Heads-up - Hotels, routes and bits'n'bobs
(A) Hotels
I have today reconfirmed our bookings:
St Omer - 5 single rooms
St Menehould - 5 single rooms
Black Forest - 6 single rooms (to add in Paul)
Avallon - 5 single rooms
Soissons - 5 single rooms
Routes
Here are our suggested routes down to the Black Forest and back, along with a suggested full day out (180 miles) when we are in Avallon / Morvan region.
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/14126843/Black Forest.GPX.zip
They are hosted on Dropbox in a zipped folder. They are built in BaseCamp using map version 2015.2. When you download the zipped folder it may well open straight up in BaseCamp or Mapsource. If it doesn't, save the file to your desktop, start up baseCamp or Mapsource and open it up from there.
NOTE:
(a) Each of the days are reasonably long, mostly on non-motorway N and D roads, with no deliberate goat track excursions. I have sometimes put in some motorway (payage fee of a few euro) and / or some dual carriageway sections where it is sensible to do so. For instance, on our final run-in to St Menehould (where the main road has very little to commend it) and to skirt around Nancy, which is a real grind to get through.
(b) It's not a race from A to D via B and C. That being said, 250 to 270 miles a day on regular roads with five / six bikes is still a reasonable stretch, so we will need to keep an eye on the time as we go along, keeping up a decent pace. For those that have been with me before, you'll know that it's best to get going; stopping for a tea break mid-morning, lunch and a break again in the afternoon, chopping the day into near enough thirds. I am a firm believer that an hour saved in the morning, always translates into two hours saved in the afternoon. If we can tie-up petrol and cigarrette stops with the tea and lunch stops, so much the better. I have no real idea where we might stop after day one but nobody has starved yet.
(c) If everyone can fill up please as they arrive in St Omer, that would be great. That way we can all start from one common point, which makes things easier for everyone. There are lots of fuel stations (open 24/7) in St Omer, that's for sure.
(d) I have lots of potential routes for the Black Forest. I don't think it's worth posting them up here as we can probably decide what to do when we are there. Anything from the B500 onwards really. Switzerland and the Rhine Falls are definitely within a day's return ride, if anyone is interested. I will bring my assorted maps and Macbook anyway and will happily load up / shape routes for all and anyone with a Garmin.
(e) As suggested in (d) bods are perfectly welcome to do their own thing on all, some or any of the days. I have just booked the hotels; how you get there and what you do when you are there is fine with me.
(f) I am still booked on the train out on Saturday evening. I know that some of you are planning on going over earlier, which is great. Can bods do me a favour and post up here what they are doing, so we'll know where everyone is and fellows can look out for one another. Dependong on what time I arrive at the terminal, I'll probably grab a coffee and a sandwich before boarding. Much of St Omer will be shut by the time I get there, so you earlier crossers go out and get your food, probably on the town square.
(g) Don't forget on the first night in St Omer we are booked in the cheaper Ibis,
NOT the one we usually use. It's still fairly central and only a bit of a walk to the main square. I suspect all the rooms are booked in my name (Richard Nash) grab a key on arrival. Similarly, the other hotels are books in my name too, secured on my credit card.
(h) Don't forget your waterproofs, some autumn riding gear, dark glasses / visor, your Holiday and Breakdown insurance, your passport, driving licence (both parts), insurance certificate, V5, a basic lock / chain and a spare key for your bike. I will bring a basic tool kit and a puncture repair gizmo.
(i) I have PM'd three of you for your email and mobile numbers. Apologies if I have have had before and mislaid them. I will circulate everyone with the full list, when I have them.
I think that's it.
Any problems, questions, comments, worries or concerns PM or ping 'em up here. I am out tomorrow night (Thursday) with a client but will be around at work on Friday and in all day Saturday up to about lunchtime.
Cheers,
Richard