4th TNR

[jameso]

Just seen that the entries may close at the end of the week due to the volume received.

Not quite - only the contact form (ie application for the postal address to send postcards to) may need to close - the deadline for posted cards ETA isn't changing. Post can take weeks from/to Italy or Switzerland. (just checked/revised the site wording on that point)

[Retiredtester]

Sent off an electronic 'expression of interest', but don't seem to have received an acknowledgement (as I believe the website suggests I should have) Just wondering whether I should I do another, or wind my neck in and stop fretting....?

Thanks a lot!

Tom

[BreninBeener]

my reply wasnt instant. i think James replies in his free time, so i wouldnt worry just yet.

Beener

[jameso]

^ Thats it, all quite simple stuff and no automated replies. Will get onto them this eve

[Retiredtester]

Thanks both!

[Elaine B]

Thanks to James for his forward looking approach to gender balance on TNR, i'm already in... (sorry if you were trying to get a flight from LGW to TRN on the sunday, I think I got the last one.... )
My thoughts now (obvs) turn to kit... after all discussing kit is the natural extension from talking components/setup/bars/…..
Reading the post on bivy vs tents and being low key etc I have a question for you... My bivy bag is an alpine/polar one and is bright red... (Its a Rab, a good one and was quite expensive but I didn't buy it) I 'usually' use a tarp rigged over the bike as its mostly raining or there is a risk of raining... my tarp is green and nice and camouflaged... so do I.
1. Buy a new bivy bag in a less obtrusive colour?
2. carry my tarp as well (512g) ?
3. No bivy and just take the tarp?
Having bought a new bike, pretty much specifically FOR this event.. I am keen to manage costs ;-)… so in the event of option 1...… I would really quite like a bivy bag with a hoop as I get claustrophobic.. ive found several online all quite expensive, does anyone have any experience with hooped bivy bags? Are they worth it?

thanks

[redefined_cycles]

Thanks to James for his forward looking approach to gender balance on TNR, i'm already in... (sorry if you were trying to get a flight from LGW to TRN on the sunday, I think I got the last one.... )
My thoughts now (obvs) turn to kit... after all discussing kit is the natural extension from talking components/setup/bars/…..
Reading the post on bivy vs tents and being low key etc I have a question for you... My bivy bag is an alpine/polar one and is bright red... (Its a Rab, a good one and was quite expensive but I didn't buy it) I 'usually' use a tarp rigged over the bike as its mostly raining or there is a risk of raining... my tarp is green and nice and camouflaged... so do I.
1. Buy a new bivy bag in a less obtrusive colour?
2. carry my tarp as well (512g) ?
3. No bivy and just take the tarp?
Having bought a new bike, pretty much specifically FOR this event.. I am keen to manage costs ;-)… so in the event of option 1...… I would really quite like a bivy bag with a hoop as I get claustrophobic.. ive found several online all quite expensive, does anyone have any experience with hooped bivy bags? Are they worth it?

thanks

Hi Elaine... Just a thought, that if you open up a thread specifically with your subject it will get alot more exposure and input. I'd be interested in the answers off the forum too as its a generic Q that would be applicable to many of the other multi day super endurance events...

[RIP]

Would go for 3) personally. No cost, and less weight without the b'bag . At 512g I guess your tarp is about 8x10? Plenty of coverage there for most weathers without a bivi bag, and if you're really worried about torrential downpours you could invest in a lovely BBB shower curtain at 30g from the shop . Problem might be getting your pegs into the ground in that rocky terrain though. Serious conditions so also assume your s'bag/quilt is up to the job. Having said all that, just ignore me because I never use a bivi bag so am probably(*) biased .

(*) definitely

[redefined_cycles]

But without using a bivi bag and just the tarp... wouldn't your sleeping bag become soggy if the ground was wet (once you fell off the sleeping mat which I assume everyone uses?). Just wondering and soz if its an obviously daft Q

[RIP]

Not a daft question at all . I find the bivi/tarp/tent/hammock/nothing question a very interesting one. Maybe I'm just lucky I don't roll off my mat, so am happy so long as I'm not actually positioned in a stream of water - in which case I'd be having other problems too I think.

[redefined_cycles]

Ok. Thats interesting.. and the fact that you dont feel the mat would get dirty or have a decreased lifespan without anything... I like superlight but without having to buy over and over. I have one of them exped thermoair or whatever they are called and cost near enough £100...

