Viewing 38 posts - 1 through 38 (of 38 total)
  • Box Hill locals – advice please.
  • fatboyjon
    Full Member

    Morning folks, we’re off to watch the road races next weekend and are camping on the Box Hill circuit. If possible, we’d like to get about a bit and watch from different locations. A quick look on an OS map shows plenty of bridleways within the loop that look ideal but I’ll have little miss FBJ on the child seat so are the surfaces relatively good or are we best off just staying put?

    Thanks in advance.

    Sui
    Free Member

    There may not be many paths you can ride down as a lot of them are being shut off for the event.. I’m trying to find the map which shows the closures -will post it when i do!

    RoterStern
    Free Member

    It’s been a fair few years since I went riding around Box Hill but the trails around the road were generally in good condition apart from the one next to the road at the bottom of the climb which is pretty steep. If it has been raining though it can get very soggy.

    Fresh Goods Friday 696: The Middling Edition

    Fresh Goods Friday 696: The Middlin...
    Latest Singletrack Videos
    freeridenick
    Free Member

    muddy as hell up there at the moment. what with the expected people it will be a muddy mess…doubt you will be able to move about that easily and quickly. We are setting stall in 1 place.

    fatboyjon
    Full Member

    Cheers freeridenick, I think we’ll probably end up doing the same and just setting up deck chairs, cool box and plenty of noise making things. Plus umbrellas, wellies, snorkels etc.

    theotherjonv
    Full Member

    Assuming you mean the ones between Boxhill and Headley, they are generally good surfaces, sort of stony sand rather than mud, but they can be quite undulating and hard work with a child on the back. Depends what your legs are like i suppose.

    muddyground
    Free Member

    Up there the other day – no way are you going to be able to move about on foot easily, let alone on a bike. They’re closing it right down even now – some of the bridleways on the hill itself were closed, as was the car park at the top. Imagine chaos and if you get less you’ll be lucky. I should imagine some people will stay put at the best locations, so space is going to be at a premium. I’d suggest leaving the bikes at home.

    fatboyjon
    Full Member

    Depends what your legs are like i suppose.

    Sadly, I measured my thighs against Sir Chris Hoys at the Manchester Sky ride on Sunday and fell a little short at 25″ compared to his 27″.

    Sui
    Free Member

    fatboyjon – Member
    Depends what your legs are like i suppose.
    Sadly, I measured my thighs against Sir Chris Hoys at the Manchester Sky ride on Sunday and fell a little short at 25″ compared to his 27″.

    POSTED 2 MINUTES AGO # REPORT-POST

    fat or muscle ? 😉

    hopevalley
    Full Member

    http://www.london2012.com/spectators/visiting/safety-and-security/

    we’ve got tickets for Box hill and have 2 little kids with us and apparently these rules will still apply as for entering any venue … little bit overdramatic? they are pretty much shutting off the hill so i doubt movement will be easy at all – we’ll be finding a spot and staying there!

    freeridenick
    Free Member

    Not many G4S to patrol these closures on the BW though 😆

    titusrider
    Free Member

    For the test event they put 6 foot security fencing across all the BW entrances etc. With a young family i wouldnt be wanting to try and dodge them!

    mattjg
    Free Member

    AFAIK the place will be in lockdown. Once you’re in the barriered area, you stay there for the event.

    Pick a spot and stay, as others have said. The first hairpin would be a good spot as you’d have sightlines down the zig, up the zag and way up to the last zig above your heads too. Lots of other people will have realised this too.

    freeridenick
    Free Member
    muddyground
    Free Member

    Normal maps will be rendered useless for the few days the event is on. Roads and bridleways will be closed to the public – those within the event horizon by bloomin’ great steel fences by the looks of it. The car park on Box Hill itself is covered on what look like massive hospitality tents and mobile homes. My mate wanted to go on the weekend, so we had a look around and his face dropped when he realised that his plan of strolling around the hill and surrounds was doomed to failure. Many of the roads have no pathways at all, and those that do are very narrow indeed and will be liable to crowding.

    It should be a good event having said all this. Just don’t even think of taking a bike to Box Hill.

    mudshark
    Free Member

    When I went to the trial event last year you could walk/ride up the bridleway that goes up the hill just north of the entrance to the Zig-Zag. That took me all the way up to a massive secure bike storage area so bring a bike but don’t expect to ride it when there.

    mattjg
    Free Member

    I’d check before you even take a bike.

    The top car park is already full of broadcast kit and is in effect closed for parking.

    freeridenick
    Free Member

    i wouldnt go near with a bike

    glenp
    Free Member

    I hate the control obsession of it all. The test event was bad enough. So my plan is to watch it come through the High Street and enjoy the party atmosphere, and then cycle down to Denbies and watch on the big screen in the Bike Fest.

