20 Classic Sportive Rides in South East England. Colin Dennis

to your ride partner can cause wrong turns to be taken. Speed is another reason to miss a turn – going too fast downhill or pedalling hard with head down results in a loss of concentration and missing that all-important junction. Remember: these rides are training routes, not races. Stay in control of your bike, look where you’re going, enjoy the beautiful scenery – and check the signage. Also, keep the book handy in one of your back pockets and download the relevant map into your GPS or smartphone.

Feed stations

      A major factor to consider is energy and hydration replacement. On a long training ride, pubs, village shops, post offices, garages and cafés must act as feed and drink stations. Whether it’s 25, 50 or 100 miles, it can feel like a long way on a bike when it’s cold, wet and windy. Don’t make it any harder for yourself; don’t chance it on an empty tank.

      Toast and tea are all part of the regime (Route 9)

      To this end, make sure you carry plenty of food, water and energy bars, which can be crammed into rear pockets or stuffed into small feedbags on your bike. Eat and drink as you go along. Again, be self-reliant as much as possible; some pubs or cafés may not be open if you’re an early bird.

      The old training maxim applies to everyone: drink before you’re thirsty, and eat before you’re hungry. Keep your energy levels up and replenish little and often as you go along – your performance and recovery levels will benefit dramatically.

      Don’t fall off – fuel up

Using this guide

      The routes in this guide are designed to offer a happy medium across the distances involved and, importantly, provide some insight into what to expect when covering longer distances by bike.

      Each route is designed for both newcomers and experienced sportive riders alike. Having built up a base level of fitness and stamina, any fledgling sportive riders will soon feel the benefit of testing themselves against the distances and terrain involved. More experienced riders will enjoy the variation and challenge of discovering new routes as they test themselves in the most scenic areas across the south east of England.

      There’s nowhere to hide when climbing (Route 13)

      As in any well-organised sportive route, the majority of mileage covered in this guide is on quiet country roads and lanes. B roads are kept to a minimum and are generally quiet as far as traffic is concerned. Major road sections are only used when unavoidable but integral to the route. Right-hand turns, especially on A and B roads, are kept to a minimum and used only where necessary. It would be almost impossible to only have left-hand turns; the route would be very short!

      All the routes in this guide can be downloaded and are compatible for GPS. Each route is original in its concept, is the creation of the author and is designed to cover areas in which sportive rides are popular. Any similarity to existing sportive events is purely coincidental. The intention also is that the routes should be as close as possible to built-up areas. Not every route needs to be a ‘destination’ ride, but if you’re lucky enough to live close to a route, riders can start from a more convenient point.

      Route maps and profiles show you what to expect during each training ride and refreshment stops and bike shops have been plotted onto the maps with easy-to-spot icons. The route summary table in Appendix A gives an overview of the 20 routes detailing the basics: location, start and finish points, distance, ascent, grade and approximate time. Appendix B lists bike shops and cycle repair stations on a route-by-route basis, should you have any bike maintenance emergencies. Appendix C lists useful contacts such as accommodation and transport websites, sportive organisations and hospitals in the area.

      Timings

      Timings are often highly subjective when cycling and should only ever be used as a guide: café stops, puncture repairs, fitness levels, type of terrain (hilly rather than flat) and weather conditions are just a few internal and external influences on time taken to ride a particular route.

      There will always be exceptions to the rule of course; if Sir Bradley Wiggins should decide that he wants to train on ‘Reservoir Cogs’ then he would be expected to be way inside the time frame.

      Cadence

      Performance cycling is all about optimising efficiency, and cadence is the cycling term for RPM or revolutions per minute. If cyclists turn their pedals at one rotation per second, they are deemed to be working at 60 RPM. Other factors do come into play, however: the selected gear, whether the terrain is rough or smooth and whether going up or down a hill, for example. Weather variations also play a part, especially wind conditions.

      All these factors play their part in how cyclists ride. Ultimately, the desire is to pedal as smoothly and efficiently as possible to get the greatest return for the effort put in. It is better to spin the pedals efficiently rather than churn out a big gear and simply burn out the legs in no time.

      Keep a higher cadence for more efficient pedalling, and aim for somewhere between 80 to 100 RPM. Don’t worry too much about the speed at first, work on cycling efficiently; over a long distance a high cadence is the most effective way to ride.

      Linking up routes

      For riders who really want to test themselves before an event, a selection of routes in this guide join, or link together, at certain points along the way. Riders taking on the extra miles will experience what it’s like to complete a full sportive event of approximately 100 miles or even more.

ROUTE 1

      Rattle and Hum (New Forest)