEL with a pre-ride pizza & the highlights from the Hungarian GP on the TV 21h45 Tonight I’ll sleep in my own bed, which is a luxury, but it also means I can’t believe LEL starts tomorrow. Feels like a normal night

handlelbars

Sunday 30th July 07h45 Wow. It’s sunny after all the rain last night.

25km ride to get to the start of LEL for me.

Day 1 plan looks OK according to Weather Bagel

08h55 24km prologue to the start of #LEL2017 from Canary Wharf for me this morning. It’s definitely now London Edinburgh London.

10h25 Martin at Castle Howard My dad & I are off in about 15 minutes.

Tonight we’re planning to stop at Hull 07h55 which is 300km away Yorkshire Wolds in the sunshine. 8

14h40 kilometres until breakfast and clean clothes 100km into LEL & the group I’ve been 08h22 riding with have arrived in St Ives. Warm, Awesome, I’m at Pocklington. That means bit windy but going well. Time to start the breakfast & clean clothes. Now what did I eating tour pack?

17h15 10h15 Spalding. Can confirm Ramsey Road is still We have just ridden past the magnificent long & straight & fens are still flat & windy Castle Howard

17h35 Now leaving Spalding. Next stop is Louth.

Hopefully Weather Bagel will prove incorrect and we’ll stay dry Monday 31st July 00h25 Now at Premier Inn just on north side of Humber Bridge. Stayed dry despite lots of wet roads. Got rear puncture just before motel, grr 06h40 LEL Day Two begins and we’re off to Scotland. Staying just south of Moffat First bag drop tonight 26

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Adam Young, left, and his dad Martin ready for the start

12h00 Now at Thirsk on LEL. Who built the roads straight up those Howardian Hills?!

15h30 Seems that Hogwarts is doubling up as the Barnard Castle control on LEL. Very very posh school 23h10 Limited phone signal this afternoon. Now at motel 15km south of Moffat. Still dry, it’s a miracle!

Tuesday 1st August 05h50 It’s time to ride in the Scottish drizzle from the motel to Moffat where breakfast & more clean clothes await 05h55 Plan for today is to Edinburgh and then to Scotch Corner Travelodge 07h05 Whoop. More clean clothes for the next section of LEL 07h30 Nice looking Quest velomobile parked in Moffat control 10h55 While climbing the Devil’s Beef tub from Moffat I saw my first Edinburgh sign. And a lot of cloud

11h00 Now half way on LEL. Beautiful morning as the drizzle quickly past to be replaced by sun 11h05 One of Martin Pearson’s tops has done part of LEL in memory of him after Sandy donated it to me last year. Martin, from Australia, had done a lots Audaxes, including LEL in 2009 and 2013. He was killed in a hit and run incident in Queensland on ANZAC Day 2014] 13h55 Wow, that section of LEL out of Edinburgh was so hard due to the wind 19h05 We are back in England and are in Longtown 19h10 Ok wind blow me to Brampton 20h30 I have been reunited with the gloves I left in Brompton the first time around 23h30 Cunning plan to make the Yad Moss easier.

Do half, sleep in Alston & then do second half the next morning Wednesday 2nd August 05h50 Time to do second part of Yad Moss 08h05 Good ride over Yad Moss this morning and found Audax legend Drew Buck serving coffee near the top 08h10 We are nearly back at Hogwarts, sorry I mean Barnard Castle. I wonder what magic they can offer to my dad’s Achilles?

09h05 There was no magician at Barnard Castle but a doctor has told my dad to keep using vitamin I [ie ibuprofen]

…Cunning plan to make the ❝ Yad Moss easier – do half, sleep in Drew Buck near top of Yad Moss

Alston and then do second half the next morning

09h10 Look what the road God just gave me.

Bonus flapjack 12h15 Needed: a VC167 rider to take me off piste between Thirsk and Pocklington to avoid the Castle Howard hills. Anyone? Please?

16h30 I knew we’d get wet on LEL & I’m amazed we stayed dry for 1,000km or so. It went wrong in Cuxwold 16h35 Slow going at moment due to wind. Towed three others 8km to Pocklington to give then shelter PS: Howardian Hills are still lumpy 16h45 Next section on LEL is to Louth control over the Humber bridge. If the wind is still blowing it’s going to be 5+ hours of riding 19h50 We are now on the south side of the Humber Bridge and the weather’s horrible.

But at least we are getting closer to Louth 20h55 Andy Allsopp and Arrrrrgggghhhhh f*** off headwind Andrew Cater 22h50 Audax glamour on LEL as I arrive at Louth soaked. Right, shower and then bed.

Thanks Louth control Thursday 3rd August 05h30 Breakfast time at Louth control before we crack on and “enjoy” the fenland headwind.

Final bag drop awaits in Spalding 06h15 This morning the road Gods are handing out gels 10h25 It’s a bit windy in the fens on LEL. The best approach seems to be to hide in a bus Mark Hummerstone shelter, as demonstrated by Graham and looking for his brevet card Dean

❞

Martin climbing Yad Moss at the start of Day 4

10h30 Being at Spalding means we now get to wear clean clothes for the last three legs of LEL 11h40 South of Spalding and it is still windy 12h20 The wind across the fens is horrific. It even stole Mark Hummerstone’s brevet card, which is now in a field [He never did find the brevet card, fortunately he should still get validation due to electronic tagging] 15h10 From St Ives we’ll go via Cambridge & onwards to Great Easton and the final control on LEL, Just recovering from fenland wind at moment 15h50 Time to get the show back on the road to Great Easton 17h50 We’re south of Cambridge and have less than 100 kilometres to go before we are back in London 23h20 That’s LEL done & I got dad around in one piece too. I’ll leave it until he’s forgotten about

the dark moments before I mention PBP 2019 23h45 Right home time from LEL. It’s a 25km cycle ride Friday 4th August 11h00 My bag drop from Spalding won’t be here until 2pm, so I’m now volunteering 19h40 Provisionally 815 finished LEL. Assuming 1400 starters means >40% DNF-ed. That’s crazy high but it was tough 21h00 ● Tracklog from LEL is here: http://tiny.cc/ LEL2017

…The wind across the fens is horrific. ❝ It even stole Mark Hummerstone’s brevet card, which is now in a field ❞ www.aukweb.net

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PICTURES BY ANNE BENTON

PHOTO REPORT LEL INTERNATION RIDERS

The Loughton Registration provided an ideal opportunity for Anne Benton to photograph and chat to some of the International cyclists as they prepared for LEL 2017. Without exception all were happily looking forward to the following day’s depart and she was impressed by their sheer numbers and was told, anecdotally, that others would have come had they managed to gain a place.

From AUK member Bernard Mawson’s vision and humble beginnings in 1989 with just 26 riders, to 2017 with 1,500 riders from 54 countries, LEL is well and truly on the “to do” list internationally. Bernard’s daughter was a volunteer at Pocklington.

2017

Credit must go to Danial Webb and his hard-working team…

Ireland

Bosnia Herzegovina

Thailand

USA

Brazil USA

Denmark

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South Africa

Spanish Basque

Thailand

Hong Kong

Ireland

Italy

Belgium

Malta

Sweden

Japan

Spanish Basque Germany India www.aukweb.net

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RIDE REPORT LESSONS LEARNED ON LEL 2017

Adrian Wikeley tells us about the lessons learned as a self-confessed full-value rider on LEL 2017…

WORDS AND PICTURES BY ADRIAN WIKELEY • RIDER CC19

Bringing

up the rear…

London Edinburgh London 2017, a fabulous cycling odyssey that exceeded all my expectations, an inspirational event in which I feel privileged to have taken part. As a relative newcomer to Audax (I started in 2015) and especially major randonnee, I thought it worthwhile setting out some of the lessons that I learnt on LEL. Much will be obvious to experienced riders; however, for those considering undertaking a ride of this length some might be useful.

My only other experience of a ride of this magnitude was PBP in 2015, and I entered that as a complete novice having only completed the qualifying SR series earlier in the same year. In the build-up to LEL, the ride occupied my mind consistently.

However the reality is actually very straightforward. The efficiency of Danial’s team is outstanding, leaving the rider to just pedal, eat, drink, sleep, pedal and repeat – assuming that you are fit and your bike is freshly serviced.

Comparisons between LEL and PBP abound, and my assumption was that LEL would be a lesser experience. However in reality this event is brilliantly organised and inspirational on many levels­– the volunteers, the route and the riders all exceeded my expectations. LEL is a real adventure; don’t expect

the party atmosphere of PBP and the applauding crowds shouting ‘bon chance’. I saw one lonely man standing beside the road in Whittlesey, Cambridgeshire in The Fens clapping as each rider passed.

Perhaps an Audax UK member?

Danial’s dinners are excellent, and you are not going to go hungry. LEL caters for your every need, even vegetarian and vegan options are generally available along with bananas or cereal bars to top-up your bonk rations. Yes, this is perhaps the best value all-inclusive ‘holiday’ available in the UK. All you really need to bring along is your fortitude, a well-maintained bike and some good luck.

If, like me, you have the privilege of wearing a Dulwich Paragon CC jersey it is either assumed that you are Alistair

Multi-cultural food at Innerleithen control

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Fitzpatrick, or that you know where Alistair is at any given time. Alistair is a friend, fellow Dulwich Paragon CC member and an Audax celebrity, following his starring role in LEL 2013 the movie.

The LEL route is gold standard (as are the gpx files and route sheets) and those from overseas must leave with a completely false impression of the UK. As a rider all one sees are historic grammar schools, swanky new secondary schools with exemplary facilities, picturesque villages and stately homes. Eyesores are concealed behind high hedges, a clever deceit brought to you by the LEL team.

LEL brings out the very best in the Audax community. The chance of being stranded en route is pretty remote, as someone will assist you with mechanicals and ensure that you get to the next control, where an obliging mechanic can assist. As they say it is ‘not a race’, so there is time to assist those who find themselves in difficulty.

Note to self: ‘ride at my pace, not that of the person up front’.

If you increase your pace and put your body under pressure on a ride of this magnitude the likelihood of injury is pretty high. The time limit is quite generous so just relax, and enjoy the journey, the company of some great riders, and the unique full-on immersive LEL cycling experience.

Sleeping arrangements are generally good. However, even the LEL team can’t prevent one ‘super-snoring cyclist’ from keeping an entire sports hall awake. Sadly, no ear plugs are effective enough to keep this aural interference at bay.

One day of cycling in

Scotland transformed my view of Audax. As a Londoner who has never ventured into Scotland on a bike before I was in for a surprise. The Edinburgh to Eskdalemuir legs of this ride were a revelation, perhaps this is ‘real cycling’ and ‘the spirit of Audax’? The combination of scenery, wind, remoteness and beauty made a huge impression on me. It was challenging but amazing, and the volunteers of Innerleithen and Eskdalemuir made everyone very welcome.

Drop bags are excellent and efficiently handled. Somewhere to stow your stuff, a change of clothes, your preferred energy bars etc. As someone who essentially rode PBP in one set of kit, a shower on LEL followed by a clean pair of bib-shorts and a clean jersey is a real fillip. Add to this one-hour’s sleep, a clean chain and Campag gears that are shifting beautifully, and suddenly you (and the bike) are feeling ‘all brand new’, even on day four!

LEL brings out the ❝ very best in the

❝

I have experienced many endurance events… however, they all pale into insignificance when compared with LEL

❞

community… the chance of being stranded en route is pretty remote, as someone will assist you with mechanicals and ensure that you get to the next control

❞

Somewhere south of Edinburgh

LEL is harder than PBP – perhaps it was the weather – but I feel that I put about 20% more energy into LEL when compared with PBP 2015. My 89 hour 25 mins time on PBP was achieved with numerous café and roadside stall stops; there was no time for this frivolity on LEL. However, it was still a brilliant experience.

Over a decade of running marathons, and then commencing cycling and Audax events in 2015, I have experienced many ‘endurance events’. However they all pale into insignificance when compared with LEL. The challenge and the scenery are great, but what sets it apart are the people and the positivity which emanates from the volunteers, organisers and all the riders, whether they made it back to Loughton or not.

Be-spoke advice in The Fens On arrival at the Arrivée www.aukweb.net

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Very Popular Mechanics by Neil Goldsmith

Neil Goldsmith, the principal mechanic at the Eskdalemuir control, gives his observations on keeping riders moving on LEL 2017, and why you should go and buy a spare gear hanger now before it’s too late…

Hanger games The Peak Audax team staffed the control at Eskdalemuir on LEL, as we had done four years ago.

This is a remote location in the Scottish Borders famous for the Buddhist temple and retreat – Sammy Ling as it is known. The control is at the community centre and hub. It’s a great location with really friendly locals who were also responsible for the preparation of the LEL food.

As with the last LEL, we all did a variety of jobs depending upon the need at the time. I was there as the main mechanic. The bike repair area was outside. Fortunately, Mike Wigley had brought along a gazebo to provide some shelter from the inevitable rain showers. Eskdalemuir is officially the wettest recording station in the UK with some 80 inches of rain per year. This far north the daylight lasts until well into the evening when it’s not raining or cloudy.

I consider that we were a bike first aid point. First aid works on the principle of least harm – don’t leave the patient in a worse state than when you found them.

This is true of our bike aid – if it could cause more problems and the rider is currently able to ride the bike, we won’t tinker.

Remember too that we are also trying to get things fixed in a short space of time.

Mike Wigley observed that anyone sensible doing a 1,400km ride should have new tyres, new inner tubes, new cassette, new brake blocks and a new chain. In many cases this was obviously true as we did not see that many mechanical problems compared with the number of riders and the distance covered to reach us. Of those we did see some that could be put down to poor maintenance. Changing brake blocks after 800km riding, even in poor weather, means either that the rider is very hard on the brakes, or the pads were not new.

We had one rider who had broken his gear hanger. The bike was somewhere between controls. Unfortunately, there was nothing we could do for him. All carbon, aluminium and many titanium frames have replaceable gear hangers. A gear hanger is 32

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a sacrificial part and designed to break to save the frame. There are around 200 variations of gear hanger and bike shops buy them in to order. It is a roadside repair to change a gear hanger if you have one with you, and impossible without a hanger which fits. Gear hangers are easily sourced online. I regard them as an essential spare to carry along with spare tubes. It can be the difference between finishing and abandoning. Indeed, even on a recreational ride it can mean you can get home. If that rider had carried a spare he would have been able to continue.

I have learnt the hard way too. I have had my own gear hanger snap – and I did not have a replacement. I tried to do an emergency repair by making my bike a single speed, but with vertical dropouts getting any meaningful tension is almost impossible and the chain constantly derails.

Riders also need to realise that it is a help-you-get-there service. I don’t know about other controls but at Eskdalemuir we were working outside, under a gazebo with poor lighting, under midge attack, and in variable weather conditions. It’s not a bike shop, we don’t have spare wheels, bearings, spokes and gear hangers. I would guess that working conditions at all controls are far from ideal.

There were a number of punctures the team fixed. Although riders should be capable of doing this, we repaired the punctures mainly to enable riders to get a rest and food. Even so, most of these were on older tyres (not necessarily a factor). We also sold a couple of tyres to riders whose tyres had been badly damaged by a puncture or two.

Most of the real mechanical problems were caused by derailleur malfunction.

These were often solved, or ameliorated, by a good clean and oiling. The weather was generally wet and the roads were wet a lot of the time so bikes inevitably got dirty, with the corresponding effect on moving parts.

I was surprised by the number of

expensive time-trial type bikes. These generally have very little tyre clearance and deep section carbon rims. A recipe for problems in poor weather.

It is worth noting that some high-spec bikes have internal routing for gear cables as well as brake cables. Although at first sight this appears to be a good idea, in the typical British weather and filthy roads for hundreds of kilometres the dirt can cause more of a problem than it would with external routing. I discovered that the gear cable routings are quite narrow and had tight entrances and exits. The outer cables are thinner than normal and this altogether causes more drag than with an external routing if it is not kept in pristine condition.

With a build-up of mud and grit, the drag becomes significant and leads to poor function. In one instance it appeared to have caused the cable to stick leading to the cable not moving in the brifter and the nipple getting displaced. At least that was my conclusion.

I looked at one high-specification carbon frame with a Dura Ace rear derailleur. I’m not a bike shop mechanic, just someone who builds my own bikes and repairs them, so I’m not familiar with all varieties of manufacturer and products. I had not before encountered the way the cable was attached to the derailleur. The derailleur was not engaging top gear even though the cable was slack as it entered the routing around bottom bracket. The cable was under some tension prior to the derailleur. There was evidently some obstruction within the frame – probably caused by grit or water, or possibly the thin outer getting caught and frayed.

I did not want to undo anything as I was not willing to take the risk of connecting the cable to the derailleur in the wrong way (it had been a long day and we were all tired!). I was also reluctant to change the cable because it is not an easy job to re-cable these as they have tight grommets and a very narrow outer sheath to protect the frame from the cable. The technique usually is to slide a very narrow outer (not

much bigger than the inner) over the existing inner and then change the inner.

I did not have a suitable cable and could not be sure that we would not end up in a mess if something was dislodged inside the frame. We managed to get it working reasonably well through most of the gears (who needs top gear anyway!).

Two riders complained of the freewheel not working and revolving when they were freewheeling. Both had reasonably new wheels and cassettes so this was not down to poor maintenance.

We degreased the wheel as best we could – spray lots of citrus degreaser into the back of the cassette and hope it penetrates the freehub. Then aggressively back pedal with the bike on the workstand. This seemed to help. I did explain to both riders that stripping the freehub down was very high risk and should only be done in a nice clean room with plenty of light and over a sheet and probably would take hours even in a bike shop. The pawls and springs have a habit of springing out and going all over the place. Not a job to be contemplated outside under a gazebo while suffering a midge attack! Working on the basis of least harm – best not even to think of it.

I did take some used derailleurs (one of which was utilised – the rider had a fall and bent his derailleur) and a couple of new 9 speed chains.

A sign of the times is the use of electrical equipment. I am a fan of GPS devices, modern LED lights and electronic gears. We were all astonished at the number of riders who had not brought their own chargers for lights/gps/phones and looked askance when we did not have one to fit their device.

There is no such thing as a universal mini-USB cable. I know from experience that the fact that the fitting is the same does not mean that the manufacturer has wired it the same as another manufacturer (try using a Garmin connector on a camera – it fits and that’s all). I have had similar experience with phones. There is a plethora of phone connectors and each new phone seems to have a different one. If you are totally dependent upon electronic devices, make sure you have back-up (spare batteries or a map) or carry a charger and a spare (i.e. 2) cables.

No one needed electronic gears re-charging or adjusting. And yes, there were a reasonable number of bikes with electronic gears.

We did have USB mains plugs which were in constant demand. Maybe next time, each control could be given a bank of USB mains plugs. www.aukweb.net

33

RIDE REPORT LEL UNDER 100 HOURS

WORDS AND PICTURES BY RICHARD CHEW

After picking up an unfortunate injury on his last long ride in preparation, even Richard Chew’s ability to start LEL looked in doubt. Will he manage his 100 hour target time?

The 100-hour

Hallelujah

Many stories have come out of this year’s LEL already, each of them unique and an adventure in their own right. Mine is fairly average in comparison, and thanks to good fortune contains no high drama or catastrophes.

It was however a journey that nearly didn’t take place at all. I’d been suffering from a trapped perineal nerve since the hilly Pendle 600, 4 weeks before, which was to be my last long ride before LEL. My GP had recommended rest but I decided to try various saddles and even considered a recumbent as a last minute solution. After all the preparation I decided I had better have a crack at it anyway and put on my old faithful Brooks saddle which had given good service for over a year but I had to put to one side for being too heavy.

With all the other stuff I was carrying it wouldn’t make much difference having an extra 200g on board.

fellow participants when I should have been making the most of the fine weather and getting to my hotel in Chingford. In the end I rode there in the pouring rain and spent the evening hanging up my kit and blasting it with a hairdryer. The hotel had no restaurant and I had no dry clothes, so despite Matt Seward’s kind offer of going out for dinner I had to decline and make do with snacks until breakfast time. The hotel was part of a Scouting Association camp at Gilwell Park and there was live music until late, just outside my window by the sound of it.

SUNDAY 30TH JULY

Up at 3am to find the night porter who released my bike and was busy putting out breakfast, which was a

welcome relief. It had thundered and rained during the night and was just easing off as I left in the darkness before dawn. The roads were flooded in the Epping Forest but I made it to Loughton in time for a second breakfast with some amiable brothers and a rider from Yorkshire called Nick Forth who gave me confidence in my abilities to complete the ride.

The 5am departure came and passed without fanfare (to avoid waking the neighbours) and we headed off into Essex.

Within the first hour we encountered a Frenchman in distress who had no means or repairing a tubular tyre and had no mobile phone either.

One of my fellow riders stopped to assist him and apparently he rang

SATURDAY 29TH JULY

I made it up to Debden by train and tube. Ridiculously my bike fell over on the train denting the top tube and my pride, but luckily no one was hurt. This incident, though upsetting at the time, may have had a positive outcome later on. At the Davenant Foundation School the very efficient bag drops and registration were all done by about 2pm and I hung about chatting too long to 34

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Drop bags for Pocklington and Brampton ready to go

somewhere in France to try to arrange assistance.

