Weekend "slowcial rides - Ride details see 1st post

Coriander

Have I missed something (have ot confess to being far too lazy to read pages 3 and all of 4), but wasn't this for people who'd be doing about 15mph cruising speed???

I'm started to get scared by the people who seem to be coming... Lovely to see you all, but I'll end up cycling on my own...

Back to pootling round Lewisham on my own.. sob...

Clever Pun

itboffin wrote:

Clever Pun wrote:

I'm quite tempted do do this on the brompton... skinning carbon on that will be beyond funny

for the first 10 miles then it will be tears and bed time :P

without a doubt

itboffin

So how come Rich, CP, LiT & Jash are posting on here??

This is for slow rides right? so when do you four ever ride slowly.... never!

Leave these kind people alone you pack of wolves :P

Cafewanda

Coriander I'm sure you wouldn't be on your own and, besides, I thought it was a group ride with no-one left behind?

I'd love to join one of the rides but in September, probably. You could always come over to Balham we can pootle together

PinkPedal

Don't fear Cori, if I'm there I'm not fast!

il_principe

Cafewanda wrote:

Coriander I'm sure you wouldn't be on your own and, besides, I thought it was a group ride with no-one left behind?

That's what I thought, anyway I never actually said I was coming. :P

Aidy

Does everyone live south of the river?

andy83

Id love to come if i could but living further north than you lot its out of the question. Lit idea of getting train somewhere would prob be good as nothing like going through the nice countryside, we have advantages not being down there

i completed my first 60 mile ride the weekend i one thing i found was you dont have to ride the same as the others with you. The bloke i went with was a lot better than me on the hills but i was quicker on the flats and decents. in a way it kind of made us both work that little harder on the parts we werent that great on. we only went for 25 mile originally as 30 was my longest ride before but i felt great for doing the 60 mile

we was considering maybe getting the train to shropshire and doing a loop round chester and wales. would anyone round the midlands be interested in this

i averaged 15mph for a four hour ride which i thought was quite admirable as quite a few hills

Rich158

Aidy wrote:

Does everyone live south of the river?

I may come along for a social pootle and a bit of a chin wag. If I do I'll be coming through South London, Bexley - Eltham - Lewisham and then over to Richmond Park, you're more than welcome to join me if I make it

shoulder_of_orion

wait. I thought we agreed to meet in Dulwich? not RP?

somewhere mutually convenient for the people who originally had said they were interested, which was:

Dondaddyd (Laurence)
Shoulder of Lamb
Jamey (aka Jamey)
Cori (Fiona)
Rich158 (Rich)
lardboy (aka Dave)
Roger Merriman
PinkPedal (Emma)

Dulwich will be easier for Rich in any case, not that he seems to mind doing ridiculous mileage....

_Brun_

Can I come if bring the fixed gear?

Rich158

Shoulder of Lamb wrote:

wait. I thought we agreed to meet in Dulwich? not RP?

somewhere mutually convenient for the people who originally had said they were interested, which was:

Dondaddyd (Laurence)
Shoulder of Lamb
Jamey (aka Jamey)
Cori (Fiona)
Rich158 (Rich)
lardboy (aka Dave)
Roger Merriman
PinkPedal (Emma)

Dulwich will be easier for Rich in any case, not that he seems to mind doing ridiculous mileage....

Dulwich is fine for me, given I'm a lazy sod and can't be arsed to back through this thread, when are we meeting and where?

Coriander

Rich158 wrote:

Shoulder of Lamb wrote:

wait. I thought we agreed to meet in Dulwich? not RP?

somewhere mutually convenient for the people who originally had said they were interested, which was:

Dondaddyd (Laurence)
Shoulder of Lamb
Jamey (aka Jamey)
Cori (Fiona)
Rich158 (Rich)
lardboy (aka Dave)
Roger Merriman
PinkPedal (Emma)

Dulwich will be easier for Rich in any case, not that he seems to mind doing ridiculous mileage....

Dulwich is fine for me, given I'm a lazy sod and can't be arsed to back through this thread, when are we meeting and where?

Nobody's actually been bossy enough to take over and make these decisions. I hand that over to you. Coz I'm kind like that...

shoulder_of_orion

Well it really should be up to DDD, but as he doesn't seem to be about, I'll step in.

Right. Dulwich it is then. 9am Sunday 9th August. Meet in Dulwich Park.

Coriander - I can meet you in Ladywell if you like?

Cheers. Gotta go...

amnezia

sounds good! just a few questions..

Will race radios be allowed??

How many spare bikes should i bring on the support car?

biondino

Can I just suggest that before you agree where to meet, you have a route in mind?

DonDaddyD

Add your name to the list if you want to come.

