A few months late posting this! Better late than never! I did the ride, a pretty wet start. There were 187 entrants, 60 people blew out on the day probably because of the rain so 127 starters and only 102 finishers! Later in the day the weather was perfect: cool. This would be hard on a hot day! There were lot's of punctures & broken wheels.
I hadn't done it before but there's a clue in the title! It's obvious you need mountain bike gearing unless you are Keith or Michelle, who think gears are for wimps. They got round in an astonishing 4hrs30mins and 5hrs02mins. And Keith punctured...tore off the tyre with his bare hands as he didn't have any tyre levers. Andy Ramsey had a nasty accident, many did...but he still finished, with some bad cuts and grazes. It's gravelly, full of waterfilled holes...and worst of all (we were warned) Surrey's infamous 4x4 drivers were out in force. Some of the downhill stretches were really tricky.
I learned a harsh lesson, don't follow other people on an Audax, they might be lost too. That cost me a silver medal which I would have got at 5hrs 45mins, instead I did it in 5hrs 56mins. Looking back, it was tough, painful at times but I'm glad I did it and I'll do it again next year! Hope you will too. Don't worry about your time, just aim to finish!