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My Paris experience recently:
Rue Cail has bunch of thali options, quick, cheap for Paris.
Bodhi vegan has a big menu everything I had was ok, and the takeaway comes in very robust packaging for transporting by bike.
Wild and the Moon franchise for good fresh healthy stuff but expensive.
Great falaffel at Mi Va Mi, which is opposite the og place across the street to L' As du Falaffel.
And for emergencies Dominos has two vegan options.
Supermarket soft fruit is excellent everywhere. Peaches and nectarines especially.

Fixie rides, yes please

Yup, but now they break in different ways (I would recommend to not relying on anything Miche):
https://www.lfgss.com/comments/17047372/

Yup, can't quite believe it given how crap I'd felt in the 3 weeks prior (felt like covid). Only really felt better a couple days before the start. Guess that just meant I was well rested?!
I think I got my fueling right for once. Only drank water with occasional hydration tablets and dioralyte, no sugary drinks, but for just one coke, two iced teas and a couple of strategic espressos. Had a huge variety of about 2kg of bars and snacks, and from supermarkets ate soft fruit, mainly delicious perfectly ripe peaches, nectarines, plums, bananas and blueberries with baguettes and hummous. And crisps for salt. Ate control food twice I think. And on the last evening had an excellent Indian takeaway which lasted 2 meals.
Least sleep I've ever had over that kind of period, but got by just fine on cat naps and and a few longer ones of just over an hour. Never had to be woken up by an alarm or wake up call.
Fixed was fine one the whole, but full disclosure, I started unclipping for descents after 500km. Was just doing too much damage hurtling down those hills for so long and needed to care for increasing bad achilles and shin splints. Walked about 400m of the uphills as gradients didn't get crazy anywhere really. But my god there were a lot of hills. Just so much hills.
And another confession, I failed to get my brevet stamped at Tinteniac on the return. I got to Fougeres and realised I'd missed it. Remembered I'd been so focused on getting sleep at Tinteniac I'd not gone to the control upon arrival and when I woke at dawn it was absolute chaos and didn't even think of getting my card stamped. Lucky the chip worked and recorded my passage, but it was a stressful couple minutes when I'd realised what I'd done.
Kudos to El Gonzo for pressing on for so long while not feeling great, absolutely massive effort.

Villaines-la-Juhel scenes

Think this was it, but in the dark in a sleep deprived state

Told this guy I know a guy from Pune

Got goosebumps arriving at the check in today seeing all randonneurness, such good vibes. But so not used to riding in heat. I'm P078.
Some bikes, which I think are volunteers' (foot retention-less skidders) and show bikes

People getting excited yet??
Couple weeks of covid means I'm now very well rested I guess.
Initial indications are it's going to be very warm, and maybe even a tailwind both ways. Even nights are warm with forecast saying things like 20 overnight minimum for Fougeres, feeling like 24. Know it gets much colder in the valleys, but looks like main thing is going to be the heat this year.

My zoa jacket, one with the hoodie, transformed my audaxing experience this year. I did my first X rated 400 and 600 so was nervous about having no organised place to sleep. As the zoa is basically the top half of a very good sleeping bag, all I needed was a pillow, mattress and bivvy bag. The thing is the zoa packs in between these things extremely well. Slept warmer than with my full sleeping bag. Am probably going to take it to PBP with just a pillow.

Fuck, just saw this now, guess I shouldn't ride Paris Brest Paris with these then

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Thanks all, excellent advice

I'm trying to get a train from Calais to Paris with a bike, but doesn't seem to be any availability on those trains. Even checked from Lille, also nothing. Anyone know if this is possible?

Ok, dibs what Thrasher said

So what are my options for a replacement crankset? (Nothing Miche obvs)

Other was a Primato.
Was a strange one, it didn't snap, more like went soft and then sort of peeled off. So although I was in a middle of Hanger Lane gyratory going down hill with speed through traffic, it wasn't too bad.

Miche Pistard 2.0

Strange line through this layer earlier this evening

Weather was perfect. My knees held up pretty well. Thoroughly enjoyable, but especially the parts before and after Finchingfield, so pleasingly fast and flowing. Really is the most fixed friendly route around.
Saw those penny-farthings up close at the end. The two at back in the pic above appeared to be brakeless (guy in the orange has a brake on the rear wheel). Mad

I'll take the tyres please, will pm

Augh, I tore the meniscus in my knee a bit about 10 days ago. Have done a couple tentative 30km rides past few days but even that seems to be pushing it. I'm very sadly going to have to be sensible and sit this one out

Ride back to the train at Southend-on-sea is a great route, about the same distance as riding back to London though. But you get to go on two ferries.
Or the coach from Dunwich, which just takes quite long:
https://southwarkcyclists.org.uk/product/dunwich-dynamo-2023/

Just the lock, so weird