The Perfidious Albion is designed for those who love a challenge and want to find their limits. But it’s also for those who relish the prospect of immersing themselves in the surroundings of this tiny island, focusing on nothing simpler than forwarding progress past a flickering sequence of green and pleasant views.
The route is a celebration of great British cycling vistas, ranging from the iconic climbs of the Lake District and the North Pennines to the lesser-known landscapes of the Scottish Borders and Wales’s Cambrian Mountains. Every new region brings fresh challenges, but two constants remain throughout – beautiful views and savage gradients.
Entry fee: £180 per rider
Start: Saturday 17th August 2024
About The Perfidious Albion
- Registration and briefing will be the afternoon of 16th August 2024
- Starts at 09:00 on 17th August 2024 at Somerton House Hotel in Lockerbie, Scotland
- The route is approximately 1,600 kilometres with 23,000 metres of climbing
- Self-supported, single-stage event
- 98% on-road, with some very short gravel sectors
- There will be a series of unmanned selfie checkpoints along the route and one manned checkpoint around the halfway point in Wales
- Live tracking will be provided by Follow My Challenge using GPS trackers
- The finish will close on Saturday 24th August, eight days after the start
Why Take on The Perfidious Albion?
Despite assertions to the contrary, this route was not designed solely to make riders suffer! It aims to link some of the mainland UK’s most scenic riding, which unsurprisingly also means a lot of tough miles. But if you can get over the savagery of the elevation profile, the route itself delivers some fantastic riding, beautiful views and wonderfully quiet roads.
Curious to know what it’s like to take on The Perfidious Albion route? You can read all about Donald Munro’s 2022 experience here.
Overview of the Route
Scottish Borders and Kielder
The Perfidious Albion begins in the Scottish Borders with the aim of making it more accessible, whilst still including some beautiful – and often overlooked – landscapes.
Head north for a loop around a series of dramatic reservoirs, before swinging back south and into England towards Kielder. You get your first taste of gravel south of the reservoir, as you cross into the North Pennines.
North Pennines and Lake District
Climb up into this barren landscape – which regularly crosses 500 metres in elevation – before hurtling back down, only to do it all again with the biggest climb of the ride. Ascend the dead-end climb of Great Dun Fell for some cycling bragging rights. And take some comfort that we haven’t included the gnarly single track on the other side, with the route bringing you back down on the tarmac instead.
Then head west and into the Lake District for a gruelling counterclockwise loop that takes in the passes of Honister, Whinlatter, Newlands and Hardknott. The last of these is one of the UK’s most infamous climbs and the 30% ramps will test your gearing choices.
North and South Wales
After a brief foray into the Forest of Bowland, some easier cycling takes you down towards the Welsh border. The Welsh part of the route was updated in 2023, adding in some different climbs, including a beautiful ascent to the Creggenan Lakes after Dolgellau. Of course, the Elan Valley and the incredibly remote area surrounding Llyn Brianne remain unchanged.
As you enter southern Wales, you hit the Brecon Beacons, where a couple more gravel sectors await. Tackle Llangynidr Mountain, Rhigos and The Bwlch – all iconic climbs – before climbing over Gospel Pass, one of the most beautiful climbs in the area.
North and South Cotswolds
From the flatlands of the Severn Valley, climb up into the Cotswold Escarpment. Head into the golden limestone villages of the north Cotswolds, before you swing south and through the idyllic Coln Valley.
Finally, some flatter cycling greets you as you leave the last of the hills behind. Finish in Cirencester, the capital of the Cotswolds.
What is Included?
Entry into the event
GPX route file
Live GPS tracking (including tracker) throughout via Follow My Challenge
Registration and briefing at the start at Somerton House Hotel, Lockerbie
Manned halfway checkpoint in Wales
Finish checkpoint at The Bike Drop in Cirencester
Cycling cap
Finisher’s t-shirt
Carbon offsetting against any emissions associated with running the event
£75 off any purchase of a Zolla wheelset
Copies of all race photos for personal use
*Your entry pays forward a meal for someone in the local community via The Long Table*
Route Map
This is a provisional route and may change. The final route will be sent to you around six weeks before the start.
FAQs
What does unsupported mean?
It means that you can make use of any publicly-available commercial facilities during your ride e.g. shops, hotels etc. Or you can use items that you brought with you from the start. You cannot rely on any help that would not be available to all riders e.g. staying with friends, assistance from other riders or supply stashes.
How many entries are available?
We will be capping the number of riders at 40. Entries will close around six weeks prior to the start or when the event is full.
We limit our entries to a lower level than many other events. There are a few reasons that we do this. The rule of thumb has always been that we need to be able to remember everyone’s name and, therefore, this dictates the maximum number of riders. But beyond this, we also consider logistical constraints, as well as the desire to ensure we photograph all riders, ideally multiple times along the route.
Where is the nearest train station to the start?
Lockerbie has a train station, with several trains a day from London Euston.
Where is the nearest train station to the finish?
The nearest station is Kemble, which is an easy 25-minute ride from Cirencester.
What gearing do you recommend?
The more gears the better! Gravel gearing would be ideal, although it is largely a road route. Having said that, it is perfectly possible to finish with road gearing, as Donald proved in 2022. However, you have to accept that you will end up walking at some point, especially as your legs tire.
Can I use my own tracker?
