The Bikes of Spring Day 2

Stoford to Ogbourne St. George, April 5, 2009

Miracles will happen! We planned on an early start for Sunday, and we got it! Thanks to Steve for suggesting an earlier breakfast for us. Not having loads of beer helps as well. We set off from Stoford for the return leg to Ogbourne with the sun on our faces and the wind at our backs.

We followed the Wylye River upstream for some distance through picturesque villages and quiet lanes. After a sharpish hill climb we hooked back up with the Salisbury Plain. We knew we were there by the distant sound of artillery. We quickly made tracks as the terrain was not as bad as we had envisaged. By the time we made our first coffee stop we had covered nearly 1/3 of our daily route.

Our next climb was Alton/Knap hill where we viewed a white horse and an iron-age hill fort. This was big climb for us, one of the longest of the day. The gradient wasn’t too bad so we went low in the gears and ground our way to the top. All three of us made it without much difficulty. Steve and I were reminiscing as we had passed this way on our Lowestoft to Land’s End ride in 2008. Once on top, it was a very fast ride into Lockeridge where we celebrated our speed with baguettes and pints. Unfortunately the sun put its hat on for the rest of the day and we had to cycle in mostly cloudy and cool conditions, at least it wasn’t raining.

At this point we decided to alter course to avoid some A-road hell. We picked our way through Marlborough to the A4 and cut off to the nearest side road. We aimed for Ogbourne by using some of the lanes we had headed out on the day before. There were some heavy climbs to be found here. At one point we all looked ready to bonk after a particularly long hard climb. We had a quick stop and finished off our obligatory bag of wine gums. The last few hills were pretty tough as we were all just about out of glycogen.

The best part about the finish was that we got to go down the 17% hill we started on the day before. It was a scary ride down. We all held onto the brakes until we could see it was clear. Once clear we opened the taps and let fly. We all managed a top speed over 40 mph, scary enough for us old farts!

We glided into Ogbourne to find the pub closed. With nothing else to do we packed up and made our way home. Thanks to Mark (King of hills and maps) for organising this great ride.

Chuck

The Bikes of Spring Day 1

Ogbourne St. George to Stoford, April 4, 2009


We all managed to skip out of work early on Friday in order to set off for our two day weekend ride around the plains of Wiltshire. Mark had setup this ride, which was a circular route starting in Ogbourne St. George and heading to Stoford, a distance of just over 50 miles. We would then stay overnight in Stoford, heading back to Ogbourne on Sunday afternoon after another 50 miles or so.

Steve and I made “good time” leaving Crewe on Friday, getting to Ogbourne before 18:00, just in time for early doors. Mark (with our support team Rebecca and Ted) weren’t so fortunate. They managed to get stuck as the M25 was shut. They finally rolled in for food and drinks just after 20:00. We made merry the rest of the evening with far too much beer and whiskey.


Saturday morning we set up for an early start. As you may have noticed from other posts, this never happens and this time was no exception. After much monkey business we finally managed to set off for the day at about 10:00. The sun was shining and it was shaping up to be a beautiful day. This ride was Steve’s first run on his new Tifosi CK7 Audax bike. Steve has kept his Boardman Comp for short weekend blasts and is now using the Tifosi for long weekend rides with the intention of getting involved in proper Audax riding (we wish him luck). Steve prefers the more relaxed geometry of the Tifosi compared to a full on road bike.


After riding for what seemed like two minutes we were faced with a massive hill locally known as Snap Hill. This one was a killer 17% incline for what seemed like ages. Well, with ice cold muscles and a mega hangover I bailed for a stroll about halfway with Steve in tow. With un-stretched muscles and no warm up, a walk was better than a torn muscle. Mark on the other had powered his way to the top non-stop. Not much further on another hill just like the last appeared. I had a go at this one until my cleat popped, again bail and walk with Steve. Mark once again flew to the top. I was beginning to think that Mark had set us the most brutal of courses and began to wonder if I would be walking most of the way. Fortunately those two hills were the worst of the ride.


