Ultracycling

Are there 'proper' rinko bags that keep wheels separate from frame,
etc?

https://buds-sports.com/en/collections/bags-special-train-bike/products/tc-bag-tc-original-trainbag-train-bike

85cm is the width of the x ray scanner belt. Length doesn't especially matter.

You're probably right, actually!

I don't think they ask for any racing CV or demographic profile info, do they? So hard to see how they could do it other than on first come, first served.

Yes, but they don't (officially) let you have more than 85cm length. If it was just the scanner then they would be fine with say 120x85 (which I think might have been the case beforehand)

I think you could possibly get away with say 100x80, but 90x90 wouldn't work, as the scanner.

Nice.

I'll probably end up flying because I'll be booked solid but maybe I'll start trying this rinko stuff.

It needs government to make a rule that they have to carry complete bikes for a low fee - like £10

I think Le Shuttle has this, can’t recall the amount but there was something written into the terms when it first started that all bike travel on the service had to be under a certain amount. It’s pretty cheap for memory but I think there is some fucking around in terms of getting picked up by a van or something from somewhere in Folkestone. Think the times available are a bit shit as well.

Don't forget there's an option for fully assembled bikes into Brussels now. And from there plenty of onward options into DE.

I forget why that's allowed and not on the Paris route?

1 Attachment

That’s interesting wasn’t aware of that, thanks.

Good
Better
Belgium

The Eurostar offices in Brussels, Paris and London are completely separate so they make their own rules. One factor is the amount of space they have, but really it is because the Eurostar luggage people in Paris are cunts. That was pretty much what Eurostar in London told me when they (Paris) wouldn't let me take my bike on, in a CTC-style plastic bag, despite that being specifically allowed in the rules at that time. Eurostar in London apologised, gave me a complimentary ticket, but said that there was nothing they could do.

For info, these are the three trains a day that you can take a bike to Brussels on, for £55 (less if you book futher ahead):
Trains departing at 09:01 (train 9116), 13:01 (train 9132) and 15:04 (train 9142)

I've just (re-)found the ultra-distance global LRM Audax calendar:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vRU8adejamxip0ue6pMMGgRjPDNrboJp6SWYlf_k7HmhLyXSjEIMqOetBS5MSiRHZ96r9K7nzgtU9uc/pubhtml?gid=1480200001&single=true

Some juicy ones, although most of the links don't have a lot of info.

The Hannibal Rider looks particularly fun, although I don't think I could do it this year.
https://www.acpavilly.fr/hannibal-rider/

I emailed https://www.sportverona.it/

"The TransAlp Rando takes place every 4 years, therefore in 2027"

Thanks, I guess I'll put that one in the calendar as a nice surprise : )

This is super handy. Tho I bet if you try and travel at peak season these 3 trains are going to be like gold dust.

Yes, I expect they don't have massive capacity.
Then if you try to dovetail it up with bike reservations on ongoing trains to get somewhere beyond Europe it becomes next to impossible, or such an admin task that you just give up. Hence the appeal of going down the rinko route.

I researched similar to get to Calais last month, to skip some of the London interchanges you can cycle to Bromley South then take the direct train to Dover Priory
Book the ferry at least 2 days before else they price gouge you, then also arrive 90 mins before departure because of silly passport checks

As others have pointed out, learnt also you can eurostar fairly affordably to Brussels, but also Rotterdam/Amsterdam

Finally I've never investigated the cost of the Harwich to Hook of Holland ferry, but I now know a welcoming Warmshowers host fwiw on the Dutch side

Glad you hear you got a MGC ticket though, shame as I had it on my radar as one of my 'big' ones next year - but completely missed any media about the release, oh well!

Thanks - good info about ferry booking and check-in times. I saw the 90 mins but was hoping that with a bit of pushing in at the front of the queue I could shorten that a bit.

I've been looking into it as well. The objective is to get from London to Munich by 11:30pm so I can catch the sleeper to Zagreb (and there are other useful trains eastwards from there too).

I'm west so mainline stations work fine for me - either get crossrail there if bike is bagged, or just ride there. So I reckon that, if I get the first train from St Pancras, I can get to Munich that night:
London St Pancras 07:07
Dover 08:14 (station)
Port 08:30 -ish
Ferry 10:40
Calais 13:10 (port)
Calais 14:31 - change at Lille, Paris, Suttgart
Munich 23:26

On that setup I would keep my bike whole until either Lille or Paris, then bag it - wheels off but with forks still in - for the rest.

There's not a lot of slack in the system though. Taking Eurostar adds a few hours more - could theoretically get to Munich by 16:26

The other option is to go the previous night on the Harwich ferry. I've done it loads of times before . I've always done it overnight - for work and with family - and it works well but is not that cheap as you have to get a cabin. The day ferry is a lot cheaper but takes loads of time so not very efficient, and must be pretty boring.

TL:DR - it should be possible to get to Munich in a day, hence to Zagreb in just over 24 hours. Cheapest option is the ferry, but it's a bit tight. Eurostar saves a bunch of time but costs a good bit more and needs a smaller bag. Harwich ferry works well but expensive.

Thinking as I write, best option might be a late train to Dover the night before then hotel (or actually kip on ferry / trains), early ferry - they seem to go right through the night, and leisurely trains onwards.

Honestly, after navigating all this lot, the ride will be a piece of piss.

So with that plan you need your train from Lille arriving less than 30 minutes late in Munich? DON'T DO IT.

Yes, sometimes Deutsche Bahn works. Often it doesn't work out at all.
We regularly were hours late the last few years, including all kinds of unbelievable shit.
We now only book direct for longer trips, and if stuff works out one time, the next time will be utter shit.
This write up from an Englishman who wanted to do Amsterdam - Berlin last week is what you should expect as a worst case.
Tldr, skip the musings and go straight to nightmare.
https://rleighturner.com/deutsche-bahn/
Took 11 hours instead of 6 and an absurd amount of changes.

Yes, I've done trips on DB before. That's why I am thinking of starting the previous evening!

Adventurebikeracing (Ratn, Three peaks) just announced a new race: The hills have bikes Looks interesting.

It starts and finishes at de Proloog cafe in Amerongen. The 1130k route leads riders into Germany in search for some hills. 60 percent of the route is off-road.

Yeah sorry, it's just so bad that I wanted to make it really clear.
There's a Brussels - Munich train that takes under 7 hours?

I think anything north-south at this side of Germany needs a change in Frankfurt so 7 hours is probably about as good as it gets from Brussels

Yes, seems fast. It's 6h45m. There is a connection with a change in Köln and one with a change in Frankfurt.
So faster than my standard Berlin-Basel and somehow seems more distance.

The green leaderboard cause some debate and now this;

1 Attachment

There's a Brussels - Munich train that takes under 7 hours?

It goes via Paris and Stuttgart rather than Brussels.