Ride Report: Further East
Ride Report by Adam Cross
Celebrating the flat lands of East Anglia through hidden bridleways, quiet lanes and man made embankments Further East is a bare bones 400mile (ish) endurance event created by Camille Edwards and local endurance legend Josh Ibbett.
Limited to 30 riders, the event begins the night before around a campfire at Camille’s home not far from Cambridge. Sharing stories, tips and places to look out for (Swaffham McDonalds being a real highlight) Geoff Frost and myself prepared ourselves for what was set to be the longest single ride the both of us had ever attempted.
Setting off in true time trial style at 1minute intervals from 7am on Saturday 17th September, the route headed west past Huntingdon and Graffham Water before turning north and heading towards Rutland and then around to Hunstanton which marked the half way mark. From Hunstanton the route joined the Peddars Way, taking the riders all the way through to Santon Downham and Thetford Forest before a sharp eastwardly turn through Diss and out to Southwold before returning to the start south of Cambridge.
Despite warm and sunny conditions, the first 100miles was plagued by a relentless headwind that drained the energy reserves and made for slower progress than we had anticipated, with little scope for recovery and respite thanks to the open fields and rolling terrain. Resupply was difficult to come by, as the route passed close to but often just skirted the edges of towns so it wasn’t until around 3pm that I found a cafe to sit down and take in some real food. With hindsight diverting off the course would have been a good idea as I arrived at the cafe quite fried with empty bottles and my reserve supply for the night depleted. As I tucked into the best fish finger sandwich I had ever tasted, other weary riders joined including Attleborough local Tom Levy and Geoff - who was still smiling but cursing the headwind. It sounded like we had all found the first 100+ miles challenging and we were all glad for a sit down and hot food in the cafe.
Rolling onwards, the route then headed towards Kings Lynn and as night set in we hit raised grassy embankments through the fens which felt like riding on a travellator - bobbing red rear lights the only marker on a dark horizon. Geoff had caught me back up and we rode in close proximity for a while before he stopped to put on an extra layer - he later told me he’d saved up a monster Chelsea Bun which he devoured after what was a very challenging section!
Leaving the grassy banks behind was a relief, but the miles so far had taken their toll on me and my mind turned to the half way mark at Hunstaton - I had McDonalds in my head as a target at Swaffham, but realisation was setting in that was still a way off and I had been over ambitious by not carrying a sleeping bag, thinking I could ride through the night without any sleep. The chance to call in a rescue was too strong and I packed at Hunstanton, after 18hours on the bike covering just over 200 miles.
Geoff valiantly pushed on, taking the opportunity to have a kip on the Peddars Way and then carry on at dawn. After having nearly everything on the breakfast menu at the Golden Arches, Thetford was the next big target but after a long, hot summer, the trails and fire roads were little more than a sandpit and were the undoing of the majority of the remaining riders. Deep sand combined with fatigue and the prospect of another 150 or so miles, Geoff called it a day and rode back to Cambridge.
Of the 32 riders who started, just 14 made it all the way around the course. Both Geoff and I have already signed up for next year - I will be carrying a sleeping bag this time and I think Geoff is planning on some wider tyres! For anyone interested in riding, you can find the Further website here.