The remainder of the morning was spent covering most of Salisbury Plain. We encountered a few hills on the way but nothing too bad. Once on the Plain we were hit with a strong headwind which would be with us for the rest of the day. The Plain is a vast open chalk plateau and mostly undeveloped. The whole area is used by the armed forces for training. Interestingly enough, this has led to the area becoming a wildlife haven, due to its protected status. We were left with the odd sensation of cycling to the never ending song of skylarks while we passed through tank crossings and watched helicopters land.


We had a quick bite to eat in a country pub which set us up for the rest of the day. We slowly made our way towards Larkhill (Army Barracks) and fought the wind on some truly dreadful roads. We were glad to get to Stonehenge for a break from the breeze. As usual the place was rammed with tourists. We didn’t want to pay to see the stones; so we just had a coffee and a peek through the wire. It is a shame that a monument as important as this does not have free access. Leaving Stonehenge is dangerous. You first have to avoid all of the traffic around the stones. Next, you have to get past the furiously fast and busy A303. The only safe option was to dash across the lanes to a footpath then stay on the foot path until we could find a side lane.


Our final leg of the day took us along the Avon through Upper and Middle Woodford past Sting’s house. This was one of the best roads we have cycled along. Very quiet, great views, sheltered roads and just enough twists/hills to make the perfect ride. I would like to ride this one again some time. Leaving the Avon valley, we went up and over into the neighbouring valley on the river Wylye. Here we stopped for the night in Stoford staying at the friendly Grayling House B&B.

Chuck

The Cheshire Cat 2009

This past weekend saw Mark and I ride our first cyclosportive, The Cheshire Cat. The Cheshire Cat cyclosportive is based out of Knutsford and offers a 38, 66 or 102 mile option. As we were both sportive virgins we decided for our own sake (and those around us) that it would be advisable to do the 38 mile ride. I was very apprehensive the night before and found little sleep. I had no idea what to expect as 1600 riders had entered and we were going to have to learn to ride in packs for the first time ever.

 

We set off from Nantwich Sunday morning, late as usual. That night we had experienced a hard frost and there was still plenty about as we pulled into Knutsford. By the time we set up our bikes we were ready for a ride, just to warm up! Our first flub was to queue in the wrong place to pick up our timing chips. There were no signs to tell us about the alphabetical system they had set up so we had to learn the hard way. Once we had fitted our timing chips to the front drop outs, we joined a pack of about 50 riders in front of the timing mats for the briefing and sending off. There is no mass start, riders start whenever they feel like it from 8:30 to 10:00.

 

After the first few miles, the nerves settled down and we set about finding a pace that suited us both. It was great to see some of the huge groups in perfect formation flying past us. At times it felt as if we were standing still. We took turns at the head of our two man peloton, switching every 5 km. At one point we hooked up with a couple of other riders who were at our pace. We rode with them, taking turns up front, until we hit the feed stop half way through. The stop had drinks and snacks. Although the doughnuts looked nice, I questioned the nutritional value they had and passed on them.

 

The rest of the ride was very flat and fairly quick taking in some of the more quiet lanes (although we did encounter some epic potholes). At one point we cycled past Jodrell Bank, which is quite a view in the early morning. Navigation was okay; Mark nearly missed a turn as he was "in the zone" but performed a beautiful rear end skid to get back on track. Not much further on we took a wrong turning due to sign confusion which cost us some time. As the ride progressed I felt more and more settled, as a result our speeds picked up on the final leg to Knutsford. Once back, we promptly went straight past the finish line! We didn't see any sign and thought there was a back way in. More time lost but at least we didn't go too far, unlike two riders that started the whole course again!

 

All in all we both really enjoyed it. In hindsight we could have done the 66 miler fairly comfortably but the choice of the 38 was probably the right one. Next week we are off to do some fast touring around Stonehenge and Salisbury Plain. Watch this space.

