Yet Another Cycling Forum
General Category => Audax => PBP => Topic started by: ramchip on 28 April, 2019, 10:05:44 pm
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Anybody with blogs for this year's PBP or even from previous years?
I'm still putting ours together but you can find it here - www.pbp2019.co.uk
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I'll be doing a similar thing in the next couple of weeks. Will post a link once it's live.
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Here's mine from 2015 https://wordpress.com/post/robmcivor.wordpress.com/712 (https://wordpress.com/post/robmcivor.wordpress.com/712)
and a somewhat more impressionistic account from when I rode to raise some money for charity in 2011 https://www.justgiving.com/teams/rob-mcivor (https://www.justgiving.com/teams/rob-mcivor)
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http://www.pbp2019.co.uk/ Updated today.
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Here's mine from 2015 https://wordpress.com/post/robmcivor.wordpress.com/712 (https://wordpress.com/post/robmcivor.wordpress.com/712)
and a somewhat more impressionistic account from when I rode to raise some money for charity in 2011 https://www.justgiving.com/teams/rob-mcivor (https://www.justgiving.com/teams/rob-mcivor)
Now with the correct link ::-)
https://robmcivor.wordpress.com/2018/02/05/4th-time-around-looking-back-at-paris-brest-paris-2015/
(https://robmcivor.wordpress.com/2018/02/05/4th-time-around-looking-back-at-paris-brest-paris-2015/)
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various posts on my blog https://audaxing.wordpress.com/tag/PBP/
mainly about 2011
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Fairly neglected currently - much like my cycling legs:
http://www.marcusjb.com/2015
http://www.marcusjb.com/blog/2011/09/01/did-paris-brest-paris-2011-live-up-to-my-expectations
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Now with the correct link ::-)
https://robmcivor.wordpress.com/2018/02/05/4th-time-around-looking-back-at-paris-brest-paris-2015/
(https://robmcivor.wordpress.com/2018/02/05/4th-time-around-looking-back-at-paris-brest-paris-2015/)
Excellent write up. Enjoyed it.
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Updated our blog after my crash. www.pbp2019.co.uk
Also now looking for a lightweight full face helmet?
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Here's my blog from yesteryear:
http://challengemenace.blogspot.com/2011/08/pbp-2011.html
Cheers,
Doo
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Updated our blog. http://www.pbp2019.co.uk/
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Updated our PBP Blog with ride reporst of the Massamagrell 600k - www.pbp2019.co.uk
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Another update. Im back on the bike now targeting another 600 in mid June. I just want to ride PBP so bad! Home Page is www.pbp2019.co.uk and our qualifiers are at http://www.pbp2019.co.uk/category/our-rides/pbp-qualifiers/
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Updated our PBP Blog - http://www.pbp2019.co.uk/
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I don't blog normally but thought it was worth capturing some of this. Here is my journey so far... https://ridewithgps.com/ride_reports/4137-the-journey-to-paris-brest-paris
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Four Paris-Brest articles and sundry other stuff by me and others here: http://www.ukcyclist.co.uk/reports-articles
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Updated our blog with the Salamanca 600 - www.pbp2019.co.uk
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I managed to extract my account of PBP 1999 from an ancient version of Word.
http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2019/06/25/paris-brest-paris-1999/ (http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2019/06/25/paris-brest-paris-1999/)
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http://peter.chesspod.com/blog/
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I managed to extract my account of PBP 1999 from an ancient version of Word.
http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2019/06/25/paris-brest-paris-1999/ (http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2019/06/25/paris-brest-paris-1999/)
The pub in the square wasn't in Merleac, but in St Martin des Pres, and was called the Auberge St Hubert, it was last open for PBP in 2011, by which time it was a pizza restaurant. The locals had a stall there in 2015. There was nothing in Merleac in 2015, there'd been a stall there in 2011, in 1999 the boulangerie was open at night.
The bridge before Brest is an interesting open-spandrel concrete arch structure, which has a lower deck where a railway once ran. The adjacent motorway bridge is cable-stayed.
(https://media.ouest-france.fr/v1/pictures/9f2de7fe40020ee7bd57c152b64c6f0f-info-ouest-france-le-pont-albert-louppe-l-entree-de-brest-bientot-interdit-toute-circulation.jpg?width=1260&height=712&focuspoint=50%2C25&cropresize=1&client_id=cmsfront&sign=19faa0430fbbede5d3c41f39f4f419e0484382e436702a5ddba8a69995602e55)
1999 also had distance added in for a roadworks diversion, and two extra hours were allowed.
Thanks for all the work in getting us booked into PBP over the years, as AUK's ACP correspondent.
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It's images like this I blame for completely missing seeing the cable stay bridge the first time I rode.
My brain interprets this as being shot from "down river" for some reason.
Folks, the cable stay bridge is on your RHS as you cross the Élorn
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Here is my account from 2011
http://www.twoberries.scot/?page_id=22 (http://www.twoberries.scot/?page_id=22)
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I managed to extract my account of PBP 1999 from an ancient version of Word.
http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2019/06/25/paris-brest-paris-1999/ (http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2019/06/25/paris-brest-paris-1999/)
Gosh! That seems like a long time ago.
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I managed to extract my account of PBP 1999 from an ancient version of Word.
http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2019/06/25/paris-brest-paris-1999/ (http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2019/06/25/paris-brest-paris-1999/)
Gosh! That seems like a long time ago.
Do you still have the self inflating luggage?
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Updated our blog - http://www.pbp2019.co.uk/
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I managed to extract my account of PBP 1999 from an ancient version of Word.
http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2019/06/25/paris-brest-paris-1999/ (http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2019/06/25/paris-brest-paris-1999/)
Gosh! That seems like a long time ago.
Do you still have the self inflating luggage?
I think a more accurate, if less poetically amusing, term would be 'compression packing'.