Hopefully at some ppint might be able to do away with the bivi and swap to a tapr/shelter and drop some weight as well as gain a little extra comfort.

Nice being taught directly by the pros

[Bearbonesnorm]

I'd just take the red bivvy bag ...

Chances are it'll be quite late when you settle down, so getting dark.
A bivvy is far less obvious than a tarp.
I took a bright blue bivvy on the first TNR - it was fine.

[RIP]

"pros" - nah not me guv, I'm a bit of an outlier, here's the man you want ^^^^^ .

[Bearbonesnorm]

Ooh just spotted the question regarding hooped bivvy bags ... my take is that unless things are really dire*, you never want to be putting your head inside ANY bivvy bag. IMO a hooped bivvy is likely to make you feel much more claustrophobic as there'll be something over your head / face even with the 'door' left open. In a 'normal' bivvy it'll be much easier to sleep with your head outside of it.

*and I do mean really, really bad.

[Elaine B]

TBH I don't know if I will roll off my mat as its usually always in the bivy bag with me so no, I don't roll off it... and ive also just ordered 2m of Tyvek from the shop so I will try it out and let you know …. thanks for the feedback re hooped bivies…. my tarp is 2m x 3m so doesn't do a full 'tent' when rigged over my wheel so I do still get airflow so not too worried about the bag getting wet... ive got the entire summer to try out options and the pegs into rock though had occurred to me for TNR too as I really do want to do an altitude bivy cheers folks

[Elaine B]

I'd just take the red bivvy bag ...

Chances are it'll be quite late when you settle down, so getting dark.
A bivvy is far less obvious than a tarp.
I took a bright blue bivvy on the first TNR - it was fine.

Sorted then

[redefined_cycles]

"pros" - nah not me guv, I'm a bit of an outlier, here's the man you want ^^^^^ .

I knew that too and everyones a little mad.

[jamiep]

I have been lucky and my postcard picked from the ballot. It has been an anxious few months waiting as I've been looking forward to doing this ride

[Scud]

Yep i'm in again, I don't normally repeat rides, and prefer to try and do different event each year, but this was a corker last year and because of the different route choices, i can go back and do the bits i didn't last year hopefully.

[BigRingGrinder]

No place for me this year unfortunately

Going to have a think about doing it at another time of the year but not sure whether that is going to have the same appeal to me at the moment.

[jameso]

Hi Phil .. there were a few cards that tested the rigidity of the draw process, inc yours .. keep in touch in case riders drop out, the dropout rate this year will be lower than last I expect, but still, it happens. There were a couple of additional cards pulled in to make up the numbers to the max (inc predicted dropout rate) and I put in those who hadn't ridden before. Sorry ... was a difficult process actually, should've foreseen that but underestimated how it'd be when actually doing it. You have a spot for next year as a back up plan.

[Retiredtester]

Delighted to have a place (thanks James) and interested to hear what people have done /plan to do regarding transport. It fits in better with my work schedule to go out a bit early, rather than having extra travel after the event, so I was thinking of flying to Nice and stashing my bike bag there, riding to turin the direct way (160 miles) over a couple of days and meeting up for the Sunday evening meal. Then flying straight home from nice. Has anyone used the left luggage storage (assuming there is one) at Nice and/or cycled the direct route from there to turin?

[jameso]

Has anyone .. cycled the direct route from there to turin?

A bit further down the FB group there will be some GPXs I posted up last July-ish, 3 of us rode up via the Col Lombarde last year using one of them and there's a few suggestions from Robert Charbonnier who lives in the area. Sea level to 2000m+ in one climb isn't easy but it was a nice route, 2 days, not too hard overall. We took the route that didn't take in the extra climb on the way up to the Isola turn off (sensibly!)

[pistonbroke]

I saw a few people retrieving boxes from the Cafe du Cicliste that they'd left there last year, I didn't have an issue as I'd left our camper van and MrsPB at a nearby campsite and taken the train to Turin. We offered a box stash service there which Zero Dark Bivvy used but I'm not riding this year so sorry.
Quite glad I rode last year with few will I get in or not issues.
If any failed entrants fancy an alternative European adventure, the Spanish C2C would be glad of your company

[jameso]

Quite glad I rode last year with few will I get in or not issues

Last year it was a 3 day rush on getting an email in kind of thing, different type of problems ... next year may be interesting as 1/3 or more places may be taken by those who didn't get a spot to ride this year. Maybe gravel will be old and uncool by then .. we can be a dull touring event.