I dont have a space blanket or whistle!! Will i be in big trouble and not be allowed to ride??
You've got time to spend less than a tenner and get both these items. Or you could risk not doing it after paying 50 squid to enter. Choice is yours, eh.
radoggair - i have a spare space blanket - yours for the princely sum of two whole pounds
forecast seems to be improving, not hot by any means, but no rain. Mate of mine who lives up Kielder way says thats the forest roads are soaked through though. I'll be fitting mudguards
You've got time to spend less than a tenner and get both these items. Or you could risk not doing it after paying 50 squid to enter. Choice is yours, eh.
I really can't see them checking 200 odd riders camelbaks etc before they start. On the site it says all that happens apparently is a time penalty.
Ive done a few events where it says this, thim meridas your meant to take crap like that, I don't have a space blanket and I dont know if I will have time to get one.
Is the whistle so you can toot at someone to tell them to get out of the way??
No, the whistle is so that if you crash and land off the course with a broken leg or something then you can blow the emergency signal (3 blasts on whistle, pause for a minute, 3 blasts etc) to attract the attention of someone who can then [s]save your sorry ass[/s] help you.
I did a marathon at Kielder earlier this year (organised by Kielder Trail Rievers) - they had a similar kit list and DID check everyone's kit at the sign on (although not on the start line...)
forecast seems to be improving, not hot by any means, but no rain. Mate of mine who lives up Kielder way says thats the forest roads are soaked through though. I'll be fitting mudguards
I did ponder fitting a rear mudguard (front stays on all year round), but probably won't get round to it.
I did a marathon at Kielder earlier this year (organised by Kielder Trail Rievers) - they had a similar kit list and DID check everyone's kit at the sign on
thats run by different people, but that is a FC requirement, so as this is on FC land expect the same...
You won't believe this. I've just changed my brake pads since I'd bought some new ones and I wanted to see how to fit them in the unlikely event I'll need to during the race. The new ones are *much* better. I don't think the old ones will pass as spares though!
Travelling up tomorrow (Thursday).
Camping with a large blue family tent on the caravan side of things as there's a hook-up / power point for my hairdryer and rollers.
Swing by and have a cuppa if you're there on Thursday / Friday.
I feel fine and relaxed now, but come Friday late, well, that's a whole different ball-game!
Tim
I'm getting a lift up off someone I've never met before (though I do know his brother) on Friday night. We're stopping at the youth hostel. We're just stopping for the Friday night unfortunately, though will be hitting the BBQ before we go home, I'm sure.
Looking forward to meeting some new STW people in the Duke's Pantry on Friday night. I'll be the guy who looks like someone off STW (beard, short hair, glasses, skinny) and riding a rusty Inbred with bright pink grips on the Saturday.
I was up there on Monday doing both red routes. I was going to go over to Newcastleton but the weather was shocking.
Someone made a comment about spare brakepads earlier. I got through a brand new set in the few hours I was out. It's very gritty up there and seems to eat them in the wet.
You could have ridden both redt routes and fireroads on a racing tyre. Despite the standing water there was very little mud. Can't say much for the rest of the route. If i was entering I'd be thinking fast allrounder rather than mud tyre.
Good luck! Hope the weathers better than it was for me!
Don't be an arse. Take the stuff.
GB
I'm traveling up tomorrow, staying with family in York as I have a meeting early doors on Friday then heading over to kielder around lunch time i think. Should be there for 3 ish.
Guess ill be signing on around 5 and handing over my foooood bags, then spending the evening in the pantry eating with the rest of you!
Staying at the Grapes if anyone else is? Will be there Friday and Saturday night.
On race day i'll have nice Pink Cyclescheme Lycra on and be on a white Orange 5 with 36's.
[img] 
[/img]
That'll be me on the left.....
jonB.
What's a reasonable time on those red routes?
Me? I have lovely hair - after the rollers have come out, obviously.
I'll be taking pictures on the Friday, on the ride and on Sunday too. That narrows the field down somewhat!
See you in the Pantry on Friday and in the queue for the loos and then on the start line.
RRalf on the rear, NNick on the front seems to do the trick most of the time.
Just finished packing my food bags.
So when are we doing a pre-ride of the course then?....
So when are we doing a pre-ride of the course then?....
😆
I've been fannying around all evening trying to pack but have so far only managed to replace brake pads and fit a new chain. Jojo will understand that I'm having outfit dilemmas - do I go with this:
[url= http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3625/3593902742_5740f6c0d5.jp g" target="_blank">
or this?
[url= http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2626/3840209473_cf06448593.jp g" target="_blank">
Or perhaps the "speshul" jersey...?
Oh yeah - can someone clarify for the lazy/hard-of-thinking:
- Are the food bags only needed if you want your own special food? I don't need to bother if I'm just going to eat any old shite that is provided "free" at the feed stations?