I made the acquaintance of Jack Peterson, a Transcontinental Race and Trans Am Bike Race veteran, and rode for some time with him until my first puncture put a stop to that. Though as I had just said to Jack, on any Audax you very rarely finish the ride with the person you set off with. In my haste I used up two tubes fixing it and snapped the valve off the second. I wished I’d practised taking off the borrowed dynamo wheel so I could have done it without stress on the road.

Into the first control at St Ives at 09:33 and determined not to faff and waste too much time. I soon got into the habit of scanning in / water bottles / food / toilets / change route sheet / scan route card out – and off again.

The weather had continued to be perfect all the way so far. Next stop Spalding, in the Lincolnshire Fens and I was already looking forward to the Humber crossing and Thirsk where I planned my first sleep stop.

A great thunderstorm and lashing rain just before Louth interrupted the smooth flow. I lost the route slightly and took refuge too late in a bus shelter.

I ventured out again as the storm passed and a nice lady walking her dog told me I was on the right route. Despite wet shoes, all was well with the world again.

On to Louth and then the Humber crossing, where, as if by magic, the legendary film-maker Damon Peacock appeared with camera in hand.

Not far then to Pocklington and back onto familiar territory where I had done my route check in March, however the descending darkness meant that once out into the Howardian Hills it all became indistinct and arduous. Near Coxwold, a slow puncture in the rear tyre was rather frustrating. With the help of my newly acquired Dutch friend Hans Uittenboogaard I looked

it over in the streetlight in the village and after pumping it up, determined to nurse it along to Thirsk and mend it in the morning. I had rather a long ride out of the saddle trying to keep the weight forward off the soft rear tyre.

Volunteers were perplexed why I dismounted and pushed the bike into the long drive into the school. It was 01:41 on Monday morning. Today I would ride to Edinburgh, but not just yet.

05.00 on 31st July – a quiet departure, don’t wake the neighbours!

MONDAY 1ST AUGUST

Up before my wake-up call and got some breakfast, Hans already champing at the bit, asking me if I had mended the tyre yet. It was still before dawn and we were off. A pleasant start to the day, but I hit a low period and struggled to get motivated. I decided at this point that if there was no chance of me making my 100 hour deadline I should just relax and get a good sleep each night and stop to smell the roses on the way. I felt better having decided that.

Barnard Castle at 10:38; this was my turning point, a great breakfast and lovely venue put my head in order. Perhaps it reminded me of my old school.

I was just pondering with Hans how long it would be before any of my Audax buddies from Kent or Essex caught me up, when up popped Matt Seward, fresh from sleep at Pocklington. We left him to his breakfast and headed to Alston.

I was left alone by Alston, but according to my Co-op receipt I met a bunch of guys at 11:32 and offered to buy all their drinks to save them queuing up, but they gave me the right cash afterwards anyway. On the way up into the Pennines Matt Seward appeared again and was off like a rocket on his new bike.

We went over Yad Moss and the weather was still being pretty kind to us. I’d been warned of these long climbs, not steep, but very tiring. It was depressing to see so many

people with later start times overtaking me on the way up.

As I found later though, there is definitely a hare and tortoise type of psychology involved in LEL. After Brampton (16:13) the evening roads felt like a time-trial, quiet and straight, an opportunity to get the miles in whilst on the flat. I connected with the lovely Marcus heading north on this evening and the quiet nature of the road meant plenty of conversation could be had to while away the miles. I didn’t see his name on the finishers list which is a shame as we put a lot of effort in together and he helped me a lot all the way to Edinburgh.

Moffat Academy at 20:32 had some of the best coffee I’d tasted on the ride. I am still mourning the fact that I left one half-finished on the table in my rush to leave at the same time as Marcus. I was having one of my flashbacks to the Pendle 600 and leaving Hexham in the dark for the wild moors. In fact the climb up to the Devil’s Beeftub was much less devilish and Marcus and I enjoyed the lovely climb at dusk with fantastic tranquil scenery all round. We shared a great evening ride all the way to Edinburgh (01:00) with only a few muddy cyclepath issues at the end causing any friction within the group, which by then consisted of three of us.

TUESDAY 2ND AUGUST

I left Edinburgh wearing tartan

socks. The weather turned nasty but the route was enjoyable and not too steep. A lady from Lewes kindly picked up my badly attached raincoat after I stopped to take it off.

There followed bleak roads where all the traffic was heading towards us, not that there was much. Later, the logging lorries became a menace with their intimidating overtaking, clearly they didn’t brake for anyone.

A great breakfast at Innerleithen at 08:26. Porridge with jam, and off again pretty sharpish, though the desire to stay for one more cup of coffee was very strong. Lewes lady was off too so I figured I should try to keep moving with my peers.

Into Eskdalemuir at 11:26.

The famous gold Buddha was rather disappointingly not at the control but further down the road. On arrival I was slightly bewildered by the plethora of signs. It looked like someone had just got their first laminating machine and had gone mad. Or maybe it was just that this was a smaller control and the available display space was much less than at the others to get all the information up. Having found the door and followed the bagging instructions for shoes and gear I began the usual food fest.

Hans and I met an Italian man in a camper van somewhere along here who had a copy of the route sheet.

He was relieved to find

someone who spoke Italian, even if I ended the conversation by wishing him ‘good choice’ instead of ‘good luck’. Never mind – he found out where he was.

Back into England and arrived in Brampton at 15:04.

Time to stock up with food before the Pennine crossing again. Having been separated from Hans for quite some time I was pleased to catch him on the climb out of Alston again.

He must have passed me whilst I was in the Co-op again, where a lady had been admiring my tartan socks.

Hans had stopped at Drew Buck’s caravan near the top for a cuppa and flapjack, but he caught me again on the descent where I was putting on winter gear to keep warm going down into Middleton-inTeesdale. After Yad Moss I looked forward to arriving at Barnard Castle (20:14), where the food now had a high reputation.

A train was formed at Barnard Castle, consisting of Hans, the two amusing Belgians, Jan and Andy, and ‘the Austrian’. I remain eternally glad of this party for helping me limp along in the dark back to Thirsk. I felt nauseous and weary, their pace was too fast for me and my lack of knowledge of precisely where I was irritated me. As a follower of routecards rather than Garmin I like to know where my next turn is coming up and know how far I am from the next control. Cycling in the dark with a group makes it hard to read the route sheet without bumping into someone, or falling off the back of the train. In the end Hans called out the number of kilometres left, just to keep my morale up. He managed to rein in the Belgians to my speed.

On the way we had an altercation in the dark with a Range Rover, who narrowly avoided a head-on collision with an oncoming car whilst he tried to give us some advice on cycling two abreast. Then we missed a turn and nearly www.aukweb.net

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RIDE REPORT LEL UNDER 100 HOURS Yad Moss, somehow both the best and the worst bit

had a pile-up, which the Austrian thought was my fault for stopping suddenly (we made up next morning at breakfast with a man-hug, like two war veterans). We trundled into Thirsk at a reasonable hour (00:24) and most of us went straight to bed without eating.

WEDNESDAY 3RD AUGUST

We left Thirsk with a similar chain gang of Hans, Andy and Jan and maybe the Austrian. A lovely morning to be out riding, watching the sunrise over the Howardian Hills.

Through Castle Howard, which would be splendid if the road through it was less well used.

There were some deliberately close overtaking motorists intent on just winding us up.

Pocklington came at 08:13 and I worked mainly alone from here, leaving Yorkshire and heading south into Lincolnshire over the Humber again. The Wolds seemed endlessly repetitive and I could not wait to get to the Fens, regardless of what the doom-mongers were saying about the wind.

I met Hans at Louth (13:40) and he was insistent that the only way to crack the ride was to form a train across the Fens.

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He was amassing a gang and there was some faffing amongst the members of the proposed gang who seemed in no hurry to get moving. My timeline was tighter and I wanted to get off. I told him I didn’t want to wait and join his chain. It was the wrong decision, based on the incorrect logic that the route card had lots of small sections and no long drags. It’s not a decision I regret however. I think perhaps the wind grew stronger on the following day and I got off lightly.

Yes, it was windy on the way to Spalding. I kept thinking about the Romney Marshes and the tough rides I’d done across there in preparation. I stopped at a nice Audax hotel (bus stop) to get out of the breeze for a bit and found a piece of unopened flapjack sat on the litter bin.

Delicious. As luck would have it, just as I was leaving, a train of cyclists appeared! I was just settling in to the chair when they called a halt to have a breather for a couple of minutes. Exasperated, I carried on alone.

By the time I reached Spalding alone at 19:23 I was whacked. I lost the trail of LEL signposts in the town and

asked for directions to the school. Easy, thank goodness. I needed another meal! Around this point I must have made my final time calculations. I needed to reach St Ives by midnight, then allowed another 5 hours to get to Great Easton, leaving a comfy 4 hours for the last short stage with the possibility of a nap somewhere if it was going to plan. Coming out of the control I saw my bike leaning lazily and realised that it had blown over in the wind.

Superficial bartape damage and saddle scuffs. Had it not been for the earlier tube dent received on the train I would have found this demoralising, but it seemed insignificant in comparison and I carried on without much concern.

Coming out of Spalding the route retraced its way alongside the lovely River Welland and I remembered how delightful it had been on Sunday afternoon in the sunshine, with the folk enjoying themselves on its banks, the Boston Stump visible in the distance. Now it was quite changed; in the gathering gloom came the stinging rain and I stopped to wrap up, a glove blowing away into the field. The sad looking

ponies, sheep and cattle gazed on nonchalantly as I went off into the night.

Somewhere between Spalding and St Ives I met a chap who told me he had nothing to bring to the party in terms of navigation, but we rode well together for quite some time, through the Ramseys on more endless straight roads. He probably didn’t realise how much help he had been to me at that point. In my weariness I can’t remember his name or anything else about him other than his glasses.

In St Ives (23:35) I met Len from Yorkshire who was looking for a buddy, preferably someone with a Garmin, to help him through the next stage. I didn’t actually meet his criterion and was in a rush to get moving; he was faffing about looking for small change for someone and I was impatient and tempted to go off without him. I’m eternally glad I waited for him though, as I badly needed the company. We whizzed along the guided bus route between St Ives and Cambridge then got a little lost in Cambridge.

Following the route sheet alone was hard work and we had to keep stopping to argue

(politely). I’d lived there for a few months and wanted to just follow my nose to Trumpington, regardless of the routesheet. Having consulted some American tourists at 2am we got back on track and headed out into the pitch black roads near Duxford. The white lines were mesmerising and I was fighting sleep. My thoughts were drifting off into a waking dream. I was paranoid we were on the wrong route, even though a group of riders had overtaken us. I kept stopping to look at Google Maps. I had to call Len back and said, “Len I need you to talk to me and ask me questions”. That helped. Then we left the main road too early due to confusion between Little Henham and Henham and wasted some time on potholed gravelly back roads, straining to read roadsigns.

THURSDAY 4TH AUGUST

Finally we reached Great Easton at 05:00, not before I managed to topple over stupidly in my cleats whilst

trying to read a roadsign on a verge. A soft landing, luckily, but it could have been so different. A civilised breakfast of mixed granola at dawn, and with it came renewed hope.

The last leg was finally here, and on schedule. Len took a nap. I wanted to apologise to him properly for being so crabby but given the tiredness it was not so surprising. It was amazing we stuck together really, both of us with just our route sheets in the dark and wet lanes.

With the dawn came fresh vigour and tiredness fell away.

The Fens chappy with the glasses came by and commented that my sub hundred hours was looking really doable now. Just what I needed to hear. I could not keep up with him, but it didn’t matter. It felt like the bike was being lifted up the hills. The morning commuter traffic was a little scary and I tried to keep my head up. Half way through the stage and I just prayed I didn’t get stuck in queues at the end – I’ll be up on the

pavement if I have to, I told myself.

Finally into Loughton and on the long perimeter road round the back of the school. A hero’s welcome with about an hour to spare, photographs, the immense relief at being off the bike at last – forever! Reunited with Hans and Len whilst enjoying a great breakfast.

Finding my rucksack, washing and changing clothes. Ecstasy!

I took a slow walk down to the tube. I lovely couple saw me looking lost and helped direct me to the station. My gratitude was beyond expression. On the tube I nodded off, standing up, waking at each station. At

The Humber crossing

Stratford International a young guy came up to me and said, “I just want to shake your hand, have you finished already? My brother’s doing the ride.”

“Gently, I said, my hands are a bit tender.” Such a shame I didn’t think to ask his brother’s name. On the fast train home, the bike carefully strapped to the luggage rack this time, I ate lunch and slept as far as Dover before waking.

What an experience. Never again… until next time.

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LEL VOLUNTEER

WORDS & PICTURES BY PETER BOND

Returning to the Eskdalemuir control for the a second time, Peter Bond reflects on his experience of looking after some very tired riders, does a bit of songwriting, and impresses with his knowledge of the local flora

More than a bike ride

LEL control at Eskdalemuir

There’ll be room for your bike, Mike had said. This was so important because I still find it makes me twitchy to be helping on an event, rather than riding it, whether it’s a 50k or a 1500. For LEL this is the second time running. I’d hoped to ride it in 2013 but circumstances had prevented me, as they also had this time. However, I’d had such a good experience of helping with the control in 2013 that I had no hesitation in volunteering for this one. I’d not only be meeting so many of my friends who were actually riding but working with Denise and Tim Hughes and substantially the same team as previously. Ropes were known.

In fact, there was only just room for the bike as it turned out, because Mike had a van full of blankets, airbeds and sundry other equipment. But we wedged it in, early on Sunday morning and sped up the motorway from Manchester to Scotland, arriving not long after noon. Eskdalemuir control is in the local community hub. This has been devoloped to rescue the village (population 250) from complete disappearance. It has lost its bus service, school and shop over recent years and the hub has been created to maintain a sense of community in what is really a loose collection of scattered houses and farms.

The largest single feature in the village is the cemetery, by a long way, and this was so even before LEL came through. In 2013, the control was pretty much just the old school hall, but now this has been extended and the kitchen moved and enlarged. The catering was in the hands of the local community and they already had impressive shift rotas up when we got there.

Mike and I set-to immediately, blowing up the airbeds and allocating a blanket to each. We were only intended to have 30 sleep places, being not that far from more substantial provision either side, at Innerliethen and Brampton. This turned out to be wishful thinking, as we shall see. Next we arranged thirty or forty railings across the car park for bike parking. Then a gazebo was erected to give some protection from 38

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the elements for the mechanic. We took the precaution of attaching it with twine and cable-ties to a substantial generator shed as the wind was already quite strong. Finally, we drove two kilometres further up the valley to the servicemens’ hall to set up the remaining air beds for an overflow dormitory.

Eskdalemuir is beautiful, but wet. It gets three times as much rain as Manchester. It was raining. But in a short break between showers, I persuaded Mike that we should ride out at least to the Buddhist monastery a couple of miles north where there was a café. We managed this just as the rain set in, and enjoyed tea and beautiful chocolate cake. Things were well in hand. It was about four o’clock and we didn’t expect our first riders through for another twenty four hours. Plenty of time for me to indulge my thirst for adventure and push on up the valley along roads I’ve never ridden, and with the ghost of the great John Buchan whispering at my ear. We rode north towards Ettrick, home of another of the Borders’s literary giants, James Hogg. We got well and truly soaked but it was warm and I was just thrilled to be riding somewhere new, where we pretty much had the narrow road to ourselves and could

Meadowsweet and willowherb

Pete at Eskdalemuir

concentrate on the rolling scenery, with its monoculture of pine forest, mercifully free of the huge logging lorries which the morrow would bring. Between the road and the trees, the verges were brightened with the taller flowers of late summer, particularly meadowsweet and willowherb, with plentiful harebells, the Scottish bluebell. Presumably meadowsweet and willowherb like the same conditions because the Esk valley is almost smothered in them. A century previously, their juxtaposition further south was immortalised by Edward Thomas in his poem Adlestrop :And willows, willowherb and grass And meadowsweet…

By the stream that runs past the hub into the White Esk there are also the orchid-like meadow woundwort and the bright red and yellow of bird’s foot trefoil, but the overwhelming carpet of willowherb and frothy cream meadowsweet is what the mention of Eskdalemuir conjures up.

Turning at Ettrick, we rode back up to about 1000 feet before the long drop to the hub. We dried out in the warm air, though we were moistened again lightly just before we arrived, which is commonly the way with bike rides.

Morning mist at Eskdalemuir

Alison Brind, a stalwart of Macclesfield Wheelers, and Neil and Gerry Goldsmith were also on the team of volunteers. Alison was putting in a couple of days with us before heading north on a cycling holiday and Gerry and Neil are very experienced leaders of European cycle tours. Neil was designated as chief mechanic. And there was Jane Sigrist, whose husband Martin was riding. Our initial complement also included Denise and Tim’s granddaughters, who were great fun. There were also several other helpers during the course of the event, including some from Germany. Once Tim had sorted out some of the communications glitches, we were pretty much ready for business by Sunday evening. With no riders expected untill the next day, we relaxed throughout the evening with pizzas, wine, a sing-song and a string of jokes that had been around since before humour was invented.

Mike and I were lucky enough to have been allocated sleeping quarters in a local self-catering motel and it was excellent.

After several hours sleep, we rode back to the hub keen to be about our business. Late breakfast merged into dinner as Tim contacted Innerleithen to see when we might expect our first riders. As there was only a couple anywhere near us, our labour wouldn’t be missed and Mike and I set off up the road to meet the approaching pair and hopefully ride down to the control with them. Once again, I was relishing the chance to ride but after about threequarters of an hour there was no sign of the promised riders. Mike suggested we turn at the cattle grid at the top of the hill. When we got there, I asked him to wait while I dropped to the next bend to see if I could see round it. Within seconds, two powerful cyclists appeared. I smiled and greeted them, but by the time I’d turned my bike round to follow, they were a hundred yards away and starting the descent. Mike, who was on his Brompton and who has a better grasp of reality than I, urged me to go on, while he made a more leisurely return.

Reader, for several seconds I was within 200 yards of the legend that is The Flying Dutchman, Anco de Jong, and his shadow Gerd Ebner of Austria. I, too, was flying but, after a mile or so, I didn’t see a trace of them until I arrived at the hub, where their smoking bikes were propped up against the wall. It was no competition, I only had a forty-six tooth chainwheel and they’d been warming up for five hundred miles.

The next rider in was Jasmijn Muller, who had recently beaten all but two of the men in the Mersey Roads 24-hour time trial and so was also warmed up. After those three, it was hours before more riders began to trickle in. The work was light and I was pleased to help out a rider who had a slow puncture by discovering and removing a thorn from his tyre. Denise and Tim were in regular contact with Innerleithen back along the route and it seemed unlikely that we would get a bulge before Tuesday afternoon and so at about midnight Mike and I took the opportunity to ride down to our motel, where we again managed a few hours sleep before going back up to the hub for breakfast at about six in the morning. Eskdalemuir is a fabulous spot at any time but the morning is especially ethereal.

Things were busier than they had been on the previous evening but it was clear that the generally poor weather was causing difficulties for the riders and that if the bulge didn’t hit us soon it was likely that a lot of riders had already dropped out or would be out of time before they reached us. I was doing a bit of most things during the day: a bit of clearing tables, greeting riders and trying to persuade them to remove their shoes in the foyer, oiling chains and filling bottles (with water mostly, though I dare say some of them got oil). But mostly I was outside in the rain, guiding riders into the control, Denise taking advantage of my ability to wave my arms in several different languages, including braille. The rain wasn’t actually such a big issue for me because Mike had pitched a

pop-up tent on the verge, so we could sit in there with a good view up the road and pop out when riders appeared. In between riders, I took the opportunity for a little song-writing and taught a couple of bits and pieces to Denise and Tim’s grandchildren, who are going to be good guitarists, I think. They will certainly be good at playing at a jaunty angle because the tent sloped at about thirty degrees. This will fit them well for gigs in The Black Swan in York, if my memory serves.

By the middle of the afternoon, things were starting to buzz nicely and I began to see lots of my friends, such as Terry from Bury (should be able to work that into a song) and especially the posse of VC167 riders from the north-east, all of whom were looking good and in high spirits. Dean in particular struck the right note, I think, slouching his way past the aero wheels and tri-bars to lean against the wall in his Beano jersey for a roll-up. Surrounded by friends, I couldn’t resist giving them the benefit of my songwriting efforts of earlier.

To the tune of The Long And Winding Road, by Paulie: The long and winding road That leads o’er Eskdalemuir Is almost over now But my backside’s so-o-o-ore If you have Sudocrem Give me more, more ,more…

Every time the pedals turn My backside burns like fire I had a sneaky feel of it It’s like a knobbly tyre But still I’m going back To the long, winding road....

That’s as far as I got and I’m sure everyone was grateful that that was as far as I’d got. Anyway I was pleased to be able speed the passage through the control. The recently-ordained Graeme (ViCar167) gave me absolution and then they were on their way south to Brampton, then Alston and the notionally glorious crossing of Yad Moss into County Durham, though it looked as if it might be grim rather than glorious.

Weather notwithstanding, I was envious of them. I’ve ridden with many of them often and, as I’ve said, this was the second LEL I’d volunteered on, when I had hoped I might be riding. Ah, well.

Sometime in the evening, I received a deputation from Chris Crossland, Chairman of Audax and Mike Wigley, Membership Secretary of same. The bearings on a German rider’s dynamo wheel had failed.

