A PM bid for AR11
 

As it seems peeps are getting excited for the next one, and organisation earlier rather than later is key, I would like to be first to poke my head over the parapet to ask our lovely people to think about if they could offer anything in our very large area.

I have already spoken to the Dalesbridge centre in Austwick nr Settle this afternoon (which we used at AR07) and the nice chap said initially we would be more than welcome to come back again for AR11. On their website they even have a nice picture of some bikers on one of their fields.

http://www.dalesbridge.co.uk/accommodation/camping.htm

They are more than capable of handling a large group, as they have expanded from last time, and will be again during this winter. As I have been before, and stated in IB, it would be a perfect starting point to be looking at as a venue. I am picky about toilets, showers and generally what you get for your money...if I don't like, I won't go, simplez!
They have a few bunkhouses, large fields for campers, a bar, food, function rooms, toilets, showers, hard standing parking etc etc etc. Although he did say he wouldn't be too keen on outside catering being involved, as they do catering anyway, and should be able to do it for us. They do still allow for BBQs, but I'm not overly keen on that idea, as it has not always proved completely successful.

He did say that they are booked pretty much already for two Bank Hols in May, and also for the weekend of 24th/25th June. Food for thought later.

As you can imagine I am a very busy girl next year, but am willing to try at least show that us oop Norf are worthy of putting on a show for the forum, even if the masses decide its not where they want to be.

There have been other suggestions for Northumberland, and I ask if there is anyone with a serious head on their shoulders who would like to offer their part of the world, please put their head on the block and come forward.

We do have a large area to cover, so if there is someone in the Lakes who would like it to be there, again please come forward..and anyone else who can seriously undertake the organisation properly.

Many thanks for reading.

OVer to you people.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

hello :)

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Hello Dave....are you now my wife?? ;-)

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

One thing I noticed was looking at the PM user map the other day, I think Northumberland may be a non-starter - theres no-one up there to put their head above.

Sounds like a good plan to me though, as it shouldn't be too hard to find something interesting around the dales to tempt people in.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

great a promotion from being your b1tch :)

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

:salut: Pmapp reporting for duty

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Well there are one or two, but its if they have the time and patience to undertake the job! I would welcome a bid for Northumberland, as I've never been and told its a wonderful place, but unfortunately I am way too far away to see if its a viable possibility seeing as I've come forward.

Co-ordinating an event wouldn't be a problem for me personally down this neck of the woods, I have a phone, am a reasonably diplomatic person, have a car, I'm in all the time on maternity, but its reccieing places with a baby attached would be somewhat distracting.

:D


Whooop whooop a Pmapp on board!!! So we do have some peeps ready for duty :-)

We do need people who are willing to find routes, go to campsites and nit pick, find them for starters, at least we have a head start with one....anyone else?

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

I would love any route that gets in Shap and the kirkstone. One for the fast blat and the other to enjoy the edge of the lakes without being overly touristy.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Dan and his missus organized one in Northumberland but it got pooh poo'ed out for the 2009 one, so I think thats when Dan had enough of this place and has not been a recent poster since :0(

I on the other hand don't know what I'm doing from one week till the next...

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Hey Dizzy, Just checked this out on Google maps the scenic route to / from Hartside looks wonderfull. Looks Good.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Seriously people, much as I would love to do Hartside, I don't think it is feasible for an AR. Imagine 100+ bikes playing follow my leader over. You have to cope with a full range of ability and experience. Maybe run a second ride next day etc. But the AR itself need to be ridable by people with a few weeks experience on a 33bph bike without risk from either the road or other riders.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

+1, I will be back on wheels shortly so would be up for reccy.
If we need entertainment besides Dave I have been promoting gigs in Leeds this summer so i know loads of acts both music & Comedy.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Indeed, its not all about, how much us up here ride the roads and are used to them, we have to cater for everyone. Granted we need someone who is good enough(or willing) to be a leader of such a vast group, someone to TEC, markers etc, and turn off how much we know the roads and put ourselves in the position of those who are new, those who are faster, those who tour, and those who just can't be assed and bimble. Also we have to cater for petrol, bikes with crap range, big ones, small ones.
Its not as simple as...oh we'll just do a route between A and B. You really have to think out of the box.....for everything.

