Having failed to enter a single event in the last few years I have finally cracked and entered into what I hope will be a more continuous engagement with allure libre long distance cycling. I rode my first ‘audax‘(as us Brits wrongly call them for historic reasons) or Brevet Randonneur in the early 1990s, and although I always intended to ride a Super Randonneur series (200, 300, 400 & 600 all in one season) I never made it past the 400 mark, although the sole 400 I did ride was a challenging ride through the hills of North Yorkshire.
So, November 13 is the Eureka 210, a Peak Audax production across the Cheshire Plain into Wales: fairly flat, but prone to high winds and frosty weather. This could be the start of my journey towards the start lines of LEL2013 or PBP2015. Maybe some hard riding will stop me banging on about doping all the time. I intend to write a little here about equipment, clothing, preparation (oh yes) and terrain (generally ‘scenic’), and hopefully about some of the curious characters that make UK long distance riding so special.
Henri Desgrange, I hope I will not disappoint you…
cyclismespandelles 
Excellent! We will be cheering you on. I still remember the aftermath of that 400, and you describing how comfortable the grass verges had looked…
Oh yes, it was as if they were the most comfortable pocket-sprung mattresses. I was rather under-‘prepared’ I remember. Walked like a cowboy for a few days after…
not such a bad look!
I’ve entered the same Audax! Ages since I’ve done something long distance so looking forward to it.
I hope we both survive: I am trying to make up for lack of miles with a new bike…
Fantastic stuff and great to focus on the positives. Never easy but feels so much more fufilling afterwards. So here’s a metaphorical sticky bottle to help you on the way.
Wonderful…Good Luck! I hope you have a great day out. Look forward to hearing about it.
Thanks so much for reading and wishing me luck: I am now feeling the pressure of expectations of course. I have always tended to keep my audax goals pretty quiet, and making them public is having an interesting effect on me! I will endeavour (a) to start, (b) to finish and (c) to remember something that I can write about (and to take some pics)!