This was not the kind of repair easily effected in our circumstances and, in any case, it was a new wheel so the rider wanted to send it back to the manufacturer in Germany. I had a wheel. It was on my www.aukweb.net

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LEL VOLUNTEER bike. Soon it wasn’t, and I had attached it to his machine and off he went gratefully. I didn’t get his name, so I can only hope he finished. At this stage I was down one wheel, one Garmin charger, which I had lent and which couldn’t be found after the user had departed, and one phone, which had presumably flown out of my jacket during my headlong/strong pursuit of Anco.

As the dark drew in, earlier than it might have done because of the weather, it was very atmospheric to be sitting in the tent or standing in the road, watching out for the bright white lights approaching. I’d also worked out where there was a section on the route south where the red tail lights (heading for Spai-ai-ai-ain) could be seen briefly before they disappeared again towards Langholm on the leg to Brampton.

At some stage in the late evening my feet worked out that I’d been on them for about twelve hours, give or take the odd few minutes at thirty degrees. I didn’t want to miss the night shift, when things would be most hectic, but I thought a couple of hours sleep, or at least a lie-down, would help me make it through the night. Having agreed this with Denise, I went to the racks for my Harry Hall. I’d forgotten completely about lending the wheel. The bike hung forlornly on the rack, almost reproachfully, I felt, the front fork giving me an inverted two fingers. No matter, it was an easy enough walk to the motel. Then Mike suggested I take the Brompton and in a few minutes I was failing to get to sleep for an hour or so.

But the break did me good and I was soon back ready for the fray. I was enjoying clearing tables and taking in the impressions of riders in various states of decomposition but invariably grateful and courteous. But within a few minutes, I was cast into outer darkness. Our thirty beds were already full and Denise asked me to go up the road to open the emergency hall. So it was back on the Brommie again and up the rolling road.

The building is an ex-serviceman’s hall with a stage at one end. Mike had commented earlier that now that the school had been enlarged into the community hub, the village was almost over-blessed with facilities. On the Sunday, we’d set out about thirty airbeds, but some of these had deflated terminally, so we were down to about twenty four spaces when I arrived. I’d barely got there when riders began arriving and I was filling in my map of when people wanted waking. The trouble was that very quickly we had run out of the seven blankets we had. Then the beds were full and we conjured-up a bit of accommodation with a few yoga mats. I started to feel very awkward indeed, because, in addition to its rainfall, 40

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Eskdalemuir is noted for its coolness and some of the arriving riders were in a very sorry state indeed. I was embarrassed the whole night and felt I’d let people down. It was only after the last rider had left in the morning, that I remembered that we were only expected to provide the 30 beds down in the hub and that the riders could have known that. But who knows anything when they are wet and miserable and in Scotland?

When two riders from Thailand arrived, adamant that they could go no further, not even the two kilometres to register at the control, where by that time in the night there might have been (but almost certainly wasn’t) a free bed, I covered the sorriest one with my jacket and spent the rest of the night in my T-shirt.

I have to say that one or two riders were still shivering after three or four hours on the floor but the Thais, whom I’d have said were closest to death on arrival, thanked me with smiles and rode off into the misty morning. I don’t know if I was looking cold but I enjoyed the nip of malt that Gordon and Debs offered me.

It was a fabulous night. For the first few hours the sky coruscated with stars and the Milky Way. It almost vibrated, with the kind of clarity that makes the constellations difficult to identify, unlike in the urban areas where only the defining ones are bright enough. I spent as much time as I could outside until the midges forced me back in.

Even then, I had to go out every time I saw a light on the forecourt. The problem was that all the bikes were parked along the wall of the hall, and riders desperately seeking a control will always heave to where they see bikes gathered together. It was hard work and not a little embarrassing to have to keep saying, no, you need to ride on to the control, check in and see if there are any beds there and if not they will send you up here. Oh, and by the way, we’re full! I’m sure this could be handled better but it is a problem when you have an obvious facility the wrong side of the official control. Still, although some riders were pretty near collapse and limited in their ability to either comprehend or respond, no-one was rude and nobody died (I think). But I can’t deny that each time I tiptoed in to wake someone at their appointed time, the stertorous breathing and twisted limbs of those who were sleeping where they had fallen, reminded me of a field hospital.

On reflection, I think many of the riders I tried to help that night in the overflow might have been better going down to the hub and just sitting in the warm, where there was at least hot food and drink. I suggested this in some cases but people make their own decisions! At least I have the satisfaction of knowing that the last two to

leave the hall, having apparently not slept, completed the ride with time to spare in spite of being out of time on leaving me.

At about four in the morning, when the brightening sky was clouding over from the south and I’d got my jacket back, I only had three late sleepers to wake. Such riders as were on the road were not stopping, presumably having slept earlier and just now starting their day’s work. When I only had two left to wake and time to spare, I got on the Brompton and rode up and down past the Buddhist monastery. These laps made me all the more impressed with Mike’s ability on our rides on the previous two days. A Brompton is an ingenious and very useful machine but it is to road riding what a brick is to space flight.

I also had a short walk along the path that leads between the Buddhist accommodation and the monastery, along which I had seen several distinctly nonTibetan monks materialising in the hours around dawn. With the aniseed smell of the meadowsweet and the purple of willowherb shot through with the russet dock it must be one of the best walks to work imaginable.

To some, mine might have seemed a lonely vigil but I was never bored. And I was never completely alone. Mike and Tim and Neil all popped in on separate occasions, bringing warm food or just to be companionable. And creatures are always with us. I had to move a couple of huge leopard slugs just to shut the door a couple of times and they weren’t for shifting.

By the time Mike came back in the van at about seven o’clock I had pretty much got the beds deflated and rolled up and it didn’t take us long to get the hall tidy and drive back to the main control at the hub. In a way I was sorry to have missed more friends and the hectic excitement of the hub during the overnight bulge but I was satisfied at having done what I hoped was a good job. And the night sky and the sensations of dawn and monks in the mist were more than adequate compensation.

When I went to collect my bike (fearing that in my sleepy state I might forget it) I was thrilled to find that, in addition to the front wheel, I had also donated the bolts fastening the front mudguard stays. The things we do for love.

After a quick breakfast I did a bit more road duty, though most people were already through, as we were only an hour or two away from the control closing time. But people were still arriving sporadically well after we were shut, in some cases to continue to the finish, even though they were out of time. Two late riders in particular impressed me and both arrived long after Mike and I had finished loading beds and

2018 MILEATER ENTRY FORM

equipment into his van for the journey south to The North. The first was a phlegmatic Frenchman, who informed us that this was his third consecutive LEL and he had failed to finish each one. Then he sighed resignedly (it’s a very Gallic thing and they really do, do it just like in the films) and said, “Ah, but I am 78”. I was stunned. This meant he had done his first LEL at the age of 70, packed, then come back for more twice.

And at 78 he had done the first 500 miles.

Incroyable!

Much younger was the chap who arrived looking fresh as a daisy and had dinner with us before setting off back to London on his bike. This was his first year of Audaxing. His previous two Audaxes had been a 300k (packed) and a 400k (also packed), yet he’d still had a go at the big one. I find this impossible to criticise. I don’t think it’s fair to suggest that with his limited experience his entry blocked someone else from having a ride. Hundreds, yes hundreds of riders with decades of experience, packed before he did. And he wasn’t that much out of time and he didn’t look in the least distressed. It was also great to meet Audax stalwart Dick McTaggart, who I think had guided the rider to us.

A lovely thing about the Eskdalemuir control, apart from the friendliness of Denise and Tim and the team they have accrued, is that the local community, who did the catering for us, seemed inordinately

The Muir

grateful for the custom we had given their hub. I was genuinely sorry to be leaving them and their beautiful valley. I’m really determined to get up for a couple of days riding and camping as soon as possible.

This event is surreal in every way, jolting one out of usual rhythms and forcing sensations into the consciousness. This is the second time I’ve done the Eskdalemuir Protocol and on both occasions the whole stint has been exciting in an undefinable way. I’d love to have been riding, of course; but that wouldn’t have been better, just different. A thing I particularly love about LEL (and I know not everyone agrees with me – there’s a surprise) is that it goes virtually unnoticed. One and a half

How will you submit your final mileage?

Audax UK Membership Number: Cycling UK (CTC) Membership Number: Date of birth if under 18 years: SEE PARENTAL CONSENT BELOW

Forename:

I will send the diary back to you

I will submit via an online ride logging website PLEASE ENSURE THAT I CAN VIEW YOUR PROFILE

Enter the URL of your rider profile here: Surname:

Address:

email: Tel:

thousand cyclists do one and a half thousand kilometres and if you don’t live on, or happen to be driving on the secretive route, you are not going to know about it.

Many of the riders and helpers are known to each other. But many aren’t - until they take part in this event for which they’ve travelled from all over the globe. It’s a privilege to have the chance to practise pathetic bits of school French and German (going to learn Dutch, Italian and Spag Nol, next) and to shrug and nod in everything from Australian to Thai. And no, no Thais died…

I can’t help thinking that if we could get more and more people cycling, the world would be a lot friendlier place. Except for Anco, of course; he’d still be on his own.

Club/CTC member group:

mobile: Parental consent (required for entrants under 18 years of age) I am the Parent/Guardian of the Entrant and give my consent to this Entry:

I will use another way EMAILED SPREADSHEET, HARD COPY SPREADSHEET ETC

Enter submission method here: Do you want to receive a medal?

This will cost an extra £10.00 and is engraved with your name, year and distance recorded.

Yes

No

I understand that during the Mileater period I am responsible for my own conduct. Entry fees are not refundable or transferable.

Signed (Entrant):

Signed (Parent/Guardian):

Date:

Date:

Send to the organiser:

Name (Parent/Guardian, please print):

1 completed form 2 cheque payable to AUDAX UK (£4.00 if you just want to enter and receive the diary, £14.00 if you want the medal as well) if you are not submitting payment by PayPal. 3 two C5 stamped addressed envelopes. Please ensure you include sufficient postage for a large letter weighing up to 100g – this covers the postage for 1 diary.

Post your entry forms and payment to: Paul Worthington, 213 Greenhill Road, Liverpool, L18 9ST. Envelopes not required if paying by PayPal (PayPal fee already includes postage)

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41

TRAINING HILL CLIMBING

Some cyclists are naturally more able on hills than others, but how much of that is down to physiology and how much is technique?

Ben Keenan recommends being happy with the body you have, and, without having to change your entire lifestyle, says there are ways to…

climb better without losing weight AND RELAX…

It’s likely that you’re gripping the bars too hard, your shoulders are up by your ears and you’re gritting your teeth. Take a deep breath and relax.

You have a limited amount of energy, so don’t waste it with tensing up muscles that could otherwise just stay loose.

PEDAL IN CIRCLES

You may think this seems obvious, what other way is there to pedal?

Well, think about where you’re putting force into the pedal. It’s likely, and also very natural, to push down on the pedal when it gets to the front. After all, that’s where you use your quads, the biggest muscle group in your legs. But what about using ALL of your leg muscles?

Practice single leg riding (on your own away from groups) and see if you can put pressure all the way 42

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around the pedal stroke. Now do this with both legs, you’ll find your cadence goes much higher for the same effort (you’re generating more momentum), add a gear and keep going. You’ll be moving much faster than before in the same gear and the same cadence.

Just one word of warning… you’ll be using muscles that you may not have used before, so don’t expect to be able to hold this for more than one minute straight away. Build up, but make sure you keep practising it, don’t revert to your old ways!

SIT DOWN…

This all comes as part of pedalling in circles. This becomes hard, in fact pretty much impossible to do when standing. Stay seated for as long as possible. Stand if you’re on a very steep section and you feel like you’re about to stop, stand if

you need to get past someone really quickly (like a car coming), stand if you’re starting to get sore.

When you do stand you’ll be using your energy stores much faster, so don’t do it for too long.

LOVELY NEW GEAR

Nope, this isn’t about buying new clothes, sorry. Instead this is simply adding an easier gear to your bike.

Do you keep hitting the shifter only to find that you’re already in first gear? I’ve heard of some bike shops telling people to just pedal harder, lose weight or get fitter, when instead they could sell the customer a new cassette that gives a much bigger low gear. I’ve recently changed mine and would happily go even bigger if I could.

Ignore bike snobs and anyone telling you otherwise – they aren’t there when you’re struggling up the hills. If you can already hold

BEN KEENAN owns and runs Suffershire studio Indoor Cycling, a Wattbike rshire. in Cheltenham, Glouceste ining and Utilising the Sufferfest tra with workout videos together s, he offers state-of-the-art static bike uctured riders professional-level str for workouts that are perfect g to endurance cyclists wishin maintain fitness, especially through the winter

TAKE YOUR TIME

Just let the hill come to you, certainly at the start of the climb.

Do you know how far it is to the top? Are you pacing it correctly?

Starting just five percent above your limit will have a hugely negative impact later on. Find a rhythm, but don’t feel like you have to hold it, if the climb kicks up, then don’t try to maintain the same pace, if you do, you’ll be pushing way above your limit so slow it down.

LISTEN TO YOUR HEART

No, I’m not advocating a heart rate monitor (or stethoscope), just be

mindful that when you start breathing heavily your heart rate will continue to rise, even if you stop pedalling immediately. There is a huge delay with heart rate, so by the time you feel like you need to stop, you’re already working too hard and backing off at that point may be too late. So start easy, hold for a minute, go slightly harder, hold for a minute and so on, up until you’re at the point of vigorous breathing (when you can only talk in short sentences) stay around this level or just below.

CORE… BLIMEY

Did you know that improving core strength can result in as much as a 10 per cent power improvement? If you’ve ever found yourself with a sore lower back or sore stomach muscles from climbing, you definitely need to strengthen your core muscle. Just doing the plank exercise before bed or when you

wake up, followed by lying on your front and raising and lowering your head and shoulders off the ground will gradually help to stabilise your body on the bike ensuring that all your energy is going into your legs.

WANT TO DO THIS AND LOSE WEIGHT?

Of course carrying weight does have some bearing on your climbing effort. So if you are still unsatisfied try 60-90 minutes of easy to moderate riding early in the day on an empty stomach. Have some caffeine to give you a boost, but riding at this pace with no carbs on board, for this length of time puts you right into a fat burning zone.

Your body will resort to using stored energy, which means it’s literally burning off you! For an even bigger boost, do this the morning after a hard evening ride when you have a high protein or low carb supper.

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PHOTO © RICH LEWTON PHOTOGRAPHY

80rpm up a steep climb, then you’re probably about right, but if you’re doing less then you need to change the cassette. It’s worth every penny.

43

FIXED FOCUS WITH RICHARD PHIPPS • FIXED GEAR CHALLENGES ORGANISER

Fixed Focus 2017 has been another productive and successful season, with steadily increasing numbers of the fixed community of Audaxers – we even had the accolade of a fixie on the cover of Arrivée, so we must have arrived.

As far as the numbers go, 23 new FWC Brevet cards were issued and 13 members had their cards validated. For the SFW challenge 16 new Brevet cards were issued and the same number validated (largely, but not entirely, the same members). One of those validated had sat on it since 2010 before finding the enthusiasm to start and complete it within the season.

The number of claims was at a record level, with 23 men advising their totals for the season. Shaun Hargreaves is again the champion with a knee-breaking total of 225 points some of which was over terrain not normally considered fixed-friendly. This despite having an “off” in March and fracturing his collar bone. It only kept him off cycling for three weeks and he used multiple gears for a week or so after before returning to the one true gear. The “Opposite Sex” award (for the member with the highest number of points who is of

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the opposite sex to the overall winner, to give it its full, cumbersome title) traditionally attracts a smaller number of claims and this time just a lone woman, Yvonne King, submitted one.

However, it was worth it, as she pushed the section record up to 70 points, narrowly missing out on a SFW award, having been beaten by the calendar, but as she has in the past achieved that award, it is possibly not as great a disappointment as might have been.

The fixed points table in descending number order and list of SFW achievers in alphabetical order are below.

One note of explanation: a SFW is essentially a SR Series (200, 300, 400 and 600km rides within a season) on fixed, but may be gained by achieving a number of AAA points on fixed within a season. A Hyper-Randonneur is 4 x 600km [minimum] events, though not officially recognised.

FIXED WHEEL CHALLENGE MALE Name Shaun Hargreaves Tim Pickersgill Dean Clementson Justin Jones Andrew Preater Adam Young James Ludlow Nick Wilkinson Tim Rusbridge Ivan Cornell Tom Deakins Martin Lucas Kevin Dennett Jonathan Ellis Ed D'Oyle Nik Brunner Jon Banks Andy Watt Lee Killestein Mick Bates Peter Hammond Richard Phipps Paul Revell

Total 225.00 102.25 75.25 73.75 65.50 65.50 61.75 57.75 50.75 49.75 46.00 43.75 43.50 41.25 36.50 35.00 29.75 28.25 27.75 27.00 24.00 23.00 16.00

FEMALE (Opp Sex) Name Yvonne King Paul Stewart

Total 70.00 15.00

As can be seen in the third table, there were 21 riders who started LEL with 14 of those successful which compares well with LEL 2013 and its 9 finishers on fixed and PBP 2015 and its 19 successful fixers. These details have been taken from the forums, and I should be pleased to hear from anyone wishing to update them in any way (the gear sizes, in paricular, are incomplete.) Congratulation to these riders and all others mentioned in the above tables, particularly both points champions.

A fixed gear is often not the deprivation that might be imagined – just a different approach – and several riders have commented to me recently how much they have been enjoying this different discipline, some abstaining from freewheels and gears completely, as a more fulfilling challenge. Details of both challenges are on the AUK

SUPER FIXED WHEELERS Nik Brunner Dean Clementson Ivan Cornell Ed D’Oyle Tom Deakins Kevin Dennett Jonathan Ellis Shaun Hargreaves Justin Jones Steve Long

Hyper

Martin Lucas James Ludlow Tim Pickersgill Andrew Preater Tim Rusbridge Paul Stewart Andy Watt Nick Wilkinson Julian Williams Adam Young

Hyper

LEL 2017 Name

Gear

(if known)

Dean Clementson Ed D’Oyle Jonathan Ellis Shaun Hargreaves Pat Hurt Ben Johnson Justin Jones Paul Manasseh Tim Pickersgill Paul Rainbow James Skillen Neil Veitch Nick Wilkinson Adam Young

72” 71”/67” 68”

Nim Hing Garry King Telbert James Pichy Simon Proven Julian Williams

66”/70” 70” 68”

70” 71” 77” 68”

69”?

70”

70”

OOT DNF DNF? DNF? DNF DNF DNF

website for anyone interested with some FAQs. If there are some rarely asked questions, do ask me directly, when I shall do my best to help.

Hopefully, the statistical details will be of interest and spur Auks on during the current season and beyond.

Best wishes to all refusing to freewheel and hopes for a succesful and – above all – safe 2018 season.

www.aukweb.net

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WOMEN IN AUDAX

WORDS AND PICTURES BY MARCIA ROBERTS

About 10 percent of Audax riders are women, so it might seem as if it’s a “man’s world” says Marcia Roberts. Here, she tells us about her own route to long-distance cycling, her experiences of being in a minority, and how we should all do more to accommodate and encourage women to take to the road…

The life and times of a cycling Superwoman Finishing the first leg of my Round Britain bike ride

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From the outset, I just want to clarify what I mean about the “man’s world of Audax”. I’m not suggesting that men have deliberately made it so, or that only men take part. But, for one reason or another – which I hope to explore in this article – the number of men taking part in long-distance Audaxes is far greater than the number of women doing the same.

A BIT ABOUT MY OWN CYCLING BACKGROUND

I have, for many years, enjoyed cycling, mostly short distances on mountain bikes. I had moved to a hybrid bike as I was spending more time on roads, and was up to cycling 40-45 miles at a time. In 2008, with my children now being older teenagers, I decided it was time to take on a big charity challenge. I was going to ride across Vietnam – the mountainous bit. I registered for the organised event and started training. I joined local training rides for another event and started building up doing longer (50 miles) and lumpier distances.

Eventually, the time came and off I flew to Vietnam. I was very nervous as it was totally outside my comfort zone.

I am, if nothing, a pretty determined woman. I had raised around £3,000 for a homeless charity and, since it was other people’s money that got me there, I couldn’t quit.

It was both the hardest, but the most amazing thing I had ever done in my life. I fell in love with the country. If you’ve never been, I totally recommend it. But, I also fell in love with just riding until fit to drop; and with climbing mountains. It wasn’t so much the climbing that I enjoyed, but the euphoria that I felt when I reached the top, and looked back at the view where I had come. To this day, when I reach the top of any hill, I still take a moment to look at the view.

After that trip, I came back and realised that I could do anything on a bike that I set my heart on. I felt like Superwoman.

In reality, I was really slow, one of the last to finish each day, but I refused to give up and get in the bus. There were a few of us in this group – all women!

Once home, and realising that I could ride a bike for many days in a row, I started cycle touring, mostly on my own. I was single at the time and decided that I just needed to grab life by the horns and do stuff. I was still feeling pretty invincible. I had also rediscovered my faith, so felt that I had a divine protector watching over me. I still do.

Over the next few years, I took trips where I rode across France, across Spain, and then closer to home, right around the coast of mainland Britain in 4 legs (South, North, East and West).

THE START OF MY AUDAX ADVENTURE

It was around this time I met Hummers! He had listened to my exploits and suggested I join a group of guys who did pub rides every Wednesday night and were into something called Audax.

I wasn’t keen on the idea of doing a ride entirely at night, but one evening I went along and, although I quickly realised I needed better lights, I loved it. Who would have known that all those years ago that night-time would still be my favourite time to ride?

