The 2023 ACME PBP Thread

[Wycombewheeler]

I'm calling Quedillac the first sleep control, so push on to St Nicolas-Du-Pulem. But reading your suggestion above, maybe earlier and use my bivy to get some sleep. What do you do about deciding when to sleep, do you look at how far ahead of time you are for the nearest checkpoint and then use some of that time for a kip? Sorry, but new to multi day rides! I don't really want to waste time queueing at control points for sleep/food so a  bivy and buying stuff en route is attractive. Is it okay to just sleep in a field or at the side of the road over there, do they have any wild camping laws? Still so many questions!!

Are you on the 84hour schedule? I would then look to split 400/300/300/200  rather than 300/300/300/300, should keep you inside control times, I think.

Some people take the view that you should leave the control before your closing time, but generally I tend to sleep as long as I can, leaving enough time to get to the next control in time based on 20kmh between controls. So I will often be behind when I set off in the morning. PBP state that riders should respect control times, but many people were late at intermediate controls and still got validated. I think missing multiple controls in a row would be problematic. I slept twice on PBP 2019, and neither time had to wait for a bed, well maybe a couple of minutes waiting for a guide, and the ability to have a shower before sleeping more than compensates for that when comparing to use of a bivvy.

[Nick]

I've planned 500, 350, 250, 125 (ish) but that may change. Thanks for your advice.

[Nick]

Here is my tracker.

[Wowbagger]

Ooh! Do we have some dots to watch?

[Nick]

Hopefully I’ll last long enough!

[Toby's Dad]

Good luck everyone doing PBP. Hope the weather and bikes hold for you - and look forward to watching you around on the tracker!

[Nick]

Dynohub is dead!

[Nick]

Dynamo lives!

[psyclist]

Dynamo lives!

Great stuff. Had me pondering whether you had sufficient battery lights to see you through.

[tedshred]

Looks like Tomsk, the Dutch Wife and Owen are riding together and at pace.

France Meteo suggests there was a bit of a tailwind overnight and cross/tail today. 

Wonder how cold it will be tonight in those hollows around Carhaix.

[GavinC]

At least the daytime heat and humidity is less oppressive today than it has been the last few days.

[tedshred]

Have we lost Nick ?  His tracker id now has a red outline.

[tedshred]

The ACME A peloton and the Strangler all passed through Brest bang on schedule, albeit with different sleep strategies it seems.  The Dutch Wife managed to keep her fast pace going to Carhaix and then probably used a good chunk of the time gained on a decent kip (I wonder if she gets the Chateau treatment or if that is just for Little Spoon).  Owen and Tomsk, I would guess, had about 3 or 4 hours at St Nic.  Meanwhile, The Strangler is adopting his customary "No sleep 'til Rammers" approach.

It's good fun watching this.  The problem is that now I want to do it again.  Hopefully that will pass...

[Bernster]

Have we lost Nick ?  His tracker id now has a red outline.

Received a message from him on our Arrow group chat saying that he'd run out of time and scratched - he's pondering whether to ride back on the route  :'(

[tedshred]

Have we lost Nick ?  His tracker id now has a red outline.

Received a message from him on our Arrow group chat saying that he'd run out of time and scratched - he's pondering whether to ride back on the route  :'(

I thought as much.  He seemed to lose a lot of time on the early stages (presumably due to his dynohub issues).  What a shame, it just goes to show how little things can scupper huge endeavours.

[jiberjaber]

Have we lost Nick ?  His tracker id now has a red outline.

Received a message from him on our Arrow group chat saying that he'd run out of time and scratched - he's pondering whether to ride back on the route  :'(

I thought as much.  He seemed to lose a lot of time on the early stages (presumably due to his dynohub issues).  What a shame, it just goes to show how little things can scupper huge endeavours.

He's HD but carrying on after a catch up with our friendly Landlord.

[tedshred]

Pleased to hear it.  No doubt, the second footman or the under-valet will have given his bike a polish as well.

The A Peloton are now arriving back at Carhaix.  Looks like they've had a bit of a slog from Brest.  I haven't followed the changes to the route.  It looks like they have done a reverse of the 2019 route for that bit (which I remember as hillier than before) but I think it is quite a bit different.  It also looks fairly hot and there is no tailwind.

I really am enjoying this.

[Nick]

I made it to Brest. Turning around soon.

[Nick]

Back at Carhaix now. Tired. Might bivy.

[Lightning Phil]

How did bivvy go?

[Nick]

Well, I tried bivying once, chose a grass verge with concrete underneath it, so couldn't get the pegs in, eventually got in, got too hot, packed it all away and went off again. I think I'll sell the bivy.

[psyclist]

Pegs? Are you sure that’s a bivvy?

[Nick]

Premium bivy for me