Yet Another Cycling Forum
General Category => Audax => Topic started by: BlackSheep on 19 October, 2018, 04:19:58 pm
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Spend a day on a raid into the Brecon Beacons - ideal for autumn/winter training ride. Only one (optional) hill & a few rises. Good controls used throughout. Varied terrain - all easily ridden on road bike.
http://www.aukweb.net/events/detail/18-394/
Simple route, with minimal navigation required - mainly on B and minor roads. Hot / cold food & drink available at every control, to keep you going on an early winter ride.
Instant validation available for this event, so no need for brevet return SAE.
Soft copy of Routesheet & GPS supplied to entrants - so no need for route-return SAE.
Reasonable all day car park now available next door to ride departure / arrivee (£4 all day).
Or go completely electronic and use Paypal, details from http://
The route (as with most BlackSheep CC events) follows minor roads, lanes, B-roads and a few unavoidable A-road sections. And generally in that order of preference. There is a section of river-side track - but this is generally of a good standard and is easily ridden with a normal road bike. Most of you know my physical stature, I ridden this event numerous times on 23mm tyres and haven't have any particular problems.
Ride in the tracks of parts of the 2014 Tour of Britain, see if you can match their climbing speeds as you exit Abergavenny
The ride heads west from Tewkesbury through the Severn vale towards Ross-on-Wye. We then follow the Wye valley to Monmouth. Then a virtual bee-line west following the old (and old old) A40 to Abergavenny. The route then follows the Usk valley (along the south side of the River Usk) all the way to Talybont-on-Usk.
The return route retraces back to Crickhowell, then uses the A40 to Abergavenny. The road is usually quiet on a Saturday afternoon - I've never experienced any problems using it.From Abergavenny you take the road back through Rockfield and Monmouth to follow the cycle route back to the third control at Symonds Yat East. The route home is largely a retrace back to Tewkesbury.
The controls are all fairly evenly spaced, there will be places to stop in between controls should you so wish. The controls at Monmouth and Talybont-on-Usk have handled many AUK events in the past, and The Saracen's Head at Symons Yat is a favorite with walkers, canoeists.
The first control is The Kings Head in Monmouth, it's a JD Wetherspoon PH, so they'll have a full range of hot food and drink.
Talybont control is Talybont cafe/stores, they have a good food and has a lot of experience of handling AUK events. The Stores & Café at the far end of the village on the right.
The control at Symonds Yat East is "The Saracens Head PH", again they do food (and beer), they're also doing a "special for cyclists". From my own experience I found that a coffee and one of their flapjacks is enough to give you a boost to get back home. The staff will be pleased to stamp your brevet card - they have one of mine with a "Ladybird" on it. They also have a "Wye Valley Walkers" stamp.
The ride's in GMT, you will probably need lights for the first half hour (or so) of the ride, and again for the latter part of the day.
For the campers, there's a camp site 10 - 15 minutes from the start, quite a few cyclists have used it in the past - and have rated quite highly. http://www.croftfarmleisure.co.uk/
As for B&Bs in the area, it is probably best that you use Google to search for your requirements, Or try Tewkesbury Tourist information centre http://www.outofthehat.org.uk/,
There's both Premier Inn http://www.premierinn.com/en/hotel/TEWBRE/tewkesbury and Travelodge http://www.travelodge.co.uk/hotels/401/Tewkesbury-hotel both about a mile from the start, (both on M5J9),
The JD Wetherspoon (also the departure / arrivee) in the centre of Tewkesbury is also a hotel http://www.jdwetherspoon.co.uk/home/hotels/the-royal-hop-pole.
Once again the weather is "guaranteed"
Free light breakfast for all starters.
The
ALSO AT GREAT PERSONAL EXPENSE, FREE FOR ALL RIDERS along route from 18:00 hrs. ------ F I R E W O R K S
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My ride partner has got manflu, so I have a spare bed in a shared room at 'spoons if anybody needs it. Drop me a PM. Will be there from 7ish tonight...
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Thanks Mark for another great ride. :thumbsup:
I had been feeling rough all week so I was only a 50% chance of starting, however Friday I felt a bit better therefore decided to ride, I am glad i got out as i think the fresh air did me some good.
Weather wasn't cold or very mild it was just right for this time of year and by and large stayed dry all day apart from the odd spell of fine rain which didn't amount to much, autumn was in full bloom, and the stretch out to Talybont is always lovely at this time of year and this didn't disappoint.
Talybont cafe was busy but excellent service as usual and a largely wind assisted ride back to Tewkesbury came thereafter.
Thanks once again Mark.
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I had been feeling rough all week so I was only a 50% chance of starting, however Friday I felt a bit better therefore decided to ride, I am glad i got out as i think the fresh air did me some good.
Whereas I had been feeling great all week so I was 100% chance of starting, however soon after starting I started to feel rough and was mentally struggling. Went home and climbed into bed with an utterly vile headache and shivers. :( Unfortunately the prescription of two paracetamol and plenty of water failed to make its mark ;). The previous month I was DNS on another Mark event due to an angry cistern at home. :facepalm:
Thanks to Mark for organising another audax even though only 45km was ridden.