For Clarification:

Dondaddyd (Laurence) 
Shoulder of Lamb 
Jamey (aka Jamey) 
Cori (Fiona) 
Rich158 (Rich) 
lardboy (aka Dave) 
Roger Merriman 
PinkPedal (Emma)

Shoulder of Lamb wrote:

Well it really should be up to DDD, but as he doesn't seem to be about, I'll step in.

Right. Dulwich it is then. 9am Sunday 9th August. Meet in Dulwich Park.

Coriander - I can meet you in Ladywell if you like?

Cheers. Gotta go...

OK sorry I haven't posted..

- 9th Augst it is. I will ammend the first post and thread title.

- The route should determine where we meet (and how).

- If there are any reasonable routes from Dulwich (or anywhere else) then please post some.

- We need someone to actually lead the ride take us around the route. Nominate yourselves.

- Length of the route will hopefully be around 30 - 50miles.

- I'm happy to meet at Richmond Park, Dulwich Park, DeVer Cycles or somewhere else.

- All are welcome but this is a ride for slow people (slower paced) and I want to make that clear - I'm pedalling my bike around the 15mph mark (due to the distance), I'm not sure what the average will be. Fast guys are more than welcome but be aware that the group pace may frustrate (some of you more savage ones).

- Flat bar road bikes welcome.

PinkPedal

Yes, let's sort out a route first. I have to say I'd be up for taking the train out somewhere first if it means more nice cycling than battling through traffic. That pub IP posted also looks wicked! Went to a wedding in Cobham earlier in the year and it looked great for cycling round there.

We have a couple of weeks still though to make the final plan

Cafewanda

DDD put me down the for the next one (hopefully no clashes with running)

shoulder_of_orion

Sorry, my last post may have been a little strident.

Earlier in the thread I had expressed concern that cycling to Richmond or Wimbledon before departing would involve a ~25 mile round trip for me plus a schlep to Windsor adds another 50 miles and we're suddenly looking at something quite big. Likewise if we train it we have at least an hour either side faffing around in stations/on trains.

So my preference is to meet somewhere mutually convenient and go from there.

I do agree that planning route is a good idea.

I will do a bit of research and suggest one. If others also suggest routes, I am happy to go with the consensus.

I am going to try and do a weekly long ride to improve my fitness andhope to start tomorrow. My time is very pressed and the only time that works for me is sunday AM. It's not fair on the others if I am away all day every sunday...

Coriander

I have a book of c.30 mile rides around Kent and Sussex and also south of London. Will have a look at possible routes.

If we do catch a train, then I think it's best if someone takes resopnsiblity for organising the ride, states which train we're catching and a meet time 20 mins before that to buy a group ticket. Anyone who misses that misses the ride (or can ride like billy-ho to catch up).

Coriander

OK,

I have two suggestions (and won't mind at all if they're not what people are looking for), but they will end up taking most of the day as they involve taking a train out south of London.

1) Tenterden to Sissinghurst Castle - c. 33 miles, difficulty rating of 2/5

A ride through the villages of Headcorn, Tenterden and Pluckley, some good pubs and wonderful scenery.

We could catch the 09:30 train from Charing Cross (and a bit later at Waterloo East/London Bridge), arriving at Pluckley (Kent) at 10:47.

2) Pines, heathland and quiet Hampshire lanes, south from Farnham - c. 34 miles, difficulty rating of 2/5

Pretty villages, open heathland and tiny, little used lanes.

We could catch the 10:07 from Waterloo, arriving at Farnham at 11:15.

DonDaddyD

Shoulder of Lamb wrote:

the only time that works for me is sunday AM.

I agree, same here. Its a morning ride, I'll ammend the first post.

@Corriander.

I'm leaning towards the second, though I'd be happy to do either. If you're happy to lead the route, set up and state which train, where to meet (20mins before). I'm happy for you to choose.

Kieran_Burns

I don't wish to put a damper on the idea of using the train, but how many of you do you think they will allow on a train with a bike?

Usual non rush hour trains are smaller (due to smaller passenger loads) so there may be even less space than normal. Normal in these neck of the woods equates to space for 2 or 3 bikes at most.

I think you should check the availabilty of space before committing to a train journey.

PinkPedal

Hmm, good point KB. Though those rides sound good. I've not had a problem getting an early Sunday train with about 4 mates out to Thames Ditton for C2C but on the way back from Timex Tri got shouted at for trying to take my bike into the main carriage! It had to go in a special carriage at the back and I couldn't stay with it.

We could always shamelesly appropriate the Dulwich Paragon's (a club I would love to join if I ever get fast enough!) Saturday 30 mile ride route. http://www.dulwichparagon.com/ - there is a map and route card under the Club rides/Saturday rides tab. http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Du ... iendly-9am

It leaves from Crystal Palace and covers 30 miles. We could maybe add an extra bit it to bring the milage up...

