Lands End to John O'Groats next year - help?

mikegtfc

Hello, I posted a while back about tackling LEJOG this Summer, but because it was so last minute we decided to plan properly and tackle it in Summer 2008. I'm really looking forward to it, problem being, I don't have a suitable bike at present.

Basically I need any help and advice possible. Anything relevant, jot it down.

On bikes, tourer or road bike?

Being a student I'm hardly blessed with a Roman Abrahmovich kitty of money, so I'll be looking for as cheaper option as possible, obviously trying to find a healty balance between price and performance, which isn't going to plunge me into crippling debt. The student fees are enough!

http://www.spacycles.co.uk/products.php?plid=m1b0s6p0

Are any of those adequate do you think? Obviously with a rack fitted?

Anyway, this is getting lengthy, anything to do with routes, must see sights, things to avoid, handy tips.. please help a rather novice bike!

Thanks in advance.

P.S. If this is in the wrong forum, please feel free to move it.

campagchris

Have you seen this book as it might help you,good luck with it.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bike-Britain-Cy ... 282&sr=1-5

Bronzie

I did the LEJOG in 2005 with 4 others from my club - a great experience with real "once-in-a-lifetime" moments. You can read about my experience of it (with route details) here:
http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/bronzie/endtoend.htm

Our route was taken from a CTC guide suggesting 21 days, but we did it in 11 by doubling up the suggested stages - averaged 95 miles a day which was more than enough for us as we had a tandem with us which struggled on the climbs. We did cheat and had a van carrying all our kit for us each day.

In terms of bike, presuming you are doing it laden with panniers etc, I'd suggest a fairly basic to mid-range MTB fitted with road slicks would do the job - you'll want mudguard eyes on the frame if possible and it'll need to be in good mechanical order (if necessary, get the wheels trued, replace/upgrade drivetrain, brakes etc) but I wouldn't worry about the weight too much. A good reliable bike is what you are after, rather than anyhting too fancy that will not stand up to being ridden down potholes with 15kg of kit on the back.

If I was doing it again with panniers, I'd use an old Marin Pine Mountain c.1989 that I've converted into a heavy tourer just by altering the gearing, handlebars and stem and adding panniers to it.

Best of luck with the planning!

carlstone

If you are on a really tight budget and arn't bothered about drops have a look at this, just add bar ends to offer some varied hand positions. Comes with guards and rack.


http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/ebwPNLq ... 910m005725

For loads of info have a look at this link:

http://www.users.waitrose.com/~ianclare/links.htm

Good luck, it's my dream to do it, have been working on SWMBO for years but no luck yet

ForumNewbie

If you are looking to buy a bike specifically for LEJOG, I would go for anything but a mountain bike as it not best for road riding. Light tourer or decent hybrid would be my choice.

oldwelshman

Any bike will do, just make sure your legs are prepared they are more important
You will also have to ensure you have a good diet for this ride and would be useful having a backup team like Bronzie mentioned to carry kit, emergency spares, food, medical kit etc.
Bronzie mail me or text me your number so we can arrange some rides I can't find your number.
I am going to start traininng in about 2 or 3 weeks.

baudman

oldwelshman wrote:

Any bike will do...

I probably wouldn't recommend a Penny Farthing for your first attempt!

oldwelshman

baudman wrote:

oldwelshman wrote:

Any bike will do...

I probably wouldn't recommend a Penny Farthing for your first attempt!

Now that would be a challenge

paulbricey

We put tips and details into our site : www.arewethereyet2007.co.uk. we:

had 2 fit and one less fit guy, challenge was mental for 2 of us and physical for the other (it get's cold stopping & starting all the time, and getting no real rhythm)
- took the shortest and most direct route (it's on bikely.com, think the link is on our site). I planned each day the evening before.
- had a support car driven by my Dad
- booked htels & guest houses as we went along
- didn't like gels & powerbars & took coffee/cake stops
- pub lunches
- didn't have any punctures, didn't even pump any tyres all trip
- had live tracking via sportsdo
- the only failure modes would have been accidents (had none) or unbearable pain in bum, shoulders, joints (got degrees of this that disrupted progress)

Overall advice is look to your fitness and your comfort on the bike.

