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Having heard about the river crossing last year I think i will be stopping, taking my shoe's off and walking through!
Eep. [url= http://grit.cx/news/2017/04/kit-check-dirty-reiver ]Well, the kit is ready.[/url] Me on the other hand...
My aim is to get round. Nothing else. Currently coughing like I've inhaled a cat, and have been for a week. You'll probably hear me on the start line - coughing or crying.
very stw looking belt drive rohloff shand/t5 combo going north on the M1 today, heading for the reiver?
jeremydcooper - Member
stumpy01 - You tell Bryan with all his training and his new fancy carbon wheels he can tow us around!!Are you both going to be at signing on the Friday night?
With all his training...!? By training, do you mean redecorating the house!
Do you know him, then?
I'm not going. He tried to persuade me to come but I'm way too unfit at the moment for wheezing around on some gravel tracks! Perhaps if it was a bit nearer to home...
I'm ready... ish
Hi Stump01
Yes I know him. He has commuted to work a couple of times!!! We will look after him and make sure he does the full 200km
See everyone bright and early Saturday morning. Will be traveling up from Cheltenham tomorrow and we are staying at The Calvert Trust.
Anyone going to do a bag drop, or are you carrying your stuff using the food stops to top up
joshvegas -
I'm ready... ish
This, pretty much.
John climber, I'm just packing as much food as I can (preferably into my belly beforehand), and using the food stops to top up.
To be honest this is the first event like this I've ever done, I'm taking all my cycling kit with me in my van, and will decide what to take on the day depending on the weather/tips I may pick up on Friday/ how I feel Saturday morning/ randomly.
I'm starting to think we need signs for our backs so we can identify each other and take appropriate action. Mine would read something like:
I am Hannah.
Please tell me to eat and drink. Please don't tell me to smile. I am happy to talk if you are happy to hear me swear. I am happy to receive trailside technical assistance.
If I look like I'm flagging please:
-sing hey Jude out loud until I eat something. I'll do anything to not listen to that.
-lie to me if I'm less than half way
-remind me I've promised myself a new bike if I finish the 200km
You lot are impressively organised. Mrs Yak is out in town on some client pub quiz thing. Given the lack of prep, and her sparrows fart start from here in the south downs tomorrow, I've taken action and put some air in her tyres and packed a camelback. Whether it's what she would pack is debatable. Look out for another sweary Scottish lady - probably in a pink altura jersey or Pedal 2 Pedal team kit.
I panic bought a load of new kit today, I'll be at the back, looking pro but going slow...
Quite envious of all you dirty reivers. I'll have to do this one year. Have fun all.
Anyone going to do a bag drop, or are you carrying your stuff using the food stops to top up
Yes, but use it for some food you can look forward to rather than a different version of what will be available on the day.
Phah, you lot of sandbaggers.
Bet you all finish, finish higher and faster than you expect too to.
Have fun, hope the weather holds out, hope you get to look out at the fabulous scenery through that red misty fug in your eyes as you climb that bugger of an 18% through the tree lined avenue of awesomeness.
Post pics.
Doing the 200. Spent the last few days spending money, fettling and panicking. Also been pondering the use of bin bags as waders and reminding myself that 'it's only a bike ride'
Should i be packing my speedos?
I would suggest well-padded speedos, joshvegas
Picking up on Hannah's theme, heres mine:
I am Dave
I've told my legs to shut up but they wont listen.
If your're thinking of overtaking me - can I have a tow?
If you carry me across the river you can have a jelly baby.
If you give me a croggy to the finish you can have this bike.
On the theme of name badges/signs mine should be:
I'm taz, yes I'm suffering, but some twisted ideology means I'm stuck with a bloody one geared contraption and secretly I'm yearning for the clicky flicky joy of a multi speed cog pile thingy.
Yes the hip flask has nice booze in and if you closely observe you see that my cadence matches that of the cheeky girls song "touch my bum" on all climbs.
Josh.
I think thus was a stupid idea
I'm hating everyminute.
Ofcourse I'm signing up for next year.
Yes i'm definitly doing more training.
No I won't actually do more training.
I wish I'd bought two soreens.
I hope the various bodges hold out.
I have a mini bottle of rioja will trade for a tow.
I've so far been in complete denial. Now I'm worrying a bit. Last year was brutal, this year I'm a stone heavier and have done about half as much riding as I did last year. And I've got to go to a stag-do in Newcastle on Saturday night. Quite frankly if I manage to ride past the 130km checkpoint without wimping out it'll be a miracle.
Stag do will help you forget
Have made some last minute purchases to add to my kit plan:
Quick link that's the right one for my set up.
