goo_mason said:
BTW - for anyone who's done this before, do we get a letter or something beforehand to show that we've paid for the bus / trucking of bike ? And I presume it'll tell you what time you'll need to be there to get a bus to be there for your starting slot ?
Yes, IIRC they will send you a PfS Number to be prominently displayed (so they can try to flog you a photo later
), along with a ticket thing which shows that you have paid for the transport of bike and self to the other end at start/finish and is collected as you load/board.
Last year, it was meet @ Viccy park at something like 0530
, wait for an hour or more (no rain
) till everything was sorted
, then load bikes on to the transporters (they were fairly gentle too). There didn't seem to be any concern about start times.
1 hr through to Weegieland, then decant - last year it was stoatin'
. There was only one guy unloading the truck till a couple volunteered to assist and we collected our bikes, made a comfort stop (quite a laff with so many people in bibshorts
), then we could start whenever. I think the only start time they are 'precious' about is the first, as that is for the rent-a-politician/"celebrity" photo op. Mind you , it was so-o-o wet last year, people were starting in dribs and drabs as the rain got down their necks
.
It's not a hard ride, lots of food/water stops (loadsa choccy bars
), there are only a couple of hilly bits - the worst last year was Hawe's Brae out of South Q'ferry, which challenged some, especially after 35-odd miles (then I got up towards Dalmeny and caught up with a youth, soaked, in T-shirt and football shorts, on a BMX, going fine !!
) After that, it's pretty easy to the finish in Viccy Park again.
