Downs Link

***A number of members have contacted me to indicate that they would like to do the ride but, for one reason or another, are unavailable. I've therefore cancelled the ride and will rearrange for another day.***

 

This ride follows the old railway line between Guildford and Shoreham, now called the Downs Link.

It's a linear ride (ie the start point and end point are not the same) rather than the more usual circuit. We'll put the bikes on the train from Havant to Guildford, cycle from Guildford to Shoreham and then put the bikes on the train back to Havant.

We'll stop at Cranleigh for coffee and somewhere else (TBD) for lunch.

It's about 35 miles of rough track, so a mountain bike or gravel bike with good quality off-road tyres is required. We'll be out for approx 8hrs; the ride itself (with stops) is approx 6hrs.

Bike accommodation on trains is limited so I've restricted numbers to a maximum of 6 (sorry).

Further info at:https://www.sustrans.org.uk/find-a-route-on-the-national-cycle-network/downs-link

M

Bookings for this ride/event

Booking is required for this ride. Please let the ride leader know if you want to join. Please do not turn up for the ride unless you've had your booking confirmed or your name appears below.

The ride leader has not recorded any bookings yet.

Ride leader notes

I've had a bike of one description or another, probably since the age of five. I've cycled lots of different routes all around Britain and some parts of France. For many years I cycled to work using the Hayling Ferry.

Since retiring, I try to get on the bike at least twice a week; usually Wednesdays and Saturdays. Most of the rides I lead are in the region of 20 to 40 miles, somewhere between 3-5hours.
I have three bikes I tend to use: most of the year I'll ride a Spa Elan, which is a general purpose touring bike; in the summer I tend to switch to a Cube Attain, which is more of a light weight sports bike and if there's any off-road I'll tend to use by Dawes mountain bike.

It's always difficult to assess cycling speed. I'm certainly no Bradley Wiggins and cycling to me is not about doing a route in the minimum possible time. However, neither am I someone who likes to amble along and watch the daisies grow! So I tend to class my rides as medium-fast. On a scale 1-10 (1 being very slow, 10 being very fast), I would say 6or7, a notch above medium (5).

I'm not a great fan of cycling in and around Leigh Park: the traffic is bad, there's lots of dangerous road junctions and the views are hardly breath taking. We have the beautiful South Downs on our doorstep, so I tend to make the most of it by starting rides in places such as Rowlands Castle, Denmead, or Westbourne.

M

About Wednesday rides

Wednesday rides usually start 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.

Wednesday rides usually provide a range of options to riders as we'll try to arrange multiple rides with different paces, distance and degree of hilliness.

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

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