Great News:
Dylan (riding for Help for Heros) £1306.25
Stuart (riding for Save the Children) £375.96
Andy (riding for Save the Children) £683.75
Neil (riding for Save the Children) £1838.54
A grand total of £4204.50
Great effort guys, and thanks so much to all our many and various sponsors!
Thursday, 5 July 2012
Saturday, 17 September 2011
The full story...
....of our trip is now available on http://monmarduman.blogspot.com.
Well, perhaps not the full story. I haven't, for example, mentioned how Dylan became so accustomed to farting whenever he felt the need that he started doing it whilst riding through populous villages, to the bemusement of the locals.
Or when Neil bought enough bananas to constipate an entire group of riders, let alone one, and we had to leave some in a bin.
Or when Andy nearly managed to get on to the big chainring on his bike.
But quite a lot else is there, in four parts.
Well, perhaps not the full story. I haven't, for example, mentioned how Dylan became so accustomed to farting whenever he felt the need that he started doing it whilst riding through populous villages, to the bemusement of the locals.
Or when Neil bought enough bananas to constipate an entire group of riders, let alone one, and we had to leave some in a bin.
Or when Andy nearly managed to get on to the big chainring on his bike.
But quite a lot else is there, in four parts.
Wednesday, 7 September 2011
London to Paris 2011 - Routes and Elevation Charts
I had a bit of spare time so thought i would upload the data from Cyclemeter so you can see the route we took on a journey from London to Paris
All of the full details can be found at the links below but i have added the routes and elevations below
Thursday - http://maps.google.com/?q=http://share.abvio.com/8c16/b884/4e0b/10c4/Cyclemeter-Cycle-20110901-1849.kml
Friday - http://maps.google.com/?q=http://share.abvio.com/8c16/b884/4e0b/10c4/Cyclemeter-Cycle-20110902-0801.kml
Saturday - http://maps.google.com/?q=http://share.abvio.com/8c16/b884/4e0b/10c4/Cyclemeter-Cycle-20110903-0838.kml
Sunday - http://maps.google.com/?q=http://share.abvio.com/8c16/b884/4e0b/10c4/Cyclemeter-Cycle-20110904-0852.kml
Monday - http://maps.google.com/?q=http://share.abvio.com/8c16/b884/4e0b/10c4/Cyclemeter-Cycle-20110905-0824.kml
Thursday - Trip from Euston to Novotel Waterloo
All of the full details can be found at the links below but i have added the routes and elevations below
Thursday - http://maps.google.com/?q=http://share.abvio.com/8c16/b884/4e0b/10c4/Cyclemeter-Cycle-20110901-1849.kml
Friday - http://maps.google.com/?q=http://share.abvio.com/8c16/b884/4e0b/10c4/Cyclemeter-Cycle-20110902-0801.kml
Saturday - http://maps.google.com/?q=http://share.abvio.com/8c16/b884/4e0b/10c4/Cyclemeter-Cycle-20110903-0838.kml
Sunday - http://maps.google.com/?q=http://share.abvio.com/8c16/b884/4e0b/10c4/Cyclemeter-Cycle-20110904-0852.kml
Monday - http://maps.google.com/?q=http://share.abvio.com/8c16/b884/4e0b/10c4/Cyclemeter-Cycle-20110905-0824.kml
Thursday - Trip from Euston to Novotel Waterloo
Friday - Trip from London to Coguelles
Saturday - Trip from Euston to Abbeville
Sunday - Trip from Abbeville to Chambly - This route was slightly shortened as i ran out of battery at 60 miles
Monday - Trip from Chambly to Paris
Tuesday, 6 September 2011
Monday, 5 September 2011
Sunday, 4 September 2011
Day 3
Day 3 and we had a journey from Abbeville to Chambly expected distance of 135km. Day started well but it was still wet from last night but temperature was good. Had a good morning but Andy had to contend with 2 punctures which did not really make his day. Started to make good progress towards our midday checkpoint to Le Crocq but the 10km drag up a never ending hill with a killer cross wide made is very painful. It was good news when we arrived they had a local community gathering so we rewarded ourselves with a cider and chips. But it all went wrong as the heavens opened and the next hour was very wet and miserable. We then plodded on and the rest of the 40miles proved to be very hard with a continued amount of side winds and it was a very welcome sight to see our hotel. We have rewarded ourselves by eating approx 1metre of pizza and a few beers. We are all very looking forward to a reasonably short 50km tomorrow to
Paris. More tomorrow
Saturday, 3 September 2011
Day 2 Abbeville
Now we're 169 miles into our adventure and settled into the Abbeville F1 hotel. It's been a tough day today with the hills and the heat, but rewarding all the same.
As expected, riding in France has been a joy compared to the UK, with very little traffic and much smoother roads.
We interrupted one of our descents today to pay our respects at a WW1 British memorial. Appropriate for Dylan as he's riding in support of Help for Heros.
Day 2 Midday Update
Posted by Neil
Having avoided wiping out a couple of shrews as they scampered across the road early in the day, we opted for a spot of brunch at Devsres. As we left the village we passed a sign announcing that we were joining the "Route Les 7 Vallees" gave us a clue to the format of our afternoon, with spectacular descents followed by energy sapping climbs.
As we progressed through the ups and downs of the valleys the temperature also steadily climbed, but thankfully most of the ups benefitted from tree cover.
We had a late lunch at Hesdin where we learned that the Temp had got up to 33 deg. Scorchio!
As we progressed through the ups and downs of the valleys the temperature also steadily climbed, but thankfully most of the ups benefitted from tree cover.
We had a late lunch at Hesdin where we learned that the Temp had got up to 33 deg. Scorchio!
Friday, 2 September 2011
Bikes on the Ferry
Posted by Neil
Bikes stowed against a bulkhead - no straps required as the crossing was perfectly smooth.
Decent grub on board too - most opting for Fish and Chips, with a veggie lasagne for me.
The crossing was 1h 30m rather than the normal 1h 15m - presumably due to the fog.
Bikes stowed against a bulkhead - no straps required as the crossing was perfectly smooth.
Decent grub on board too - most opting for Fish and Chips, with a veggie lasagne for me.
The crossing was 1h 30m rather than the normal 1h 15m - presumably due to the fog.
The ride off the ferry was straightforward, but you have to push the bikes over the first "fingers" of the ramp as they're just polished steel with no grip whatsoever.
Stuart's excellent mapping and navigational prep paid off again in Calais as we headed towards the F1 Hotel at Coquelles, although it did seem to suprise Stuart that we were on the right road... The town centre of Calais is something most travellers avoid, but is probably worth a detour when you've got some time to fill before your ferry is due. The Hotel de Ville and Theatre are worthy of particular note.
We were enjoying the smooth French roads and the lack of traffic (once away from the immediate port area) and made great time completing the 8 or so miles to the recently refurbished F1 at Coquelles. Showers, clothes washed and then off to bed.
We're at Dover!
Posted by Neil
From Ashford we made our way down to Hythe and then along to coast to Folkstone which was pretty straightforward, but finding the Dover coast road out of Folkstone was less easy (all the signs point you back to the major roads) but a local on his bike soon had us pointing in the right direction. Thanks to you my anonymous friend. But what a direction! Mostly, it was pointing straight up, and with temperatures now in the mid-20s, the climb was a struggle for all of us except Stuart. Some walking was done, albeit only a couple hundred metres or so.
Re-grouped at the top, we enjoyed the last few miles along the South coast but the weather changed dramatically with temperatures dropping and the mist descending.
Made it into a misty Dover! Managed to get an earlier ferry too. Hope there's loads of food on board!