Yes to the second question. My understanding is that if you're happy with what's going to be on offer, you don't need drop bags. I'm going to play it on the safe side and take what I know works for me food wise and if that's on offer from the organisers, I'll eat that and get mine back at the end.
I'd go for the Euro Fluro Transalp finisher jersey. Hi-vis and kudos all in one jersey!! Perfik! 🙂 See you there. Should I take a spare whistle and a bin bag for our raddog pixie?
People are packing already? That's far too organised! 🙂
I'm setting off from work tomorrow to drive the 4 hours south to Edinburgh, then on to Keilder on Friday. Necessary basic organisation rather than OCD 🙂
Should I take a spare whistle and a bin bag for our raddog pixie?
[i]Anything[/i] to slow him down. I've got a spare bike for the wee fella which is about 5 pounds lighter than the one he already flies up hills on...
All this talk of stashing food. I'm taking a handful of year out of date gels, that'll do the trick.
So, what are you putting in your foodbags then?
Where's eveyone staying? I've been on holiday for a month and only got back today and have no idea where to go. The youth hostel appears to be full.
How is camping not provided in a £50 entry fee???
A little bit of what I fancy.
Which is not usually what I fancy come the time I need to eat it, but hey ho, I'll just force myself.
Small bags that I've filled myself with Salted mixed nuts, Haribo and dried fruit (separate, not mixed...).
A couple of ordinary gels, one caffeine gel and a protein bar per drop.
A banana.
A flapjack bar thingy.
A bottle of electrolyte water.
Will be carrying energy juice in camelbak and will re-fill with whatever's supplied as energy juice.
EDIT: Rolf, Speak to the Hostel tomorrow, central booking told me there were 12 beds on the Saturday night but they could only be booked direct with the hostel. I called the hostel who said they were full. When I said that the central office told me there were 12 beds, they seemed to miraculously be able to fit us in. Tell them you don't mind being in dorms. tel:01434250195
@rolfharris I think most people are staying here:-
http://www.kieldercampsite.co.uk/
Campsite said they were full when I spoke to them at the end of last week.
I'm camping. £10 a night iirc.
Thought that might be the case.
I might wild camp, but don't tell anyone, yeah?
Has anyone got tent space? I'm very willing to get cosy with a stranger.
Glad I booked then!
@rolfharris looks like you'll be staying in a random field! 😯
ROlf, you can kip in olly's wagon 😉
Oh yeah! I was going to try and blag the Volvo to sleep in, but that's not going to happen. Otherwise it's the back of Doris, which will be a squeeze for me.
What if more people entered? Where'd they stay?
I'm still very skeptical of this whole thing working to be honest.
Should I take a spare whistle and a bin bag for our raddog pixie?
That could be helpful and bring it just in case tho i'm biking it into glasgow tomorrow to see what i can pick up ( the real reason i'm going is to exchange a pair of shoes my missus bought but were bust when she got them home). Brake pads being changed tomorrow and got some spares. Food bags will be prepped up Friday, leave about 2 or 3 pm Friday afternoon so don there for 6 ish probs.
Just got 1 final ride tomorrow to do if weather is good, if not up early for a quick 100 miler on Friday (weather permitting) before heading down
looking forward to this race now
Stuart..... go with the yellow top, you look quite fetching in it 😉 😉
Rolf, They'd have to find a B&B in Bellingham and get up VERY early on Saturday morning.
Stop being a negative thingy!. It'll work if everybody, including the riders, makes it work. It's a first event of this type so there's bound to be the odd hiccup.
only 240 riders anyway so shouldn't be too hard to manage, compared to the 1000 odd at the bigger events
Well they were only expecting 100 riders to take up the challenge for this first one, so they are overwhelmed with the uptake. next year I'm sure it'll be based over Newcastleton way, at the Calvert Trust place I suspect. Plenty of room over there for everyone;0)
Rolf, I've just seen a post on the XCracer forum for this event that someone is unable to do the race and is offering their booking for the campsite for Fri and Sat.....
Cheers!
You're welcome. Posted 2ish this afternoon, so you might be in luck. 🙂
I'm going to sneak into richpips's tent late at night. Warm and free.
i'm more going the take what i'm given food route.
few gels/chews/bars in pockets before heading out!
jojo, go over there if yer still on <<<<<<
I'm going to race in a camelbak and baggy shorts. Will I burn and die?
i may have a wee camelback... not sure yet!
lycra all the way though!
Oooooh...... lycra it is then
Small Camelback as well here........... in fact a medium sized one for me
How you feeling anyway Oli??
not too bad. recovered a bit from the weekend.
went running on tuesday, felt good, a steady 1st lap, then managed to put in some hard efforts 2nd time round. an hours running or so.
was gonna be out tomorrow, but think i'll do some packing!
went running on tuesday, felt good, a steady 1st lap, then managed to put in some hard efforts 2nd time round. an hours running or so.