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Here is the write up of my final build up ride and my kit list - nearly finalised.
I was reminded of lessons about pacing and feeding that I ought to know but my big learning was about how I'm going to try and just relax and enjoy it and not aim for a particular schedule. As part of this, I think I'll carry a bivvy bag so I can stop and sleep when and where I want.
https://ridewithgps.com/ride_reports/4236-a-final-practice
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You will find people sleep anywhere on PBP, with and without a bivvy bag. Personally I wouldn't bother this time. If raining and sleepy a bivvy bag could be good but otherwise I'd just have a dose in what you are wearing.
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Thanks, I'll take lightweight sleeping kit so I can get some decent-ish sleep when I stop. I'll probably take a view on the likely overnight temp and weather though before I start and adjust plans as necessary
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Updated our blog - http://www.pbp2019.co.uk
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More from the cyber skip: PBP 2003
http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2019/07/31/more-treasures-from-the-digital-skip-pbp-2003/
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Just rescued my PBP 2011 report from the ride reports ghetto: https://audaxdarleaux.wordpress.com/2019/08/05/paris-brest-paris-2011-part-1/
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Nice read Deano and also read your LEL 17 blog whilst I was there.
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Just rescued my PBP 2011 report from the ride reports ghetto: https://audaxdarleaux.wordpress.com/2019/08/05/paris-brest-paris-2011-part-1/
Seconded, a great read. Almost makes me look forward to it :-)
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Anybody with blogs for this year's PBP or even from previous years?
I went looking for the 2015 reports and found them at "How did it pan out for you?"
As a newbie I found @Ivo's report (link below) full of detail (the photos no longer displaying - but there a link to an album a few posts further on):
https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=92609.msg1920219#msg1920219
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here’s mine https://cycling-intelligence.com/2015/11/25/87-very-special-hours-my-pbp-2015/
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here’s mine https://cycling-intelligence.com/2015/11/25/87-very-special-hours-my-pbp-2015/
I really liked your blog Olaf.
I also liked this quote “What’s wrong with being treated like a cycling god for 4 days?“ from here https://andrewjamesheard.wordpress.com/2019/07/31/4th-pbp-well-see/
I am in for 2023 (I hope)
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Updated our blog. http://www.pbp2019.co.uk/
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On our way to Paris tomorrow. Hope to meet some of you there. Updated our blog - http://www.pbp2019.co.uk/
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Safe travels and hope you enjoy the spectacle that is PBP. I start ride down via ferry on Thu afternoon.
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How'd you get on? Awaiting your next blog entry.
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Mine's here: https://adultmale.wordpress.com/2019/08/27/pbp-2019/, but it's really not that exciting.
It'd be great to read about everyone else's experiences. There must be some great stories out there.
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Mine's here: https://adultmale.wordpress.com/2019/08/27/pbp-2019/, but it's really not that exciting.
It'd be great to read about everyone else's experiences. There must be some great stories out there.
I loved reading that - picked up a lot of detail that I had possible 'blacked-out' but was so nice to relive!
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I've sent a brief account with some photos to Ged Lennox for Arrivée.
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I've just about recovered emotionally to write something:
https://audaxnerd.co.uk/post/187309187478/were-anciennes-now
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I don't maintain a blog but wrote a blog-length write-up for my Strava.
https://www.strava.com/activities/2656108840
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Here is my updated blog of the experience. I didn't take many photos unfortunately but hopefully my words are gripping enough for you to read along anyway.
https://www.graceqom.com/journal/paris-brest-paris-2019/
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If you wanted to talk to more people then 80 hours just doesn't leave you enough time for that.
Join the lazy "tourists" and you can stop for a beer or coffee, chat with the locals and get a bit more sleep on the last night.
Glad you enjoyed it and thank you for the story.
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Still mulling over what to write, only got back yesterday morning.
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If you wanted to talk to more people then 80 hours just doesn't leave you enough time for that.
Join the lazy "tourists" and you can stop for a beer or coffee, chat with the locals and get a bit more sleep on the last night.
Glad you enjoyed it and thank you for the story.
This was my first PBP but now that I know how the event works, I would definitely be up for taking it slower next time. I was conscious of being out of time but obviously, in the end, I needn't have worried.
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Mine's here: https://adultmale.wordpress.com/2019/08/27/pbp-2019/, but it's really not that exciting.
It'd be great to read about everyone else's experiences. There must be some great stories out there.
I loved reading that - picked up a lot of detail that I had possible 'blacked-out' but was so nice to relive!
Glad you liked it. I wrote it down so I’d remember it better than last time, but 64 hours without sleep doesn’t help one’s recall. Hope I didn’t get any facts wrong. I’m now wondering if writing it down has distorted my memory of it ...
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My write up ... https://ridewithgps.com/ride_reports/4322-pbp-2019
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Hats off to everyone that does a write-up. I enjoy reading them but find doing them myself a bit of a slog. Still, PBP is one that I decided was a must-do so I have and here it is https://www.monaxle.com/2019/08/31/pbp-2019/ (https://www.monaxle.com/2019/08/31/pbp-2019/) to share with you all. Hope you enjoy the read. It's a bullet point summary with a few pictures for good measure.
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Just had a mammoth read of the write ups whilst it rains here. Quite a variety of styles and different amounts of focus on aspects of the event. A single event with thousands of stories weaved together into a whole.
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Updated our blog. http://www.pbp2019.co.uk/
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Sorry to hear about Tony's knee issue at Loudeac. Well done on your pulling through after getting behind time. Well done on Tony sticking around in camper van to help you succeed.
I never got started due to gut issues that started on ride down Friday and didn't clear till Tuesday evening. The first food stop at Montagne Au Perche is as far as I got before deteriorating fatigue and bad guts (which I started with) did for me. I'd loved to have got much further then, than to feel as though I'd never really got going. The only positive I have is that I am injury free, enjoyed the slow ride back to the ferry, and don't have a post PBP lack of cycling motivation.
