I had reason to be down in the Burren, Co Clare last weekend, and it seems like the ideal chance to get a spin and a bivvy in for June. I was late getting down to Kinvarra (work getting in the way again), and set off an hour before sunset. A nice road section started the ride, and I was treated to l...

Not convinced. The TD is a war of attrition against the elements, luck, your ability to ride into the night and many many other factors beyond rolling resistance. I suspect if you analysed moving average speed there's not much in it between the top 20. I seem to recall someone doing an analysis of ...

Ok, so looks like Zoe would have started earlier in the field. That’s not great.

Looks like the womens group is in order where the fastest woman in the group would appear if it were not divided. So it’s not clear to me that Zeo would be at any disadvantage, and others in the group perhaps benefitting? I’ve not had the chance to read her post though. From what I read the grouping...

I'm on hols down in West Cork this week and wanted to get in a decent spin and bivvy. The weather forecast is the usual unpredictable mix of sunshine, rain and gales. Mon/Tues seems like the most optimistic in terms of rain so off I headed, much much later than planned, starting on the coast South o...

April ticked off last Saturday. After a long day on the road, I packed up the bike and bits, and headed out on a shortish local loop. The ride felt harder than it should have, perhaps a result of a couple of days hillwalking earlier in the week. On the flip side, the camping is getting slightly easi...

March BaM ticked off last night. After a frustrating day at work, it was so nice to head out on the bike at about 10pm. I took a leisurely, and fairly local, loop out to the coast, and then back through the village where I live, before heading up into a nearby forest where I'd scouted out a suitable...

From my perspective, one of my aims with BaM is to hone my skills and kit to the point that it's the least unpleasant it can be. With TD aspirations, I want to get comfortable camping and be able to get some decent sleep and rest.

You just have to get on with it. Yep. Just tell yourself that it's like being on Skegness beach. Bracing. Shouting a variety of obscenities at the same time always helps me. I shall try that. In me caving days I remember one January having to climb into the day-before's wetsuit. Frozen up. I think ...

I just sleep in all my clothes :oops: I have done that and depending on circumstances might again, but if you're damp at all it's much warmer in dry kit. As a minimum putting on dry socks keeps the feet much warmer and if wearing padded shorts/bibs then getting out of therm and getting some air 'do...

As a newbie to this game, does anyone have any tips about keeping clothes dry? Or should I just HTFU and accept that I'm going to be getting back into damp bib and jersey when I get up? Over trousers, goretex boots, gaitors and jacket will keep you dry (ish) It wasn't raining; my mid-layer jacket w...

summittoppler wrote: ↑Sat Feb 26, 2022 12:45 pm Phew, managed to get the February one in last night!

Very nice, lovely scenery and lovely grub too!

Running out of time for a Feb BaM, so out last night for a local spin around the Cooley mountains (hills morelike). More mechanicals on this ride, as half-way through I noticed that the non-drive side of my Pinion C1.12 was moving slightly, soased off the pedals to avoid wear and tear (and off shopp...

Hey all, my first post having lurked here for a few months. I decided that this was the year I'd have a crack at the BaM, and set off for a spin after work last night. I'd set myself the goal of a long ride out and mostly back home before stopping for the night. The route was mostly flatish, but wit...