the Fridays Tour 2014

[dellzeqq]

New owners or has Chris pulled rabbits out of hats?

pulled 'em out and stuck 'em in a risotto......he called me this lunchtime.

The sad thing is that we were timetabled to go there tonight.......

 

[clivedb]

...

A coach might be less expensive - and I'm pursuing that as well. budgeting for 40 participants, with 28 bikes in the van and 12 (mostly the oddballs) in the coach hold.

I'm concerned for the oddballs who will be in the coach hold.

 

[thom]

If the Spanish side is half a striking as the section between Collioure and the border it's going to be doing very well indeed. There's quite a lot of traffic on that coast road but it's mostly harmless - because it's used to a lot of riders. The real danger is that the wind might get up, which on a tandem is Not Fun.

The real danger in that part of Spain is the heat - in mid summer there are parts just south of the mountains that can get very hot and dusty. The mid-summer climate is quite different to the French side, much drier, hotter and also much less inhabited.

 

[dellzeqq]

we'd be going in June, so it shouldn't be so very hot.

http://www.yr.no/place/Spain/Navarra/Pamplona/statistics.html
http://www.yr.no/place/Spain/Catalonia/Girona/statistics.html
http://www.yr.no/place/Spain/Basque_Country/Irun/statistics.html

 

[SaLQ83]

I don't know of anybody who was put off by Normandy as a destination.

In a general way, people might be put off by the cost, the terrain or the weather. I suppose they might be put off by a lack of interest in the part of the world the tour goes to.

The big issue with northern Spain is the cost, and that depends, critically, on the journey to the start and the return from the finish. That's what I'll be attempting to sort in the next week or so. On every other front it's a great holiday - the countryside is beautiful, the towns and villages are striking, the roads are easy and the weather in June is likely to be congenial. The big thing for me is that organising on the road would be easy-peasy. The low traffic levels, the lack of traffic, the consistency of the roads would make my life much more relaxed. Thirty five people across Edinburgh - nightmare. Fifty people from Pamplona to Jaca - piece of cake.

@GVSAM7 and I have been meaning to cycle Bilbao area for a long time.... So our question is where do we sign?

 

[martint235]

I must admit that my concerns with Spain are as you say DZ, costs. I do have to justify a one sided holiday to SWMBO

 

[martint235]

Have you tried saying "I'll be away for a whole week"?

That's not the difficult bit, she'd welcome that bit. It's the following bit" and it will cost me a grand " that she'll have issues with.

 

[martint235]

You could sell a kidney when we reach the finish.

I always have a worry I might need them both

 

[martint235]

OK a bollock then, assuming that there is a market for those.

I don't know. I'm fairly sure there's a market for bullocks, particularly in Spain, but they are a bit harder to carry around.

 

[srw]

In the mean time I'll spend some energy looking at the west coast of France down to Rochefort and Hendaye, bearing in mind that the cost of the London to Hendaye will be about the cost of Hendaye to London. There's a ferry called the Bac Royan-Ponte de Grave that looks pretty cool

And while I'm thinking of it, Rochefort has a pont transporteur that is even cooler than the one in Newport. And a 19th century suspension bridge that was resurface in 2008 using cheap non-weatherproof chipboard.

 

[User10571]

Yes, shame that.

Bit of a bugger for all concerned....

 

[Snail Bait]

I hate hills but can I come?

 

[theclaud]

Rochefort has a pont transporteur that is even cooler than the one in Newport.

Steady on!