I agree it's the generosity and enthusiasm of the villagers lining the roads and the stalls that pushes you on. The route isn't memorable, but the encounters are, and that is what drives me to return again despite my gut wrenching non event this year.
I plan to be back in 2023, recumbent next time, and gut issue free. Hope to see you both there for a successful PBP.
Maybe see you at LEL 21 first or WAWA 2020 next year.
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Nice report here ( https://ridewithgps.com/ride_reports/4309-2019-paris-brest-paris )from an American rider - including mention of our own Laid Back Rich :)
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Here's my report:
https://ctccambridge.org.uk/blog/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-randonneur-2019
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Here's my report:
https://ctccambridge.org.uk/blog/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-randonneur-2019
Really enjoyed that one (possibly helped by knowing so many of the other characters weaving in and out). I'd say that your experience is more typical of PBP than many of the accounts I've read.
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https://theradavist.com/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-2019-exactement-cela-et-rien-dautre/
PBP report by a German guy (near the front by the sound of it) up on The Radavist site. Notable at least for some Brits in a few photos (ACB in one (is that with Drew? I can't tell), the back of T0BY at the start in another, Damon in another). Also an excellent pair of moobs. ;D
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Here's my report:
https://ctccambridge.org.uk/blog/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-randonneur-2019
Good job on the write-up. I enjoyed reading it too. I like the summary piece in the end. A very well thought out account.
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https://theradavist.com/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-2019-exactement-cela-et-rien-dautre/
PBP report by a German guy (near the front by the sound of it) up on The Radavist site. Notable at least for some Brits in a few photos (ACB in one (is that with Drew? I can't tell), the back of T0BY at the start in another, Damon in another). Also an excellent pair of moobs. ;D
It's not me in the pictures, The best picture is of Richard Leon finishing on his 753 Dejouannet from 1983. which he did his best time on in 1995. His luggage is interesting.
A German friend told me that Fiona Kolbinger is part of a scene in Dresden with Bjorn Lenhard. I forget the name, but it ended with 'Spitze', which means 'Peak'. They ride off to the Alps at weekends for bikepacking adventures.
I'm a bit amused by the talk of the support afforded to RAAM riders, as I witnessed the support that Marko Baloh had, and while it was effective, it wasn't as impressive as people imagine.
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It's not me in the pictures
Who's this chap then? (There's a 'View Gallery' button which brings up more pictures than used directly in the article).
(https://media.theradavist.com/uploads/2019/09/stefanhaehnel_pbp-3.jpg?fit=750,750&quality=75)
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(There's a 'View Gallery' button which brings up more pictures than used directly in the article).
Ah, now I can see the pictures ... that's the back of me in the ACB top at the finish along with Telbert James and Drew Buck looking on
(https://media.theradavist.com/uploads/2019/09/stefanhaehnel_pbp-42.jpg?fit=2000,2000&quality=75)
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Thanks for that Paul, I hadn't seen the additional gallery. It's useful, as I didn't know that Heather had made it onto the podium. I'd asked Jean-Pierre Chardon if she could, and been told no. I can now look through her footage for any views from there.
There's a funny story about the safety announcement from the podium. In 2011 and 2015 Heather got to see the script. The English was Google translated by the look of it. 'Do not drive to more both frontally' was one classic line in 2015.
https://youtu.be/78wr8UAJmpE
I was determined to ensure that the script was in English this time. So I showed them a section of my 2015 film on an ex-LEL laptop to show that the English was initially garbled, but got edited as the starts progressed. They were a bit puzzled, because they didn't have any safety announcement on file. After some consideration, it was decided to have one, and that the one from 2015 would be the template. So they typed the French from my 2015 video into Word, with gaps for the English, which I filled in from the evolved and edited 2015 text.
They added couple of instructions, one about not passing trucks and buses on the inside, and one from Velocio. I translated those and got Heather and Danial to proofread it. That's what was read out, although only the first few rows heard it, so I put the text on the unofficial Facebook PBP page.
(https://scontent-lhr3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/69048771_2484079004963028_3298624828533112832_n.jpg?_nc_cat=107&_nc_oc=AQnyYzUddfUDC9Q4xqTsBZtfUU3hyESyLw3zEQPpO6Se7RqsUuCVNTkbVkvNPvYRFT4&_nc_ht=scontent-lhr3-1.xx&oh=94545378d98eba368b8ea0a2449269c6&oe=5E0B42D5)
There was a similar problem with the press accreditation. It seemed that there was a bit of a hole in some of the preparations, due to the changed arrangements from previous editions.
The controls largely run themselves, so I expected those to be much as before. In 2015 the tracking system had a blip when Fougeres went offline for a while, so I did wonder how that might have been tweaked.
We took the precaution of scoping out the start on Saturday evening. It had cleared enough for us to get a drone view of the area. I had thought of riding the start myself to get footage, but decided that the chance of something going wrong was too high. In 2015 I'd qualified, and was a paid-up participant. I also realised that I would immediately get dropped on the hill after the cobbled roundabout beyond the gates, so wouldn't get the shots of the lead car and motorbikes I wanted.
At some point I'll make a video, but it has to be informed by blogs and other accounts.
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Here's my report:
https://ctccambridge.org.uk/blog/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-randonneur-2019
This was the first of many pieces of questionable cyclecraft I was to see throughout the event.
:)
nice writeup
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Here's my report:
https://ctccambridge.org.uk/blog/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-randonneur-2019
Well done on finishing and good read. Loved your sunrise photo.
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Well done on finishing and good read. Loved your sunrise photo.
As per the credit it's Martin's photo. We both snapped it but his iPhone did a much better job than my Samsung Galaxy, which blew the highlights (even in HDR mode).