From Ashford we made our way down to Hythe and then along to coast to Folkstone which was pretty straightforward, but finding the Dover coast road out of Folkstone was less easy (all the signs point you back to the major roads) but a local on his bike soon had us pointing in the right direction. Thanks to you my anonymous friend. But what a direction! Mostly, it was pointing straight up, and with temperatures now in the mid-20s, the climb was a struggle for all of us except Stuart. Some walking was done, albeit only a couple hundred metres or so.
Re-grouped at the top, we enjoyed the last few miles along the South coast but the weather changed dramatically with temperatures dropping and the mist descending.
Made it into a misty Dover! Managed to get an earlier ferry too. Hope there's loads of food on board!
Lunch in Sunny Kent
Posted by Neil
Only one issue so far this morning - signposts in Maidstone. All we wanted to do was follow the A20 through the town in the direction of Ashford. In the town centre the A20 signs disappeared, so we need to follow the signs to Bearsted, but even those weren't too obvious. Lost about 20 minutes getting back on route (there was a nasty climb involved in our detour that we had to go back down!).
Now outside Ashford Greggs who have provided sustenance in mid 20s temperatures - the weather's been very kind so far.
Only one issue so far this morning - signposts in Maidstone. All we wanted to do was follow the A20 through the town in the direction of Ashford. In the town centre the A20 signs disappeared, so we need to follow the signs to Bearsted, but even those weren't too obvious. Lost about 20 minutes getting back on route (there was a nasty climb involved in our detour that we had to go back down!).
Now outside Ashford Greggs who have provided sustenance in mid 20s temperatures - the weather's been very kind so far.
En Route
Posted by Neil
Hard work getting out of London from Gresham Street, over the river and then out through Lewisham means only 10 MPH average so far. Now at Wrotham Heath. The climb up Shooters Hill was pretty stiff, but the main issue is just the volume of traffic, stopping for traffic lights every 50 metres and concentrating on not trashing your wheels on the pot holes...
Hard work getting out of London from Gresham Street, over the river and then out through Lewisham means only 10 MPH average so far. Now at Wrotham Heath. The climb up Shooters Hill was pretty stiff, but the main issue is just the volume of traffic, stopping for traffic lights every 50 metres and concentrating on not trashing your wheels on the pot holes...
Thursday, 1 September 2011
On The Train to London
Posted by Neil
Rode the 15 miles from home to Chester station in glorious sunshine but a stiff headwind. Successfully caught the train to London and the bike's safely stowed. Time for a cuppa.
Rode the 15 miles from home to Chester station in glorious sunshine but a stiff headwind. Successfully caught the train to London and the bike's safely stowed. Time for a cuppa.
Wednesday, 31 August 2011
Weather Forecast For The Ride
Posted by Neil
Friday:
London - Sunny intervals - light cross wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-London-UKXX0085?dayNum=2
Dover - Sunny intervals - moderate cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Dover-UKXX0042?dayNum=2
Saturday:
Calais - Sunny intervals, rain in the evening - moderate cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Calais-FRXX0272?dayNum=3
Abbeville - Mostly sunny, rain in the evening - light cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Abbeville-FRXX0111?dayNum=3
Sunday:
Abbeville - Showers - moderate cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Abbeville-FRXX0111?dayNum=4
Chambly - Light rain - moderate cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Chambly-FRXX5767?dayNum=4
Monday:
Chambly - Light rain - moderated cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Chambly-FRXX5767?dayNum=5
Paris - Light rain - moderate cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Paris-FRXX0076?dayNum=5
So it looks like its going to be better in Kent than it is in France, with the lighter French traffic and warmer temperatures of Saturday looking like the best day of our ride.
Friday:
London - Sunny intervals - light cross wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-London-UKXX0085?dayNum=2
Dover - Sunny intervals - moderate cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Dover-UKXX0042?dayNum=2
Saturday:
Calais - Sunny intervals, rain in the evening - moderate cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Calais-FRXX0272?dayNum=3
Abbeville - Mostly sunny, rain in the evening - light cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Abbeville-FRXX0111?dayNum=3
Sunday:
Abbeville - Showers - moderate cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Abbeville-FRXX0111?dayNum=4
Chambly - Light rain - moderate cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Chambly-FRXX5767?dayNum=4
Monday:
Chambly - Light rain - moderated cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Chambly-FRXX5767?dayNum=5
Paris - Light rain - moderate cross to head wind http://uk.weather.com/weather/dailyDetails-Paris-FRXX0076?dayNum=5
So it looks like its going to be better in Kent than it is in France, with the lighter French traffic and warmer temperatures of Saturday looking like the best day of our ride.
Neil's Target Smashed!
Posted by Neil
Just as we're less than 2 days away from the beginning of our little adventure, my £1,000 total is not only achieved but passed in style. With the Government's gift aid scheme, the overall total is now over £1300!
Thanks so much to all my contributors. Save the Children will be able to help more children more quickly due to your generosity!
Just as we're less than 2 days away from the beginning of our little adventure, my £1,000 total is not only achieved but passed in style. With the Government's gift aid scheme, the overall total is now over £1300!
Thanks so much to all my contributors. Save the Children will be able to help more children more quickly due to your generosity!
Monday, 29 August 2011
En France Practice 4 - 3 Days of Plouay
Poseted by Neil
The UCI Pro Tour rolls into the tiny town of Plouay every August for the Grand Prix de Bretagne. It's a 248km 13 laps of a course that has its start/finish line near the town's velodrome. The preceding day sees the junior and ladies races and the major teams usually field strong B teams for the main event. So the likes of BMC, HTC Highroad (with Renshaw), Sky (with Swift, Thomas & Bosenhagen), Europcar (with Voekeler), FDJ, Leopard Trek, Cofidis, Astana, Saxo Bank and more fielding teams gives a mini TdF flavour.
Via Nirone 7 posing next to sponsor's banners
On the Friday, the amateurs get a turn with sportive, randonee, VTT and walking events available, all using the same start line as the main event. I was entered into the randonee event as there's some kind of licence / medical cert requirement for the sportive. Even these amateur events attracted a full page preview and 3 page report in the Ouest France newspaper.
I opted for the 90km ride but managed to miss the big start (1900 in the randonee) by 30 minutes because I'd got mixed up with when the campsite allowed car movements in the early morning, but the organisers still allowed me to run. Nice. This route was constantly undulating, no real big climbs, but no rest sections either. There was one refreshment point where I filled up with water and enjoyed bananas and madelines. I probably picked off 100 or so riders over the route which made me feel better, given their 30 min head start. Nice weather too, wet roads to start with but no rain nor wind and temps around the 20 mark. Had my first puncture after 4000 miles of puncture free riding on Conti Gatorskins, but it was just over 1km from the finish so I walked it over the line. Good job my French is poor so I didn't have to understand the commentators' sarky remarks.
56 miles in 3 hrs 33 mins including the walking, so pretty pleased with that. Post ride refreshments included the option of a beer!
So that's all my riding done now, next time on the bike will be on the way from Euston to the hotel in London on the night before the first day of L2P. Gulp!
The UCI Pro Tour rolls into the tiny town of Plouay every August for the Grand Prix de Bretagne. It's a 248km 13 laps of a course that has its start/finish line near the town's velodrome. The preceding day sees the junior and ladies races and the major teams usually field strong B teams for the main event. So the likes of BMC, HTC Highroad (with Renshaw), Sky (with Swift, Thomas & Bosenhagen), Europcar (with Voekeler), FDJ, Leopard Trek, Cofidis, Astana, Saxo Bank and more fielding teams gives a mini TdF flavour.
