HISS - Sept 17-21 anyone going?

Planning a little soiree, then post it up here. And please, no commercial stuff, this forum is about people not products or services - send us a press release.
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Monster
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Re: HISS - Sept 17-21 anyone going?

Post by Monster »

Now looking at Portsmouth to Santander on the way out

St Malo to Portsmouth on the way back (24th)

Extra few days and miles but its either that or not at all

May have a cabin to share on the way out - Friday 14th at 1700 departure
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Re: HISS - Sept 17-21 anyone going?

Post by Monster »

FFS ... I can't even book on to the ferry out now!!!

Brittany Ferry company need more bike space, more boats, or some competition !!!

I see no HISS trip for me now
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Re: HISS - Sept 17-21 anyone going?

Post by Monster »

I shall be going afterall ... just via Northern France

Take a few more days either side and enjoy the trip - chance to see friends near Bordeaux as well

Nothing stands in the way (of a man on a mission) .... now to tell the Mrs !

LOL
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Re: HISS - Sept 17-21 anyone going?

Post by Simon_100 »

Wow, blink and you miss it on this forum - thanks for starting this Monster!

But a very important update for many of you posting on this thread:

We've decided to call it a day after the HISS events this September, so these will be the last HISS gigs - ever!

It's a tough decision that we postponed taking around New Year after our annual 'review' of how things were going, the way you do, but with our cottage here in the Pyrenees 75% complete after a more or less total rebuild - after fifteen years in the planning while we rented it out for holidaymakers - the 'review' of how we live from now on is suddenly very real and the simple answer is to give more time for ourselves, and the dog of course ... and to have a good time rather than spending so much time and energy making sure that everyone else has a good time ... and also the rather alarming factor that we're now beginning to live on our pensions rather than or wits! :D
Spike941 wrote: Wed Jun 13, 2018 1:10 pm Probably passing through Teruel between those dates, enroute to the Sierra Nevada with some mates on big fully loaded adventure tourers. What is the HISS Teruel? Sounds like an off road event to me.
Hello Spike, yes, the HISS is very much an off-road event although I do devise routes for road bikes too. In Aragon I have 1,400 kms of trails, about 40% very tough trails, all arranged into six sections in very varied landscapes in a way that you can organise a day's itinerary by stringing them together, 2E, then 3J, etc. etc.

Image

This Bowdlerised image should give you the idea without giving the game away. The gap in the middle is Teruel city and its surroundings. Note that the green trails are the 'technical' ones, starting just a few hundred yards from the venue. :)

PS note that most of the Sierra Nevada is closed to motor traffic!
SteveR wrote: Mon Jun 11, 2018 10:56 pmYes. I am seriously pondering this, either Pobla or Aragon HISS, not sure which yet ;)

I always leave getting away (or not!) until the last minute*, ...

* As Simon knows!! :D
I do indeed know, the Count and Countesses of Salop and their no doubt numerous and profitable offspring are hard taskmasters! :)

But deciding which HISS to come to is a tough call, the answer, of course, being to come to both! :) Both the Catalonia and the Aragon HISS have changed since you last came, Aragon being almost completely different. I've added an extra section to Catalonia, 'invading' the neighbouring county just to the south - I think you had a preview of that when you did that very long trail in the wake of Phil (that's French Farmer Phil), Skippy and Mo and Freek (the Dutch couple) and I now also get special permissions to ride trails that are normally prohibited.

Down in Aragon we have a new venue that gives us a 'HQ' in a camping-style bungalow as well as our own bar - Mrs S and Balto collect the honesty box every morning and you don't want to mess with either her or Balto! Since you were last there I've roughly doubled the extent of the trails and the territory as you can see from the image above.

Image

Furthermore, thanks to my involvement with the TET - for my sins I'm the Linesman for Spain! - you can ride from the one to t'other on the TET trail, staying at Alan Holt's place about half way down - it's about 500 kms on trail. So think on young man ... :)

@ Spud - aka Redmurty - that goes for you too sailor boy ... ;) And don't forget to bring Father and the Margrave of the Moors, aka Harper, along with you!
bowber wrote: Wed Jun 13, 2018 12:04 pm As I said on the HISS thread I'm hoping to get down for the September HISS's but I need to decide if the cost of fuel in the van is worth it, I'd not like to ride my EXC all the way down France but I'd consider van to Portsmouth and riding across the Pyrenees from Santander or Bilbao but as you've found the ferries seem to be booked up for bikes, strangely when I try with the van on the same dates there's room. I think Brokenjones is booked in but I don't know how he's getting there.