This really is where the Audax stuff started for me and where the differences between male and female Audaxing start to become apparent.

On all my previous adventures I was either riding with other total amateurs or on my own. When I told other non-cyclists what I was doing they thought I was crazy. It seemed I was doing something very out of the ordinary, and of course I was only ever comparing myself to… well, myself really. Everyone else in my world at that time was sitting on the couch!

Back to my new group of riding pals – the group was

entirely male. At the helm was, and still is, the extremely well-seasoned (cycling-wise), Paul Whitehead, and all the rides were organised and paced by him. Of course, everyone was quicker than me.

I was always at the back, often riding on my own until I caught up with everyone at the next junction. To be honest it was quite disheartening, but over the weeks and months I got quicker and could eventually keep up on everything except the hills.

I was encouraged by the group to keep persevering, although I did notice that once I was able to keep up, the group would up the pace a bit more, so I was still at the back, and still lagging behind… grrrr.

I started entering a few Audaxes – 100ks only. I was in awe of the pub conversations about the following year’s PBP (2011 edition). 1,200km! How could anyone ride that kind of distance? Quite a few could, it emerged, and a few in the group had. It got me thinking and wondering. Would I ever be able to do such a ride? Like the initial Vietnam ride, PBP was so far away from how I was currently riding it seemed like a world away. But, I really liked

the sound of it, and who knows, maybe by 2015 I could be ready. I parked that thought in the back of my brain, but the seed had been sown.

There were however a few issues. I rode with a group of seasoned, strong, MALE riders.

I couldn’t keep up with them on Wednesday nights once there was the slightest pimple of elevation. They would ride events in groups together, but if I tried to join their group I would massively slow them down.

All of a sudden, among this group of male riders I was no longer Superwoman (in my head). I was the one that slowed the group down, wasn’t as quick as anyone else, wasn’t as good. I had begun to compare myself. I was the tortoise, and they were all hares. But, I was also the only female. It’s very easy to forget that we do have different muscles, different motivation, and different non-cycling commitments.

I continued doing the Wednesday night rides and a few 100k Audaxes, but didn’t push to do more. After all, it can get a bit lonely knowing your riding buddies are possibly an hour ahead of you on the same ride, joking and

About halfway through the Vietnam bike ride

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47

WOMEN IN AUDAX ENCOURAGING OTHERS

Looking forward to going downhill

enjoying each other’s company, while you’re riding on your own with the other back markers.

However, since I had been used to solitary riding from my touring days, I still had the determination to finish each event and finish I did.

Eventually, I decided it was time to up my game. If I couldn’t keep up with the boys I would try a different challenge and raise more money for charity. I entered the Scope London to Paris 24 hour. It was a supported ride, but was 280 miles in 24 hours.

It required an average pace of 15mph (I was averaging 12mph when I entered), so my challenge was mostly about getting quicker.

As part of my training I entered a 200k, and since it was my first and also the first for some others in our group some of the guys rode with me to make sure I got around. It was so much easier with company, and I was getting a bit quicker.

I also entered my first 300k, but that was on my own. The ride had suffered with a strong headwind between the 100k and 200k mark. Voices inside my head, which had started when someone ahead of me packed, started to get louder and I packed further up the road when the wind got stronger still. After getting on a train, and then riding the last few miles back to the start feeling refreshed, I vowed never to pack on a ride 48

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again when all I really needed was a rest.

I did the L2P24 in 26 hrs, although I blame London and Paris midday traffic. Midday in London was a daft time to start the ride.

After the L2P24 ride I once again started to feel more confidence and thoughts of PBP returned. I decided to give it a go. I did my preregistration and then started to plan my qualifiers.

By this time, our Wednesday night pub rides had been split into two paced groups. Partially due to the fact that the quicker riders wanted to ride quicker, but also that new joiners (and me) kept getting left behind unable to come back. I was considered trustworthy enough to lead slower (pub-paced) rides without them getting out of hand speed-wise. As a result, numbers grew and new riders would come along and often spend a few weeks in my group moving up to the faster group as their speed and confidence grew. Some people just preferred the slower (but not necessarily easier) rides and still ride in my group now.

We meet up with the other group at the pub.

Now back to the point of this article. Having the second group means that now we have a place in the group for females who generally didn’t want to ride with a ‘fast’ group.

The club membership has continued to grow as we now have a place for new or slower or female riders to join in. As a result I am no longer the only female in the group, and there are now at least 4 regular cycling women, 3 of us who are now taking on the longer (200k-plus rides).

I think that naturally most women riders are cautious when joining new riding groups. The situations and thoughts that I have described so far of riding alone, being left behind, slowing others down are ones I’ve heard from other female cyclists again and again over the years.

So, what can we all do to address this and encourage more wannabe Audax women to get outside their comfort zone and take on the bigger challenges?

AUK has a good number of experienced female cyclists.

Some of whom have been really successful over the years.

I have now largely stopped trying to compare myself to my male counterparts and (thanks to morale-boosting words from some of those same riding pals) finally consider myself to be one of the experienced female Audaxers. I may not have completed PBP (rode 900k before packing due to a feeling

Waiting for the ferry to France. Out of 300 entrants, only 9 women completed the whole distance Marcia, with Amanda and Laura

of being dangerous on the road), and I also failed to complete LEL (knee trouble scuppered me on the return from Scotland). But I have now ridden many Audaxes, mostly on my own, but sometimes with our group’s other pub-paced riders. I am full value still, and don’t always finish in time, but I always get to the end. I learn from what I did well and not so well on each ride, and know that I still have a way to go before I can comfortably complete every ride within timescales and with time to spare.

We should be using our experience, and knowledge of what makes women tick, to encourage others to join in.

Encouragement for women needs to be gentle and supportive. Tough love doesn’t normally work, and simply serves to discourage. As with everything though there are exceptions. I don’t like being told that I’ll never be able to do something, it sometimes makes me want to prove people wrong, but that’s not normal really.

In the case of Portsmouth, I set up a group for female riders (Pompey Pedal Pushers), as an intermediate level social cycling group to encourage women to cycle further and climb more hills. I allow male friends and partners to join the rides but they have to understand its women’s ‘rules’, i.e. pace; waiting at junctions or the top of hills; and probably women’s chatter at café stops. I arranged our first

‘tour’ earlier this year, a weekend in the Brecon Beacons. There were lots of big climbs, but there was no pressure to climb them quickly.

It turned out that most were unaware how to descend safely on their dropped bars.

Why was this? Simply because no one had thought to explain.

Once they had tried doing it differently, much of the fear of long descents melted away. A few times members of the group have told me that they didn’t know about this or that.

It’s only my experience, and having sometimes been advised by other seasoned riders that my technique has been inefficient, that helped me learn. As we gain experience, we must remember to share it if we see others making the same errors.

Again, it needs to be in an encouraging way rather than condescending. It’s amazing how much a change in your wording affects the message.

‘Did you realise that if you do X, it can make pedalling so

seasoned Audax ladies ❝ – use your experience to encourage and nurture others

much easier’, or, ‘I find that if I do Y I feel much more stable descending’. So much nicer than ‘you’re doing it all wrong’.

The second, slower group on our Wednesday night rides now means we have regular female riders. One has already taken on a 300k, and another has been watching my progress and is now considering riding PBP with me in 2019. We are starting to plan our training now. I might add that we are both over 50, and two years ago she didn’t even own a bike. Her partner rides with the fast group now, and completed this year’s LEL, his first such event.

DIFFERENT PRACTICAL ISSUES

Audaxes are tough events.

They involve being selfsufficient on the road, and being able to follow a routesheet or sat nav. There is always a risk of a mechanical failure and for many women just these facts will put them off if there’s a chance of riding

AND FINALLY…

alone or at the back. If we can encourage more women to Audax, then less will find themselves riding alone. Issues on the road seem less threatening, and new riding friendships will be formed if there are more of us.

Audax organisers and male riders should also remember that at controls (and in between) that women have different practical needs. We may need hedges on the road to duck behind and be a little longer in taking care of such things, or at a control be in more of a rush for the loo when we get there, for the same reason. It is helpful then not to find a queue of men for the ladies loo. It’s not a feminist thing, it’s just that we are simply built with a less practical spout!

Men, encourage your partners to join either an Audax group or a ladies’ cycling group, or introduce them to other female Audaxers who will be willing to hold their hand for a bit. Seasoned Audax Ladies, use your experience to encourage and nurture others.

They might not be at your standard, but without encouragement they may never try. We have so much to knowledge to share, and share it we must.

Newbie ladies – check out your local cycling groups. There may be social groups that just go out regularly and ride for a morning or afternoon, or clubs that have several different ability groups or a women’s section. Ride often and boost your confidence. Until you try, you never know what you are capable of. Remember, 10 years ago I had never cycled more than 40 miles in one day…

One of six cols on my Alps ride. Once again, I was the only female. And, yes, it was very hot that day…

❞

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49

THE FRENCH RECONNEXION

WORDS AND PICTURES BY DAVID MATTHEWS

Just weeks after his pacemaker was installed, David Matthews decided to give it a little road test – a simple 1,000-kilometre ride through France was just the ticket…

The French reconnexion Rather than being yet another travelogue, this article relates a few anecdotes from my recent fourth, unsupported solo ride through France…

On Luz Ardiden

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I am fortunate to have friends who live in Montmaurin, south of Toulouse and close to the Pyrenees, which gives me a welcoming destination for these rides before flying back tothe UK. My previous long rides through France have been firstly Manche–Med (extended Audax) from Caen to Gruisson followed by a return through the Pyrenees to Montmaurin in 2014. This was followed by Roscoff–Montmaurin via Nantes and the Charente in 2015. Last year I completed the Great French diagonal riding St Malo-Nantes-Nice in 2 stages (split due to terrible weather in June) at Audax tourist standard – a demanding course which marked my retirement from difficult Audax events after 28 years.

In March this year I was fitted with a pacemaker to correct secondary heart block (pulse rate dropping to 29bpm.) So this ride, 11 weeks after the operation, was as much a test of my new electric heart as a cycling holiday.

A route was mapped out using an iterative combination of Google maps and booking.com that gave a schedule of 11.5 days to cover the 1,100+ kilometres to Montmaurin. Daily distances varied between 80km and 130km, with some tough

climbing days in prospect in the Massif Central.

Provided I felt strong enough after this ride, there was a follow-up plan to attempt to ride the 13km,1000m ascent to the famous Tour de France summit finish at Luz Ardiden.

My outward route from Chester was via British Rail to Portsmouth and then ferry to Caen/ Ouistreham. First dodgy moment of the trip was when the train got halted some 10 miles from Portsmouth as some idiot had thrown a brick at it. It was an unnerving time while other trains swept past our stationary one as I had only allowed a short time to connect from train to ship at the port. Fortunately, the train started up again after a 15-minute delay.

Once in Portsmouth there was a huge rainstorm soaking me during the 4km ride to the ferry. The guy at security was not too pleased at having to frisk a soaking wet cyclist – my first experience of getting through security with a pacemaker.

Next morning I was late getting down to my bike, just as the upper car deck was lowered down on huge hydraulic rams. Readers of horror stories can understand my feelings as I rushed to the safety of the lifts to avoid being crushed alive.

The date was now 6 June 2017 – 73 years exactly after D-day. Unlike my last visit to the nearby Pegasus Bridge in 2014 when David Cameron was there with a huge crowd of be-medalled old soldiers, there was no sign at all of any celebrations. It will be interesting to see what happens at the 75th anniversary in 2019 with the few remaining veterans.

Beyond the Pegasus bridge my route headed out south-east through commuter country, with indifferent weather, to eventually cross the Loire 3.5 days later at Montrichard, some 30km east of Tours.

There is a long, steep climb on to a large plateau south of the Loire. Shortly after arrival on the plateau, a black animal about three feet long sauntered confidently across the road just in front of me. I now believe this was my first ever sighting of a pine martin.

A couple of days later, now in continual hot sunshine, I reached the hamlet of Sarzay near La Châtre, gateway to the Massif Central. Having spent a fruitless, frustrating hour looking for my accommodation, well assisted by misdirecting locals, I eventually found the Chambre d’hôte tucked away down a minor road. Hostess Fabienne had good www.aukweb.net

51

THE FRENCH RECONNEXION English as she had once worked in Chester for a couple of months before spending seven years in London.

My little house in the grounds of Fabienne’s cottage was rural to say the least with its medieval furniture, micro shower and earth toilet.

Evening meal was served at the local inn some 2km distant and it was no real surprise when Fabienne, before giving me a lift, asked me to move a bird’s nest from the passenger seat of her rather cluttered old car.

Two nights later I was staying in a beautiful château near Neuvic where one could enjoy gourmet dining – these contrasts and surprises are very much part of the trip experience.

The next few days were very hot and hard work as I rode through the hilly Massif Central, partly on the official Manche–Med route through the Dordogne Gorge.

Five days later I reached Rabastens on the Tarn river. My accommodation in a Chambre d’hôte was easy to find down a side street, but surrounded by very noisy roadworks. Ten minutes after arrival I still couldn’t gain entry and was getting rather irritated due to my tiredness, the heat and the noise. Just as I was trying, on my smartphone, to arrange an alternative place to stay, the door opened and the situation was rescued.

Next day was another boiling hot one, riding to Noé, south of Toulouse. My accommodation here was in a Logis hotel, always excellent, which gave me encouragement as I sweated up the last steep hills to the village. Imagine my annoyance when I found the rather decrepit hotel was locked up with a notice behind the glass entrance door giving a phone number to ring to gain entry. Locked out again! So it was another annoying delay as I waited 10 minutes in the burning sun for the hotel to be opened up.

Next day was the final half-day ride to Montmaurin through gorgeous, totally remote

At Rabastens

countryside in beautiful hot weather.

My only concern was lack of any possibility to get more water through 60km of travel. In late morning I caught my first glimpse of the snow-capped Pyrenees in the distance and knew I had almost made it. Beyond this welcome sighting of the Pyrenees, I chanced upon a restaurant at a remote road junction to replenish my water supplies.

Well refreshed, but struggling for 4km along newly gravelled roads (life is never simple), I eventually reached the final hill climb to Montmaurin and my friends’ welcome after 1,128km and approximately 8,000m of climbing.

Next evening there was a 60th birthday party for Andre, one of the ex-pats living in the village. This gathering enabled me to renew acquaintances with the local Dutch and English people that I had met on previous visits, while also celebrating my safe arrival.

The weather in Montmaurin was getting hotter and hotter – as high as 35 degrees. Too hot for hill climbing during the day so I drove 60km to Luz one evening to get a really early start up Luz Ardiden the next morning. Following breakfast at 06:30 in the semi-dark hotel entrance hall, I started up the climb at 07:15. Riding steadily and pausing only for photographs, I arrived at the ski station summit 2h 28m later – proof to me that my new heart pacemaker had passed all necessary tests.

Vines near Rabastens – flowers give early indication of Aphids

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ArrivéeAutumn2017

Montmaurin and distant Pyrenees

The weather in Montmaurin was ❝ getting hotter and hotter – as high as 35 degrees – too hot for hill climbing during the day

❞

The Audax Café near Lac de Vassiviere

Luz Ardiden Summit

Bridge at Dordogne Gorge

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ACTS OF KINDNESS ON THE BORDERS OF FIFE 200

On the inaugural running of the Fife 200, Mary Morgan had plenty of people she wanted to thank…

WORDS BY MARY MORGAN PICTURES BY ALAN MCINTYRE

Acts of kindness

on the borders of Fife EVENTBRIEF

Local calendar events in Fife are like gold dust, so when Dave Crampton announced his inaugural Borders of Fife 200km, I was delighted. With the start just a few miles from my house, there would be no need to get up at stupid o’clock, and no need to use the car.

As my ride was not going to be bookended by a long drive, I decided to make a (full value) day of it and take my touring bike. I suspected I would be off the back and riding round on my own, but most of the roads would at least be vaguely familiar.

There had been a spate of monsoon-like downpours in the area in preceding weeks.

However, the forecast was good and it was sunny with gentle winds when I left the house on Saturday morning. A mixture of local riders and Audax Ecosse usual suspects congregated in Dalgety Bay and soon we were on our way. After the first few inclines, the elastic snapped and I let the fast guys and girls get on with it.

ACTS OF KINDNESS… Number 1 Riding East along the coast towards Crail in the sunshine was stunning, with views over the Forth to the Bass Rock and Berwick Law, and later the Isle of May. Just beyond Kirkcaldy, I joined forces with Stewart, who was recovering from injury and 54

ArrivéeAutumn2017

Number 2

Riding East along ❝ the coast towards Crail in the sunshine was stunning

❞

also planned an easier-paced ride. An act of kindness on his part as he was clearly stronger, and what turned out to be just the first of many that punctuated the day.

At the first control at Crail (59k), Stewart advised getting a post office stamp rather than a receipt as they look nicer when looking back on old brevet cards. I liked this idea, and we followed it up with another post office stamp at the next control at Tayport (92k).

After Tayport, travelling along the south side of the Firth of Tay, Stewart came up with the wizard idea of visiting George and Margaret Berwick, who were hosting the local CTC meet that day. A short detour down a leafy, muddy track, then a warm welcome where we were plied with tea and cake – the second act of kindness of the day.

We chose the shorter hillier route to get back on track.

Normally hills don’t bother me too much although I did regret bringing a rack pack which I had filled with just about everything (except a lock – more on that later). After the climb a nice downhill to Newburgh and then on to the next free control at Abernethy (124k) where we got our proof of passage at a second hand car garage! The look on the salesman’s face as we cycled in was priceless, but he cheerfully obliged when we asked for a stamp on our cards.

Number 3

The next control was at 150k, but we were well short of this when Stewart ran out of fluids.

We stopped at a hotel and he went in to fill our bottles while I waited outside with the bikes.

Out of the hotel appeared the chef who came over, announced he was also cyclist, chatted about bikes, then gave

BORDERS OF FIFE 200 When…

Saturday 23 September 2017 How far…

201km Starts from…

Dalgety Bay, Fife Organiser…

Dave Compton, Audax Ecosse us some freshly made caramel shortbread which was delicious (act of kindness number 3).

Number 4

A decision to bounce the penultimate cafe control at Lochleven and press on to Powmill was taken, with the added frisson that the Powmill cafe closed at 5pm and we were a bit tight for time. It seemed appropriate to be knuckling down as the route took us along part of the local Cleish TT course. Perhaps this helped, as we made it to Powmill (169k) at 16.58 with just 2 minutes to spare. To find the cafe already closed. Act of kindness number 4 followed as the owner unlocked the doors for us and supplied the cold sausage roll and can of coke that for some reason seemed appealing to me at that point.

With the time pressure off I could relax now, even more so when we reached the disused

Crossing…

The Tay Road Bridge from Fife

railway cycle track, answered the final info control (180k) and turned to head back in the direction of Dalgety Bay. After the end of the cycle path, familiar streets through Dunfermline. Up a final climb, then the final downhill that preceded the flat run-in to the arrivee.

Number 5

POP. What was that? The bike wobbled, became increasingly hard to steer and difficult to reduce speed on the steep descent. I realised I wasn’t going to manage to get the bike under control – this is going to hurt, I thought…

CRASH. But no pain yet, instead a brief eternity in the air. And then it came – an explosion of PAIN in my head. I lay, stunned, on the ground. People appeared, kind strangers, stopped to help me.

As the initial shock subsided, I realised it was just my wrist and head that really

hurt, but by this time an ambulance had been called.

Someone bemoaned the fact that they didn’t have their space blanket with them, and I recalled that I had one in my rack pack. I had thought I would bring one just in case another cyclist got injured and appreciated the irony that it was being used on myself.

The ambulance arrived and as I got in, I thanked the drivers, fellow Audaxers and Stewart (who had cycled back up the hill when he found out what happened) for stopping and helping (act of kindness number 5).

Number 6

Various options for my disposal were considered by the paramedics including home, the minor injuries unit or full accident and emergency.

Foolishly, I hadn’t bothered to bring a bike lock with me as I never use one on an Audax, so I had no way of securing my

bike. I was feeling not too bad by this point, so I had suggested I just wait with my bike until I got a lift, with a promise I would go to minor injuries. Unfortunately, it didn’t look like I could get a lift promptly and I don’t think they fancied leaving me alone with a head injury so the next thing I knew they were bundling my bike in to the back of the ambulance! Shortly afterwards, I started to feel a lot worse with dizziness and decidedly odd things happening with my vision and in a final act of kindness for the day, they delivered my bike back to my house en route to A & E. Miraculously, I hadn’t broken

anything (other than my bike helmet) and I was allowed home. So, a DNF after 205k of a 200k Audax, just 2k short of the arrivée, but a great day out, which I will remember for all the right reasons – an excellent route, very well run event and the kindness of strangers.