 

[mmmmartin]

https://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=Irun, Spain&daddr=43.0291099,-1.6282867 to:42.7791366,-1.4526079 to:Lumbier, Navarre, Spain to:42.6272929,-1.3166741 to:42.617158,-1.275128 to:42.6229809,-1.267461 to:42.6179396,-1.1857973 to:42.5570857,-0.4904631 to:42.5468641,-0.422688 to:42.5185025,-0.3678049 to:42.5081979,-0.3534187 to:42.4844561,-0.2971248 to:42.480989,-0.278922 to:42.4744087,-0.2598672 to:42.4689101,-0.1909004 to:Fiscal, Spain to:El Pont de Suert, Spain to:La Seu d'Urgell, Spain to:Olot, Spain to:42.1341383,2.6588246 to:42.010323,2.8170614 to:Girona, Spain to:41.8897768,2.8727919 to:Tossa de Mar, Spain&hl=en&ll=41.868538,2.833099&spn=0.427981,0.617294&sll=41.863169,2.91069&sspn=0.212986,0.308647&geocode=FZFPlQIdcKjk_ykXSGeoiwhRDTG4S9GAkZ__hg;FXWSkAIdgifn_ykDkS-StuVQDTFJQCGsSn5D5g;FQDCjAIdwdXp_ykJAM44pr5QDTFopIYz6_c4pA;Fa3TigId5APs_yn7B8lrjK5QDTFbVftO_TuneQ;FdxwigIdvujr_ynzVUx-zq5QDTE8hyv_oD9goA;FUZJ igIdCIvs_ylNZlxT8atQDTHqkbPW6sVuFg%3BFQRgigId-6js_yk3LUx6daxQDTGSxAuZgdKi_w%3BFVNMigId--ft_ykXH273m1RXDTGrAHBHstnM1g%3BFZ1eiQIdIYT4_ynd-ktxhIdXDTFNTJ6lVTS63g%3BFbA2iQId4Iz5_ykngATtiCdYDTGWG7hZ8TcsHQ%3BFebHiAIdRGP6_ymnhkem0SBYDTF6cw0pofuBbA%3BFaWfiAIddpv6_yn7uc2GHiFYDTHoV7q1xQ5fjA%3BFehCiAIdXHf7_ylLxnw4RR9YDTFYIiK3Jamhkw%3BFV01iAIddr77_yktuiItLh9YDTG8fnHHLgJlXw%3BFagbiAId5Qj8_yk7dG3H1R5YDTFrKoqkbNWJwg%3BFS4GiAIdTBb9_ynJ_qqgixtYDTHm_qwrWehF8g%3BFUZxiAId-Sf-_ymtfXzIDQNYDTHheRwWQgC5Kg%3BFW4YhwIdxk0LACmPQ11V7C-mEjEXPRpmCsr-jA%3BFUFZhgId5UMWACl74m6Wxe2lEjHtntEPPtn_2g%3BFUCmgwId2PYlACk3aLxr38q6EjF7O9P_HARpnw%3BFXrqggIdCJIoACmP0ySdfMa6EjE51fBm_WgRNA%3BFdMGgQIdJfwqACl17pnarOe6EjEGX7qeV1CNug%3BFfBxgAIdIwcrACmr_ciYJ-e6EjFvaimltkU4rw%3BFfAvfwId19UrACn9v8q_DuK6EjHppDde4N7Myw%3BFYOifAIdwLYsACmhqhGspxq7EjHNNIPsSk9hog&oq=Tossa&doflg=ptm&mra=dpe&mrsp=23&sz=12&via=1,2,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,20,21,23&t=m&z=11
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Train/coach to Hendaye. Ride from Irun to Lumbier, Fiscal, Le Pont de Suert, La Seu d'Urgell, Olot, Girona and then, for those that wants, on to Tossa. Train/coach home.

Am speaking to vastly experienced cycling chef.

a shorter link via bit.ly is here

http://bit.ly/19RqOGN

 

[dellzeqq]

I've done a bit more work and the last five days are now roughly this.....

http://goo.gl/maps/AkFEf Lumbier to Sabananigo (Day 2)
http://goo.gl/maps/HZMrT Sabananigo to Castellon de Sos (Day 3)
http://goo.gl/maps/125Vw Castellon de Sos to Sort (Day 4)
http://goo.gl/maps/bb6hY Sort to Ribes de Freser (where the Cava comes from) (Day 5))
http://goo.gl/maps/zbxCh Ribes de Freser to Gerona (Day 6)