In general I find I hardly ever regret having stopped to take a photo, but I have many regrets for the interesting things I've seen on rides that I haven't photographed.
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Nice report here ( https://ridewithgps.com/ride_reports/4309-2019-paris-brest-paris )from an American rider - including mention of our own Laid Back Rich :)
And in that report he references another:
"Brendan decided to head out into the night alone. We never saw him again. [Read Brendan's ride report here: https://ridewithgps.com/ride_reports/4311-paris-brest-paris (https://ridewithgps.com/ride_reports/4311-paris-brest-paris)]"
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Here's my report:
https://ctccambridge.org.uk/blog/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-randonneur-2019
Really enjoyed your report Alex, the riders that can finish with 10, 20, 30+ hours to spare are interesting but they may as well come from another planet, the riders that graft out a finish are the ones that inspire me and give hope I could (maybe) do the same, thanks for sharing your journey.
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Its taken me a while, and its pretty long... here's my write up; www.diagonaliste.com/pbp2019/
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Its taken me a while, and its pretty long... here's my write up; www.diagonaliste.com/pbp2019/
Enjoyed your narrative and the images. Hope your neck is (or quickly gets) better.
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Its taken me a while, and its pretty long... here's my write up; www.diagonaliste.com/pbp2019/
Enjoyed your narrative and the images. Hope your neck is (or quickly gets) better.
Thanks very much. Neck is OK now, but haven't stress tested it with rides of any distance yet.
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Here's my report:
https://ctccambridge.org.uk/blog/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-randonneur-2019
"It is an almighty grind but eventually Rambouillet arrives and I turn into the grounds – only to find myself dodging camper vans, impatient cars and milling spectators on the approach road to the finish. ... Finally it's a turn into the courtyard, a surprising circuit on a cobbled then loose surface, and past the timing device to get a time. 89h30m48s – cutting it finer than I'd planned.
After this there was some unseemly barging on the way to the bike park, as some riders were desperate to get a "time" stamped into their brevet card (maybe because their chip had malfunctioned, or maybe because they were unaware that the chip time had primacy). Unfortunately the end of the event had been chaotic. "
My experience exactly, except my Adrian Hands finish was entirely unintentional.
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Here's mine
Stephen
https://yorkbadger.wordpress.com/2019/09/07/pbp-2019/
Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk
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Hi YB, we rode together for a few miles and then sat at the cafe by the bridge at Ambrieres les Vallees.
You must have kept your foot on the gas to finish at 2 a.m. Well done.
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Here's mine
Stephen
https://yorkbadger.wordpress.com/2019/09/07/pbp-2019/
Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk
Nice, l like a bit of geology. The US/Korean will be Jason Ham, I've interviewed him a few times, but didn't see him this time. In 2015 he said that St Martin des Pres made him think that France was the coolest country on earth.
https://youtu.be/14cV1fi64MA?t=173
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Here's my report:
https://ctccambridge.org.uk/blog/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-randonneur-2019
Super super write up Alex, I really enjoyed reading that. Great to fill in the gaps between seeing you at beginning, at Brest and the end. Great ride with some serious hurdles - the descriptioin of the last leg was speically fine, you really caught the mental states very well.
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Here's my report:
https://ctccambridge.org.uk/blog/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-randonneur-2019
In my role as a weather Cassandra...
Hilarious, never heard that term before.
My Garmin, which has been behaving itself all ride, now chooses this moment to pounce, announcing that it has no routable map it can use (it does! I loaded it myself! you $%!*! piece of *%&! – I thus channel Basil Fawlty)
Also hilarious, I think we've all been there!
I had forgotten about the riders who looked like they were lopsided and sitting on eggs, I saw a lot of them. Also, the write up highlights at the end how when the mind is relatively relaxed everything seems to be able to go OK, but when you realised your timing correction, the pressure was on and things started going against the grain.
Excellent write up Alex, really enjoyed reading it.
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On LEL he did a good job of persuading me Korea is pretty cool for cycling as well. Another great bit of film btw - the films do a great job of getting behind the scenes. Thanks for posting them.
Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk
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Jason forms part of my 'reconciliation through cycling' project. We touched on the DPRK in 2017. Other elements include the tensions in the former Yugoslavia, the Russia/Ukraine conflict, and the abiding mystery that is the PRC/Taiwan/Hong Kong.
https://vimeo.com/239616204
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Hi
That was a welcome coffee that morning. Good to travel with you. I just kept plodding along - a ploddeur as someone else coined it in another blog.
More generally I forgot to mention that I created a table at the end of my blog setting out the numbers of riders by country and % finishers (derived from the PBP results unofficial website). Might be of interest to folk.
Stephen
Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk
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https://stravaddict.wordpress.com/pbp-2019/
It's very, very long but separated into five parts
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https://stravaddict.wordpress.com/pbp-2019/
It's very, very long but separated into five parts
You hinted you had had a tough one when I saw you at the finish. It’s these rides where the stories are.
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Yes Rob. Tougher than expected but as fulfilling as any I've done. It's Bubbles' story really, we were the supporting cast, and she dug deep in the lead role. Not everybody pulls it off as you know.
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Yes Rob. Tougher than expected but as fulfilling as any I've done. It's Bubbles' story really, we were the supporting cast, and she dug deep in the lead role. Not everybody pulls it off as you know.
Great story, and like your writing style.
And indeed Bubbles is the heroin of the story. Nice to read how you guys makes the group dynamics work and allow for own speed/time at times whilst still fighting together with cut off times. Gives a nice insight for me to where the real performances of PBP lie people giving or have to give it their all to make the delays. Hard to imagine at times for those of use who cruise around with plenty of time to spare at the end and time to sleep and eat when they feel like it.
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https://stravaddict.wordpress.com/pbp-2019/
It's very, very long but separated into five parts
One of our many problems is that we can't make much sense out of our material until we've read the write-ups. That's one reason we don't rush to do everything all at once.