Via Nirone 7 posing next to sponsor's banners
On the Friday, the amateurs get a turn with sportive, randonee, VTT and walking events available, all using the same start line as the main event. I was entered into the randonee event as there's some kind of licence / medical cert requirement for the sportive. Even these amateur events attracted a full page preview and 3 page report in the Ouest France newspaper.
I opted for the 90km ride but managed to miss the big start (1900 in the randonee) by 30 minutes because I'd got mixed up with when the campsite allowed car movements in the early morning, but the organisers still allowed me to run. Nice. This route was constantly undulating, no real big climbs, but no rest sections either. There was one refreshment point where I filled up with water and enjoyed bananas and madelines. I probably picked off 100 or so riders over the route which made me feel better, given their 30 min head start. Nice weather too, wet roads to start with but no rain nor wind and temps around the 20 mark. Had my first puncture after 4000 miles of puncture free riding on Conti Gatorskins, but it was just over 1km from the finish so I walked it over the line. Good job my French is poor so I didn't have to understand the commentators' sarky remarks.
56 miles in 3 hrs 33 mins including the walking, so pretty pleased with that. Post ride refreshments included the option of a beer!
So that's all my riding done now, next time on the bike will be on the way from Euston to the hotel in London on the night before the first day of L2P. Gulp!
En France Practice 3
Posted by Neil
Today's ride felt like great practice for Kent. I didn't want to spend much time looking at maps so I just decided to head out through Carnac and stick to the major single carriageway D roads to the West with the city of Lorient at my halfway point before completing the ride by just retracing my tracks.
Despite holding back on setting off until later in the morning (allowing breakfast with the family) to wait for some showers to pass over, about 2 hours of this ride was spent in fairly significant rain. By French standards these were pretty busy roads and Lorient turned out not to be worth the effort. So good practice for Kent and Dover!
A very robust 61 miles this time, and a For Goodness Shakes vanilla flavour consumed ready for the big event out of Plouay tomorrow.
Today's ride felt like great practice for Kent. I didn't want to spend much time looking at maps so I just decided to head out through Carnac and stick to the major single carriageway D roads to the West with the city of Lorient at my halfway point before completing the ride by just retracing my tracks.
Despite holding back on setting off until later in the morning (allowing breakfast with the family) to wait for some showers to pass over, about 2 hours of this ride was spent in fairly significant rain. By French standards these were pretty busy roads and Lorient turned out not to be worth the effort. So good practice for Kent and Dover!
A very robust 61 miles this time, and a For Goodness Shakes vanilla flavour consumed ready for the big event out of Plouay tomorrow.
En France Practice 2
Posted by Neil
Another 57 miles today, again on fairly unchallenging roads. Great weather though with very little wind but occasional gusts of probably no more than 10 kph. A good scenic route out around the Western edges of the Gulf of Morbihan then over to the rather underwhelming city of Vannes before a lunch break in St Anne d'Auray. Headed back to camp by skirting around Auray on the way to Erdeven and Carnac.
Photo of the Via Nirone 7 at the Gulf port of Larmor-Baden.
Another 57 miles today, again on fairly unchallenging roads. Great weather though with very little wind but occasional gusts of probably no more than 10 kph. A good scenic route out around the Western edges of the Gulf of Morbihan then over to the rather underwhelming city of Vannes before a lunch break in St Anne d'Auray. Headed back to camp by skirting around Auray on the way to Erdeven and Carnac.
Photo of the Via Nirone 7 at the Gulf port of Larmor-Baden.
Thursday, 18 August 2011
En France Practice 1
Posted by Neil
As promised, I got my first of 2 consecutive 60 milers in today (well, 57.6 miles as it happens). We've had fabulously sunny weather so far here in South Brittany - sunny every day with highs of 26 degrees. Nice.
Today though, it dawned rather misty and somewhat cooler - perfect for a decent ride. I headed out of La Trinite-Sur-Mer to Auray, on to St Anne-de-Auray with its spectacular Basilica then Westish through Brec'h towards Landevant then through Nostang on towards the coast at Riantec and Port Louis, completing the loop via Plouhinec, Erdeven and Carnac / Carnac Plage. I snacked on pain au chocolat once, pain au raisin and a banana with a large egg / cheese salad sandwich by the marina at Port Louis for lunch.
The countryside is very gently rolling with little or no hills to speak of, (max speed for the ride was 30.5 mph, so you can see there are no serious hills) but with the dampness in the air and a peak of approx. 21 deg C., it was a pretty easy ride out. There was an occasional headwind, but if it was more than 5 kph I'd be very surprised. Nice countryside and some good views, but nothing particularly spectacular.
I had a "for goodness shake" on my return so hopefully I'll be fully equipped for the second day tomorrow, which promises to be a little warmer. Going to head East this time - hopefully to get some good views across the Gulf de Morbihan.
From today I learnt that a reasonably relaxed pace (averaging 13 mph actual riding speed, probably somewhat lower when you add in the 30 mins or so not cycling) and stopping every hour or so to grab some grub from a shop (we won't be carrying snacks from day 2 onwards) doesn't seem so bad for hitting our daily average distance in good time.
As promised, I got my first of 2 consecutive 60 milers in today (well, 57.6 miles as it happens). We've had fabulously sunny weather so far here in South Brittany - sunny every day with highs of 26 degrees. Nice.
Today though, it dawned rather misty and somewhat cooler - perfect for a decent ride. I headed out of La Trinite-Sur-Mer to Auray, on to St Anne-de-Auray with its spectacular Basilica then Westish through Brec'h towards Landevant then through Nostang on towards the coast at Riantec and Port Louis, completing the loop via Plouhinec, Erdeven and Carnac / Carnac Plage. I snacked on pain au chocolat once, pain au raisin and a banana with a large egg / cheese salad sandwich by the marina at Port Louis for lunch.
The countryside is very gently rolling with little or no hills to speak of, (max speed for the ride was 30.5 mph, so you can see there are no serious hills) but with the dampness in the air and a peak of approx. 21 deg C., it was a pretty easy ride out. There was an occasional headwind, but if it was more than 5 kph I'd be very surprised. Nice countryside and some good views, but nothing particularly spectacular.
I had a "for goodness shake" on my return so hopefully I'll be fully equipped for the second day tomorrow, which promises to be a little warmer. Going to head East this time - hopefully to get some good views across the Gulf de Morbihan.
From today I learnt that a reasonably relaxed pace (averaging 13 mph actual riding speed, probably somewhat lower when you add in the 30 mins or so not cycling) and stopping every hour or so to grab some grub from a shop (we won't be carrying snacks from day 2 onwards) doesn't seem so bad for hitting our daily average distance in good time.
Sunday, 14 August 2011
Chapeau..
...to Mr H, for customising our t-shirts in such a fine fashion. On days when it's warm enough I intend to wear mine on the bike...don't think we'll be going at such a pace most of the time I need worry about its wicking qualities. Our photocall should be really good now. Talking of which, the person I'd arranged to take our photo at Gresham St is off ill long-term, so I need to think of alternative arrangements. There must be someone down there I can call on.
My prep's getting closer to being done. The bike's serviced and sorted, the panniers are located, about the only jobs left to do are a) pick said panniers up from Wolverhampton (assuming the looters haven't had them - they are currently residing quite close to the city centre), and b) plot my route from the Champs Elysee to Gare de l'Est, as I'll be soloing that one (3 weeks tomorrow as it happens), prior to getting on the TGV to Brittany. Can't work out whether that sounds more or less glamorous than getting on the Eurostar back to London, which is what the rest of the boys are doing.
