Rigs of the 2024....TOR Divide

[Valerio]

The perfect bike for an overnighter in the Peak District doesnt exist.....or does it???

Here are some of the bikes that will take part to the first edition of the Tor Divide on Saturday.

https://tordivide.co.uk/resources/rigs- ... tor-divide

[Bearbonesnorm]

Hang on, I was expecting this but there's not a single one in that lot

[Valerio]

If someone shows up with one on the day....I will be very impressed!!!

[boxelder]

I suspect there'll be a fair few 'beaten up' feeling riders by the finish - but narrow tyres are faster, right?

[Valerio]

I don't think narrower tyres are faster....not always at least :)

It'll be a good challenge for sure!

[whitestone]

Hang on, I was expecting this but there's not a single one in that lot

Surely there’s an opportunity for a manufacturer to name their range after oil rigs - Brent, Ekofisk, etc ( technically they are oil fields but…)

[macinblack]

Hang on, I was expecting this but there's not a single one in that lot

Surely there’s an opportunity for a manufacturer to name their range after oil rigs - Brent, Ekofisk, etc ( technically they are oil fields but…)

Good idea.

I used to work for Kenting drlling.

I can think of a number of occasions when I could have remarked about my Kenting bike.

[fatbikephil]

A good number of people there, hope it all goes well. Sadly I have a none biking commitment this weekend or else I'd be there too.

[Valerio]

Thanks Phil. Hopefully there will be next year :)

There should be a couple of people from the forum which I look forward to meet and to get feedback from after the event.
Fingers crossed the weather is kind to the riders.

[thenorthwind]

Did I miss something? Is a massive top tube bag on the mandatory kit list?

My tool for drilling myself a bit hole from which to extract myself from will look a bit like this:

[boxelder]

Did I miss something? Is a massive top tube bag on the mandatory kit list?

My tool for drilling myself a bit hole from which to extract myself from will look a bit like this:

that bike and rain look familiar. Good luck me duck (as they're heard to say down that way.

[thenorthwind]

Cheers Andy. Can't possibly be as wet this weekend... Right?

[voodoo_simon]

Good luck with the event

[trob6]

I'm looking foward to it on my bouncy bike
but there seems to be a few skinny tyred gravel bikes and good luck to them.
I seem to remember the Peak District is a bit rocky.

[Kuman]

Most importantly weather is looking good Saturday/Sunday

I'm bringing my rigid Singular Rooster. Didn't feel like braving it on gravel bike.

[Valerio]

I fear my choice of bike (the only one I have!) might have given some people the impression it's a gravel event

It's an all-terrain event and, while there's no mad hike-a-bike, some people on gravel bikes will definitely be a bit "shaken" after the first loop! Having said that, I've ridden most of it on 40mm tyres so it's definitely "doable".

I'm really curious to see how everyone does, hopefully the weather is kind to us and everyone has a good time.

Looking forward to meeting you all!

[benconnolli]

I am respect the n=1 attitude with a capable gravel bike.

Been baking goods up today for a plastic free time and it definitely adds to the experience. Massively looking forward to it Valerio!

[thenorthwind]

I was thinking of having a crack at the plastic-free thing too. Trouble is I've been too busy faffing with brakes to do any baking tonight

[thenorthwind]

Well I enjoyed it!

Credit to Valerio for planning a cracking route, putting an excellent event on, and remembering to book the weather

Nice to meet the man himself, Ben of this parish, and catch up with Tim, and maybe others I didn't make the forum link with. Good craic all round.

Given the gravel-friendly billing, and not knowing the route well, I was expecting the terrain to mostly be fairly tame, but took the full-sus because I enjoy both having fun, and being comfortable (controversial, I know). I didn't regret that choice for a moment since there were some really nice moderately technical moorland sections and short steep rocky descents in the northern loop. A gravel bike suited the smoother double track and railway lines of the southern loop, but I suspect a lot of drop bar riders were pretty beaten up by the time they got there, if they got there at all.

At one point, I stopped at the top of a rocky climb for a breather where a couple of others had stopped. A guy slumped over his gravel bike asked me what it was like on a full-sus. I'm not sure what he expected me to say but he looked pretty crestfallen when I blurted "brilliant!" with a big grin

I finished the northern loop and second ascent of Mam Tor, and having wasted time in heaving Castleton and failed to get food, pushed on to Hathersage before the chip shop shut.

I'd intended to ride til at least midnight, but unlike Friday night when the low cloud kept the temperature in double figures, it was clear and I was worried it would be very cold in the valleys, so bivvied in a nice sheltered spot up above Baslow. Also, I was pretty done after 100 miles on a hot day. A couple of hours decent sleep, and some dozing, and I was back on the bike just after 4 to try and get finished before it got really hot again. Lots of easy miles, but a (not unexpected) sting in the tail as we headed back into the centre of the Peak with a third and final ascent of Mam Tor.

Event campsite




Early mist coming in on Mam Tor on Saturday








Breakfast in Matlock


I did in fact complete the full route self-supported and plastic-free, and unless anyone has come forward, believe I was the fastest (possibly only) plastic-free finisher of the long route. Kudos to Ben for completing the short route plastic-free. Some thoughts on that...

