Rossington Cyclocross

Finally, after all the weeks of racing, and indeed, the past year or so, of being told each course was a testers course, we were presented with a testers course !

This was a new course so nobody knew what to expect. The youtube clip of the previous course had shown at least four mins of wooded single track section, and I hoped for something that suited me better to be honest. 

well, I certainly got that in the shape of a course that was almost entirely flat, was exposed to the wind, and had long sections where tapping out a persistent effort paid dividend.  My usual stuttering start of the Vets race, coupled with a tentative first lap whilst I felt the course out, meant that I had plenty of energy left in the tank when I started to make my move from lap 2 onward. The riders had strung out and I had worked out that the race was going to be shaped by how well I rode the very long uphill drag section of the track. everything else was flat and I knew we would all be much the same on that, but the key was going to be that hill, plus the couple of bad headwind sections and that was where I concentrated my real efforts on. 

No charity this week, and when I managed to get past a team mate, the moment they moved in my wheel, I shifted across the track so that they didn't get a tow - pretty ruthless, but a race is a race not a charity ride. 

Back to 40 minutes this week, so I knew it was only going to be a five lap affair, and felt as I finished that I had paced it just about right. At that moment, I immediately retired for the season because as good as it has been - I am after all a tester, and next week marks a return to road riding and getting road fit for the TT season which starts in February - there is a little matter of a Boxing Day & New Years TT to negotiate first.

Regionals

Regional Cyclocross Champs took place over in Shropshire on a miserable wet day. We arrived early in the morning as our first rider was off at 11.15, whereas my own race would not start until 2.15 - ample opportunity to cheer on at the earlier race, and get some time on the course. 

The course, of course, was a really fun one in the dry. Lots of ups and downs, tight turns, mud, off cambers and a huge dip to bomb down and then a lovely longish grovelly climb to get back up.

By the time my race came about though, it had been raining on and off, and the well used track had become a bit of as quagmire. It still looked like fun, but it was going to take lots of effort not to fall off. I was surprised to be gridded, and this put me further up the field at the start than I was comfortable with - preferring the idea of starting at the back and then feeling my way into the race. 

No matter though because I went backward almost from the very start, and what unfolded felt very much like a slow bicycle race on ice ! Mud accumulated very quickly so the bike felt really heavy. I was fine in a straight line but any deviation from this resulted in a battle to stay upright. 

The massive drop I mentioned took an age whilst I went down with the brakes on whilst others litellay raced down it - the climb up the other side was good though. A special mention to the cross cambers which were treacherous !  

In just over an hour I managed to negotiate 6 laps whereas the winner did 9 - still, not last, but a large amount of bike cleaning needed afterward ! 

Winterton Cyclocross

Winterton Cyclocross had been my best performance during the 2014 season, and when it was declared to be the Club Cross Champs race for 2015 I positively whooped for joy !

Coupled with that, it had rained progressively over the past few days which meant that the course was going to be very boggy in places, and a real power test. Anyone who shrugged front line duty on club outings into a headwind was surely going to be found out today.

We had a later start time than usual, as we lined up with the seniors for their HOUR LONG !!! race rather than our usual 40 mins Vet race.
12 Wheelers lined up along the back of the grid and once everyone else had been set on their way, we waited 30 seconds and were set off ourselves.

I got a reasonable start and worked very hard on the first couple of laps. The ground was boggy and very muddy in places but the worst of it was the wind - it was blowing a hoolie, and with sweeping rain, hailstones at times, and generally just a bit grim, it was a hard, hard race. At one point I had made my way up to a surprise 3rd Wheeler position, but couldn't hold it and fell back to 5th. All my good work done in the first 3 laps, the final 2 or 3 spent, tapping away and making sure I wasn't being caught.

A very muddy and drenched and freezing and elated Andy made it across the line after an hours racing to claim good club points in our Rider Of The Season Competition.

RAF Cranwell Cyclocross

I was well up for a good race today and as I made my way around the long lap of the course at RAF Cranwell, I didn't see anything that concerned me too much. In fact, there were some long straights, hard ground, a bomb hole, and some twisty tight wooded sections - three offs though - an up and down a bank off, a jump over a plank and run uphill off, and finally a single hurdle off. Gotta say, one of the courses on the calendar more suited to testers !

