Tour de Pistonheads 2015

[Gruffy]

The Event



The inaugural Tour de Pistonheads will take place on 8th-10th May, following the opening stages of the 2014 Tour de France. The basic itinerary is as follows:

Thursday 7th May
Gather at the hotel in Harrogate (tbd) on Thursday evening.

Friday 8th May
Stage 1 officially started in Leeds, but we can start in Harrogate and ride the same profile, replacing the controlled start section with the hop from Harrogate to the official race start. This means we can ride a circular route, back to our hotel, eliminating luggage issues for day 1.
https://www.strava.com/routes/1387381
200km, 2,670m

Saturday 9th May
Stage 2 officially started in York, but runs on sketchy roads from York to Knaresborough. By starting from our hotels in Harrogate we cut out the dangerous section and reduce the route by 27km. An optional 27km loop at the start keeps the official distance for the super keen but gives a bit of relief for anybody suffering from Stage 1. Hotel in Sheffield on Sunday evening.
https://www.strava.com/routes/1387408
200km, 4,062m

Sunday 10th May
Stage 3 starts in Cambridge and it's easy enough for us to follow the official route, except for a few deviations to avoid one-way roads and a couple of dangerous A-road tunnels when we arrive in London.
https://www.strava.com/routes/1387398
161km, 1,316m

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It's a challenging itinerary that caught out many in the professional peloton. For us mere mortals it is a proper undertaking. We'll try to make it easier by introducing as many of the 'luxuries' that the pros rely on as we possibly can but a healthy portion of stiff upper lip and proper application of Rule #5 will be required. That said, you're welcome to ride just one stage (or even half a stage) as well as the full monty. There are no expectations of blistering speed and stage times that threaten the pro riders. Our PH Peloton is likely to divide into multiple groups at various speeds but we hope to work in teams to help everybody complete their stages.

The event has the enthusiastic support of Pistonheads and we're working towards improving the logistics and the experience for riders. I'll make announcements on this as our plans firm up but time is of the essence and the chaps at PH are a busy bunch so a certain amount of DIY and community spirit is called for. Several generous PHers have already been in touch to offer support car services and one of our biggest challenges will be transferring 'full monty' riders from Sheffield to Cambridge for the start of Stage 3.

Support we need:

• Support cars. Capable of transporting one or more bikes plus riders. Carrying basic tools and generic spares (chains, tubes, spokes etc). A little bike-servicing knowledge is a huge help too. Changing a tube is easy enough normally but after 560km riders might be a bit zombified.
• Logistics support car - Saturday. One support car would also be needed to transport luggage from Harrogate to Sheffield during the day on Saturday 9th May and check-in to the hotel on behalf of the riders.
• Logistics support car - Sunday. One support car to transport luggage from Cambridge to London during the ride on Sunday 10th May.
• Mechanical support. At the end of each stage some of those bikes are bound to need some light maintenance: brake alignment, indexing, even a quick wash/degrease/lube. If any local Pedal Powered PHers are able to offer their skills at the end of a stage this would make a phenomenal difference as many will not be in a fit state to attend to this themselves.
• Transfer: Sheffield to Cambridge. Riders, luggage and bikes need to be transported to Cambridge early on Sunday 10th May for the start of the final stage. Currently the best plan for this is to charter a coach/minibus/fleet of friendly PHers. Please get in touch if you have ideas of how we can do this better.
• Local knowledge. Any local tips on a good hotel in Harrogate that's cycle friendly and not too far from the station or the stage starts? Sheffield hotel suggestions that are very close to the stage finish. Ideally hotels will hold 15 riders and either have decent food on-site or be within easy reach of a decent Italian restaurant for copious amounts of pasta.
• Lunch recommendations. Recommendations of good lunch stops along the three stages would be really useful. Ideally somewhere that can hold a decent amount of riders and turn quality food around quickly. One of the support team would be on-hand with locks to secure the bikes.

If you think you might be able to offer support in any way, on any part of the event, please post on the thread and/or get in touch with me through my profile.

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Charity

There's a lot of energy around the event and we have the potential to change lives. I'm asking each rider to contribute a minimum of £50/£100 (one stage/full monty) in recognition of the value of the time, petrol and expertise being given up by our support team. It's proposed that the funds raised will go towards providing an injured cyclist with a hand-cycle - something which could prove life-changing for the right individual. Finding a worthy beneficiary is a challenge itself. If you're aware of any candidates please contact me directly. Please be discreet to avoid disappointing anybody.

The contribution could be raised through sponsorship and there's certainly no cap on the amount that could be raised. Every penny raised will go toward worthy causes. No raised funds will be used to pay for the event logistics.

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The Jersey
We have our own Tour de PH jerseys! These, along with the regular Team PH cycling kit, can be ordered on this thread. The order is placed on Monday 2nd March though so please be quick if you are keen on any of the kit in this run.

