Newcastle to Portsmouth

[coxynufc]

Hi guys.

Im new here and was just looking for some help and advice really.

Recently my friend aged 20 was diagnosed with cancer for a second time and as a result me and a couple of friends have decided we want to do something for the Charity: Teenage Cancer Trust. One of the ideas we thought of was cycling from Newcastle to Portsmouth as it is quite challenging and would hopefully raise a large amount of money...

Basically, we don't have much idea about average speeds to calculate times, how long is realistic to cycle in a day, what breaks would be required, what type of bike and equipment, how long to train for leading up to it, etc. The trip is approximately 350miles.

Any help and advice would be greatly appreciated to give us a rough idea of what is required before we commit to doing it.

Thanks in advance!
Anthony

 

[upsidedown]

I think a lot depends on if you plan to all do all of the ride, or do a vehicle supported relay.
If you can get a transit-sized van ad do it in relays of 20 miles or so then you won't need to do much training at all.
You're looking at between 330 - 400 miles depending on your route, if you're reasonably fit, and not in a hurry you could comfortably do that in 5 - 6 days, taking your time to rest and eat well.
Also depends on if you're planning to camp along the way or do B&Bs and travel light.

Some people will do 20 miles in a day, some 150, depends what level you're starting from, but if you work on an average of 10 - 12 mph for 6 hours a day you'll be about there for a new rider.

Good luck with it if you decide to do it, and be sure to post a link to your donation page.

 

[PpPete]

^^^^^
wot he said

There are so many different ways of doing this....

A lot of the choices will fall out naturally from what accomodation you are planning and whether you have a support vehicle.

Come back to us when you've an idea on those.



~~~~~
In case it's of any use.....

I'm planning a John o' Groats - Lands End at present, for a group of youngsters aged 11-17 + some adults, and as few of them have much experience we are looking at 50 - 60 miles /day. Between now & August we have to get their weekend tides up to that level from the current ~10 miles. We have accomodation & support vehicles sorted so the kids can ride very light, so it should all be feasible. If it wasn't for the kids I'd be looking for closer to 100 miles/day - a bit less if staying in hostels/B&B's, quite a bit less if camping.

What load you need to carry dictates kind of bike you are best with.

I've been using www.bikeroutetoaster.com to plan route away from main roads as it has option to use OSM data for Sustrans routes, and double checking against www.bikehike.co.uk because that has OS Landranger mapping. But you can just as easily use a cheapo road atlas - and a bit of string of appropriate scale length for your daily distance.

 

[coxynufc]

thanks for the replies.

well we would all do all of the ride and probably stop in B&B's. we are willing to train for a good few months leading up to it, although alot of it would probably be using exercise bikes with more training actually on the road as the ride gets closer. we wouldnt have a support vehicle, probably just one to meet us there to transport the bikes back up.

ideally we would like to do it in as little time possible, maybe around 4 days so thats averaging about 80-90 miles a day. we are willing to cycle for around 10 hours a day with 30min breaks every 2 hours or so. so with around an average speed of 12mph we would do over 90miles a day. is this too ambitious?

Thanks again

 

[rich p]

You won't need a 30 minute break every 2 hours! What are you going to do for half an hour anyway?
You'll probably want a break mid-morning for a cuppa and a cake, another for lunch and possibly another one mid afternoon.
12mph should be do-able though.

 

[coxynufc]

true! its mainly to get a bit of decent food on board. we did originally plan to do the Great North RUn for the charity but werent successful in getting a place although there is still a chance that we will. if not, it looks like Newcastle to Portsmouth is a go ahead!

we are all students so money is a bit tight, but we were thinking that maybe a local bike supplier might sponsort us with bikes or give us large discounts on bikes. you think they would? and also what type of bike would be best?

 

[Arch]

true! its mainly to get a bit of decent food on board. we did originally plan to do the Great North RUn for the charity but werent successful in getting a place although there is still a chance that we will. if not, it looks like Newcastle to Portsmouth is a go ahead!

You can eat on the hoof (wheel!) to some extent, pocketfuls of raisins* and flapjacks and so on to keep you topped up. Then as Rich says, a morning break, lunch and afternoon break should do you fine.

*preferably in a bag, or they'll go all sticky and stick to the seams and not be found until they've been through the wash twice....

 

[vernon]

true! its mainly to get a bit of decent food on board. we did originally plan to do the Great North RUn for the charity but werent successful in getting a place although there is still a chance that we will. if not, it looks like Newcastle to Portsmouth is a go ahead!

we are all students so money is a bit tight, but we were thinking that maybe a local bike supplier might sponsort us with bikes or give us large discounts on bikes. you think they would? and also what type of bike would be best?

You can hope for large discounts but we live in straightened times and sponsors would normally like to see some sort of return on their sponsorship. Long-ish distance bike rides are not that rare and the sponsorship benefits are questionable.

As for best bike? It all depends on what tou want to do with them afterwards - sell them on having vowed never to ride that distance ever again or keep them after discovering the delights of cycling.

 

[coxynufc]

hi again guys thanks for the replies.

I have been confirmed a place on the Great North Run so I am doing that for Teenage Cancer trust instead of cycling. Thanks for the help and advice, I know where to come if I ever need any advice about cycling. Just in case any of your are interested, my fundraiser page is http://www.teenagecancertrust.org/g...undraisers/anthony-coxs-great-north-run-2010/ .
any donations no matter how small would be greatly appreciated or you can just have a quick read of my story.

thanks again!