I've offered round our better pictures to some of the national Audax mags. I do like to see stuff in print if that's possible, so that leads to an embargo. I actually like that, as it's easy to lose impact by competing in a crowded arena.
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/hRtlw3hf3Y0MAmzm3h2X0475dDSSh8X4CEQHe2JrUCfv9GmqqZtkV3yHXg5rHarN_OI4N7jGnsYxtwac4tzlnoJ3z4LkVez8xkuOOWrK4od5leJieyfkQs0XF7z8hptHXmWH647mhdzLuvyG2lfmu4E7PHjlhQZleHrMUn89hGv6p8cq_b3i0GQCARWk3i0lN_EBZGJQKsoVrTYSiytZuJxwILFPBlkXGO23oiGAiSVcPRxG77rfU_mgBOKB0kEariGpMWceBy4L4FQo8GuvYTv5aXMibifls-FwCsor0q8nr1ieEdH_Gs9XwWO13FSwZVZ6Fl_WYIjwA0wBJxkbtfNhQCuajYqioml6jqJA0mcPOzs9BpNIQ1NLenaM6aQIohDeubOgW9jFRRxBFumSb1w8LLCHRU2gABDyYAa4fm1HGP10gDiQN7PTiVzdP-H0YE-qe7Mz1grFuiYrrdE04R0avFOw0x9Q9SRgVYEh03zT3Pszc4aEZudiNtzC-v0yf7WZfiMVPJTtphmBKGAB8G9bHKTfhrKmnpyAdV6iKNZ1ayxrXjXyubnYyGMoRH7mtTlT7O9C7U1KLXRhtrcWAYVlEuaO5-oQFAHlG5UMKoDUDXiNW7xZa4PVimC5IM1YkIOOCZYmeK_I2H1oBi8q3ZvK7ULDdbnlgTPUHtaxa2fgEtigXzkaho0=w341-h228-no)
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https://stravaddict.wordpress.com/pbp-2019/
It's very, very long but separated into five parts
One of our many problems is that we can't make much sense out of our material until we've read the write-ups.
I'm still trying to make sense of my memories...
Where was it you recorded andy telling the Laurence of Arabia?
I remember it being a long straight and flat road and suggesting to a danish rider it might not be ideal to blat through the gap between you.
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https://stravaddict.wordpress.com/pbp-2019/
It's very, very long but separated into five parts
One of our many problems is that we can't make much sense out of our material until we've read the write-ups.
I'm still trying to make sense of my memories...
Where was it you recorded andy telling the Laurence of Arabia?
I remember it being a long straight and flat road and suggesting to a danish rider it might not be ideal to blat through the gap between you.
That was about here. https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@48.3289501,-0.2233346,3a,75y,206.5h,66.37t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1ssF-Mqn-toQEhjIE1jwbMcA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en&authuser=0
Andy likes to roll out the 'Tonight we sleep in Aqaba' line somewhere between 200 and 100km from home. He did it on the Mile Failte in 2014. It's usually on the bike, so the wind or engine noise makes it unusable. Some people like to rehearse soundbites, and I go along with that, as it gives them something to think about, now that GPS has made miles to km conversion less fun.
I did five sections on the bike, Sizun to the Roc and down the first big descent. Villaines to Le Hutte. Into St Meen le Grand at night. The finish at night, and a day finish. Some people thought I was on the ride, especially as I had my 2015 frame number.
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Thanks. :thumbsup:
I do the Miles to Km for fun on rides, I did it once on the ride out of Ouistream, then realized I didn't need to do it.
I started doing it the other way round at one point, it makes things seem less far.
I'm rubbish at recall so goading the bleak Northumberland landscape with Lachin-Y-Gair fails once I've tripped over the minions of luxury.
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Late to the party, a story in 3 parts because it was also a tour.
Part 1 - Getting there: https://fifeingeejit.blogspot.com/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-1200-and-bit-more-13.html
Part 2 - Possible the interesting bit: https://fifeingeejit.blogspot.com/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-1200-and-bit-more-13_20.html
Part 3 - Getting back: https://fifeingeejit.blogspot.com/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-1200-and-bit-more-13_77.html
And a bonus from Kilrymanjaro if ye can understaund it: https://fifeingeejit.blogspot.com/2019/09/kilrymanjaro-1st-sept-2019.html
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Part 2 - Possible the interesting bit: https://fifeingeejit.blogspot.com/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-1200-and-bit-more-13_20.html
Very thorough write up, interesting to read and learn of the differing strategies people use, and how the strategy changes through the ride.
The address of the the roadside crêpe stall in La Tannière is;
ROGUE Paul,
16, Rue de Bretagne,
LA TANNIERE
53220 - St Berthevin la Tanniere
France
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Part 2 - Possible the interesting bit: https://fifeingeejit.blogspot.com/2019/09/paris-brest-paris-1200-and-bit-more-13_20.html
A great read!
The photo of me looks like I'm ready to nut you!
It wasn't meant to look like that!
Can I have a full-res copy of that photo for my personal record?
R.
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It's been terrific reading all the other versions, here is another one from near the back, trying to right the wrong of my dismal 2015 experience and getting it (mostly) about right.
https://audaxery.wordpress.com/2019/09/19/pbp-2019-ride-report/ (https://audaxery.wordpress.com/2019/09/19/pbp-2019-ride-report/)
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It's been terrific reading all the other versions, here is another one from near the back, trying to right the wrong of my dismal 2015 experience and getting it (mostly) about right.
https://audaxery.wordpress.com/2019/09/19/pbp-2019-ride-report/ (https://audaxery.wordpress.com/2019/09/19/pbp-2019-ride-report/)
Great write up Allen.