Winter Training

The blog has been very quite for a few weeks. We are still in the grips of winter with sub-zero temps and icy roads. This is not at all what we want! Bring on the sun! I managed a couple of weekend rides over the last month. Nothing spectacular, just little jaunts to keep the legs moving. Mark and I are doing this sportive in a couple of weeks so I have been alternating between running and sessions on the turbo. Benefits of the turbo are a good workout and the chance to listen to music properly. Do you remember when you were young (a long time ago!) and you would sit down, or crash out, and just listen to albums right the way through uninterrupted? De-ciphering the lyrics, thinking about the rhythm and just generally enjoying it. Doing these otherwise dreadfully boring turbo sessions has given me blocks of time to do just that again. If it wasn’t for my iPod, I think I would go even more mental than I am normally.

My grand plan of becoming a car-less citizen has taken some great leaps forward. My work is now well within commuting distance, albeit along a very busy and deadly road. Also, I have ordered my third bike [wife rolls eyes, grumbles]. I went for a cheap and cheerful tank like beast. I’ll put up a photo when it arrives and I’ve kitted it out for commuting. Once I’m on the pedals, the next phase is to sell my beloved old Land Rover 110 Defender. I’ll miss the old girl but not the endless stream of money I have to pour into it.

Cheshire Cat

Mark and I have signed up to do our first sportive. For those not familiar with this, a sportive (or cyclosportive) is a mass-participation bicycle event that combines elements of road bicycle racing and long distance bicycle touring. Some cyclosportives offer a choice of routes of different lengths or difficulty. Although a cyclosportive is definitely not a cycle race, to define it you could say it falls between a traditional road race and a non-competitive event. Riders sometimes carry a number and the time they take to complete the course is recorded, and there is sometimes an upper time limit within which the course must be completed. The routes will usually be well sign-posted and/or marshalled riders will be able to use feeding stations positioned at intervals along the route to replenish their food and drink supplies, and mechanical and medical support may also be provided.

 

The name of the sportive we are doing is the Cheshire Cat, a loop ride based out of Knutsford. The event has three lengths at 37, 66 and 102 miles. Since it is the first ride of the year and we (well me really) have put on a nice layer of winter fat, we will be riding the 37 mile (60 km) event. We are thinking that we should be able to do this in the required 2 hours if we put in some saddle time. I have been using my turbo trainer which is great if a little boring. The cold weather we have been having looks to break soon so we should be able to hit the lanes!

 

Chuck

A Winter Tale

December 6, 2008

 

With the sun on full this Saturday I decided it would be a good day for a winter spin. It was quite cold the night before (-4 C), the cat was stuck on us all night like a limpet. The day promised a balmy +4 C, it was time to ride. My kitting up took more time than I thought. Bib shorts, thermals (top & bottom), tights, long sleeve base layer, winter jersey, neck warmer, skull cap, gloves, cycle socks, wool socks, overshoes and shades. I was an overstuffed sausage (Pork and Lycra) but ready to go none the less. I even managed to put my arms down, unlike poor little Ralphie's brother in the classic film "A Christmas Story". In the film a little boy's mother puts so many layers of clothes on her son to go to school that he can't see or even put his arms down. I think the remark about "preparing for deep sea diving" was quite apt. Anyway, the mother says "you can put your arms down when you get to school". Anyone who grew up in the great white north can sympathize.

 

I had a really nice ride out into Shropshire enjoying the sun. No wind but the roads was awfully wet. About 25 km from home, I saw black ice on the tarmac ahead. The ice crystals were gleaming at me like the Sirens of Sirenum scopuli. By the time I said "Oh Sh-" I was on the deck! Ouch. A genetic mutation of Lance Armstrong and Olga Korbut couldn't have kept my bike vertical. I took the full force on my hip, hand and shoulder. Why oh why does this always happen the absolute furthest from home? I was literally at the half way point! I stared into the blue sky assessing the damage with one foot still clipped onto the bike. Nothing broken, relief. I gathered my self upwards for a better look, adrenaline course through my veins. Nothing too major, just sore all along my right side, in particular my hip and elbow. Having three layers on saved me some serious road rash. The only visible damage was small tears in my glove and overshoes.

 

Being in the middle of nowhere my next concern was for the bike. Both tires were true and inflated. Only a slight bend on my handle bars and STI's. Both of these problems were easily fixed on the road. At least I had transport. Feeling totally paranoid about ice, I set off on a slow hobble, not wanting to risk another episode. After about 30 minutes of walking and very slow un-clipped riding, I managed to get to my return roads, which I knew were ice free.