12.00 was our start time and i was a fair way back in the old gridding - but got a decent enough start this week and found a few places early. First off, shouldered the bike and made my way up the hill, made some more places and then recovered well in the wooded section. In parts of this I was quick, however, one section was a twisty effort where the organisers were being either devils or just had to use up their tape allocation and I was so slow through this part of the course, I held riders up !

First three laps OK, without incident, and even the tree roots not putting me off. Lap four would be the last lap though and I struggled to get the bike up the bank, and the run uphill had become a very tired jog !

All that being said, I was happy again, and enjoying a good course. 3rd Wheeler in the race and a good 50 minute workout. You can't get better value for a tenner !

Lincoln Cyclocross

Up early doors and out of the door by 7am - late for setting up our very own cyclocross race at Police Headquarters at Nettleham. It was a partially mild day, but very windy and the tape we used to mark out the course was getting blown to buggery all over the shop !

Despite quite a lot of rain last night, the course was surprisingly dry and didn't look like it was going to cut up easily like last years version. Speaking of last year, we had one mound to ride up and down, this year though we had three, and although I initially bobbed myself trying to get up the third of these, I practised and got it right on the fourth attempt on the warm up - the rest of the course feeling OK and similar to last years routes although not a lot for the tester.

By the time the start came along, I'd been on site already for 5 hours and just wanted to get some racing done. We all congregated near the start, and then the gridding began - I think I ended up on the 5th row, but matter not, because I wasn't forecful enough and fell backwards because I'm bad at holding my position. want to come by me ? Sure no problem, I'll just move aside for you and let you through !!

First lap, fell off at that third mound I told you about and watched loads come past me. I then spent the next part of the lap, blowing out my arse trying desperately to make places up on a couple of the other Wheelers - at first, I thought it was working, but after three laps, it was obvious that I wasn't gaining and was in danger of falling further back through the field.

Thankfully, us old boys only have to race 40 minutes, so I was pleased to hear the bell for the final lap where I just gave it everything. Took one Wheeler place, but to be honest, this one won't go down as one of my better outings.

Next week, a new course, RAF Cranwell

Ostlers Plantation Cyclocross

So, following on from the Scunthorpe race a couple of weeks ago, I really wasn't feeling very optimistic about riding yet another Forest course, complete with fire roads and pine trails. In fact, this one had been described as..

 ''One massive long straight fire road a load of single track, some lethal twisty stuff with wet leaves on concrete, two massive whoops, an earth bank on the side of a building and a fallen tree as the dismount .....all good stuff!!

OK, so I read that and all I saw was massive and lethal ! The rest of the description being a blur! Still, another Sunday and another opportunity to win some points in the Wheelers Cross League, so loaded up the bike in the A-team van and then rocked on up at Woodhall super early to avoid the parade for remembrance sunday going on at the same time. mega early arrival then, but plenty of time to relax and ride the course. 

My description would be.... one long time trial straight, a bit of single track, multiple earth mounds to roll through, one log to get off and jump, and a squeeky bum time, muddy undulating section toward the end. I seemed to get on well on the warm up, and there wasn't anything that made me pull up or bottle out of - so, if I could just keep my wits about me, I could navigate the course quite well. 

Gridded again for the main course, but don't know why I bother, as even trying as hard as I could, I couldn't keep my place in the field and slipped backward again - however, crucially got ahead of a few wheelers going into the first whoop and whilst they decided to take each other out, this let me ride off and get some space between me and that particular battle. I had my own to take care of and slowly picked my way up the order. The course turned out to be brilliant, and although I crapped my pants at the arse end section a few times, I failed to blow up this week and kept my effort going til the very end. 

It felt like a breakthrough, albeit with no Wheelers in close proximity this week, maybe the pressure was off early on, leading to a less edgy performance. 

Next weeks action is our very own Nettleham course !
 

 

Hubbards Hills Cyclocross

This was the one I was fearing after the descriptions given about last years mudbath and the description of the course as 3/4 uphill and 20 secs of down hill. I had seen pictures of last years finishers bikes that looked like they had been dredged from a ditch !

I also got thinking cheap points in the league as surely this would be one that people tended to miss - but that theory was put to bed when I saw how busy the car park was.

My warm up lap didn't fill me with confidence as mud quickly accumulated around the front brake and blocked the wheel pretty bad - how was I going to make it around 5 laps !

