The Full Bifta - 2023 version

With the Dunwich Dynamo not being viable this year, we wanted an overnight challenge that played to our strengths - minimal travel, lots of get-outs, and a beer or two at the end. As such, the Bifta was born. 2023 was our first attempt, and it was pretty much perfect (apart from absent friends)

Dunwich Dynamo 2019

So much that I want to say about the 2019DD.  My 5th, but the first time I've done it in 10 years.  

London Fields was, again, awesome, and a great introduction to the ethos of the ride for the guys doing it for the first time.   Hackney is so cool nowadays, especially for backwoodsmen like us.  Masses massed, all friendly, smoking, drinking, dancing, nervously setting off early to beat the rush.  Some hope - the consensus seems to be 3,000 people rode the route.  No pre-race nerves, no jostling for position, just people smiling.

We set off at about 8:20pm after a number of middle-aged gentlemen had to do what middle-aged gentlemen do.  The first hour through London was slow but good.  A lot of smells (well, 1 smell in particular), sounds and sights to keep us occupied as we followed the long trail of bikes out into Essex.  This part of the ride was markedly different to my previous times - all of the bike lanes.  No weaving in & out of cars, no annoyed drivers.  A bit slower, but those lanes weren't built for the amount of traffic they had on them.  The next part of the ride has always been the most unpleasant, out to Epping.  We had a particular driver & passenger who seemed to be congratulating us on making love to homosexual vaginas, but they were alone in a sea of 'people just co-existing'.

Out of Epping, we turned right, and boom - country lanes all night long.  So many great memories keep hitting me about the ride from here on in - the kids sat by the roadside wrapped in blankets & cheering us in as if we were on the Tour.  Going around corners in sleepy and sleeping villages to find the entire road closed due to drinking, eating & happy cyclists.  3 blokes stood by the roadside in the middle of nowhere cheering us on.  Sudbury coming along at just the right time.  The haystack fire near Sudbury.   The sheer number of people on the road at all times.  The fake sunrise that turned out to be Ipswich's lights.  Needham Market where we met a very tired Weever Fish jnr.  And then the light started to change, subtly and slowly it was a new day.

By now we were strung out.  2 had gone home from Needham Market, 3 of us were ahead, Weever Fish jnr was dropping his kids off at the pool and the final 2 were coping stoically with a puncture outside a huge BBQ...

Then we were through Framlingham without seeing the carstle on the hill, and the fabled '7 miles to Dunwich' sign went past.  The transport for our bikes was already in Dunwich and people were milling around in the dawn light.

Suddenly we were going downhill and were there, into the car park in Dunwich, nicely before 6am.  I walked my bike over the pebbles on the beach and dipped the front wheel in the sea - as far east as we could go together.

An awesome ride for me, completed with one of my oldest friends and some of my oldest friends...

Finally, The Ship and breakfast & a pint (it was evening for us still...).  

Bring on DD XXVIII in 2020.  More pictures here and the ever smart Strava flyby (curated just to show the groups) here.

Cami of Menorca, a very roughly edited video guide, the story up until all the batteries were used.

It is 15mins long and does not do justice to the scenery, the beautiful, natural and sometimes difficult trails. Although there may be focus on the trickery bits no animals were hurt in the making, just loss of pride in places, but it is worth watching just for the scenery and crashes. Get yourself ready for 2019.

Ok so it's too big, go and find it here!

https://youtu.be/nHD1ayEartc

Woodbridge Surfers, Balearic Division.

Like a beach holiday with a little cycling is what I was sold. I guess I have not done many really physically challenging activities requiring all day pedalling before. But this turned out to be one.

  Sometimes it was difficult to concentrate on the beautiful surroundings, because of the challenge ahead of you, but equally it was impossible to ignore once you stop. It is only 120 odd miles in 4 days and we were lucky with mechanicals with only one torn tyre on 4 bikes and 4 days 

We restricted the wine input the first evening although the Menorcan charm, Rob and Heidi’s amazing pad and the atmosphere enticed you, we knew we had a challenge ahead.

Mahon was a great place to start it is quiet (Well it was in May) but it has everything you need. 

As we slipped out of the capital early, the sun was already up, it was clear that it was going to be warm and carrying enough water was essential.