• I mostly found it easier than expected. The Peak's relatively densely populated with plenty of shops and cafes, so easier than, e.g. the Scottish highlands would be. I got lucky with spotting some good independent shops selling fresh pies/pastries/cakes - or maybe I've just developed a nose for such places!

• The Co-Op in Matlock (the only place open before 7am) proved an exception to this. I couldn't find anything except chocolate that was ready to eat but not wrapped in plastic. The only fresh fruit and veg was unripe bananas.

• Chocolate is one of the few snacks that's regularly available not wrapped in plastic, which would have been fine in cooler weather. I ate a lot of chocolate between the hours 10pm and 8am

• Water wasn't such a problem for me, even with the heat. I've always had a pathological aversion to buying plastic bottles of water, emptying them into a different plastic bottle, then throwing them away immediately, and only ever do it in a dire emergency (though admittedly I'll often buy a bottle of pop/juice which somehow feels more acceptable, but creates the same amount of waste). I had a 1.5l bladder and a 500ml bottle for adding electrolytes. I had refills from public toilets, a shop/bakery, a kind couple who saw us sat snacking in the shade outside their garden and offered, a tap by the toilets in Hathersage, and a tap outside some (locked) toilets on the High Peak Trail which I had to unlock with my pliers since I didn't have a utility key I supplemented this with a couple of cans of pop.

• I threw a small batch of flapjack together on Friday morning from what we had in the house and wrapped it in foil. I'm always intending to make a big batch and freeze it, but never get round to it. This showed me it doesn't really take that long, and better doing it that way than not at all.

• One plastic-free ride isn't going to change the world. I nearly didn't bother since it's impossible to avoid single-use plastic at home, it seems a bit pointless when out and about. But I'm glad I did. If nothing else, it started some conversations. As far as I know, me and Ben were the only people to attempt it (could be wrong) which is a bit disappointing.

• I did have one piece of single-use plastic with me: the snack we were given at the start from one of the sponsors, which somewhat undermines the message, but I guess that's the way of the world. I kept it for emergencies, and while I came close, didn't need it.

• Cornettos are disappointing.

Eagle-eyed viewers will note the 7-11 trail mix bag which dates it to at least 2019 for me.

[trob6]

Excellent write up Dave and good to see you too.
I also was very pleased to have a bouncy bike, I saw many a battered gravel bike rider eyeing up my comfy iron horse
Great route and superb weather.
I didnt do plastic free as I bought a packet of super noodles and ate the bar we got at registration but I think I will try and adopt it as much as I can from now on.
I never buy water in plastic bottles anyway, I would prefer to die of thirst
Tim.

[Dave Barter]

Well done gents. I’m the same on plastic bottles. It makes me laugh that people somehow trust the content beyond taps knowing how corporations operate… and I live in Brixham
lol

[Valerio]

Congrats Dave and Ben for being the only plastic free finishers. A few more people attempted the event plastic free but they didn't finish it or gave up on it during the ride.
It wasn't easy to resist the temptation of buying bottles in that heat, and having to avoid single use plastic isn't as easy as it might sound especially when limited in options.

I'm just looking at results now and roughly 50% of participants didn't finish, which makes the plastic free finish even more impressive.
No casualties fortunately, although numerous gravel riders voiced their discontent after the first loop!

Ben, it was never a race but well done for finishing second only behind Luke putting on an insane (and plastic fuelled) show.
Yu'll have to send me that recipe please! Looking forward to eating parmesan-flavoured crumble from my top tube bag

Apologies if I didn't manage to spend more time chatting with you guys, there was so much going on and I was trying to stay on top of it all....with mixed results!
A lot of lessons learnt for me for sure.

It is a very good point about the styrkr bars in plastic wrappers....not the best match for an event that tries to be sustainable and something I felt quite conflicted about.
Unfortunately the few brands that make nutrition in compostable wrapping had no interest in the event. The only one that did, went bust, and then an opportunity with Styrkr came about.

[Bearlegged]

parmesan-flavoured crumble

Please tell me more...

[benconnolli]

Cheers for the kudos Valerio, I'm in the process of writing up how this all went in a satisfactory way.
Agree with pretty much what Dave said re the plastic, one additional point I would add is that my reusable coffee cup allowed me to get a takeaway brew to sup while riding along, cafés were not located right by technical terrain so not as sketchy as it sounds? 2hr 21 not moving which I am pleased with but looking at trimming.

This was not my first time trying to be plastic free, but it was my first time trying to do it while also being efficiently fast. I did some practice "smash and grabs" in local shops to get my eye in the week leading up to the event. The route definitely made it more comfortable with resupply roughly every 30km.

parmesan-flavoured crumble

Please tell me more...

It was from an Arivée (audax magazine) article. I'll post a picture of it, but super simple. Less than 5 mins involved time and 15 mins total

150g flour
150g parmesan
70g butter
Mix it (or use a food processer)
Should become a kind of dough
Roll it into 5mm sheets
Cut your biscuits out
Bake for 10-12 mins at 180 degrees.

To turn these biscuits into crumble, carry them across the Northern loop of the Tor Divide on a rigid bike.

[Bearlegged]

Also, ha! at the crumble step.