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Sportives without a car?

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  • March 6, 2015 at 4:29 pm #23421
    MatthewH

    Hi – firstly, apologies if anyone thinks this has been covered well elsewhere…

    I’m interested in a few sportive rides this spring/summer, in the run up to Pru 100 and beyond.

    I live in London and, like many of us, have no access to a car – was wondering if anyone has any tips/advice they could share about rides accessible by public transport, or possibly just an extra day’s ride & a b&b away?

    I’ve never really ridden large organised rides, just go out in packs of two or three and since moving back to the UK a year or so ago have finally got myself in a position to have free weekends and the desire.

    Cheers!

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Viewing 9 replies - 16 through 24 (of 24 total)
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  • March 6, 2015 at 10:06 pm #834967
    0
    The Rake

    sergius wrote:For the ones I

    sergius wrote:
    For the ones I know about/am attending:

    Wiggle Up&Downs Sportive + Wiggle Work From Home Sportive. Both start out of Dorking, so that’s a 45-60 minute train journey from Victoria, depending on which train you get. I reckon it’s 5-10 minutes on the bike to get to the Friends Life building (guess as I’m not 100% sure where Dorking Station is!). You could also get off at Box Hill & Westhumble – that’s ~5 minutes to the race start.

    Friends Life is right next to Dorking Station. Head to main road, turn right, big office complex on right.

    March 6, 2015 at 9:58 pm #834965
    0
    wycombewheeler

    sergius wrote:For the ones I

    sergius wrote:
    For the ones I know about/am attending:

    Wiggle Up&Downs Sportive + Wiggle Work From Home Sportive. Both start out of Dorking, so that’s a 45-60 minute train journey from Victoria, depending on which train you get. I reckon it’s 5-10 minutes on the bike to get to the Friends Life building (guess as I’m not 100% sure where Dorking Station is!). You could also get off at Box Hill & Westhumble – that’s ~5 minutes to the race start.

    Wiggle Chiltern Classic – High Wycombe. This is about ~40 minutes on the train from Marylebone (NOTE: I’m not sure what Chiltern railways bike policy is, been years since I’ve got a train there, usually drive). Wycombe is actually pretty big, I reckon it’s a 15 minute ride to the Ground – I’d suspect that’s not a nice ride either if you went down the main road out of Wycombe – I’ve never looked into back roads as I drive there.

    Main road would not seem busy to London riders.

    March 6, 2015 at 9:35 pm #834963
    0
    climber

    Audax. Save yourself a
    Audax. Save yourself a fortune…….just two….
    http://www.aukweb.net/events/detail/15-583/
    http://www.aukweb.net/events/detail/15-112/

    Hundreds more.

    Enjoy.

    March 6, 2015 at 9:32 pm #834961
    0
    HalfWheeler

    One word of caution if using
    One word of caution if using a train.

    If you’re travelling from London to a sportive I’m thinking that there may well be others with the same idea and bike space on the train might be limited. Up here (in Scotland) you can reserve your bike space a week in advance on some intercity routes. Costs nowt. Maybe it’s the same down south?

    March 6, 2015 at 9:24 pm #834959
    0
    crikey

    Get the train to Manchester
    Get the train to Manchester then ride home?

    Monksie from STW rode from the velodrome in London to the velodrome in Manchester in a day, he loved it…. (when he got off his bike!)

    March 6, 2015 at 9:14 pm #834957
    0
    MatthewH

    Thanks all so far – really
    Thanks all so far – really helpful/interesting. Quite like the idea of real early start and warm up ride>train (plus fuel up)>ride to the start>go.

    Particularly as I’d most likely be alone for the first couple, there wouldn’t be much point trying to ‘make a weekend’ of it with b&b etc. If I was to do that I guess I may as well go further afield.

    March 6, 2015 at 8:55 pm #834955
    0
    JonD

    Best check details on the
    Best check details on the web, but there’s the (Sutton & Cheam CTC ?) Hilly50 tomorrow – only 50km but hilly 🙂 Starts from Rykers cafe at the bottom of Box Hill, nearest station Boxhill & Westhumble.

    On sunday is the Surrey Rumble, run by Twickenham CC, goes from Cobham.

    First is mebbe a fiver, the second 17..

    March 6, 2015 at 5:15 pm #834953
    0
    Speet0

    One I’m entering this year
    One I’m entering this year for the first time, the Chiltern 100, starts from Bovingdon, which is a short (uphill) ride from Hemel Hempstead train station (itself a 30 min journey from Euston)

    March 6, 2015 at 4:39 pm #834951
    0
    sergius

    For the ones I know about/am
    For the ones I know about/am attending:

    Wiggle Up&Downs Sportive + Wiggle Work From Home Sportive. Both start out of Dorking, so that’s a 45-60 minute train journey from Victoria, depending on which train you get. I reckon it’s 5-10 minutes on the bike to get to the Friends Life building (guess as I’m not 100% sure where Dorking Station is!). You could also get off at Box Hill & Westhumble – that’s ~5 minutes to the race start.

    Wiggle Chiltern Classic – High Wycombe. This is about ~40 minutes on the train from Marylebone (NOTE: I’m not sure what Chiltern railways bike policy is, been years since I’ve got a train there, usually drive). Wycombe is actually pretty big, I reckon it’s a 15 minute ride to the Ground – I’d suspect that’s not a nice ride either if you went down the main road out of Wycombe – I’ve never looked into back roads as I drive there.

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