Steam Express 600

This was my first 600 and my bottom was suffering very badly. Likely I was riding most of the route with someone, which made it a bit more enjoyable!.

Big that you to Michal and Zlatimira! And Thank you to Will, too! 🙂

A really excellent event. Great route, great controls, nothing is too much trouble for Will and his helpers. Like another reviewer I too struggled to find the sleep control in the middle of a wild and windy night but that was probably because I was tired and not thinking straight! It was worth it when I did find it. I had some good grub and got my head down ready for the early morning stretch out to Maidenhead.

A route which makes Oxfordshire and the South West feel much of a piece, cut from a cloth of warm stone and small village life, animated by different kinds of hills. 600s, I guess, should have good controls — the extra length can add a bit of flexibility to the planning, and the riders need the comfort. The Steam Express delivers in old-fashioned, often train-related style. Benjamin Perry Scout Hut was a near perfect Arrivée. The trip West to the coast at Watchet offered a lighthouse / light-buoy? to look out at while eating some breakfast at the Marina cafe. The hop over to the Exe valley comes to a halt at the dark and mirrored victorian bar of the Beer Engine pub, offering welcome cool, before the route starts to head East via Yeovil Railway Centre towards the Cotswolds, stopping at Ginny’s Cafe and then the Coronation Hall in Kintbury. Pressing on into the night brings up The Iron Duke Sea Cadets’ hut, with a fabulously behatted Duck Iron Duke (or maybe Nelson?). Those last two stops provided hot food in copious quantities, and encouraged you to ride on through the night. But the second halves of 600s tend to drag in the memory; exhaustion greys most stuff out. Bicester as a Free stop and Middle Barton as an Info went with that flow, but Blunsdon Station was a tonic; breakfast in an old railway carriage lifted the spirits (but avoid the coffee). The route only has 2AAA points, but the little hills take their toll; the run into Bristol was mysteriously populated by hills, where none had ever existed before. The Arrivée was full of cake and tea. Great support, particularly on the night section. Pictures #gwrsteam

Excellent event, although I did struggle to find the sleep stop control.

Great route, plenty of ‘Will’s Hills’ and excellent controls. Beautiful countryside to ride through on quiet roads. Very much recommended – I will be doing it again.