Glam rocks

Ray Cox, his wife Alexandra and daughter Claudia, were among the first to take advantage of a new venture – a fully-supported, 800km, week-long cycling tour to Snowdonia, which promised all the pleasures of cycling without any of the usual anxiety. This is Ray’s impression of the glitzy world of Glaudax touring

❝It was one of those sunny days when the green of the trees and grass shone as if back-lit, full of promise ❞

THE IDEA of a long bike trip with friends and family, with all the organisation and support done by someone else? What’s not to like about that? This is Glaudax, a new venture by Richard Evans and his brother Tony. We joined the first of these supported bike tours at the end of May, 2021 – for a cheerful week-long tour to Snowdonia.

Getting to know Wales better was a big draw. My wife Alexandra signed up to the plan, relying on being able to get in the support van if need be. Our daughter Claudia, and a friend, Lizzie, were in training to do the Ride Across Britain (LEJOG) later in the year and were therefore keen. A friend and cycling buddy of ours, Mick, was also persuaded to make a group of five of us.

Stage 1 Aldbury to Tewkesbury – 139km, 1,300m

We started from Café Musette, a lovely bike-themed establishment between Tring and Aldbury in the Chilterns. This saved us flogging through London on the bike. Over bacon rolls, coffee, and much other breakfast fare we had the first of our daily briefs from Richard or Tony. For some reason, some in our group had trouble distinguishing between them, so they simply became “Richard or Tony” without distinction, or difficulty.

It was here we met the Bellavelos, a group of six girls from the SW London cycling club, who were also on our trip. They were very friendly, but there seemed to be an awful lot of carbon and Rapha, and it looked like we might have trouble keeping up.

Our bags for the week were loaded into the support van. Richard or Tony inhabited this for the week, although they also got out to ride with us whenever they could. One of the joys of the ride was that during the day you just took what you would take on a day ride, like puncture stuff, and layers.

We set off with a GPX route to Tewkesbury. The road book gave details, maps and suggested places to stop. The support van was waiting at 55km in a lay-by with water and snacks. During the week we would generally see the van twice a day, morning and afternoon. Some of us shared our location on Google Maps for the week, with Richard or Tony, which meant they could, as Richard said: “Watch the ducklings coming in”.

The route took us due west, over the Cherwell at Kidlington, gently rising up to Stow-on-the-Wold, where we had lunch in a sunny graveyard, to Tewkesbury on the River Avon where it meets the Severn. It was one of those sunny days when the green of the trees and grass shone as if back-lit, full of promise for the week – pretty much correctly as it turned out.

The Royal Hop Pole pub in the centre of Tewkesbury was the first of several pubs we stayed in. Some nights it was a hotel. The standard varied: it didn’t

❝It was one of those sunny days when the green of the trees and grass shone as if back-lit, full of promise ❞

Day one in the Cotswolds

matter to us any more than it would on an Audax ride. We were there to ride. Richard or Tony organised room keys and brought our bags into the pub. This was the daily ritual. Sun-burned, we sauntered to dinner at a local Italian restaurant.

The accommodation, breakfasts, and all support, were included in the price of the tour which struck me as incredibly reasonable, especially after an inaugural discount for Dulwich Paragon members. We basically only paid for lunch and dinner.

Stage 2 Tewkesbury to Rhayader – 134km, 1,350m

The route went over the Malvern Hills and Haugh Wood, then dropped into the Wye Valley. We followed the Wye for the rest of the day, gently uphill through Hereford to Hay-on-Wye for lunch, and then into Wales to Rhayader.

The rolling countryside was at its most inviting – it was like being in a warm, green bath all day. The roads were blissfully quiet. I couldn’t think of anywhere better to be just then.

Stage 3 Rhayader to Barmouth – 133km, 2,000m

I’ll never forget the Elan Valley, although I’d never heard of it before. It covers some 70 square miles and is sometimes understandably called the Welsh Lake District. From Rhayader we followed the Elan River to Elan village and then climbed past a series of major reservoirs, bordered by steep hillsides. Strange, tall towers stranded in some of the reservoirs were apparently for water intake. The views were breathtaking; water, hills, mountainside everywhere, and wonderfully remote.

Not far from Elan village our road followed the north side of the first reservoir, Caban Coch. Had we known it then we would have paid homage to a spot on the opposite side, where, hidden away, lie the remains of the Nant-y-Gro dam which was used in July 1942 to test a prototype of the bouncing bomb which later destroyed dams in the Ruhr in a bombing raid immortalised in the 1955 film, The Dambusters. The test of a relatively small explosive charge which was designed to bounce over water and sink down to the foot of a dam before exploding, was successful, and Nant-y-Gro dam was destroyed, although the remains are apparently still there to be seen.

Sheep were of course everywhere, but at one point hundreds of them blocked the road in a streaming horde. Numerous dogs and farmers were working to get them off the road. It was as though many herds had come together, creating an incredible noise and spectacle.