Decision made - avoid the muddy line wherever possibe and ride the wetter grass to keep water moving through. Well, this approach seemed to work, because after my usual slow start, I found I was keeping the wheels pretty clean by riding those lines and also taking back places as it seemed quicker to get away from the well trodden path.

I shipped the chain a couple of times, but managed not to have too many dramas on the way round, trying to ride sensibly and calculating the best lines through the bends.

The last lap I was blown up and the legs had gone - but satisfied to finish such a hard race in a better than usual position ( I think !!)

Up next : Ostlers Plantation

Scunthorpe Cyclocross

An afternoon of racing at the Common Plantation, Scunthorpe. Still had the arse end of a cold and it was derby day so needed a good race as a little pick me up.

After the heavy rain yesterday, I thought the course would be wet and muddy, but surprisingly it was near bone dry - a mixture of woodland fire paths, some well drained grass, and trails, with some sandy parts.

The technical features of the course were a large drop into a bomb hole (which I ran), a climb back out (which I ran), a sandy turn in some tress (which I ran) and a large log to jump over (obviously I ran that one !! ). There was some single track in the woods, and just a couple of sections that I could open up on. My race went like this...

Lap 1... Sprint off, but sprinting is not my bag baby, so dropped back a lot of places. Get to the single track section and its a biiiiiig long queue of single file riders, and its hard to overtake anywhere.
Get to the drop down and get off and run it, knackered by the bottom, and then have to run slowly up the other side, get into the clearing and its off again for the sand, and then on again, and before I knew it off again from the log - I was knackered already !!

Rest of the laps...... slowly going backwards and feeling more tired with each lap. I really think that getting on and off so many times is no good for me and takes too much out of me. I finished down the order and didn't think the course suited me. It was a great event though and on reflection there were a couple of parts that I should have been braver on.

Next week it's Hubbard Hills.....

Stroxton Cyclocross

Today's event (the third of the Lincolnshire Cyclocross League), was an affair laid on by Witham Wheelers and took place in a field just South of Stroxton. I had ridden the same course last year so knew that it was pasture based, with a few ups and downs and a lumpy surface - apparently a testers course but with enough elevation to slow me down.

After a big night on the beer Friday night, and a lazy hangover day yesterday, I was itching for a spot of exercise and an hour at maximum heart rate was to be the cure ! I was so early to the venue, that I had chatted for ages, collected my number and still had an hour to wait until the start of the race. I wasn't sure how I'd go cos the warm up seemed very slow, but when the race started, most people seemed to be going slow on what is a slow course. There were very few fast parts, but not difficult technically, which meant just powering through the grind. Mostly the ground behaved itself, but started getting churned quickly and there were parts that were slippy and to be looked out for carefully.

The race itself lasts only 40 or so minutes, where the first race seemed to go on for ever, this one flew by, and I soon had the bell to signal the last lap. I was in my customary lower mid table position with neither anyone to chase or anyone close behind me, which meant that I was able to dial off for the last lap and take things a little easier whilst I negotiated the twists and turns and the jumping off over the planks.

3rd race done, a bit of improvement seen in my battle of the Wheelers, and I think I was a few places better than usual - we will see when the results come out mid-week.

Lincoln Wheelers Tandem & Trike Weekend

Saturday - 10m TT - 26.29

Last weekend of racing of the time trialling season and it's a home event and one I am helping to organise - a gentle entry into putting on open events.

Once I had sorted my organiser duties, it was time to get on with the real work of the day - a 10m trike TT on the Wheelers Thorney 10 course with an unhelpful NNE wind, but a dry and not too cold afternoon. I was off at no.10, and had my own brother to chase down at no.9 !

I don't think he fully appreciated the rider order, but I made sure I used the bro-down as a massive carrot for the first 2 miles of the TT where I had a backwind, but some awful road surfaces and cambers to negotiate.

Onto the main road, and managed to get some good speed with the better road surfaces to ride on. All too soon I was at the Besthorpe turn though (which I took much better than last year ! ) and onto the last 4.4 miles.


Draggy headwing and a real battle to keep ontop of the cadence. Grateful for the end of the race and an event win with a time of 26.29. Just the little matter of a '25' to do in the morning !

Sunday - 25m TT - 1.07.52

Using the LRRA 25m Middlemarkers course - alternatively known as the coded C25/3 course, I woke this morning to find lovely Autumn conditions, if a bit cold, and with that same unhelpgul wind as the previous day.