Shattered… the remains of Mary’s helmet that saved her from serious injury www.aukweb.net

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AUK CALENDAR

KEY

1826m Total elevation AAA Audax Altitude Award points A(1) Free/cheap accommodation (1 night) B Very basic – no halls/beds, et c BD Bag drop R Refreshments at start and/or finish S Showers Z Sleeping facilities on route YH Youth hostel at/near start C Camping at or near the start F Some free food and/or drink on ride L Left luggage facilities at start P Free or cheap motor parking at start T Toilets at start M/NM Mudguards required/not required X Some very basic controls

(eg service stations) G GPS files provided by the organiser 175 Entries close at 175 riders 14/4 Entries close 14th April 15-30kph Minimum-maximum speeds

SATURDAY 25 NOV 2017 100 Catherington, near Portsmouth – Bois Ocaud d’Automne BP 106km

09:00 • 1600m AAA1.5 • £5.00 • F L P R T • 14.3-30kph Hantspol CC • Jonathan Ellis, 42 Wessex Road, Waterlooville Hampshire PO8 0HS • jondse@ntlworld.com 100 Cranbrook, Exeter – Breakfast in Bampton BP 100km 09:00 • £5.00 • T NM • 12-30kph Exeter Whs • Sarah Britton, 17 Copse Close Lane Cranbrook Devon EX5 7AP • shbritton@outlook.com

SUNDAY 26 NOV 2017 100 Carlton Colville, nr Lowestoft, Suffolk – The Waveney Wander BP 100km 09:00 • £6.00 • L P R T • 15-30kph VC Baracchi • John Thompson, 136 Dell Road,Oulton Broad Lowestoft, Suffolk NR33 9NT • johntommo6@btinternet.com

SATURDAY 02 DEC 2017 200 Alfreton – Alfreton Figure of Eight BR 211km 08:00 • 1434m • £7.00 • L P R T • 15-30kph Alfreton CTC – 01773 833 593 Tom Fox (ROA 10000) 180 Nottingham Road, Alfreton, Derbyshire DE55 7FP • tomandsuefox@yahoo.co.uk 200 Coryton, NW Cardiff – Monmouthshire Meander BR 204km 07:30 • £8.00 • YH L P R T• 50 • 15-25kph Cardiff Byways – Hugh Mackay, 131 Stanwell Road, Penarth CF64 3LL • A.H.Mackay@open.ac.uk 200 Tewkesbury – Kings, Castles, Priests & Churches BR 202km 07:30 • 2550m AAA1.75 [1800m] • £6.00 • F L P R T NM • 100 • 15-25kph BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 110 Tewkesbury – Once more unto… Agincourt BP 110km 09:00 • 850m • £5.00 C P T NM • 100 • 12-30kph BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 100 Witham, Essex – The Stansted Airport Express PB 100km 10:00 • £4.00 • X M T • 12.5-30kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Thomas Deakins, 31 The Causeway Great Dunmow, Essex CM6 2AA • tom.deakins@btinternet.com

SUNDAY 03 DEC 2017 50 Carharrack, Cornwall – Ed’s Mince Pie & Mulled Wine BP 50km 10:00 • £4.00 F L P R T • 85 • 10-25kph Audax Kernow – 01326 373421 – Eddie Angell, 14 Belhay, Penryn, Cornwall TR10 8DF • angells@talktalk.net

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SATURDAY 09 DEC 2017

SATURDAY 13 JAN 2018

200 Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, HP9 2SE – The South of Bucks Winter Warmer BR 207km 08:00 • 1100m [1290m] • £5.00 YH A1 G L P T S X • 100 • 15-30kph Terry Lister, 4 Abbey Walk, Great Missenden,Bucks HP16 0AY • lister4cycling@btinternet.com 200 Frenchay, Bristol – Abbeys and Roads BR 206km 07:00 • £10.50 YH G NM P R T • 100 • (9/12) • 15-30kph Audax Club Bristol – Will Pomeroy, 5 Chaplin Rd, Bristol BS5 0JT • will@audaxclubbristol.co.uk 100 Frenchay, Bristol – Abbeys and Minor Roads BP 103km 08:30 • £6.50 • YH G NM P R T • 100 • (9/12) • 12.5-25kph Audax Club Bristol – Will Pomeroy, 5 Chaplin Rd, Bristol BS5 0JT • will@audaxclubbristol.co.uk 200 Prees Heath, nr Whitchurch – St Lucy’s Brevet BR 208km 08:00 • £3.00 X P R T • 14.3-25kph Peak Audax CTC – John Perrin, 20 Princes Way, Macclesfield, Cheshire SK11 8UB • perrin_john@sky.com

200 Warmley, Bristol – Chalke and Cheese BR 209km 07:00 • [2400m] • £7.50 • YH G P R T • 100 • (10/01) • 15-30kph Audax Club Bristol – Will Pomeroy, 5 Chaplin Rd, Bristol BS5 0JT • will@audaxclubbristol.co.uk

SUNDAY 10 DEC 2017 100 Swaffham, Norfolk – Swaffham Scorpion BP 106km 09:00 • 730m • £7.00 G L M P R T • 15-30kph CC Breckland – Jonathan Reed, Swaffham Community Centre, The Campingland, Swaffham PE37 7RD • iceniaudax@gmail.com

SATURDAY 20 JAN 2018 200 Cardiff Gate – Dr. Foster’s Winter Warmer BR 200km 07:00 • £6.00 • YH L P R T • 15-30kph Cardiff Byways CC – Richard Evans (ROA 5000) 73 Conway Road, Cardiff CF11 9NW • evansrichardd@googlemail.com 200 Chalfont St Peter – The Willy Warmer BR 209km 08:00 • £6.00 • L P R T M • 75 • 15-30kph Willesden CC – 07974 670931 – Paul Stewart, 25 Devonshire Gardens, Chiswick London W4 3TN • paudax@gmail.com

SATURDAY 27 JAN 2018 100 Aztec West, Bristol – Jack and Grace Cotton Memorial BP 104km 09:00 • £7.00 • P R T • 12.5-30kph Audax Club Bristol – Paul Rainbow, 49 Quarrington Road, Horfield, Bristol, Avon BS7 9PJ • paul@audaxclubbristol.co.uk 100 Hailsham – Hills and Mills BP 105km 09:00 • 1950m AAA2 • £7.00 • R F P • 85 • 14-25kph Andy Seviour, 13 Blacksmiths Copse, Hailsham, East Sussex BN27 3XB

SUNDAY 17 DEC 2017

SUNDAY 28 JAN 2018

200 Bredbury, Stockport – Winter Solstice BR 202km 08:30 • 700m • £5.00 • P R T • 60 • 15-30kph Peak Audax CTC – Mike Wigley (ROA 10000) Higher Grange Farm, Millcroft Lane, Delph OL3 5UX • PeakAudax@hotmail.co.uk 200 Great Bromley, nr Colchester – Santa Special BR 204km 08:00 • 1142m • £6.50 • L P R T • 15-30kph CTC Suffolk – 07922772001 – Andy Terry, 70 Queensway, Lawford, Manningtree, Essex CO11 1EW

150 Ashton Keynes, Cirencester – Windrush Winter Warm Down BP 155km 08:00 • [650m] • £5.00 • L F P R T • 15-30kph Corinium CC – 01285 659 515 – Peter Holden (ROA 5000) 39 Querns Lane, Cirencester GL7 1RL • peter@quernsgate.co.uk 100 Ashton Keynes, Cirencester – Windrush Winter Warm-up BP 108km 09:00 • 650m • £5.00 • L F P R T • 14-25kph

Corinium CC – 01285 659 515 – Peter Holden (ROA 5000) 39 Querns Lane, Cirencester GL7 1RL • peter@quernsgate.co.uk 200 Cheadle, Stockport – Newport BR 201km 08:00 • 1200m • £7.00 • P R T • 15-30kph Peak Audax CTC – Mike Wigley (ROA 10000) Higher Grange Farm, Millcroft Lane, Delph OL3 5UX • PeakAudax@hotmail.co.uk 150 Cheadle, Stockport – Radway BP 153km 08:30 • 780m • £6.50 • P R T • 15-30kph

Peak Audax CTC – Mike Wigley (ROA 10000) Higher Grange Farm, Millcroft Lane, Delph OL3 5UX • PeakAudax@hotmail.co.uk

SATURDAY 06 JAN 2018 100 Bradwell, nr Hope, Peak District – Hopey New Year BP 104km 09:00 • 1750m • AAA1.75 • £6.00 YH C P R T 100 • 10-30kph David Darricott – 01433 621 531 – David Darricott, 9 Gore Lane Bradwell Hope Valley Derbyshire S33 9HT • ddarricott@aol.com 200 Oxford – The Poor Student BR 207km 08:00 • 1800m • £6.00 • 200 • YH P X • 15-30kph Pat Hurt – 07887 87 61 62 – Pat Hurt, 10 Newbury Road, Lambourn RG17 7LL • iddu.audax@gmail.com 200 Tewkesbury – Mr. Pickwick’s January Sale BR 201km 07:00 • 2100m • AAA1.5 [1500m] • £1.00 • C P R T NM • 100 15-25kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com

SUNDAY 07 JAN 2018 100 Kings Worthy, Winchester – Watership Down BP 107km 09:30 • 1235m • £6.00 • L F P R T M 150 • 14-28kph Winchester CTC – Sue Coles (ROA 5000) 7 Ruffield Close, Winchester SO22 5JL • coles.sue@gmail.com 120 Swaffham, Norfolk – Coast & Countryside BP 120 09:00 • 880m [730m] • £7.00 • G L M P R T • 15-30kph CC Breckland – Jonathan Reed, Swaffham Community Centre, The Campingland, Swaffham PE37 7RD • iceniaudax@gmail.com 100 York– Goodbye Christmas Yorkshire Pudding BP 100 10:00 • 1044m [71m] • £4.00 • P R T • 100 • 15-30kph VC 167 – Les Bauchop, 2a Westbourne Grove,Pickering, North Yorkshire YO18 8AW • les.bauchop@gmail.com

SATURDAY 13 JAN 2018 100 Kelvedon, Essex – The Kelvedon Oyster BP 109km 10:00 • £5.00 • X M T G • 12-30kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Graeme Provan, Unit 6 Whitelands, Terling Road, Hatfield, Peverel, Essex CM3 2AG • provanaudax@btinternet.com

SATURDAY 03 FEB 2018 200 Alfreton – Straight on at Rosie’s BR 200km 08:00 • 1120m • £6.00 • L P R T • 15-30kph Alfreton CTC – Tom Fox (ROA 10000) 180 Nottingham Road, Alfreton, Derbyshire DE55 7FP • tomandsuefox@yahoo.co.uk 200 Tewkesbury – Sam Weller’s day trip to Wochma BR 203km 07:30 • 2300m [2700m] • £6.00 • C P R NM T • 100 • 15-25kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 100 Witham – Knights Templar Compasses and Cross BP 100km 10:00 • 750m • £4.00 • X G T P • 12-25kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Grant Huggins, 76 Bryony Close, Witham, Essex CM8 2XF • grant@huggys.co.uk

SATURDAY 10 FEB 2018 100 Dial Post, RH13 8NS – Worthing Winter Warmer BP 105km 09:00 • 1080m • £5.00 • F P R T • 15-30kph Worthing Excelsior – 01903 240 280 – Mick Irons, 36 Phrosso Road, Worthing, West Sussex BN11 5SL

SUNDAY 11 FEB 2018

SUNDAY 25 FEB 2018

SATURDAY 10 MAR 2018

100 Chippenham – Flapjack BP 102km 09:00 • £7.00 • F P R M • 150 • 15-24kph Chippenham & District Whelers – 01225 708449 Eric Fletcher, 174 Littleworth Lane, Whitley, Melksham, Wiltshire SN12 8RE 100 Leicester – Rutland and Beyond BP 102km 08:30 • 1290m • £4.00 • F L P R S T • 15-30kph Leic. Forest CC – Kim Suffolk (ROA 2000) 73 Colby Road, Thurmaston, Leicester LE4 8LG • kimbo44@hotmail.com

100 Corscombe, near Beaminster – The Primrose Path BP 102km 09:00 • 1800m • AAA1.75 • £7.00 • F L NM P T • 55 • 16/2 12.5-25kph Arthur Vince, 3 Back Lane, East Coker, East Coker, Yeovil, Somerset BA22 9JN • arthur.vince@btinternet.com 200 Lower Whitley, Nr Warrington – NEW Mere Two Hundred BR 205km 08:00 • 800m • £7.00 • P R T • 80 • 15-30kph North Cheshire Clarion – Neil Shand, 12 Chapel Close Comberbach, Northwich CW9 6BA • neilshand67@gmail.com 160 Lower Whitley, Nr Warrington – NEW Mere Century BP 165km 08:30 • 600m • £7.00 • P R T • 60 • 15-30kph North Cheshire Clarion – Neil Shand, 12 Chapel Close Comberbach, Northwich CW9 6BA • neilshand67@gmail.com

200 Grazeley, S of Reading – The Kennet Valley Run BRM 207km 07:30 • 1763m • £8.50 • F G L P R T • 15-30kph Reading CTC – Mick Simmons, 84 Kidmore Road, Caversham, Reading RG4 7NA • mes84uk@gmail.com 100 Grazeley, S of Reading – The Kennet Valley 100 BP 100km 09:00 • BP • 895m • £6.00 • L P R T • 12-30kph Reading CTC – Mick Simmons, 84 Kidmore Road, Caversham Reading RG4 7NA • mes84uk@gmail.com 200 Whitchuch, Bristol, Wells, Mells & a little broader!

BRM 203km 07:00 • [2750m] • £7.50 • YH G NM P R T • 100 • (7/3) • 15-30kph Audax Club Bristol – Will Pomeroy, 5 Chaplin Rd, Bristol BS5 0JT • will@audaxclubbristol.co.uk

200 The Wonder Cafe, Uxbridge – The Winter Boat Ride BR 211km 08:00 • £6.00 • XG • 15-30kph Change of Date – Audax Club DuBois – 07974 670931

Paul Stewart, 25 Devonshire Gardens, Chiswick, London W4 3TN • paudax@gmail.com

SATURDAY 17 FEB 2018 200 Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, HP21 7QX – Chiltern Grit 200 BR 200km 08:00 • 1648m [1744m] • £1 0.00 • A G P X R T • 100 • 15-30kph

Aylesbury CC – 07941 404613 – Jocelyn Chappell, 112 Walton Way, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire HP21 7JR • htjoshua55@gmail.com 100 Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, HP21 7QX – Chiltern Grit 100 BP 100km 08:30 • 798m [754m] • £8.00 • A G P X R T • 100 • 15-30kph

Aylesbury CC – 07941 404613 – Jocelyn Chappell, 112 Walton Way, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire HP21 7JR • htjoshua55@gmail.com 200 Cardiff Gate – Malmesbury Mash BRM 200km 07:00 • 1440m • £3.00 • L P R T • 15-30kph CTC Cymru – Ritchie Tout, Sunnyside Cottage, Mynyddbach Monmouthshire NP16 6RT • oldfield.tout@btinternet.com 200 Rochdale – North-West Passage BR 200km 08:00 • 2000m • £7.00 • R T • 15-30kph West Pennine RC – Noel Healey (ROA 5000) 95 Shore Mount, Littleborough, Lancs OL15 8EW 120 Rochdale – mini-North-West Passage BP 100km 09:00 • 1390m • £7.00 • R T • 15-30kph West Pennine RC – Noel Healey (ROA 5000) 95 Shore Mount, Littleborough, Lancs OL15 8EW

SUNDAY 18 FEB 2018 100 Henham, S of Saffron Walden – Brazier’s Run BP 104km 09:00 • £10.00 • A(1) L P R S T • 15-30kph Victoria CC – Kieron Yates (ROA 3000) 6 Aberdeen Terrace, London SE3 0QX • kieronyates@mac.com 50 Henham, S of Saffron Walden – Brazier’s Run BP 50km 09:00 • £9.00 • A(1) L P R S T • 10-25kph

Victoria CC – Kieron Yates (ROA 3000) 6 Aberdeen Terrace, London SE3 0QX • kieronyates@mac.com 100 Old Town Hall, Musselburgh – Musselburgh RCC Tour of East Lothian BP 106km 09:30 • 1260m • £10.00 • L P R T NM G • 12.5-30kph Musselburgh RCC – Alistair Mackintosh, 5 Durham Road, South Edinburgh EH15 3PD

SATURDAY 24 FEB 2018 120 Hailsham – Mad Jack’s – John Seviour Memorial BP 125km 09:00 • 2240m • AAA2.25 • £7.00 • R F P • 85 • 14-25kph Andy Seviour, 13 Blacksmiths Copse, Hailsham, East Sussex BN27 3XB 120 Whitlenge, Hartlebury, S of Kidderminster – Sunrise Express BP 121km 08:30 • 1040m • £8.50 • P R T F • 130 • 15-30kph Beacon Roads Cycling Club – Phil Richards, Forge House Farm, Cooksey Green, Upton Warren, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire B61 9EP 120 Whitlenge, Hartlebury, S of Kidderminster – Snowdrop Express BP 120km 09:00 • 1040m • £8.50 • P R T F • 130 • 15-30kph

Beacon Roads Cycling Club – Phil Richards, Forge House Farm, Cooksey Green, Upton Warren, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire B61 9EP

SATURDAY 03 MAR 2018

SUNDAY 11 MAR 2018

200 Alfreton – Roses to Wrags BR 212km 08:00 • 1391m • £6.00 • F P R T • 150 • 15-30kph Alfreton CTC – Stephen Ogden, The Firs, 170 Nuncargate Road, Kirkby In Ashfield NG17 9EA • oggy.dude@gmail.com 200 London, Ruislip Lido, Woody Bay (beach) Station – Steam Ride: London-Oxford-London (LOL) The Ghan BRM 200km 08:00 • 2128m • £8.50 • L P R T YH • 15-30kph Change of Date – Audax Club Hackney – Tim Sollesse, 59 Lynwood Rd, Ealing, London W5 1JG • timsollesse@gmail.com 110 London, Ruislip Lido, Woody Bay (beach) Station – Steam Ride: Quainton Express BP 117km 08:30 • £7.00 • L P R T YH • 12.5-25kph Updated – Audax Club Hackney – Tim Sollesse, 59 Lynwood Rd, Ealing, London W5 1JG • timsollesse@gmail.com 200 Tewkesbury – Mr. Pickwick’s March Madness BR 209km 07:30 • 2600m AAA1.75 [1700m] • £6.00 • C F G T NM P • 100 15-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 110 Tewkesbury – Bill’s Theocsbury Ramble BP 110km 09:00 • £6.00 • C P R T NM • 100 • 12-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com

100 Seaham – Seaham Sircular BP 100km 09:00 • 1700m • AAA1.75 • £5.00 • F L P R T • 15-30kph Dave Sharpe, 3 Elizabeth Street, Seaham, County Durham SR7 7TP • cycle349@gmail.com 200 Winsford, Cheshire – Scouting Mam Tor BR 207km 08:00 • 2570m AAA2.25 [2150m] • £8.00 • P R T • 15-30kph Peak Audax CTC – Phil Scott, 59 Hawkshead Way, Winsford, Cheshire CW7 2SY • pjbscott@sky.com 160 Winsford, Cheshire – Edale Run BP 167km 08:30 • 2370m AAA2.25 [2150m] • £8.00 • P R T • 15-30kph Peak Audax CTC – Phil Scott, 59 Hawkshead Way, Winsford, Cheshire CW7 2SY • pjbscott@sky.com

SUNDAY 04 MAR 2018 200 Dalmeny – Forth and Tay BRM 208km 08:00 • 2500m • £10.00 • F G L P R T • 100 • 15-30kph

Audax Ecosse – Martin Foley, 78 Denholm Road Musselburgh East Lothian EH21 6TU • martinfoley@btinternet.com

SATURDAY 10 MAR 2018 100 Alfreton – Three Fields BP 104km 09:00 • 1170m [1270m] • £5.00 • L P R T • 100 • 12-30kph Alfreton CTC – Tom Fox (ROA 10000) 180 Nottingham Road, Alfreton, Derbyshire DE55 7FP • tomandsuefox@yahoo.co.uk 200 Cardiff Gate, NE Cardiff – Making Hay BR 203km 07:30 • 2450m • £5.50 • YH P R T • 15-30kph Cardiff Byways CC – 02920 341768 – Richard Evans (ROA 5000) 73 Conway Road, Cardiff CF11 9NW • evansrichardd@googlemail.com 200 Churchend, Dunmow, Essex – The Horsepower 200km BR 200km 07:30 • 777m • £10.00 • X A[1] C L P R T G M • 15-30kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Thomas Deakins, 31 The Causeway, Great Dunmow, Essex CM6 2AA • tom.deakins@btinternet.com 100 Churchend, Dunmow, Essex – The Horsepower 100km BP 102km 09:00 • 540m • £10.00 • X A[1] C L P R T G M • 12.5-30kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Thomas Deakins, 31 The Causeway, Great Dunmow, Essex CM6 2AA • tom.deakins@btinternet.com

