Urgent Help Needed!! Newcastle to Paris Route

[I_hate_hills]

Hi,

I hope you can help....


To explain the situation:

We're looking to ride from Newcastle Upon Tyne to Paris in as short a time as possible.

It is for charity and the fundraising structure is set so the quicker we do it, the more money we will raise.

But we're really struggling to find a route that we're confident in. The route we've got at present is Newcastle to Dover (through London) and then Calais to Paris. A total of 565 Miles. However, the precise route is a bit dubious to say the least.

Ideally we'd like something which we can do as fast as possible with as few hills, we're not concerned about scenery or being tourists. Simply completing the journey in as fast a time as possible.

Your thoughts and advice are really appreciated.

Thanks,

 

[Haitch]

How about getting the boat to IJmuiden in Holland and cycling to Paris from there? About 300 km shorter and fewer hills.

 

[JonnyBlade]

I'm Hampshire to Newcastle and back with a Half Marathon thrown in for good measure. 5 day event covering 660+ miles.
Still working on the route but some good sites out there

Don't forget your rubber ring

 

[I_hate_hills]

Wow. That is a serious 5 days.

How are you deciding your route for the trip?

165 miles a day is good going.

Great cause as well Jonny!

I'm Hampshire to Newcastle and back with a Half Marathon thrown in for good measure. 5 day event covering 660+ miles.
Still working on the route but some good sites out there

Don't forget your rubber ring

 

[arallsopp]

What about getting down to Newhaven and going via Dieppe?

Assuming you come through London (no reason why you should) Newhaven is 10 miles closer than Dover on this side, and Dieppe is 100km closer to Paris on the other. Even at a decent pace, that's 4 and a half hours cycling saved. Also lines you up nicely for the Avenue Verte, which makes routing easy for the next couple of hours.

The best thing though is that it gives you a forced 4 hour kip / fettle opportunity whilst the ferry goes across. On a long ride such as the one you're proposing, being able to eat miles whilst sleeping is twice as valuable as either is alone.

The important thing is to plan it right. Know the village names. Know the sign posts. Streetview the tricky bits. If you have it in your head before you leave, it'll save you panicking or losing time on the road. If you've ever tried to get into a decent pace when you're looking for a turning, you'll know what I mean. Audax style routing will save you some of the panic moments.

Ps. If you want to know what to avoid, I did London to Paris on this route a few years back. My mate was in charge of maps and planning. He brought an A4 map that had spain and italy in the bottom corners, and the tail end of England at the top. After three fairly long days, we ended up chasing 747s into CDG.

 

[mcshroom]

The London-Edinburgh-London goes pretty far up towards you. Might be worth looking at their route for some tips on the section down to the smoke.

link