The journey West (and into the wind) begins...

Annnd we are underway......

The story so far..

Day one comes to a close and just like that Day two begins!!

Day Two Wrap-Up

Day Three Part 1 and we have some finishers!

Day Three Part 2 and more finishers!

Welcome to Sunday!

Sunday comes to a close...

Beers at midnight

Hello and welcome to the Dotwatcher.cc commentary for the Autumn edition of the Southern Divide! I am Kevin Francis, organiser of the Great British Divide and Great British Escapades and I am finally getting the chance to pay back Marcia for all the commentary she has done on my events over the last few years!

This Autumn edition features a longer route this time which whilst still starting at Lands End, carries on South of London and finishes in Rochester, Kent - very much in Escapade territory.

As I write, the 40 odd riders of this event are all making their way towards the start, many of whom have been having the usual fun and games of forcing a loaded bike into an optimistically small bike space on a train! 

For some riders it has been a longer journey with one making their way from Amsterdam whilst others have got a very short roll to the start from their homes in the West Country. What all have in common is a pondering over the weather...

From just last week when the UK was basking in weather warmer than Hawaii, Autumn seems to have made a sudden appearance combined with the aftermath of two hurricanes that have been trundling over the Atlantic. We have had some rain that's for sure and it is windy - if that wind stays as it is, they will have an incredible tail wind tomorrow but for the ride into the camp site at the start today, it will be like going through treacle!

Sections of the route may be a bit sticky tomorrow as a result, but with a promise of some brighter weather and a brisk wind it may start to dry out quick enough.

I will be posting updates on here a couple of times a day over the next few days and you can obviously follow the dots on the tracking in between times. Things get underway tomorrow morning at 06:00am for the 'Tourist' riders and 06:30am for the 'Challenge' riders so make sure you check the map with your early morning coffee and check back here around lunchtime for an update of the first few hours!

So, after a night at Land's End with a camp fire, pizza and beer it was an early start for our now 29 riders after the usual last minute drop in numbers that all us event organisers seem to suffer with right now...

The 9 'Tourist' Riders who have 134 hours to complete the route got underway first at 6am with the 20 'Challenge' riders with 86 hours to finish starting half an hour later. 

Rolling out of Land's End they were soon on to some old miners trails which other than a few puddles did not seem too wet after all the rain. The tailwind was very much present and in the main all riders have shot off pretty quickly this morning and at the time of writing, 5 hours in, the lead riders are already at around 90km along the track and less than 30km from CP1!

The consequence of the tailwind and fast pace is that social media has been quite quiet whilst they all crack on so there is not much to report on. Only one mechanical bit of woe so far with Colin Deady snapping a gear cable and having to make a detour to Helston for a repair at Lakeside Cycles there.

Will be back a bit later with more updates this afternoon and then something this evening.![1B933745-8584-4E1B-893B-ABF99D3FCDF3](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7vKBO80Ejc4Zxn5j2lcKE9/ef168f9dd45a6ac835b67bc955151d38/1B933745-8584-4E1B-893B-ABF99D3FCDF3.jpeg)

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It's been quite a busy day in the end (for me, so sorry for the lack of an afternoon report which was torpedoed by my clients!) as well as the riders out on the route who have continued to make great progress at a really good pace.

We have had a steady stream of riders through CP1 and making the most of the standard fare at the Cornwall Services where a lot of Pasties were consumed and/or packed for later! 

Alex Boswell who had been out the front for a lot of the morning was first through and has maintained that lead but he is being kept honest by Tom and Benjamin behind him. In fact there is now a few splits opening up creating a few groups who are all quite close to one another.

There has been some weather today and it has been of the wet variety. There has been some mud too - proper 'gravel sauce' in places but from the instagram posts and reports in from Marcia, most of them seem to be in good spirits which is great!

Some riders have already stopped for the night now, others we know are pushing on until about midnight before camping for the night and there are some who look like they are off route heading to hotels or B&B's for the night. It will be interesting to see who blinks first up at the pointy end - especially as the leaders approach the ferry crossing diversion (the ferry's only open during the day) they have an extra 28km to do as a result but that is the price they pay to keep going tonight.

I can't wait to see where they all are by the morning - it looks like they have a clear night so depending on the ground conditions it could be a good one to push on...

We have sadly had a couple of riders scratch today - Duncan Cameron stopped fairly on after suffering with some navigation problems and Sam Phillips (Finisher of the super wet Great British Divide 2021!) has also decided to call it a day for this occasion. 