Bassjunkieuk

That Paragon ride looks quite nice and I've done some of those roads before and can say they are quite nice for riding on once you clear the A232 and head towards Downe and Biggin Hill. Heisers Hill is quite fun on the return leg (assuming you travel anti-clockwise around that bottom loop) but can be easily avoided by using Croydon Road/Limpsfield Road and leaves plenty of scope for extension. I've done a route that went down Clarkes Lane and followed it down to Westerham before turning back on the A25 to take in Titsey Hill, not something I'd recommend for a first group ride as that's a 16% hill and passes the evil White Lane which is the venue of the Bec CC Hill Climb (and even worse then Titsey as they report a 50 yard 1 in 4 section........) but this does leave us some scope for extending the route at a future date.

There is also a nice looking pub called the Harrow Inn along Limpsfield Road (a bit out of the way) but it has outside seating which could be ideal for a rest stop.

shoulder_of_orion

PinkPedal wrote:

We could always shamelesly appropriate the Dulwich Paragon's (a club I would love to join if I ever get fast enough!) Saturday 30 mile ride route. http://www.dulwichparagon.com/ - there is a map and route card under the Club rides/Saturday rides tab. http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Du ... iendly-9am

It leaves from Crystal Palace and covers 30 miles. We could maybe add an extra bit it to bring the milage up...

Sounds perfect. I was looking at the Dulwich Paragon rides as well, but didn't find this one for some reason. Pub lunch also sounds good.

To be fair to Coriander, the train to Pluckley, I know well and there is plenty of space for bikes even on a sunday. It is one of those more modern trains with space for bikes near the loos, you could probably fit half a dozen near each loo.

However, I am against taking the train for reasons previously stated. To catch the Pluckley train, I could get the 0907 to Charing Cross, but that arrives at 0929, so I would probably have to get the 0837, which would be more than 2 hours before we'd arrive at Pluckley. If we had 2 hours at either end and 3-4 hours fort the ride, we are looking at a full day...

Beautiful country round there mind.

PinkPedal

Cool, well let's see what everyone thinks. I don't have anything planned for that Sunday so am up for either route, maybe if it becomes regular we can mix it up with going out to the country on the train. Keen for a nice pub lunch whereever we end up

The only disclaimer I have to make is that I am totally incompetent at reading maps and get lost so often it's embarassing. I don't think I should be entrusted with route leading, unless you want to double the ride with detours and wrong turns!

BassJunkie, what do you consider a 'fun' hill? It'd be good to have a couple of hills on the route, surely not worse than the hills on capital to coast?

DonDaddyD

I was going to ride to Charing Cross, Waterloo.... didn't even think about catching a train there... I'd probably have been shattered before the ride....(slept on the train... :oops: )

Lol... If everyone is happy with the Paragon ride (assuming we use base junkies advice to that avoid the more brutal hills - I don't fancy 50yards of 1 in 4 or even 16% but will if have to) then I'm cool to do that one.

If we meet in Dulwich then we can meet by the Dog (pub in Dulwich village) or the main entrance of Dulwich park across the road from the picture gallery.

Bassjunkieuk

PinkPedal wrote:

BassJunkie, what do you consider a 'fun' hill? It'd be good to have a couple of hills on the route, surely not worse than the hills on capital to coast?

Well a while back after looking at the King of the Downs Evans sportive I looked up the route and figured I could give Titsey Hill a go. After finding it in my car on the way home from work once I then planned a route to take it in. I did that as part of a 30ish mile route starting from my parents house near East Croydon Station.
I then went out again before the C2C on a longer ride as I'd been on a very short commute around the time of the event, to make sure I hadn't lost my longer ride legs. This resulted in a 28 mile ride that I hoped on descending Titsey Hill on. As I got on the hill and the speed built up my bike started vibrating quite alarmingly - it appears the road surface isn't that good for 25+mph so I ended up calling it quits at Whites Lane. I'd already been DOWN this in my car so knew it was rather steep at one point but decided it would be better then trying to negotiate the rest of the hill with the shaking. As the Bec CC hill climb page that I found says it's "only" 700yd long and is mainly 1 in 6 but the 1 in 4 section is about 3/4 way up! Still I managed to add another hill to my list of "I've done that"

As for map reading I have the TFL maps for that area and will have my phone + GPS with us so we should always be able to tell where we are. One nice thing I have found with riding around those areas is that the roads tend to follow on from each other so as long as you just remember where to turn off your OK :-) Heck I might even be able to test out the route from West Wickham to Clarkes Lane one evening on the excuse that I want a longer ride after work ;-)