Ride London 2022

[felstedrider]

I checked the route again after reading the Comic article and realised it comes into the village from the East rather than the West which I had missed, not that I'm riding.    The drain covers either side of where the road crosses the A120 have all been nicely smoothed over.

There's a dirty great big hole in the middle of the village by The Swan which looks like it will be sorted out.   Similarly some pretty big holes as you descend past the old Ridleys brewery at Hartford End.   There is a cafe in the village that opens Sunday but I'm not sure it will handle the numbers.   The Chequers has just re-opened with a new manager but I've not been in to see what it's like.

[JellyLegs]

After saying I wouldn't ride this route as it was dull and worse, looks like I will be.... riding the route!  A very good friend of mine has an unused charity place and has twisted my arm firmly up my back.  Next issue is to work out how to get to the start. Riding in from somewhere in suburbia is looking a distinct possibility.

At least the foodstops won't be an issue, the route passes right by my house and my parents in law's house at nicely spaced intervals.

[drossall]

A very good friend of mine has an unused charity place and has twisted my arm firmly up my back. Next issue is to work out how to get to the start.

Same thing happened to me

I checked the route again after reading the Comic article and realised it comes into the village from the East rather than the West which I had missed, not that I'm riding.

If you mean at Felsted, it's using the Tour de France route in that part, isn't it? My wife and I, and loads of others, enjoyed great hospitality from the village for that event. We sat just south of the turning.

[felstedrider]

I checked the route again after reading the Comic article and realised it comes into the village from the East rather than the West which I had missed, not that I'm riding.

If you mean at Felsted, it's using the Tour de France route in that part, isn't it? My wife and I, and loads of others, enjoyed great hospitality from the village for that event. We sat just south of the turning.

We didn't move to the village until 2020 but that sounds about right.

[toontra]

The drain covers either side of where the road crosses the A120 have all been nicely smoothed over.

Yes, there's been some good work done on sunken drain covers over the northern stretch. 

A lot of potholes remain and the red spray is wearing off - hope it's still visible when the repair team drive past.

[toontra]

Well wouldn't you just know it.  Did the route again today and they've only just gone and tar "n chipped the Chelmsford Road into High Ongar.  This will be a bloody nightmare - drifts of loose gravel could see riders sliding and falling left right and centre (of the road). I nearly came off twice and I was crawling along.

I've spoken to Essex council about their shitty road resurfacing before - notably the Epping Road around 8 years ago.  It was dangerous for months and it's still a painful riding experience to this day.  Being as they are a co-sponsors of RideLondon you'd think someone would have half an ounce of common sense and delay the works for a few weeks 

Felsted hasn't had it's potholes fixed yet.  Time's running out!  Mind you, just down the road Hartford End is much worse - some real stinkers right in the centre.

[felstedrider]

There’s been an intermittent leak at Hartford End since we moved here in 2020.  It keeps being patched but they don’t fix the underlying problem.

[toontra]

Well - today I rang Essex Highways and suggested they have a bloody good sweep-up of loose gravel on the A414 before the 28th.  We'll see...

I also reported a burst water pipe on the Braintree Road just east of Great Dunmow (to Affinity Water) which is flooding in a dip and could also be dangerous if approached at speed.  They say it will be fixed in time.

[felstedrider]

I also reported a burst water pipe on the Braintree Road just east of Great Dunmow (to Affinity Water) which is flooding in a dip and could also be dangerous if approached at speed.  They say it will be fixed in time.

There was a van there this evening looking at it.

[toontra]

I also reported a burst water pipe on the Braintree Road just east of Great Dunmow (to Affinity Water) which is flooding in a dip and could also be dangerous if approached at speed.  They say it will be fixed in time.

There was a van there this evening looking at it.

 

[felstedrider]

Loads of cones in the middle of the village so it looks like they might be filling the potholes.   I'll have another look this evening.

[BFC]

I would expect different "standards" of inspection and repairs for the pro ride routes compared to the amateur routes.

Half the peleton going down due to a pothole live on telly won't look good.

[toontra]

I think the pro ride route is the same as the 100, so hopefully we get the same benefit of road assessment and repair.

The organisers emailed me back today and said they have been assured by Essex council that all loose gravel will be swept up on the resurfaced A414.  Even so, if it's a hot day and the tar melts then gravel is going to stick to tyres and, in my case, may get jammed between the back wheel and the cut-away on the seat tube - only a few mm clearance.