Posted by Stuart
My prep's getting closer to being done. The bike's serviced and sorted, the panniers are located, about the only jobs left to do are a) pick said panniers up from Wolverhampton (assuming the looters haven't had them - they are currently residing quite close to the city centre), and b) plot my route from the Champs Elysee to Gare de l'Est, as I'll be soloing that one (3 weeks tomorrow as it happens), prior to getting on the TGV to Brittany. Can't work out whether that sounds more or less glamorous than getting on the Eurostar back to London, which is what the rest of the boys are doing.
Posted by Stuart
Saturday, 13 August 2011
Custom Made T-Shirts, Hot Off The Press
Posted by Neil
Only 3 weeks to go now. Been focussing on getting our custom t-shirts ready for the photos at the start and end of the ride.
Only 3 weeks to go now. Been focussing on getting our custom t-shirts ready for the photos at the start and end of the ride.
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| Neil's T Front Close Up |
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| Neil's T Front |
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| Stuart's T Back |
Monday, 8 August 2011
Sunday Re-run
Posted by Neil
Trying to keep up with Dylan, I planned a decent ride this past weekend. Following in the wheel tracks of our practice group ride I headed into the head wind that is prevalent in my part of North Wales and pointed the Bianchi in the direction of the Ponderosa. As I headed up through Gwynymynydd and onto the later climbs after Llanarmon-yn-lal towards Llandegla and then the final one up to the Ponderosa cafe I felt really good. I noticed the headwind, but the legs were very willing to push me up the hills.
After enjoying the descent of the Horseshoe pass, there was mild disappointment that there were no steam engines in sight at Llangollen. The more rolling roads from there towards Rhos and then over the A483 were no problem, then there was the long straight road out to Bangor on Dee. Here the wind was more behind / side. Stopped for lunch in Malpas for 15 mins or so then continued with the intention of going past Beeston, but I must've missed a turn somewhere and ended up at Tattenhall. No problems, just went towards Clutton, Coddington and then on to Farndon / Holt to get more or less back on track. However, after Tattenhall it was pretty much into the headwind again with only the occasional respite of a side wind as and when the road took at turn in the correct direction.
After Holt it was Rossett, a glimpse of the Red Arrow's display finale over Chester then to Dodleston, along to Kinnerton and up the sting in the tail - the climb to Penymynydd. This last section was very hard work - with a head wind and a few brief showers, I definitely felt tired and really running on autopilot.
When I got home I ate 2 portions of blackberry and apple crumble & ice cream and drank 2 large mugs of tea before I felt reasonably ready to move on with my day. Although I have been drinking every 10 minutes or so and snacking reasonably often, I think I need to do more to keep my energy and hydration levels up - drinking more at each intake and snacking more frequently.
As for the numbers - 72.8 miles, 5hrs 29mins elapsed riding time and 5hrs 51mins elapsed time. So not bad at an average of 13.3 mph. Still hoping very much for no head winds!
Trying to keep up with Dylan, I planned a decent ride this past weekend. Following in the wheel tracks of our practice group ride I headed into the head wind that is prevalent in my part of North Wales and pointed the Bianchi in the direction of the Ponderosa. As I headed up through Gwynymynydd and onto the later climbs after Llanarmon-yn-lal towards Llandegla and then the final one up to the Ponderosa cafe I felt really good. I noticed the headwind, but the legs were very willing to push me up the hills.
After enjoying the descent of the Horseshoe pass, there was mild disappointment that there were no steam engines in sight at Llangollen. The more rolling roads from there towards Rhos and then over the A483 were no problem, then there was the long straight road out to Bangor on Dee. Here the wind was more behind / side. Stopped for lunch in Malpas for 15 mins or so then continued with the intention of going past Beeston, but I must've missed a turn somewhere and ended up at Tattenhall. No problems, just went towards Clutton, Coddington and then on to Farndon / Holt to get more or less back on track. However, after Tattenhall it was pretty much into the headwind again with only the occasional respite of a side wind as and when the road took at turn in the correct direction.
After Holt it was Rossett, a glimpse of the Red Arrow's display finale over Chester then to Dodleston, along to Kinnerton and up the sting in the tail - the climb to Penymynydd. This last section was very hard work - with a head wind and a few brief showers, I definitely felt tired and really running on autopilot.
When I got home I ate 2 portions of blackberry and apple crumble & ice cream and drank 2 large mugs of tea before I felt reasonably ready to move on with my day. Although I have been drinking every 10 minutes or so and snacking reasonably often, I think I need to do more to keep my energy and hydration levels up - drinking more at each intake and snacking more frequently.
As for the numbers - 72.8 miles, 5hrs 29mins elapsed riding time and 5hrs 51mins elapsed time. So not bad at an average of 13.3 mph. Still hoping very much for no head winds!
SITREP - L2P Preparations
Posted by Dylan
Managed to get the last few bits and bobs for our trip last week and tackled installing the bike rack, panniers and new shortened stem last Thursday whilst the wife was out. It did not go as smoothly as expected because the bracket which attached to either side of the brakes was fouling on the calliper. After much measuring and bending i eventually installed it without stopping the caliper moving which i thought might be a good idea....
Managed to get the last few bits and bobs for our trip last week and tackled installing the bike rack, panniers and new shortened stem last Thursday whilst the wife was out. It did not go as smoothly as expected because the bracket which attached to either side of the brakes was fouling on the calliper. After much measuring and bending i eventually installed it without stopping the caliper moving which i thought might be a good idea....
Then came the trial packing of the panniers from the list that has been circulating for the past few months on all the essentials required. Once
i managed to find everything and distributed the weight across the panniers it topped out at 6.5kg (less toiletries) so am happy i am already up on Neil by 1kg (including Crocs). All seemed pretty solid after a number of adjustment of the clips so that they came on and off easily but there was a significant increase in weight seeing as it was only 6.5kg. Here are the pics below of my bike fully loaded
Time for a practice run
As it was a nice evening on Friday i thought i would get some miles under my belt with loaded panniers. All seemed OK and the additional weight was not that noticeable apart from reduce braking efficiency when going down the hills and the need to drop a cog or too when climbing. After a number of miles i did start to feel it in the legs slightly but i managed to complete 35 miles without any dramas. We all agreed to do 2 days running this weekend so more was expected tomorrow
Saturday - 50 Miles
After a very good nights sleep as the wife and children had gone away to the seaside i did not even wake up until 9AM. Being fully rested i proceed to shed some more weight with a quick haircut which should have shed a few ounces are least. Need to consider the merit of a full body wax prior to L2P so that i am as light as possible!!!!!!!
Took a new route on Saturday for which i ended up taking a few more hills than i would have liked as i passed over the Chiltern Hills (clue was in the name). I was very happy that whilst on the climb to Amersham i easily went past a fellow female cyclist who looked very disappointed as she had not additional weight to carry.
I rewarded myself with a quick snack and also a replenishment of inner tubes as the 2nd factory fit tube that came with my bike both failed at the base of the valve by splitting wide open whilst checking pressures.
Took a slightly different route on the way home to notice that i was going to come up short on distance so took an additional loop and finished with a total of 47.69 miles with an average speed of 14.12 and a ride time of 3hr 22mins and ascended 1231 feet and descended 1264 feet.
I am happy that the 2 days went well especially it is more challenging to cover the miles when on your own.
I have my new bar tape to install this week now that i am happy with the stem and seat position and the elbow pain had reduced significantly to no more than i am sure is to be expected when on the roads for this long.
More to report later this week to keep the miles up in preparation of my holiday on the 18th.
Sunday, 7 August 2011
Where are my panniers?!
Posted by Stuart
Aarrgghh! Can't find them, after hunting high and low. Have texted daughter who was the last person to use them in anger, but she's on hols so haven't had a reply. Have texted Neil too - did I lend them to him to try out the seatpost rack? I wish I had a memory that worked. Don't want to have to buy new ones...