Huh!! 2 laps of a track took an hour. Dude, wont be seeing you at the olympics any time soon 😛
haha, couple laps of the queens park in edinburgh, 3.2mile a lap, stopped chatting to a friend for a bit, plus getting out of the park to the car...
aint too bad 😀
Bought my food yesterday:
[url= http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3500/3881834352_9f3f56e40c.jp g" target="_blank">
Two bottles on the bike for water. Jelly sweets in one jersey pocket and broken up Geobars in another (or in 'tribag' on bike if it's wet). Spare food, waterproof and warm top in an Alpkit Gourdon 20.
Lycra all the way, including a proper road jersey for me, no camelbak. Forecast looks like its changing, showers expected, but not consistent rain so we should get a chance to dry out.
My mate who works in the forests up there says the forest roads are very, very wet already, with two more days of hard rain expected, if we're going on any roads that have recently been used by the loggers, especially on the north side of Kielder expect the going to be very slow and sticky indeed...
Bit wet at the minute . . .
rear mud guard, should I/shouldn't I??? Will involve buying a new one if I do as I won't be going back to the house now...
I would defos fit a rear mudguard, 10 hours of riding with spray going up your back will not be nice
Mine's on.
Any recommendations on brand then? My Topeak one was pretty rubbish anyway, it had a strap thingy that kept working loose, so good opportunity to get a better one.
I have a rear mudguard that I might fit. I suppose there's no reason to not fit it, is there?
I have a rear mudguard that I might fit. I suppose there's no reason to not fit it, is there?
Yes, the fashion please will lock you up 🙄
I have two mudguards and a bar bag. 🙂
Jo- I always use Crud for races. Bolts on so doesn't go anywhere and they are the best coverage.
If I can find mine I'm going to put them on.
I have two mudguards and a bar bag
I have handlebars off a shopper bike 🙂
Yes, the fashion please will lock you up
I was thinking aloud. The mudguard's at the back of the garage, in a pile of mudguards and racks and I don't know whether I can be bothered fighting through to get to it 🙂
Is anyone else starting to get a bit worried about the 8mph average speed?
Is anyone else starting to get a bit worried about the 8mph average speed?
Nope, just you. 🙂
Oh Shucks - Entries seem to have closed - Dammit. And I was waiting to see what the weather was doing too.
Is anyone else starting to get a bit worried about the 8mph average speed?
Dont think that'll be a problem unless you get 1 or 2 punctures, some mechanicals etc. Also make sure your stops at food pits are only about 5 mins long at the most
8mph might be difficult to maintain on a techy group ride, but on a race with lots of fireroads, it should be fine.
Not fannying about at the water/food stops will be the best way to maintain the higher speed.
true true, I've set up my computer to run all the tim rather than stop every time I stop, so I can always adjust it as I see fit...
not long now, final shopping tonight, and packing, then off straight from work at 3ish tomorrow. see you all in the anglers arms at 5ish for a good 8 pints or so....
Less than 36 hours...
It was mentioned on the local news tonight. Also the new skills area will officially open on Sunday for those who are hanging around and want more 🙂
Listening to the weather forecasts on R2 etc today coming up the M1, and the A1M is closed at the border area, all railway journeys have been suspended and the wind is casing all manner of bother in the nether regions.
Thought I'd stop with friends in York tonight instead (Thursday) of camping on what must now be a marsh or even a wide estuary, formely known as Kielder Campsite. I am going to use my canoe instead on Saturday.
PS - There's new info on the official SIPs web site inc' a "Rules" Word Document
[url= http://www.metcheck.com/V40/UK/FREE/today.asp?zipcode=hexham ]Weather[/url]
Weather for Hexham, closest place. looks ok for saturday, and friday night, but we'll see
Hexham has its own microclimate 😉
I was up there yesterday very wet and soft on the fire roads but single track as normal probably better for being wet, expect some steep climbs and super descents
By the way Kielder campsite was under water!
"Joe Bastardi"!??
Having spent the last two days in bed/being sick/watching the rain out of the window, I was pretty pissed off about missing this, but then again I'm not in a fit state to ride and the weather hasn't had me too inspired.
Forecast looking much better than of late mind... Southwesterly, 25-30mph, gusting 45mph, Overnight rain clearing to drizzle, extensive cloud, visibility poor in showers, sunshine at times... 8*C at 750m (ie not cold). (Anyone hanging around for a ride on Sunday, the wind looks like it might pick up a bit- forecast for gusting 70mph- should make the north shore on the open section of the black interesting).
Have a good one folks that are going. Should be fun.
[i]Hexham has its own microclimate[/i]
And also a good way from Kielder.
"Joe Bastardi"!??
You'd change your name, wouldn't you? I daren't check out his column 😯