2010-09-19 Sun - The Red Kite Ride

No Idea Ali0sha, presumably we would have to book a specific time?

I quite like Arducius's idea of riding Oxford - West Drayton - Oxford. What time do you reckon we'd need to leave Oxford for this?

(Ox-WD-Ox would definitely require gears though - sorry to be a pansy but I haven't ridden more than my commute in over 6 weeks now!)

i will possibly be in "recovering from the night before" mode.

Well, the tenner I'd spend on a train could be diverted into fish and chips I suppose, and I don't imagine it'd take much more than the hour and a half the train would take. You going to be using gears?

EDIT: Ox-WD-Ox people, I imagine leaving at or before half eight from Carfax is going to be the order of the day?

An hour and a half to do 40 miles? No, I'll be looking at more like 2.5 hours. We have to get over some Chilterns, navigate, and factor in a little time for mechanicals (just in case). This seems to be the simplest route, and will avoid some of the steeper climbs around Watlington.
Yes, it'll be an early start, and yes I'll be on gears. The fixed gear needs some work so I don't trust it over this sort of distance.

1.Pistanator
2.CYOA

1. dicki
   
2. Skully
   
3. damo
   
4. wools
   
5. EEI
   
6. Superperegrine
   
7. shootthebreeze
   
8. clintsmoker
   
9. Ark Minor
   
10. Joe Smiff
    
11. 
    
12. jonny
    
13. ali0sha
    
14. fussball
    
15. Ewan
    
16. diapo
    
17. 
    
18. busseynova
    

Leaving at 08:30 from Carfax sounds good. What time is the regular ride setting off from WD? I guess we could always meet them on the road if we don't make it all the way to WD in time (the bit through Slough won't be all that scenic anyway)?

I just realised both my fixed and my road bike are in pieces, will try to get the road bike up and running in time if not I may end up riding my "racing only" TT bike... but aero-bars aren't so sociable on group rides. Whatever happens I'll almost certainly have gears.

Leaving at 08:30 from Carfax sounds good. What time is the regular ride setting off from WD?

Train times from PADDINGTON:
9.44am - 10.06am arrival
10.15am - 10.37am arrival

tempting...

1.Pistanator
2.CYOA

1. dicki
   
2. Skully
   
3. 
   
4. wools
   
5. EEI
   
6. Superperegrine
   
7. shootthebreeze
   
8. clintsmoker
   
9. Ark Minor
   
10. Joe Smiff
    
11. 
    
12. jonny
    
13. ali0sha
    
14. fussball
    
15. Ewan
    
16. diapo
    
17. 
    
18. busseynova
    
    
    

sorry. better to be upfront now than cry off later.
i'm 80% sure i'm NOT going to make this.

My being there is resting on my bike arriving in time - it's been, according to TNT tracking "in sorting" for 8 days :(

Definitely not removing myself from the list yet.

Come on TNT - prove yourselves...

sorry. better to be upfront now than cry off later.
i'm 80% sure i'm NOT going to make this.

Such a wetlip!

yeah yeah whatever.
friends from nashville on friday.
moodymann saturday.
pretty much sez "no" to sunday.

where were you on tuesday?

js - there are no hills that will kill you on this. i will be riding around 67" fixed.

riding through there a couple of years ago getting directions to turville from a local he said the hill out of it is worse than ditchling beacon. he was wrong.

but yes there a couple of honest climbs and one or two drags. it is good riding territory.

and good kite spotting territory.

js - there are no hills that will kill you on this. i will be riding around 67" fixed.

riding through there a couple of years ago getting directions to turville from a local he said the hill out of it is worse than ditchling beacon. he was wrong.

but yes there a couple of honest climbs and one or two drags. it is good riding territory.

and good kite spotting territory.
i fancy a 19t on the back would be better... will try and pick one up before sunday... (48x18 atm)

Joe: you'll be fine.

trust me, i'm a doctor.

i fancy a 19t on the back would be better... will try and pick one up before sunday... (48x18 atm)

am riding 48x19 joe. lovely gear. have done this route a few times on 48x18 and that was cool too. but you might like the 19 if you have a tough ride to clacton on sat. enjoyed that clacton ride last year - shame i can't make it this sat.

yeah yeah whatever.
friends from nashville on friday.
moodymann saturday.
pretty much sez "no" to sunday.

where were you on tuesday?