My start time was 10.15 and I was soon chasing down the first of a few minutemen, with the help of a nice backwind over the first 4 miles or so of the course. Initially I was holding 23.3mph, but as the course started dragging and the headwind Sand lane section kicked in this crumbled into the 22's.

End of the first lap, and still felt OK, and in good condition to work really hard into the headwind, trying to catch those riders I could see on the horizon. 2nd lap seemed far windier, but the further into it I went, the more I realised I just didn't have the legs for a sustained push.

1.07.52 - enough for the win, and retention of the Fulwood Trophy. Season over !

Spalding Cyclocross

Legs shot from yesterdays Trike efforts, I made the daft decision to drive over to Neville avenue in Spalding this morning to take part in the second round of the Lincolnshire Cross League.

Last weeks 2nd to last placing after a puncture, had left me looking for a bit of luck and a better ride. I also looked to fall off less and be better at dismounts - these were the little improvements that I was looking for.

12.00 and we were set away ( I found myself gridded for some reason !), and soon fell back in the opening sprint. I tried to keep my heart rate down and power through the longer grassy straights that were as fast as a tester likes 'em. Half the course was like this, but the other half, more technical so plenty of practice with the dismounts, which I found I got better at as the race progressed.

No punctures and I was getting a real work out ! Rookie errors included running with the bike grounded which spat out the chain, and dismounting and getting caught by brambles , causing a fall, but nothing catastrophic.

I ended up racing for nearly an hour and finished 5th out of a fab 9 wheelers in the vets race. A much better outcome on a day when I wasn't expecting much !

Leo 30

This was all about going for the 30 mile club trike record. It is the twilight of the season and all I've got left to race TT-wise was this 30 miler down on the ECCA 30 course and then Pete's trike weekend.

First things first then - a trip down to Cambridge for the Leo 30 event, held on familiar roads where just six or seven weeks ago, I was on the same track for the 12 hour.

This day saw probably the best time trialling conditions of the year with blue skies and a reported 2mph northerly wind. the first part of the course was on a stretch of single carriageway of a mile or so which was semi-trike friendly but I had to have me wits about me. Looked downhill to the DC, whereby I let rip and enjoyed the seemingly still conditions. I rode the trike quickly but reserved where the road went upward, I couldn't beleive how well I was travelling, and managed to fly along the A11 & A14 at a very fast pace - when I got to the turn at Red Lodge, I was averaging 25.2mph - and honestly I was thinking of how near to the Comp record I could get with the backwind on the return.

Had I been giddy ? Of course !

It was a headwind, which went against the weather forecast, however, made perfect sense as I had been going full beans on the way out. That 25.2mph was the peak of my efforts of the day as I battled the headwind on the way back trying not to let the wind erode away at it too much.

Damage limitation meant that when I finished what was a 30.1 mile couse in the end, I had maintained an ave of 24.4mph for a 1.13.55 finish - 6 mins of the club record !  I had also picked up a puncture along the way as well, as by the time I got back to HQ, there was just 20
psi left in the front tyre.

Sleaford Cyclocross

Nearing the end of the TT season now, so that means only one thing to me - it's Cross season starting, and time to switch from a discipline that I'm OK at, to one that I'm a disaster at !!

This time last year was my first race, where I came dead last, and fell off loads. As my season progressed last year I got a little better and didn't fall off as much. This year I was determined to do even better......

It started well enough, weather gorgeous, and a change of venue from last years stupidly difficult Ancaster course, to a flatter, more sensible Sleaford Rugby Club venue. Everything shaping up for a good day, and then on the warm up lap I had two mishaps - the first banging my funny bone in my knee cocking up a dismount, and the second, also via a dismount, really damaging my backside !!

Beaten up already, I started the race, and was toward the rear for the early stages. The start had been very fast and I found myself being fast on the main straights, but in the more windy technical sections, I was slower. The course was mainly grass track, with some twisty sections cordoned off, and some tougher sections where hardcore had been put down to level the course. A couple of double board sections gave some respite, with both of these having to be dismounted for, unless you were able to bunny hop them - which I clearly couldn't !!

Laps 1-3, made my usual progress through the field, picking off riders eventually, and starting to get into the swing off things, when on lap 4, I managed to pick up a front wheel puncture in the hardcore section which prematurely ended my race.

so, not the start to the season that I wanted, but good to be back having some non-pressure fun again...