SATURDAY 17 MAR 2018 200 Aldbrough St John, nr Darlington – Yorkshire Gallop BR 200km 08:00 • 1480m • £5.00 • X P R T • 14.3-30kph VC 167 – 01325 374 112 – Nigel Hall, Finkle Croft, Aldbrough St John, Nr. Richmond DL11 7TD • nigel.hall@finklecroft.me.uk 100 Aldbrough St John, nr Darlington – Ripon Canter BP 100km 10:00 • 572m • £5.00 • X L P R T • 12-25kph VC 167 – 01325 374 112 – Nigel Hall, Finkle Croft, Aldbrough St John, Nr. Richmond DL11 7TD • nigel.hall@finklecroft.me.uk 200 Andoversford, Nr Cheltenham – Cheltenham New Flyer BRM 200km 08:00 • £6.00 • G L P R T • 15-30kph Cheltenham CTC – Stephen Poulton (ROA 10000) Leckhampton Lodge, 23 Moorend Park Road, Leckhampton, Cheltenham, Glos GL53 0LA • stephen.poulton@btinternet.com 100 Andoversford, Nr Cheltenham – Character Coln BP 100km 09:00 • £5.00 • G P R T • 15-30kph Cheltenham CTC – Stephen Poulton (ROA 10000) Leckhampton Lodge, 23 Moorend Park Road, Leckhampton, Cheltenham, Glos GL53 0LA • stephen.poulton@btinternet.com 100 Bamford, Derbyshire – Occasionally Hilly BP 109km 09:00 • 1940m AAA2 • £8.00 • P R T G F • 12.5-30kph Common Lane Occasionals – 07805100988 – Oliver Wright (ROA 2000) Townhead Farm, 345 Baslow Road, Sheffield, South Yorkshire S17 4AD • owright@mac.com 200 Carlton le Moorland – Bomber County BRM 208km 07:00 • £6.50 • C G T • 15-30kph Audax Club Lincolnshire – Richard Parker, 28 High Street, Carlton le Moorland, Lincoln, Lincolnshire LN5 9HT • lincsaudax@gmail.com 100 Copdock, Nr. Ipswich – The Copdock Circuit – Spring in South Suffolk BP 100km 09:00 • £6.50 • L P R T M • 12-30kph Suffolk CTC – Dennis Kell, 9 Pheasant Rise, Copdock, Ipswich, Suffolk IP8 3LF • the.kells@talk21.com 300 Oxford, Peartree Services – The Dean BRM 307km 06:00 • 3500m AAA2.5 [2500m] • £6.00 X G P • 15-30kph Audax Club Hackney – Justin Jones, ACH HQ incorporating The Stag’s Head, 39 Harringay Road, London N15 3JB • justinjones1969@gmail.com

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AUK CALENDAR SUNDAY 18 MAR 2018 100 Alford, Lincs – The Wold and Fen BP 100km 09:00 • £6.50 • L P F T • 12-25kph Alford Whs – 01507 443 000 – Alan Hockham (ROA 4000) 11 Trustthorpe Road, Sutton on Sea, Lincs LN12 2LX • alan.hockham@hotmail.com 200 Exeter – Mad March Seven Rivers Ride BR 201km 08:00 • 2725m AAA2 [1500m] • £7.00 • YH F P R T X • 15-30kph Exeter Whs – Sarah Britton,17 Copse Close Lane, Cranbrook, EX5 7AP • shbritton@outlook.com 100 Exeter – Mad March Exeter Excursion BP 100km

09:00 • £6.00 • YH F P R T • 12-25kph Exeter Whs – Sarah Britton,17 Copse Close Lane, Cranbrook, EX5 7AP • shbritton@outlook.com 200 Golden Green,Tonbridge – Man of Kent 200 BRM 203km 08:00 • 1505m [1425m] • £8.00 • F L P R T • 120 •15-30kph San Fairy Ann CC – David Winslade, 3 Albany Close, Tonbridge, Kent TN9 2EY • manofkentaudax@gmail.com 200 Surbiton Gently Bentley BR 208km 08:00 • 1600m • £9.50 • G L P R T • 120 • (11/3) • 15-30kph Updated – Kingston Whs – Sarah Perkins, 1 Summer Gardens, East Molesey, Surrey KT8 9LT

SATURDAY 24 MAR 2018 100 Forfar, DD8 2AE – Scone 100 BP 100km 10:00 • 696m • £3.00 • G P T S • 15-30kph Angus CC – 01307 466123 – David Husband (ROA 5000) 78 Old Halkerton Road, Forfar DD8 1JP • dchusband@icloud.com 300 Poole – hard boiled 300 BRM 300km 02:00 • 4400m AAA4.5 • £10.00 • L M • 50 • (10/3) • 15-30kph Wessex CTC – Shawn Shaw, 22 Shaftesbury Road, Longfleet, Poole, Dorset BH15 2LT 200 Selkirk – Scottish Borders Randonnee BRM 204km 08:00 • 2168m • £10.00 • F G P R T • 15-30kph Audax Ecosse – 01750 20838 – Russell Carson, 21 Ladylands Terrace, Selkirk TD7 4BB

SUNDAY 25 MAR 2018 200 Clitheroe, Lancashire – Delightful Dales 200 BRM 205km 08:00 • 3300m AAA3.25 • [3600m] • £6.00 L P R T X • 15-30kph Burnley CC – Andy Corless, 31 Castlerigg Drive, Ightenhill Burnley, Lancashire BB12 8AT • burnleysportiv@yahoo.com 200 Long Ashton, Bristol – Barry’s Bristol Ball Buster BR 215km 08:00 • 2168m [2000m] • £7.00 F L P R T G NM • 200 • 15-30kph Las Vegas Inst of Sport – Marcus Mumford, Upper Haselor Farm, Haselor Lane, Hinton-on-the-green, Evesham Worcestershire WR11 2QZ • audax@lvis.org.uk 110 Long Ashton, Bristol – Barry’s Bristol Bash BP 116km 09:30 • 1219m [1100m] • £7.00 • F L P R T G NM • 275 • 12.5-30kph Las Vegas Inst of Sport – Marcus Mumford, Upper Haselor Farm, Haselor Lane, Hinton-on-the-green, Evesham Worcestershire WR11 2QZ • audax@lvis.org.uk 110 Long Ashton, Bristol – Barry’s Bristol Blast BP 116km 10:30 • 1270m [1096m] • £7.00 • F L P R T G NM • 200 • 12.5-30kph

Las Vegas Inst of Sport – Marcus Mumford, Upper Haselor Farm, Haselor Lane, Hinton-on-the-green, Evesham Worcestershire WR11 2QZ • audax@lvis.org.uk 100 Otford, Sevenoaks – Kent Invicta Grimpeur 100 BP 100km 09:30 • 1890m AAA2 • £8.00 • F L NM P R T • 12-25kph West Kent CTC – Patrick McMaster, 207 Colyer Road, Northfleet, Kent DA11 8AT • pmcmaster@blueyonder.co.uk 50 Otford, Sevenoaks – Kent Invicta Hilly 50 BP 50km 10:00 • 945m AAA1 • £7.00 • F L P R T NM • 12-25kph West Kent CTC – Patrick McMaster, 207 Colyer Road, Northfleet, Kent DA11 8AT • pmcmaster@blueyonder.co.uk 200 Poynton, S of Stockport – Chirk BR 200km 08:00 • £6.00 • F P • 15-30kph Peak Audax CTC – Darryl Nolan, 5 Grasmere Road, Royton Oldham OL2 6SR • darrylnolan12@gmail.com

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200 Wareham – Dorset Coast BRM 207km 07:45 • 2850m AAA2.75 • £12.00 • C L F R P T M • 1/4 • 15-30kph CC Weymouth – Andrew Preston, 24 Monmouth Road, Dorchester, Dorset DT1 2DG • dorsetcoast200@gmail.com 100 Wareham – Coastlet BP 107km 09:00 • 1300m • £7.00 • C L F R P T M • 1/4 • 12-25kph

CC Weymouth – Andrew Preston, 24 Monmouth Road, Dorchester, Dorset DT1 2DG • dorsetcoast200@gmail.com

FRIDAY 30 MAR 2018 400 Anywhere, to York – Easter Fleches to York BRM 400km £15.00 • 15-30kph Audax UK – Lucy Mctaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria Street, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com 200 Anywhere, to York – Easter Trail BP 201km £12.00 per team • 15-30kph Audax UK – Martin Foley, 78 Denholm Road, Musselburgh, East Lothian EH21 6TU • martinfoley@btinternet.com 200 Huntingdon – Double Dutch BR 200km CTC West Surrey – Martin Malins, Room 2L22 Lab Block, Charing Cross Hospital, Fulham Palace Road, London W12 8RF • malinseastg@tiscali.co.uk

WEDNESDAY 04 APR 2018 100 Marple, near Stockport – An Icecream Wensdae BP 109km 10:00 • 800m • £6.50 • P R T • 30 • 15-30kph Peak Audax CTC • Chris Keeling-Roberts, 17 Lower Strines Road, Marple Cheshire SK6 7DL • chris.keelingroberts@ntlworld.com 100 Marple, near Stockport – Monyash Peak BP 105km 10:00 • 2400m AAA2.5 • £6.50 • P R T • 30 •12.5-30kph Peak Audax CTC – Chris Keeling-Roberts, 17 Lower Strines Road, Marple, Cheshire SK6 7DL • chris.keelingroberts@ntlworld.com

SATURDAY 07 APR 2018 300 Upton Magna, E of Shrewsbury – Yr Elenydd BRM 307km 06:00 • 4450m AAA4.5 [4950m] • £10.00 • C F G L P R T • 120 • 15-25kph CTC Shropshire – John Hamilton (ROA 25000) 22 Oaks Crescent, Wellington, Telford TF1 2HF • undulates@hotmail.co.uk

SUNDAY 08 APR 2018 110 Mytholmroyd – Spring into the Dales BP 115km 09:00 • 2350m AAA2.25 • £5.00 • L P R T YH • 12-24kph Calderdale CTC – Chris Crossland (ROA 25000) 14 Stanley Street West, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire HX6 1EF • chris.crossland@halifaxctc.org.uk 57 Mytholmroyd – Leap into the Aire BP 57km 10:00 • 1325m AAA1.25 • £4.50 • L P R T YH • 8-20kph Calderdale CTC – Chris Crossland (ROA 25000) 14 Stanley Street West, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire HX6 1EF • chris.crossland@halifaxctc.org.uk 110 Uffington – The Harlequin Hack BP 110km 09:30 • 600m • £6.00 • C F G L P R T • 15-30kph Corallian CC – 07752 957363 – John Talbot, 33 Barretts Way, Sutton Courtenay, Abingdon OX14 4DD • audax@talbot.gb.net

SATURDAY 14 APR 2018 300 Alfreton – Everybody Rides to Skeggy!

BR 302km 06:00 • 1141m • £7.00 • L R P T X •100 • 15-30kph Alfreton CTC – Tom Fox (ROA 10000) 180 Nottingham Road, Alfreton, Derbyshire DE55 7FP • tomandsuefox@yahoo.co.uk 200 Galashiels – Moffat Toffee BRM 204km 08:00 • 2500m [2300m] • £10.00 • L P R T S G • 15-30kph Audax Ecosse – Lucy Mctaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria Street, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com 100 Galashiels – Springtime Ride of the Valkyries BP 106km 10:00 • 1200m [1517m] • £9.00 • L P R T S G • 12-30kph Audax Ecosse – Lucy Mctaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria Street, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com

SATURDAY 14 APR 2018 100 Market Bosworth, Sports Club – 1485 Tri Club Audax BP 100km 09:00 • £8.00 • T S R NM P C G • 175 • 15-30kph 1485 Tri Club – Steven Robinson, 7 Tudor Close, Market Bosworth, Leicestershire CV13 0NA 300 Raynes Park – Amesbury Amble BR 311km 06:00 • 2600m [2200m] • £10.00 • A(2) C G L P R T S • 15-30kph Kingston Whs – Richard Evans, 29 Somerset Avenue, Raynes Park, London SW20 0BJ • laidbackaroundtheworld@gmail.com 200 Tewkesbury – Benjamin Allen’s Spring Tonic BR 206km 08:00 • 2050m • £6.00 • 15-30kph BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com

SUNDAY 15 APR 2018 100 Galashiels – Broughton and Back BP 100km 10:00 • 1380m • £9.00 • L P R T S G • 12-30kph Audax Ecosse – Lucy Mctaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria Street, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com 160 Honiton – Combwich Century BP 169km 08:30 • 2470m AAA2.5 • £7.00 • G L P R T • 14-30kph Exeter Whs – Ian Hennessey (ROA 25000) 10 High Street, Honiton EX14 1PU • ian@ukcyclist.co.uk

SATURDAY 21 APR 2018 300 Cirencester – Heart of England 300 BRM 307km 06:00 • 2800m • £7.00 • A(2) • L P R T • 100 • 15-30kph Corinium CC – 01285 659 515 – Peter Holden (ROA 10000) 39 Querns Lane, Cirencester Glos GL7 1RL • peter@quernsgate.co.uk 200 Eureka Cafe, Wirral – Eureka Excursion BR 215km 08:00 • £6.50 • R L P T • 70 • 15-30kph Chester & North Wales CTC – David Matthews (ROA 10000), Hill View Cottage, Cross Lanes, Oscroft, Tarvin, Cheshire CH3 8NG • dmanu@outlook.com 130 Eureka Cafe, Wirral – Tea in Prospect BP 135km 08:30 • 500m • £6.50 • L P R T • 70 • 12.5-25kph

Chester & North Wales CTC – David Matthews (ROA 10000), Hill View Cottage, Cross Lanes, Oscroft, Tarvin, Cheshire CH3 8NG • dmanu@outlook.com 68 Eureka Cafe, Wirral – Two Mills Twirl BP 68km 09:00 • £6.50 • R L P T • 50 • 10-25kph

Chester & North Wales CTC – David Matthews (ROA 10000), Hill View Cottage, Cross Lanes, Oscroft, Tarvin, Cheshire CH3 8NG • dmanu@outlook.com 200 Haynes Road, Leicester – Another Slice of Rutland BR 200km 08:00 • £5.00 • L P R T G • 15-30kph Leicester Forest CC – Steve Orchard, 28 Hidcote Road, Oadby, Leicester LE2 5PE 300 Meopham – Oasts and Coasts 300 BRM 300km 06:00 • 3300m AAA1.75 [1650m] • £9.00 • L P T R • 15-30kph Tom Jackson – 01474 815 213 Tom Jackson (ROA 5000) 19 Denesway, Meopham, Kent DA13 0EA • tom56jackson@gmail.com 300 Poynton, S of Stockport – Plains BR 310km 23:00 • 1600m • £5.00 • P X • 15-30kph Peak Audax CTC – Peter Hammond, 3 Dorac Avenue, Heald Green, Cheadle, Stockport, Cheshire SK8 3NZ • hamhort84@talktalk.net 110 Reepham, nr Lincoln – Lincoln Imp BP 112km 09:30 • 200m • £5.00 • G L P R T • 12-30kph Cycling UK Lincolnshire – Andrew Townhill, 10 Larkin Avenue, Cherry Willingham, Lincoln, Lincolnshire LN3 4AY • andy.town@ntlworld.com

SATURDAY 28 APR 2018 400 Burnley, Lancashire – Aidensfield 400 BRM 400km 06:00 • 4000m [5100m] • £8.50 • L P R T • 15-30kph Burnley CC – Andy Corless, 31 Castlerigg Drive, Ightenhill Burnley, Lancashire BB12 8AT • burnleysportiv@yahoo.com

SATURDAY 28 APR 2018

SUNDAY 06 MAY 2018

SATURDAY 19 MAY 2018

400 Coryton, NW Cardiff – Buckingham Blinder BRM 400km 5::00 • £10.00 • X • 15-30kph Cardiff Byways CC – Robyn Thomas, 44 Cosmeston Street, Cardiff CF24 4LR 200 Honiton – Valley of the Rocks 200 BRM 205km 08:00 • 3900m AAA4 • £7.00 • GL P R T • 40 • 15-30kph Exeter Whs – Ian Hennessey (ROA 25000) 10 High Street, Honiton EX14 1PU • ian@ukcyclist.co.uk 300 Musselburgh – Merse and Moors BRM 300km 06:00 • 4200m AAA4.25 • £10.00 • X P L R • 50 • 15-30kph Audax Ecosse – Martin Foley, 78 Denholm Road, Musselburgh, East Lothian EH21 6TU • martinfoley@btinternet.com 300 Newby Wiske, nr Thirsk – Beyond the Dales We Know BRM 300km 06:00 • 3500m AAA3 [2950m] • £10.00 • C G L NM R T S 15-30kph VC 167 – Dean Clementson, 10 Redmire Close, Darlington DL1 2ER • dean.clementson@yahoo.com 150 Newby Wiske, nr Thirsk – Moor Gravel Forever BP 150km 08:00 • 2765m AAA2.75 • £7.00 • C F G L NM R T S • 10-25kph

VC 167 – Dean Clementson, 10 Redmire Close, Darlington DL1 2ER • dean.clementson@yahoo.com 100 Newby Wiske, nr Thirsk – Don’t Keep to the Road BP 100km 09:00 • 1875m AAA2 • £5.00 • C F G L NM R T S • 10-25kph

VC 167 – Dean Clementson, 10 Redmire Close, Darlington DL1 2ER • dean.clementson@yahoo.com

400 Poole – Porkers 400 BRM 400km 14:00 • 5900m AAA6 • £10.00 • L M • 50 • (22/4) • 15-30kph Wessex CTC – Shawn Shaw, 22 Shaftesbury Road, Longfleet, Poole, Dorset BH15 2LT

160 Meriden, Warwickshire – Cotswold Challenge BP 160km 08:00 • 1200m • £8.00 • C G P R T NM • 15-30kph Jon Porteous, Tumnus Corner, Springhill Gardens, Webheath, Redditch, Worcs B97 5SY • audax2018@heartofenglandcyclingclub.org.uk 100 Meriden, Warwickshire – Warwickshire Wanderer BP 105km 09:00 • 700m • £8.00 • C G P R T NM • 15-30kph Jon Porteous, Tumnus Corner, Springhill Gardens, Webheath, Redditch, Worcs B97 5SY • audax2018@heartofenglandcyclingclub.org.uk 50 Meriden, Warwickshire – Meriden Meander BP 50km 10:00 • 540m [546m] • £8.00 • A C G NM P R T • 15-30kph

Jon Porteous, Tumnus Corner, Springhill Gardens, Webheath, Redditch, Worcs B97 5SY • audax2018@heartofenglandcyclingclub.org.uk 300 Troutbeck Bridge, Cumbria – The Westmorland Spartans BRM 300km 07:00 • 4000m AAA4 • £8.00 • YH A(2) L P R T S • 15-30kph Lakes Velo – Paul Revell, Kirklands, Brow Edge, Backbarrow, Ulverston, Cumbria LA12 8QL • paul@revells.com 200 Troutbeck Bridge, Cumbria – The Cumbrian 200 BRM 203km 08:00 • 3900m AAA4 • £7.00 • YH A(2) L P R T S • 15-30kph Lakes Velo – Paul Revell, Kirklands, Brow Edge, Backbarrow, Ulverston, Cumbria LA12 8QL • paul@revells.com 200 Willington Hall, E of Chester – Tour of the Berwyns BR 210km 08:00 • 3100m • AAA3 • £6.00 • L P R T 75 • 7/05 • 15-30kph Chester & North WalesCTC – David Matthews (ROA 10000) Hill View Cottage, Cross Lanes, Oscroft, Tarvin, Cheshire CH3 8NG • dmanu@outlook.com 130 Willington Hall, nr Chester – Panorama Prospect BP 136km 08:30 • 1150m [500m] • £6.00 • L P R T • 75 • 17/05 • 12.5-25kph Chester & North Wales CT – David Matthews (ROA 10000) Hill View Cottage, Cross Lanes, Oscroft, Tarvin, Cheshire CH3 8NG • dmanu@outlook.com

SUNDAY 29 APR 2018 100 High Ham, SW of Street – The Merry Monk BP 105km 09:30 • £7.00 • F L P R T • 130 • 12.5-25kph Mark Lilly – 01823 690038 – Mark Lilly, Applehayes, Main Road, Middlezoy, Bridgwater TA7 0PB • lillymark@btinternet.com 100 High Ham, SW of Street – The Merry Monk BP 105km 08:30 • £7.00 • F L P R T • 130 • 12.5-25kph Mark Lilly – 01823 690038 – Applehayes, Main Road, Middlezoy, Bridgwater TA7 0PB • lillymark@btinternet.com 100 Wray, NE of Lancaster – Bowland Forest Populaire BP 100km 09:00 • 1800m AAA1.75 • £5.00 • P R T • 75 • 12.5-20kph CTC Lancaster & South Lakes – 01524 36061 Mike Hutchinson (ROA 5000) Heatherdene, 9 Whinfell Drive, Lancaster LA1 4NY • mikehutchinson@fastmail.fm

SATURDAY 05 MAY 2018 400 Chalfont St Peter, Bucks – London Wales London BRM 407km 06:00 • 3500m • £23.00 • F G L NM P R T • 150 • 15-30kph Willesden CC – 07881 841 3 – Liam FitzPatrick, Paypal entries only please • lfitzpatrick01@gmail.com 400 Chepstow – Brevet Cymru BRM 401km 06:00 • 5000m AAA3.5 [3450m] • £10.00 C F L P R T NM Z • 100 • 15-30kph Change of Date – BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 200 Kirkley Cycles, Ponteland – Chevy Chase BRM 201km 08:00 •2465m AAA3 [3000m] • £12.00 • C F G L P R T • 120 • 15-30kph Tyneside Vagabonds – Aidan Hedley, 16 The Close, Lanchester, Durham DH7 0PX • aidan@northern-audax.org.uk 300 Manningtree – Green & Yellow Fields BRM 305km 00:01 • 1500m • £5.00 • X P C G •15-30kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Grant Huggins, 76 Bryony Close, Witham, Essex CM8 2XF • grant@huggys.co.uk 300 Newark Northgate Station – Do Not Forget Your Dividend Card BRM 300km 06:30 • £6.00 • X G P • 15-30kph Audax Club Lincolnshire – Richard Parker, 28 High Street, Carlton le Moorland, Lincoln, Lincolnshire LN5 9HT • lincsaudax@gmail.com

