2016 Highland Trail (group start)

[GregMay]

Got confirmation on Zane - we're 99% certain Adam finished with a SPOT that wasn't working. All good.

[larsmars]

Hello fellow HT2016 riders and dot watchers. I've finished a write up from my experience here.
http://www.tourintune.com/highland-trail-2016/

I also have some GoPro footage. I'll try to edit a few bits and post later.

All the best to all riders for quick recovery and getting back on the bike ASAP.

Cheers,
Lars

[ianfitz]

I'm not reading Lars report just yet! Mine is very nearly finished then I will get stuck in...


Mine is at http://bearbonesbikepacking.co.uk/phpBB ... =10&t=7820

[Ian]

Here's my write-up with pics of the first two days: https://ianbarrington.com/2016/06/07/a- ... le-part-1/

[fatbikephil]

Great stuff Ian, particularly the freewheel-ectomy! Looking forward to part 2

[Richard G]

Out of interest, what have people been using for oil on this ride?

I usually use squirt, but I've found it to be utterly useless by the second day after a bit of rain (and reapplying is ineffective when it's wet). My old go to was Muc Off Wet Lube, though it tends to goop up fairly quickly.

[ianfitz]

Out of interest, what have people been using for oil on this ride?

I usually use squirt, but I've found it to be utterly useless by the second day after a bit of rain (and reapplying is ineffective when it's wet). My old go to was Muc Off Wet Lube, though it tends to goop up fairly quickly.

I carried several overfilled mini 5ml tubes of mucoff dry and a coupl filled with wet lube. I bought a job lot off eBay and you can get a lot more lube in each tube than they provide you with.

It was put a bit on lunchtime and evening with me. Surprising how little gets used considering it's a solid months worth of riding in 4 days!

[Richard G]

Syringe job, or do the tops come off?

[ianfitz]

Syringe job, or do the tops come off?

they are like tiny toothpaste tubes so if you fill the cap of a full size bottle with fluid you can sqeeze the air ouot of the little tube, invert it , and suck up aboutthe same volume again as was in it new.

if that makes sense....

And damn it man your making me give away all my secrets!

[Richard G]

Ha, I've used them before, but to be honest for multiple days I figured that they'd end up being over the top on the packaging side of things. I just decant into a little squeezy bottle. Maybe 50ml? Not sure of the size exactly, I just have a bunch hanging around.

[whitestone]

Someone mentioned on here about using those little plastic fishes that come with soy sauce in the supermarket sushi meals.

I've got a shoal of them

[Ian]

I used muc off wet lube. Was a bit gunky at times, but it did the job. Seldom did I have a squeaky chain. I took it in an (very) old 2oz finish line lube bottle.

[atk]

Nice write up Ian, great photos too! Any reason for gears rather than SS this time round?

[Richard G]

I've got a shoal of them

Sounds fishy.

[Ian]

Nice write up Ian, great photos too! Any reason for gears rather than SS this time round?

Not enough SS miles done this year to be able to do the HT justice SS (though that said, Phil FT said he hadn't ridden his SS much before the race, and he seems dot fair better than I did). My objectives were a bit different this year, and I actually very much enjoyed the range you get with gears. It'll never catch on as a concept though

Anyway, Part Two is up: https://ianbarrington.com/2016/06/08/a- ... le-part-2/

[fatbikephil]

Interesting looking at the condition of the Suilven traverse - last year it took Alan, Karl and me 4 - 4 1/4 hrs plus the stop in Suileg Bothy.....

[Richard G]

Not that I'd be crazy enough to consider doing this... oh, certainly not. But hypothetically, how might one register to do this next year?

[whitestone]

Not that I'd be crazy enough to consider doing this... oh, certainly not. But hypothetically, how might one register to do this next year?

Alan G requests that prospective contenders email him at some point later in the year if you wish to be part of the group start. You usually need to have done a "qualifying ITT" in recent years. You could do it as an ITT. A search of these forums might well give more answers

[Richard G]

I'll have a look around, see what qualifies as a qualifier.

Definitely more interested in the group start though. Not for racing as such, just because I've always loved finding people as crazy as me from time to time on these rides.

[Yorlin]

I had a crack at a forum search, but I don't think I was using the right words But for the 2015 HT550, a sub-36 finish in the BB200* was one qualifier. I do remember there was a proper list though!

*in fact there's a current topic open to enter this years :)

[Richard G]

Got a black "food ticket" for the BB200 last year, don't know if that counts. Doing the YD300 in a few weeks too.

[Ian]

Wasn't it only the 2014 BB200 that was a qualifier? You know, the one with all the hike a bike...

Lakes 200 or Cairngorm Loop are both qualifiers. As is my unpublished ( one of these days I'll pull my finger out) Wales coast to coast, if you fancy something closer to home.

[Richard G]

I've done a few of your rides from Strava... I'm not sure I'm man enough to try one you've actually tried to make hard.

[Alpinum]

Hello fellow HT2016 riders and dot watchers. I've finished a write up from my experience here.
http://www.tourintune.com/highland-trail-2016/

I also have some GoPro footage. I'll try to edit a few bits and post later.

All the best to all riders for quick recovery and getting back on the bike ASAP.

Cheers,
Lars

"Being a musician and music lover, I enjoy listening to noises and rhythms that the bike makes. I focus on pedal strokes, fabrics rubbing together and often create polyrhythms with my breathing. With the extended hours on the bike and a speedball cocktail of caffeine + missing sleep, I found that my musical senses were heightened to euphoric state. I was coming up on endorphins whilst the sun dipped in the sky."

This
Enjoyed all of it and the photos. Thanks Lars

[Alpinum]

Nice write up Ian, great photos too! Any reason for gears rather than SS this time round?

Not enough SS miles done this year to be able to do the HT justice SS (though that said, Phil FT said he hadn't ridden his SS much before the race, and he seems dot fair better than I did). My objectives were a bit different this year, and I actually very much enjoyed the range you get with gears. It'll never catch on as a concept though

Anyway, Part Two is up: https://ianbarrington.com/2016/06/08/a- ... le-part-2/

Wonderful write up and photos Ian.
Looks like this time you took more and better photos than me Do you think your small camera gave more and longer photo stops more reasoning than taking photos with the phone would have done?

Looking forward to riding with you again (although not the HT550 next year, going to Málaga for a wedding instead).