Anyone done jogle, advice appreciated

andy83

This is commuting related as im doing the ride to raise money for a trust fund set up for a work colleague who has just past away, plus like this part of the site :P

Im looking to do john o groats to lands end in april and just wondered if anyone else has done it

Im looking on total costs roughly for accomadation etc

Im looking to take as little as possible, think a garmin is a must though as my directional sense is awful

I have a good level of fitness, would a few 100 mile rides nearer the time be ok training wise, I commute every day at the moment so the fitness is there, is it more the mental side as usually once I get past an hour or two on the bike it is usually the mental side that hits me

any other tips appreciated

wgwarburton

andy83 wrote:

This is commuting related as im doing the ride to raise money for a trust fund set up for a work colleague who has just past away, plus like this part of the site :P

Im looking to do john o groats to lands end in april and just wondered if anyone else has done it

Im looking on total costs roughly for accomadation etc

Im looking to take as little as possible, think a garmin is a must though as my directional sense is awful

I have a good level of fitness, would a few 100 mile rides nearer the time be ok training wise, I commute every day at the moment so the fitness is there, is it more the mental side as usually once I get past an hour or two on the bike it is usually the mental side that hits me

any other tips appreciated

A friend of mine is planning a LeJoG next year. I reckon if I were looking to spend 8-10 days on the bike I'd probably do a more interesting route. He's getting support from his father in a campervan.

Why JoGLE instead of LEJoG? Prevailing winds are SW, I'd want to start SW and head NE, plus the countryside gets more interesting as you get North (sorry, any Cornwallphiles, no offense intended).

Not much help, sorry...

Cheers,
W.

notsoblue

Make sure theres lots of hills in your training rides! Having done all my training within the M25 for the LEJOG I did, Cornwall almost broke me

gbsahne001

Did JOGLE last year and would recommend LeJOG, as getting Devon & Cornwall at the end of the ride nearly did for me

notsoblue

Just wanted to reiterate the hills bit. For me it wasn't an effort thing, my CV fitness isn't exceptional but I can hold my own. The main issue was that the muscles you use for climbing appear to be different to those you used for normal cycling, as I hadn't really trained them properly they pretty much just gave out by the time we were on the road to Okehampton (second day). I'm not sure where you ride, but if you're mainly used to flat terrain, consider that you might be in for a bit of a shock.

lastant

Yep, did a solo unsupported twelve-day LEJOG back in May with far less training than you're planning - and reckon I could have comfortably done it in ten days to be honest. Average of 88 miles a day, the shortest being 66 on day one and the longest 113 on day eleven.

My full training (ha!) spreadsheet is here. Apart from my standard 25ish mile commute I did one fifty miler, a a 120ish mile trip back to my parents and a 110ish mile sportive. Told you it was far less!

Full details are in my blog which is linked below in my signature, and I'm currently writing it all up and adding a selection of my pictures into a book that I'm self-publishing via an online vanity press ('cos I've always wanted the chance to walk into a Waterstones and say 'er, have you got anything by...me?'!).

Costs? I spent £840.02 in total, not including my train tickets (I think the sleeper to Penzance was £70.00ish and the return from Aberdeen was £15.00), nor the ferries to and from the Orkneys or my costs whilst there (say another £100ish I reckon). I can break it down fully for you later if you really want me to (down to the last Snickers) but maybe not for a couple of weeks.

Included in that total I did have some bike bits to buy on the way which bumped up the costs. My Carradice Barley gave up the ghost on day two (would never buy another Carradice for that reason, sorry...they let me down in my hour of need) which meant I spent £70.00 on a replacement rack and bag, and I needed to replace my crankset, chain and cassette in Chester at the cost of £284.96 (a captive customer, as it were...). Oh, £10.00 for a new spoke in Fort William too!

Accommodation - I split my trip between Bed and Breakfasts (5) and youth hostels (6). The most I spent on a night's accommodation was £28.00 in Morecambe at the Westleigh Hotel, and the least was at the YHA in Westward Ho! which was only £15.50. The *best* place I stayed was the Arkale Lodge in Carlisle, read the blog for why!