[JellyLegs]

Stage two of the three stage UCI RideLondon Classique uses parts of the 100 mile loop around Felsted, Dunmow and down to Epping but big sections are totally different roads.

[toontra]

Stage two of the three stage UCI RideLondon Classique uses parts of the 100 mile loop around Felsted, Dunmow and down to Epping but big sections are totally different roads.

Ah - OK

[jiberjaber]

The ride London closures have finally filtered in to the local community arse-ache pages - queue all sorts of anti-cyclist nonsense and outrage at a 45min road closure on the outskirts of Chelmsford on Saturday.  WhErE WaS ThE CoNsUlTaTiOn!1111111

ETYMOLOGY:- Witness here the creation of a new Collective Noun:- "IMPEDELMENT" = a bunch of lycra clad cyclists!

I hope they all crash and bend their bikes. Bloody cheek closing our roads!

I cycle to & from work every workday & even I think it is daft, keep seeing signs, this road will be closed & that road will be closed etc... utter madness

It's almost a full house on the bingo card!

I personally will be avoiding the areas around there as I expect it will be punishment pass central.

[felstedrider]

The ride London closures have finally filtered in to the local community arse-ache pages - queue all sorts of anti-cyclist nonsense and outrage at a 45min road closure on the outskirts of Chelmsford on Saturday.  WhErE WaS ThE CoNsUlTaTiOn!1111111

ETYMOLOGY:- Witness here the creation of a new Collective Noun:- "IMPEDELMENT" = a bunch of lycra clad cyclists!

I hope they all crash and bend their bikes. Bloody cheek closing our roads!

I cycle to & from work every workday & even I think it is daft, keep seeing signs, this road will be closed & that road will be closed etc... utter madness

It's almost a full house on the bingo card!

I personally will be avoiding the areas around there as I expect it will be punishment pass central.

That took a while.   The village group kicked off about a month ago.   The again we are pretty shut in for the day.

I think we're now going up North as it's, ironically, my only non-cycling weekend for a while.

[JellyLegs]

Well - today I rang Essex Highways and suggested they have a bloody good sweep-up of loose gravel on the A414 before the 28th.  We'll see...

No sweeping done as yet.  Still easily enough loose chips in evidence to see me and the bike comprehensively pebble-dashed by a passing 4x4 ( not their fault - it was a beautiful, wide, slow pass) and I only rode 100m of this delightful stretch tonight.

[Lightning Phil]

Is it the Ride London 100m? 

[toontra]

It defies belief.  Essex council are sponsoring this event.  Their highways dept is presumably in charge of closing those specific roads.  Why the **** didn't someone/anyone put 2 and 2 together.  Personally I find new tar & chip one of the most unpleasant surfaces to ride on and I will go a long way to avoid it given the choice.

Even if they do a sweep, I have absolutely no confidence it will be any more thorough than it usually is (i.e. largely ineffective).  The only plus is there won't be vehicles totally ignoring the 20mph limits and gravel-blasting the legs as they speed past.

If there are accidents then at least I have it on record that both the organisers and EC highways dept were warned well in advance of the potential safety issue.

[rr]

Apparently the safety car at the front is going 22mph.

Sent from my motorola edge 20 using Tapatalk

[toontra]

I'm doing the route today.  Will be interested to see if they've earmarked the drain-covers north of North Weald Bassett - some of those are wheel-breakers and have been like that for many years.

Just realised the route doesn't go that way - it goes to Ongar via the main road.  Oh well - will have to wait another few years!

Did these lanes today and although the 100 isn't going that way one of the shorter rides must be because there are warning signs for road closures and, lo... the pentagonal manhole covers which have been a real danger for more than a decade have been repaired, plus a lot of other potholes that have been there just as long.  Result!  This is my default training route and will be more pleasant in future.

[JellyLegs]

I think that’s the route of the UCI Classique Stage 2 which I believe follows the TdF route from Fyfield via Moreton and North Weald to Epping before doing several loops down to Stanford Rivers and back to decide the “Queen of the Mountains” 😂.  Good to see the roads have had a bit of TLC though.

[toontra]

“Queen of the Mountains” 😂. 

Indeed.  I'd wondered where they were going to find the hills in that part of Essex and sure enough - they haven't.  The good news for the amateur event is there shouldn't be the kind of bunching that can happen on steeper climbs, which in turn will hopefully mean fewer "incidents".

[felstedrider]

As this is the weekend between 2 lumpy 600s, we’re taking the opportunity to go away so will miss the fun.

Hope you have a good ride toontra.


Rob