Hopefully we will get some more social media updates from the riders as they stop tonight and start to get a bit more insight in to what's going on and how they are felling! Make sure you check the event instagram feed for some stories and videos that have been shared during the day too.

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As last nights post suggested, some riders were stopping for the night and some were pressing on and that remained the case with only the first few  riders pushing on around the ferry diversion to get to CP2 in the small hours before in turn stopping for a well earned sleep.

At the front, Alex remains in first place but close behind are our first female rider Alli and just behind her Rhys. Tom had a night in a hotel so is a little further back now but still going strong.

The midfield is all quite close together with only a coffee stop or puncture repair separating them. Further back the riders form a steady stream of dots going back where some of the 'tourist' pace riders are continuing to push hard whilst having the comfort of a bit more time...

There have been two more scratched this morning unfortunately - Lee Chance was having navigation and mechanical issues and Lee Cox had to head home.

There is some more rain forecast today and there is a decent chance of getting wet at some point for most of them by the looks. The overriding theme on WhatsApp and Social media this morning though has been some amazing pictures capturing sunrise and the stunning views on this route!

I'm off to a meeting for most of the day so unless that ends up being really dull (which is possible!) there won't be another update until tonight. Remember though, Marcia is updating her social media throughout the day so you'll be able to get some updates on instagram too!

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Friday saw a continuance of the order of day one really, some rain, some sun, some rainbows and a frequent change of how many layers of clothing were needed! Autumn has continued to make it's arrival felt and at times has been quite chilly - especially after some rain.

Riders were pushing on towards checkpoints - for the midfield CP2 was the target for many, and hitting the ferry opening hours was very much the goal. There were some epic efforts through here and a significant number of Strava Segment records it seems. There was some woe here too - Stuart Caughlin missed the last ferry by just 10 minutes and may have shed a tear at the thought of the 28km detour he had to do as a result!

Up at the front Alex continued to tap out a metronomic pace and also continued to look remarkably (and annoyingly!!!) really fresh whenever he was spotted! Rhys was still keeping him honest and not much more than a coffee stop behind him and then still in third was Alli our first woman on the track. All three of them passed through CP3 at Corfe Castle during the day and in fact the first 8 riders all got through during Friday. Our leader then pushed on and went through CP4 on Friday evening with Rhys doing the same a minute after midnight and Alli a couple of hours later.

The riders are now well spread over the entire route as we really start to see the division between the Challenge and Tourist paced riders. The eagle eyed amongst you will have spotted that Lee Putnam is only vaguely followed the route, taking a lot of roads rather than the off-road route where he is having some navigation issues.

As fatigue, injuries, and mechanicals started to take their toll we had a couple of scratches during Friday with both Phill Stamp and Tom Fletcher calling it a day. There was at least one bike shop stop for some gear repairs for Steve Thurgood but he soon got going again.

So, as it stands we look set to have at three finishers in Rochester on Saturday morning and possibly some others later on in the day. Check back later to get our next updates!

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Saturday is definitely going to be a tale of two halves, maybe two and a bit!

With the lead riders going through the night as they quickly advanced on the finish things were looking quite stable at the front. But no.... Marcia was out on the route late last night and saw leader Alex just before a descent into the Devils Punchbowl - a section I, and Escapade riders are familiar with. It's rough and rutted in places and even on an MTB can be challenging, especially in the dark. Within minutes of their meeting, Alex had gone over the bars and bent his mech hanger not to mention a bit of damage to himself. Was everything about to change? 

It turns out not, and with a straightening of the hanger he was able to keep going and presumably with some gears at least. The first three remained in the same order throughout the remainder of the night and early morning and all of a sudden they were less than 60km from the finish.

Marcia continued to demonstrate that on these 'shorter' events the organiser often sleeps far less than many riders and rolled into the finish in Rochester when the leaders were less than an hour out!

And with that the first two came over the line! Alex was first in with a fantastic time of 51 Hours and 44 Minutes followed by Rhys a little afterwards in a time of 52 Hours and 24 Minutes.

Both riders were in good spirits although Alex may need to get himself checked over in the aftermath of that accident last night - hopefully it's nothing more than being a bit bruised and battered.

Next up we expect to see Alli arrive mid-afternoon and then Tom and Benjamin later on in the evening. After that it will depend how the group who are passing CP4 now decide to approach the final section with either a late one tonight or an early one tomorrow - either way I think Marcia may need some extra coffee!

Further back there is a line of riders between CP2 and CP3 now, some on the Tourist pace and others on the Challenge option that are going to have to start to really dig deep now. And please do keep an eye on our Lantern Rouge - Juman who is through CP2 now and ploughing on with all the tenacity and mental strength you need when you are riding on your own and distanced from the rest of the field. Everyone on the track will be suffering in some shape or form, but when you are on your own that suffering can amplify...

