Hi Y'all,

This has been nudging the neurons for a while and so this seems like an appropriate time to give it air:

In the US, there is considered a Triple Crown of bikepacking that includes the Tour Divide, Colorado Trail and the AZT. There is also the Challenge for completion in an calendar year.
http://www.bikepacking.net/triple-crown-of-bikepacking/

So... what is the British version? (there is a thread from 2017 on a Scottish version but maybe need to think bigger)
To start the ball rolling:
* GB Duro :: for distance and our nearest thing to a TD, though it's not often (ever?) completed as an ITT, and is it actually a published route or just a race?
-- alternatives Second City Divide, Pennine Bridleway ?
* HT550 :: just because it's not debatable
* Dales Divide :: it's longish, has a good variety, nice theme

CL and Deeside Way seem a bit similar to HT for making up geography variety in a Triple. Cambrian Way a bit short if you allow GB Duro to some Welshness.

Then we ask do we have any finishers of the Crown or Challenge?
Alan Goldsmith?

I'd like to nominate the Big Bear as only 2 people have ever completed it.

Yes needs to be England Wales Scotland

So: Big Bear, Southern Way, Ht550 to give a decent geographical spread

Happy Xmas all!

The EWE?? How many have completed that?

As Dave says, it needs to be three nations...

HT550
Big Bear

Either Dales Divide or Old Chalk Way

One Mr Large is the only person to have done both of the first two. Alan G, Sean IOW and Stuart Taylor have done the HT550 and Dales Divide, sure there are others.

My vote would be for England - Wales - England, HT550, and the Greater Ridgeway / Peddars Way ( not the watered down cos my gravel bike gearing is sh#t Old Chalk Way version) for the greatest amount of geographical distribution.

Perhaps they should all be drawn from the Self Supported list of routes ? In which case that excludes the latter.

Or is the aim to have one ride in each nation, wholely contained within that country's borders?

What is the Big Bear and Southern Way? Google searches turn up nothing relevant.

The triple crown of hiking from which the biking triple crown takes its inspiration, is about 7875 miles and over one million feet of elevation gain. Several people have now completed calender year triple crowns. Until a few years ago more people had been in space than had completed the triple crown.
Perhaps as the total mileage of all UK ITT routes is "only" 6240, then thats what we should be aiming for

whitestone wrote: ↑Sun Dec 25, 2022 10:40 am .....Sean IOW and Stuart Taylor have done the HT550 and Dales Divide, sure there are others.

I also did both of them on the singlespeed, so what you're basically saying Bob is I should ride the Big Bear singlespeed next year, what have I done to you to deserve that

I like Big Bear, HT550 and DD; mainly because I have done two! (the "easier" two)

Does the Big Bear have a public route page - fairness and equity and all that.
Maybe the route should be on the FKT UK list page? https://fastestknowntimes.org.uk/

Anyway, have you not got birds to stuff? Fnarr, yikkett etc

What is the Big Bear

What about Offa's Byke ? - homegrown and I think only me has done it (but I took a leisurely approach).

There's also Ian Barrington's Cambrian Trail - https://cambriantrail.wordpress.com/. I don't think anyone's done it since Richard G. Not sure which is harder between it and the Big Bear (not that I've done either).

... and the new Welsh 550 but it's too young to have any traction yet
https://www.walesbikepacking.co.uk/post ... aith-cymru

I think the HT550, Big Bear and Dales Divide would be worthy. And not just because I've done all 3...

Something like the GBDuro would fit as well, but it's not the same format as the others.....

How about 3 end to ends? Cambrian Trail, English coast to coast and Scottish coast to coast?

or just a race?

I'm told it's not a race. If it was there would obviously be legal difficulties ..........