| Before the Rally
Firstly, decide your overall route, but
without the details of navigation.
Check the route timings, e.g. to ensure that you won't be trying to reach
a control near it's closing time (or before it opens).
Decide where you will take your breaks.
Ideally, I ride without a break until the control prior to passing the 200
mile limit, and again just before the 400 miles limit, so try to ensure
that those controls have good rest and refreshment facilities. If
not, a small adjustment to the route can usually find a better halt, which
will save lots of time later.
Check out 'escape' routes, in case things
go wrong. This usually involves just checking to ensure that if
things go wrong you can get to the Final Control without re-visiting a
control.
When you have the overall route, then start
to plan in as much detail as you can. I list every turning on the
'open road' in shorthand. A sample follows. In areas of doubt,
I also include the distance from the previous turning. My local library
has a complete set of Ordnance Survey 1-inch maps for all of the UK.
I raid the library for the maps for any parts of the route that look as if
they might be difficult, or where I might be able to find a good short
cut.
Copy the control location details from the
Final Instructions onto your route details, so that you don't have to stop
to consult a second piece of instructions.
For towns of any significant size, I use
the AA book of town plans, and plot as much detail (e.g. street names) as
I think I can absorb while riding. I photocopy the street plans of
all the towns and cities that I will pass through. I keep these all
together. I hope not to need the street plans, but if you do get
lost they can save lots of time.
I buy a Road Atlas with a scale of 3 or 4
miles to the inch. You get these for about £3. I cut out just
the maps I need to cover my route, and trim them to fit my tank bag.
Next, I arrange them in adjacent pairs, place the pairs back-to-back, and
get them encapsulated in plastic at the local copy shop. At about
75p a sheet, this might seem expensive, but compared to the time and
petrol that can be saved by having a handy and dry map I reckon that it's
a good investment. So, I use the typed instructions for most of the
navigation, but have the 'encapsulated' maps to hand in case of need.
On the Road
Top tip. When you've decided your
route, write it softly in pencil onto the route card and include the
running mileage. At each control, check that the control team has
added the mileage properly. In my experience, it's easy for them to
get it wrong, then you waste time trying to sort it out.
I try to get the maximum possible miles
done before taking a break, so each control visit is just a quick in and
out until I've reached 195 miles. (Longer chats at controls come
later, during the night).
After every turning, I check the route
instructions, so that for instance, I know that in 7.1 miles I will need
to turn left onto the A4304 towards Market Harborough.
Make sure that you take the mandatory
breaks every 200 miles. If you have an accident, or are suspected of
breaking the rules, then the organisers will check the control sheet to
ensure that your have complied.
If you get lost in a town, don't ask
passers-by "How to get to ..." because they invariably give long
detailed instructions that you can't hope to remember. Instead, show
them your street map and first ask them to show you where you are, and
then ask them how to get to ... In this way, you'll have found your
reference, and people will usually trace out a route on the map which will
be easier to follow. I have found that more time is lost in towns
that on the open road. If you are lost in towns, newsagents are the
best places to ask for help, they know all local streets for their
deliveries, and they usually have street maps.
If you are riding with a friend, try very
hard to ensure that you both fill up with petrol at the same time.
If you fill up at one control, and he fills up at the next, you'll find
that you waste an enormous amount of time waiting for each other.
Slow down at night. It's very easy to
overshoot a turning and remember that 30mph is very fast indeed if you are
going in the wrong direction!
Route sample
D BROMSGROVE
Park Side School, Stourbridge Road, Bromsgrove. On B4091, ¼ mile
from Bromsgrove town centre, just after traffic lights junction with OLD
A38.
F: 24 hrs. R
A38
X A448
X M42
L A491
Hagley
X A456
A491
Stourbridge
Join A449
Wolverhampton
A449 (Stafford)
X M54
24 WOLVERHAMPTON Closes 06.40
Jeannies Kitchen, off Station Road, Four Ashes. A449, 2.4 miles
north of the M54 (junction 2) and 1.4 miles south of A5 (Gailey Island)
F: 3 miles. R
A449 (Stafford)
R A5 (Tamworth)
Cannock
L A460
Rugeley
B5013 (Abbots Bromley)
Admaston
14 RUGELEY Closes 07.10
At the junction of B5013 and Watery Lane, adjacent to Blithfield
Reservoir.
R
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