400km cycling event starting from Great Dunmow, Essex. Controls at Reed, Halstead, Walton-on-the-Naze, Great Bromley, Dunmow, Billericay, Maldon, Dunmow., plus 5 information controls.
Audax Club Mid-Essex present the AUK National 400 on Saturday 28th June 2025. Starting from the old market town of Great Dunmow the route will be based on the ‘Kingdom of the East Saxons’ 400 and be formed of two loops of 270 and 130 kilometres respectively with a return to base for a midnight feast, and sleep too if required.
The first loop will be a tour of north Essex, from the chalk hills in the west to the Stour Valley (Constable Country) and the estuaries of the east coast. Visiting the ancient town of Harwich (home port of the Mayflower and her captain Christopher Jones) the route takes in the ‘Sunshine Coast’ of Walton, Frinton and Clacton before turning inland at the shanty town of Jaywick. After crossing the River Colne at Colchester (the oldest town in Britain and first capital of Roman Britannia) there’s a return to Great Dunmow for sustenance and the opportunity for a sleep if required.
The second loop heads out over The Mighty North Hill (the only hill in Essex according to Alex Dowsett), a climb of 89 metres or one-twelfth of Alpe d’Huez! Onwards via Billericay (home of the largest contingent of the Pilgrim Fathers on the Mayflower), past the vineyards of the Crouch Valley to Burnham on the Dengie Peninsula, then returning via Maldon and the site of the famous battle with the Vikings in AD 991.
The route showcases the best of the county’s lanes through idyllic countryside in early summer, attractive villages and bustling market towns. Some short sections of the route will be off-road, though these are mostly gravel or concrete roads so perfectly rideable on road tyres, if a trifle rough in places.
https://acme.bike/events/the-national-400/
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