Aarrgghh! Can't find them, after hunting high and low. Have texted daughter who was the last person to use them in anger, but she's on hols so haven't had a reply. Have texted Neil too - did I lend them to him to try out the seatpost rack? I wish I had a memory that worked. Don't want to have to buy new ones...
Thursday, 4 August 2011
Andy's Fundraising Page Launched
Posted by Neil
Andy has launched his Save The Children Fundraising Page. You can find it here or via the links down the right hand side of this page.
Time to get giving!
Andy has launched his Save The Children Fundraising Page. You can find it here or via the links down the right hand side of this page.
Time to get giving!
Monday, 1 August 2011
More Lessons Learned
Posted by Neil
See post below about a practice run with a fully loaded bike.
I went out early morning on Sunday and rode 23.8 miles from Mold to Ruthin and back (including finishing the ride by extending it around the Mold by-pass). In 23.8 miles there were around 500m of climbing involved, so not a bad bit of exercise and the climbing was more densely than it will be on our L2P days.
I had found that the clamping mechanism for the seat mounted pannier rack works far better if you replace the hand camlock with an M6 allen bolt with spring washer. Thus equipped and tightened up robustly, it would seem not to need any stablising by tie-wrapping down to the rear hub mounts. The lower part of the panniers is secured onto the rack side frames with velco straps - very easy to fit and remove. And so it proved. With the modest 7-8 kg of load evenly distributed, and tested over both potholes and at up to 37.5 mph, it remained tightly clamped, stable and was no threat to other road users nor to the rear wheel. That's a great result and means that I can go back to a standard skewer through the rear hub.
I originally guessed that the panniers I'm using were about 15 litres each in capacity, but having seen them packed, I think they're more like 20 litres each. Anyway, its plenty for our planned kit list, even when packing a pair of crocs (which I didn't even need to fill out with socks or the like), so no problems there. I did wrap everything in crinkly carrier bags for the larger items and zip top bags for the smaller and more sensitive items such as my iPod and the toilet paper (wet toilet paper, not much use really). No rain en route this weekend, so I can't report on the efficacy of this approach.
Its suprising how much the weight affects the ride - not so much in the stability of the bike (I thought this might be a problem, given how high the panniers ride on the seatpost rack, but it wasn't), but in terms of how much more effort is required to ride the bike. Pretty much every hill needed one cog lower in the gears, some 2 cogs lower. Good job I never have to use bottom gear on this route with an unladen bike! Doesn't seem to go downhill any faster though, I think the extra drag must be balancing out the benefits of more mass being dragged down by gravity.
Only one area that needs any changes (other than ditching the crocs which I think are a bit of a luxury), and that's to the corners of the mounting bracket. If Stuart's OK with this, I need to shave off a couple of millimetres of the front corners of the bracket - my inner thigh just touches them very briefly on each turn of the pedals - not enough to cause any abrasions, but just enough to be a bit annoying.
A very worthwhile exercise I think - I've only got a small adjustment to make, I found that I can ride the bike fine with no handling issues (but a little bit more effort) and that everything fits in the panniers I'm taking. Best thing is just having the confidence, well in advance, to know that all is going to go well for the bike and the luggage.
No problems with the mechanicals either - new tyres, chain, gear adjustments etc. all fairing well. And the brake pads are now well and truly "run-in", given the ride down the Clwyd Gate. Oh, and I found out yesterday that if you joing the Clwyd Gate climb at Llanbedr DC (which I have been doing for my early morning 90 minute hill route of late), that you're already 30%+ of the way up the climb and its much harder if you start from Ruthin!
See post below about a practice run with a fully loaded bike.
I went out early morning on Sunday and rode 23.8 miles from Mold to Ruthin and back (including finishing the ride by extending it around the Mold by-pass). In 23.8 miles there were around 500m of climbing involved, so not a bad bit of exercise and the climbing was more densely than it will be on our L2P days.
I had found that the clamping mechanism for the seat mounted pannier rack works far better if you replace the hand camlock with an M6 allen bolt with spring washer. Thus equipped and tightened up robustly, it would seem not to need any stablising by tie-wrapping down to the rear hub mounts. The lower part of the panniers is secured onto the rack side frames with velco straps - very easy to fit and remove. And so it proved. With the modest 7-8 kg of load evenly distributed, and tested over both potholes and at up to 37.5 mph, it remained tightly clamped, stable and was no threat to other road users nor to the rear wheel. That's a great result and means that I can go back to a standard skewer through the rear hub.
I originally guessed that the panniers I'm using were about 15 litres each in capacity, but having seen them packed, I think they're more like 20 litres each. Anyway, its plenty for our planned kit list, even when packing a pair of crocs (which I didn't even need to fill out with socks or the like), so no problems there. I did wrap everything in crinkly carrier bags for the larger items and zip top bags for the smaller and more sensitive items such as my iPod and the toilet paper (wet toilet paper, not much use really). No rain en route this weekend, so I can't report on the efficacy of this approach.
Its suprising how much the weight affects the ride - not so much in the stability of the bike (I thought this might be a problem, given how high the panniers ride on the seatpost rack, but it wasn't), but in terms of how much more effort is required to ride the bike. Pretty much every hill needed one cog lower in the gears, some 2 cogs lower. Good job I never have to use bottom gear on this route with an unladen bike! Doesn't seem to go downhill any faster though, I think the extra drag must be balancing out the benefits of more mass being dragged down by gravity.
Only one area that needs any changes (other than ditching the crocs which I think are a bit of a luxury), and that's to the corners of the mounting bracket. If Stuart's OK with this, I need to shave off a couple of millimetres of the front corners of the bracket - my inner thigh just touches them very briefly on each turn of the pedals - not enough to cause any abrasions, but just enough to be a bit annoying.
A very worthwhile exercise I think - I've only got a small adjustment to make, I found that I can ride the bike fine with no handling issues (but a little bit more effort) and that everything fits in the panniers I'm taking. Best thing is just having the confidence, well in advance, to know that all is going to go well for the bike and the luggage.
No problems with the mechanicals either - new tyres, chain, gear adjustments etc. all fairing well. And the brake pads are now well and truly "run-in", given the ride down the Clwyd Gate. Oh, and I found out yesterday that if you joing the Clwyd Gate climb at Llanbedr DC (which I have been doing for my early morning 90 minute hill route of late), that you're already 30%+ of the way up the climb and its much harder if you start from Ruthin!
Saturday, 30 July 2011
Loaded, Suited and Booted
Posted by Neil
A busy day today out in the North Wales sunshine of our backyard. In preparation for the L2P ride in September I've done a major service on the Bianchi Via Nirone 7 Alu Carbon (snappy eh?) today. This might seem a bit premature, but the plan is to get a few more 20-30 mile hilly rides and one more 70-80 before we're off on holiday to France(!) for a fortnight. In that fornight I plan to do a few short early morning rides and then 2 consecutive days of 60 miles per day, one pair per week.