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Team Pie

1. Gruffy - Full Monty
2. Tony Hetherington - Full Monty
3. Marcellus - Stage 3
4. Pablo - Full Monty
5. Thurbs - Full Monty
6. Johno_78 - Full Monty
7. Pete R - Full Monty
8. waterwonder - TBC
9. Nikolai - TBC
10. Johnny - Full Monty
11. bakerstreet - TBC
12. j00py - Full Monty
13. tobinen - Stage 3
14. pembo - Stage 3
15. pembo's +1 - Stage 3
16. GarryDK - TBC
17. Black Can Man - Stage 3
18. SixPotBelly - Stage 3
19. 964Cup - Full Monty
20. Jorrocks - Stage 3
21. Jorrocks +1 - Stage 3
22. burriana - Stage 1
23. JustinF - Crew Chief




Tour de PH Strava club.

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I'll update this post with key information as it's confirmed.

Edited by Gruffy on Wednesday 25th March 18:21

[numtumfutunch]

I have contributed to the other thread but specific to the practicalities of your (monumental) task here is some more local knowledge:

Stage 1 - which I have ridden and enjoyed immensely

Cracoe Cafe for brunch/lunch - rec'd to us by a local and very welcoming.
Good honest grub at decent prices, they even offered to fill our bidons without us asking.
A sensible distance from the start for a first formal stop and regroup
Hard standing and parking outside, we didnt take locks but could see our bikes easily through the window so no stress

Lunch = Reeth
Lovely village green to lounge around with a few cafes and shops for sarnies/sausage rolls etc etc etc
Dales bike centre just down the road if you want to sit down and possibly blag some tools for emergency bodging
But basically Reeth has all you need, its also an obvious place for a regroup before Reeth Moor - which was a lovely climb

Stage 2 - which Ive ridden but not in its entirety

Its bloody tough and ends in the most awful bit of Sheffield, however just outside a cheap chain hotel near the M1
No suggestions for lunch or cafes but the end point is near a couple of retail parks with the usual food outlets eg pizza express and chinese buffets
If you fancy a treat you will be fairly near, however not really walkable, the real ale part of town at approx 3 miles
My favourite pub (Fat Cat) and a good gastro place (http://www.the-milestone.co.uk/) will refuel you but potentially at the expense of your performance the next day

Best of luck

[JustinF]

Gruffy as per our phone discussion I am prepared to be support car for all three stages, I've investigated racks etc and I can fit 5 on the roof, which means me+4 on transfers with a boot-full of luggage and plenty of space for support duties.

I've also had a word with my LBS, they are happy to lend me a full kit of spares, with any used to be paid for at cost.

Whilst I'd enjoy the ride itself I've got lots of other things planned for the year and frankly it'd be fun just to be involved.

edit to add, I'm Sussex based so logistics wise if it helps a few get to the start I'm good for that.

[j00pY]

One thing I was thinking about is how many of the group would like a physio/sport masseuse at the hotel in the evening? If its quite a few of us it could be worth booking someone in advance to work on our legs as required.

Also I discovered that instead of trying to work out the logistics of bringing a foam roller, I filled a plastic drink bottle with hot water and used that as a roller and it worked brilliantly. The added heat from the hot water was even better than using my roller!

In terms of navigating the ride, I'll preload my garmin with the routes so the slow group will have a navigator at least

I'm really looking forward to taking part in this and meeting you all.

[Gruffy]

j00pY said:

One thing I was thinking about is how many of the group would like a physio/sport masseuse at the hotel in the evening? If its quite a few of us it could be worth booking someone in advance to work on our legs as required.

I'm a definite for that. Perhaps one of the team who offer this after local sportives would be keen to help. They're usually pretty good and quite cheap.

[anonymous-user]

Here is my tentative plan which I hope can assist a few others.

Thursday
I plan to drive from Bristol to Harrogate on Thursday, I'll probably go M5, M42, M1 but can make a few diversions to pick up anyone en route who needs a lift up there. Its a Saab estate so big enough for 4 people and 4 bikes, I have 2 x Thule Proride 591s, if you have one too that would be ideal.

Friday
I'll be riding on Friday. The car will be available should we need another support car on the route but of course is reliant on a willing driver.

Saturday
As I'll be riding on Saturday, the car can again be used as the Logistic Support Car - Saturday as described again if there is a willing driver.

Sunday
I'll drive from Sheffield to Cambridge on the Sunday morning, this means that at least 4 "full monties" can be brought from the North to the South with bikes and kit.

I'll leave the car in Cambridge unless there is a willing volunteer to drive it to London as per the requirements for a Logistic Support Car - Sunday.

If there are no drivers available, I'll ride stage 3 then get the train back up to Cambridge with the bike in the afternoon/evening... If anyone wants to come back to Cambridge with me and get a lift home (within reason!) then please shout!

The Big Ifs....
If having my car on the event will cause too many complications, lack of drivers etc, I can get the train up to Harrogate and transport the bike with a bike box but would be reliant on my luggage and the box being brought to London for me. AS far as I can see, the only major issue is getting it from Harrogate to Sheffield on the Saturday? Naturally if I go via train I wont be able to offer any one a lift!

