2014-06-20 Rolling to the Stones 2014 edition

A classic forum ride which I first did when Skive led it, and who also valiantly led it out last year with a small but high quality group.

A 90-100 mile ride (include the ride to the train station) out from Speakers Corner rolling to the stone circle in Avebury. Perfect for fixed/SS but gears welcome. Fun as fuck with empty roads and great countryside.

The plan will be to head out at 19.00 on Friday the 20th to arrive at the stones for sunrise solstice. That's 9 hours to get there which should be plenty. Though it's a great route it's not one for My Very First Night Ride™.

The train back is at 8:13 (the next is at 10:16 - I'd rather get the earlier train). £21 back but less if we groupsave it.

Those who want to shave off the first 30 miles the meet-up is at the** Bridge Pub on Wokingham Road in Bracknell around 9.45-10pm**. Looks to be outside seating. Happy to give you my number for logistical reasons - please PM me.

Other than that, it's the same old shit: bring food, tubes and patches, tools, money, smart phone, extra batteries, maybe something caffinated and some sort of fake gemstone to give to the pagans as offering. This is their Christmas you know people (which is also pretty pagan actually, but anyway).

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/4868249

List time!

1. YAL
   

bah! flying to Hamburg that Friday. at least, i will be cycling when i get there.

Doh, I have Chase The Sun commitments which preclude this unfortunately.

Tradition dictates that this ride must happen though...

subscribed

always a quality ride
^ ditto joe

I missed last year's, but did the two years prior. Maybe time to do it again...

In, I have a work do but this looks more fun

1. YAL
   
2. Mule
   

It looks like it would be easier the other way :P

Dress code for this will be Druid-chic please.

like the sound of this!

Would be my first London group ride though, can I still get involved? done other centuries on fixed. What ratio you doing this in? average speed?

Nath I assume this is the ride you were talking about. I am going to try and come.

^ Yep!

I'll amend the first post with info and what to bring for this ride, eg lights, spares, extra batteries, food, not your mate's "vintage" racer which you've not ridden before etc etc

Somewhere between 66-74gi would make sense for this. I think about 15-16mph avg for this (possibly a little more depending on the strength of the group). It gets kind of cold around 3-4am and I don't want to be standing futzing with mechanicals or going so slow I can't get warm. So nine hours is the absolute upper limit for how long I want to be riding.

I'm thinking train back around 8amish. First Great Western is the train company responsible for the Pewsey-London route. I've had problems with them in the past as they have a bike-specific carriage so consider booking a train back including a bike reservation. It's less of a problem on Saturday but if there are delays having a bike reservation will help with the classic FGW Jobsworth Standard they do so well. Could book a four person group-save if the numbers start to firm up #phrasing

Dont suppose you'd be interested in doing it on the Saturday night rather than the Friday night, Dan...?

^ dublinkevin

Hey ms chris, ah I'd be happy to try to bump it to the next night but I've got something on Sat night. Sorry : (

and the whole point of the ride is to be there for sunrise on the longest day and mingle with druids, white witches and ravers

For those who are experienced night riders who have let themselves go a bit, me and Dropout are planning on getting a train out of town and meeting the ride en route and taking a bit of the sting out of the tail. I'll post here once we've agreed a plan.

We will probably be cutting 30mi or so. This will not make it a good candidate for your first night ride sadly. Prob best to save yourselves for Dunwich if in any doubt.

Having said that, if you're used to riding at night and would prefer that this route is 30mi or so shorter, we are going to come up with a bedwetters plan.

oh man thats sounds good, getting out of london is always a pain, i have a slight improvement, could we stay on the train to salisbury and get a taxi to the stone circles !

perfect for the forum veterans

I think we'll probably try to meet the ride at Bracknell. Forum helicopter group save? Probably only takes half an hour...

What time approx would the train be leaving? I'm guessing from Waterloo or Vauxhall?

I would be more keen to avoid all the misery of outer London burbs alright.

I'll post back here when I've worked it out.

I don't want to draw people away from YAL's ride so there will be obligatory fitness tests to qualify for the bedwetters group. Manboobs, bad backs and love handles mandatory.

and the whole point of the ride is to be there for sunrise on the longest day and mingle with druids, white witches and ravers

Asterix and the Ravers was enough of that.

But if you get the train you'll miss the pub stop on the outskirts of London, where those girls a few years ago thought we were a London gay cycling group.

Alas can't make this year as I still have no decent lights and am baby sitting my two nieces on Saturday. They exhaust me when I've had a good nights sleep, so I'd end up murdering them if having to do it sleep deprived.

or you could just drink all the way on the train I suppose....