So I thought it wise to do the major service now and get a couple of weeks of use out of the bike before we head off to France to iron out any wrinkles. So today we have the following:
2 x new Continental Gatorskin 700 x 23 C tyres
2 x new inner tubes
1 x new SRAM PC971 chain
4 x new Fibrax brake pads
4 x stainless steel retaining bolts for brake pads (original chromed bolts going rusty)
New rear skewer fitted with conversion kit for pannier mounting
Bar tape end tapes replaced
All hub bearings checked for play
BB checked for play
Loosened headset, re-tightened and checked for play
Brakes adjusted
Gears adjusted
All bolts checked for tightness
Everything thoroughly cleaned and frame polished
This means that I'm ready for my trial run tomorrow as I've also packed everything (except my passport and stuff like gels, energy bars etc, as they'll be going in the jersey back pockets) into the panniers tonight and they're mounted up on the seat post mounted rack that Stuart has kindly loaned to me. It was a bit of a shock how much it all weighs and I'm going to re-appraise everything when I empty them out to see if there are further weight savings to be made (for example, there's a pair of crocs in their at the moment - if its going to be dry I won't be needing them as I'll just be able to wear my Shimano M040 MTB SPD shoes for normal walking. The lock is a big contributor, but that's an essential item as far as I'm concerned. Our kitchen scales only go up to 2kg so I can't accurately weigh the panniers. I would estimate 3.5 - 4 kg each and there's 2 of them. Here's the bike all ready to go:
A busy day today out in the North Wales sunshine of our backyard. In preparation for the L2P ride in September I've done a major service on the Bianchi Via Nirone 7 Alu Carbon (snappy eh?) today. This might seem a bit premature, but the plan is to get a few more 20-30 mile hilly rides and one more 70-80 before we're off on holiday to France(!) for a fortnight. In that fornight I plan to do a few short early morning rides and then 2 consecutive days of 60 miles per day, one pair per week.
So I thought it wise to do the major service now and get a couple of weeks of use out of the bike before we head off to France to iron out any wrinkles. So today we have the following:
2 x new Continental Gatorskin 700 x 23 C tyres
2 x new inner tubes
1 x new SRAM PC971 chain
4 x new Fibrax brake pads
4 x stainless steel retaining bolts for brake pads (original chromed bolts going rusty)
New rear skewer fitted with conversion kit for pannier mounting
Bar tape end tapes replaced
All hub bearings checked for play
BB checked for play
Loosened headset, re-tightened and checked for play
Brakes adjusted
Gears adjusted
All bolts checked for tightness
Everything thoroughly cleaned and frame polished
This means that I'm ready for my trial run tomorrow as I've also packed everything (except my passport and stuff like gels, energy bars etc, as they'll be going in the jersey back pockets) into the panniers tonight and they're mounted up on the seat post mounted rack that Stuart has kindly loaned to me. It was a bit of a shock how much it all weighs and I'm going to re-appraise everything when I empty them out to see if there are further weight savings to be made (for example, there's a pair of crocs in their at the moment - if its going to be dry I won't be needing them as I'll just be able to wear my Shimano M040 MTB SPD shoes for normal walking. The lock is a big contributor, but that's an essential item as far as I'm concerned. Our kitchen scales only go up to 2kg so I can't accurately weigh the panniers. I would estimate 3.5 - 4 kg each and there's 2 of them. Here's the bike all ready to go:
Friday, 29 July 2011
L2P Practice Ride
Posted by Dylan
Just sync'd my phone and realised that i had not uploaded any pictures from our big practice ride so here you go.
Just sync'd my phone and realised that i had not uploaded any pictures from our big practice ride so here you go.
After reaching the Ponderosa you get this lovely view:
At roughly the half way point
Andy is making sure that everything is correctly adjusted before setting off
Thursday, 28 July 2011
Route Published!
Our provisional route has been published.
Click on the tab at the top of the page to view, or just click here.
Click on the tab at the top of the page to view, or just click here.
Sunday, 17 July 2011
Progress
Posted by Stuart
Time to post just to keep the momentum going as we had towards our Grand Depart, which, gentlemen, is only 6 weeks away later this week. We've all got things to sort. In no particular order: Me - must get our routes sorted and written up. To be fair, they are all figured out apart from the last day into Paris Centre, I just need to write them up for myself and my compadres. Neil - keep the riding going in the face and pressure of a new job, and a couple of weeks holiday in August. Dylan - get the bar tape sorted. I think you've bought the new mitts. Keep riding when you can. Andy - trouble the scorers as far as sponsorship money is concerned, finalise carriage arrangements during the ride.
My conservative, pessimistic head is raising itself again - I'm a little concerned we haven't built enough contingency into the first day. It's quite a challenging ride from London to Dover, what with busy roads, navigating out of London itself, the sheer distance and the fact that we'll all be riding laden for the first time. It would only take a mechanical and/or a couple of punctures to put us under some real time pressure. Think there may be an argument for bringing forward our departure to 7.30 am. Views gents, if you're reading this?
I think it's probably going to be worth all of us speaking at least once before we go too, just to check progress. We're all in different places geographically and organisationally, so we don't have any day-to-day opportunity to speak. Watch your diaries for invitation(s).
Time to post just to keep the momentum going as we had towards our Grand Depart, which, gentlemen, is only 6 weeks away later this week. We've all got things to sort. In no particular order: Me - must get our routes sorted and written up. To be fair, they are all figured out apart from the last day into Paris Centre, I just need to write them up for myself and my compadres. Neil - keep the riding going in the face and pressure of a new job, and a couple of weeks holiday in August. Dylan - get the bar tape sorted. I think you've bought the new mitts. Keep riding when you can. Andy - trouble the scorers as far as sponsorship money is concerned, finalise carriage arrangements during the ride.
My conservative, pessimistic head is raising itself again - I'm a little concerned we haven't built enough contingency into the first day. It's quite a challenging ride from London to Dover, what with busy roads, navigating out of London itself, the sheer distance and the fact that we'll all be riding laden for the first time. It would only take a mechanical and/or a couple of punctures to put us under some real time pressure. Think there may be an argument for bringing forward our departure to 7.30 am. Views gents, if you're reading this?
I think it's probably going to be worth all of us speaking at least once before we go too, just to check progress. We're all in different places geographically and organisationally, so we don't have any day-to-day opportunity to speak. Watch your diaries for invitation(s).
Tuesday, 5 July 2011
Big Practice
Posted by Neil
Andy "kindly" put together an 80 mile loop starting in Mold, up into the Clywdian Hills and then on to Wrexham, Bangor and a flatish finish through Holt, Chester and a sting in the tail up the hill (straight past the Royal Oak pub!) from Higher Kinnerton to Penymynydd and back to Mold.
We all took a day off work and set out just after 8am. The idea was to get some riding practice together. Which we probably would have got more of, if I hadn't been out a couple of weekends before and tried to second guess the route. So with Andy taking his time over the first couple of climbs, I took Stuart and Dylan on the back roads towards Llandegla. Turns out Andy was planning on the more major roads. So after a while waiting for Andy to re-join the group, turns out he was well ahead of us. We caught him again on the final climb up to Llandegla so we were all back together for the sweep downhill towards the next climb to the Ponderosa cafe. After re-confirming the route Stuart and I made the Ponderosa a bit quicker than the others and then headed down the big descent of the Horseshoe pass. After about 5 miles or so of descending, Stuart had pulled out a gap on me, a truck went by and nearly choked us with the smell of burning brakes and Andy & Dylan had made up time, so we re-grouped in Llangollen when food and water was taken on board.
We need more discipline to stay together - one mechanical problem and we would've had to re-trace quite some distance.
More rolling roads now - we headed across towards Wrexham then across to Bangor-on-Dee and manged to stay grouped together a little more and more grub was consumed at Bangor. Temperatures at this point were getting quite serious - certainly 20+ degrees C, which must've made carrying a rucksack somewhat tiresome for Andy.
As we finished off the Welsh roads for now and headed into Cheshire, Andy needed to take frequent quick stops, Dylan was hanging on well and both Neil and Dylan were benefitting from Stuart's generous role as the man making a hole in the air by taking the lead.