 

Once at home I dosed up on some cycling candy (ibuprofen), washed/repaired my bike, got some hot food and hit the showers. Once in the shower I saw a nice bit of bloody road rash on my arm. The strange thing is, there was no tearing or ripping in either my jersey or base layer. How this happened I don't' know, comments please.

 

The lesson for the day was 1) don't ride the day after a heavy night frost, when in doubt stay home. 2) 25 mm wet tires have 0 grip on icy tarmac, you will fall. 3) Several layers of clothing are a good thing. 4) Having a dedicated winter bike is well worth it, if it had been my Madone, I would have been in tears. 4) Red wine and a hot bath cures all fall related ills.

 

Chuck

 

p.s. 5 falls since 2005 only 1 trip to hospital.

 

Hadrian's Audax - Day 2 Grindon to Whitley Bay

I was up early on the morning, watching the sunrise over the moors. A lot of low lying fog and lavender skies made for an eerie scene. We had a band of rain pass over us during the night and the forecast was for clear skies with a cool morning. Our host Les set us up for the day with another full breakfast (not losing any weight on this trip!). We setup our bikes for the relatively short ride, hoping to finish by the afternoon.

We set off at 9 a.m. exactly, quite well for us as we are normally about an hour late. The low lying fog was still around but made for some wonderful scenery. Our altitude was such that we didn't have to ride through any fog but could see it all around us in the valleys to the south. Although we were enjoying our warm up I think we were all thinking about crossing the North Tyne River in Chollerford. In order to cross this river, we drop all of the altitude we had gained over the past day down to the river. Once over, we had to gain it all back plus a little more in a very short distance. We all were a little apprehensive about "making it to the top".

We made the descent into the valley at high speed (60+ km/hr). Losing all our gained altitude in mere minutes. We had to throw out the anchors to keep from going too fast and putting ourselves in a position where a fall would be disastrous. A quick stop on the river for pictures and we were on our way up a 14% grade again. This one was tough. Mark and I set off ahead of Steve and Maile (still struggling with a duff derailleur). Within the first few minutes, Mark and I were on our lowest gears and out of the saddle. When it looked like we were beat and ready for a stroll, the slope levelled off just enough to catch our breath. We then marched a slow and steady cadence up to a point where we finally levelled off. Although we both felt knackered (and a little sick) we had made it without too much difficulty. Steve and Maile were not far behind. We stopped for a quick breather before going up and over the last 80 metres.

The only redeeming thing about this climb was that it was mostly downhill to the coast from the top. There would be a few small hills, but there would also be a lot of coasting and fast spinning. By the time we descended the moors, we were desperate for a coffee and cake stop. Fortunately there was a farm shop just in the right place. Nothing like hot coffee and cake to warm the soul and a cool morning!

Not soon after our cake stop, we hit the built up areas of greater Newcastle. This section of the ride was not meant to be much fun, just a means to an end. We had to fight the traffic, lights and roundabouts along the A191 to the coast. Not too many dicey moments, just a lot of stop-start riding. We were all amazed at the huge volume of traffic on the roads, given that it was a Sunday afternoon. It was a continuous stream of traffic the whole way. Quite disheartening to think that this is the way the country is heading, cars tail to tail 24/7. It seemed ages until we finally saw the coast. None of us felt that tired as we rolled to a stop in Whitley Bay (total distance 148 km). The beach was busy as it looked like the last day of sun we might get for awhile. There was nothing else for us to do but get some fish, chips and mushy peas on the seaside!

After some seaside snaps, Mark's wife took him and Maile back to Grindon to collect the car while Steve and I waited. Steve and I decided to pedal north to find a pub and wait for Maile to collect us. We had a couple of pints at a pub in Seaton Sluice before heading to the nearest car park for collection. The drive back south was uneventful and we made it back to Crewe and Nantwich at 9 p.m. We all agreed it was a great and fulfilling weekend. The next trip is in the capable hands of Mark. What will he have waiting for us?

Chuck