The Fridays Tour de Normandie 2015

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Friday, 22 May
1400 1600 ferry Portsmouth to Cherbourg
(some are staying overnight in Cherbourg, others onwards towards or in Brix)
ETA: several of us are booked into the Ibis de Cherbourg or its Ibis budget sister next door - sharing opportunity?
@theclaud
@Flying Dodo has just pointed out to me that the ferry time was incorrect.
:rolleyes: #brainfart
 

srw

It's a bit more complicated than that...
I certainly hope so - I've just told my bosses that I'll need to leave the all-day meeting in Guildford at lunchtime. So don't you all take the spaces on the train before it gets there.

My memory is that trains to Portsmouth run every 15 minutes throughout the day from Waterloo - or is that just to Guildford?
 

srw

It's a bit more complicated than that...
Just found the email from SL describing the first few days - sent on 31st March at 13:40. It was rather lavatorial. Happy to reforward to anyone that needs it. Departure from Brix is 9am.
 

StuAff

Silencing his legs regularly
Location
Portsmouth
The Ship and Castle right outside the ferry port would be a preferred meeting point, provided you go to the right one.
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/The+Ship+&+Castle/@50.813463,-1.08855,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x48745d6cbf9f9d89:0x3ff1108494f1a6e1 Is the right one.

Further pub recommendations: at Gunwharf Quays (for which you will want to leave the train at Portsmouth Harbour) The Old Customs House got mentioned on Saturday. The Star and Garter on Copnor Road (two minutes stumbling distance from this sofa) was fine pre-Normandy 2013. Handy bike storage facility nearby ;)

Two (non-pub) food recommendations, there are plenty of other good options: http://www.thespinnakercafe.co.uk/menu.html on Broad Street in Old Portsmouth (Harbour again nearest station) does an excellent all-day breakfast, http://www.thecourtyardsouthseacastle.co.uk has just opened on the seafront. Not been there, but early feedback has been excellent and it's a great location.
 
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StuAff

Silencing his legs regularly
Location
Portsmouth
I certainly hope so - I've just told my bosses that I'll need to leave the all-day meeting in Guildford at lunchtime. So don't you all take the spaces on the train before it gets there.

My memory is that trains to Portsmouth run every 15 minutes throughout the day from Waterloo - or is that just to Guildford?
Fastest ones on the hour from Waterloo, next fastest (five mins slower into Fratton) on the half hour. The slow ones are at a quarter past the hour and a quarter to the hour. This doesn't include the long-way-round services via Basingstoke and Winchester (obviously not an option for you and @rvw), which are one an hour and take two hours to get to Fratton.

For what it's worth, if anyone's thinking of saving some money and getting the Southern service out of Victoria, I'd warn that there's only two bike spaces (well, there are four at Victoria, but the back half of the train goes to Bognor so you don't want to use that set), and it takes two hours to get to Fratton. It's handy at times but I'd avoid it on this occasion. Also the cheapest tickets are 'Southern only' so you can't switch to SWT services if there's a problem on the line.
 
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StuAff

Silencing his legs regularly
Location
Portsmouth
Bike shops:
Best LBS in the city is Velocity Bikes http://www.velocitybikes.co.uk/index.asp?upid=12&msid=2 right by Cosham station. Lovely people, great service.
Not bad for service, and a good range of products: Cycle World at 373 London Road (map)
Oh, and there's a Halfords round the corner from me in Burrfields Road.
I've got a load of 700C tubes, one 26" tube, a few spare 700C (all 23 mm) tyres in the event of an emergency.
 

mmmmartin

Random geezer
For the Thursday crossers to Cherbourg, any suggestions (other than the Ibis) for the hotel I should book for Thursday night?
I've just arrived back from Scotland after being in Wales. After the Thursday crossing to yet another country I'll probably go for a room at the Ibis La Glacerie, not yet booked. This will be done when I acquire a Round Tuit.
 

wanda2010

Guru
Location
London
Fastest ones on the hour from Waterloo, next fastest (five mins slower into Fratton) on the half hour. The slow ones are at a quarter past the hour and a quarter to the hour. This doesn't include the long-way-round services via Basingstoke and Winchester (obviously not an option for you and @rvw), which are one an hour and take two hours to get to Fratton.

