Thanks Stu & Dee* for the organisation and route planning. The event is first of its kind on these shores and one that will hopefully become a classic in future years. I think the course went together well, the bit I was looking forward to the least was surprisingly rideable even in the dark, th...

205km in 17h 23m!

210km according to my gps...

Thanks to those who followed the tracking page. Glad I provided some entertainment for those not able to make it :)

hurry up and get it over with

Thanks, I'll do my best :)

Does the "BB" in BB200 stand for Bara Brith then?

edit: @JC - nice looking set up there.

Update: The cafe at Coed Trallwm will be open from 11am by special arrangement on Sunday. If you happen to pass through after this time, I would encourage you to stop and show your support.

To be fair, I've made a number of sacrifices in terms of comfort. Not everyone's choice obviously so when you're tucked up in your fluffy sleeping bag laid out on your comfy neoair watching the telly and sipping wine, I could be shivering my backside off somewhere in some dank wood with no prospect ...

Whole bike* weighs 30.2 lbs using the bathroom scales method.

* that's everything except water in the bottles, so add ~3lbs for two full water bottles.

No ultra vest: forecast is 8 degrees so should be OK with just a base layer. No tarp: I will be picking my spot carefully, but it should be OK. p.s. good luck with the wedding. You realise that if the BB200 is the same weekend again next year, you'll be looking for a pink pass on your first annivers...

Ignore this post, I didn't read the stuff above properly

As I know the owners of Coed Trallwm, I've emailed them to let them know they'll be bikers passing through early on Sunday. If they decide to open earlier than 12pm, I will post here to let others know.

Hmm, not all that much in practice, though the weight does begin to add up. Moonlight bivvy bag (200g) Balloon bed (80g) PHD minim bag (350g) First aid kit (30g) Tools/pump/tube etc (500g) Waterproof (270g) Spare upper layer (170g) Arm warmers (80g) Partial frame bag (150g) Harness (120g) Sub 2 kg +...

Nothing odd here. Just your regular trail stuff. There isn't even anything odd about my bike.

2012 `Black Ops` Surly Pugsley by coastkid71, on Flickr

I have a friend who has done it too, but it was 20 years ago. He wrote the book I mentioned on this topic:
http://bearbonesbikepacking.co.uk/phpBB ... p=972#p972

Hell fire and damnation averted, for now at least:


Lucky 7 by ianbarrington, on Flickr

Have you considered option 3, Matt?
Drop in Hafren Forest, zip down to the car park and back along the road to Pennant. You'd be back by lunchtime on Saturday no problem :)

No, just me and the clock :)

This changes EVERYTHING

:twisted:

The route then goes onto the byway at the top of the initial climb. Not sure what you mean by initial bit, as I didn't really notice a slackening gradient when I last rode it :? Fireroad up to 779626 (green arrow in pic) and then byway? http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6234/6224371692_a5bd640c9b.jpg ...

Similarly, the climb after Strata Florida - are you intending for people to ride the byway or the fireroad? The mapped track appears undecided as to which it should follow, particularly on the lower section (viewing in bikehike)

The section east of Garreg-Ddu Res: Is it specifcally along the cyclepath below the tarmac road, and the road would be deemed "off route"?

There's a cafe at Coed Trallwm, which is just before the slog back over to Rhayader. Not sure of their opening times at this end of the season, but I'll try and find out.

Time away from family is the biggest consideration for me/ us.
Bears don't bother me but I'm not keen on spiders, especially the big hairy ones that frequent the southern parts

Sounds good. Count me in