Audax rides

To fit all the tired old tropes in?

Happy to give someone a lift to/from Tonbridge if it helps, leaving from Greenwich. Not a big car but couple of bikes with wheels off should be fine.

Tempted

dibs

Pick me pick me

Awks @Thrasher PM'd and WhatsApped so he's got the ride. I'm not sure 3 of us plus bikes will fit in a Seat Leon but... maybe?

Damn.
Well I'm only thin. Let me know

Submitted a diy as mandatory route to ride tomorrow and organiser has replied saying it’s under distance? Really confused as gpx is 108km and I thought I just needed to submit the route and a couple of controls.

All now fine , organiser hadn’t clocked it was mandatory rather than advisory.

Horsepower 100 on Saturday, should have stayed at home.

Had an awful night's sleep so was awake just before 4am with no hope of getting back to sleep. Mooched around for a bit, ate then got ready to head out, looked at my phone and estimated journey time was way longer than it should be, trouble on the roads I guessed. Sure enough, M11 closed at junction 7 ballsed everything right up.

Got to Dunmow bang on 9am, signed on and headed out. Cold, wet, windy. Proper shit driving rain and headwind all the way to halfway mark at Newmarket. B184 northbound proper shit; close passes, getting sprayed all the fucking time, I was wet as an otter's pocket after 10k. Head down and kept going, regretted not having mudguards the whole way.

Newmarket, massive queue at Greggs so my sausage roll craving went unsatisfied. Spotted some horses on the track that looked as miserable as I was. Route back was along some quieter lanes that can at best be described as 'agricultural'. Quad bike would have been a more apt mode of transport.

Made it back to Dunmow in one piece, filthy and convinced I'd lost a couple of toes. Went to desk and they were surprised to see me there, first finisher. Could not care less, everyone else quite sensibly probably took multiple breaks out of the elements. Had some minestrone soup, 4 little slices of pizza, two pain au chocolats and three chocolate mini rolls. Packed up and went home. I am 100% a fair weather rider, that was utter bullshit.

10/10 read

Honestly, that is the best ride report I think I've read.

#repped

British Audaxing summed up perfectly

Excellent - the glamorous side of audax.
Good of you to leave some food for everyone else!

The most audax thing I've read

Quality write up.

Think you're doing yourself a disservice though - as a hardcore fair weather rider I'd have bailed/not even turned up, so chapeau.

Glad my experience has provided at least a little entertainment.

@dsalmon - thanks. I thought it'd be a bit drizzly, not biblical wind/rain! Once I got there it was a case of in for a penny in for a pound.

So @jaeyukdapbap sent our cheques and stuff off for BCM - any idea how long it usually / might take to find out if we're in? There's another 600 in June that would work really well if BCM doesn't pan out but worried about the event filling up and don't want to buy an entry uncessarily (for many reasons)

BCM or nuthin'!

(Benjamin Allen's Summer Outing the following weekend looks quite good.)

Wander Wye would be my back up, one of SE London's most elite hitters has signed up so will be surfing her wheel

It runs at 1973 speed. You'll receive confirmation from Richie via typewritten letter.

(Iirc it took a good few weeks, I possibly noticed my cheque had cashed before I got the email)

Yeah usually when the cheque is cashed the times I've done it, or on one occasion when they emailed me because I failed to sign the cheque

That is very helpful to know, cheers!

This really makes me miss audaxing

Dragged myself and 16kg of bike/tat around Occasionally Hilly yesterday. I would hate to think what "Fairly Hilly", "Mainly Hilly" or "Entirely Hilly" would look like if the organiser were to devise routes around different adverbs.

There was some sillyness going on with trains, so I ended up ECEing it to a 200. This meant an early start and nudged the climbing up to a little over 3300m . The extra miles were unremarkable, other than taking the broken road off Mam Tor as a nod to the Harder Day in the Peaks ride I bailed on a week earlier and a puncture in the last 5km.

The event itself was well organised with a pleasant route taking us to the eastern edge of the Peaks under Bamford, Stanage and Burbage Edges before heading back down into Hathersage and into a bastard headwind, all the way to Hartington (via several hills, including Abney, Longstone Moor and a 19% out of Bakewell). Climbing into the wind was unpleasant, having to grind away to keep moving on the downhills was worse.

Things did pick up a bit when we finally made the turn and started heading back. A long, straight, sunny descent to Conksbury was very welcome and there were some great views at the top of Monsal Head (could have left the switchbacks up to Cressbrook for another day though...).

Knees were totally fucked by the time I got home and it was a struggle getting up the stairs. Thankfully they're feeling a bit better this morning.

4 Attachments