Preparation for the RBLR1000

FazerPhil

President IBA UK
Staff member
Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#1
Some questions to ask yourself
1 Do my tyres have enough life left in them for 1000 miles?
2 Is my chain well adjusted?
3 Are my brake pads up to the job?
4 Am I mentally in the right place for the challange?
5 Is my riding kit warm and waterproof? It can get cold riding at night in the rain.
6 Have I made sure I understand the route and rules for the ride?
7 Have I started a Just giving page or joined the group page?
8 Or am I using a sponsorship form?
9 What will be my strategy for eating and drinking?
10 Have I thought about making best use of rest stops?
11 Have I tried a couple of longer than normal rides?
12 Am I practicing efficient fuel stops so they become 2nd nature?
13 Have I got ear plugs not only for the ride but also the camp site on Friday night?

If you have unanswered questions post them here and somebody will help. Others will then learn from the answers.
 

Dave Rose

Active Member
#2
Any recommendations for accommodation in the area. The instructions say there is plenty so I can search but wondered if there is a list.

Also, if I camp on the Friday night can the tent stay pitched for the Saturday until I return for the Saturday night?

Cheers
Dave
 

FazerPhil

President IBA UK
Staff member
Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#4
Any recommendations for accommodation in the area. The instructions say there is plenty so I can search but wondered if there is a list.

Also, if I camp on the Friday night can the tent stay pitched for the Saturday until I return for the Saturday night?

Cheers
Dave
If you look through the 2016 thread there are hotels mentioned there that riders used last year
 

Crezz

Well-Known Member
#6
I have used this one every year to stay at.

South Milford Hotel
Junction 42 A1M, South Milford, LS25 5LF, United Kingdom
 

FJRPilot

Brit Butt Rallymaster RBLR1000 routemaster
Premier Member
IBA Member
#7
Over the years I've stayed at three of the nearest Premier Inns whenever their cheap deals have come up:

Pontefract North
Castleford (Exscape)
Castleford (Junction 31)

All of these are only a 10 minute ride from Squires. The Pontefract one has a petrol station nearby for topping up Friday evening and the Castleford Exscape one has a 24 hour one just down the road so if you forget on Friday night you can top up before riding to Squires early on the Saturday morning.

As Crezz has said many stay at the hotel he's mentioned which is just down the road from Squires on the old A1 :)
 

Dave Rose

Active Member
#8
I've booked into the South Milford hotel, very reasonable and it's got a pool. That will be nice after the ride to have a relaxing swim before crashing out!

By the way, I set a target of £300.00 on my justgiving and pleased to say it has been exceeded by £50.00 so far, quite chuffed but not finished with badgering people yet!
 
#9
I recall last year someone posting that they were using a SPOT tracker for the RBLR1000 - can anyone guide me on which one to buy and with what frequency you have it sending your location etc? The EU SPOT website has this: https://www.findmespot.eu/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=5&products_id=32&language=en but Amazon seem to have a newer model for £108. Finally, do you hard-wire this to your battery and keep it under the seat or carry it on your person? Many thanks for all the advice, much appreciated.
 

FJRPilot

Brit Butt Rallymaster RBLR1000 routemaster
Premier Member
IBA Member
#10
I'm not a Spot owner but I'm sure somebody will be along to offer advice. I'm pretty certain they're only battery powered and from stories I've heard it makes sense to carry it on your person despite many regulars on this forum having theirs in holders on their handlebars etc. If you part company from your bike during a prang at least it will be with you if you need to hit the emergency button. Also they require an annual subscription too which isn't cheap.

Personally I use the Bubbler GPS app on my android phone which can also be linked to the Spotwalla web page map so anybody you give the link to can see where you are at any time once you've created a 'Trip'. I can set how frequently it sends automatic location signals (mine are every 15 minutes). I can also type in texts so people can read any little messages I want displayed on my Spotwalla map. I believe you can only set up one message on Spot Trackers and this remains the same every time you hit the appropriate button. Many have something like "I'm OK , just stopping for a rest break" etc.

There's a similar app for fruit based phones called SW Connect. :)
 
#11
Thanks FJRPilot, my fruit-based device and SWconnect App are now connected to Spotwalla and all is good - saved me some money so, that'll be a pint on me then..... Cheers for the tip.
 

GraemeandSally

RBLR 1000
Premier Member
#12
SPOT 3 is battery powered and can be wired via a USB but loose the waterproofing I find batteries last longer the the old spot 2 I easy get a week of everyday use from mine
I got mine for £82 so pays to look about on eBay/amazon etc
 
#13
I've put Track. gs app on my iPhone. It has a big 'share' button and gives you a multitude of ways to share your track.

Having read the above, I've also downloaded the SWConnect app, setup a Spotwalla account and added my iPhone as a recognised device. However, a lot of searching the FAQ's, exploring the SWConnect app and the Spotwalla page, I can't find the equivalent 'share' button!

Surely it's something really simple that I'm missing ... isn't it??
 

owl*

Rally Bonus checker
IBA Member
#14
Once logged on to Spotwalla, click on your username to get a drop down list.
From that list, select 'trips'
Select the dates you want the trip to record between, and name your trip
You can then click on the trip link you've just made, which brings down another drop down box.
From that, click on either 'family & friends' which will give you a code that you can cut & paste & send to, er, family & friends, or on 'embedding' which also gives you a code which you can cut & paste onto a forum such as ours or wherever, so everyone can have a look.
 
#15
IMG_5417.PNG IMG_5418.PNG Thank you, Owl. I'll try that later. Definitely not just a 'two clicks to share' option then!

Because I'll have 2 iPhones with me during #RBLR1000, I'll probably have both SWConnect and Track.gs running. Track really does seem straightforward.

The screenshots are the 'two clicks' method of sharing your route with Track.
 

owl*

Rally Bonus checker
IBA Member
#16
My explanation sounds a bit complicated, but once you're used to it, it only takes a few seconds.

I'll give you that it's not quite as easy as one click though :)