BBB from Merlin. Job done. Superb for riding and running and as you get older, they have a +1 lens so you can still read your gps.

Weather patterns are only getting crazier – do it sooner……

Mezcals all round for me – they are tough n fast. I’ve still not broken one on the downs.

TD folk manage with rigid bikes to go fast and have less breakages – many lose the feelings in their hands for a few weeks after getting to the ‘Wells. I was happy on a FS but was never getting below 21 days, so comfort counts for me. I did the KAW on the Tallboy last season and was very happy to have the boing around me…… going to get the double done this summer on the same machine once I can get the weather, legs and a support crew lined up my other half can’t safely drive n crew for long enough to get a 48 hour in the bag.

Core. It takes almost no equipment, it just works and locks you onto the bike so much better and the new power you can engage when climbing is awesome.
The change in performance will take a while to be noticed which makes it less fun to do as an exercise.

I was going to do one last Thursday and pulled the plug cos of the slippys; its rained lots since then so my advice would be to postpone for now and go n do something to prepare for when the weather is better. Loads of good advice above for sure about how quickly the trail dries and where dries first. My guage is always the flat section of Heyshott down (just east of the Cocking tap) and if thats dry to ride, you are good to go.

I’ve done it a few times and there has been loads of good solid advice here – my pointers would be 1) Go with the wind. 2) Go tubeless with decent tyres (Vittoria Mezcal’s are my choice cos of the flints) 3) Eat early and eat often – it helps if you focus your snacks towards protein and let the carbs take care of themselves. 4) Go out as slow as you dare, the amount of elevation gain in the two halves of the route are similar but you get less respite between the ups n the downs so it feels harder.

I’m planning to do 10 singles through this summer cos I can’t guarantee to be able to travel abroad and the downs are a brilliant place to have a staycation ride; the scenery and the light changes all the time and you can feast on the views all the way to take your mind off the climbs; remember that they are only 10 -15 mins of up, then you get a reward of a down!

Maybe check out your ITB if the pain moves around your knee – the band is generally tight cos the glute medius is underdeveloped; this shows why it causes pain and how to fix it:- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iODncOLJnk&ab_channel=ATHLEAN-X%E2%84%A2

Of course it could be a multitude of different things, but many folk have knee and hip probs caused by this one little muscle not pulling its weight!

Ride out to Charlton just above Goodwood and into the woods on the south side of the SDW – loads of real gravel and more deer than people. Lots of different gradients and loops.

The guys above who pushed the ‘do not stop’ mantra have it nailed; have a bash at two particular points when out on some full training rides…… try to keep ‘Stopped Time’ to less than 4 mins / hour; set your gps to record stationary time to keep a record of the little breaks at the roadside and secondly just go ride with a couple of pals and ask them to continue at the same ‘all day pace’ whilst you simply stop for a wee and see how long/ how much effort you need to put in to catch up to where you would have been if you had not stopped ( I know we all need to water a bush – this is just a drill).

Have at the turbo trainer and get the hours logged. I’m doing all my training atm on the turbo for my KAW double next year. I know its boring but saddle time wins.

That part of the Divide route is utterly stunning; its big, not too remote so its a great introduction for what is to come soon. I will watch more of his stuff coz we can’t get out there and race it for a while. One of the fun bits of doing the Divide is that you can eat whatever you fancy – its a 2700 mile picnic.

I think I could get round this in 12 – 14 days, including riding between stages too……. why does it take the pro’s so long?

Ignoring the n+1 rule, my fattie would be the One Bike; the Tallboys would go, the turbo training bike would go, the unicycle would go, etc etc. its just a riot of fun, its quick and deffo climbs so well – its just point and shoot cos you can ignore roots, rocks, small animals.
Such a shame its stuck in Fernie and nobody can fly to Canada.
Its only a Chinese copy covered in xt 1×12 kit, but it is superb!

there was a lad who I met on old winnie hill at the start of my lap and he was considering doing on a gravel bike (starting today I think) – I’d love to hear how he got on….. lived in the Havant/Emsworth area I think.

I was glad I was on a full susp bike. This time I kept the black side down along the Ridgeway.
I ride around the Frensham common loads on club ride; for some reason, that area took a bit of my soul away this time, and the route back to the SDW from Liss was darn tough and indirect and all I wanted was to be done by then.
How anybody can want to do it on a gravel bike is beyond me – its tough enough without self-inflicted misery!

Amesbury, not Avebury.

Going for a wander on Tuesday from QECP.
If there is info about taps between Avebury and the tap on the Ridgeway above Idstone, I’d love to know ASAP!

as it turns out, I did it the wrong way round the other month, so I am plotting to give it a clockwise spin in about a weeks time – there will be no time to look at Alfred’s bits.