Steve
Hi Steve, Brokenjones is indeed all signed up for the both of the September HISSes. You certainly won't regret bringing he excellent EXC down but Alison will have fun in the sun too as the Aragon region has actually much better roads than the Pyrenees - and you don't get frozen and/or soaked if you stray over the border into France either! :D

Image

I knocked up these routes in a hurry last year when a group of GS riders said they fancied a day on roads but there are loads more, including a fabulous ride down to the coast at Peñiscola - practice your Spanish pronunciation bits and girls! :lol: - with a 'round trip' on the reverse leg. Peñiscola is a really lovely little place and one guy - another GS rider - fancied the trip juts for the craic - and a dip in the Med followed by a plate of paella of course - not to mention topless totty ;) More importantly - especially for Alision who I guess won't be impressed by that last point 8-) - is that she mentioned that after riding around in the Pyrenees on the Trans-Alp (?) she felt that she wanted to do some trail riding. Well thee are loads of very easy trails in Aragon too, especially in the area to the west around Albarracín, which is a really stunning historic town (actually a very tiny 'city') where the first Aragon HISS events were based.

Back to Spike's original question - wow this if a long post, even for me! :lol: - the HISS is a lot more than just a load of trails. Back in 2012 when we began it had its origins as an 'official' ABR meet and ever since its ethos is about companionship and the craic in general as well as riding - lots and lots of riding!!! - many long lasting friendships have grown to of this, including us making friends, - you can read the 'Official Trip report topic for lots more details but specifically take a look at Pip's report on his first HISS here in the Pyrenees in May. Note that he rides with several different people and chopped and changed is style as the week wore on. That pretty well sums up what the HISS is all about but also check out our web page for the actual chapter and verse. Enjoy!

Simon
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Redmurty
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Re: HISS - Sept 17-21 anyone going?

Post by Redmurty »

Simon good luck with your future plans, after our last conversation I thought this might be the last year. sad in one way but onwards and upwards young man.

father in law is still going the miserable old git won't do the decent thing and shuffle of his mortal coil, so the Mrs is still on stand by to leg it to NZ to do "end of life care" so I pretty much have to be a day away from home at the max so I can get back so she can get out there. He was told by the Doc's to say good bye to the family last crimbo. :o :shock:

So if he does do the decent I may well be able to get down if not I will continue to go stir crazy at the lack of mileage this year so far thank fook for the push bike

talk soon, and how's our friend doing down in Madrid ?

cheers Spud ;)
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Re: HISS - Sept 17-21 anyone going?

Post by Simon_100 »

Hi Spud,

Sorry to hear about the ageing relative situation, it's a tough call, especially on the far side of the World!

We've got lots of plans and ideas for moving on, maybe I'll even come back to the UK ... for a weekend with you guys! :lol: :lol: :lol:

I haven't been in touch with our friend in Madrid for a while, keeps slipping my mind and when I do remember it's in the week and I'm worried to disturb his rehab. It's also very difficult to communicate fully over the phone with such sensitive stuff ... :(

On a brighter note we survived the infamous 'verbena de San Juan' when the dog freaked as soon as the fireworks started down in the village - that's over a kms away! - and he crawled into my bunkbed a sort of hid under the sheets for a few hours. All fine and dandy until I remembered that of you go near him at night he flips, gives a blood curdling growl and I've always hopped out of range before the lupine 'death lunge'. All well and good until I rolled over and realised the close proximity of these terrible jaws and the Crown Jewels ... :D

Meanwhile, a nice little bimble down to the seaside ...

Image

Regs

Simon
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Re: HISS - Sept 17-21 anyone going?

Post by Sideleaner »

Simon, if this will be the last one it would be cruel to miss it....

To anyone who is still in need of "transport" to the Aragon event...i have availability to take 2 bikes and riders in the van. Leaving from Belgium on Sept 14th. I can make a little detour and meet in Calais or anyone coming from the north can come to my place near Gent.
Travel costs (fuel/peage) to be shared of course. PM or post here....
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Re: HISS - Sept 17-21 anyone going?

Post by SteveR »

Monster wrote: Thu Jun 21, 2018 12:21 pm I shall be going afterall ... just via Northern France

Take a few more days either side and enjoy the trip - chance to see friends near Bordeaux as well

Nothing stands in the way (of a man on a mission) .... now to tell the Mrs !

LOL
Done this 3 times, and if you can spare the time, the run to a HISS event is IMHO, all part of the craic. Even better if you have someone to drop in and see...
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Re: HISS - Sept 17-21 anyone going?

Post by SteveR »

Got to echo the comments here, it'sgoing to be sad to see the end of the HISS event in it's present iteration, however as Spud has said before, I have made good mates on the 3 I have attended, so far, and it would be great to take in one of the last 2 of it's kind! Whether the "Countess" would stand for my absence over such a long period is moot...

Also questionable if the bike and rider would handle 2 such events in close succession... ;)
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