Name: Dunwich Dynamo 2024
Start: 2024-07-20T00:00:00+01:00
End: 2024-07-21T23:59:59+01:00
Location: Pub on the Park

Mark the weekend of Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st July on your calendar.

We have listed this as a Sportive but it is NOT a sportive. It is a tradition. An experience. A wonderful thing that should be ticked-off on every cyclist’s bucket list.

If you’ve never ridden through the night before, this is the one to do – the big one, the best one, the real deal. Every year it’s a different experience depending on who you are with, who you meet, what the weather is like, and for all the random stuff that happens on the way.

THIS IS NOT A RACE! – It’s about the journey, not the destination!

Legend has it, the first DD was in the early ’90s when a couple of bike couriers who were tired of their week in London, they set off riding into the night and just kept going until they reached the sea. They ended up at the beach of Dunwich in time to watched the sun rise over the sea.

Historical fact: Dunwich (Saxmundham) was once a thriving port city and capital of East Anglia that over 100s of years of coastal erosion has completely disappeared into the sea.

Some basic background details –

It takes place on the weekend of the full moon nearest to the date of the summer solstice, to get the longest brightest warmest night
Organisation is deliberately minimal – there is no entry fee, no timing chips, no start line, no finish line, no entry fee, no marshals
The ride starts at the Pub on the Park in Hackney, East London, with everyone slowly gathering in London Fields during the evening
You leave when you’re ready, generally any time between 7-10pm with most leaving between 8-9pm
The distance is around 112 miles (180km) with not much climbing, about 4600 feet (1400m)
There is no official map of the route but instead a list of places/waypoints. But we are in the 2020s so GPS routes are available online (example below)
Pubs are open on the way, many riders will stop Moreton which is the first quiet country village, other pubs in Finchingfield etc stay open all night serving cake and coffee
There is usually a village hall open half-way where you can open up your own picnic or buy soup/roll, plus locals sometimes also offer bbq/breakfast in their garden
When you arrive at the beach in Dunwich, dump your bike and go and have a greasy spoon breakfast in the cafe (cans of beer/cider available) then go for a dip in the sea
The only organised part is by Southward Cyclists, who organise a convoy of coaches from Dunwich to London (bikes in removal vans) which must be booked in advance (cost £49.99)
Getting home by train is possible but difficult so don’t rely on the local station, you may need to ride to Ipswich and there are likely to be strict restrictions where you require valid bike booking in advance
Other routes home include parking nearby on Friday/Saturday and take the train home, talk a loved one into driving the beach car park to pick you up, or just ride all the way back
Advice: Rest and sleep well the night before, have a good meal on Saturday afternoon, make sure your bike lights are fully charged or have new batteries and switch your rear to constant (not flashing), those behind you will be grateful. Enjoy the ride!

Resources

The Dunwich Dynamo Facebook page is a great source of information and news
https://www.facebook.com/groups/DunwichDynamo

Unofficial site with some useful information/links
https://www.dunwichdynamo.co.uk/

London School of Cycling, check their advice link
https://www.londonschoolofcycling.co.uk/content.php?id=18

Information on the area in Dunwich
https://www.thesuffolkcoast.co.uk/suffolk-coast-towns-and-villages/dunwich

Southwark Cyclists website have confirmed they will organise a coach service this year (link might not be live until late-March)
https://southwarkcyclists.org.uk/product/dunwich-dynamo-2024/

Route on RidewithGPS
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/24093

from London School of Cycling website:

The Dunwich Dynamo is a 200 km night ride from London to the lost city of Dunwich on the Suffolk Coast. From 1992 to 1998 it ran as commercial pay-to-enter event. In 1999 it became a free, traditional event; something like Christmas but with less eating and more travelling by bike. This successful format has continued since 2000.

Setting a date for an informal ‘turn-up-and-ride’ event – on the Saturday night nearest a full moon in July – maintains the most important element of the great festival of frivolity, the company of other riders.