Tuesday 27 September 2011

Charity Rides & Are We Our Own Worst Enemies?

Sunday saw the big one for me for the last part of this year. The Tour Ride, Stoke On Trent.

The ride was in aid of Prostate Cancer and I was determined to do a reasonable ride, to work hard despite the weather so I could justify the donations that people have made. Just because I've done the event doesn't mean you can't donate - Please, please, please visit my Virgin Giving page and donate as much as you can.

The forecast was OK, not as good as it had been in the days leading to the event but still, not too bad - how wrong they were! I stood patently on the start line, there were 1300 riders to start in groups of 40 four minutes apart, so I was standing there for quite a while. Once I got moving though I began to enjoy the event from the start - well, at least after I'd found a suitable bush in which to stop and relieve myself - that wait on the start line had been a tad to long!!!!!!!

The route is well planned and follows the route of the Stoke stage of the Tour Of Britain, the only deviation being that we start and finish in Trentham rather than finish in Hanley. It's a very rolling route with very little flat, either up or down with the only real flat being the section from Uttoxeter to Rocester, by the time I'd reached the flat bit I'd already climbed over 800m in less that 30 miles. Then we hit the big stuff.


The first feed stop at Milwich - still looking clean!


There are 3 categorised climbs, Ramshorn, Gun Hill and Commonside. The first is Ramshorn, a Cat 2 climb that goes up in steps with a max gradient of 14%. It's long but not really hard, that said, I lost some time here as I rode with someone that was slower then me and I was chatting - well, for about half way anyway.

After Ramshorn came the Morridge and the fast descent to Tittesworth Reservoir. It's a great descent after reaching the high point of the day up on the Morridge above Leek.

Descending from the Morridge



At Tittesworth I met Tracey, my long suffering wife, who was driving round to the feed stations providing me with bottles of High5 and ZipVit Gels.

Then to Gun Hill - average gradient of 10% with a max of 25% had most of the people around me struggling - but, as with last year I rode up strongly and with a smile of my fat face. How I can do that I have no idea - but I rode away from many much fitter looking people! The photo here is of me near the top of Gun Hill - check out the grin! Or, is it in fact a grimace?

On Gun Hill

From Gun Hill the route dropped to Leek and then over the feared and rolling hills to Whetley Rocks. As it was I didn't find it half as bad as I expected that section to be. 

Our Own Worst Enemies?

It was here, on this section that I saw some appalling riding from people doing the event and no wonder us cyclists get abuse. As we left Leek there was a set of traffic lights, they were clearly on red and were for a junction, not a crossing. They were on a descent and one guy over took me, flew down the hill, undertook a car that was slowing for the red light and just blasted on through at high speed with no regard for the safety of anyone on the road. What a bloody fool and what kind of impression is that going to give? He was too far away for me to get his number, if I had been able to then I'd be looking to get some kind of prosecution on going for careless cycling or at the very least a ban from Tour Ride events. I'm very sorry to say that it wasn't the only bit of bad riding I saw. We truly are our own worst enemy and how can we really blame motorists for not giving us room, or just being obstructive when we behave like that?

Well, after that I decided to really stick to riding on my own and doing my won thing for the rest of the event. I rode strongly to Commonside and then suffered on the climb. It's bloody steep, my old Garmin registered 29% there each time I rode it. I managed to ride the whole thing - slowly - where others were forced off their bikes and into walking. Even the Pro's suffered in the Tour of Britain on this hill.

Tracey was waiting a the top with the camera and she saw me, spoke to me and took a few photo's - now for the comical part. I rode over the top of the hill and into very heavy rain so I carried on without stopping. It's only 15 miles or so from here to the finish and I had a full bottle of High5. What I hadn't heared was Trace shouting that she'd see me at the top with a bottle. She turned and ran after me and when she got to the top she saw another Lichfield CCC Rider at the top stopped taking a drink. I'd overtaken this chap on the brow of the hill. Trace convinced herself that the rider she'd seen was this other chap and so she went back down and waited, all the time I'm slogging it out with the last remaining hills and the rain to the finish.


On Commonside - excuse the blur, it was very dark!

Near Barlaston


The finish was brilliant - unlike last year when there was hardly anyone there, this time there were hundreds of spectators, all cheering and banging the boards and it felt like a real race finish - even my tired legs were inspired to go quick to the end. I grabbed my medal and looked for Trace - oooooops. I waited 15 minutes, soaked through and getting rapidly colder and then I rang her, "Where are you?", "I'm on the top of Commonside!" came the reply. "Oh Bugger" said I, "I'm at the finish"!!!!!!!

She raced back but had to follow the route as she didn't know any other way - I was like a block of ice when she reached me and I shivered all the way home. As it was I finished 175th with an offical ride time of 05:18.33 for the 87 miles. My actual ride time not including the few stops I made was 05:09.08. I'm very pleased with that given my overweight stature at the moment and my lack of real training.

It was a really great day - a huge thank you to the organisers.

An even bigger thank you must go to the people that sponsored me - George, Tilly, Jane, Trace, Vinny, Mark and Nicola. At the moment I've raised about £85.00 and I'm trying to raise even more.

