Haslemere:
Situated on the A286, about 10 miles south of Guildford. Coming from the north, turn off the A3 at Milford and follow signs for Haslemere on the A286. Coming from the south on the A3, turn off on the A333 at Hindhead and follow signs for Haslemere onto the A287.

Trains from Waterloo – Portsmouth line. South-West trains. Sunday journeys are 1 hour (fast) and 1 hr 10 mins (stopping). First train out of Waterloo is, however, not till 8 am , arriving in Haslemere at 09:11. Watch out for engineering works. They take bikes, but not many places. The station is less than ½ mile from the start / finish.

Parking:
There are two car parks in Haslemere, the largest is off the High Street, behind Waitrose. However, this is popular with shoppers. Just as convenient to the Start is the car park off Chestnut Avenue, reached via West Street. We are using the third town centre car park as the HQ Start / Finish. There is a very large car park at the station, charge £1.00 for all day on Sundays. This is probably the easiest if you want to avoid the inevitable congestion in the town. There is also a free car park in Wey Hill, just past the station.

Signing On:
The signing on tent is in the Police station car park on West Street (GU27 2AB). It will be open from 08.00 until 09.00 (Epic riders) and 09.30 (Sport and Challenge riders). Discretion will be allowed for those riding the Epic and arriving by train.

By collecting your Start number you will confirm that you have read and understood the Rules and Regulations.

The Courses:
The courses are largely the same as last year, with The Epic diving across the A3 to the delightful Meon Valley. We have tinkered with the routes around South Harting, so as, we hope, to avoid any possible confusion. The feedback (scuse the pun) was that the first feed-stop at 40km at South Harting was unnecessarily early, so we have pushed them on. This has the benefit that when exiting the South Harting feed-stop, everyone will be going in the same direction!

Potholes:
Last year we said that it was a pointless task trying to indicate where the worst potholes were as there were so many. Clearly, the situation is worse than ever. By keeping you away from traffic and on the ‘white roads’ as much as possible, we inevitably send you along roads that are not considered priority as far as repairs are concerned. All we can say is that you should be very vigilant and consider those riders just behind you when swerving to avoid such hazards. If you are able to indicate where there is a hazard that is always appreciated by your fellow (following) riders.

Feeding:
There are three feed stations, one for the Fun, two for the Challenge and three for the Epic.

Locations TBC.

There will be rolls, cakes, bananas and water.

We will be providing tea/coffee at the finish, outside Cycleworks shop in West Street and Waitrose, which is next door, is open until 4 pm and we have warned them that there may be a run on sandwiches and anything sweet. Also, Pizza Express, in the High Street, is open on Sundays.

Mechanics:
We hope you will arrive with perfectly performing bikes, however the main sponsor Cycleworks (based in West Street 100m from the start) will be open for any last minute adjustments as well as providing mobile assistance on the course. We will provide you with an emergency number and a separate number for requesting help after major mechanical failures preventing you from continuing the event. This does not include punctures as you are expected to be able to mend these. We recommend that all riders carry at least two spare tubes.

Photographer:
Well known cycle race photographer, Phil O’Connor (of SportivePhoto) will have a team out on the course recording your pain. Details of how to order copies are on the race number provided.

Certificates:
Although we are unable to publish a list of finishers in time order or indicating their place, we have set standards for finishing within certain times.

Hotels:
We are hoping to arrange special rates for festival goers at various hotels in the area. Details to be confirmed.

Other places to stay can be found through the Haslemere Visitor Information Centre www.haslemere.com/vic.