Sean Barker

Event Name = Pretty Pigs Two Battles Organised by = Geoffrey Cleaver Distance = 209km Total climb 2300m Start and finish point = Tamworth Entry Fee = £7 Date ridden – Saturday 19th April 2014 209km cycling event starting from Tamworth, Pretty Pigs PH. Controls at Wistow Rural Centre, Upper Stow Rural Centre and Wellsbourne, plus 1 information control. A gently undulating course with a rather long final drag. The first control is the well-used farm shop at Wistow renowned for its large selection of cakes. Then it’s on to Upper Stow Rural Centre where they are well used to Audax riders and always offer a special meal at a reasonable price. The final control is the garage at Welsbourne to obtain a receipt before the longish final leg of some 60km. All in all a pleasant course and a worthy addition to the Audax calendar. .

An all together clearer day at Clee Top yesterday

Absolutely stunning Dave. There is something truly beautiful about Cotswold stone as the sunshine hits it

I rode the Saracen 200km Audax No 2 for the first time today and it really is a lovely course, mostly through the Cotswolds

Event Name = Benjamin Allen’s Spring Tonic Organiser = Mark Rigby Distance = 206km Total climb 2500m Start and finish point = The Hop Pole Pub, Tewkesbury Entry Fee = £4 Date ridden = Saturday 5th April 2014 This was a new event on the Mark Rigby calendar and up to his consistently high standards. The route started out by following the gently rolling hills from Tewkesbury through Ledbury and on to Leominster where we stopped at a nice coffee shop that served the largest teacakes I have ever seen. It was then on to Wye crossing Mark’s favoured bridge, the old toll to Hay-on-Wye. The third stage is where the hills were, not that there was any too taxing but this was probably the nicest part of what was a very pleasant route. A nice stop at the friendly and well used visitors centre at Lower Soudley. Then it was a relatively flat and gentle last leg home, This was my third 200km in a week and a late arrival and a slight mechanical problem at the start forced me to start a half hour after everyone else and ride it alone but all in all that worked out well for me as I just rode easily and enjoyed the day. A new event for this year and one I’ll look forward to riding again next year. Controls at Leominster, Hay-on-Wye and Lower Soudley. plus 1 information control.

Event Name = Three Counties Revisited Organised by = Gavin Greenhow Distance = 207km Start and finish point = Droitwich Entry Fee = £4 Date ridden – Saturday 29th March 2014 207km cycling event starting from Droitwich. Controls at Tenbury, Weobley and Ledbury, plus 5 information controls. An unseasonably hot day made for an enjoyable ride on what is a very pleasant route. This is an undulating route and must come close to attaining AAA points. Gavin Greenhow’s events are always basic affairs with Brevit cards distributed at the start in the pub car park and left behind the counter at the finish but it’s abundantly clear that Gavin puts his focus of attention on the routes that are always interesting.

I have just been notified that this Audax will now qualify for 2 AAA points

Rode this again today and after Tewkesbury it was into a ferocious head wind but after Ludlow I had it pushing me home for the last 60km

I rode this today and I have to say it’s a lovely course but quite a tough one. The ride down to Tewkesbury is an easy start but it starts to get hilly after that on the run up to Ludlow via Ledbury, Bromyard and Leominster. After Ludlow it gets serious with the climb up to Clee Hill Common at 150km a particularly tough one. Finishing the route over Dayhouse Bank seemed easy after that. It should have been a good view from up on Clee Hill Common but the lower ground was covered in mist.

Event Name = Vale of Belvoir Organiser = Steve Gloster Distance = 212km Total climb =1329m Start and finish point = Lichfield Entry Fee = £5 Date ridden = Sunday 9th March 2014 I am well familiar with this route as it has become my permanent of choice over the last year, however riding the calendar version is an altogether different experience and after the sub-freezing temperatures of last year it was a delight to ride it this time on a warm spring day. Quite amazing how different everything looks in the sunshine. The lion’s share of the climbing is in the first quarter as we made our way to Stonehurst Farm, Mountsorrel. It’s then a run out to Grantham services via the picturesque Belvoir Castle. The second half sees the route closely shadowing the first half but with a control at Kegworth. Controls at Stonehurst Farm, Mountsorrel, Gonerby Services and Donnington Services. One other bone of contention was that there was no GPS route provided so an evening typing in the route was called for.

I have also added a second 200km Permanent Audax to our selection http://www.aukweb.net/perms/detail/SBA02/ Both very different in character.