Hostels were a gamble having never stayed in them before, but for the bad experience I got in Edinburgh with a loud, mixed dorm I also had the opportunity to stay in a single room on the shore and overlooking Loch Ness for £19.00! Swings and roundabouts I guess.

I travelled light. A full kit list is on my blog, but basically it would fit in a shoe box with the flip flops tied on top. I never once felt like I didn't have enough, or that I'd carried too much.

For navigation I got myself a Garmin eTrex Vista HCx - mainly 'cos it runs on AA batteries so there was no chance it was ever going to run out of power on me. Had I not forgotten to turn it off a few times I'd have managed to run it on a pair of lithiums for the whole trip! I guess having the GPS takes the magic out of the trip, but on the other hand it takes the hassle of having to keep paper maps dry and legible!

I took my iPhone and charger and wrote up my notes for the day every night before bed. When I woke up in the morning I went over them and re-wrote anything that didn't make sense, added anything I'd forgotten and then published it online. I'd hazard a guess that I spent two to three hours a day blogging, but people that were following really enjoyed it and it's given me something brilliant to look back on. I also used the iPhone to tot up my costs as I ran, *everything* got noted!

Thoughts on the trip? I don't think it's a hard journey per se, it's simply a case of getting on your bike each day and pedalling yourself from A to B. That's not to say I didn't enjoy doing it, I've seen a slice of the country in a way that so few people can say they have, and there's moments I still recall fondly even after this many months (and hopefully for years to come).

Why go solo? Well, I didn't want to go in a group as I didn't want to be the one slowing everybody down. Having since done it, and read other encounters I don't think I would have done but I don't regret doing it alone. It's a hell of a party story if nothing else!

Biggest tip from me would be to book your trains early. I got my sleeper at the best possible price and the same for Aberdeen to London...£15.00! To get to Aberdeen I went via the Orkney Islands from John O'Groats. You might not fancy that to be honest!

Other tips? P20 Sunscreen is excellent and is very easy to carry. Take a camera. Enjoy yourself! Apologies for rambling! Any other questions, let me know.

rockers100

Hi,

There's a whole wealth of information in people on here about this subject, I'm sure!

For my two-penneth, I did this last May/June over 12 days with my best friend and have a few tips which you may be interested in.

Firstly, I'd definitely do it LEJOG because of the prevailing wind (we had 2 days of slight headwinds and the rest were zero wind or tail wind) and because Cornwall/Devon are soul destroyers if they were the last bit to do. Not very high summits, but it goes up and down so steeply and so often that you actually groan when you get to the top of the descent!

We used youth hostels and family/friends along the way, which kept the amount of kit we had to carry down. Hostels are generally about £17-£18 per night. If you have someone who wants to do support driving, then you can open up the option of carrying very little kit and camping, which is the most flexible option but maybe not the most comfortable/desirable depending on your point of view....!

Fitness wise, you sound like you're already fitter than I was when I started prepping for it. Don't think fitness will be a problem for you, as it's pretty low intensity, but very high duration. I'd advise doing some long (time-wise) rides over the weeks leading up to it (have a week off just before you start to let your body settle) to get your contact points (feet, ar5e and hands) used to it. That was the single hardest thing I found; days 4-6 were quite uncomfortable on my hands and backside (after that they toughened up). I didn't do enough long days beforehand, hence this discomfort on the ride.

Finally, eat more than you think! I don't know how you feel about eating whilst cycling (I generally don't, but then I've got a relatively slow metabolism so I can go a fair while), but it's crucial to keep eating a little and often during the day. If you let your energy levels get low at any point, then it's doubly hard to get them back up again. It also serves to nicely break the day up; we were stopping about every hour for 5 mins for a bit of malt loaf, cereal mix (yep, we emptied muesli into a tupperware box and took handfuls of that! Great combination of food stuffs in there.), bit of sandwich, whatever. It helps psychologically as well, as if you're having a bad patch you know that there's a break not too far away. Try and coincide with stopping at the top of a hill/rise to make getting going that bit easier! haha!