No, for simplicity’s sake (and to avoid using disposable batteries) we will only be using Follow My Challenge’s Queclink trackers.
Can you transport a bag from the start to the finish?
Sorry, no, we will not have a vehicle at the start, so this isn’t possible. Instead, the Somerton House Hotel are quite happy for you to leave packages to be collected by couriers.
What facilities will be available at the manned checkpoint?
We will confirm this in the rider guide closer to the start, but it will likely be an off-grid cottage, so water will be available as well as limited solar electricity. There will also possibly be some space to sleep and a hot shower, but this will definitely be on a first-come basis for riders. In 2023, the weather was unseasonably cold so there was a fire burning, which was definitely appreciated!
Can pairs enter?
Yes, we have solo and pairs categories for all our events. When you enter, you can choose which you want to register for and will have the opportunity to say who your other half is if you’re entering as a pair.
Some other events have discounts for pairs, but please note that we don’t offer this. Our pricing is simply based on our costs and there are no cost savings for us if you enter as a pair.
Can I book accommodation along the route in advance?
Yes, you can! We know that some events restrict this, but we don’t. There are several reasons for this, but it is partly to help reduce costs for riders and make things less daunting for those with less experience. For those looking to push themselves, pre-booking accommodation rarely works and often becomes a hindrance rather than a help. Therefore, we find it is normally only less experienced and less competitive riders who take advantage of this rule.
Can I use the photos taken during the event?
Yes! Everyone who takes part will be sent an album of all the photos taken during the event. This is typically several hundred and will include not just the best photos but a wide variety. We realise that a photo may have significance or importance to a rider beyond its pure aesthetics, so we try not to be too selective with our editing.
You are welcome to use these photos for personal use, which includes personal social media and personal blogs. Please credit The Perfidious Albion when you do this. You cannot use these photos for any kind of commercial use. However, we grant exceptions to this on a case-by-case basis for business blogs and social posts. Please ask for permission if you would like to do this.
Will friends and family be able to follow me during the event?
Yes! There are several ways that people can keep up with your progress during the event. You will have a GPS tracker provided by Follow My Challenge and this will be linked to a webpage, which we will share in the week before the start. Here, your dot will be visible and people will be able to follow your progress along the route.
As well as this, our team will be out on the route getting photos, videos and insight from all the riders. Our aim is to try and cover the whole field, meaning that everyone is intercepted at least once. A selection of photos and videos will be published as posts and stories on our Instagram account several times a day during the event, accompanied by brief updates on riders’ progress.
Finally, we have also teamed up with DotWatcher to provide in-event commentary on their site, accompanied by an embedded version of the event tracking map. Here, a commentator (either a volunteer or one of the team) will take you through each day’s events, giving an overview of riders’ progress as well as sharing any tales from the road.
Is this a race?
You may have noticed that we don’t describe any of our events as races. There are a few reasons for this, but the key thing is that we don’t want to define success or failure for you. For some people, just finishing is the main challenge. For others, they will have a set time goal in mind. Then some of you will think you aren’t competitive until you get sucked into an arduous day-long battle for mid-pack places. And, finally, there will be those that simply want to be first across the line.
Basically, whatever we call this event, you will probably ride it the way you perceive it anyway. The most important thing to remember is that it is just you against the route. Embrace this battle, see what the weather and mechanical gods throw at you along the way, and we’ll see you at the finish.
Because it’s not a race, what should I expect to be different?
As this isn’t a race, we really put the onus on riders to self-police when it comes to respecting the rules and being self-supported. We’re happy to advise and will definitely clarify any ambiguity for riders. But in the end, we’re all adults and there are no prizes, so there is a mutual understanding that the only person you’re cheating is yourself if you don’t respect the rules.
One of the areas that has come into focus in recent years is how strictly events define riding as self-supported. Because our events aren’t races, we intentionally take a slightly more relaxed view and stick to a definition that focuses on avoiding actions that gain a definite advantage, such as drafting, stashing kit etc. We are less worried about actions that could have a potential advantage, such as riding together for a couple of hours or pre-booking accommodation. Of course, we respect that races feel the obligation to prohibit these things and riders should be aware that different events have different rules.
Will you provide info on resupply along the route?
No! We will highlight where resupply options may be limited and will provide a general overview of the route in the rider guide that flags things like this, as well as other potential hazards. But we believe that thoroughly researching the route and doing your own preparations for the ride are an important part of the sport, as well as fitting within our definition of what self-supported means.
Plus, from a safety perspective, we think it’s important that riders familiarise themselves with the route and identify what kit they might need and how much food they should carry.
Where does my entry fee go?
There are some fixed costs associated with running events e.g insurance, web hosting etc., so a small part of the fee covers these. A larger part then covers things like trackers, caps and t-shirts. And then most of what is left (typically the majority with all our events) is used to pay for coverage and photography during the event. This includes logistical costs such as accommodation and transport, as well as staff costs. The final cost, which varies between events, is any start, finish and checkpoint fees that need covering.
It is worth noting that anyone paid during our events is only paid based on days worked, so there is no incentive to make our events more profitable. This means we usually invest in more photography (or a checkpoint during TPA23!) if we feel our budget can be increased. Any profit we do make is either reinvested into the events or given to charity. In 2023, we donated £300 to the bike project at Swindon Welcomes Ukraine.