To boldly ride: what it means to cycle an audax

Liam FitzPatrick

Head of Communications for Audax UK

If I’m honest, the first few miles were fairly dull. We had to get out of London on suburban streets that were busy even in the early morning of a July Saturday. But then we hit Kent.

Dropping down from Higham and heading towards the Isle of Grain, the countryside opened up. We found ourselves on unfamiliar, sun-dappled lanes. And when we reached our first check-in at the beach, we were met with the sight of the Essex coast across the water and home-baked cakes from the ride organiser.

That event was The Way to the Sea, a 200km audax that I rode in 2022. I’d been doing audaxes for nearly 20 years at that point, and it was typical of the events I had tackled before and since. It showcased a route I would never have found on my own.

We looped around the remote Kentish marshlands, where Dickens’s terrified Pip had met the escaped the convict Magwitch. We made it to the Isle of Sheppey and then headed home along shaded roads once trodden by pilgrims. Finally, we slipped into London for a beer by the riverside at the old Greenwich Naval College.

Long-lasting friendships are forged at café stops and at the roadside mending punctures Liam FitzPatrick, Head of Communications for Audax UK

At a little over 120 miles, that ride was one of the shorter ones in the Audax UK calendar. But regardless of ride length, the opportunity for entrants to explore new terrain is probably one of the reasons why more than 17,500 individual rides (clocking up over 3.5 million miles) were validated last year by the governing body for the sport, Audax UK.

It reflects both the growing popularity of audax and the range of challenges it offers. While rides of 300, 400 and 600km are the staple fare for many long-distance cycling fans, recent years have seen rising interest in rides of 50, 100 and 200km.

Audax UK’s roots and routes

It’s a far cry from when the organisation was first mooted in the CTC magazine 50 years ago. In 1976, 16 long-distance enthusiasts came together to put on events to enable people to qualify for the oldest cycling ride in the world: the 1,200km Paris Brest Paris (PBP), which dates back to 1891.

Initially PBP was a race, but amateurs were later allowed in a separate time-limited event that was, and still is, governed by Audax Club Parisien.

The focus on PBP by these original Audax UK member resulted in longer-distance qualifying rides that crossed regions and almost always entailed riding through the night – as opposed to my summer daytime excursion into Kent. But the fiercely protected, non-competitive ethos has been a constant regardless of ride length.

Whether it’s a 60-mile tour of cake shops or a 600km battle up and down the length of Wales, there are set maximum and minimum times.

With racing strictly banned, the format encourages collaboration. Long-lasting friendships are forged at café stops and at the roadside mending punctures.

Importantly, Audax UK provides challenges to match most tastes, without the need to publish finish times or announce winners. Some riders aim to complete a Super Randonneur series of rides covering 200, 300, 400 and 600km in one year.

Others are simply glad to test themselves over 50 or 100km, or to set out to sample a fresh route or catch up with friends. Audax UK’s Randonneur Round the Year programme has become a popular way to commit to completing 12 consecutive monthly 200km rides.

For most people, though, the test is very often about mental stamina; whatever challenge you pick, success will depend on your mindset as much as fitness.

Audax riding

Many riders joke that they’re only in it for the sort of home-baked cakes that I had on the Kentish beach, but the strength of the audax community is its willingness to support each other. It’s just one of the benefits of a sport that owes everything to volunteers.

The 600-plus events in the Audax UK calendar are created and curated by Cycling UK groups, clubs and individuals. It means there’s a rich mix of rides, from shoestring setups with the most basic of logistics to others offering cake-rich control points seemingly staffed by contestants from the Great British Bake Off.

Behind them all is a community of cyclists supporting other cyclists. The volunteer-led nature of audax means that fees are low. Just £6 might buy you an entry to a basic 100km event. Even a longer ride with food provided around the clock rarely costs much more than £30.

Events are open to all, although members of Audax UK and Cycling UK are exempt from a £3 temporary membership surcharge. Apart from that, no special licences, insurances or bikes are needed.

Unlike a sportive, routes are not marshalled or signposted. It’s up to you on most events to decide how you want to navigate between the control points – although almost everyone follows either the GPX file or turn-by-turn route sheet supplied by the organiser.

At the start you are issued with a small card where your arrival at control points is recorded either by a stamp, a receipt from a café or a piece of information such as a pub name.