 

 After a couple of miles the road turned to trail and then to board walk and then to trail, gentle climbs and gentle descent, apart from the incessant gates as you moved from one persons property to the next, it felt like this going to be a breeze. We worked our way along the coast from beach to beach, in and out of each inlet, sometimes only 50 metres of height but some difficult terrain, with some pushing and occasional carrying. 

Not forgetting we were carrying 4 days of kit all the time.

 We stopped at an Indian? restaurant for lunch the first day, felt happy with the mileage completed and so had a ½ chicken, veg and chips each. This did affect the next hour or so. The afternoon went well we made it to the first hotel stop, exhausted but wondering whether we could have stopped a little more to enjoy the trail and views we were in. The full suspension bikes were doing well although some complaints about the intelligent rear shock not really working which was causing slight discomfort. We were not roughing it, the hotels were a delight each night, which did mean we did not think about the evenings, but everything else was on our backs.

Day 2 was the bit I read about it being difficult in places. It was quite tricky, but being determined to ride wherever possible probably did not help, it was tough! Some climbs were completely un-ride able, having to push and carry the bike sometimes for 20 minutes at a time. And some of the descents were either too steep to keep the back wheel down or the surface was too un stable or just too rocky. You could walk or climb all this but we had come to ride it and that’s what we did, it felt quite a struggle with quite a few spills. The other days there were places to top up on water and food along the way but we knew on the this day there was not, we were in a national park and there nothing but you, the trail and some tortoises? It was very hot, we had limited supplies and the terrain was just so slow going.   

While we stopped for a well earned break I worked out at the present rate our ETA was well after dark. When you have averaged only 2.5mph for some 4 ½  hours you realise that mileage is more than just a number. At some points my legs were screaming with every step pushing the bike out ahead of me. It was a huge relief when the afternoon returned to more ride able trails even with a bit of road and racing a 10 year old along a mile or so of prom.

Another awesome hotel for just a few Euros( out of season).I have often been too drunk to care where and who I sleep with but this is a first for just being too tired to care.

The relief map said that Day 3 was going to be easy with miles of flat coastline to follow but Menorca had another surprise for us, moonscape. It was flat but it was either a never ending tight winding path between rocks or a sea of flat rock full of wheel sized holes which kept you pushing hard to keep up the 3-4mph average. It was amazing sight but a daunting long ride. It eventually gave way to some beautiful trails, sweeping and flowing, a delight. Inevitably we gave in to the lure of a spectacular beach ( well they all were really) and eased our aching limbs into the soothing crystal blue waters. 

After persuading Soop that a mile (felt like it to me) was far enough out, he swam under a boat and we returned to shore, dried on a rock, snacked and re-introduced our rears to the saddle. A few more miles more and few beaches more we bumped into a group of lovely ladies from Woodbridge who were drinking Gin I think and whilst it was tempting we still has another 5 miles to go and we did not have lights! Oh and the horses, absolutely fascinating and amazing to watch a group of horses with riders walk into the sea, both swimming and then returning into their depths, what a treat. 

Another lovely hotel and the grim realisation that someone had been carrying everything they had eaten so far but couldn’t anymore.

Day 4. Was a mix of everything we had done before, all that was good and all that is tough (and then good because you managed it) about mountain biking. With the Ashford boys disappearing into the distance on goatier steeper pushing parts and on the faster downhill bits as well actually. But finally with not a single off so far, Soop made up for it all with on spectacular front flip, luckily managing to find the only soft bit of ground in the area, using his over-stuffed ruck sack as an airbag and sending his bike cart-wheeling down the trail ahead of him. Impressive, mainly unscathed we continued, although pain killers and then alcohol were needed later.

It was another long day but what a feeling as we rolled but into Mahon that evening, a proper sense of achievement. And a Tshirt and a small hole or two where the saddle touches. Tapas and St Miguel never tasted so good (at Q Sins, Robs favourite).

It was an epic ride, such a mixed terrain, constant scenery like you would not believe, mostly only accessible by using this trail.

I know it was tough but would I do it again. With Mrs A organisation, Mr A’s hospitality and such a beautiful island. Absolutely, but take 5 days.