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fit that horn
yep, got your number .
I have nedrapier in my house... 2 more and the centipede shall be complete.....
😉
DrP
Still got a wedding tomorrow, still jealous.
Just back from the first quarter of the (p)ride. 7 of us set out in drizzle from the pier. Obligatory start photo was taken in the stench of urine while a man hosed the puke off the pier. Not the best start! Set off through Brighton catching every red light we could but eventually hit the bottom of the beacon. My total lack of fitness and over enthusiasm on my SS last night meant I was dropped immediately. The rain made the decent pretty terrifying so I tucked in being Singletrackmind and will blame him for being slow. The sun started to peek out occasionally but we seemed to be following the drizzle to London. Luckily my sunglasses had fallen off on the beacon so I benefitted from the weight saving all the way out through Haywards Heath and into Ardingly where I had to leave the other 6 to continue on. Headed back the same way very uneventfully, with a bit of sun and a headwind but no more rain
Nice to meet everyone and sorry I had to head back but I am now pretty broken. Would probably have got to London but would have really been slowing you all down.
Same again next year DrP and I will make sure Scooby is not in town!
Good work Tim 😀
You out tomorrow?
Probably coffee only!
Coffee stop at Clapham 🙂
Just of to Roehampton, then the return leg.. Will be down to just two of us by then!
DrP
Keep going DrP 🙂
Hopefully see you at some point tomorrow Tim.
Good work DrP. The cookies still working for you?
Espresso stop in Weybridge...
DrP
Bit stormy on the south coast now...
Apols in advance but I'm rubbish with names. 🙄
I parted company with the guys at the A25 and then took a [url= http://app.strava.com/activities/174348851 ]scenic loop with (Toby??) west around LGW before going home[/url].
Up to that point only 1 puncture at Smallfield and everyone was in good spirits. Fingers crossed the weather held.
Sounds like I wouldve died. Glad I wasn't tempted to risk it now!
Good vibes for your return leg chaps!
Home safe and sound.
Eventfull ride with a very early train out of Havant across to Brighton.
Great to meet TimP again and all the possee as we set off on out little adventure away from pee stained Brighton.
1 puncture ( sorry ) on the way out and some nav isues that got sorted saw us arrive in good spirits in Clapham. quick tea stop then cross town to Roehampton uni , where i said my goodbyes and left the boys to return to Pride .
Got instantly lost and ended up in Richmond , so about turn and follow the river out to Kingston , then down the A307 toward Cobham . Stopped every 45 mins for fuel and to try to keep on top of the hydration , but the headwind was a killer , and it beat me eventually.
Another Nav error saw me detour out to Leatherhead , instead of Effingham junction , so added 8 miles before Guildford.
Quick rain shower in G'ford saw me put on my rain jacket for 10 mins only as the sun came straight out again.
Tea break in Godalminng then off through Milford and out to Haslemere .
I failed just short of Haslemere , ran out of puff in the headwind and some truly awful tarmac .
Haslemere station was a welcome sight at 1600 , and the 1620 to Havant with tea trolly even more so .
Mileage ? dunno , no computer but probably 110 ish.
hope the others survive pride in lycra!
I know that bit of Tarmac into haslemere, it's bloody awful.
Well done on the ride, that's an epic!
Fair play guys I did London to Brighton mostly off road including the downs link and it shagged me !
No way I could've contemplated a return leg
Finished!
Cold beer on the seafront now!
DrP
Well what a ruddy brilliant way to spend a Saturday!
Actually - it started on Friday eve when I rode into town to meet nedrapier, after he'd ridden the majority of the l2b OR route after work! We grabbed a swift drink in to trendy seafront bar (we leaked the part in out cycling swagger no doubt..) them got home and to bed for about midnight...eek!
Alarm went off at 0550..
Six of us headed out from brighton, with the intention from the start that only myself and TobyMc would do the whole route..
At the 'designated spots', members of Group departed, leaving me, tonyMc and singletrackmind to carry on into that there london.
At Richmond park we all set record breaking KoMs and became the best cyclers in London, then singletrackmind headed back to Pompey on road,which left only two....