Camp high – less condensation in the mornings. So many places to sleep around Lewes, just get off the Way proper cos there is always the DofE kids shitting in little copses and they are still mastering bushcraft…..

Sidi shoes are great; they last ages and you can get replacement parts of the soles to make them last even longer. I still doctor them – cut the tongue to suit my foot, cut the heel bone padded bit, notch the achilies slot a little deeper…… Tools, not jewels.

Not magnetic. Too noisey for fun.
Anything else will be fine, the hardest thing is getting on and using it.

You have a 13.5 hour single in there….. go and find it.

I’ve done my own version of this route and its great fun. Took 22 hours of riding and I had to have a snooze just above Old Sarum and rode downhill and the mist/fog over Salisbury Cathedral was something I will remember for a very long time.
I just built a version linking bridleways and small lanes that went in the right direction.
The chippie in Goring was very welcome, as was finding the taps on the Ridgeway.
The only bummer was having to ride to the start and home afterwards.

Keep piling the food in and back off at the start of every hill and winch up with utterly MINIMUM effort.
Go and have a look at the finish.

I’ve not had experience of the Lumenator- the Exposure lights I do have are awesome – just ridden to the Peaks with a Maxx D on the bars and the Link Plus on my head; it has a good red rear light and the front beam is all you need if you are running a decent size bar light. And they fix them if they ever have a problem.

Turbo tyre is the right tool for the job – it still sheds rubber, though I do give mine a bit of work. Pick one up when they are on offer.

stay on the right on the way down the chalk from Harting Down, then cut right into the meadow (where the Chinooks play) and the next RH downhill, stay in the middle. Walk up to the cattlegrid, then its plain sailing to Amberley Mount and halfway.
If you want more details for left, right or centre, just let me know.

https://maps.findmespot.com/Track?fbclid=IwAR0swkOzymwwFrI7vaw6IlO1JYQwOjncSXebZrifnFwmy2Pukdes_10p1Uw#panel-history

that was this weekend.
SPOT does work; this is a gen 1 and I thing the sqwaks are more often these days. They can be reasoned with about the price, its just a phone call. I’ve been a customer for 10+years and don’t feel the need to change.

Endura did a brilliant one for my ATR5000, every seam lined up, the colours were right and it was done on time and its still good enough to wear – I rode in it, ate in it and slept in it for over 30 days in a row (it got washed a couple of times).

Thanks Poop, I get to camp on the ride home too cos I don’t fancy the train or getting in a car bubble.
A weekend of MRE’s here we come.

And some brilliant weather!

Noisy hubs are good for riding in BC – lets the bears know you are about!
Wish I could get out there this summer.

DT 240’s.

Its like sticking a Chris King headset in. You just do it once.

I have some Easton x4’s and try getting service out of Silverfish or even Easton themselves – forget it. To be told to look on Ebay for second hand parts is not real customer service.

Get something with backup!

There is a lovely little woods a few miles south east of the city – I’ll be there on Saturday evening, and then have an MRE and go and start at 0600 Sunday morning and then pace a pal on his first SDW. Its going to be a warm dry night so why not?

Love a bit of Neil Young.

It all depends on too many variables to say ‘this is the tyre’; weight, riding style, trail awareness etc.

I’m on Mezcals for my next one cos they are just great for grip (best in the dry), low resistance (lower is available, but a Spotted Cat would only last minutes), puncture resistance (graphene lined), but its all personal choice and then down to a bit of luck too.

I’m doing one on Sunday – easiest to ride out and leave the car at home. Also, at the moment, I don’t really fancy the train to come back to Havant cos of the virus, so its a night on the downs for me and a ride home on Monday.
Logistics sorted.

Back on the bike today for the first time post-operation; got to help a buddy do his first SDW single this weekend, then I’ll have a bash at this in a fortnights time if the weather plays ball.
I’ll do it on the XC Tallboy and am going to stick a Lauf on the front.

Some from up north may say the SDW does not count as mountain biking, and if you can get away with a Lauf, its even less like mountain biking….. I’m just going to do it to see how long it takes.

Ha – I had been thinking about doing one a month back, I even went and scoped out some of our local road climbs to pick the best gradient and climb length to suit and very quickly realised that doing it safely with other traffic coming for 24 hours was a non-starter, so decided to do it on one of the climbs on the SDW where I if I fall asleep on the bike its just a hedge to climb out of rather then a car bonnet.
Its only 74 climbs. How hard can that be?

Then I had to have my tonsils removed pdq.

Back on the trainer at last so its all shelved for a couple of weeks.

This is going to be Type 2 fun

Ah, 2016 shoes – that may be why I didn’t see them.

Thanks.

Go to Lidl and buy one of their approx a tenner seat post bags – it will take the tent, bag liner and pillow, and then free up space for kit in your backpack – I know it money spent, but its a great little bag and anything that makes your first experience of bike packing better is worth doing.