Next year I am planning to ride to and around the Isle of Wight, primarily to pick up some more BCQs, but also just because…………… Most probable dates will be the weekend on May 16/17 (on the basis of “while the cat’s away the mouse will play”).
The plan is:-
Day 1: Ride from the ‘Drome via Arundel. Chichester and Hambledon to an IOW ferry. The route will be slightly meandering as I pick up 3 BCQ*s . It could be ~85 miles to Portsmouth, ~95 miles to Southampton, or if I decide to collect a 4th BCQ in the New Forest ~110 miles to Lymington.
Overnight stop in Ryde, Cowes or Yarmouth depending on which ferry I use.
Day: 2 Circular ride round the IOW, collecting 6 BCQs. ~65 miles. Catch mid-afternoon ferry to Portsmouth and train to Gatwick and cycle back to the ‘Drome.
(Alternatively stay over a second night and ride home on Day 3 by a more direct route of ~75 miles.)
I will make this into a club event if anyone is interested. I’ll be riding at a steady G2 pace, and there will of course be stop(s).
I can organise for another quicker group if required. It will be self- supporting so you’ll need to carry your own spares and credit card.
Ferries are about £10 each way and the train back <£20 if booked in advance, I’ll look into accommodation costs, but looking at Travelodge level or B&B.
If you are interested please reply to this posting. And if enough folk are interested (>2!), I’ll do some more planning.
Rick
P.s.
* BCQ = British Cycle Quest. CTC’s challenge. Questions need to be answered to prove you’ve met the challenge. Don’t blame me – blame Bruce who got me into this stuff.