Watership Down

This will the same route as the Audax planned for Sunday 12 January which was cancelled because of weather. It is a long. hilly ride.

We'll meet in the carpark or the cafe at Cobbs Garden Centre, Kingsworthy at 09.40am.

Getting there -

• Join Phil Beed's Ride out to Watership down - details here
• Train - its only 3 miles from Winchester station.
• Drive - I have not arranged parking so its up to you. There may be opportunities for street parking. If you want to use the carpark at Cobbs Garden Centre you will have to ask them. Alternatively you could use the Cattle Market carpark in Winchester - about 2 miles away.

Stops (All distances from start of ride) -

• Elevenses, Weyhill farm shop about 19 miles
• Lunch Whitchurch about 50 miles, 82Km, either Kudos Coffee of Silk Mill. Note - this is further than on a normal PCTC ride so you may wish to bring snacks for on the way.
• Possible beer stop at the Wonston Arms 59miles, 96kms

We'll split into 2- 3 groups, to be decided nearer the time.

 

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.

This ride is currently full but we encourage you to ask to join the wait list. That will let the ride leader:

• Find out the demand for that type of ride
• Nominate you as a replacement if someone drops out
• Arrange to split the ride if there is sufficient demand

Bookings recorded for this ride (Log in to see rider names):

• A PCTC member
• A PCTC member
• A PCTC member
• A PCTC member
• A PCTC member
• A PCTC member
• A PCTC member
• A PCTC member
• A PCTC member
• A non-PCTC member
• A PCTC member
• A PCTC member
• A PCTC member
• A non-PCTC member
• A PCTC member
• A PCTC member

To ask to join this ride, please use the 'Contact us about this ride' link above to send an email to the ride leader.

Ride leader notes

As I am still recovering from my accident early September 2025, I am going much slower with shorter rides. I am riding a recumbent to reduce the risk of falling. Text below is out of date.

On club rides I ride a road bike and prefer to lead all day rides. I aim for 55 - 60 miles in the winter and 65 - 75 miles in the summer (although there are exceptions). One of my bikes is an e-bike which i use on faster rides, so I can keep the pace up. My preferred speed is 12 - 13mph depending on amount of climbing. I record my speed on a Hammerhead Karoo bike computer and the speeds I give reflect what i have recorded over the past few months.

I 'm not keen on urban riding and prefer the countryside of the Downs to the north, west and east of us. Although I'm not a particularly good climber I don't shy away from hills as i think flat rides can be less interesting.

I sometimes lead morning only rides on a Friday for all-comers. On these rides I arrange groups to suit the pace of all riders.

I generally start my rides at the Spring Centre in Havant but will pick up on the route on request. I finish my rides here too although you are welcome to leave the ride elsewhere e.g.nearer to your home.

About faster rides

Our other rides go at the pace of the slowest rider or we will split the ride to accommodate a slower rider. 'Faster rides' go faster than other rides and people joining are expected to keep up.

We're not talking about professional or even 'club' riding speeds, but trying to ride at any speed faster than you can manage is an unpleasant experience.

If you want to join a faster ride, but uncertain whether you can keep up:

• Consider trying one or two of our other rides classed as A (Demanding) or B (Hilly) first. If you're able to keep up without difficulty that's a good indication you're ready for a faster ride. The chances are you'll be riding with other members familiar with faster rides that can help you with your assessment.
• In any case, contact the ride leader and discuss your experience to date with them. Bear in mind, however, that subjective assessments of average speed and cruising speed are notoriously unreliable even for those that routinely use cycle computers.

Before you join a faster ride, please review the route and prepare to make your own way back if you're struggling to keep up - and we all have bad days. We will not, however, intentionally drop slower riders; nor will we leave riders without first checking they are confident with getting back.