MONDAY 07 MAY 2018 200 Ruislip, London – A Ride Called Quest BR 217km 08:00 • 1700m • £9.00 • F G P T • 15-30kph Change of Date – Westerley CC – Dave Morrison, 145 Cornwall Road, Ruislip, Middx HA4 6AH 100 Ruislip, London – Spoke On The Water BP 108km 08:30 • 900m • £9.00 • F G P T • 15-30kph Westerley CC – Dave Morrison, 145 Cornwall Road, Ruislip, Middx HA4 6AH

SATURDAY 12 MAY 2018 150 Forfar – Pitlochry 150 BP 150km 09:15 • 1465m • £3.00 • G P T S • 15-30kph Angus CC – 01307 466123 – David Husband (ROA 5000) 78 Old Halkerton Road, Forfar DD8 1JP • dchusband@icloud.com 400 Mytholmroyd, West Yorkshire – The Old 240 BRM 407km 05:30 • 6400m AAA6.5 • £8.00 • A(2) L P R T S YH • 15-30kph West Yorkshire CTC – Chris Crossland (ROA 25000) 14 Stanley Street West, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire HX6 1EF • chris.crossland@halifaxctc.org.uk 400 Mytholmroyd, West Yorkshire – Not Quite The Spurn Head 400 BRM 403km 05:30 • 2450m • £8.00 • A(2) L P R T S YH • 15-30kph West Yorkshire CTC – Chris Crossland (ROA 25000) 14 Stanley Street West, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire HX6 1EF • chris.crossland@halifaxctc.org.uk 300 Wigginton, York – Wigginton 300 BRM 302km 05:00 • 2132m £5.00 L P R T 15-30kph CTC North Yorks – 01904 769 378 – Keith Benton, 127 Greenshaw Drive, Wigginton, York YO32 2DB • benton.dk@iCloud.com

SUNDAY 13 MAY 2018 53 Uffington, near Wantage – Blowingstone-Boomerang BP 53km 10:30 • 424m • £5.00 • P T R • 15-30kph CTC Wantage – Nick Dunton, 44a High Street Sutton Courtenay, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4AP 100 Uffington, near Wantage – Blowingstone-White Horse BP 103km 09:30 • 1330m [1346m] • £6.00 • P T R • 15-30kph Oxfordshire CTC – Nick Dunton, 44a High Street, Sutton Courtenay, Abingdon Oxon OX14 4AP 100 Woodley, Romsey, Hampshire – Between the Parks PB 100km 09:00 • 500m • £6.00 • G L P R T • 75 • 10/5 • 15-30kph Southampton & Romsey CTC – Robert Damper, 12 Julius Close, Chandler’s Ford, Eastleigh, Hampshire SO53 2AB • rid@ecs.soton.ac.uk 200 Woodley, Romsey, Hampshire – Grand National Park2Park BR 200km 08:00 • 2400m • £8.50 • F G L P R T • 75 • 10/5 • 15-30kph Southampton CTC – Robert Damper, 12 Julius Close, Chandler’s Ford, Eastleigh, Hampshire SO53 2AB • rid@ecs.soton.ac.uk

SATURDAY 19 MAY 2018 400 Alfreton – Moors and Wolds 400 BRM 400km 10:30 • 406km • 2425m • £9.00 • P R T X • 15-30kph Updated – Alfreton CTC – Stephen Ogden, The Firs, 170 Nuncargate Road, Kirkby In Ashfield NG17 9EA • oggy.dude@gmail.com 600 Chepstow – Bryan Chapman Memorial – Welsh End to End BRM 600km 06:00 • 7500m AAA7.5 • £42.00 • BD C F L P R S T Z •15-30kph CTC Cymru – Ritchie Tout, Sunnyside Cottage, Mynyddbach, Monmouthshire NP16 6RT • oldfield.tout@btinternet.com

SATURDAY 26 MAY 2018 300 Honiton – Old Roads 300 BRM 300km 06:00 • 3400m • £8.00 • G L P R T •15-30kph Exeter Whs – 01404 46993 – Ian Hennessey (ROA 25000) 10 High Street, Honiton EX14 1PU • ian@ukcyclist.co.uk 300 Kirkley Cycles, Ponteland – The Mosstrooper BRM 300km 06:00 • 3900m AAA3.5 [3600m] • £10.00 • C F G L P R T • 60 • 15-30kph VC 167 – Aidan Hedley, 16 The Close Lanchester Durham DH7 0PX • aidan@northern-audax.org.uk 600 Poole – Brimstone 600 BRM 600km 06:00 – 7600m • AAA7.5 • £10.00 • L M • 50 • 12/5 • 15-30kph Wessex CTC – Shawn Shaw, 22 Shaftesbury Road, Longfleet, Poole, Dorset BH15 2LT

SUNDAY 27 MAY 2018 200 Huddersfield – Huddersfield Star Wheelers Humber Bridge BR 230km 08:00 • 1300m • £3.00 • X G T • 15-30kph Huddersfield Star – Nephi Alty, Heath House View, Ridings Lane, Golcar, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire HD7 4PZ • nephialty@gmail.com

THURSDAY 31 MAY 2018 1000 Haymarket Railway Station, Edinburgh – The West Highlands BRM 1000km 20:00 • £17.50 • X YH G T • 13.3-22.5kph Edinburgh RC – Graeme Wyllie, 16 Corstorphine House Avenue, Edinburgh EH12 7AD • graemewyllie05@gmail.com

SATURDAY 02 JUN 2018 100 Cromford, Derbyshire – Tramway 100 BP 104km 09:00 • 104km 1480m • AAA1.5 • £6.00 • P R T 150 • 11-30kph Alfreton CTC – Tom Fox (ROA 10000) 180 Nottingham Road, Alfreton, Derbyshire DE55 7FP • tomandsuefox@yahoo.co.uk

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AUK CALENDAR

60

SATURDAY 02 JUN 2018

SUNDAY 03 JUN 2018

SATURDAY 16 JUN 2018

400 Kirkley Cycles, Ponteland – The Hot Trod BRM 400km 09:00 • 3711m [4020m] • £15.00 • C F G L P R T Z • 60 • 15-30kph VC 167 – Aidan Hedley, 16 The Close, Lanchester, Durham DH7 0PX • aidan@northern-audax.org.uk 600 Llandrindod – This is not a tour B BR 606km 05:00 • 10834m AAA10.75 [10261m] • £12.00 • X C F G NM P 100 • 15/5 • 14.4-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 400 Llandrindod – This is not a tour 400 A (Populaire) BP 406km 06:00 • 7587m AAA7.5 [8103m] • £9.75 • X C F G NM P •100 • 15/5 • 10-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 400 Llandrindod – This is not a tour 400 A BR 406km 06:00 • 7587m AAA7.5 [8103m] • £9.75 • X C F G NM P • 100 • 15/5 • 14.4-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 300 Llandrindod – This is not a tour 300 A BR 314km 05:45 • 5780m AAA5.75 [6127m] • £8.50 • X C F G NM P • 100 • 15/5 • 14.4-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 300 Llandrindod – This is not a tour 300 A (Populaire) BP 314km 05:45 • 5780m AAA5.75 [6127m] £8.50 X C F G NM P 100 (15/5) 8.3-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 300 Llandrindod – This is not a tour 300 B BR 313km 06:00 • 5521m AAA5.5 [6217m] • £8.50 • X C F G NM P • 100 • 15/5 • 14.4-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 200 Llandrindod – This is not a tour 200 A BR 210km 08:00 • 3734m AAA3.75 [3918m] • £7.25 • X C F G NM P • 100 • 15/5 • 14.4-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 200 Llandrindod – This is not a tour 200 B BR 209km 08:00 • 4192m AAA4.25 • £7.25 • X C F G NM P • 100 • 15/5 • 14.4-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 110 Llandrindod – This is not a tour 100 A BP 110km 09:00 • 2189m AAA2.25 [2386m] • £6.00 • X C F G NM P • 100 • 15/5 • 8.3-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 400 Manningtree – Asparagus & Strawberries BRM 414km 09:00 • 2600m • £5.00 • X P C G • 15-30kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Grant Huggins, 76 Bryony Close, Witham, Essex CM8 2XF • grant@huggys.co.uk 400 Newark Northgate Station, Nottinghamshire – Lincolnshire Poacher BRM 400km 06:00 • £6.00 • X A1 L P R • 15-30kph Audax Club Lincolnshire – Richard Parker, 28 High Street, Carlton le Moorland, Lincoln, Lincolnshire LN5 9HT • lincsaudax@gmail.com

200 Llandrindod – This is not a tour 200 E BR 208km 08:00 • 3418m AAA3.5 [3426m] • £7.25 • X C F G NM P • 100 • 15/5 • 14.4-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 200 Llandrindod – This is not a tour 200 C BR 206km 08:00 • 3879m AAA4 [3911m] • £7.25 • X C F G NM P • 100 • 15/5 • 14.4-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 110 Llandrindod – This is not a tour 100 C BP 111km 09:00 • 1896m AAA2 [2092m] £6.00 X C F G NM P 100 (15/5) 8.3-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 110 Llandrindod – This is not a tour 100 B BP 110km 09:00 • 2125m AAA2.25 [2280m] • £6.00 • X C F G NM P • 100 • 15/5 • 10-30kph

BlackSheep CC – Mark Rigby (ROA 25000) c/o Maggs Day Centre, Deansway, Worcester, Worcestershire WR1 2JD • blacksheepaudax@gmail.com 200 Wimbledon Common – The London Ditchling Devil BR 205km 08:00 • 2400m [2700m] • £16.00 • F P R T • 15-30kph

Audax Club DuBois – Paul Stewart, 25 Devonshire Gardens, Chiswick, London W4 3TN • paudax@gmail.com

200 Beech Hill, S of Reading – Alan Furley’s Up the Downs BR 204km 08:00 • 2100m • £7.00 • G L P R T • 15-30kph Updated – Reading CTC – Nick Clark, 19 Chilmark Road, Trowbridge, Wiltshire BA14 9DD • nickclark2020@gmail.com 100 Beech Hill, S of Reading – Alan Furley’s Down the Ups BP 107km 09:00 • 1000m • £6.50 • G L P R T • 15-30kph Updated – Reading CTC – Nick Clark, 19 Chilmark Road, Trowbridge, Wiltshire BA14 9DD • nickclark2020@gmail.com 600 Mytholmroyd, W. of Halifax – The 3 Coasts 600 BRM 607km 06:00 • 5611m AAA1.75 [1631m] • £10.00 • A(3) L P R S T Z YH • 15-30kph West Yorkshire CTC – Chris Crossland (ROA 25000) 14 Stanley Street West, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire HX6 1EF • chris.crossland@halifaxctc.org.uk 600 Mytholmroyd, W. of Halifax – The East & West Coasts 600 BRM 605km 06:00 • 4380m [5380m] • £10.00 • A(3) L P R S T Z YH • 15-30kph

West Yorkshire CTC – Chris Crossland (ROA 25000) 14 Stanley Street West, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire HX6 1EF • chris.crossland@halifaxctc.org.uk 600 Raynes Park – Wander Wye BRM 610km 06:00 • 5700m [6000m] • £19.00 • A(1) C F G L P R T S Z • 15-30kph Kingston Whs – Richard Evans, 29 Somerset Avenue, Raynes Park, London SW20 0BJ • laidbackaroundtheworld@gmail.com

ArrivéeAutumn2017

SATURDAY 09 JUN 2018 400 Exeter – Back to the Smoke 400 BRM 400km 12:00 • 4500m [3400m] • £6.00 • G X • 15-30kph Change of Date – Exeter Whs – 01404 46993 Ian Hennessey (ROA 25000) 10 High Street, Honiton EX14 1PU • ian@ukcyclist.co.uk 200 Forfar – Rannoch 210 BR 210km 08:00 • £8.00 • G L P R T • 15-30kph Angus CC – 01307 466123 – David Husband (ROA 5000) 78 Old Halkerton Road, Forfar, DD8 1JP • dchusband@icloud.com 400 Musselburgh – The Southern Uplands BRM 400km 06:00 • 5000m AAA5 • £10.00 • X P C R G L • 15-30kph Audax Ecosse – Martin Foley, 78 Denholm Road, Musselburgh, East Lothian EH21 6TU • martinfoley@btinternet.com 400 Upton Magna, E of Shrewsbury – The Irish Mail BRM 400km 07:00 • 5300m AAA5.25 • £10.00 • C F G L P R T Z • 15-25kph CTC Shropshire – John Hamilton (ROA 25000) 22 Oaks Crescent, Wellington, Telford TF1 2HF • undulates@hotmail.co.uk 300 Upton Magna, E of Shrewsbury – Snowdon & Lakes BRM 312km 07:00 • 4450m AAA4.5 [4842m] • £10.00 • C F G L P R T • 15-25kph CTC Shropshire – John Hamilton (ROA 25000) 22 Oaks Crescent, Wellington, Telford TF1 2HF • undulates@hotmail.co.uk

SUNDAY 10 JUN 2018 200 Claughton, N of Preston – Fleet Moss 212 BR 212km 07:30 • 3290m AAA3.25 • £7.50 P R T G • 15-30kph Southport CC – Allan Taylor, 23 Osborne Road, Ainsdale, Southport PR8 2RJ • allan.taylor@southportcc.co.uk 160 Claughton, N of Preston – Lunesdale Populaire BP 162km 08:30 • 2280m AAA2.25 • £7.50 • P R T 100 • 13-30kph

Southport CC – Allan Taylor, 23 Osborne Road, Ainsdale, Southport PR8 2RJ • allan.taylor@southportcc.co.uk 110 Claughton, N of Preston – Pilgrim’s Way BP 112km 09:00 • 1540m • £6.50 • P R T G • 10-25kph

Southport CC – Allan Taylor, 23 Osborne Road, Ainsdale, Southport PR8 2RJ • allan.taylor@southportcc.co.uk

SUNDAY 17 JUN 2018 200 Mytholmroyd, W. of Halifax – The Good Companions BRM 200km 08:30 • 2697m AAA1.75 [1631m] • £5.00 • A(2) L P R T S YH • 15-30kph West Yorkshire CTC – Chris Crossland (ROA 25000) 14 Stanley Street West, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire HX6 1EF • chris.crossland@halifaxctc.org.uk

FRIDAY 22 JUN 2018 400 Anywhere, to York– Summer Arrow to York BR 400km 06:00 • £15.00 • 15-30kph Audax UK – Lucy Mctaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria Street, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com 200 Anywhere, to York – Summer Dart to York BR 210km £5.00 • 15-30kph

Audax UK – Lucy Mctaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria Street, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com 400 Clayhidon, near Taunton – Avalon Sunrise 400 BRM 407km 22:30 • 4350m £19.00 • F L P R T C • 15-30kph Exeter Whs – Jamie Andrews, Cemetery Lodge, Ashill Road, Uffculme, Devon EX15 3DP

SATURDAY 23 JUN 2018 170 Awbridge, Nr. Romsey, Hampshire – The Swanage Swan BP 175km 08:00 • 1675m [1625m] • £7.00 • L P R T 50 • 15-30kph Winchester CTC – Alan Davies, 7 Queens Close, Romsey, Hampshire SO51 5EG • alanandemma@talktalk.net 170 Awbridge, Nr. Romsey, Hampshire – Hindon Hip Hip BP 170km 08:00 • 1750m • £7.00 • L P R T • 50 • 15-30kph Winchester CTC – Alan Davies, 7 Queens Close, Romsey, Hampshire SO51 5EG • alanandemma@talktalk.net 140 Awbridge, Nr. Romsey, Hampshire – Hungerford Hooray BP140km 08:00 • 1450m • £7.00 • L P R T • 50 • 15-30kph Winchester CTC – Alan Davies, 7 Queens Close, Romsey, Hampshire SO51 5EG • alanandemma@talktalk.net 100 Combe Down Rugby Club, Bath – Mendip Transmitter BP 100km 08:30 • 1650m AAA1.75 • £7.00 • P R T X F • 15-30kph Bath CC – Robert Mcmillan, 228 Bloomfield Road, Bath BA2 2AX • robertmcmillan@sky.com

SATURDAY 23 JUN 2018 300 Galashiels – Alston and Back BRM 300km 06:00 • 2700m • £6.00 • P R T X • 15-30kph Audax Ecosse – 01896 758 181 Lucy McTaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria St, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com

SUNDAY 24 JUN 2018 200 Chelmer CC Club hut, Meteor Way, Chelmsford – Windmill Ride (200) BRM 200km 08:30 • 201km • 1772m • £8.50 • F G L P R T • 15-30kph Essex CTC – Stefan Eichenseher, 42a Whitegate Road, Southend-on-sea,Essex SS1 2LQ • s.eichenseher@googlemail.com 110 Chelmer CC Club hut, Meteor Way, Chelmsford – Windmill Ride (110) BP 110km 10:00 • 923m • £8.50 • F G L P R T • 12-25kph Essex CTC – Stefan Eichenseher, 42a Whitegate Road, Southend-on-sea,Essex SS1 2LQ • s.eichenseher@googlemail.com

THURSDAY 28 JUN 2018 1000 Witham, Essex – The ACME Grand BRM 1000km 11:00 • 7551m [8033m] • £4.00 • X M C G • 21/06 • 13.3-30kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Thomas Deakins, 31 The Causeway, Great Dunmow, Essex CM6 2AA • tom.deakins@btinternet.com

SATURDAY 30 JUN 2018 100 Cromford Wharf, Derbyshire – Lead Miners Trail BP 101km 9:30 • 2060m AAA2 • £6.00 • G P R T • 12.5-25kph Alfreton CTC – David Catlow, 31 Cavendish Way, Mickleover, Derby DE3 9BL • davidcatlow1947@gmail.com

FRIDAY O6 JUL 2018 1000 Bispham, Lancashire – Mille Pennines BRM 1000km 11:00 • 13000m AAA12.75 [10000m] • £55.00 • BD F L P R S T Z 120 • 13.3-30kph Burnley CC – Andy Corless, 31 Castlerigg Drive, Ightenhill, Burnley, Lancashire BB12 8AT • burnleysportiv@yahoo.com

SATURDAY 07 JUL 2018 600 Exeter – The Exe-Buzzard BRM 600km 6:00 • 5600m • £5 • X • 15-30kph Exeter Whs – 01404 46993 – Ian Hennessey (ROA 25000) 10 High Street, Honiton, EX14 1PU • ian@ukcyclist.co.uk 600 Leighton Buzzard – The Buzzard BRM 600km 07:00 • BRM 5600m £5.00 X 15-30kph Exeter Whs – 01404 46993 – Ian Hennessey (ROA 25000) 10 High Street, Honiton, EX14 1PU • ian@ukcyclist.co.uk

SUNDAY 08 JUL 2018 200 Denshaw, Saddleworth – Bowland BR 200km 08:00 • 3500m AAA3.5 [4400m] • £6.00 • P R T G • 15-30kph Saddleworth Clarion – Nephi Alty, Heath House View, Ridings Lane, Golcar, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire HD7 4PZ • nephialty@gmail.com

FRIDAY 13 JUL 2018 300 Churchend, Dunmow, Essex – Hereward the Wake BRM 301km 21:00 • 1107m • £10.00 • X M G R T P L C • 15-30kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Thomas Deakins, 31 The Causeway, Great Dunmow, Essex CM6 2AA • tom.deakins@btinternet.com

SATURDAY 14 JUL 2018 200 Corwen – Barmouth Boulevard BR 204km 08:00 • 3650m AAA3.75 • £6.00 • P R T • 15-30kph Chester & North Wales CTC – Vicky Payne, Bryn Celyn Penyffordd, Holywell, Flintshire CH8 9HH • vickypayne8@hotmail.com 100 Corwen – The Brenig Bach BP 107km 08:30 • 1930m AAA2 [1920m] • £6.00 • P R T • 12.5-25kph Chester & North Wales CTC – Vicky Payne, Bryn Celyn Penyffordd, Holywell, Flintshire CH8 9HH • vickypayne8@hotmail.com

SATURDAY 14 JUL 2018

60 Corwen – The Bala Parade BP 60km 09:00 • 1000m • £6.00 • P R T • 12.5-25kph Chester & North Wales CTC – Vicky Payne, Bryn Celyn Penyffordd, Holywell, Flintshire CH8 9HH • vickypayne8@hotmail.com 600 Kirkley Cycles, Ponteland – The New Border Raid BRM 600km 06:00 • 5000m [5500m] • £18.00 • C F G L P R T Z(60) • 15-30kph VC 167 – Aidan Hedley, 16 The Close, Lanchester, Durham DH7 0PX • aidan@northern-audax.org.uk 300 Rowlands Castle, nr Portsmouth – Wonderfully Wessex BRM 300km 05:30 • £8.50 • F L P T • 2/7 • 60 • 15-30kph Hampshire RC – Paul Whitehead, 73 Spencer Road, Emsworth, Hampshire PO10 7XR • mrpaulwhitehead@yahoo.co.uk

SUNDAY 15 JUL 2018 110 The Steyning Centre, Steyning, W Sussex – The Devils Punchbowl 100 BP 110km 09:30 • 1200m • £7.00 • F G P T • 80 • 15-30kph Updated – ABAudax – Anton Brown, 19 Northlands Avenue, Haywards Heath, West Sussex RH16 3RT • abaudax@btconnect.com