The ongoing quest to beat the hour !

VTTA Nottingham & East Mids 25 on the A25/34

How long have I been time trialling ? Well, to be honest, just since the very start of 2013. I'd done a couple of club events the previous year, but 2013 was the start of trying to take it seriously. This was my third full season and I'd seen winter training really pay off with better times than I'd expected.

I still, had not gone under the hour for a 25 miler and I was determined to put that monkey to bed by the end of the season. My only chance then, turned out to be the VTTA Nottm & E Mids event on the A25/34 course which is basically up and down the A46 between Newark and Bingham. I had gone 1.05 back in April on the trike, and liked the course despite the horrible draggy climb on the way out.

The event was almost cancelled, as the A1 at Newark was shut both ways and there were diversions in place, but we were lucky enough to catch a break and the event went ahead as the traffic didn't increase that much and there wasn't any queuing traffic on the course.

I chose a long sleeved black skinsuit for the day complete with bright pink overshoes - anything that would get me seen !  The wind was supposed to be 3-4 mph and north westerly - ideal conditions for the A25/34. My start time of 2.18 would see me off sandwiched inbetween two clubmates. I liked my chances which had been enhanced by a move to a larger chainring ready for next season - 53T gone, and replaced by a 55T - I was eager to see how I would fare with it.

I soon found out as I was set away, and began to find my was up and over the A46, ready to join the main carriageway going south towards Bingham. I've got to say, I much preferred the 55 as I tried to get a hold of a good solid 100 rpm cadence. a bit of gear twiddling (technical term TT fans) was going on, but I was happy with the speeds I was seeing. I did wonder if I had a cross backwind as I was making decent progress. I could feel wind on my face, but it played on my mind that I would have a headwind back - this made me push maybe a little harder on the way out.

There were a couple of drags, but I seemed to be in good order at the top of these brows and soon found myself at the bottom of the Bingham Mountain (tm). My plan had been to stick it in the bottom ring here, but I managed to get to the top in a 55 x 23 gear, albeit, really struggling at the top, and it was a good 30 seconds before I was able to get back up to speed again. 1 mile later and I was at the turn and it was time to find out about the wind !

Two roundabours and I had a backwind push up the ramp (pictured above sitting up as I pushed it) and I saw my average speed was already 25.3mph, which meant that I had the entire second half of the course along with back wind to push on and get a good way under the hour if possible, and thats what I did. Coming down the Bingham Mountain I couldn't spin enough in 55 x 11 and even thought about getting a 56 on, but that can be next year can't it !! Over 40mph and slowly catching my minute man - I couldn't beleive how well things were going. 10 miles later and I came to Farndon roundabout with a 27.3mph average.

One turn left and two miles of single carriageway to give it all I had. I wasn't as fast s it was a headwind, but buried myself to record a finish of 55.21 and a new PB of 7 minutes !!

Job done !

Tricycle Association National 10 & 25 Champs

So this weekend, I mostly spent my days at Wolvey riding the Trike Association 10 & 25 mile Championships. The 10 would take place on Saturday afternoon, and the 25 would take place on the following Sunday morning on the K41/10 and K41/25 courses respectively.

The races went like this:

The 10 Champs 26.01
21 riders in total, and I was off at no.19. My brother Dave was first off at 3.02pm, so once I'd seen him away, I got chance for a little warm up. The course was a straight out and back with a large A5 roundabout to negotiate. Pancake flat, albeit a slow road surface, with some drags. Usual SC stuff.
We had a c.13mph crosswind, but with good hedging along the course, it never seemed that strong. The first couple of miles seemed to drag upwards a bit, and I might have started a bit keen trying to chase down my minute man. I was minute man to the Champ, Barry Charlton, and I had set myself the task of holing him off until the turn, but within half a mile of it, he had caught me. as Barry powered away on the return leg, I was counting the cost of my keenness earlier, and making a meal of the home leg.

Crossed the finish line under 26 mins I thought (and I had lost time at the roundabout), but the TK's had given me 26.01. 2nd place - good ride !  Dave finished in 36.25 and won the Handicap. competition.

