here's the deal.
The ride will start, as ever, at Hyde Park Corner at midnight. Registration by 14th March is essential. You'll need to be at HPC by 23.30 to check in and listen to the safety talk. We'll head off east, going briefly south of the river, then through the Rotherhithe Tunnel, and across East London to Barking, then out along the A1306 to Junction 31 services for refreshments. We'll then schlep eastnortheast along quiet lanes, tickling the northern outskirts of Basildon before making our way east along the River Crouch for an early breakfast in the Cabin Dairy at Burnham on Crouch. Some people will train it back to London from Burnham, some will take the ferry across to Wallasea and train it back from Rochford, and some will ride back. I'll probably ride up to Witham and take a main line train in to London.
The ride to Burnham is about 58 miles, and pretty darn flat. It really is a gentle introduction to night riding. The breakfast spot has the best bangers in Essex.
The more astute of you will be wondering about the changes. Well, the answer is that our planned halfway stop and our planned breakfast stop aren't available, so I've had to improvise. The ride to Burnham is just as nice as the ride to Southend, and those of you dedicated to personal health will still be able to make it back to Look Mum No Hands for a the usual beers.
If you've not ridden the FNRttC before please take a little while to go through the blog (the link is below). Registration by e-mail, please, not PM or text.