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It's been terrific reading all the other versions, here is another one from near the back, trying to right the wrong of my dismal 2015 experience and getting it (mostly) about right.
https://audaxery.wordpress.com/2019/09/19/pbp-2019-ride-report/ (https://audaxery.wordpress.com/2019/09/19/pbp-2019-ride-report/)
Very nice. I read the first third, and skimmed the rest, so it would make a nice three part article. The spelling of the place names is a bit variable. Spell-check always has trouble with stuff like coup and coop. I especially liked this bit.
There are the priceless moments. Walking into the Villanes control I am behind an epically tall, tanned and buff cyclist, one of those guys who could have been a part time model. A middle aged french woman behind the barrier issues an appreciative ‘oh la la!’. I look back at her and she smiles and gives a dirty cackle, poking her friend in the ribs. So that’s one of the reasons towns come out to watch cyclists… pure filth.
In 1999 I saw some local ladies hosing down a couple of fit-looking naked Danish riders in the bike park at Loudeac. They looked very happy. It was one of the vignettes that reminded me of 'Apocalypse Now'.
This section interested me.
A minute later I heard the woosh of a solid bank of riders coming up behind me and the unmistakeable lilt of Irish accents. Soon I was engulfed in a sea of Audex Eire riders, maybe close to twenty of them, and a good few hangers on at the back.
They were steaming along, near 30kph. Getting a jolt of energy from god only knows where, I jumped on the back and held on for grim death. The adrenelin kick was great, it felt like I was back in a race as a junior many many years ago doing that racing thing of pulsing hot and cold, measuring the effort needed to keep in the slip stream.
At the first sign of a hill someone near the back called out ‘Steady up’ and the pace instantly dropped to 20kph, then, when the road flattened again, someone would call something else out and off they would fly again.
They were working a system. A couple of monsters on the front who look like they could have ridden the whole thing at 40kph with some more ‘mature’ road captains making the calls at the back and between them a whole crew of young, old, men and women riding together.
It was kind of mental and wonderful all at once. I shamelessly took advantage and overheated massively in my down jacket, but the buzz was terrific. Perhaps it was just the sheer difference of it, after days now of plodding along at my pace, to be suddenly on a high pace.
I've got a series of interviews over three events with one of the key 'locomotives' in that group. He'd decided to have a 'sociable' ride, and really enjoyed it. I can see how the Celtic imagery on the shirt suggested 'Eire', but it's Audax Ireland, and they operate throughout the island of Ireland.
I boiled down my impressions of 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2011 into this article. http://www.damonpeacock.com/paris-brest-paris.html
The 2015 film was more of an overview of the event, without the technical difficulties of filming on the bike.
In 2011 I wrote this.
I was making a film again this year, which is what a lot of this metaphysical musing is about. I don’t know what the film is about until I know what PBP is about. For a grumpy 52 year old like me it’s about faith in humanity redeemed. That might strike a chord with that big section of riders who are much like me. But it’s also about a communion with a rising generation of new riders, one which is as likely to come from China, Taiwan, Russia, Brazil or India as from anywhere nearer my home. This game is about long distances after all.
I wonder what the next PBP will be like? I’ll be a 56 year old bloke, will that be the biggest group?
I'm actually interested in PBP as a symptom of globalisation, the interaction between the image of cycling as 'eco friendly', the act of middle-class people flying in for a specific event, and the changing nature of rural France. I did evolve a short explanation of that for the ex-pat Brits we met en-route.
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[/quote]
I'm actually interested in PBP as a symptom of globalisation, the interaction between the image of cycling as 'eco friendly', the act of middle-class people flying in for a specific event, and the changing nature of rural France. I did evolve a short explanation of that for the ex-pat Brits we met en-route.
[/quote]
Rural France looks like it's dying. It was striking the amount of small villages that looked dead. I know it was August but properties all shuttered up that clearly aren't occupied. I understand the changing rural economy and the impact of tax/inheritance laws are having a big effect but as someone who has spent a lot of time in France over the years, it was striking to me.
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It's been terrific reading all the other versions, here is another one from near the back, trying to right the wrong of my dismal 2015 experience and getting it (mostly) about right.
https://audaxery.wordpress.com/2019/09/19/pbp-2019-ride-report/ (https://audaxery.wordpress.com/2019/09/19/pbp-2019-ride-report/)
Very nice. I read the first third, and skimmed the rest, so it would make a nice three part article. The spelling of the place names is a bit variable. Spell-check always has trouble with stuff like coup and coop. I especially liked this bit.
There are the priceless moments. Walking into the Villanes control I am behind an epically tall, tanned and buff cyclist, one of those guys who could have been a part time model. A middle aged french woman behind the barrier issues an appreciative ‘oh la la!’. I look back at her and she smiles and gives a dirty cackle, poking her friend in the ribs. So that’s one of the reasons towns come out to watch cyclists… pure filth.
In 1999 I saw some local ladies hosing down a couple of fit-looking naked Danish riders in the bike park at Loudeac. They looked very happy. It was one of the vignettes that reminded me of 'Apocalypse Now'.
This section interested me.
A minute later I heard the woosh of a solid bank of riders coming up behind me and the unmistakeable lilt of Irish accents. Soon I was engulfed in a sea of Audex Eire riders, maybe close to twenty of them, and a good few hangers on at the back.
They were steaming along, near 30kph. Getting a jolt of energy from god only knows where, I jumped on the back and held on for grim death. The adrenelin kick was great, it felt like I was back in a race as a junior many many years ago doing that racing thing of pulsing hot and cold, measuring the effort needed to keep in the slip stream.
At the first sign of a hill someone near the back called out ‘Steady up’ and the pace instantly dropped to 20kph, then, when the road flattened again, someone would call something else out and off they would fly again.
They were working a system. A couple of monsters on the front who look like they could have ridden the whole thing at 40kph with some more ‘mature’ road captains making the calls at the back and between them a whole crew of young, old, men and women riding together.