Hope those tips are of some use. Despite a couple of really hard days, mentally, it was very much worth it. I'm going to have another crack next year!

rockers100

Oh, £10.00 for a new spoke in Fort William too!

I think they did good business there - we had to do the same!

hillrep

Never done it myself, but lots of advice on
/http://www.cyclechat.net/forum/40-lands-end-to-john-ogroats-lejog
and at
http://www.ctc.org.uk

Kieran_Burns

I can give you one useful piece of advice from someone who hasn't done it:

John O'Groats is a dump.

Wallace1492

Kieran_Burns wrote:

I can give you one useful piece of advice from someone who hasn't done it:

John O'Groats is a dump.

+loads!!

Which is why I am heading for Durness!! Far nicer, much better approach roads, 10 times more scenic.... I just cant understand why people settle for, and do John O Groats. Its madness I tell you!!

I will never do LEJOG as I could not compromise on missing out on the most beautiful part of Scotland.

Mr Plum

lastant - great blog and a very interesting read. I'm planning a LEJOG ride with a good mate of mine in mid May. We're still (anxiously) in the planning stages but looking to take advice from as many sources as possible before we commit to a route. By the end of the month we'll have our route finalised and our accommodation booked.

lastant

Mr Plum wrote:

lastant - great blog and a very interesting read. I'm planning a LEJOG ride with a good mate of mine in mid May. We're still (anxiously) in the planning stages but looking to take advice from as many sources as possible before we commit to a route. By the end of the month we'll have our route finalised and our accommodation booked.

Thank you. If it's any use at easing your mind, I planned my route and booked my accommodation a month before I set off - think my first booking was on the 13th April!

Knew I wanted to do Lizard and Dunnet's Head, cross the Forth Road Bridge and see Loch Ness. Other than that I basically drew a line and split it where the major towns / cities were to determine my overnight stops (with a slight deviation to Morecambe so I could see the statue... !).

hambones

I will follow this thread with interest Andy.

It so happens I was in the pub last night having our first LeJog meeting where we settled on a 10 day jaunt starting on Good Friday, 22nd April. I had hoped for 8 days due to family but a compromise had to be reached.

We are looking to finalise the route next week and will be booking up B&B's and hostels straight away. It's looking like 960 miles going east of the Pennines.

I have convinced my fellow combatants that day one should be 105 miles to Oakhampton, followed by a 'rest' day of 79 miles. Does this sound like madness?

Hoopdriver

I am curious, Lastant: what happened to your Carradice Barley? I use their stuff, had a couple of funny gripes, but am curious to know what happened with the Barley to put you off them for life.

tailwindhome

You could have a rummage round the Road - Touring forum

Also Deloitte organise a ride which IIRC is LEJOG or JOGLE and is called the Ride Across Britain

http://www.rideacrossbritain.com/

lastant

Hoopdriver wrote:

I am curious, Lastant: what happened to your Carradice Barley? I use their stuff, had a couple of funny gripes, but am curious to know what happened with the Barley to put you off them for life.

Sorry, should have put more detail really. I had the Bagman QR originally which worked a treat to be fair; then I had a bike fitting which ended up with my saddle moving forwards leaving no room for the Bagman QR at the 'back' of the saddle.

So, I ended up with the SQR, the top bar on the bit that attaches to the bag and holds it to the seatpost bit simply sheared off after two days of use (I took it on and off less than ten times!). Ended up cycling a fair chunk of day two with the bag resting on the hoods which wasn't much fun!.

Got a full refund from Spa Cycles, but would be loathe to use them again for fear they'd let me down once more. I realise it's probably a bit hasty and that plenty of people swear by them (the bag itself is lovely), but them's the breaks!

Fireblade96

A friend of mine did JoGLE a couple of years ago, and says this is the wrong way round - the prevailing headwinds caused her big problems, and she's a seriously fit nutter !

