I didn't name it..

Looks good to me, although having never visited Dorset I'm not really qualified to form an opinion. Should have a better idea after next weekend.

Tracking etc. https://dotwatcher.cc/race/dorset-divide-2022

Route here

https://ridewithgps.com/trips/90468377

https://www.komoot.com/tour/632442607?ref=itd

Well it's not going to be much fun riding this through a heat wave! Best of luck and enjoy, to anyone who is doing it!

It looks a good-ish route and certainly takes in lots of the county. As an exiled native of Dorset, the south and especially east of the route will be the easiest in terms of terrain. I didn't see if it was clockwise or anti-clockwise, but factor that in as the fast bit. The route does seem to have a fair few road chunks just to kind of get people round I guess, even though they are better off road options. The route even goes past my parents house, and that road is horrible!
Other things:
1) The West and North is a lot lumpier terrain so progress will be slower and the hills short but sharp.
2) East and south dorset is pretty busy, so bring a bell for the bits using old railway lines, and the roads will be busy in parts.
3) The bit through Poole/Broadstone is mostly suburbia and is just a matter of getting through as quickly as possible
4) It's peak season for some bridleways to be really overgrown

EDIT - it's not a divide, didn't need to be called one!

Would be interesting to overlay the route against the gravel dash 100 Charlie used to do and see how much shared route there was, that was a brilliant days riding, did it a couple of times.

Might have a look if I get 5

Cheers for the feedback on the route.

It's a clockwise circuit and the first 200km certainly look to be the lumpiest. Better that way round and have the flatter/faster bits in the second half when we're all shriveled up with dehydration... The road sections will probably be a blessing in this heat and there appears to be plenty resupply choices compared to rides like BB200/300 and YD300.

I'm very much looking forward to the ride and also have the following week to explore the wider area in the campervan

All being well, bike and body will hold together and it'll be an enjoyable tour

I'll report back

Well there's a wealth of places to visit in the campervan for sure, and nice you get to wind-down/rehydrate afterwards, enjoy!

Well I hope @Johnallan is enjoying some time in Dorset, it looked like the ride missed the worst of the heat. Turns out I follow him on Instagram, and here's an update from the dorset divide account on his progress:
"And there we have it! An incredible ride by John Allen with an even more impressive time of (31hours 37 minutes)
He takes first place and wins this years inaugural event also setting the first offical FKT for the Dorset Divide and im sure its going to be round for a while after a perfomance like that!"

WOW, good work sir!

Thanks for the kind words

Dorset was a real treat! The event was wonderfully friendly and low-key with the kindest hosts and best placed campsite you could wish for, right on the coast of Portland, next to the lighthouse. We stayed to watch all the riders finish and generally had a great time chatting to folk and enjoying the hospitality.

We finally moved on Monday and explored the coast both West and East of Weymouth with plenty hiking, fossil hunting and birdwatching, plus digging through antique and second hand book stores along the way. 'Wild' van-camping was very easy compared to some places which made the whole holiday pretty much perfect

The ride itself was a joy (other than the brambles/nettles/gorse). I'll write a few more words and share some photos when I'm at a computer but for now, I'd certainly recommend it to anyone fancying something a bit different for next summer

Thread resurrection!

Despite some poor weather since about 3am today, I think your FKT is about to go, John.

https://www.followmychallenge.com/live/ ... ivide-2023

Yep! I've been watching with interest. I think the 2 front riders are both Pro/ex-Pro so I'm not surprised they can lop a few hours off

Although I don't particularly enjoy extreme heat, I think I'd prefer the heatwave of last year to the deluge that most of the riders are about to receive. Hopefully they continue to enjoy the ride, it was one of the best experiences I've had through cycling