So just over 60 miles in and Andy reported a slow puncture. We stopped to top it up but it was soon evident that it was going to need fixing - particularly when we had to wait a while at a T junction only to be told by a local Bobby that Andy was back a few hundred meters "looks like a puncture". By this time the warm weather was gone, there was a stiff breeze building up and it looked distinctly like rain. A quick conflab (more food too) Andy was keen to get the puncture fixed and to head back home to Chester but not for us to wait around, giving the risk of rain. So (as all good team mates do!) we left Andy to get on with fixing his bike and headed off towards Farndon, Holt, Rossett and Dodleston.
The headwind was a bit of a problem on this stretch, as it often is for my commute home from Chester to Mold. The climb from Higher Kinnerton to (even higher) Penymynydd was quite hard after 72 or so miles. We also encountered some light showers on this stretch, but managed to stay pretty much dry.
Back in Mold it was time to freshen up with showers and then consume very large quantities of pasta bake very kindly prepared by Lisa. Andy rejoined us for the grub.
So that was our first longish distance ride together and we've learnt a bit about each other, about carrying gear, about warm weather and that downhills are definitely easier than uphills!
So we've all got some things to work on before September. Riding with luggage will be one of them!
Andy "kindly" put together an 80 mile loop starting in Mold, up into the Clywdian Hills and then on to Wrexham, Bangor and a flatish finish through Holt, Chester and a sting in the tail up the hill (straight past the Royal Oak pub!) from Higher Kinnerton to Penymynydd and back to Mold.
We all took a day off work and set out just after 8am. The idea was to get some riding practice together. Which we probably would have got more of, if I hadn't been out a couple of weekends before and tried to second guess the route. So with Andy taking his time over the first couple of climbs, I took Stuart and Dylan on the back roads towards Llandegla. Turns out Andy was planning on the more major roads. So after a while waiting for Andy to re-join the group, turns out he was well ahead of us. We caught him again on the final climb up to Llandegla so we were all back together for the sweep downhill towards the next climb to the Ponderosa cafe. After re-confirming the route Stuart and I made the Ponderosa a bit quicker than the others and then headed down the big descent of the Horseshoe pass. After about 5 miles or so of descending, Stuart had pulled out a gap on me, a truck went by and nearly choked us with the smell of burning brakes and Andy & Dylan had made up time, so we re-grouped in Llangollen when food and water was taken on board.
We need more discipline to stay together - one mechanical problem and we would've had to re-trace quite some distance.
More rolling roads now - we headed across towards Wrexham then across to Bangor-on-Dee and manged to stay grouped together a little more and more grub was consumed at Bangor. Temperatures at this point were getting quite serious - certainly 20+ degrees C, which must've made carrying a rucksack somewhat tiresome for Andy.
As we finished off the Welsh roads for now and headed into Cheshire, Andy needed to take frequent quick stops, Dylan was hanging on well and both Neil and Dylan were benefitting from Stuart's generous role as the man making a hole in the air by taking the lead.
So just over 60 miles in and Andy reported a slow puncture. We stopped to top it up but it was soon evident that it was going to need fixing - particularly when we had to wait a while at a T junction only to be told by a local Bobby that Andy was back a few hundred meters "looks like a puncture". By this time the warm weather was gone, there was a stiff breeze building up and it looked distinctly like rain. A quick conflab (more food too) Andy was keen to get the puncture fixed and to head back home to Chester but not for us to wait around, giving the risk of rain. So (as all good team mates do!) we left Andy to get on with fixing his bike and headed off towards Farndon, Holt, Rossett and Dodleston.
The headwind was a bit of a problem on this stretch, as it often is for my commute home from Chester to Mold. The climb from Higher Kinnerton to (even higher) Penymynydd was quite hard after 72 or so miles. We also encountered some light showers on this stretch, but managed to stay pretty much dry.
Back in Mold it was time to freshen up with showers and then consume very large quantities of pasta bake very kindly prepared by Lisa. Andy rejoined us for the grub.
So that was our first longish distance ride together and we've learnt a bit about each other, about carrying gear, about warm weather and that downhills are definitely easier than uphills!
So we've all got some things to work on before September. Riding with luggage will be one of them!
Monday, 20 June 2011
Weekend of punctures
Posted by Dylan
The weekend started bad with intermittent torrential rain all day saturday so the chance of getting on my bike on Sunday was not looking good. This was further impacted when i found that my car had a puncture on Saturday evening which meant i had to look forward to a morning sitting in Kwik Fit. To avoid missing out on getting some training i went for a session on the cross trainer. I am very please to report that several months ago 30 mins on the cross trainer was killing me and i managed to complete a 1hr 20min session with no major issues so all this training is making a difference to my fitness level.
The weekend started bad with intermittent torrential rain all day saturday so the chance of getting on my bike on Sunday was not looking good. This was further impacted when i found that my car had a puncture on Saturday evening which meant i had to look forward to a morning sitting in Kwik Fit. To avoid missing out on getting some training i went for a session on the cross trainer. I am very please to report that several months ago 30 mins on the cross trainer was killing me and i managed to complete a 1hr 20min session with no major issues so all this training is making a difference to my fitness level.
After getting back from fixing the car i went to check out my bike to find that it also had a puncture.. :-(. Good news its was Fathers Day and the kids had presented me with 2 nice shiny Continental Gatorskins which i proceeded to install last night. Based on Neil's recommendations i don't expect to get any further puncture issues.
I am looking forward to our trip our next week with an element of worry seeing that i have not managed to get more than 40 miles in a single session but hopefully i have enough training to to get me through. I am in my homeland so hopefully this will inspire me to push ahead and get to the end. Failing that i will bring my tow rope and Stuart can pull me along......
Friday, 17 June 2011
Training Rides Update
Posted by Neil
A few reasonable rides to report and it's a mixed bag.
A couple of rides in and around the Ribble Valley and the Forest of Bowland areas. Being based in Clitheroe for the bank holiday week at the end of May that gave the opportunity to ride through some different and rather attractive scenery.
First up was a 38 mile loop around the forest of Bowland and there are three main features to this ride. First up is the climb up Waddington Moor which accounts for a large chunk of the 760m of climbing on this ride. It's appeared a few times on the Tour of Britain as a Cat 1 climb. Usually it's possible to get a good 45mph on the relief of the descent on the other side but due to the second feature of the ride it was necessary to be on the brakes to keep the bike stable in the strong cross-wind. It's amazing how windy it's been recently back in North Wales and Lancashire was no different - so thats a mixed bag - great when it pushes you along and, they say, great for building strength and stamina when it's in yer face. Finally, the roads. Good grief they're bad in this area, so much so there are some places where it's downright dangerous for cyclists. fortunately my Conti Gatorskin tyres and the strength of the Xero wheels meant no punctures or worse.
Second ride was just as windy but a less hilly 43 miles along the valley to Settle and back. Not much to report on this one, other than they do good tea and scones at The Naked Man cafe in the main square!
Last but not least was last Sunday. I headed out from home around 8.45 am knowing that rain was expected around mid-day but with the hope that I'd get most of the planned 71 miles done by then. the route had a couple of options to cut across the loop and shorten the time required. Within 10 minutes the rain started. And never stopped. In fact, it became torrential, and then the wind joined in the party. I was taking a similar route to the training ride we're planning on 27 June but with a slightly longer, slightly hillier approach to the Horseshoe Pass. The puddles became deeper, they started spreading wide across the road and the wind became stronger - it was becoming harder to ride.
Fortunately I'd packed my new Pearl Izumi Elite Barrier convertible jacket (the sleeves and shoulder tops unzip to form a gilet) and that did an excellent job of keeping most of me dry. I didn't however pack my overshoes and that soon started to give me problems with my feet getting colder and wetter by the mile.
The climb from Llandegla up to the Ponderosa Cafe at the top of the Horseshoe Pass was the final straw - the gusts of side wind became somewhat dangerous and I decided that the descent and the following section over World's End would be both excessively cold and potentially dangerous. So it was into the Ponderosa for a lovely hot cuppa where there were virtually no motor bikers and certainly no other cyclists. there were some comments questioning my sanity!