I joined her for the Exeter - Land's End bit and it was definitely quite undulating, we avoided Okehampton and the A30, went through the middle of Dartmoor (Exeter - Moretonhampstead - Tavistock) which was a great ride.

andy83

Wow thanks for all your responses. One of the main things I think I need to take note of is maybe I should change my route?? I wanted to do JOGLE as in my head ill be going down, but if the wind is that bad i may reconsider!

A few things I have thought about is I dont like them big saddle bags and my bike takes panniers so that could be an option. The only other upgrades I can see me needing are some new tyres, pro marathon pluses or summing like that as just had a brand new 105 groupset put on the bike and had prob 100 miles use so hopefully that should all be ok. I also considered taking a netbook to do my blogging but not really sure about this yet

Im thinking that the fitness wont be an issue, will just be the mental aspect, I would love to do it in 9 days but not sure that is feasable, suppose it depends on the route

Lastant - thanks a lot for all that and your blog looks really interesting ill have a good read when im not so tired. Is wordpress hard to use as it looks a lot better than the google blogger, i think i did look at wordpress but things scared me for some reason

Rockers - Thanks for the advice on eating, im actually used to fuelling as I ride and am quite good at getting the balance right! I am already the sort of person who eats little and often and struggle to eat big meals

Kieran - Thanks ever so much for that information :roll:

Hambones - madness, not at all! that is very interesting, id like to know your route when you have it as i may join you for a leg or two as thats when im looking to do mine.

Thanks again for all your feedback, think its time to start planning the journey and thinking of people I may be able to stay with along the way

tri-sexual

great blog lastant
found it very interesting

surprised at how little training you did

Kieran_Burns

andy83 wrote:

Kieran - Thanks ever so much for that information :roll:

Hey - it's an important point to note (and backed up by LastAnts blog)

Although saying that: the Seaview hotel is good (£40 for a single room) and the food in the restaurant is great

It's only 1/2 mile from the finish line as well.

lastant

lastant wrote:

Got a full refund from Spa Cycles, but would be loathe to use them again for fear they'd let me down once more

Probably should clarify that it's Carradice that I'm loathe to use again, not Spa Cycles! Spa Cycles were very, very helpful and would not hesitate to buy from them in the future.

andy83 - I kind of half-cheated with Wordpress and set up every day's blog entry prior to leaving. Then I simply (ha!) wrote up my notes each night as described, tidied them in the morning and then copied and pasted them into my already saved template using the Wordpress iPhone application.

It would have worked fine just with the words, but I wanted to add a map / elevation too and this meant I'd found a way to do that...even if it did mean preparing them all before setting off. There are reports of the app crashing, but as I was writing on the iPhone notes feature and simply copying and pasting it wasn't something that worried me.

John O'Groats is a dive! Looking back it would have been nice to have perhaps done it the other way, but the 'famous' saying is 'Lands End to John O'Groats' and I'm a stickler for tradition! Having said that, my mind and body decided once reaching the top that I'd done my journey...the next few days were a real struggle if I'm being honest. I think having people meet you at John O'Groats would be lovely, but good luck in persuading them it's a good idea...!

Hoopdriver

I had a similar sort of trouble with my Carradice handlebar bag when I was cycling around Orkney last August - a nearly new bag but the plastic plate that attaches it to the Kwik Clix bracket on my handlebar sheared off on one side, forcing me to have to tie the bag to the bar to support it. NOt at all happy. To be fair Carradice did repair the bag but I would have to say I would be leery of their things now where I mightn't have been before.

I've also had a few niggly troubles with their Bagman frame as well.

Trouble is I like cotton duck panniers and hardly anybody makes them nowadays. I may lash out and try the Gilles Berthoud ones. I've heard good things. Anybody tried them?

Mr Plum

tri-sexual wrote:

surprised at how little training you did

+1!

andy83

lastant wrote:

lastant wrote:

Got a full refund from Spa Cycles, but would be loathe to use them again for fear they'd let me down once more

Probably should clarify that it's Carradice that I'm loathe to use again, not Spa Cycles! Spa Cycles were very, very helpful and would not hesitate to buy from them in the future.

andy83 - I kind of half-cheated with Wordpress and set up every day's blog entry prior to leaving. Then I simply (ha!) wrote up my notes each night as described, tidied them in the morning and then copied and pasted them into my already saved template using the Wordpress iPhone application.

