Ride the Lancashire Lights 200

A 208 km Audax, long-distance cycling event from the Lancashire coast to the Yorkshire Dales and back again – in a day!

Start: Bispham, Lancashire

Date: Sunday 30 October 2022

Start time: 08:00 am

The Ride the Lancashire Lights 200 is a 208 km cycling event sanctioned by Audax UK (AUK), taking place on Sunday 30 October 2022, starting and finishing in the town of Bispham, Lancashire.

The event is a randonnee, not a race! Those taking part will have a maximum of 13-hours & 30-minutes to complete the challenging 208 km route.

OVERVIEW

Scout hut start & finish but uses commercial controls throughout where food/drink can be purchased from any one of a number of different amenities. Start by riding through the Lancashire plains before climbing over the Bowland Fells into the Yorkshire Dales. An undulating route finishing off with a flat run through the Fylde. The last section includes some optional A-roads suitable for night riding benefitting the slower riders.

Ingleborough Hill, Yorkshire Dales

The date coincides with the nearby Blackpool Illuminations which might fit in with plans for away riders, combined with a warm scout hall start & finish. The route itself though does not include any riding through the illuminations. ** Clocks go back 1-hour the night before the event **

How hilly is it?

The Ride the Lancashire Lights 200 has about 2200 metres of climbing spread over 208 km, equal to about 11 metres of climbing per kilometre.

START AND CONTROL DETAILS

THE START

Event HQ is the Bispham Scout Hut, Devonshire Road, Bispham, Lancashire, FY2 0JT. Free parking will be available in the scout hut car-park for the duration of the event, available on a first come – first served basis! If the car-park is full when you arrive parking is available on nearby Munster Avenue. You can see the start on google maps by clicking on the following link:

http://www.aukweb.net/official/orgs/h_edmap4.php?Gride=22-292

CONTROLS

Riders obtain proof of passage through a series of predetermined controls. Acceptable proof of passage requires independent evidence of time, date and control location. Acceptable forms include:

A timed signature of a controller designated by the organiser
A stamp, sticker or other distinct mark (inside the brevet card) provided by the event organiser and/or a controller
A printed receipt, with time, date and control location (usually from a cash register or ATM)
Other forms may be designated by the organiser, provided they are acceptable to AUK

Where a rider is unable to obtain proof of passage, an alternative form may be accepted at the organiser’s discretion.

With just the 3 controls to visit, you’ll have plenty of opportunity to view the spectacular sights of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. All you have to do is obtain a till receipt at any of the commercial establishments in the control towns to prove your passage. The controls are at:

Slaidburn: 53 km

Riverbank Tearooms are normally used

Hawes: 104 km

Penny Garth Cafe is normally used

Sedbergh: 130 km

Free choice of control here. Any of the cafes along Main Street are normally used

HOW TO GET TO THE START

By car:

Bispham is located on the west coast of Lancashire, approximately 3-miles north of Blackpool Tower. Bispham is easily accessible from junction 4, M55.

By air:

Please be advised that Blackpool Airport no longer operates passenger flights.

The nearest international airport is Manchester Airport, approximately 60-miles from the start location. Car hire is available from most of the major car rental companies. Alternatively, you can take a direct train to the Blackpool North station (see below).

By train:

The nearest railway station is Blackpool North Station, approximately 2.5 miles from the start. Northern Rail operates regular direct services to/from Manchester Airport (convenient for overseas riders – journey time about 1-hour, 40-minutes), and Preston (journey time about 30-minutes), where there are connections to London and Scotland.

ACCOMMODATION BEFORE THE START

Most of the chain hotels have some sort of hotel in or around Blackpool.

The nearest hotel to the start is the Premier Inn, located on Devonshire Road about 0.5-miles from the start. http://www.premierinn.com

The nearest IBIS is located directly opposite Blackpool North Pier (3-miles). http://www.accorhotels.com

The nearest Travelodges are located at Blackpool south shore and Promenade (5-miles). http://www.travelodge.co.uk

There are a string of other hotels along the Blackpool Promenade too numerous to mention.

See http://www.visitblackpool.com for further details.

Enter?

Entry fee: £8.80 when entering online through PayPal. non AUK/CTC/CUK members will see £3 automatically added to include temporary membership for insurance purposes!

N.B. entry fees are non-transferable; non-refundable and will be taken at the time of entry! The entry fee won’t fluctuate during the course that entries remain open!

Your confirmation email, usually received from PayPal immediately after entering and paying the entry fee, guarantees you a place on the event! Online entrants will also usually receive e-mail confirmation of their entry from the organiser’s within 72-hours of entering!

Click on the link below to enter:

https://www.audax.uk/login?returnUrl=/choose-a-ride/event-entry?eventId=9411

Entry fee includes:

Brevet card with detailed route-sheet giving precise instructions
Validation with Audax UK (AUK) and Audax Clup Parisien (ACP)
3rd party insurance for UK based riders
Refreshments at the finish (typically sandwiches & cakes)
Any photograph’s taken by the organiser/helpers during the event

Fancy a chat?

You’ll find the Ride the Lancashire Lights 200 on “Yet Another Cycling Forum” (YACF). Just click on the link below to access the relevant discussion page:

https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=99905.0