Baa Baa Bikepack - 5360km in the UK.

[Bearbonesnorm]

June 29th, 2018 ... anyone?

http://www.bikepack.cc/

[PJG]

From the site:
"This event is definitely not for everyone and it is probably not for you."

[Bearbonesnorm]

From the site:
"This event is definitely not for everyone and it is probably not for you."

That's probably a fair comment really.

[Chew]

I'm struggling to think why?

Plus they've missed all the good stuff in Yorkshire

[jameso]

"This event is definitely not for everyone and it is probably not for you."

I like that.

[fatbikephil]

Interesting but I see they have chosen to send people back down the A9 from JoG - possibly the worst road in the north of Scotland (The NC500 has a lot to answer for!).... I guess the problem with routes like this is that they will have been planned with a map rather than from experience.... No doubt will be popular none the less

[jameso]

Interesting but I see they have chosen to send people back down the A9 from JoG - possibly the worst road in the north of Scotland (The NC500 has a lot to answer for!).... I guess the problem with routes like this is that they will have been planned with a map rather than from experience....

Don't like that so much

[ianfitz]

And it is a race. That uses bridleways in England.

Trouble ahead...

[thenorthwind]

Race against the clock - 1 Stage
One person will win. It is a race.

Having explained the details of the event to British Cycling, it was explained to me that the format falls outside of what they cover and also due to the likely distance between riders, certainly by the time we get off the initial sections on cycle paths, that this does not form the definition of a race under the Race regulations. Therefore it is a race for your purposes.

Well is it a bloody race or isn't it?

[Yorlin]

Hmm they don't like pajamas much!

The road on the west side of Loch Lomond And yeah that bit of the A9 is pretty grim...

[ianfitz]

Race against the clock - 1 Stage
One person will win. It is a race.

Having explained the details of the event to British Cycling, it was explained to me that the format falls outside of what they cover and also due to the likely distance between riders, certainly by the time we get off the initial sections on cycle paths, that this does not form the definition of a race under the Race regulations. Therefore it is a race for your purposes.

Well is it a bloody race or isn't it?

Everyone starts at the same time, rides against the clock to win.

BC will call that a race. Because it is.

Thanks to paranoia in the horsey-horsey lobby the amendment to the road traffic act makes it illegal to race bikes on bridleways.

So now bikepacking IS called racing in public. Not good.

Does anyone know who is organising this?

[Single Speed George]

ye that looks quite hard , miglt leave that to people with fitness, toughness and gears , i will stick to weekend single speed pottering

[Bearbonesnorm]

Thanks to paranoia in the horsey-horsey lobby the amendment to the road traffic act makes it illegal to race bikes on bridleways.

That particular law goes way back Ian. They'll be okay on the section north of the border though

I hadn't realised there were any bridleways involved (although I hadn't bothered to look at the route maps) and assumed it was a road event. This notion probably also had something to do with this comment - "Having explained the details of the event to British Cycling"

WTF would anyone attempt to involve BC in anything and even more so, anything bikepacking related. and

Does anyone know who is organising this?

Stu, Toby and Jason apparently ... but I don't know who they are.

[ianfitz]

Thanks to paranoia in the horsey-horsey lobby the amendment to the road traffic act makes it illegal to race bikes on bridleways.

That particular law goes way back Ian. They'll be okay on the section north of the border though

I hadn't realised there were any bridleways involved (although I hadn't bothered to look at the route maps) and assumed it was a road event. This notion probably also had something to do with this comment - "Having explained the details of the event to British Cycling"

WTF would anyone attempt to involve BC in anything and even more so, anything bikepacking related. and

South Downs way is in the description, I've not studied the route.

I have sent, what I hope is a polite rather than green-ink, email with my observations.

[ScotRoutes]

Given the complete balls up they've made of the Scottish section I'd have little confidence in any of the rest of it.

[ZeroDarkBivi]

Had look at the web page, and whilst it's good that people are willing to put some effort into organising something like this, it all seems a bit confused, even a bit arrogant.

Will be interested to see if anybody finishes (or even turns up), but not for me.

[macinblack]

Had look at the web page, and whilst it's good that people are willing to put some effort into organising something like this, it all seems a bit confused, even a bit arrogant.

Will be interested to see if anybody finishes (or even turns up), but not for me.

There's about 30 signed up but, strangely, no one from here yet?

[Chew]

There's about 30 signed up but, strangely, no one from here yet?

errr.... there is

I'll let them reveal themselves

[Single Speed George]

There's about 30 signed up but, strangely, no one from here yet?

there are others ?? ... tbh i did just join bike and bivi on face book like a week ago and it appears other people do this ... but ye does look a bit of a strange event / route

[macinblack]

There's about 30 signed up but, strangely, no one from here yet?

errr.... there is

I'll let them reveal themselves

Oh? Okay, best of luck to them and I hope it is as challenging and rewarding as you would want it to be.

I think I'd have to start now to finish with them.

[Ian]

Does anyone know who is organising this?

Stu, Toby and Jason apparently ... but I don't know who they are.

Stuart McCormick (Scotland), Toby Willis (Wales) and Jason Woodhouse (England).

There's also Mike Hill from Wales - typo, maybe?

Lots of pictures of road bikes on the roster page, and names of people with TransAm / TCR form.

Surely a road event for that sort of distance though?

[ianpv]

Surely a road event for that sort of distance though?

yep - seems to be a road event with a 100mile off road section on the south downs way.

[Javi]

I've signed for this. I'm now looking into the details of the route. Secondary roads are fine but busy ones don't like much.

[ton]

i would love to see the 'safe' route to link the Dales to Norfolk.

trying too hard to make a tough event imho. i know a bloke who has cycles the coastline of the UK or as near to it as possible. he did it on a 70's jackson tourer with 1 pannier. he camped every night.
my kind of tough.

[Dave Barter]

Are you sure it goes on bridleways? I cannot see for definite on my phone.

I don't have hate for this event, it seems a convergence of Audax with racing to me rather than a divergence of bikepacking. I think the bikepacking tag is the unfortunate bit. I know a few of those signed up and it is right up their street, just the sort of thing they would be hankering for.

Anyone who has road raced in th UK would realise that it is a disastor these days in terms of rider skills, lack of long distance events and crop routes. Sportives just don't fill the gap and there is clearly a vein of riders looking for something dead hard. Think HT550 on skinnies.

I agree with the A9 comments though. Also they are right, it ain't for me.