TBF, I fancied Moodyman too but I'd already sorted this ride

Tues, I had to be up @ 4.30am yesterday morning, meeting in Germany

I've had a few weeks off the bike to rest a knee injury, and am a bit out of shape. So I'm **not **going to be cycling to WD to meet at the start. What I might do is cycle straight out to Watlington, and follow the route in reverse to (Marlow and onwards if need be) to meet up with everyone coming from WD.
Any other other Oxford people be up for that? It would mean a later start, and a few less miles, but would give us more countryside and hills.

ALL DETAILS COMPRESSED INTO ONE POST, SAVE READING ALL THE PAGES AND DISECTING RANDOM BITS OF INFO

Starting from ***West Drayton ***and cycle from there....

Train times from PADDINGTON:
9.44am - 10.06am arrival
10.15am - 10.37am arrival

Route:

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/457653

36m from West Drayton to Watlington via Iver, Farnham Common, Hedsor, Cookham, Marlow then straight through. From here is prime Red Kite territory and this is where we'll hang out, get some snaps and go for a pint & pub lunch
I'v planned a route back from Watlington back down to Henley On Thames then across to Maidenhead and up through Burnham back to the route - a big loop effectively.
This loop all the way back to Farnham Common is around 62m then just carry on back to West Drayton for a train back(I'm sure some will just carry on back to London instead)
So in total the ride will be around 75/80m

For those of you who want to miss out the ride back there's an option riding from Watlington to Didcot Parkway to get the train back to Paddington.
It's 15m from Watlington - Didcot which'll make the ride from West Drayon to Didcot around 55m which might be more suitable for some, route:

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/459571

Trains back to Paddington are pretty frequent:

1.29 - 2.02 - 2.05 - 2.30 - 3.02 - 3.04

And take about 45/50mins via Reading

I reckon we'll all be able to get on the first 9.44am train from Paddington due to the bedwetters so I suggest we meet at Paddington around 9.15ish

am riding 48x19 joe. lovely gear. have done this route a few times on 48x18 and that was cool too. but you might like the 19 if you have a tough ride to clacton on sat. enjoyed that clacton ride last year - shame i can't make it this sat.

I am a 48x19 fan too. But round London it is just a bit too spinny for me.

Need to get 18 and 19 on my wheel so I can flip and switch when the mood takes me, which I think I will do tomorrow.

1.Pistanator
2.CYOA

1. dicki
   
2. Skully
   
3. 
   
4. wools
   
5. EEI
   
6. Superperegrine
   
7. shootthebreeze
   
8. clintsmoker
   
9. Ark Minor
   
10. Joe Smiff
    
11. 
    
12. jonny
    
13. ali0sha
    
14. fussball
    
15. Ewan
    
16. diapo
    
17. 
    
18. busseynova
    

I've had a few weeks off the bike to rest a knee injury, and am a bit out of shape. So I'm **not **going to be cycling to WD to meet at the start. What I might do is cycle straight out to Watlington, and follow the route in reverse to (Marlow and onwards if need be) to meet up with everyone coming from WD.
Any other other Oxford people be up for that? It would mean a later start, and a few less miles, but would give us more countryside and hills.

This is what I thought we were doing anyway, just getting as close to WD as possible... Sorry if I wasn't paying attention. I'm down for this just say when and where to leave.

*must remember to build bike.

Aaaand the weather looks to be beautiful! rolls eyes

i have had to drop out of clacton today cos i am sick.

hopefully if i rest today i will be well for this...