London–Edinburgh–London ''(LEL)'' is a randonnée bicycle event of approximately over an out-and-back course between the capital cities of

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

(England) and

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

(Scotland). It has been described as a contender for hardest cycling event in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. The event has been held every four years since 1989, with the ninth event starting on 7 August 2022.

Description and history

LEL is the flagship event of

Audax UK Audax UK or AUK is a British cycling club that oversees randonneuring (long-distance cycling) in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1976 to help British riders complete the qualifying rides for entry to the Paris-Brest-Paris randonnee. Audax U ...

. It is held every four years, two years after

Paris–Brest–Paris Paris–Brest–Paris (PBP) is a long-distance cycling event. It was originally a bicycle race in France from Paris to Brest and back to Paris in 1891. The last time it was run as a race was 1951. The most recent edition of PBP was held on 20 ...

. It is part of the brevet series and is a noncompetitive endurance bicycle event.

1989 to 2001

The first LEL was in 1989, when there were 29 starters and 26 finishers, all British. For that inaugural ride, the distance was , and the route included a stretch of the A68 road. Finishers of that original event are sometimes referred to as the A68 Club. The inaugural ride did not start in London, but in

Doncaster Doncaster ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don, it is the administrative centre of the City of Doncaster metropolitan borough, and is the second largest se ...

, the home town of the organiser. Riders headed first north to

and back, then south to

and back.

2005

For the fifth edition in 2005, there were 306 starters and 246 finishers, from the UK, mainland Europe, and other countries including Japan, Russia, Australia, the USA, and Canada. Riders set out from

Cheshunt Cheshunt (/ˈtʃɛzənt/ CHEZ-ənt) is a town in the Borough of Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, England, situated within the London commuter belt approximately north of Central London. The town lies on the River Lea and Lee Navigation, bordering th ...

, on the northern outskirts of London, or from Thorne, close to the original

start. The 2005 route was just over 1360km long and arrived in Edinburgh via The Granites.

2009

31 nations took part in the 2009 ride, which started and ended at

2013

The 2013 edition was held between 28 July and 2 August and 34 nations took part. In a departure from previous editions, the route took a loop through Scotland, and for the first time passed over the

Humber Bridge The Humber Bridge is a single-span road suspension bridge near Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. When it opened to traffic on 24 June 1981, it was the longest of its type in the world; the Akashi Kaikyō Bridge surpassed ...

. 805 riders finished the event in 2013.

2017

The 2017 edition took place between 30 July and 4 August 2017, attracting 1600 entrants from 55 nations. 810 of these finished in time. The 2017 route was 1441km long and had 11,128m of climbing. The time allowance was 117 hours 05 minutes, or 100 hours for those riders who choose it. The ride started and ended at Davenant Foundation School in Loughton. The control points/accommodation stops were at: *Great Easton (southbound only) * St Ivo School in St Ives *

Spalding Grammar School Spalding Grammar School (SGS), fully known as The Queen Elizabeth Royal Free Grammar School Spalding, is an 11–18 boys' grammar school in Spalding, Lincolnshire, England. By November 2015, a total of 985 boys were enrolled at the school, 277 ...

* King Edward VI Grammar School in Louth *

Pocklington School Pocklington School is a private day and boarding school in Pocklington, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It was founded in 1514 by John Dolman. The school is situated in of land, on the outskirts of the small market town, from York and f ...

Coxwold Coxwold is a village and civil parish in the county of North Yorkshire, England, in the North York Moors National Park. It is 18 miles north of York and is where the Rev. Laurence Sterne wrote '' A Sentimental Journey''. History The villag ...

(optional shelter) * Thirsk School *

Barnard Castle School Barnard Castle School (colloquially Barney School or locally the County School) is a co-educational private day and boarding school in the market town of Barnard Castle, County Durham, in the North East of England. It is a member of The Head ...

* Alston (optional shelter) *

William Howard School The William Howard School is a co-educational secondary academy school on ''Longtown Road'' ( A6071) in Brampton, Carlisle, Cumbria, England for pupils aged 11–18. History The school is named after Lord William Howard (1563–1640), who w ...

in Brampton *

Moffat Academy Moffat Academy is a school in Moffat, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It educates children from nursery to Secondary 6. History Moffat Academy traces its history to the local grammar school founded in 1639 by Dr Johnstone. During the 1810s, the ...

(northbound only) *

Eskdalemuir Eskdalemuir is a civil parish and small village in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, with a population of 265.

(southbound only) *Innerleithen (southbound only) * Gracemount High School in Edinburgh All other controls were used in both directions.

2022

The 2021 event was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and as a result took place between 7 and 12 August 2022. The route was extended to 1540km, with a time allowance of 128 hours and 20 minutes for the main group and 100 hours for the first group. The route extended out to Dunfermline so included a crossing of the

Firth of Forth The Firth of Forth () is a firth in Scotland, an inlet of the North Sea that separates Fife to its north and Lothian to its south. Further inland, it becomes the estuary of the River Forth and several other rivers. Name ''Firth'' is a cognate ...

, and passed through Edinburgh city centre.About LEL 2022 https://londonedinburghlondon.com/about

References

External links

London Edinburgh London official site
Cycling events in the United Kingdom Cycling in England Cycling in Scotland Ultra-distance cycling Recurring sporting events established in 1989 1989 establishments in the United Kingdom {{Cycling-stub