abi26

hi
i did the lands end john o groats last year and found it incredibly physically challanging as ihad not riden before. having completed it i bought an SCR 2.0 and i think that although some people have said tat bikes dont matter / make a difference i would beg to differ.
there is no way i could even contemplate doing the lands end john o groats again without 3 front coggs. i think you should have front coggs and train as much as possible because apparently that helps.....
are you going the long way or the sh0rter way??
are you carrying your own stuff?
we camped....it was wet and horrid i hope you have somewhere lovely and warm to sleep

abi26

hi
i did the lands end john o groats last year and found it incredibly physically challanging as ihad not riden before. having completed it i bought an SCR 2.0 and i think that although some people have said tat bikes dont matter / make a difference i would beg to differ.
there is no way i could even contemplate doing the lands end john o groats again without 3 front coggs. i think you should have front coggs and train as much as possible because apparently that helps.....
are you going the long way or the sh0rter way??
are you carrying your own stuff?
we camped....it was wet and horrid i hope you have somewhere lovely and warm to sleep

abi26

hi
i did the lands end john o groats last year and found it incredibly physically challanging as ihad not riden before. having completed it i bought an SCR 2.0 and i think that although some people have said tat bikes dont matter / make a difference i would beg to differ.
there is no way i could even contemplate doing the lands end john o groats again without 3 front coggs. i think you should have front coggs and train as much as possible because apparently that helps.....
are you going the long way or the sh0rter way??
are you carrying your own stuff?
we camped....it was wet and horrid i hope you have somewhere lovely and warm to sleep

volvine

i'm setting off tonight to tackle this ride (wish me luck) we have a support camper van for sleeping and storing food and spares just hope my legs and backside hold out must say the closer it gets the more nervous i'm getting but i have a nice 10 hour drive to reach john o'groats tonight to get my head round it.
well here goes

CHRISNOIR

Well, good luck Sir!! Let us know how it all went! May all your roads be smooth...

SteveR_100Milers

Good luck, let us know how it goes!

mrmanben

Summer 2008?

Us Too, I imagine you will pass us somewhere along the way !!

We are thinking half bivvy, half YHA and friends houses, buy food along the way sort of affair. Riding hard tail MTBs with rigid forks and 26'' road tyres

Good luck

Ben

judojody

I completed LEJOG this summer 1080 miles 13 days. I bought a bike from Ebay a Belgium bike made by Gazelle. Designed for Audax and Randoneur rides. Cost me less that £200 with full campag veloce 9 groupset.

4 of us did the ride 2 boys and 2 girls, all on very different bike, One hybrid, One Cyclocross, One Road bike and my Audax bike. All of us carried our stuff in panniers weighing about 6-8kg in total. All had triple chainsets which was pretty handy for Dartmoor.

We stayed in hostels which on the whole were superb.

The ride takes loads of planning and preparation.

As regards to training we were all fairly fit and all cycle about 100-150 miles a week most of the year. Just get used to 7 or more hours in the saddle and riding with all the gear you are going to need to take.

most of all have fun, it was brilliant fun and i would like to do something similar again.

Jody

volvine

!!!!!!!!finished!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2 of us set off on thursday i had to be back in work on the monday but was only going along for support anyway but it took my friend 5 days to finish.
the one thing i would say which was advised on this forum was true that the weather plays a major part we set off in the pitch black with driving wind in our faces it was not enjoyable so first day was very hard finished in Avimore.Second day was much better nice sunny day wind still in face but not as strong finished in Peebles after wasting 1 1/2 hours trying to get out of Edinburgh.Third day found quite difficult with lots of little hills and of course SHAP where you couldn't see 50 yards with rain and wind in face finally finished in Carnforth.Fourth day nice day made good miles through Lancashire and Cheshire ended up 10 miles north of Bristol.Last day i was not present but friend told me was the hardest day of all very hilly but managed to finish with 1 hour to spare for the 5 day challenge.

after going along for the ride one thing which i carn't imagine doing it without was the support camper van complete with shower ect so slept where we finished as aposed to finding hotels ect if you have a bad day you may be 50 miles short of your target destination and other way round you might have a great day and have to drive back to your digs.
all in all a very good experience i think i will try it next year but set a more realistic target of 7 days.

p.s my mate did all this on a £199 bike from Halfords a Carrera 14 speed and he is not a cyclist.

carlstone

p.s my mate did all this on a £199 bike from Halfords a Carrera 14 speed and he is not a cyclist.

Respect is due :shock:

That really sounded like a grueller.

toontra

volvine wrote:

after going along for the ride one thing which i carn't imagine doing it without was the support camper van complete with shower ect so slept where we finished as aposed to finding hotels ect if you have a bad day you may be 50 miles short of your target destination and other way round you might have a great day and have to drive back to your digs.
all in all a very good experience i think i will try it next year but set a more realistic target of 7 days.

Well done! Yes, the wind is the unknown quantity which can turn an achievable target into a real grind.

As you say, for most people 7 days is a good target, especially if unsuported. That's what I'm aiming for next spring. Hats off to anyone doing it in less.

volvine

forgot to mention he is 54 yars old

toontra

volvine wrote:

forgot to mention he is 54 yars old

Just reaching his prime then! If you look at Audax results you will find the average age of finishers of the 200k and over events is routinely in the late forties/early fifties. With age, what you loose in speed is more than made up for with increased stamina.

volvine

i agree with you most endurance athletes are of a more mature age