It would have worked fine just with the words, but I wanted to add a map / elevation too and this meant I'd found a way to do that...even if it did mean preparing them all before setting off. There are reports of the app crashing, but as I was writing on the iPhone notes feature and simply copying and pasting it wasn't something that worried me.

John O'Groats is a dive! Looking back it would have been nice to have perhaps done it the other way, but the 'famous' saying is 'Lands End to John O'Groats' and I'm a stickler for tradition! Having said that, my mind and body decided once reaching the top that I'd done my journey...the next few days were a real struggle if I'm being honest. I think having people meet you at John O'Groats would be lovely, but good luck in persuading them it's a good idea...!

It was just the setting up of wordpress that confused me to be honest but ill give it a bash as it all looks a little more professional and easier to read

I really want to do it the other way round as I hate sticking to tradition, just all the talk of the wind etc made me think. Although knowing John O groats is a dive makes me think, sod it, lets start there. Is the wind really going to be that bad. To be honest I really think id much rather go from the top down but I suppose i will prob end up finding out the hard way

To be fair im going to be getting a good bit of training so hopefully doable, and I can also say I have done it a little different to everyone else

edit, installing wordpress just seemed fine, last time seemed a lot harder lol

pangolin

Hi Andy

I did LeJog unsupported in 9 days in July 2010.

Camped a couple of nights (very very lightweight tent - only needed 2 panniers + bar bag), stayed with friends for a couple and hostel / b&b for the others. I never booked, just aimed for a place and looked around when I got there! I guess if I hadn't had the last resort of camping that would have been more worrying, but in the end I never failed to find accommodation when I looked for it.

For training I rode London to Edinburgh (about 500 miles the route I went) over 8 days earlier in the year, but apart from that nothing more than the normal commute (22 miles total per day, flattish London). I worried a but this wasn't enough but as it turned out it was fine. I found I didn't tire out the same way I did in a week of commuting, because I wasn't racing everywhere I was just setting out to cycle all day at a reasonable pace.

The first 3 days my legs hurt a bit (I blame Cornwall & Devon for this!) but after that the muscles handled it fine. I found at the end it was more my Achilles which hurt, and my upper back a bit after long stints on the bike.

I would definitely echo what people have said and recommend going Le - JoG. I had really good tailwind through the South West, I think cycling through here after days on the road and over the hills would be awful! Of course its chance what wind you will get but you're more likely to get a good one going North.

I have no idea what it cost, and I don't really want to check it might upset me... Really though as long as you have the kit you need already it can be as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be, depending on what you choose to eat and where you sleep.

I used Vittoris Randdoneur tyres, which were pretty cheap and gave me 0 punctures after London - Edinburgh and LEJOG, so they were a bargain as far as I'm concerned!
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/vittoria-randonneur-city-tyre/

Mentally I found the third night pretty tough, because I wasn't with anyone I think. I had a friends house to aim for in Edinburgh so it wasn't too bad. You're right about this aspect though, mentally it was tougher than physically.

The route I took was west of the Pennines, then up the east of Scotland (A9), I can be more precise if you like.

Red Rider

Fireblade96 wrote:

we avoided Okehampton and the A30, went through the middle of Dartmoor (Exeter - Moretonhampstead - Tavistock) which was a great ride.

+1 to that.

The A30 is pretty boring. The Exeter - Moretonhampstead - Tavistock route is awesome. Unless the weather is shite. If it's raining and there's no visibility the extra hills are just a drag with no reward. Be flexible.