Only one more scratch so far today and Ivar, the rider from Amsterdam having to call it a day after developing a nasty gastric bug.

Meanwhile, the weather appears to have settled down and actually become quite warm in what looks like might be a last hurrah of the year before the temperature once again starts to slide.

There will be more news again later today when we should have had some more finishers and also have a bit more of an idea of how the next group are doing so check back mid to late evening for that.

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Saturday afternoon has continued to to see some riders finish.

The first woman over the line was Alli who was third overall with a fantastic, solid ride from start to finish and a time of 56 Hours and 57 Minutes. The only thing that seemed to be worse for wear was her brevet card which was more than a little damp!!

Then it was Tom - someone who I've got to know having finished the Escapade both times he's taken part and a dotwatcher who got out on the trail during the Divide this year. He's a great rider and all-round nice chap so it was fab to see him finish strongly! Coming over the line just under 60 Hours (59 Hours and 57 Minutes).

Then fifth to finish was Benjamin in 60 Hours and 44 Minutes. All the finishers so far have had a great time despite it being a hard route and although obviously tired they all seem to have been really quite chipper which is fab!

We have had another scratch tonight sadly with Seb deciding to call it a day near Dorking on the North Downs.

Things are not all done and dusted for the day though as we have two more riders Hugo and Daniele (two more of my event participants who are lovely!) that are, as I write about an hour out from Rochester. Then, next on the route is Lee who we are not really sure what is going on with - he has spent a lot of time off route and on roads over the last couple of days so we think he is just making his own way towards the finish.

Then we have quite the gap of about 110km - some are moving still and  some are clearly stopped for the night. The morning will show where they have all landed and give a flavour for how Sunday will play out for the remaining Challenge Riders.

Check back again in the morning for another update and don't forget you can get your fix of photos over on the instagram page.

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And welcome to the last day for the Challenge riders who have until 8:30pm tonight to reach Rochester.

They still have a decent chunk of time to get it done and if the weather in Canterbury right now is anything to go by, they will have a good day too! As of now, there are six riders who are somewhere between CP4 and the finish (a cluster of them getting to the CP quite late last night) and the lead Tourist rider Martin is only a little way from that last CP too so expect to see him roll in later today too.

Meanwhile, the rest of the Tourist riders still have until 8pm on Tuesday evening to complete the course and without exception are showing great determination to keep going and get to the end so don't forget to keep watching their dots too over the next three days.

Anyway, back to last night and as we reported, Hugo and Daniele were both closing in on the finish which they both duly reached, Hugo first in 63 Hours 51 Minutes and 40 minutes later Daniele in 64 Hours 31 Minutes. It was great to see them both get to the end and were both looking great still when they got there.

So it looks like we are going to have a fairly quiet first half of the day which I am sure Marcia will be glad of as she can catch up on a bit of sleep! We will get another report done later this evening to wrap up the Challenge part of the event but as ever, keep checking the tracker and instagram feeds between now and then.

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Sunday and Day 4 are essentially over and thus the 'Challenge' Riders time limit has ended on this edition of the Southern Divide but there is still plenty to talk about.

Today has seen four finishers so far but that will become five before the day is out. 

It has been a mixed day with some changeable weather in different sections of the route including a fair bit of rain in the New Forest area. For those remaining "Tourist' Pace riders still out on the route there is a mini-heatwave about to arrive in the South East.

But back to those finishers... First in today was Martin Dunn in 80 Hours and 40 Minutes who arrived in Rochester a bit broken but very happy. Then in 81 Hours and 37 Minutes was Andy, followed by Peter in 82 Hours 17 Minutes. Then it was Will who finally rode away from his Dad, set a really fast final section time to bring it home with three hours to spare in 83 Hours and 7 Minutes.

At the time of writing, the other Martin has stopped for a cheeky McDonalds about half an hour away from the finish - we will catch up with him later and include him in tomorrow mornings update! After that, it's Stephen W who looks like he may finish in the anti-social bit of the morning - coffee Marcia?!

Out on the trail today we have had Duncan, the very first rider to scratch back on Thursday doing his best 'Trail Angel' deeds, catching up with riders still out there - good on you Sir! We have also had three more scrathes today. Duncan New, Steve Thurgood and Stuart Caughlin all decided to call it a day today after all three of them had some great rides.