    Walking from Dorking to Box Hill would be easy and a better bet than cycling, imo. I’ll have a bike with me only because I don’t live in Dorking.

    crazy-legs
    Full Member

    plenty of cheeky ways up that they won’t know about.

    This is what people said with the test event – “oh I’ll MTB in from this trail” or “oh, I’ll walk across from the other side”.

    The WHOLE BLOODY HILL will be locked off totally. Whether they know about cheeky access or not, you won’t get near it. Cast iron guarantee.

    globalti
    Free Member

    Microlite?

    Cheezpleez
    Full Member

    I’m planning to jump out of the bushes and join the race. I’ve been riding a singlespeed for a couple of years now so I reckon I’m in with a chance, especially now Cav’s off the boil. 😀

    crazy-legs
    Full Member

    Microlite?

    Yes, good luck with that one:
    http://olympics.airspacesafety.com/airspace-restrictions/restrictions-14-july-2012-to-15-august-2012

    While it may be a bit overzealous, I can imagine the authorities taking an extremely dim view of it… Or possibly just shooting you down anyway. 😉

    atlaz
    Free Member

    For the Surrey Classic, half the bridleways were fenced off so they could control the flow of people. I think you’d struggle to move around much.

    spacemonkey
    Full Member

    glenp, are you talking about this being hosted up on Denbies?

    jambalaya
    Free Member

    Are you camping at an official site, reason I’m asking is I’m not aware of any ? I very much doubt you’ll be able to “wild camp”. There has been lots of discussion of police on quad bikes etc patrolling everywhere.

    SWT have announced that no bikes will be allowed on trains from Guildford to Dorking/Deepdene, I assume the same applies from London

    I have no tickets so assuming we’ll just have to find a spot on the A25 somewhere. I think box hill will be totally mobbed many rows deep.

    MrWoppit
    Free Member

    I’ll be watching it on the telly and then as soon as I see the leaders coming up Gimcrack Hill, I’ll lean out of my 1st-floor lounge window and watch them go past.

    Green end-of-terrace. Window open. Bloke waving. Me….

    HolmwoodDave
    Free Member

    Official campsite here Linkybut it ain’t cheap! £15 per person per night, max of 6 per pitch……
    Good location for an early morning stroll up the hill via FP41 (see map above) and then watch it along the road heading towards Headly (Boxhill Road) etc…..

    Sui
    Free Member

    baastarddsss have closed all of stanes street – there goes my route..

    muddyground
    Free Member

    baastarddsss have closed all of stane street

    – no; they’ve only closed the little bit of it you want to use! Basically there’s no MTB’ing on Box Hill or Headley Heath that weekend so don’t bother. Just don’t. You’ll also struggle to get North to South easily along the roads to Leith Hill from Sarf Lahndaan, so don’t even think about it. Bocketts car park is liable to be full, but one could conceive of being able to cycle Ranmore and over to Holmbury easily enough if you park up near Leatherhead. Reigate to the golf course and back, or a trip to Gravelly Hill is all that’s on offer if you fancy a local spin East Surrey wise. Not overly tempting is it now?

    Oh and I’d give Box Hill a miss the week afterwards as well – it’s all going to be trashed and look crap thanks to the footfall.

    gee
    Free Member

    Was up there yesterday – the entire hill from Rykas to Smith and Western is fenced off with metal site fencing. All the way along the roads and through the woods. You won’t get a view from behind the fence as it is quite some distance away from the road and runs through the woods.

    GB

    freeridenick
    Free Member

    My brother in law lives at Boxhill school, His drive is on the route through the village. I think thats my safest bet presuming I can get in there in the morning?

    Sui
    Free Member

    that’s my issue, i actually live in Ashtead and wanted to get to Denbies – i’m assuming the footpaths next to the A24 are still open then?

    freeridenick
    Free Member

    pretty sure that will be OK. I live behind denbies so will have to walk through to get to Mickleham.

    mudshark
    Free Member

    You must be able to get down the A24. I’m in Bookham so have an easy route into Denbies.

    Sui
    Free Member

    The A24 (as a car) is closed from 04:00 i believe until 18:00. SurreyCC peeps say the pavement/cycle path (closest to the Mole) is open to cyclists as long as there are not too many spectators.

    mattjg
    Free Member

    Sui – train easiest surely?

    On the day, is the Mole side of the A24 for pedestrians/spectators and the Box Hill side for the riders?

    glenp
    Free Member

    spacemonkey – yea that’s the one. Not all that well publicised considering how many people they are expecting.

    Richard of Allbikedup.com will have a fun pump track (like the one they have the bike show) and there should be other stuff going on to amuse.

Viewing 38 posts - 1 through 38 (of 38 total)

The topic ‘Box Hill locals – advice please.’ is closed to new replies.