I posted on here recently asking advice about the Lakeland 200, and finally got round to having a go at it. A few people asked for a report on how it went once I did it, so here goes.! First of all I want to thank everyone who posted advice; I made a checklist with notes on shops, climbs, hard bits ...

Nature gives women the ability to forget the pain of child birth so they do it again. I think men have the same thing when it comes to riding

Really enjoyed following the dots again. You can tell who the veterans are; early on it seemed like a lot of the "names" were further back than I expected, then they gradually eased through from day 2 onwards. I was feeling a bit of FOMO leading up to it after not getting in, but it sounds...

I’d like to know if Kerry found her bike Iv not read it anywhere Yeah the stalker on the estate found it the next morning and pulled it out so Kerry has now been reunited with her bike. Has Kerry posted anywhere about the story of what happened? I had a look on her Insta and couldn't see anything.

Riding to Achnasheen to catch a train this morning with the rain hammering down and a car pulls up along side me, with someone half-hanging out the passenger window. It was a still-bloody faced Kerry, grinning like a loon and shouting, ‘Go! Go! Go! I lost my bike in a river!’ :lol: Absolutely hard ...

All that, and Annie wasn't even in when he got there Great video, how was that bike still going.?

Really enjoying following the dots, especially as there's a few on here doing it. Sounds like it's been a tough one though, looking forward to reading some reports once riders have dried out.

Oh man, imagine being a rider enjoying weeks of sun and hearing about the dry, perfect conditions up there, then it turns just before the start

Well I guess that's what the HT is all about Good luck to everyone riding, I'm looking forward to some dot-watching.

Accommodation booked for Thursday June 12th for a Friday/Saturday attempt. Just hope the weather gods are kind now

Sounds like a great event. I looked at entering but family stuff clashed. A friend rode and posted how it was the hardest but most satisfying event he had ridden, and he's done stuff like Swiss Epic. Nice one, it sounds like you hit the sweet spot!

I ride a Mondraker F-Podium RR which is the XC frame but with chunkier wheels and a 120 fork. I find hardtails uncomfortable after a while and the full-suss saves time in the long run despite being a bit more weight, as it doesn't tyre me out so much. It rolls really well and covers ground at a good...

Logistically, Pooley Bridge makes sense, but perhaps try and work out where that'll leave you overnight and decide if you want to be tackling that in the dark. As mentioned up there somewhere ↑ it all needs riding whatever, but some stretches are definitely easier in the daylight from a navigation ...

. If the local water gets low, are the food stops very few and far between? With water levels being low, I'd not trust any 'local water' without a full filter set up—they're a bit manky. You should be ok if you top up everywhere you can water-wise though, and depending on time of day you're never m...

Not sure it's been mentioned on here, but Rich Siepp is having a go ATM: https://www.instagram.com/p/DJWdEz_NA-N/?igsh=bWx6YjRwaGl5aWI0 Started at Pooley Bridge, which as Bob points out above is the start of one of the longer "dry" sections as far as services goes, so perhaps not a bad pl...

Years ago I enjoyed watching the 'Beard Brothers' on U tube. There was no 'meaning of life' crud that you get today, just good old banter. Came across their cousins 'Too Far Gone'. I have only watched their last two vids as they head off down to Morocco. Similar non serious stuff. Gets my recommend...

I've been thinking the takeaway in Keswick is a good target to aim for before it shuts at 1am. Big old pizza to power you through the night 😎 Makes judging the start point tricky though. Maybe park in Hawkshead and ride the flat-ish 3km down to Near Sawrey to start. Well if that's not an incentive ...

. If the local water gets low, are the food stops very few and far between? With water levels being low, I'd not trust any 'local water' without a full filter set up—they're a bit manky. You should be ok if you top up everywhere you can water-wise though, and depending on time of day you're never m...

Sounds like anytime in the next few weeks could be a good window to have a go. If the local water gets low, are the food stops very few and far between? I usually carry 3-4 bottles on big rides so can go a fair distance between topping up but wouldn't want to get caught out if there's a long stretch...

This is great info, thanks everyone. How bad are the rocks? I've got Ikon 2.35 XC tyres and just wondering if something a bit chunkier might be better/more durable as rolling speed probably isn't so much of an issue.

I'm still chuckling at this understatement … …you get a bit of a warm up (including the 25% climb out of Coniston) Walna Scar Road is a hideous start to any ride! I guess it all needs riding wherever you start and so in some ways is irrelevant, but I'd choose to give my legs a bit of a spin before ...

Depends, to an extent, on how long you think you'll take. If not sleeping en route, Coniston is a good call. I ended up riding Ullswater to Staveley in the wee hours, which was challenging, even being familiar with it. If two days, then Staveley, with overnight in Buttermere or Borrowdale. If plann...

Great replies thanks, and the point about avoiding Black Sail and Scarth Gap in the dark is a good one. I'll be on a full-suss with dropper and I'm fairly confident on techy stuff but still wouldn't want to do anything tricky in the dark.

Looking to do this soon, and just wondered if there's a best place to start it? I know I'm in for a tough time so was thinking of getting the worst bits out of the way early so I'm onto the less-worst bits when I'm on my last legs. Or is it going to be just as hard wherever I start :lol: I'll be lea...

Is it still in Kielder forest? The one slightly negative thing I found was that the landscape is very similar for a lot of it, with the lines of forestry-planted trees all looking the same. Towards the end it was getting a bit monotonous ( I took about 9 and half hours to get round - that's a long t...

Did the 200 a few years ago on an XC hardtail running Thunderburts and it was perfect. My old wrists and neck can't cope with a day off road on a gravel bike. Really enjoyed it apart from a section that turned into a massive headwind for about 3 hours which was absolute hell. Like towing a caravan w...