(If you really want to enjoy Dartmoor, go for Moretonhampstead - Bovey Tracey - Dartmeet - Two Bridges - Tavistock. This is a *slight* detour, and may kill you. But it's stunning. Again, I wouldn't bother in bad weather.)

andy83

Thanks for the advice

I have come up with a rough route but not quite sure yet if it will stick.
The route may seem a bit strange but chester, birmingham and western I can stay with people so will have some proper food, and a good bed regardless of all the other places i stay

http://andyonabike.wordpress.com/

finally got round to doing a new blog so anyone who would like to follow it would be appreciated

mroli

Hello mate - I did a JOGLE last June - I have always wanted to do it and did the Deloitte Ride Across Britain - largely because I wanted the hassle taken out of it all. You can read my account of my ride here: http://www.facebook.com/notes/the-george-oliver-foundation/jogle-diary/131442496879055

I must say, I thought that the riding was more difficult than I suspected and I am a little in awe of the guy who did it without much training. Perhaps I could have made things easier on myself - I tried to ride it like 9 sportives back to back rather than 1000 miles over 9 days which made it hard. If you have nice long breaks - stop for morning snack, lunch, tea, you can break it down easily into manageable chunks. I did a fair few sportives as my training, tried to do a couple of 60 miles back to back and commute 18 miles to work and back every day. I'll do 100 miles in just over 5 hours if I've got a couple of other guys to work with

I would say that sleeping in a bed would be nice every night - your rest is really important. One thing the RAB did have was amazing food, great support at pit stops, a mapped route (with a couple of real nasties - the Long Mynd springs to mind!) which also did amazing rides through Glen Coe and the Lakes.

The other thing about the RAB was that it was supported - you sleep in tents, but they are put up for you every night and taken down every morning. Your stuff is moved from site to site. Your food is all provided, the course is mapped out, they had mechanical support, they had masseurs, they had showers, they had Drs, outriders, the lot. It was a really slick operation, but it does cost a lot £1k+. The range of riders was from the pretty strong decent club rider to a girl that rode at a 10mph average all day every day.

My tips would probably be - plan your route to ride some loIvely rides, don't get fixated on doing the shortest distance possible. Get your fueling strategy right - make sure you eat and drink lots and lots, you will need the energy! Do it at the pace you feel comfortable with. If you ride with others and ride as a "team" it will be easier (I rode a lot of it solo for personal reasons, but really noticed when I got in a group how much of difference it made). Get the gearing right on your bike and make sure it is ready to do 1000 miles.

In relation to doing it JOGLE or LEJOG, I think it is quite good to do a JOGLE. Generally the roads are quieter up there and that breaks you in gently. We maybe got lucky and didn't have a problem with the prevailing winds and whilst Cornwall is hard work, I know that area a bit better, having done lots of rides down there and therefore it felt like "going home". In fact, as part of your training, I would rec going down and doing a bit of Cornish riding - it is fun and enjoyable and hard work and will take some of the sting out of it! You can train it to Penzance and find some cheap accomodation and ride around for a couple of days.

I also think for the "achievement" factor, finishing in LE is a little more fun imho - feels a little less remote?

As a thing to do, I rate it as one of the best things I have done - it has given me massive respect to pro cyclists, to audax riders, to everyone who rides their bike to be honest. There are some incredibly beautiful places along the way and as a physical/mental challenge, it stretched me all the way. Physically it was knees (muscles on legs pulling knee cap out of position) and achilles (both!) that hurt me. Would rec lots of stretching before and after.

People talk about it as just a JOGLE or a LEJOG, but I think it is a great achievement.

The other thing I would suggest is to see if someone will come along with you and drive the route as your support - it is a long way, it costs a fair amount in petrol, but my wife did it to be with me and she had an incredible time too. You should be able to read her diary on there too. Chuck us a PM if you want to know any more.

Cheers and good luck

M

lastant

andy83 wrote:

I have come up with a rough route but not quite sure yet if it will stick.
The route may seem a bit strange...

The route seems a bit familiar! There's definitely better ways of doing the route than I managed to I think. I wanted to take in Lizard and Dunnets Head first of all. After that I wanted to make sure I clocked up at least 1,000 miles.

Morecambe is a detour from the ideal route. I only went there 'cos Lancaster was bloody expensive. That and I got to see that statue!

FeynmanC

Andy,

I'm doing LeJOG in 9 days in May for Action Medical Reseach and they've sent me some info that you may find useful regarding training and routes.

PM me your email if you want and i'll send them over.