LEJOG– on gravel!
GBDURO was one of the first British events to return post-lockdown. From Land’s End to John O’Groats, off-road and nonstop, there won’t be any tougher…
If you can’t make up your mind as to where to go bikepacking in Britain, perhaps you might consider the entire country? GBDURO is an epic 2000 kilometre selfsupported enduro race from Land’s End to John O’Groats, which knits together the roads, trails and tracks of Cornwall, the Brecon Beacons, the Yorkshire Dales and the Scottish Highlands. The event traces the course of the GB Divide – a scenic bikepacking route that takes around 15 days – but converts it into a timed challenge. The aim of the event is to promote sustainable travel by showing you don’t have to get on a plane to enjoy an epic adventure.
“It is an amazing journey,” explains Gail Brown, 29, from Somerset, who was the first female rider across the line in the 2020 event in August, in a time of nine days, 15 hours and 45 minutes. “It is not just the changes in nature, from sandy and coastal Cornwall to deepest, darkest Wales and the brutally hilly Pennines, but also the human interaction with that landscape. I really enjoyed the more historical bits: industrial ruins in Cornwall, huge quarries and Hadrian’s Wall. To enjoy this journey while thinking about the human journeys of the past was really special.”
Both GBDURO and GB Divide were devised by The Racing Collective – an environmentally conscious bikepacking community with over 3000 members. The route is designed for gravel bikes, with a roughly 50:50 road and off-road split, from smooth tarmac roads to forest trails and steep mountain ascents. Organisers recommend 40mm tyres as minimum. But by venturing off-road, riders get to enjoy a wider range of landscapes. “It is amazing to see how much wilderness is still in Britain,” adds Brown. “We went through Manchester but within a few hours you’re out on this moorland with huge turbines swishing and beautiful hilly landscapes. At moments like that, you think: this is epic, I’m so glad I’m here.”
Josh Ibbett, 32, is an experienced bikepacker and endurance racer from St Neots, who won the 2020 race in a time of seven days,
Ibbett insists smart planning is more crucial than fitness. “You have got to be fit, but it’s only 30 to 40 per cent of it”
17 hours and 44 minutes. He says the timed format of GBDURO adds extra thrills. “When you’re bikepacking for pleasure, you know roughly what you’re going to see and when, but with racing it takes you to unexpected places at unexpected times. And there’s a beauty to that. For example, I remember climbing up to Exmoor when these rain clouds were building - really dark and moody. It was spectacular.
“I had been to Scotland before but to absorb the changing scenery through the race was amazing. On the last day I started north of Strathpeffer, near Inverness, and it was like northern Montana, with trees and saplings growing on the tracks. Then I dropped into a glen, which was just authentic Scotland - like in the Bond movie
Skyfall, but with the beautiful colours of sunrise. Later I climbed a ridge and I felt like I was in New Zealand.”
The first edition of the race took place in 2019, making headlines for the addition of eventual winner Lachlan Morton, the professional road rider who included this event as part of his ‘alternative’ racing calendar. In 2020 the organisers tweaked the rules in response to Covid-19. The race is usually divided into four timed sections of 500km, but in 2020 it was converted into one long stage. Riders normally have to be ‘self-supported’ (no support crews or organised drop-offs) but this year they had to be completely ‘self-sufficient’, so they carried all their food with them, and were prohibited from entering shops. The 2021 event, which is due to start on August 14, is expected to return to the original race format.
“Taking all your stuff with you made us a bit heavier and slower but it also made me be kinder to myself for going slower,” explains Brown. “That was a gift because I could just push on and enjoy the view. And because I had everything already, there was no stress in getting to a town before Tesco closes. I knew if anything happened, I’d got a tent and six days’ worth of food. But I think the normal format would be much lighter and faster.”
Packing the right equipment - from multi-tools to puncture repair kits - is important. Some riders use a dynamo hub to charge their electronic devices. Brown took a lightweight tent to sleep in, whereas Ibbett opted for a bivvy bag – a lighter option, but one which he regretted when the torrential rain arrived. “I had a stream running through my bivvy so I’d rather have taken a hooped bivvy,” he says. Riders camped wherever it was safe to do so. “I had some really good campsites and some that were just a field with a nice sheltered hedge,” recalls Brown. But if you do the GB Divide route at your own leisure you can mix campsites with B&Bs and mountain bothies.
As riders had to be self-sufficient this year, they packed a trowel for toilet breaks, and water purification tabs and filter devices so they could gather water along the way. “I got water from some pretty weird places,” admits Brown. “Graveyards usually have taps for watering flowers. Or you might find a tap outside a pub. And, of course, there are natural sources like streams. I had my water in a backpack that I adulterated by making a hole in the bottom with a Platypus filter device at the end, so I could just use it like a CamelBak.”
To keep fuelled during the race, most riders eat lightweight, freeze-dried meals. But if you do the GB Divide course you can stop for Cornish pasties and Welsh cawls (stews) along the way. Brown kept her energy up by squeezing peanut butter and Nutella into icing piping bags for a quick-access energy hit. “I never got tired of it, especially the Nutella,” she says. “That was usually all gone by mid-morning.”
With 27,080m of climbing, GBDURO is a serious physical challenge. Brown trained with high-intensity intervals and long weekend rides, but says: “Don’t get too het up about distance - I probably didn’t do more than 300km per week in the lead-up.”
She also did some running to prepare for the ‘hike-a-bike’ sections when she had to lift her bike up steps or rocky trails. “Unless you’re superhuman, there will be sections that you walk, for sure. It’s also a good idea to do some loaded cycling where you practise riding with all your kit. But with all the different terrain, you’re on and off and up and down all the time so you’re not stuck in one position for long. I found it was good for evening out the stresses on the body.”
Ibbett insists smart planning is more crucial than fitness. “You have got to be fit, but I would say fitness is only 30 to 40 per cent of it,” he says. “It’s about managing yourself, your body, your recovery, your personal hygiene, your food, your sleep and your moods. The fitter you are, the better you are. But if you stop for two hours after lunch, it doesn’t matter. That’s the beauty of ultraendurance races: they’re a leveller. It’s more about organisation and management than fitness.”
GBDURO is an iconic new challenge for cyclists who are looking for a ride to remember.
“This feels like I am combining my love of cycling with my love of outdoors life so it’s perfect for me,” says Brown. “On the final day I had this amazing sunset with this crazy sea mist over the pink sun. It was just this really beautiful and peaceful lead-in. It couldn’t have been more of a perfect end. And then about 30 minutes later I felt really sad it was over. It was like a sense of grief that I had to return to the real world of stress and work. It was such a beautiful ride I just didn’t want to leave it behind.”