2010-05-02 - Isle of Wight Randonnee

Ha, that was excellent! Cruising past all the roadies up the hill. Though they had the last laugh as they cruised past on the way down the other side.

I just remembered the guy we saw on a Bob Jackson FG who was rocking 85"...

Nice one, will you be getting the ferry to Fishbourne or Ryde?

the views and rum stops are worth it. caravans and tents work well, the camp sites are close to the ferry site so you don't have to carry them around all day.

is the plan to go for two days and do the island both ways????
I wasn't planning to do this but I'd be up for it if others were.
As for lugging kit around; I figured I'd take a big bag and dump everything in the tent for the ride. The campsite is only about 5 miles from the ferry so shouldn't be too bad lugging it there.

Have this one pencilled in already, just need to work on the logistics.

Ha, that was excellent! Cruising past all the roadies up the hill. Though they had the last laugh as they cruised past on the way down the other side.

I just remembered the guy we saw on a Bob Jackson FG who was rocking 85"...

you mean this dude, wouldnt have messed about with him.........

That's the guy! He was acting like 85" and 100k was a walk in the park.

Let's talk logistics. Group bookings to be precise. Who's camping it up and who's doing a day trip?

i'll probably be up for a day trip. if possible.

I'm thinking of doing it.... probably hotel in Portsmouth the night before, ferry to Ryde and then back the same day.

Camping:

1. Arducius
   
2. Pifko
   
   

Day trip:

Just plotted the route as best as I could remember, no massive hills but lots of short ups and downs:
[ame]http://ridewithgps.com/routes/39928[/ame
[/ame]

This is a good ride - there's a b$stard hill out of Shanklin (I think) and the head wind on the SW can be a bit of a killer. Fish & chips in Ventor remain the best I have had... ever.

you mean this dude, wouldnt have messed about with him.........

Slack chain.

That's the guy! He was acting like 85" and 100k was a walk in the park.

He may not be aware of the consequences for his knees. Then again, maybe he's hyper-fit.

bugger, i would be well up for this but I'll be in Iceland for my birthday*

*not Katona land, the real one.

Camping:

1. Arducius
   
2. Pifko
   
   

Day trip:

1. wools
   

I PM'd Jonny about this a little while ago. He mentioned going from Waterloo to Portsmouth Harbour, then the ferry to Ryde. About 50squids.

Daytrippers - should we try a group booking to bring costs down a bit?

it takes two hours to southampton from waterloo on a sunday. first direct train is 07:54. ferry's run on the hour, take an hour. last direct train back from southampton is 20:05. there's one at 21:09 with a single change.
similar times from portsmouth. i guess.

wools. YES.

May well be up for this one again.
Was an epic day last year.
Does anyone know: Is it the opposite way round to last year ?

Portsmouth, Southampton. All the same to me (they're both holes). :) Happy to go with either route. Someone with more experience please choose.

^^ it is - clockwise

Wools: It's worth booking train tickets in advance to get cheaper fares. Also you can get a ticket for a group of 4 that is often cheaper than individual tickets.

shoothtebreeze: Yes. Last year was anti-clockwise. This year will be clockwise.

Wools: looks like the later trains go from Southampton (scummers) to Portsmouth (Skates). Portsmouth then?
Earlyish start will get us in for about 12. As long as we can get to a train station for 9ish on sunday we should be back in london for midnight ish (latest). day trippers can group up on the day?

Camping:

1. Arducius
   
2. Pifko
   
   

Day trip:

1. wools
   
2. damo
   

Will there be any ticket availability issues on the day you reckon? I don't mind putting four tickets on the credit card if it means securing places...