Hard Day in January '22

Exactly how hilly is this one likely to be?-I've done Toy's once or twice but only geared, and most of my fixed riding has been in the flat lands of London and my other riding in the equally rather flat lands of Epping/essex.
I'm currently running 48x16 for commuting from East Ham into Central but I guess this is going to be rather too steep a gear as my commute is fast and flat, so any suggestions what rear sprocket to swap to for suitable gearing would be greatly appreciated. I obviously don't want to grind to a halt on the hills, but equally don't want anything so spinny that my legs fall off and the flat sections...Any suggestions anyone?

48x18 or 48x19, prob 48x19. When it's flat, which there isn't much of, we won't be smashing it so will get you up and then you'll spin down without wanting to bounce around too much.

Stick the 19 on and go for a quick hilly ride and see how you feel, eg the below and see how you feel. This is fairly bumpy but not terrible so the hills would be a good test to see what you can winch yourself up (or local hills). Somewhere between 66-72gi is what you're looking for https://ridewithgps.com/routes/26960350

Cheers. That's my weekend ride sorted then!

if SS is cool, I’m in. I’d be coming from north if anyone else is.

In January?

Definitely in January, especially when going through wood that get very dark quickly.

@jmg412 SS is cool

@Qebrus I'm also coming from Peckham

Yes Si! Been too long.

:)

Perfect!

@sbajda organizing the clone in Denmark for the 4th time.

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If the borders are are sensible next year I'm going up to do this 100%

EPIC!!

Up for at least half of this. Family xmas gathering in Edenbridge on 22nd, so will ride until I need to loop back to make lunch. Looking forward to it!

Also in. Train booked. Excited!

Excellent! And will be nice to meet you @Chopsicle

If turnout is as high as the list then we'll need to think about whether and how to split us up, at the very minimum until we're on Beddlestead to regroup. From memory I think London clubs (eg VCL) run a max 8-10 riders per group which I think is good policy. I'd like to avoid any unnecessary altercations, especially with any Range Rover Evoque 2.os

I tried this today to see if I can do this and got a pretty solid NO as an answer. Cursed weekend continues to be cursed.
(Currently walking across country to Oxted Station…)

Best wishes to the rider down at Beddlestead Lane. Cordoned off by the time I got there : /

No, you can't do it in what sense?

Ah.

Woke up and [a whole bunch of stuff] … NDS crank arm failed on the flat somewhere near Biggin Hill (so glad it wasn’t while I was loading it!) and I have no alternative but to walk out to a station.
… More generally [other stuff].

So yeah. Nah.

@vilms5000 if it makes any difference, I'm only doing half. If you aren't feeling it on the day, join me looping into Edenbridge around midday. There's two stations/two lines there with frequent service into town.

Hey there… thanks, I’m pondering it on the train creeping back to town. I figured I could just turn up and do it. But the mechanical and my seriously patchy fitness (papery lungs ugh) have given me a bit of a knock!

Hi everyone, at the expert suggestion of @cagimaha (thank you!) I've done an update of the route. In addtion to some tidying up back through town, instead of taking Back Lane and then having to do a little fight on the A25 and then Cheveney / Star Hill roundabout we'll stay south of Sevenoaks and go through Ivy Hatch to approach Knatts Valley. It will be quieter and more scenic with no elevation penalty. It also means if anyone fancies Exedown instead of Old Terrys Lodge on the day they can suffer to the top and have a short wait before we regroup.

We'll chat before we roll out on the morning but please have a look at the route. It has some actual hills and there are a number of technical and/or fast descents (Beddlestead, Star Hill, Tinker Pot) so give your sweet fixie a look over and have a think about what your legs are interested in doing at the moment. I am really looking forward to riding with you, but remember it's winter so the stakes are higher. We'll look after each other as much possible, but if a mechanical or fitness issue jeopardises the ride this may include helping you find a bailout train station. It's not about maintaining some badass avg speed, it's about being considerate to everyone else's day out on the bike.

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/37760758

Hello. Mostly a lurker but would like to join you all.

On the route to access Pilgrims I might suggest turning left at the top of Beddlestead to go down Clarks Lane. Titsey really is a bad road. Steep, busy, poor road surface and surprising off-camber turns. But I guess a lot of people might know that area, so might be no problem.

It's not that bad...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYzlKyIEcPA

But Clarks is deffo better!