It was kind of mental and wonderful all at once. I shamelessly took advantage and overheated massively in my down jacket, but the buzz was terrific. Perhaps it was just the sheer difference of it, after days now of plodding along at my pace, to be suddenly on a high pace.
I've got a series of interviews over three events with one of the key 'locomotives' in that group. He'd decided to have a 'sociable' ride, and really enjoyed it. I can see how the Celtic imagery on the shirt suggested 'Eire', but it's Audax Ireland, and they operate throughout the island of Ireland.
I boiled down my impressions of 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2011 into this article. http://www.damonpeacock.com/paris-brest-paris.html
The 2015 film was more of an overview of the event, without the technical difficulties of filming on the bike.
In 2011 I wrote this.
I was making a film again this year, which is what a lot of this metaphysical musing is about. I don’t know what the film is about until I know what PBP is about. For a grumpy 52 year old like me it’s about faith in humanity redeemed. That might strike a chord with that big section of riders who are much like me. But it’s also about a communion with a rising generation of new riders, one which is as likely to come from China, Taiwan, Russia, Brazil or India as from anywhere nearer my home. This game is about long distances after all.
I wonder what the next PBP will be like? I’ll be a 56 year old bloke, will that be the biggest group?
I'm actually interested in PBP as a symptom of globalisation, the interaction between the image of cycling as 'eco friendly', the act of middle-class people flying in for a specific event, and the changing nature of rural France. I did evolve a short explanation of that for the ex-pat Brits we met en-route.
Thanks for reading. It is way too long, but mostly it's for me anyway and, to paraphrase someone famous, I didn't have time to write a short one. If you want elegant brevity then this will suit you more: https://audaxery.wordpress.com/2017/10/28/lel-the-uncertainty-principle/ I will probably do something like that for PBP once the dust settles in my mind a little more.
Also I think that my piece on failing PBP is probably better, and one on LEL is more interesting because it was more challenging personally... I guess after a while you see the patterns and it all becomes less OMG! The first time you enter hallunication land is compelling, the second a little less, and so on.
FWIW I think cycling and 'greeness' is mostly nonsense. IF you are really replacing a car then fine, but for most of us it's nothing like. The largest percentage of my car use is driving to Audaxes! Being a kiwi living London I am deeply familiar with trade offs between local and international travel, carbon footprint and so on - the ledger is not in my favour. The only compensation is that, being an endurance person, I will probably end up costing the NHS less.
Finally, a little rewrite - For a grumpy 52 53 year old like me it’s about faith in humanity redeemed. I think we are on the same page there!
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Rural France looks like it's dying. It was striking the amount of small villages that looked dead. I know it was August but properties all shuttered up that clearly aren't occupied. I understand the changing rural economy and the impact of tax/inheritance laws are having a big effect but as someone who has spent a lot of time in France over the years, it was striking to me.
Experience at PBP and Sem Fed since 1999 shows that the last things to go are the pharmacy, the hairdressers and the funeral directors. I did research St Martin des Pres in detail, as we planned to spend time there. http://www.linternaute.com/ville/saint-martin-des-pres/ville-22313
PBP gives a distorted view. If it was unsupported, the emphasis would be on the petrol stations and convenience stores that are just off the route. As in rural Britain, there are little by-pass roads where those facilities are concentrated, they don't tend to be in village centres.
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In Google Street View Troarn looked dead.
I assumed the huge Carrefour on the edge of town had killed it off.
At 8am on a Thursday morning it seemed pretty dead too.
At 3pm on a Sunday it was very much alive.
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I found the interview with the probable leader of Alotronic's Irish group. I also found an on-bike interview with Alotronic himself, but that has terrible sound quality.
https://vimeo.com/362836349
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I'm a first-timer, one of these non-descript 50 something males, who doesn't appear in photographs, doesn't get interviewed and plodded around on his own.
I'm also a bit of a risk-taker, who likes adrenaline and enjoys descending quickly, however my experience of that group was slightly different, the risks just became too much for me. Shortly after PBP I put together some of my own thoughts, and I've been reflecting on editing it and putting it out there as a blog. This is what I wrote:-
"In the middle of the night, high in the hills, some guys set up two pace lines. They gradually wound it up to 50kmh as I tried to hold their tail. Descending in unknown hills in the dark, with variable lighting rigs at that speed had the potential to go badly wrong. They then went through some French villages at the same speed, ignoring giveway signs, stop signs etc. At that point it became too dangerous for me and I backed off."
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Stop signs are virtually unknown in the UK.
In the UK, stop signs may be placed only at sites with severely restricted visibility, and each must be individually approved by the Secretary of State for Transport.[26] Section 79 of the Highways Act 1980 enables the government to improve visibility at junctions, as by removing or shortening walls or hedges, in preference to placing a stop sign. The former UK practice of using "Halt" or "Slow" at Major Road Ahead signs was discontinued in 1965 at the recommendation of the Worboys Committee.[27] Instead of replacing all the old "Halt" signs with the new Vienna Convention "Stop" sign, "Give Way" became the standard sign at UK priority junctions
Britons are blissfully unaware of the risks of crossing Stop signs. It doesn't occur in our road-use vocabulary, and it's quite a shock when a Gendarme gives them an on-the-spot time for crossing one without putting one foot down.
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Another Blog of sorts from someone who gets a mention in my one.
https://www.cyclinguk.org/blog/esmond-completes-1200km-paris-brest-paris
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Stop signs are virtually unknown in the UK.
In the UK, stop signs may be placed only at sites with severely restricted visibility, and each must be individually approved by the Secretary of State for Transport.[26] Section 79 of the Highways Act 1980 enables the government to improve visibility at junctions, as by removing or shortening walls or hedges, in preference to placing a stop sign. The former UK practice of using "Halt" or "Slow" at Major Road Ahead signs was discontinued in 1965 at the recommendation of the Worboys Committee.[27] Instead of replacing all the old "Halt" signs with the new Vienna Convention "Stop" sign, "Give Way" became the standard sign at UK priority junctions
Britons are blissfully unaware of the risks of crossing Stop signs. It doesn't occur in our road-use vocabulary, and it's quite a shock when a Gendarme gives them an on-the-spot time for crossing one without putting one foot down.