The return ride was somewhat easier, being predominantly downhill but the increased speed meant the wind chill became a factor and my fingers were suffering somewhat.
Lisa and kids looked after me well on arrival home and a cup of tea and a warm bath were soon ready, whilst I wrung out my socks. After 2 hours of torrential rain the PI jacket had kept my top half completely dry - excellent. Only managed 30 miles so somewhat less than planned. Felt like I'd done 50 though!
Let's hope for better weather on 27th.
A few reasonable rides to report and it's a mixed bag.
A couple of rides in and around the Ribble Valley and the Forest of Bowland areas. Being based in Clitheroe for the bank holiday week at the end of May that gave the opportunity to ride through some different and rather attractive scenery.
First up was a 38 mile loop around the forest of Bowland and there are three main features to this ride. First up is the climb up Waddington Moor which accounts for a large chunk of the 760m of climbing on this ride. It's appeared a few times on the Tour of Britain as a Cat 1 climb. Usually it's possible to get a good 45mph on the relief of the descent on the other side but due to the second feature of the ride it was necessary to be on the brakes to keep the bike stable in the strong cross-wind. It's amazing how windy it's been recently back in North Wales and Lancashire was no different - so thats a mixed bag - great when it pushes you along and, they say, great for building strength and stamina when it's in yer face. Finally, the roads. Good grief they're bad in this area, so much so there are some places where it's downright dangerous for cyclists. fortunately my Conti Gatorskin tyres and the strength of the Xero wheels meant no punctures or worse.
Second ride was just as windy but a less hilly 43 miles along the valley to Settle and back. Not much to report on this one, other than they do good tea and scones at The Naked Man cafe in the main square!
Last but not least was last Sunday. I headed out from home around 8.45 am knowing that rain was expected around mid-day but with the hope that I'd get most of the planned 71 miles done by then. the route had a couple of options to cut across the loop and shorten the time required. Within 10 minutes the rain started. And never stopped. In fact, it became torrential, and then the wind joined in the party. I was taking a similar route to the training ride we're planning on 27 June but with a slightly longer, slightly hillier approach to the Horseshoe Pass. The puddles became deeper, they started spreading wide across the road and the wind became stronger - it was becoming harder to ride.
Fortunately I'd packed my new Pearl Izumi Elite Barrier convertible jacket (the sleeves and shoulder tops unzip to form a gilet) and that did an excellent job of keeping most of me dry. I didn't however pack my overshoes and that soon started to give me problems with my feet getting colder and wetter by the mile.
The climb from Llandegla up to the Ponderosa Cafe at the top of the Horseshoe Pass was the final straw - the gusts of side wind became somewhat dangerous and I decided that the descent and the following section over World's End would be both excessively cold and potentially dangerous. So it was into the Ponderosa for a lovely hot cuppa where there were virtually no motor bikers and certainly no other cyclists. there were some comments questioning my sanity!
The return ride was somewhat easier, being predominantly downhill but the increased speed meant the wind chill became a factor and my fingers were suffering somewhat.
Lisa and kids looked after me well on arrival home and a cup of tea and a warm bath were soon ready, whilst I wrung out my socks. After 2 hours of torrential rain the PI jacket had kept my top half completely dry - excellent. Only managed 30 miles so somewhat less than planned. Felt like I'd done 50 though!
Let's hope for better weather on 27th.
Monday, 13 June 2011
First "investment"
Have today bought my train ticket (plus bike reservation) from Macclesfield to London on Thursday 1st September, so there's no going back now. Cost - £11.50. Instead of the £137.50 it costs to travel down to London before 10 am on a weekday. I appreciate this is possibly the most mundane post yet (and without being unkind to my fellow riders there is some competition), but there we are - I was very happy.
Next job is booking the ticket from Paris to Lamballe in Brittany - if only I were brave enough to use the SNCF.fr website I could bag myself a bargain, but as it is, I shall probably resort to Rail Europe, who basically charge the same in £ as you would pay in € if buying the ticket in the land of travel, but they do seem to be pretty reliable.
Next job is booking the ticket from Paris to Lamballe in Brittany - if only I were brave enough to use the SNCF.fr website I could bag myself a bargain, but as it is, I shall probably resort to Rail Europe, who basically charge the same in £ as you would pay in € if buying the ticket in the land of travel, but they do seem to be pretty reliable.
Sunday, 12 June 2011
Disappointing Weekend
Had a good runout on Saturday with another 35 miles under my belt with (again) a decent head wind on the way out. My plans got scuppered as i wanted to do another 30+ today so that i had 2 days cycling but the lovely british weather put a stop to that as it has been raining allllll day.
I see that Neil braved the weather by still going out today but i think all this time in the south has made me a bit soft (and that i did not have any wet weather gear).
Will try again this week as i am running out of days before our northern trial run.
Will now get back to the 6 hour F1 race today..
Wednesday, 8 June 2011
71% or 90%?
Posted by Neil
My fundraising is now at 71% or 90% of my target of £1000, it depends if you include the gift aid contribution. My positive side says I'm 90% of the way there, my more realistic side says there's still some way to go, so I'll get to work on my friends and colleagues again.
My fundraising is now at 71% or 90% of my target of £1000, it depends if you include the gift aid contribution. My positive side says I'm 90% of the way there, my more realistic side says there's still some way to go, so I'll get to work on my friends and colleagues again.
Early Trip to France
Posted by Neil
Stuart and I are off to France a couple of months early - and that's only 2.5 weeks away now. Really looking forward to a lads week away to watch the Tour de France.
The plan is a ferry with cabin then there's 3 days of tour stages within riding distance of our accomodation base. Looks like a couple of 80 mile days and one of about 30 miles, so that'll be excellent training for L2P - it'll be the first time I've done some distance on my bike 3 days in succession.
We'll be seeing the stages that start in Lorient, Carhaix and Dinan which are in the North West. See them on the route map here.
None of these look like they're favourable for Mark Cavendish (with the finish at the seaside in Cap Frehel being the least worst), but we can still hope! It will all depend on the strength and quality of any breakaways that are created by the rolling nature of the climbs in the earlier parts of all three of these stages. If there's a decent and sustained breakaway group and Cav's not in it, then its game over. Brad Wiggins might be in for a shout though. No doubt Stuart will be giving his Union Jack cycling jersey its annual provocative outing.
On a more general point, great to see the team time trial back on the agenda - that's one of the more interesting parts of the event for me.
No doubt the weather is going to be superb!
Stuart and I are off to France a couple of months early - and that's only 2.5 weeks away now. Really looking forward to a lads week away to watch the Tour de France.
The plan is a ferry with cabin then there's 3 days of tour stages within riding distance of our accomodation base. Looks like a couple of 80 mile days and one of about 30 miles, so that'll be excellent training for L2P - it'll be the first time I've done some distance on my bike 3 days in succession.
We'll be seeing the stages that start in Lorient, Carhaix and Dinan which are in the North West. See them on the route map here.
None of these look like they're favourable for Mark Cavendish (with the finish at the seaside in Cap Frehel being the least worst), but we can still hope! It will all depend on the strength and quality of any breakaways that are created by the rolling nature of the climbs in the earlier parts of all three of these stages. If there's a decent and sustained breakaway group and Cav's not in it, then its game over. Brad Wiggins might be in for a shout though. No doubt Stuart will be giving his Union Jack cycling jersey its annual provocative outing.
On a more general point, great to see the team time trial back on the agenda - that's one of the more interesting parts of the event for me.
No doubt the weather is going to be superb!
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