Entertainment would be an interesting and different thing to bring to the AR, I have thought about it before, but we have to go find a venue that will allow this. I know my suggestion has the facility, but I doubt they would pay too kindly to an open air version in a field. In which case, we need a pool of campsites to recce.
DavePreston will be looking into places over his way shortly, and as we have spoken on the phone.
Smudge it would certainly be an aspect to look at, if you have been organising entertainment, it would be a shame not to look down this avenue.:D

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

I'm with Wilky on this one - Hartside might be a little too much for the inexperienced rider, on a few counts. The road itself is challenging, and if the weather turns out nice like we'd hope, it'll be crawling with other groups. The less said about doing it in bad weather, the better...

Speculating wildly on routes, I'd also note that the route to and from Hartside (not including the ride over) would be as long as this years route, without anything that you could consider a rest.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Tim do you mean the Kirkstone pass near Patterdale, if so we've got to do "The Struggle"

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Aye Tim, Remember this muppet from the North V South ride out a few years back :0)

http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/314/ability.jpg

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Sorry for being so daft and perhaps over enthused when suggesting Hartside, but have not ridden in a large, well organised group for many years. Perhaps the Kirstones a bit narrow for this.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Yes I remember come round the very first bend to find him in the ditch on the far side of the road. I led the chase Mark out from Hawes and he was seriously on my backside and once off the twistier stuff Jelster and co with raw power took off (in the wrong direction). I have to admit when I found out he was only weeks into riding I wondered just how he had survived the seat of the pants. Therefore whilst I believe envelopes are meant to be pushed, they are also designed to contain.

The AR has a reputaion of everyone coming home safe. We wouldn't want to be accused of putting people at risk. Hmmm day 2 the passes plus Hartside. Smile Smile

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

wilky i see reccies ahead :)

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

http://www.hadrianswallcampsite.co.uk/

http://www.fallowfielddene.co.uk/tariffs.html

http://www.demesnefarmcampsite.co.uk/

http://www.theaa.com/route-planner/c...p?details=true

If the PM fancy the above I've got next Sunday free to have a look at the route, and camp sites.

The route is, a relatively short, 125 miles but as you can see from the map it is tweakable. Maybe staying on the A68 up to Melrose, and picking up the A7 down thro' Melrose and Selkirk. Ideally I'd like to fit in a slight detour to Keilder Water for one of the breaks. Still really good biking roads for those of you who know them. Ride time would be about 4 hours plus breaks plus the the 'usual' allowance for a large, marshalled, group. 10:00am start would see people filtering back to the site from 3:00pm onwards.

Ideally, for camping I'd rather a site relatively close to the A69 to give those travelling long distances from the south, a) any easier finish to the journey up and, b) an easier start to their journey back home.

If you PM'ers think we can do it, emphasis on "we," I don't mind putting a proposal together for the Org.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

route not found bri more effort required :)

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

And his proposal was well received by some of us, I thought it was great, and I backed it.

I wouldn't be able to from so far away Bri...you would most likely need backing from those nearer to you. Although I'm sure with the band of merry men so far that have come forward for me, perhaps one or two might come to your aid too.
Which is why I put up mine, but also can help with anything DP finds, as its still within my limits.
Nice to see there is someone willing to put a proposal forward for further oop norf in our Pennine Massive!

Remember peeps, when looking at campsites, ask the question, can you cope with 150 bikers, would you be willing to accomodate us, in which pretty much take over your site? Most don't like us, or aren't big enough as they cater for others. Also ask if they'd be prepared to allow outside catering for a private function.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&so...72&ie=UTF8&z=9

oops!

Sorry. Hopefully this will post up ok. This route is 155 miles but by missing out Melrose and Selkirk it drops to 125 miles, which would give the option for a detour to Keilder.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

I'd be more than willing to muck in as well. Doubt I'd have the time to organise the thing, but straight off I'd be willing to be a marker on the rideout (if I'm around, I'd like to be if it's up this way) and if any help's needed during the run up (recce's, help with sorting, phone calls etc) then I'll help where I can.

Ste

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Bri if my memory serves me right. The hexham campsite is just outside the town.

and the the Hartside aint good in big groups twos or threes its fine due to the difficult nature of the roads.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

I'd be more than willing to lend a hand :0)

Bri that route is a good en :0)

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

I have a feeling that they did the Hartside run in a previous South comes North a while backl.