I was about to dig out that very text.
You'd think the UK usage of Stop signs would have the opposite effect on UK based riders because they're only used where you can't see... the French seem to use them for everything from simple junctions with fantastic visibility to enforcing Prioritie A' Droit in he tmiddle of nowhere.
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Stop signs are virtually unknown in the UK.
In the UK, stop signs may be placed only at sites with severely restricted visibility, and each must be individually approved by the Secretary of State for Transport.[26] Section 79 of the Highways Act 1980 enables the government to improve visibility at junctions, as by removing or shortening walls or hedges, in preference to placing a stop sign. The former UK practice of using "Halt" or "Slow" at Major Road Ahead signs was discontinued in 1965 at the recommendation of the Worboys Committee.[27] Instead of replacing all the old "Halt" signs with the new Vienna Convention "Stop" sign, "Give Way" became the standard sign at UK priority junctions
Britons are blissfully unaware of the risks of crossing Stop signs. It doesn't occur in our road-use vocabulary, and it's quite a shock when a Gendarme gives them an on-the-spot time for crossing one without putting one foot down.
Nit sure I agree with virtually unknown.
I'm sure i read about an American city where the police had a crackdown on cyclists not stopping. The result on traffic congestion was massive as cyclists adopted a policy of rigorous compliance with each cyclist in turn shuffling up to the line and stopping completely before pulling away. It turns out the authorities didn't want that after all. It might have been San Francisco or seattle
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I've put together some of my random musings. I hope this works for sharing. It's on my google drive and this should be a shareable link.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1a8EWjHsHGJyVAKtGGcjDEI5p_p-zRxa3
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Very late to the PBP blog party but I finally got round to writing my account up for my club newsletter here (from p.4) : https://www.cambridge-cycling-club.org.uk/documents/newsletters/January2020.pdf
Preceded by a splendid rant from the editor about mudguards :)
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Good write up. Just gone back to look at mudguard rant.
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Late arrival at the Bloggers' Ball... It may eventually appear in Arrivee
http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2020/02/18/the-abc-of-pbp/
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Late arrival at the Bloggers' Ball... It may eventually appear in Arrivee
http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2020/02/18/the-abc-of-pbp/
Out of interest what time did you traverse the Roc on the way to Brest?
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Out of interest what time did you traverse the Roc on the way to Brest?
I arrived in Carhaix at 0100 and probably got back on the road some time after 0300. So I dunno--0500? Well before dawn anyhow.
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Late arrival at the Bloggers' Ball... It may eventually appear in Arrivee
http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2020/02/18/the-abc-of-pbp/
Enjoyed that, very funny!
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I don't remember feeling the descent of the Roc was all that cold or misty or having all that many long queues, but everything else ties together with you being somewhere around where I was most of the ride, particularly the Pino.
I'm still trying to work out if i was in front, behind or in the Bulge. (I think I was all 3 tbh)
I left Carhaix at 2am I got to Sizun around 5 am.
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Plenty of laughs in there. My favourite lesson for next time is -
"Lows
Sometimes on PBP when you’re suffering a bad patch it can be handy to look around and tell yourself that, statistically, around three out of every four people you can see will finish the ride within time. So you only have to do better than, um, that rider over there who’s developed a severe list and is trying to freewheel uphill with only one buttock in contact with the saddle"
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Not sure favourite is the right word but I... or liked actually... was amused by
By the time I stopped to check things out, maybe 15 minutes later, production of Revenge of the Gusset, the latest instalment of the Saw franchise, was in full swing in my shorts.
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Late arrival at the Bloggers' Ball... It may eventually appear in Arrivee
http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2020/02/18/the-abc-of-pbp/
Nice write up, it did make me chuckle and thanks for including a photo of me ;) (I'm directly behind in your 'leading' the group pic)
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I enjoyed that. The bit about socialising was quite apt. There are genuinely people that I only see every 4 years in the same circumstances. Audax is a bit peculiar like that.
After seeing George for the first time in a year in Paris I bumped into him on the tube a few weeks later.
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Great read, 'Route marking' very true, you need to be of a certain of a certain age to appreciate that one.
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Did enjoy that! as the wife said "it's not selling it to me but well funny!!"
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Late arrival at the Bloggers' Ball... It may eventually appear in Arrives
http://audaxdemon.co.uk/2020/02/18/the-abc-of-pbp/
Your first PBP since 2007 Pete - 2007 was my first and you was a big shot then. Do I remember a post about you arriving back from work during the registration process and not being able to open to door due to the abundance of UK registrations littering your door mat? I think so. What? postal registrations? What century are we talking about here? How things change, they always do.
Nice write-up - especially when read over a few pints in a Spoons away from home. All the nuances get enhanced over a few pints. Always nice to read an account from an experienced, self-deprecating Audaxer with a fine grasp of language and a healthy sense of the absurd. Sounds like you enjoyed going back after 'all these years'.
Talking of the absurd - I was intrigued [and kind of reassured] to read that Mel Kirkland actually made it to Paris, because monitoring events from home this time around there was no tracker evidence whatsoever of his presence on the ride so I assumed he didn't make it. Good to see he did though (I don't want to know what he did with his transponder....although I will ask him when I dump into him again].
Anyway, cracking account Pete. Later. Maybe!
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My new blog about PBP here, better late than never right? https://tlingitbob.blogspot.com/2020/03/paris-brest-paris-2019.html?fbclid=IwAR3t3QsFxViAgE_zJMQjU3efQ3DkLKSCNFkzL6VEC4BrSxK5JtanZyx7KvM