| Riders | John & Andrew |
| Distance | 73.53 mi |
| Time | 6h36m24s |
| Average Speed | 11.13 mph |
| Ascent | 1297 m |
| Run.GPS Training Profile | |
This was our test run. Fully laden, camping, a there and back trip. We were heading for the Wye Valley and the weather couldn’t be much better, fine, mostly sunny with a southerly breeze and not too hot.
We set off from Andrew’s house (see photos of us posing before the start) and headed west into the Cotswolds. Sticking to minor roads almost exclusively we skirted south of Chipping Norton and north of Stow-on-the-Wold. The ride was undulating but nothing untoward. Downhill runs fully laden are exhilirating, the bike is stuck to the road and you feel much more secure without it skipping about. We stopped in the superbly picturesque village of Guiting Power for a coffee and croissant. Fresh from the oven and still hot. Yummy.
We then needed to climb steadily to the top of the scarp slope above Winchcombe and a fantastic drop down into the busy, but pretty, town. Disgusting public toilets though. We followed the route of the Gloucestershire steam line through Gretton and Gotherington before we stopped in Bishop’s Cleeve for lunch. There was a wide range of eateries in the town and they must face a lot of competition from each other. We elected for a jacket potato from a caf