Don't know how they managed it but I'll be seeing PBx this week and as he was something to do with it I'll get an idea off him for numbers etc,

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Was talking to Peg last night, and he said to put Hartside in a rideout with such varying abilities, and vast crowd would be asking for an accident to happen. You may as well ask folk to chuck their bikes in a ditch before they went!

Like I've said before you have to look at the bigger picture folks, you may thinks its a great road, yer on yer own, Armarko could do Hartside in a blink of an eye, but it could take a group of a hundred, two hrs, just for that stretch!

Equally you could say the same about the passes in the Lakes, I love em, myself and Rictus had a right blast up roads just manageable to get two bikes side by side to get to them....disaster for a big rideout. Shove a big rideout on the passes, someone would fall off the edge!

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Stayed at this campsite before, very accommodating of large groups, and good facilities.

That is all.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Which campsite? Theres a few linked here;)

If you mean the one in my original post, yes its got vry good facilities, and has accomodated us before, but back then there was 40 as opposed to over 100. The gentleman on the phone yesterday didn't flinch when I asked if he could cope with 150 of us, and perhaps take over his entire accomodation! In fact he said he could probably be even more tempting as hes expanding in the winter months.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Apologies, yeah I meant the first one, I just kinda skipped through the other posts ;)

Tis a good site, they were building some extra toilet blocks when I was there last year.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Yeah he said he'd expanded even since we'd been. I'm a bit of a stickler for good facilities, from what I remember they had good clean showers and toilets. I'm afraid you have to take things like this in account when you have a lot of ladies about.:rolleyes:
Having a bar on site too, is always a winner.
And as before we will get a field for our sole use, rather than disturbing other people booked in to stay, a lot of campsites I have seen proposed for some events over the years haven't been able to do this. Which is why I put this forward
I will be making arrangements within the next couple of weeks to go up and check the place out, but I have no doubt it will fit most of our requirements if not all, having been there before. They are far from a small site, and are very well established.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

They've got a nice big, and more importantly FLAT field up there, plus plenty of hardstanding space for the bikes which is in clear view from the field.

Me likey. :D

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

looks like the race is on Dizz ,between you and Ed

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Indeed it does. I have photos from the last time, unfortunately my other laptop needs the screen repairing and they are all on its hard drive! Although I posted a picture of the field in IB so I'll just go and bring it over here for example.

You don't need to ride down any gravel tracks to get into the site, its all tarmaced IIRC. The entrance way has good vision up and down the main road outside, although it is the A65, but we never had problems last time. Its impossible to miss it when you arrive.

ENTRANCE!!!!!
http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k8...1/DSCN3831.jpg

ta da.... a nice flat big field, with sunset

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...ARo7sunset.jpg

and theres always here to look at a bad year for rain, but a general idea of how big that field was

http://forums.sv650.org/showthread.php?t=92518

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Just a quick mesage to say i m more than willing to help out with this. However my abilities would be better put to the use or sorting stuff out rather than the actual route as there are a lot more people better at that than i am.

I agree, heartside would be a fantastic run but considering the lack of shall we say "courtousy" by a few people over taking us slower folk (btw yc i must say top job on not scaring the **** outta me) on other large group rideouts i too think it would be dangerous. Same goes for buttertubs pass, i would have loved to have seen that in a route but i think we have to show a duty of care to all involved and while some of the roads are great biking roads they can also be very dangerous.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

You are more than welcome to help me out if we get the vote for nearer us Andy:smt045. I already have volunteers for reccing routes but there is no real reason for another to join in, just adds in a range of different capabilities and bikes, which in my book helps no end.


I think to be honest, thinking about the route first rather than accomodation is putting the cart before the horse. No good having a place to play if you ain't got anywhere to stay!!
I am trying to make arrangements to take a preliminary gander at the site on Wednesday.

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

Count me in on the helpful people list as well please

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

no probs hun :-)

Theres a right bunch o merry men on the list now. I won't even need to go near my own bike!!!

This is great folks, really great. Thankyou all, greatly appreciated :-)

Re: A PM bid for AR11
 

first camsite seems nice but if its been used before i would think we should find an alternate?