Paging Champ

Henlow to Cheltenham 58 minutes (bloody strong headwind).

You?

 

Bedford to Bibury in about 1hr 20 last night, but with a stop for
petrol.

Christ I was cold when I got there.

 

Using the patented Mavis Beacon "Hunt&Peck" Technique, Champ

God yes! I had to turn the heater on at one point.

You're right about Gloucestershire airport by the way, what a lovely
welcoming place!

Coffee was fucking crap, mind.

 

Google maps - drag the route about until it conforms to your wishes,
then click on the "get directions" link.

 

That's pretty much the way I go - except I come up the M5, then Air
Balloon-Seven Springs-Andoversford etc. I assume you take the B4068 to
Stow. Google Maps reckons that's 82.2 miles from yours to Bedford.

You'd have been better coming back along your route as far as Chipping
Norton, then south on the A361 to Burford, a smidge of A40, then B4425.
Bicester is usually a mistake.

I generally find Google Maps works very well for route planning.

 

And *so* much better than using a SatNav! )

 

I thought you might, which is why I mentioned it.

I'm sure you got well warmed up once you got there.

 

Blimey. Never tried that. Excellent.

 

I'm not surprised that you didn't know this[1], but Champ and Bear...

[1] )

 

Champ, like me, is a paper map fiend (I think). There is something *so*
enticing about poring over a proper paper map, preferably one that's
been used time and time again.

I think Bear gets lost on the way to the khazi.

 

On Mon, 23 Mar 2009 10:01:18 GMT, "platypus"

Virtually the same route I take but I don't go up to Newport Pagnall -
is it just a nicer road? I'm usually heading over to the A1 so I stick
to the A421.

 

On Mon, 23 Mar 2009 10:38:43 GMT, "platypus"

Even mine was less than that, and I was stuck in a Ford Focus and held
up by two accidents!

 

<looks>

I suppose using the A421 to MK South, and then onto Bedford works just
as well.

Measuring from Buckingham to Bedford, Google reckons my route is 28.7
miles and yours is 29.3, so not much in it. But the A422 from just
after Newport P to Bedford is bloody marvellous on a bike

 

I tend to use the roads that I know but the Bedford to NP road is fun
and once you've got through the roundabout tedium known as MK the road
from Deanshanger to Buckingham is worth doing if you're going at
speed.

After you've crossed the A43 it's game on all the way to Charlton
Kings as long as you go the right way.

 

Precisely the route I took on both days.

I always forget, living and travelling around London, just how many
great roads there are around.

 

*ding*

--
TD
1991 VFR400R NC30 (black and red)
1993 Eunos Roadster (supercharged)
Could want: something more comfy, sprots or not
Missing: SOB, Unreliable Italian exotica, Lardy tourer

 

I don't have time for poring over maps in my job, which is why I bought
a satnav

--
Lozzo
Versys 650 Tourer
Fireblade 929 (For sale)
CBR600F-W trackbike
SR250 SpazzTrakka,
SR250 wivva topbox
TS250C
RD400F, somewhere
I see a bright new future, where chickens can cross the road with no
fear of having their motives questioned

 

You're more careless than we might have thought! I'm not sure you should
be allowed out on your own.

 

I trundled up the mortorway.

The alternatives from my neck of the woods, don't bear thinking about.

Filtering with attitude through the traffic on the M25 made for an
interesting diversion anyway, you don't get solid traffic like that in
NI.

Paul.

 

wrote:

I did...

A205/A406/M40/A40 to Postcombe (the boring bit)
B4012 to Thame
B4011 to Bicester
A41 to Aylesbury
A413 to Buckingham
A422/A5/A422 to Newport Pagnell
A509/A422 to Bedford

....to get there, then the same in reverse on the way back as far as
Aylesbury, then A413 back toward London.

The direct route would have been shit so I went right round the houses
to make it interesting.