And that’s it. A few last-minute words from the organiser at the start and you’re off on an adventure that could last three hours or a couple of days. Along the way, you support yourself. No broom wagon to patch you up or pick you up; just you, the tools and spares you carry, and the kindness of strangers to keep you going.

When the puncture fairy finds you on a crow-black night in Mid Wales, you’ll need to fix it yourself – although you’ll probably be quickly joined by others keen to help.

A journey into audax

My first 200km ride in 2003 was the start of a slippery slope. We set off on a foggy February morning from a DIY superstore’s car park, then posted our finished cards though the organiser’s letterbox some hours later.

I rode most of the way with a Dutch postie who was over for the ride and a supermarket manager on his day off. I still hear from both of them today.

Within weeks I had signed up for a 300km ride around the New Forest and had decided to buy some proper lights. By the end of the summer I had tackled a 400km event, which introduced me to the benefits of hill climbing in the dark: you don’t realise how big it is until you reach the top!

There was also a two-day, 600km audax that took me from Milton Keynes to Retford, around the Fens, to a 24-hour café near Mildenhall and back to Milton Keynes via Watling Street.

Four years later I found myself in the company of several thousand riders from around the world, all aiming to finish the 1,200km of PBP in under 90 hours. Paris Brest Paris is huge in France: it’s spawned its own pastry and gets mentioned on national news.

Yet the rides I remember most are the ones where I turned a corner and saw the vales of England laid out before me, or when a stranger, unasked, handed me his spare rear light, or where I could have a beer in a park by the Thames with a new friend who’d shared my day out around unfamiliar lanes in Kent.

Anne Young

Sitting exhausted in the organiser’s kitchen with a mug of stewed tea and a triangular cheese sandwich, I reflected on the ride I had just completed. That was the Hartside 200km audax.

Three weeks earlier I hadn’t heard of audax or Hartside, one of the highest passes in England, and didn’t believe it was possible to ride 125 miles in a day. I wasn’t familiar with kilometres either.

On that day in May 1996, my love of audax was born. It was an ideal way to ride further and explore new areas.

At the start of 2003, some of my clubmates were talking about an event in northern France called Paris Brest Paris, a 1,200km audax that has to be ridden in 90 hours. I didn’t consider myself to be experienced enough, but after completion of my first 300, 400 and 600km audax rides the same year, I decided to give it a go.

What I enjoy most about audax is the feeling of freedom and adventure Anne Young, audaxer

My first setback was having a request for holiday leave denied from my accountancy job. So I handed in my notice. Well, I was ready for a career change anyway, so what did I have to lose?

And what an experience it was: riding with around 4,000 other cyclists of different nationalities across northern France and back in under four days. I have lasting memories of the French locals lining the route cheering riders on, and of the pop-up crêpe and coffee stalls.

I went on to study medicine, the training for which meant cycling took a back seat for some years. In 2014 I rediscovered audax and found that riding events at weekends, ranging from 200km to 1,000km, provided an escape from the stresses of being a GP. I encouraged my boyfriend, Ulrich, to ride audaxes. He often joins me on rides now.

What I enjoy most about audax is the feeling of freedom and adventure from being on your bike all day, together with the challenge of riding a long distance, sometimes with hills and adverse weather thrown in, along with the achievement of completing an event within a specified time limit.

There is something unique about arriving at a McDonalds or a 24-hour garage in the early hours to be reunited with a group of fellow riders who are all sharing the feelings of hunger and fatigue. Fuelled by caffeine, we continue together into the night and on into the breaking dawn.

It’s hard to pinpoint a favourite ride; they all have their own personality, ranging from full support to being left to your own devices. It is often the harder rides that stick in your memory. Paris Brest Paris is probably the most iconic I’ve ridden; I am hoping to complete my fifth PBP next year.

I have been a non-executive director of Audax UK for the last couple of years, and this has provided the opportunity to be involved in the development of long-distance cycling. As part of our half-centenary celebrations, we’re promoting events branded 50:50@50, with the ambition of having women making up half the starting lists on rides.

Mark Moroney

Mark blogs about his adventures at Mark’s level 2 coaching adventure

I first came to audax riding in 1989 with the Toronto Randonneurs when I was looking for a way to expand my riding capabilities. The randonneurs were an eager bunch who regularly rode 150, 200 and 300km from the heart of the Toronto metropolis into the surrounding Ontario countryside.

