When the clocks go back this weekend, a group of cyclists will have their thoughts fixed firmly on next year’s summer solstice.
Organisers of the ‘Chase the Sun’ ride are calling on riders interested in filling the daylight hours of next year’s ‘longest day’ with cycling to stake their claim now.
The ride, to be held on Saturday June 22 2013, starts at 4.30am on Kent’s Isle of Grain and ends 17 hours and 200 miles later on Brean Sands, Somerset.
Organiser, Olly Moore, said the event had been held each year since 2008, with riders taking the first rays of the morning sun over the North Sea as their signal to start.
“The route is a carefully planned cross-section of the UK’s geography and history, from coastal industry to wetlands, Roman roads to the suburbs of London, parks to pastures, villages and vales, climbing hills and descending gorges, following the rivers to once again reach the coast,” he said.
RCUK’s own Tim O’Rourke was among the group who completed the ride this summer.
“Despite the physical challenge of completing the distance against the clock, the ride is first and foremost a group event,” Moore continued.
“Teamwork is essential, while communication and navigation are critical challenges. Staying on the route, and being aware of, and ahead of time, is key. Stronger riders can work to take on the elements and shepherd the peloton through.”
He stressed that the event was simply ‘a ride’, with no competitive or charitable agenda, and said organisers had taken their inspiration from the early years of the Dunwich Dynamo and the work of artist, Richard Long.
