The Breakaway

October 27, 2016

PASTIES, PINTS AND PICTURES

  • A quick Budgens stop
  • Jon Baines in action

In late September we had the pleasure of shooting the new Autumn / Winter 2016 range here in Devon. On a stunning early Autumn day we started from the south end of Exmoor, wheeling through lanes and over moors before heading to the coast. Everyone in the crew was envious of our three riders and they sampled some of the finest roads on offer in the South West. As a behind-thescenes preview of the range we thought we’d share some details about the day.

Coffee in the van

We assembled at the Haddon Hill car park (with handy toilets!) to shoot the riders getting ready and getting down some breakfast. With a 7am start the crew all had to leave home around 2 hours before so Co-Op’s finest (reduced to clear) croissants were welcome if not enthusiastically enjoyed.

We’d been worried that the weather would be too warm to shoot thermals but Devon duely obliged, causing shivering from everyone behind the camera and relief to those dressed in our new range.

After some time spent over ‘breakfast’ we headed west towards Bury, the Transporter taking the ford whilst the riders took the beautiful cobbled bridge. Shooting from the back of the van we weaved our away through quiet lanes en route to Dunkery Beacon where we caught our first proper sight of the stunning Exmoor scenery.

Photo of a photo of a view

Photographer Jon Baines moved from van to road to gorse to hill to get the shots we wanted as our lucky cyclists ambled around the moors. The cold sun made for incredible views and clear skies — almost as if we’d planned it.

Back of the van

From the Beacon we headed seaward to Porlock for fish & chips and a well earned break. With hilly roads like Porlock Toll Road and the Lynmouth to Lynton road to come the riders filled up and off we went, heading to the Valley of the Rocks.

We couldn’t be more fortunate to have this kind of scenery on our doorstep, as a Devon based cycling brand we have some of the greatest cycling roads in the country — who needs Mallorca!

view montage

At the end of the day we headed back to Lynmouth to take in some proper Devon hospitality — cider, ales and pasties. Sat outside the pub, watching the daylight fade we knew we’d caught a cracking day. There couldn’t have been a better way to showcase our new collection.

If you’d like to download the GPX file of the ride to try yourself, you can here.

Route profile

Route map