They weren’t racers but they enjoyed riding their bikes at pace and for long distances. Their enthusiasm for the open road made for great company and, although I was helping to bring up a young family, I managed to fit in several audax adventures with them.

Our family decided to move back to my native Ireland in early 1991. Despite being occupied with settling in, the allure of the 1991 edition of the jewel of the audaxing crown, Paris Brest Paris, was too much to pass up.

I got the all clear to attempt this massive challenge and, with qualifying rides of 200, 300, 400 and 600km under my belt, headed to France with a small group of Audax Ireland riders.

That first PBP was a real test, but the tremendous support of the French people, the superb scenery and the camaraderie of the riders made for a marvellous adventure. I was sold.

After I retired in 2015, I decided that to celebrate I would again tackle PBP. I stepped up my training, although my qualification rides were completed at a slower pace than in my earlier years.

My fitness wasn’t helped by a leg wound I had received from a vicious dog during a 2014 bike race. However, I made it to the start. Despite finishing outside the allocated time, I had some marvellous adventures. I rode with a non-English-speaking Brazilian for two days, slept on a village park bench, and got hopelessly lost.

Audax is addictive. Every ride is an adventure, a challenge both mentally and physically. It’s satisfying to ‘make the time’, but more often it is who you meet, the beauty of the countryside and simply finishing that makes everything worthwhile.

Time failure in events, although frustrating, has given me great memories. In 2017 I completed the UK flagship event, London Edinburgh London (LEL) despite beating into gale-force winds in the Fens of Lincolnshire.

In 2022 I abandoned LEL after suffering painful saddle sores outside Malton but was rescued by a generous English couple who transferred my bike on top of their tent box to the nearest train station.

I am now well into my 70s, but my love for long-distance cycling hasn’t diminished. My speed has dipped and my targets are more realistic now, but the allure of the open road, a new challenge and a desire to explore with like-minded people keeps me well motivated.

I am now well into my 70s, but my love for long-distance cycling hasn’t diminished Mark Moroney, audaxer

Last year I completed the TransAtlanticWay from Cork to Derry, enjoying beautiful countryside, quiet roads, and enthusiastic, friendly fellow riders from all over the world. I was the oldest finisher. I didn’t set any records, but I had a lot of fun and overcame some personal challenges.

Nadia Kerr

I started riding audaxes in early 2022. I had entered an ultra-endurance multi-day event called All Points North, covering about 1,000km, and I needed to extend my ride distances and my endurance. I found a supportive, welcoming bunch of non-racing riders.

I finished my first longer events ‘out of time’ but that was fine. I was learning and I was enjoying riding.

Each ride has a story to tell. A highlight for me was approaching the Hartside climb on an audax very early one morning with a barn owl flying along at the side of me. It was serene.

Watching days unfold from the peace and quiet of the saddle is very special. One of the beauties of audax is that you can try tested routes in different parts of the country.

You get to enjoy the camaraderie, the ‘treasure-hunt’ style of information gathering at controls, and the food provided at the end by the organiser. Food is talked about a lot between audaxers!

Watching days unfold from the peace and quiet of the saddle is very special Nadia Kerr, audaxer

I am not a special or talented cyclist but I try to stretch the limits of my comfort zone. I crave head space during my busy working week, as a solicitor specialising in cycling claims, and what better way to satisfy that craving than to ride a long audax in my spare time?

Audax riders support each other. When I stopped at the side of the road in the early hours on London Edinburgh London 2025, literally everyone who passed asked if I was OK.

I would particularly encourage women to ride audaxes. It is a safe and supportive environment, and safety is a real barrier to cycling for many women. There is a ‘Women in Audax’ Facebook group for Q&As and general support.

Stops are planned in events at frequent intervals, which helps break up the ride. Audaxes start at around 50km, a lovely distance for a ride. A different mindset and different levels of preparation are needed for the longest events. Most riders will build up to those over time.

I am involved in the promotion of audax to women during this 50th anniversary year. When women see other women taking part, they see role models for what is possible – things they may not have thought about before. I try to gather women together at audax starts for a photograph to publicise the representation.

I talk about audaxes (my partner says ‘a lot’) and post stories and experiences on social media. I recently introduced some riders from my Manchester-based women’s cycling group, Team Glow, to the event ‘EyUp!’; some have already booked their next event! A hilly route of mine, the ‘Bikini Glow’, has been accepted as a permanent audax, which is great.