SATURDAY 21 JUL 2018 200 Belbroughton, N Worcestershire – The Kidderminster Killer BR 214km 08:00 • 3750m AAA3.75 • £9.00 • F L P R S T • 90 • 8/8 • 14.6-30kph Beacon RCC – 01562731606 – Philip Whiteman, 2 Drayton Terrace, Drayton, Belbroughton, Stourbridge, Worcestershire DY9 0BW • p.whiteman@bham.ac.uk 120 Belbroughton, N Worcestershire – From Clee to Heaven BP 125km 09:00 • 1950m AAA2 • £9.00 • F L P R S T • 70 • 13.5-25kph

Beacon RCC – 01562731606 – Philip Whiteman, 2 Drayton Terrace, Drayton, Belbroughton, Stourbridge, Worcestershire DY9 0BW • p.whiteman@bham.ac.uk 400 Galashiels – Nae Bother to Us BRM 400km 06:00 • 3400m • £6.00 • P R T • 15-30kph Audax Ecosse – 01896 758 181 Lucy McTaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria St, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com

THURSDAY 26 JUL 2018 1000 Upton Magna, E of Shrewsbury – Mille Cymru 3 BRM 1020km 10:00 • 16000m AAA16 • £75.00 • BD C F G L P R T S Z • 13.3-20kph CTC Shropshire – John Hamilton (ROA 25000) 22 Oaks Crescent, Wellington, Telford TF1 2HF • undulates@hotmail.co.uk 150 Kirkley Cycles, Ponteland – Across the Ranges BP 151km 08:00 • 1730m • £9.00 • G P R T • 100 • 15-30kph Tyneside Vagabonds – 07875224229 – Andrew Berne, 5 Oakham Avenue, Whickham, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tyne And Wear NE16 5YU • andy@dixonberne.plus.com

SATURDAY 04 AUG 2018 300 Burnley, Lancashire – Knock Ventoux 300 BRM 300km 06:00 • 4300m AAA4.25 [4600m] • £8.00 • A (1) L P R T • 15-30kph Burnley CC – Andy Corless, 31 Castlerigg Drive, Ightenhill Burnley, Lancashire BB12 8AT • burnleysportiv@yahoo.com 200 Witham, Essex – Essex R&R BR 215km 08:00 • 1675m [650m] • £8.00 • G L P R T X • 200 • 14.3-30kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Grant Huggins, 76 Bryony Close, Witham, Essex CM8 2XF • grant@huggys.co.uk 100 Witham, Essex – A little Essex R&R BP 107km 09:00 • £8.00 • G L P R T X • 125 • 12-30kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Grant Huggins, 76 Bryony Close, Witham, Essex CM8 2XF • grant@huggys.co.uk

SUNDAY 05 AUG 2018 200 Burnley, Lancashire – Tan Hill 200 BRM 200km 08:30 • 4500m AAA4.5 • £7.50 • A (1) L P R T • 15-30kph Burnley CC – Andy Corless, 31 Castlerigg Drive Ightenhill Burnley Lancashire BB12 8AT • burnleysportiv@yahoo.com

WEDNESDAY 08 AUG 2018 100 Marple, Memorial Park, SK6 – Mid Peak Grimpeur BP 109km 10:00 • 2400m AAA2.5 • £6.50 • L P R T • 40 • 31/7 • 12.5-25kph Peak Audax CTC – Chris Keeling-Roberts, 17 Lower Strines Road, Marple, Cheshire, SK6 7DL • chris.keelingroberts@ntlworld.com

SATURDAY 18 AUG 2018 600 Galashiels – Borderlands Late Season Explorer BRM 600km 07:00 • 5500m • £6.00 • P R T X G • 15-25kph

Audax Ecosse – 01896 758 181 Lucy McTaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria St, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com

WEDNESDAY 22 AUG 2018 100 Marple – West Peak Grimpeur BP 103km 10:00 • 2400m AAA2.5 • £6.50 • P R T • 60 • 20/08 • 12.5-25kph Peak Audax CTC – David Catlow, 31 Cavendish Way, Mickleover, Derby DE3 9BL • davidcatlow1947@gmail.com

SATURDAY 25 AUG 2018 300 Mildenhall Cycle Festival, West Row – Festival Roving 300 BR 303km 05:00 • 1600m • £6.50 • C P T • 16/08 • 15-30kph Suffolk CTC – Andy Terry, 70 Queensway, Lawford, Manningtree, Essex CO11 1EW 200 Mildenhall Cycle Festival, West Row – Festival Randonnee 200 BR 203km 08:00 • 1064m [1096m] • £6.50 • C P T S • 16/8) • 15-30kph Suffolk CTC – Andy Terry, 70 Queensway, Lawford, Manningtree, Essex CO11 1EW 160 Mildenhall Cycle Festival, West Row – Festival Century 160 BP 163km 08:30 • 955m [980m] • £6.50 • C P T S • 16/8 • 12.5-25kph Suffolk CTC – Andy Terry, 70 Queensway, Lawford, Manningtree, Essex CO11 1EW 52 Mildenhall Cycle Festival, West Row – Festival Brief Brevet 50 BP 52km 09:30 • 300m [251m] • £3.50 • G L P T • 25/ • 10-25kph Suffolk CTC – Andy Terry, 70 Queensway, Lawford, Manningtree, Essex CO11 1EW

SATURDAY 01 SEP 2018 200 Herne Common, Kent – Thanet Platinum 200 BRM 200km 08:00 • 2066m • [2079m] • AAA2 • £9.00 C G L NM P R T • 100 • 24/8 • 15-30kph Thanet RC – David Kenning, Little Orchard, Pean Hill Whitstable CT5 3BQ • dave@widdersbel.co.uk 160 Herne Common, Kent – Thanet Platinum Century BP 160km 08:30 • BP • 1747m • £9.00 • C G L NM P R T • 50 • 24/8 • 14-28kph Thanet RC – David Kenning, Little Orchard, Pean Hill Whitstable CT5 3BQ • dave@widdersbel.co.uk 110 Herne Common, Kent, Thanet Platinum 110 BP 113km 09:30 • 1066m • £9.00 • C G L NM P R T 50 • 24/8 • 12-25kph Thanet RC – David Kenning, Little Orchard, Pean Hill Whitstable CT5 3BQ • dave@widdersbel.co.uk 130 Old Ma’s Tattenhall, Cheshire – Momma’s Mountain Views BP 137km 08:30 • 2000m • AAA2 • £6.00 • BD R L P T • 29/08 • 12.5-25kph Chester & N Wales CTC – David Matthews (ROA 10000) Hill View Cottage, Cross Lanes, Oscroft, Tarvin, Cheshire CH3 8NG • dmanu@outlook.com

www.aukweb.net

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AUK CALENDAR SATURDAY 01 SEP 2018

SUNDAY 30 SEP 2018

50 Old Ma’s Tattenhall, Cheshire – Momma’s Leafy Lanes BP 50km 09:00 • £6.00 • BD R L P T • 29/08 • 10-25kph Chester & N Wales CTC – David Matthews (ROA 10000) Hill View Cottage, Cross Lanes, Oscroft, Tarvin, Cheshire CH3 8NG • dmanu@outlook.com

200 Clitheroe, Lancashire – Last Chance Dales Dance 200 BRM 200km 08:00 • 3300m AAA3.25 [3000m] • £6.00 • L P R T • 15-30kph Burnley CC – Andy Corless, 31 Castlerigg Drive, Ightenhill, Burnley, Lancashire BB12 8AT • burnleysportiv@yahoo.com

SATURDAY 08 SEP 2018 300 Chalfont St Peter, SL9 9QX – 3Down BRM 300km 06:00 • 2661m [3100m] • £8.00 • YH G L P R T • 15-30kph Change of Date – Willesden CC – Ian Oliver, 68 St Dunstans Avenue, London W3 6QJ • ianaudax@gmail.com 600 Churchend, Dunmow – Fenland Friends (Flatlands Reversed) BRM 600km 1073m • £8.00 • X M L P R T C G A[1] • 15-30kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Thomas Deakins, 31 The Causeway, Great Dunmow, Essex CM6 2AA • tom.deakins@btinternet.com 600 Sleaford – Yorkshire via Essex, (The Flatlands Reversed) BRM 600km 06:00 • £6.00 • X • G •P • R • 15-30kph Audax Club Lincolnshire – Richard Parker, 28 High Street, Carlton le Moorland, Lincoln Lincolnshire LN5 9HT • lincsaudax@gmail.com

SUNDAY 09 SEP 2018 200 Kirkley Cycles, Ponteland – The Middle Marches BR 206km 08:00 • 2132m • £10.00 • F G P R T • 15-30kph Tyneside Vagabonds – 07875224229 – Andrew Berne, 5 Oakham Avenue, Whickham, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tyne And Wear NE16 5YU • andy@dixonberne.plus.com 130 Kirkley Cycles, Ponteland – Coquetdale 130 BP 131km 09:00 • 1520m [1278m] • £8.00 • G P R T • 15-30kph Tyneside Vagabonds – 07875224229 – Andrew Berne, 5 Oakham Avenue, Whickham, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tyne And Wear NE16 5YU • andy@dixonberne.plus.com

FRIDAY 21 SEP 2018 600 Bispham, Lancashire – Blackpool – Glasgow – Blackpool 600 BRM 605km 22:00 • 605km • 3600m • £15.00 • F L P R T • 15-30kph Burnley CC – Andy Corless, 31 Castlerigg Drive, Ightenhill, Burnley, Lancashire BB12 8AT • burnleysportiv@yahoo.com

SATURDAY 22 SEP 2018 200 Welton, East Yorkshire – Humber Bridge 200 BR 202km 08:00 • 1237m • £5.00 • G P R T L • 75 • 14.3-30kph VC 167 – Revd G Holdsworth, 1 Hidcote Walk, Welton Brough, East Riding of Yorkshire HU15 1FP 100 Welton, East Yorkshire – Humber Bridge 100 BP 109km 09:00 • 464m • £5.00 • G P R T L • 75 • 12.5-30kph VC 167 – Revd G Holdsworth, 1 Hidcote Walk, Welton Brough, East Riding of Yorkshire HU15 1FP

SUNDAY 23 SEP 2018 200 Denmead, Nr Portsmouth – Wylye and Ebble Valley BR 200km 07:30 • £6.00 • F L P T • 18/9 • 15-30kph Hampshire RC – Paul Whitehead, 73 Spencer Road, Emsworth, Hampshire PO10 7XR • mrpaulwhitehead@yahoo.co.uk

SATURDAY 29 SEP 2018 200 Kirkley Cycles, Ponteland – Copshaw Holm 200 BR 204km 08:00 • 2500m [1916m] • £6.50 • X C F G P R T • 60 • 15-30kph Tyneside Vagabonds – Rob Wood, 43 Holly Avenue, Jesmond, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tyne & Wear NE2 2PX

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SATURDAY 06 OCT 2018 200 Belbroughton, Worcestershire – Autumn Beyond the Dyke BR 206km 08:00 • 2628m AAA1.5 [2m] • £8.50 • G L P R T S F • 15-30kph Beacon RCC – 01562 731606 Dr Philip Whiteman, 2 Drayton Terrace, Drayton, Belbroughton, Stourbridge DY9 0BW • p.whiteman@bham.ac.uk

SATURDAY 13 OCT 2018 200 Galashiels – Etal-u-Can BR 204km 08:00 • 2379m • £10.00 • L P R T S G • 15-30kph Audax Ecosse – Lucy Mctaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria Street, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com 150 Galashiels – Dick McTs 150 Classic BP 150km 10:00 • 1576m [1600m] • £10.00 • L P R T S G •12-30kph

Audax Ecosse – Lucy Mctaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria Street, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com

SUNDAY 14 OCT 2018 100 Galashiels – Ride of the Valkyries BP 106km 10:00 • 1200m [1517m] • £9.00 • L P R T S G • 12-30kph

Audax Ecosse – Lucy Mctaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria Street, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com 100 Mytholmroyd – Season of Mists BP 105km 09:00 • 2555m AAA2.5 • £5.00 • L P R T YH • 12-24kph West Yorkshire CTC – Chris Crossland (ROA 25000) 14 Stanley Street West, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire HX6 1EF • chris.crossland@halifaxctc. org.uk 55 Mytholmroyd – Mellow Fruitfulness BP 55km 10:00 • 1200m AAA1.25 • £4.50 • L P R T YH • 8-20kph

West Yorkshire CTC – Chris Crossland (ROA 25000) 14 Stanley Street West, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire HX6 1EF • chris.crossland@halifaxctc. org.uk

SUNDAY 21 OCT 2018 200 21 Oct Bispham, Lancashire – Ride The Lancashire Lights BRM 206km 07:30 • 1800m • £6.00 • L P R T • 15-30kph Burnley CC – Andy Corless, 31 Castlerigg Drive, Ightenhill, Burnley, Lancashire BB12 8AT • burnleysportiv@yahoo.com

SUNDAY 28 OCT 2018 200 Galashiels – The Long Dark Teatime of an Audax Soul BR 200km 08:00 • 2000m • £10.00 • L P R T S G • 15-30kph

Audax Ecosse – Lucy Mctaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria Street, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com 110 Galashiels – Home in time for Teatime BP 116km 10:00 • £8.00 • P L R T S G • 12-30kph

Audax Ecosse – Lucy Mctaggart (ROA 25000) 30 Victoria Street, Galashiels, Scottish Borders TD1 1HL • pedaller1@sky.com

SATURDAY 03 OCT 2018 100 Witham – Essex 3 R’s BP 107km 10:00 • £4.00 • X M T G • 12-25kph Audax Club Mid-Essex – Grant Huggins, 76 Bryony Close Witham, Essex CM8 2XF • grant@huggys.co.uk

We invite you to our 2018 Super Randonneur Series: GENTLY BENTLEY 200 Sunday 18th March Tally-ho and chocs away! The first ride of the inaugural Kingston Wheelers Super Randonneur series. An early season pootle on gentle Surrey and Hampshire lanes to Bentley. Breakfast and dinner provided, ale optional.

AMESBURY AMBLE 300 Saturday 14th April An easy-going, gently rolling course, mostly on quiet lanes – an ideal first 300. Enjoy a second brekky at Lasham Airfield; a cafe or bakery lunch in Amesbury; tea and cakes or beer and scratchings in Whitchurch; and a late supper on a garage forecourt in Bracknell! What more could a randonneur possibly ask for?

DAUNTSEY DAWDLE 400 Saturday 19th May A ride of two halves: hilly and flat, in that order...apart from the last climb at 330km! You should be sheltered from prevailing winds on the way out through the Surrey Hills, South Downs and North Wessex Downs... then fly home with the wind on your back following slap-up pub dinner in Cirencester!

WANDER WYE 600 Saturday 16th June Visit 11 counties of England and Wales in one ride! Moderately hilly throughout. Bag drop service to our overnight control at Chepstow, so pack your sleeping bag, mat, toothbrush and Sunday best! Start and arrivée at scout hall.

Friday night accommodation available. Entry fee includes brekky at the start, dinner & brekky at Chepstow, and BBQ at the arrivée.

ROWLANDS RAAAMBLE 200 Sunday 16th September Starting with a classic Wheeler’s breakfast you are soon out of town and riding over the Downs and along country lanes. This scenic Grimpeurs du Sud route with climbs such as the Devil’s Punchbowl and Leith Hill and a double crossing of the South Downs makes it a great Audax day out. Although not the easiest 200 in the southeast the three cafe controls en-route will keep you going, and you will thoroughly earn your hot supper and beer at the arrivée! kingstonwheelers.co.uk/ride/audax audax@kingstonwheelers.co.uk

CONTACTS

Arrivée is the free magazine of Audax United Kingdom, the long distance cyclists’ association which represents the Randonneurs Mondiaux in the UK. AUK membership is open to any person, regardless of club or other affiliation, who is imbued with the spirit of long-distance cycling. Details in the Handbook.

MEMBERSHIP Enquiries: Mike Wigley (AUK Membership Secretary), Higher Grange Farm, Millcroft Lane, Delph OL3 5UX membership@audax.uk Application Form: www.aukweb.net/memform.php

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ARRIVÉE Extra Arrivée copies, if available, £3(UK), £4(EEC), £5(non-EEC) from Mike Wigley (address above) CONTRIBUTIONS Articles, info, cartoons, photos, all welcome.

Views expressed in Arrivée are not necessarily those of the Club.

Produced by AUK. Printed by: Severn, Gloucester Distribution data from: Mike Wigley and the AUK Membership Team.

WINTER/SPRING EDITION CONTRIBUTIONS: To the editor by 15th Jan 2018

Our web site: www.aukweb.net To subscribe to an AUK email discussion list, send an email to: audax-subscribe@yahoogroups.com Note: this group is not monitored by the AUK Board, who should be contacted directly with matters of concern.

Audax UK Long Distance Cyclists’ Association (Company No. 05920055 (England & Wales) Reg Office: Whitelands, Terling Road, Hatfield Peverel, Essex CM3 2AG © Arrivée 2017

Board and delegates CHAIR Chris Crossland 14 Stanley Street West, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire, HX6 1EF Tel 01422 832 853

ANNUAL AWARDS SECRETARY Mike Lane, 8 Ford Lane, Emersons Green, Bristol BS16 7DD

BADGE AND MEDAL SHOP SECRETARY Allan Taylor

SYSTEMS MANAGERS (www. aukweb.net) Website Delegate: Francis Cooke Systems administrator: Terry Kay Assistants: Pete Coates, Matt Haigh

FINANCE DIRECTOR: Vacant Assistant Nigel Armstrong (Accounts)

DIRECTOR AND CALENDAR EVENTS SECRETARY Martin Foley 78 Denholm Road Musselburgh East Lothian EH21 6TU

IT MANAGER (website development) Richard Jennings Richard has the following assistants Miranda Smith, Otto Reinders, Helen Kellar, Matthew Larkins, Nick Wilkinson, John Burgato, Ivan Cornell, Dan Smith MILEATER SECRETARY Paul Worthington, 213 Greenhill Road, Liverpool L18 9ST FWC (Fixed Wheel Challenge) AND SUPER FIXED WHEEL Richard Phipps, 77 West Farm Avenue, Ashtead, Surrey KT21 2JZ GENERAL SECRETARY Graeme Provan Whitelands, Terling Road, Hatfield Peverel, Essex CM3 2AG Graeme has the following assistants Registrar – Les Hereward, 20 Webster Close, Oxshott, Surrey KT22 0SF ANNUAL REUNION ORGANISER Paul Rainbow, 49 Quarrington Road, Horfield, Bristol, Avon BS7 9PJ

DIRECTOR AND MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY Mike Wigley Higher Grange Farm, Millcroft Lane, Delph OL3 5UX Mike has the following Assistants Peter Davis (Enrolments) Peter Gawthorne (Renewals) Richard Jennings (Enrolments) Howard Knight (Enrolments) Allan Taylor (Renewals) Findlay Watt (Renewals) LRM/ACP CORRESPONDENT Chris Crossland 14 Stanley Street West, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire, HX6 1EF Tel 01422 832 853 COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR Ged Lennox Walnut Farm, Bagpath, Tetbury, Gloucestershire GL6 8YQ PUBLICATIONS MANAGERS Winter/Spring Arrivée Editor: TBA Spring/Summer Arrivée Editor: TBA Summer/Autumn Arrivée Editor: TBA Autumn/Winter Arrivée Editor: Peter Moir 2 Peel Close, Ducklington, Witney, Oxfordshire, OX29 7YB Tel 01993 704913

REGIONAL EVENTS DELEGATES Nigel Hall (Scotland & Northern England) Geoffrey Cleaver (Midlands & Eastern England) Pat Hurt (South East England) Ian Hennessey (South West England & Wales) DIRECTOR AND PERMANENTS SECRETARY John Ward 34 Avenue Road, Lymington SO41 9GJ Tel 01590 671205 DIY REGIONAL REPRESENTATIVES Joe Applegarth (North-East) Andy Clarkson (Yorkshire & East) Julian Dyson (North-West) Martin Foley (Scotland) Tony Hull (South-West England and South Wales) Chris Smith (Midlands, North and Mid-Wales) Paul Stewart (South-East) OCD DELEGATE Rod Dalitz 136 Muir Wood Road, Edinburgh EH14 5HF

BREVET CARD PRODUCTION SECRETARY Oliver Iles 49 Upper Belmont Rd, Bishopston, Bristol BS7 9DG Production of Permanent cards is handled by: John Ward 34 Avenue Road, Lymington SO41 9GJ VALIDATION SECRETARIES: Sue Gatehouse and Keith Harrison 11 Heather Avenue Hellesdon Norwich NR6 6LU RRTY AWARD SECRETARY Caroline Fenton AAA SECRETARY Oliver Iles, 49 Upper Belmont Road, Bishopston, Bristol BS7 9DG aaa@audax.uk AUK FORUM ADMINISTRATOR Martin Foley Assistants: Peter Lewis, Les Hereward (Moderators) DIRECTORS WITHOUT PORTFOLIO Dave Minter 41 Lyndhurst Avenue, Pinner HA5 3UZ xJohn Sabine 107 Victoria Way, London SE7 7NU

EVENT SERVICES DIRECTOR & RECORDER Peter Lewis 82 Pine Road, Chandlers Ford, Eastleigh SO53 1JT Tel 07592 018947

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London-Edinburgh-London 2017 – Picture © Ivo Miesen

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