London to Paris in 24 hours on a Track Bike

How comes?

Pretty big gear right? And no brake(s).

Ah i See.

When i bought it i thought it was going to be too much as my last bike was 67(ish) GI and this I believe is 82. But it was comfortable from the off so I never bothered putting the smaller chainring on it.

Weirdly I only get knee pain when off the bike for a few days

Weirdly I only get knee pain when off the bike for a few days

That's your body telling you to get back on the bike! ;)

I get withdrawal symptoms and end up watching hours of cycling videos on youtube if i have a few days off. Sad really

Got an itch for this again. Anyone ever done Dieppe-Paris-Dieppe?

Thinking of giving it a whirl without an overnight stop, hopefully get to Paris, have some (lots of) food, chill for an hour or two then turn around and come back

I did this, but cut short because of a friends broken collarbone when he fought a caravan.

I feel like I’d always skip Paris because of the traffic, roads etc.

Which always makes me question - why not stick to something UK based, or jaunt into Belgium for some tinnies?

Yeah i did think about keeping it UK based just something about pedaling to a whole different country that's appealing to me. Far less chance for me to sack it half way too if i know ive got to wait til the next day to get a ferry back too!

And pretty much as soon as my arse stopped hurting after doing it last year i wanted to go back on a road bike and give it a go.

Was trying to plan it with 2 mates but one is a nightmare for tying down to dates and im not sure the other would fancy the idea of there and back (he told me MANY MANY times when cycling back from St Pancras "never again")

Considering just booking a ferry on the bank holiday weekend and going for it solo

I would be up for that. Being french i have done the ride many times and always tried variations on the route. I would also not favor having to enter and exit paris at midday, not a great experience imo. Otherwise what you might consider is heading to versailles. Better sights, better roads, better elevation and a castle

When you say "Better Elevation"??

i meant better. there is "more" elevation as you have to go up onto a plateau, but you basically go around the shitty commercial estates and suburbs that going in a straight line to the arc-de-triomphe force you to do, twice.

Yeah the last 20 miles into Paris was pretty shit to say the least.

That looks like it could be fun.

Had better check with my wife that dates next month are going to work before booking ferries

.....yeah she has raised a good point....our second child is due a couple of weeks later so probably not the best idea to go off for a long weekend so close to the due date. Might have to be even more gung ho about it and book it for the first May bank holiday weekend

I would hop on a train,
grab a taxi,
rent a van,
anything to escape the ugly bits,
and still get the buzz of rolling in town.

The arc de triomphe pavés are pretty buzzy in fact. Just make sure you don't rock up with a chartreuse gilet to not attract the attention of the local popo

First may bank holiday it is then.

Thursday late ferry, then ride from Dieppe to Versailles and back in time for the last ferry back Friday.

Got to average 12.5mph with stops that should be doable

Might set up a ride thread on here to see if anyone else fancies this. Or even just the first half then they could break off and get the Eurostar home i suppose

Even better...there's a 1am ferry coming back so a little less time pressure

i followed the route from this dude a good few years back and the bit into paris is pretty chilled.

http://www.donaldhirsch.com/dieppeparis.html

Yeah I did Paris last year think I am going to go to the Palace of Versailles this time to swerve the rubbish Paris part and for a bit of variety.

i quickly mocked up my suggested route to paris, aiming at minimizing distance.
https://www.strava.com/routes/18062163

First part the classic avenue Verte, but with a custom fast exit out of dieppe.
There should be an early opening boulangerie 55.4 km in Forges les eaux.
Then i usually get the busiest route (but swiftest) road straight to Gournay-en-Bray for a coffee at the B-52 (km75). Again it should be open early as there is a Fruit & Veg market half of the week.
In Gisors, Le commerce is the best place for a coffee with crazy locals.
Now 75km to go with the hard bits. Heading south-east to versailles you get to go through the Vexin is a Costwolds-type wealthy area with rich farmers and neat villages. Magny en Vexin should offer some catering options.
Then comes the hard climb between 144 and 148km. But the reward is the Route Royale, 20 flat kms through field and forest on a cycle path.
The last 5km to Versailles are shit but there is not much you can do, you can go straight on the busy road or sidetrack on paves.

There you go, the fastest you can do to the arc de triomphe is roughly 162km, this is 175km.

thats a very similar route to the one i took last year. booking the ferry tomorrow im quite relaxed about it this time round gonna just go for it. not much else i can do really seeing as this is happening in a few weeks

Thread dredge but I'm about to attempt a similar ride but over a couple of days with friends, they're catching the Eurostar back but I'll be riding home in 2 days. Would appreciate any route tips you may have, or places to wild camp/camp en route back from Paris.