Tubeless repair noodle poo stick things.
More food.
Now on the road heading there. Haven't coughed for 5 minutes. All good. (Positive thinking there).
Turned up, signed on, handed in a meagre drop bag.
Place looked pretty busy.
Lots of very fancy, very clean bikes about.
Just eaten my pre-ride fuel (chip butty).
Good to go for the morning, after the 50 minute drive from my b&b in Hawick...
If I die out there, will someone kindly drag my lifeless body across the line, so at least I can RIP.
You won't need waders or speedos. Unless I build a dam downstream mmwhahahaaar!
I'm campibg in a firestation.
Good luck!!
Frig that was tough, but I'm an outlaw!
Last across the startline 5th lastoverall.
Bike was perfect I was not.
Good weather?
Conditions on the trail good?
Need more info ...
Dust! So much dust! And I have sunburned legs in the gap between socks and knee warmers. And I bloody finished in 11:53:53. So I am happy. Obviously I am never doing it again because yesterday's glorious weather will never be repeated!
No sleep though. Think toothache in your knees radiating up and down your legs. Ow. But didn't really suffer on the ride apart from when I ran out of water 10km before the last feed stop, the last 20km I'd had enough, the last 10km I'd really had enough.
Sorry I don't think I got to put any faces to any forum names.
The weather really was superb.
I'm doing it next year.
We yad a torn tyre and a crash on the nasty little ridges in the centre of the track.
I almost bonked on the lakeside way.
My only niggle really was the lack of actual food at the feedstations i didn't really need snacks but i'd have killed for a sausage roll.
Don't think i'll ever have such a dusty bike.
I saw Bryan and made a comment about hipflasks to some singular speeders
*puts little hand up* singlepseed with hipflask, that was meeee
Brutal. Some of the downhills had me considering suspension (or bigger tyres than the 35c I was using).T
wo water bottles bounced out in the first few miles, never to be seen again (my final bottle disappeared around the 80mile mark), I wasn't the only one.
At one point there was a person every 50yards fixing a puncture.
Finished in 12:10, I put this down to me stopping to help some poor soul who'd run out of innertubes ๐
Still, not bad considering I'd never ridden further than 80miles before.
Lessons leant:
Tubeless tyres work (I had no punctures).
Double wrapped bar tape was a great idea.
I need better bottles/cages that actually hold onto the bottles.
Don't forget to eat (the last 15k I was running on empty).
I'd do it again next year though 
Frig that was tough, but I'm an outlaw!
Yup me too - 9hrs 56mins. Considering I was only supposed to be doing the 130 but decided to make the most of the nice weather I'm pretty pleased with that.
I'd recommend it to anyone but wouldn't do it again, if that makes sense?
tazzymtb - Member
*puts little hand up* singlepseed with hipflask, that was meeee
I know because
A. The bike is distinctive
B. I've actually met you ๐
Great!!
Tip, to stop your bottles leaving the cages use a Woman's braided elastic hair band.. do one loop around the top of the cage (where the neck of the bottle sits) then pull the larger loop over the neck of the bottle.
Being elastic it'll pull tight,bottle against cage.
Simple fix for keeping bottles in cages us CXer long distance riders use..
Good weather?
Conditions on the trail good?Need more info ...
2 deg at the start, got warmer over the day, glad I was wearing arm and leg warmers as I could strip off. Some of the headwinds after the 200/130 split were brutal
Trails were dry and good, some loose stuff in places there won't be better weather for it again I reckon
Unfortunately there were a lot more crashes this year, including a couple of lads who came together on a high speed run and had to go to hospital.
However, another fantastically well organised event
There was no thorn, flint or sharp slate on the course, so how come so many riders had punctures?
pinch flats on the descents
Sounds bloody ace.
I chose not to go this year. Maybe next, I'll see.
Glad it was dry, spectacular course innit.
Turn sidewall in our group
Descending gravel roads at speed is my new favourite thing.
*puts little hand up* singlepseed with hipflask, that was meeee
Hello! That was me slack jawed in awe at your singlespeed status.
Descending gravel roads at speed is my new favourite thing.
I know! What a revelation! I did once think that I would really really hurt myself if I came off. But then I got back to having fun ๐
Kudos to the guy riding clipless pedals in trainers having forgotten his shoes. Hope the two guys who came off separately but with 10m of each other aren't too sore today. First time I've seen a Pringle shaped wheel. The somersaults were spectacular.
The inly thing that hurts is my legs despite the thinest bar tape with no padding in my glove i didnt get the remotest discomfort from any of the roughness.
