Bob Kemp Memorial ride

Route information added 19 June. Please scroll down ...

Next Saturday (21 June) is the Longest Day and our regular Saturday club ride is extended by an early start. The Bob Kemp Memorial ride is an imperial century that is intended (like all our rides) to be a fun day out and to provide riders who may not have ridden 100 miles in a day with an opportunity to sample long distance cycling on a well supported and relatively easy ride.

The 5am start at the Spring Centre in Havant means we will enjoy some exceptionally quiet roads for the first few hours and will arrive in Salisbury in time for a second breakfast 🙂

If you enjoy typical club rides of around 80 to 100 km and feel OK at the finish then there is no doubt you are capable of managing a 100 mile (160 km) ride. The finish will be late afternoon as usual. Bring a bit of food as there are few eating opportunities on the way out to Salisbury (especially at the time we will be riding), but later in the day there are good eating places in Stockbridge and Alresford. If the weather forecast is sunny bring sun tan cream. Don't forget your water bottle and a basic toolkit.

You don't need to worry that the pace will be too fast as I am still riding in convalescent mode and will be the opposite of fast. I am seeking volunteers to act as back marker and co-leader. The back marker plays the crucial role of keeping an eye on the back of the group in case of problems and enabling the leader to quickly check the group is still together. The co-leader leads from the front from time to time so that I can drop back to chat to people and check that everybody is happy. If you would like to volunteer for either of these roles please send me a message using the 'Member Services' tab above, or just phone me.

We really do want to encourage everybody, and especially beginners, to enjoy a longer ride, so set your alarm for an early start on Saturday and make the most of the day before the nights start drawing in again on Sunday.

Route details added 19 June:

The profile shows the ride is not hilly, although there is more climbing in the second half. (You might get a clearer image if you click on the profile.)

This is the route followed by Dave Culverwell in 2011. If you want to see more detail click on the map image above to link to the mapometer web site where you can zoom and scroll around the route. The plan for Saturday is to go the same way as Dave's 2011 ride, and follow the same pattern.

We shall stop for 5 minutes at the public toilets in Station Road, Wickham (about 17km or 1 hour from Havant) so that more Westerley based riders can join us without having to trek to Havant for the 5am start. (Please let me know if you plan to join us in Wickham so I can watch out for you.) Other nodal points for even more Westerley riders are the bridge on Poles Lane under the M3 (37km / 2 hours), or Hursley village (43km / 2h20m from Havant), although we won't be stopping here.

We'll stop for a picnic snack somewhere, and have second breakfast at Salisbury Tesco which provides a good variety of food at reasonable prices - but bring a good lock as our bikes will be unsupervised. Lunch in Stockbridge is bring your own, or use one of the pubs or cafes. The tea stop in Alresford offers a good variety of possiblities, but I know where I'll be going!

The aim is to get back to Havant around 5pm, so a full 12 hours well spent 🙂

About Saturday and Wednesday rides

Rides from Havant with stops for elevenses, lunch and sometimes tea. If you're unable to keep up or have a mechanical problem, someone will be available to help you - although we obviously cannot guarantee to solve all problems.

Riders are free to join and leave the ride at various points. Some ride directly to the elevenses stop.

Click either heading below to find out more about Wednesday and Saturday rides:

Wednesday rides

Wednesday rides are the largest of our rides and can provide a range of options to riders. We often split into multiple groups at the start, for example:

• A fast group that takes a longer and/or hillier route to the elevenses stop
• A ride which takes a more direct route to the elevenses stop at a moderate pace
• An elevenses ride comprised of riders going only to elevenses; the elevenses ride will have its own ride leader and might go to a different destination if the route to the main elevenses destination is long and/or hilly

On Wednesdays it is highly likely that there will be several riders coming back to the Havant area from the elevenses stop - although they might not include a PCTC ride leader. If that is what you'd like to do, please consult the ride leader at the start to ensure someone knows and is able to bring you back.

In addition, some rides split after elevenses to go at different paces or to alternate destinations. These are usually announced during the ride briefing. Please ask if you are unsure about the options available.

Saturday rides

Saturday rides are (usually) much smaller than Wednesday rides. As a result they offer fewer options for rides but more flexibility for routes and destinations.

The rides are often shown as 'informal' meaning there is no prescribed ride leader. Unless weather is particularly adverse, however, they always go ahead at the stated time and start point. We try to keep to the suggested elevenses destination to allow for people who want to ride directly there.

The lunch destination does change occasionally but we will always take views of riders into account. In particular, if you join a ride because you think you can manage the distance/hilliness, we would not substitute an alternative if it meant you couldn't join the ride.

If you want to ride with us but only to elevenses and need someone to help you with the route back, please use our general enquiry form to let us know in advance of the ride so we can try to arrange something for you.

This article describes what you should consider bringing with you on one of these rides.