NW Passage

[ColinJ]

I'm still waiting until the last minute to decide. I'll let you know by Friday evening in case anybody fancies coming along with me at a nice easy pace (and probably doing a nice little climb out of Whalley rather than a couple of A-roads).

Bromptonfb has asked what the speed rules are for the full length NWP ...

Shaun - you can always look up details of UK audax events here. All audax events have minimum and maximum speed limits. What those are depends on what type of event it is

The full length NWP is run as a 'proper' audax event. If you look at the NWP page on the audax UK website you'll see that it is a BRM event (Brevets de Randonneurs Mondiaux) and these have limits of 15-30 kph. The NWP is slightly overdistance but I think they class it as 200 km for the sake of calculating the speeds. 200 km at the slowest speed of 15 kph = 13 hours and 20 minutes. The event starts at 08:00, so the cut-off time for you would be 19:20 back at event HQ.

You have to factor in your stops - no allowance is made for them. If you take lots of long stops then you'll have to ride faster in between. I'm sure you will be okay though. I've done hillier 200s up into the Dales and back in about 10 hours and you are as fit now as I was then.

The mini-NWP is classed as a BP (Brevet Populaire) with relaxed speed limits of 10-20 kph.

The upper speed limits are to stop people trying to turn audax rides into races. It's actually pretty tough to average 30 kph over 200 km if you are stopping at cafes on the way, and especially if it is a very hilly route.

 

[400bhp]

Is anyone else signed up for the NW Passage Audax on 19th Feb? I know it starts in ColinJ's stamping ground.

I was going to do it, downloaded the gpx into bikeroutetoaster and decided against it.

The route is pretty poor IMO. As Colin states, far too many A roads.

 

[ColinJ]

I was going to do it, downloaded the gpx into bikeroutetoaster and decided against it.

The route is pretty poor IMO. As Colin states, far too many A roads.

In defence of the organisers though - it is a mid-February ride so it does make sense to stay away from some of the more scenic hills in case of snow and ice. The day that I rode it was dry and sunny so I got off the A-roads as much as possible and enjoyed the lanes. Mind you, I spent the whole day by myself so I could have done it whenever I felt like it and saved myself the entry fee!

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

cheers colin,

i've been promised my bike will be ready and my new hope rear light will be attached . the forecast at the mo, is that it will be wet but warm. i'm slightly nervous.

how many people attended each one over the years?

 

[ColinJ]

cheers colin,

i've been promised my bike will be ready and my new hope rear light will be attached . the forecast at the mo, is that it will be wet but warm. i'm slightly nervous.

how many people attended each one over the years?

I hope the bike is sorted in time. If it isn't, you could always do the mini-NWP on the Brompton!

I reckon it was at least 70-odd for each event when the weather was okay. Put it this way, they sent us off in several groups of riders to avoid clogging the road up and to give us a chance to spread out. I've no idea about last year's events because it was so cold I stayed in bed!

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

uh oh! i'm seriously thinking, that i might try and do a 300km, 400km & 600km to qualify for the pbp. what has happened to me?

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

just joined audax uk.

 

[potsy]

Shaun, you seriously need to start drinking again!!

 

[ColinJ]

uh oh! i'm seriously thinking, that i might try and do a 300km, 400km & 600km to qualify for the pbp. what has happened to me?

You've obviously caught the long distance bug! It's something that I'll never suffer from. If I ever started to get fit enough to do longer rides, I'd prefer to concentrate on riding 100-250 kms more quickly. I'd really like to do a sub-5 hour imperial century and a sub-8 hour 200. Maybe I'd do a '300' or even a 200 mile ride if I could get it done in 14 hours or so in mid-summer, but I don't think I'd like the sleep-deprivation thing.

Hey, you could use the 1,200 km PBP as a training ride for the 2013 1,400 km LEL!

 

[ColinJ]

just joined audax uk.

And so it starts ...

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

it's one way to lose weight hehehe.

 

[ColinJ]

it's one way to lose weight hehehe.

I ate and drank as much as I could on my 200s and I still averaged a fat loss of about 1.25 pounds a ride!

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

come on potsy get out on the mini one.

 

[Fiona N]

Having just seen the forecast for Saturday - heavy rain over the whole course - I'm getting wet feet Even the mudguards aren't going to be enough...and there's snow on them thar' hills today

 

[ColinJ]

Having just seen the forecast for Saturday - heavy rain over the whole course - I'm getting wet feet Even the mudguards aren't going to be enough...and there's snow on them thar' hills today

I feel another DNS coming on! (At least I haven't entered in advance this time, though.)


Still, they can get forecasts wrong. I'll decide on Friday evening.