Anyone into long distance riding like this? IIRC Trail_rat is….how do you find it?

Have always fancied giving it a try.

fine if you just want a no nonsense ride with folk twice (or 4 times in my case) age who could ride your socks off

good day out !

Its ace al, do it.

Fancy trying to qual for the PBP this year myself.

Ace routes, greats scenery, v cheap, I love the navigation element, high cake quotient, low try-hard quotient.

Thinking about that one from Musselburgh next month, but I’ve not ridden (other than commuting )since the beginning of December.

It’s OK. WOuld not want it to be the only riding I do though, once you get to 200km (at my speed) it’s a long day out.

Planning to qualify for PBP starting with a 200km from near Stockport next month but going back to Ireland mid August for a couple of weeks and not doing PBP itself. A number from my club are interested though…

no dont laugh………..but i am a regular audax rider
ridden a couple of 300km events and a load of 200’s.

it is very sociable, usually cheap, and some of the routes are fantastic.
i have ridden with the ctc since my childhood, but audax is a bit faster, a bit further…………..and the fast boy’s do compete regardless of the rules.

Intersting folks, thanks.

100Km is nice, 100 Miles if very hilly is arduous and 200Km is horrible 😉

Longest I’ve ridden was 200km, Stranraer to Edinburgh, lost of stops & cakes though 😀

riding long audax is more about mindset and comfort rather than speed/fitness.
i rode a 300 one weekend and dnf’d on a 200 the week later cos i was not up for it.

durness duress was excellent last year 300k … 6am start – back in by 7 – torrential downpour for the last 40k ! – only guy with tribars head down on the tri bars and towed everyone in down the hill into wind! to the a9 ! – beautiful scenary , quiet roads ! last one in was at 2am … and incidently she was the only other person to do the 200 the next day as well

cromarty cruise the next day was horrible the garrick drained me on the way home –

snow roads is a good ride – cairn o mount , cabrach , lecht , cairnwell

deeside loop is another good climbing one !

Lots of stops and cake is the point 🙂

The fastest 200k I’ve done (8 hours), me and my super fit Triathelete mate struggled most of the way round to drop a geezer with pot belly and white cotton t shirt who was stopping at every pub en route for a pint of cider. Very humbling.

Lots of cake stops sounds like audax to me. I find the whole thing to be great. You can always find someone of your own level to ride with if you want to and the banter is good. Definitely the best events that I’ve come across in biking. Routes are normally great too.

Snow roads is about the best route anywhere.

Not sure what an Audax is?

I have entered the Etape du Dales (as a target to fitness) is that the same as an Audax?

C

Sounds like a sportif

That’ll likely be a Sportive

Audax’s charge about £4-5 but you supply your own food. Sportive’s charge about £25-30 and some food is often included.

Unless you do the Tour of the Peak where the food was gone before the quickest riders on the long course had finished. I ended up with a dry bread roll….

OK, so it’s all about the food!

I guess an Audax is less official & maybe a bit further (I think E du Dales is about 175km)

C

We’re doing the Musselburgh one again this year. Good route, but notorious for the weather.

PBP would be great; just beyond me at the moment.

Fantastic events. Look at the audaxUK calendar for events.

http://www.aukweb.net/cal/index.htm

I did my first on of the year at the weekend – A mere 100 from Cheadle. Rode with a great bunch of people and stopped at two great cafe’s.

http://www.aukweb.net/

I was going to do it but have had a little think about it and just booked a holiday in the Alps with a bunch of fellow Devonian MTB’ers instead.

I’d do it this year if I didn’t have to do the qualifiers as organised events but there’s not many in the South West and they don’t fit in very well with my domestic diary. I’m not saying that riders should not have to do qualifiers, I’m just saying that, for me, it would be easier to do the 300 400 & 600KM rides at times that were convienient for me, as permanents perhaps (if you’re cognescent with the Audax lingo).

Also I did the PBP in 1999 and some of the qualifiers in 2003 and 2007 and have remembered how long and lonely the qualifing rides were and that I’d get more pleasure from spending the time mountain biking with friends.

Shame really but I’ve got a young family and have to invest what little spare time I’ve got wisely.

Good luck to those who do the qualifiers and actual event 🙂

Me and a couple of mates are thinking of finding out what this whole audax thing is about in April – one starts in Trowell just up the road.

Ignorant question – are you given a route map or just told where to go and have to find your own way?

i really fancy this if I could drop all my road racing plans. And to be honest it’s only the kudos of being able to say I race that keeps me going now.

We were looking at them as a cheaper alternative to sportives – 4-5 audax’ (audaxes? audaxii?) for the price of one sportive seems a bargain in the current financial climate!

You get some instructions, left here, straight on there etc. Eventually you get to a cafe and have to stamp a card you are given.

Just turn up / enter – it is quite straight forward.

I am in Derby and doing a few local one’s. One near Rutland in two weeks.

The Skeggy ride is a good one Swadey – 300km from Alfreton…

I got the audax bug in 2005 when my father-in-law talked me into a 100k involving 2 pub stops. Better than time trialling!

Since then I’ve done SRs (200, 300, 400 and 600k in a season) in 2007 – 2010, PBP 2007, LEL 2009, Mille Cymru 1000 2010 and an excellent DIY 1300k round Scotland with a couple of mates (19000m climbing!). 8)

I’ll be at PBP this year, and qualifying doing at least the Dorset Coast 200, Dean 300, Brevet Cymru 400 and Bryan Chapman 600. Also (cos I’m a bit bored with road riding) I’ll be doing the Welsh Ride Thing, a 24hr or two (probably Sleepless +1) and Kielder 100…8 days after PBP. 😕

What do you want to know? 😀

Thinking of doing the BC as well Dyffers, probably only chance to do a 600 before heading to the USA. Would be good training for me though. But I am tempted by the Snow Roads ride mentioned above, which means I would not qualify for PBP.

My problem is Mrs B may not want me disappearing a few days before heading West on my own for a couple of months….

I rode some of the snow roads route on our Scottish 1300. Amazing roads, fantastic scenery and you’ll never be afraid of a hill ever again.

Blackhound – did you ever do some social rides with Matlock CC – not sure if I’m mixing you up with someone else?

Kennyp, looking forward to it…a good start to the season, see you in the start house ;-))

oldgit – Member
i really fancy this if I could drop all my road racing plans. And to be honest it’s only the kudos of being able to say I race that keeps me going now.

Kudos?

Dyffers – Member
Better than time trialling!

Erm…

I quite fancy the musselburgh one. Am heading out to do that route tomorrow.

Swadey – not me at Matlock. I am Derby based

My mistake then – have fun in Rutland, currently trying to up my milage before the 100k ride from Trowell in early April…..

Surrounded By Zulus – Member
I quite fancy the musselburgh one. Am heading out to do that route tomorrow.

And???