So, with these scratches not to mention the time cutoff, the Challenge part of the Divide is over, but the Tourist riders still have just under two days to go and it looks like we will have a couple come in on Monday and if Juman can have a good two days she will bring it all to an end sometime on Tuesday evening!

There is plenty of new posts on instagram to check out this evening so make sure you look at those and we will be back here again tomorrow morning at some point with updates on the finishers that roll in during tonight.

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Good afternoon, Marcia here, giving Kevin a break while he deals with his dayjob.
The first 2 tourist riders have been giving me sleepless nights, quite literally, as late/early hours arrivals from both of them after stopping at Petersfield overnight on Saturday. 
Martin McShane was first tourist back with a time of 88 hours and 23 minutes...only 2.5 hours shy of a challenge pace.  Not bad at all Martin.  I'm still not sure he quite believes it himself.  I think it's safe to say that he had the time of his life.  With Rochester closed on a Sunday night, I still found him a celebratory beer, before he wandered off to find his hotel.  I met up with him this morning, and it was clear that it still hadn't sunk him.  He was in equal measures waxing lyrical about what an amazing time he had, and then would stop, and it was clear he was reminising in his head about the scenery and all the fun he had. You were a pleasure to dotwatch, and your videos were fabulous.
Arriving at 1am, with a time of 90 hours and 34 minutes was Steve Wildman.  On Saturday night he booked into the hotel in Petersfield at 4:30 am with Steve Thurgood, which meant a late start on Sunday.  Steve T scratched as his mechanicals were just causing too many issues, leaving Steve W to continue on.  They were both initially on the challenge pace, but there is an option for riders to switch to tourist, which is what we did for Steve. 
So at 1am, we sat on a bench outside the castle drinking beer....He's already been telling all his friends about the ride and that they should all sign up next year.  We must be doing something right.

Fab ride by these two, who are now travelling home, probably eating their bodyweight in snacks.

We have remaining 4 tourists now out on the route.  It looks like another very late night for me, as I will see Steve Whitehouse, Colin and Stuart coming in through the evening, and it looks like Rochester might find 2 more drinking beer on a bench at midnight.

Finally I want to shout out to Juman.  The Women of Colour Cycling Community reached out to us earlier this year to help them get more women of colour on the start line of ultra races. Juman was really keen to take on the challenge, and represent the community. She made her ride plan, deciding on a Tuesday finish, and is executing her plan perfectly. She had a wobble on day 2, but gave herself a good talking to and has been on great form ever since.  This is our 3rd edition now, and although women riders have been in low numbers, we have only had 1 scratch to date. It's a woman led event, and we really look after our riders - we want everyone to finish! The riders all look out for each other, and some of those that finished at the weekend, went back out to cheer on those still riding.
If you're in the Hampshire/Surrey/Kent area today or this evening, why not pop out and give our remaining 4 a moral boost ![IMG 0209](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/7lB1UsMHM4mp2JYSXpKMTR/2d0c065a77efdfcef4785dda558d18e4/IMG_0209.jpeg)

![f8beb1a1-8040-4759-b19a-4bf41c90852b](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/4b5y7zMnZMFTWlwBYZuibL/c20e8a4bb6b24ae4450fee0f3c40127b/f8beb1a1-8040-4759-b19a-4bf41c90852b.jpeg)

![ac9e13b5-272f-4d30-9082-34eb2aafd7c8](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/16ujrz1D7wgd6FcTcRPRbo/ea2db0b4da5a4aad56f4e55bc7ae3b07/ac9e13b5-272f-4d30-9082-34eb2aafd7c8.jpeg)

![deb3690f-b4ec-4e9d-9852-f155b9f12390](//images.ctfassets.net/6hyijb95boju/5M2VbLOOvK7OjHySmcvMg5/bbb303f5b4ee403297711dbd068a80ac/deb3690f-b4ec-4e9d-9852-f155b9f12390.jpeg)

Kevin Francis

The Southern Divide - Autumn Edition 2023 Tracking + Commentary: This Southern Divide of the UK from Land's End on the Atlantic to the Kent coast uses ancient byways, mining trails, wild moors, forests, military gravel roads,  and a bit of single-track, all sewn together with a few bits of tarmac.

The Southern Divide - Autumn Edition 2023 Tracking

This Southern Divide of the UK from Land's End on the Atlantic to the Kent coast uses ancient byways, mining trails, wild moors, forests, military gravel roads,  and a bit of single-track, all sewn together with a few bits of tarmac. Riders are transported across the south coast along an ever changing landscape, where variety is the spice of life.

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The Southern Divide - Autumn Edition 2023

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