I'm not afraid to say we had a lovely day!
Good banter,
Boring banter,
No banter - all the key stages of a big bike ride!!
The final climb up from Beeding onto the Truleigh hill gave us the most fantastic views over 'my home - the South Downs! Love it!
Then we smashed the last few miles into brighton, right back to the pier we started at just over 12 hours prior!
The crowds were out to meet us, and we weren't the only chaps in shiny skintight clothing 🙂
Stopped at the 'carousel' for the necessary post ride fuel up - battered sausage nada chips, and a few too many pints...
Toby's idea of filling the water bottles with booze would have been genius, if it weren't for me being stuck on a train without a working loo..
Needless to say,there won't be a "have you ever pi$$ed yourself on a busy train" thread to accompany the numerous "pooing yourself" threads!
I've washed my tan away now, and am off to bed, but will get pictures and write up sorted at some point I expect!,
Toby - great ride, great company, and pleased it's been your furthest to date 🙂
DrP
well, not quite such a grump now!
Well done chaps!
good work pidge 🙂
Gutted I couldn't join you for that, though I'm scared whenever I hear the words "smash out the last few miles"....
Good god, I'm sore! Very severe broomsticking of the legs...
A memorable ride though, so well done DrP for organising and dragging me me allong the cursed Downs Link! I've never sampled a finer chip than those on sea front....
Glad you made it home OK singletrackmind, we were fretting.
Great to meet all involved - looking forward to next years circuit already!
I'm going to try and walk downstairs now - will update around the halfway point.
Edit- yep, longest ride ever, ever, ever. 135m with 10m to and from the train - oof! And good luck with 4man 25TT today m1kea. Smash it!
Just back from the rest of the weekend's house hunting and in-laws visiting! Great ride. 60 off road on Friday, 60 on road with the guys on Saturday. http://www.strava.com/activities/175029814 (take 13 off for the train.)
Thanks DrP for organising, good idea well executed. Thanks especially for your hospitality on Friday night.
Friday's off-road was harder than I expected. I'd been in touch with DrP about doing the ride back to front; idea was to leave work early and ride from there, but that didn't happen, so I got on the train at Waterloo just before the no-cycles cut off at 16:45. I think if I'd missed that I probably would have ridden home.
Off the train at Weybridge. A bit of road and a short section of Thames path got my hopes up for a quick ride down (I had DrP's words about how long it should take ringing in my ears!) but turning into the woods, rougher tracks, indistinct paths, couple of missed turnings, even with the GPSy on the bars, couple of open sections where the southerly wind hit me... Average speed tumbled pretty quickly! Then the North Downs and the Surrey hills, more climbing, not all necessary - check the track! Great fun hanging on on the way down to Shere, though!
Somehow, I managed to bump gee off here into 4th place on a Strava climb. Only time that's going to happen! Oddly placed little segment, he was probably taking photos too, or textin'.
Never thought I'd be happy to see the Downs Link, but I loved it on Friday. I'd just lost my nerve about where the hell I was and got the phone out to check. I was a hundred yards from the turning onto the track. A Cookie of Filth (Sainsbo's triple chocolate) and off for the quick bit. A spot of RAARRH! and I was in Steyning. Genuinely enjoyed it. (Hated my other 2 goes on it!)
It was dark, I was knackered, and someone I didn't know was being very generous to me, so I took the road to Worthing and met DrP for a "why not?" pint, then back to his a few miles down the coast.
More about the road ride up there^. Good group to ride up with, great to meet you all. Glad everyone's rides went well (enough!). Great work Toby, glad you made it!
I was meeting mrsrapier in The South of England's Highest Village, so I peeled off with m1kea (Hi Mike, it was Ed!) and he pulled me round some extra miles at a decent lick. My average speed dropped off somewhat after we split, but well before I hit the hills!
Up for the whole B-L-B next time! I think...
Nice one fellas 8) and apols to Ed for the wrong name.
Re the 4 up; a lack of racing fitness from all of us saw us only just dribble under the hour but it was a nice day and a good laugh.
Gutted I couldn't make it in the end.
Definitely up for the [i]next[/i] one!!