For what it's worth, if anyone's thinking of saving some money and getting the Southern service out of Victoria, I'd warn that there's only two bike spaces (well, there are four at Victoria, but the back half of the train goes to Bognor so you don't want to use that set), and it takes two hours to get to Fratton. It's handy at times but I'd avoid it on this occasion. Also the cheapest tickets are 'Southern only' so you can't switch to SWT services if there's a problem on the line.

Just checked my outbound ticket and I'm booked out of Victoria at 11'ish, so I should be ok. I hope. Fingers crossed and all that.
 

StuAff

Silencing his legs regularly
Location
Portsmouth
Just checked my outbound ticket and I'm booked out of Victoria at 11'ish, so I should be ok. I hope. Fingers crossed and all that.
You should be fine. Would recommend getting there nice and early, so you can get to the platform ASAP, and remember it's the front four coaches only for Pompey- it usually hangs around a bit at Horsham (where it splits into two) so you'd have time to get from one part to the other. Worst case is change at Barnham if you're still in the wrong part.
 
https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=Brix,+France&daddr=49.5363142,-1.54068+to:49.5206489,-1.5289994+to:49.5135627,-1.4999034+to:Boulevard+Division+Leclerc/Voie+de+la+Liberté/D974+to:49.501831,-1.45696+to:49.5016478,-1.442732+to:Rue+Paul+Lecacheux/D974+to:49.4804394,-1.2926044+to:49.4754479,-1.2526414+to:Utah+Beach,+Sainte-Marie-du-Mont,+France+to:49.3795592,-1.1969658+to:49.3287887,-1.2667422+to:Boulevard+de+Verdun/Voie+de+la+Liberté/D974+to:49.307338,-1.1244164+to:49.2881892,-0.888519+to:49.2753467,-0.7165716+to:49.2752146,-0.7101651+to:Rue+Saint-Malo&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=49.32915,-1.241069&spn=0.015634,0.042272&sll=49.323276,-1.25596&sspn=0.031049,0.084543&geocode=FfMB9AIdOefn_ynbuz_Wk5oMSDGeY297bxM_GQ;FTrd8wIduH3o_ylTz-7aPZsMSDEN7_LUKgFukw;FQig8wIdWavo_ymhVvueS5sMSDG6eLyqo0MdFg;FVqE8wIdAR3p_ykLdygZUoMMSDEgnDHER4sE5Q;Fexx8wIdipbp_w;FYdW8wIdwMTp_ynhgyFb3IIMSDHEPSu8S7mekA;Fc9V8wIdVPzp_yl_aKMDv4IMSDHq31xhODxRng;Fa8Z8wIde_vq_w;FfcC8wIdxEbs_yknmgwgqHsLSDFdBeDQUVhRCw;FXfv8gId3-Ls_ykNlUWSY3oLSDGb8R1NpNMHLg;FQr98QIdERfu_ynrC0qE7nYLSDGu-LWIy3cQ5w;Fed48QIdW7zt_ymz7Bb3yXcLSDHE1wgTk7qGew;FZSy8AIdyqvs_ymV-CfF74ILSDHX-Iif0a-IsQ;FTNL8AIdFAvt_w;Fcpe8AIdwNfu_ymFXXR4kZ4LSDFleFCdBjrxtg;Ff0T8AIdOXHy_ylLahX_DqYLSDEaTMTVCZxCyQ;FdLh7wId5RD1_ylXTc2ko6wLSDHRC8AhZe2ccA;FU7h7wId6yn1_yk1GRCJpawLSDF2rV4T0PFW5A;FZPq7wIdP0L1_w&oq=bayeux&dirflg=b&doflg=ptm&mra=dpe&mrsp=12&sz=14&via=1,2,3,5,6,8,9,11,12,14,15,16,17&t=h&z=15&layer=c&cbll=49.32919,-1.241038&panoid=o2FY8Fdv9lO4nkCh_Qp6Cg&cbp=12,88.63,,0,0

for gpsers
We're not following the coast or going via Utah beach any more? Was this due to the need to find toilets?
 

StuAff

Silencing his legs regularly
Location
Portsmouth
On the other hand, you're missing out Sainte-Mère-Église, which, apart from That Church (with dummy paratrooper hanging from the wrong side) has a very nice ice cream parlour...oh wait a minute, you don't want to be there all day. :smile:
 
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