The road wound up the valley, rising over various peaks, until a final, glorious eight kilometre descent into Tal-y-Bont, after which we entered the Snowdonia National Park at Machynlleth. The coast road took us to the seaside town of Barmouth, which we reached by an 820m low, rickety, wooden, pier-like structure which carries trains, cyclists, and pedestrians across the estuary there.

Stage 4 Barmouth to Welshpool – 114km, 1,950m

Snowdonia continued with an easy ride further along the coast, past the sweeping Harlech beach. But then

❝The rolling countryside was at its most inviting – it was like being in a warm, green bath all day ❞

Day two along the Wye Valley

we cut inland along the River Dwyryd to a tiny place called Maentwrog – a name forever burned into the memory as the start of a nasty 20 per cent climb. After that was a long ascent to a high peak and descent to a lake at Bala, followed by a longer climb up the highest mountain road pass in Wales, Bwlch-y-Groes (otherwise known as the Path of the Cross, 546m), and a descent to Lake Vyrnwy.

The wind had got up and the going was hard. The support van came into its own, collecting an exhausted Alex near the top of one peak. After the charm of the Elan Valley this was raw and austere. We were glad to get to Welshpool.

Stage 5 Welshpool to Pershore – 122km, 1,350m

Leaving Welshpool, we also left Wales. We climbed the Shropshire Hills, and down a spectacular descent to Craven Arms. We then basically followed the River Onny to Ludlow and the River Teme to Worcester and then to Pershore.

Day three, Garreg Ddu dam Elan Valley

Final stage Pershore to Aldbury – 131km, 1,250m

The last day felt like a breeze although we went up and over the Cotswolds at Chipping Campden. I was delighted to see we crossed the River Ray near Bicester.

In conclusion, I felt this was a holiday for Audax riders. The route was truly inspiring, helped no doubt by benign weather.

We loved riding together. But above all, I think we revelled in enjoying an 800km tour with the freedom not to worry about all the usual things: hotel bookings, mechanicals, what to carry or whether or not you would make it at all. It was all done for you. Support was only ever a phone call away.

Claudia and Lizzie also got their first multi-day bike tour under their belts, and in September did LEJOG over nine days. Within our group, as within the Bellavelos, there were riders who went at different paces. This did not matter at all, we met up as and when we wanted to. In the end, nothing noteworthy went wrong; maybe Richard or Tony were lucky, but

Alexandra’s version…

I’m not an Audaxer, nor ever will be. I’m adding my bit to this report to maybe encourage the steadier cyclists among us. By steady, I mean those who struggle around the 20kph mark – which was definitely me among my group of five, who were all much stronger cyclists. I’m happy at around 100km a day with probably a maximum of 1,000m a day climbing.

Why did I go? To cycle with my friends and family, to enjoy the fabulous scenery, much of which I didn’t know; and, to be frank, because I knew Richard and Tony would organise it beautifully, which they did. Yes, I was worried about the 120-140k daily rides with 1,250-2,000m metres of climbing but knew I could rely on the van if in dire need.

Which was exactly what I did. Hugely encouraged by my fellow riders, I managed the entire trip save that fateful day four when the climbs proved too much for me and I called in the van. I don’t think Richard could quite believe it: “Are you sure you don’t want to get back on, now you’ve had a rest?” he queried as the skies blackened and our one and only downpour of the whole trip did its worst. I remained steadfastly in the warm, dry van. Good timing, that.

To anyone weaker than the hardies I was with, I’d say, do try it. As long as your group is willing to adapt to your speeds, and Richard or Tony is there to bail you out, it’s a fabulous trip. On top of that, you gain fitness: a week later I was on the NC500, again intermittently in the van, but doing it; and that, after all, is what cycling is all about.

they seemed to work most of the time, and I suspect the harder they worked the luckier they got.

Make no mistake, Glaudax is not cycling for softies. Even with support, the distances and climbs are designed for those comfortable doing 100-200km rides. For these people, this kind of tour is a holiday, doing what they like most with others.

THE GLAUDAX EXPERIENCE

Glaudax is the brainchild of cycling brothers Richard and Tony Evans – experienced Kingston Wheels riders who decided to add a touch of glamour to long-distance cycling, offering custom-made cycle tours to iconic destinations.

The idea is to provide riders with a fully-supported holiday tour over meticulously designed routes, involving quiet roads and spectacular scenery. Distances are challenging but achievable. There’s no sleeping in village halls or bus shelters – everything is sorted out by the organisers, from hotels, dinners, baggage transfers, plus the constant availability of a support crew.

Since launching Glaudax with the Snowdonia Tour in 2021, Tony and Richard have added three new tours of varying lengths and difficulty for 2022, covering the Wye Valley, East Anglia and Land’s End.

All the tours are multi-day circular routes from the Glaudax base at Aldbury, near Tring, in the Chilterns. The maximum group size is just 12 riders, with two “domestiques” to look after organisational matters. Richard and Tony will even tailor a route to your specific requirements. It should be noted that the Glaudax organisation is not connected to Audax UK. To find out more about supported cycle tours, visit glaudax.co.uk.