Starting from: Tadpole Farm CE Primary Academy
Visiting: Flying Monk Café & Taproom, Fire & Flow Coffee Roastery & Coffee Shop, Aston Pottery, Williams F1 Team, Grove
Starting from: Tadpole Farm CE Primary Academy
Visiting: Flying Monk Café & Taproom, Fire & Flow Coffee Roastery & Coffee Shop, Aston Pottery, Williams F1 Team, Grove
Third ride of the Trooper Series, extending TGV rides from the beautiful Cotswolds AONB into the quiet roads and lanes of Oxfordshire. Whilst rated at 150K, the route itself is just over 100 miles so this could be a goal in itself.
Aside from a few hills, nothing too difficult. The ride starts in Tadpole Garden Village and includes 2 info controls (1 of which can be a coffee stop) and 2 coffee stops!
The Audax distance award is 150K.
We operate all audaxes as shoestring+ events as we do not have access to a community hall/space.
We always provide refreshments (hot and cold) and light snacks at the start and end of each Trooper Series event. Those who have attended one of our events before will know there's usually a surprise at the end!
The first info control brings you to the Flying Monk Café & Taproom in Hullavington. We recommend their excellent barista-made coffee (cakes and even breakfasts are also available), but they can be busy, so stopping depends on your ride objective. Leaving the info control, you pass through the historic town of Malmesbury, past the Abbey ruins, heading north towards Cirencester. To get to the next control, Fire & Flow Coffee Roastery, there's a climb out of town on a busy road. Once you reach the summit [of the ride], you can reward yourself with an excellent vegetarian breakfast along with your coffee. The friendly staff will stamp your card, and while they can sometimes be busy, they are generally efficient. From this point on, the elevation trends downwards for a good while. The next control point is at Aston Pottery, where you can sample some lovely cakes served on the beautiful crockery made by the potters at Aston. There's a final info control at Grove, after which you’ll face a few more hills before finishing the ride back at Tadpole Garden Village.
31.7 km - Info at Flying Monk, Hullavington
67.4 km - Control at Fire & Flow, Bagendon
105.2 km - Control at Aston Pottery
126.7 km - Info at Grove
TGV Audax Trooper Series rides (scheduled between April and July 2026) are a great way to experience Audax events. The series is designed to be progressionary with enough time to prepare you and your bicycle for the next increment in distance.
As an added incentive, riders who complete all four rides (500 km) in the series will receive a complimentary patch.