Chris Davies (CCP) Memorial Audax Rides

  • Starts: Sunday 17 September 2023
  • Ride leader/Event organiser: Phil Beed
  • Category:
At: Denmead community centre

Address: School Lane, Denmead, PO7 6LU

The Denmead Community Centre Association web site is here.

More details and map.

Contact us about this event

Send an email to ride leader/event organiser: Phil Beed.

Map

The event was a successful one despite the thunderstorms and ad hoc lakes in the road. You can see some photos taken by Sally Priddy here.

The CCP Memorial Rides offer a choice of 3 Audax events to suit all abilities:

  • CCP: Coastal jaunt - 50Km, 10am start
  • CCP: Time is miles - 110Km, 9am start
  • CCP: Century ride - 160Km, 8am start

They all start at the Denmead Community Centre (see map above) where car parking is available.

See below for more details about each ride including how to enter. We also provide some information about Chris (CCP) Davies - a legendary Portsmouth CTC rider.

NB The GPX files were updated on 6th September. If you download them to a GPS device, the control points are included as waypoints. You might have to ask your device to show them.

CCP: Coastal jaunt

A gentle loop down to the Meon foreshore with a café stop at Lee-on-Solent, then along the coast to Gosport before heading back over Portsdown Hill to finish with refreshments at Denmead.

If you’re new to Audax this ride will provide a good introduction. The ride has a 5hr time limit, so plenty of time to get around at a relaxed pace (& if you take longer we’ll still be open with food and drink at Denmead until 7pm).

Entry fee of £6 includes tea, coffee and biscuits at the start and food and drink at the finish.

Click here to enter.

Route notes:

Show 'Coastal jaunt' route

Download 'Coastal jaunt' route

You can also see a route visualisation that includes height and gradient graphs here.

CCP: Time is miles

Heading first to the coast at Chichester Harbour, then along the Centurion Way and into the South Downs National Park, with a café stop at Singleton. Then heading over to Duncton before returning across the Downs and over the Butser Cycle Path returning to finish at Denmead.

The ride has a 10hr time limit, so you have plenty of time to get round.

Entry fee of £8 includes tea, coffee and biscuits at the start and food and drink at the finish.

Click here to enter.

Route notes:

Show 'Time is miles' route

Download 'Time is miles' route

You can also see a route visualisation that includes height and gradient graphs here.

CCP: Century ride

An imperial century ride, starting with the 'Time is miles' 100Km route, returning to Denmead for lunch before setting off on the 'Coastal jaunt' 50Km route. Over the two routes you will have completed 100 miles in the saddle when you get back to the finish at Denmead.

With a time limit of 10hrs 40mins it’s a more challenging ride than the two shorter events, but still achievable by the average Club cyclist.

Entry fee of £10 includes tea, coffee and biscuits at the start, food and drink when you first reach the control at Denmead (100Km) and we’ll feed you again at the finish.

Click here to enter.

Route notes:

Some GPS devices get confused by a figure-of-eight route, so we've provided GPX downloads in two halves.

Show whole 'Century ride' route

Download 'Century ride' route part one

Download 'Century ride' route part two

You can also see a route visualisation that includes height and gradient graphs here.

Rider information

Directions to the Denmead Community Centre

The Community Centre is on the corner of the Hambledon Road (B2150) and School Lane.

The entrance is in School Lane.

From the centre of Denmead, head towards Hambledon on the B2150. School Lane is on your left part way up the hill just as you leave the town.

Turn into School Lane and the Community Centre entrance is about 50 metres on the right.

The Event HQ is the Shrover Room which is the wooden building behind the main Community Centre.

We will have sign posting up, but should be easy to find.

Whether you are arriving by Car or by Bicycle please be considerate to other people using the Community Centre – which we're sure you will. It’s important we make a good impression and are able to use the Centre again for future events.

Car parking

The Brass band will also be using the Community Centre on Sunday morning. As they are regular users, and will have instruments to carry, we are leaving the main car park for their use. Please do not use this area.

Our designated area, marked on this map, is to the right and front of the Community Centre.

To access this area drive through the main car park, past the Shrover Room, and follow the road down to the Car Park.

There will be some additional car parking by the Shrover Room, which should be sufficient for our needs, but if the car park is full there is a nearby free public car park in Kidmore Lane.

Rider information sheet

More detail about the rides:

Chris (CCP) Davies

CCP logged all his rides and for many years held the distance record finally achieving 916,791 miles before illness stopped him from riding.

His frequent touring in the UK, France and worldwide meant he was well-known in the cycling world. It was common, when telling someone you cycled with Portsmouth CTC, to be asked "So, you know CCP?"

He was also a:

  • Founder member of Audax UK
  • Cycling campaigner - he was one of a group that successfully brought about the Hayling Billy Trail - and described by a contemporary as "a thorn in my local council's side"
  • Cycling correspondent with a regular column in Portsmouth News, with frequent appearances on Solent Radio and had articles published in national cycling magazines
  • Tour organiser for CTC
  • Volunteer driver for WRVS "Meals on wheels"
  • Reader for Havant talking newspaper
  • Keen photographer and member of Havant Camera Club
  • Sportsman (he nearly favoured Hockey over Cycling)

He was known for being a little "cantankerous" - he criticised ride leaders if they arrived at elevenses too early or too late, for example. But he was also supportive to new riders, and riders looking to expand into new challenges.

There's a more extensive biography of CCP in the Portsmouth News here.