Looking forward to next year already.

Here is the Endomondo workout for the day.

Rich

Thursday 15 September 2011

Riding, Training, Idleness and Pro Riders!!!!!

Well, the big day is drawing near, the Tour Ride - Stoke On Trent,  and I'm no-where near fit! This month (and to a lesser extent last month) have been dire as far as the training and general riding have gone. The weather has been a factor but so has idleness.

I did the ride in my last Blog entry and then seemed to loose focus, the weather hasn't been overly brilliant, but it's not been that bad either (apart from the windy few days where the Tour of Britain stage was cancelled). I've just not had the motivation to get my backside off the chair and onto the saddle.

Today I went out for a ride with the neighbour, we did a decent ride for 30 miles then Jas had to peel off to get home. I carried on and did 64 miles with a reasonable speed and time, there was no wind today so it was my legs that did the work and not a tail wind which makes me happy. I'm just not fit for the Tour Ride next weekend and I'm not looking forward to it.

Here is the Endomondo workout for today.

The Tour of Britain came near to my home on Tuesday so I decided to head out and watch the sprint at Stone. Those blokes are so bloody fast - makes me feel quite inadequate. I thought I'd try to follow them part way then cut cross country and watch them again - not a chance, they flew the extra 2 or three miles and I grovelled up a big hill at Little Stoke. I missed them by a minute or so which was a shame.

Here is my Endomondo workout for Tuesday.

I feel like I've actually put weight on rather than lost it and I'm getting a little annoyed with myself. Time to sort my head out and get on the bike - even if the weather is shite!

Have fun and stay safe out there on these scary roads of ours.

Rich

Friday 2 September 2011

Riding, Saving & Pebble Dash

Well, today has been a good day on the bike. No, it's been a great day and I've really enjoyed myself.

In just over 3 weeks I'm doing the Tour Ride which follows the Stoke On Trent, Tour Of Britain stage route. It's quite lumpy but not as hard as last year for some reason.

So, as a training ride I chose to head up and join the route at Uttoxeter and then ride as far as the Mossgate turning. This takes in the big hills of the Peak District section of the ride.

The weather today was great when I started out, sunny and warm and a light SW wind. My ride today took me up the hill near home known to us as Kingston Hill, it goes from the Blythe to Kingston and rises at an average gradient of 7% hitting a max of 9% near the top, short and sharp and it got me in the mood for some hills.

I took in the two categorized climbs of the Tour Stage, Ramshorn and Gunn Hill - I'm not sure but I think they may also of made Commonside (just outside Cheadle) one of the King Of The Mountains climbs - it's the toughest of the lot, short (only half a mile) but very, very steep and last year had the Pro's struggling with the gearing they were using.

This year the route misses the ride up through Onecote (pronounced as On Cot) and Longnor. Instead it heads left after last years Pro's feed station up a wonderful road called the Morridge. A spectacular high level road with amazing views to the left and the right over the Staffordshire Moorlands and the Derbyshire Dales. From the Morridge the route drops to Blackshaw Moor down a very steep and bumpy road. I can see some crashes on this, there are some long very fast sections into very tight corners and towards the bottom there is a 30mph speed limit leading into a tight left and a hairpin right. It's gonna catch out those that haven't pre ridden the route.

Then to Gunn Hill, painful but dooable - even for this overweight middle aged MAMIL (middle aged man in lycra!). That ticked off the list and then to the bit I really don't look forward too - Leek to Wetley Rocks! Evil bit of road, rolling but the ups are hard and the downs aren't long enough to get relief for my aching thighs......I really must loose weight!

Now for the saving bit, I was riding towards the climb at Commonside when I rode past a small sparrow sitting in the road, I rode on but thought that it must have been a late fledgling as it didn't move and I thought to myself that I couldn't let it just be squashed by a car! So, I turned round and rode back up the road. To my horror a car came down so I gesticulated wildly but the car driver just carried on in his own little world, but JUST missed the bird. When I got to it it just sat there and I could see that it was actually an adult that was injured - I guess a cat's had it. It was bleeding from a cut above it's eye, perhaps even from the eye, I think the best option would have been to kill it, but I can't do that. The best I could do was pick it up gently and place it in the long grass at the side of the road, a little stroke on the head and it hopped off. Let's hope it survives, poor little blighter!

Oh, Commonside nearly killed me! Brutal.

As for the Pebble Dash! The bloody councils in the UK insist on doing something that they call Road Dressing. It comprises of dumping gravel on to sticky tar and then leaving it - they are supposed to roller it and then sweep the excess but they never do. It's a cheap and really shit way to cover the roads, they don't fill the holes and they make the road surface loose and dangerous - the first warm weather we have and the gravel gets ripped up from the warm tar and the road is worse than before. Well, the local council in it's wisdom has pebble dashed my fave descent towards my home. Now it's lethal, loose gravel on all corners and in the middle of the road. Made my last few miles a misery - the bastards!

We should start a campaign to stop this crappy cheap way of road repair.

Got home feeling tired but happy that I'd worked hard - only an extra 26 miles to do on the day, should be do-able if I pace myself a bit.

Here is the Endomondo workout for today.