I like the charity idea, it might be worth contacting Help for Heroes or British Cycling to see if there is any help/advice they can offer?

So do people think me driving up is a help or a hindrance?
Is anyone else coming from South, South West or Midlands and would benefit from a lift?
Is there a willing driver for the Saturday Harrogate-Sheffield luggage transfer (higher priority) and/or the Sunday Cambridge-London transfer (lower priority)

Edited by anonymous-user on Sunday 1st March 10:35

[tobinen]

Coincidently I'd decided to raise money for a local children's charity, going well so far. Happy to chip in £50 for a worthy cause.

pablo, I have a driver for Cambridge to London arranged if required.

[anonymous-user]

Fantastic, if they are happy with an auto box they hired!

[tobinen]

It will likely be my mum so perfect.

[SoliD]

Good luck, you're doing it pretty much same dates as I did first 2 in 2014, I hope the weather is better for you guys than it was for us.

[SoliD]

Gruffy said:

SoliD, please check the jersey wiki. I think I'm still waiting on your size(s).

Apologies, I think I'm going to have to bail at this time, haven't got the cash unfortunately

[GarryDK]

SO what are we looking at cost wise for the the whole thing? hotel travel etc. obivously minusing out travel to the first hotel and home on the last day.

[Gruffy]

I'm asking for minimum contributions of £50/£100 (one stage / full monty) for the event itself, which can be raised through sponsorship if you choose. All of that will go to our charity pot though. Our support team are donating their time. Some support services (massage, mechanic, spares) may not be donated and, if so, these will be payable individually to the service provider. They're all optional though so your only 'cost' for the event is the charitable contribution. That said, I'd be keen to see the support team looked after at the bar each evening.

We'll try to identify a group hotel but the rooms will be booked individually and you always have the option to make other arrangements, if you have local friends/family or you simply fancy a different hotel. Then it's food, drink and spares, all of which you have control over yourself.

[GarryDK]

SO the £50/£100 doesnt cover hotels? just making sure as need to convince SWMBO.

[Black can man]

The wife & i are driving up to Cambridge on the saturday & we will spend the saturday in town & have a meal in the evening locally & i guess i'll meet you all in the morning for the last stage.

We are based in the Wimbledon area so if anybody needs stuff taken up or back then give me a shout.

[Gruffy]

GarryDK said:

SO the £50/£100 doesnt cover hotels? just making sure as need to convince SWMBO.

No, that's in recognition of the time and resources that others (including myself) are putting in to create and support riders. To be absolutely clear, every penny of the money we raise goes to charitable causes. I realise it's an additional expense but it seems fair considering we're asking others to give up time and petrol to help us with logistics, without even riding themselves.

I am still hoping to be able to deliver extra incentives with the help of the chaps at PH.

[Marcellus]

Just thought I'd share a few of my thoughts, based on having done a couple of professionally guided rides (London to Paris) and then organised our own cycling events.

Support Vehicles;
- Cost permitting I'd have thought enough mini buses plus a Luton type van would be best as whilst it may cost it would reduce the need to volunteer drivers. (btw Katie is still OK for support driver for all 3 days)

Role of Support vehicles;
- Don't define the stops let the drivers be flexible.
- Let the drivers choose where to re-group, if it's nice then they may choose the top of the climbs, whereas if the weather is foul they may choose somewhere more sheltered but aim for a vehicle to be parked up every 25km or so (ie an hours riding for most of us) and should at as a broom wagon in case someone gets in to real difficulty.
- This also gives them the scope to stop for a nice lunch or site seeing.
- The vehicles should basically "loosely shadow" the riding group knowing roughly where everyone is (give or take 25km) but being on the end of the phone if needed but by and large each rider should be self sufficient.
- The exceptions are possibly a lunch mass re-group and before we hit a major urban area so that the buses can act as protection for the riders.

ANyway as I say just a few thoughts.

[Gruffy]

Some top tips. Thanks.

[Dan_1981]

I'm a Sheffield based PHer live just around the corner from the finish line.

Sadly i'm away on holiday this weekend - however if you need any local support prior to the actual weekend feel free to give me a shout.

The finish line in Sheffield as mentioned above is right infront of an Etap hotel so a good place for cheap accommodation.

There is also the retila / cinema park with al the usual eateries - however the Chinese All you can eat has closed I believe.

Couple of pubs in the very local area too.

It's also an area well served by the tram line so good cycle friendly-ish transport is available into the city centre and all that that brings.

Also very local is the English Institute of Sport - I don't know but they may be able to recommend a decent local sport masseuse and could possibly be interested in getting involved?

Planet X are located just a few miles away too - possible tie in there, they regularly have local club rides on Sundays.

[Gruffy]

Tour de PH Strava club. See how others are preparing for the Tour.