Audax rides

I joined for 2023 but have yet to do any rides yet but talking of DIY's, who would I be best to get to validate a ride if I'm in Norfolk? There isn't a DIY regional rep for the East. I'm guessing either Mike K (midlands) or Martin L (home counties)??

Glad to see the Dynamo can be done as a DIY as it's on the list for this year.

no loops allowed

You haven't seen @leggy_blonde race, have you?

I think the only time I've seen him race he was flying through the air.

It was the good kind of flying, though, to be fair.

Don't think it matters, if it's not one they'll redirect you.

For the Dynamo I used the following controls (this was in the days before DIYxGPS):-

Dorking (ATM at the station), Hackney (Tesco), Great Dunmow (ATM), Needham Market (ATM), Dunwich (receipt from cafe at the beach), Needham Market (Shop), Great Dunmow (Shop or ATM), Putney (ATM).

But that, ahem, includes some unnecessary distance over the standard Dun Run. https://www.strava.com/activities/162789959

From memory the normal controls (Hackney, Great Dunmow, Needham Market, Dunwich) come out at ~170km or so as shortest distance between controls so it's not too hard to come up with something before/after to drag it over 200km.

Ta. The grand plan is to continue on to Norwich after Dunwich to get home which would easily add on some km's. Whether I'll have the legs for it is a different matter though...

204 starters.

I just opened 200 spots yesterday for the 300km and it filled up in 12 hours!

Clearly the beardy Audax stereotype is global

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Martin L

Is on here, @swisshat I think - ask him?

Hi JDP,

I can handle your diys if you're based in Norfolk. Buy some brevet cards from me and then submit your entry. Any queries just let me know.

Martin L

Thanks Martin, I'll put an order in for dinner cards soon.

Thanks @frank9755

https://www.wessexsr.org.uk/Brimstone.html

Thanks

As it's on my todo list, I've had the Brimstone GPX for years (but perhaps not the 2022 version). I guess that really only leaves the 200k event I need but it'd be good if there were "latest" versions. I have two different versions of Porkers from 2018 and 2013 (and now 2022)

The 2013 version came from:

https://ridewithgps.com/events/31366-wsrseries

The Brimstone 2022 route appears to be from 2018 anyway.

The two Brimstone versions I've got are quite different...

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I have 3 different Porkers 400k routes...

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I know loads of people love them but those Wessex rides have never appealed to me. The combination of itsy bitsy, dog rough lanes that wiggle up and down every hill with 90 degree turns at the bottom of every descent, and routes that criss-cross and double back on themselves is soul destroying for me.

On the other hand, I really like rides like Bryan Chapman or the Flatlands, which go a long way in a reasonably straight line, mostly on decent roads. Each to their own!

The combination of itsy bitsy, dog rough lanes that wiggle up and down every hill with 90 degree turns at the bottom of every descent, and routes that criss-cross and double back on themselves is soul destroying for me.

Couldn’t agree more. I think Cornwall is one of the worst places to ride a bike in the UK for this very reason.

I probably won't like them either. But they're to be finished not enjoyed :D

I like my Dorset Coast t-shirt.

Add lost drivers absolutely hammering it around those shitty lanes too.

Cunt drivers hammering down country lanes is a problem for the whole of Shitain.

+1. The options are slightly bigger A roads full of cars, or narrow windy potholed lanes full of cars.

Since everyone now seems to drive a wildly inappropriate behemoth that's wider than your average Cornish lane, it completely sucks as a bike destination

I've always been audax-curious so (with much peer pressure from a clubmate) have signed up for this: https://www.audax.uk/event-details/8289 in a few weeks' time.

Does anyone have any advice for someone whose longest previous ride is 160k (or whatever an Imperial century is)? I've been told to ride it well within myself and treat it as four 50k rides rather than a 200k slog.

I was in your position last year, for me the bitesize approach was key and just aiming for the next control. Some sort of carbohydrate drink instead of just plain water helps, eat little but often and eat some proper food for lunch. Mentally I like the lunch stop just after halfway so that I feel like I've broken the back of it.

Riding with someone also much better than trying to grind it out solo. Enjoy it!

Riding with someone also much better

I found riding with people who were slightly slower helped with the pacing!

Also don't make it bigger in your head than it is.
If you've ridden 160k, you'll find 200 no harder.