This years route has now been sent. If you haven't received an email by midday, then you should do the following;

• Check your spam folder.
• Check ALL your email accounts.
• Go back and check the email account you use with paypal.
• Think long and hard about how you entered - did you use your own paypal account or that of someone else?

Still nothing? Get in touch and I'll forward it again.

One last thing, please don't put the gpx file into the public domain until after next weekend, thank you ... I'd hate for you all to get mobbed by groupies

Arrived here at the Big W Ranch

Let's see. Opens file in inappropriate website - gets slap from wife, opens site in appropriate website:

Hmm, ooh, err what

Stu you didn't mention in you course notes about everyone bringing a passport for border control

Quite like the look of that
Fast first half. Tough finish from Knighton back though...

Nothing for me yet.

You get to Staylittle, you're tired, it's dark, everything hurts......

You know that your car is a tarmac roll all the way downhill, back in 10 mins tops without a pedal stroke...

or

Turn left and go up a crappy slog of a route to the Star and then than that hilly field behind it and then a crappy convoluted way back to the start....


Cruel Mr Wright... quite cruel.. because that will be a mind game...

It has arrived.
I've imported it into Basecamp on OS 1:50K

What do all those pink dots and dashes mean?

What do all those pink dots and dashes mean?

I haven't got any of those. Go and load it into bikehike and have a look.

Still there. They're all over the OS Map.

I've scrolled around a bit and they seem to all stop at the Scottish border.

I've scrolled around a bit and they seem to all stop at the Scottish border.

Sorry Colin ... bit slow on the uptake

I assume it's something I don't have to worry about?

Hmmmm...

See how my snail's pace copes with that.

we rode quite a bit of the route on the wrt a few years ago, and the ending on this years
I think jase rescued a sheep from a fence on our way up beacon hill,

So can anyone with 'the knowledge' shed a little light on what we can expect in terms of terrain on this years route?

Obviously there's going to be a smattering of everything (except tussocks obviously) but a nice little summary and overview would be very much welcome and useful.

Thanks in advance.....

Matt wrote:You get to Staylittle, you're tired, it's dark, everything hurts......

You know that your car is a tarmac roll all the way downhill, back in 10 mins tops without a pedal stroke...

or

Turn left and go up a crappy slog of a route to the Star and then than that hilly field behind it and then a crappy convoluted way back to the start....


Cruel Mr Wright... quite cruel.. because that will be a mind game...

If you get an early start and put your skates on you might make last orders

I agree, tough finish. But.... could be worse, imagine going out that way to start

gairym wrote:So can anyone with 'the knowledge' shed a little light on what we can expect in terms of terrain on this years route?

Obviously there's going to be a smattering of everything (except tussocks obviously) but a nice little summary and overview would be very much welcome and useful.

Thanks in advance.....

The route out to Knighton looks fine, nice and fast (unless you're on a fat bike), without too many bits of sustained difficulty. After Knighton, there seems to be a fair bit of open hill riding which is variable in nature (tussocks and bogs may feature). There's some brief respite around Llanidloes but brace yourself for the aforementioned tough finish.

Thanks Ian, muchly appreciated.

I've been torn but that pretty much settles it, no fatty for me this year (that and the fact that I've been struggling to fit it in the bike bag I've got).

Think I'll be on the rigid 29er (with free main triangle for shouldering the bike through the unnecessary evil sections).

I know this question is pretty much unanswerable but.....

Roughly how much (time-wise as a proportion of the whole) would you estimate the first half of the overall distance will take (assuming a roughly consistent effort)???

Last year I covered the first half of the distance in 12 hours and so deluded myself into thinking I was on for a good time and so am keen to avoid making the same mistake again.

burty wrote:we rode quite a bit of the route on the wrt a few years ago, and the ending on this years
I think jase rescued a sheep from a fence on our way up beacon hill,

We saved a life that day!

Even now my heart warms at the thought of the little fella wobbling off sideways to go & find his mum...

gairym wrote:Roughly how much (time-wise as a proportion of the whole) would you estimate the first half of the overall distance will take (assuming a roughly consistent effort)???

I'm thinking a 1/3 of the total moving time.

Quite a lot of tarmac in the first half, and a lot more climbing in the second.

Chew wrote:I'm thinking a 1/3 of the total moving time.

Quite a lot of tarmac in the first half, and a lot more climbing in the second.

Thanks fella, that's pretty much what I had in mind after Ian's comments.

As Ian says, first 'half' should be pretty quick, although don't underestimate the climbing that starts at 30km and again around 60km in.

Another noticable climb starting at 100k, so worth fueling up beforehand as options will be very limited for the next 60km.

Last 15km is possibly the hardest from a mental perspective because you will be walking a couple of km. However, it isn't trackless and the gps will be your friend here

Bearbonesnorm wrote: However, it isn't trackless and the gps will be your friend here

If you say so, Google Earth was making me think it's a bit of blind following the GPS marker type affair for that bit.

Bearbonesnorm wrote: at 100k, so worth fueling up beforehand as options will be very limited for the next 60km.

Well in which case, I think I shall be heading to this place. https://goo.gl/maps/cfvDWYoBXq52

After this, nothing else will matter.

Bearbonesnorm wrote:Last 15km is possibly the hardest from a mental perspective because you will be walking a couple of km. However, it isn't trackless and the gps will be your friend here

I am already mentally prepared to walk the whole last 15km, even the down hill bit.

Just got back from a training ride (make that *the* training ride ) a lovely day in the Dales. Did make a bit of a boo-boo with tyre pressures, the bike is in BB200 mode and I forgot I wasn't on plus tyres so instead of "weight in stone x 2, then -1 for the front, +2 for the rear" I forgot the x2 Was a little interesting for a while until I stopped and put some more air in. No idea what pressure I was running with in the end - the front felt OK but the back was a bit soft for my liking.

I've done one or two sections on this year's winter event (I took a weird route) and getting to and from Bearstock which I suspect are among the easier sections. It'll be what it is.