The 25 Champs 1.06.59
Drove back the following morning, on a lovely day, but cold, mind you the wind had moved and had quietened down at c.7mph - an ideal speed for time trialling.
The course would take in the out leg on the 10 mile course, but would join the A5 and give me 5 miles or so of lovely Dual Carriageway action !

A two lap affair then, to make up the 25 mile distance and I would be no.17, with only, yep, youv'e guessed it, The Champ behind me again !!

Went for it at the start, and managed to keep the effort a notch below giddy ! Not the keen start I had yesterday, but caught my minute man earlier. The Champ also caught me earlier though and came past me like I was standing still !  There were plenty of people to chase down, and I enjoyed the rolling A5 section first time round. 2nd lap of the course hurt though and the sections on the A5 that rolled bore no resemblance to the ones I had ridden just half an hour earlier - I had a definate a dip in power second time around.

1.06.59 (this time the TK's were nice, albeit, I thought I'd gone six seconds quicker. A successful weekend of second placings. Still 3 more trike events left and then a change of position for the front end beckons for the off season.

LRRA 30

Part 2 of the weekends racing, and having finished the 100 at 5.45 the previous day, I necked a SIS rego made with milk, before bedtime, and then rocked up at Frithville, Boston for the County's 30 mile championship - I would have to at least complete the 30 to get my first ever placing in the short distance all rounder competition. 

My legs felt OK, but not lively, as I came to the start at 9.27, and then proceeded to thunder off up the road. I made good progress to, overtaking a couple of riders within 6 miles and felt OK by the time the days only climb came around. a real grovel, not that high, but all of the big ring gears had been exhausted by the time I got up there ! 

7 miles of headwind followed, which I dealt with OK, and at 18 miles, the course turned left and I expected some cross tail, but didn't ever feel any benefit. The last 12 miles of this one, more uncomfortable because of saddle sore from yesterday, and I moved around a lot looking for a better position ! 

Crossed the line eventually in 1.16.05 which I was happy with given the previous days activity. On 2 wheels that was my 2nd to last ride of the season, if I can get on the A25/34 in two weeks time, otherwise the pink trike has been dusted down ready for another 5 events of fun !

BDCA 100

Part 1 of a full weekend of TT racing and first off it was a trip over to Etwall for the final 100 mile time trial of the season on the super fast A100/4 course.

I'd previously been to Etwall for the Trike 50 and had come away with the club record, so I knew it was a fast course. That day the wind had been a 10mph Westerly, whereas todays effort would see a NNE of c.12mph, and I wasn't sure how this would affect the course.

At 1.34, I got my chance to find out, as I charged away from the start, and made my way onto the A50 for the first 25 miles into a cross head. It wasn't slo for sure, and parts were still quick, and I managed to hit the bottom of concrete mountain holding an average of 24.5mph. I lost .5 of that climbing the mountain, which seemed harder than the day I did it on the Trike, and then didn't feel as much benefit as i went down the other side. I was though making good progress and got to the halfway out and back leg in good order. the road to Rochester was headwind, but it didn't feel too bad, and I had lost no time by the time I got back to McDonalds roundabout.

On the last stretch back to Etwall, I took my average from 24.5 to 24.9mph, but try as I might, I could not lift it above the 25mph I would need for a sub 4 hour ride. First half done in 2.01.10. reset the Garmin, and get on with the second half....

One stop to pick up my second bottle on the ramp onto the A50, and I saw 20.0mph on the Garmin, and it took ages to climb, first 21, then 22, then it skirted around 23mph !! I was much slower on the second 50 and struggled with the wind. the second time up concrete mountain was a real killer, and I struggled massively. Held 23mph by the top, but lacked the power needed to build on that on the way back. It climbed for sure, but not as quickly as I'd like. the Rochester leg was a grin and bear it, and the last 12 miles was a head down and give it everything. My ave. rose to 23.7mph in the end, and that second leg took a shade over 2.07 to complete.

The time overall was 4.08.11 - a distance PB of 12 minutes. I should be pleased, however, I came away knowing that I can go better on this course - next year hopefully !

VTTA 50 - Team record attempt

Or otherwise known as the day that Me, and Tricky, and Sean went up North to try and bag the clubs 50 team record which had stood at a modest 5.58.30 since 1981. We all had to finish and then hope we'd done enough for each of us get a time good enough to add up to less that the 1981 standard.

I'd ridden the Stockton T502/2 course back in May on the first trike and had notched up 2.15, and that was with a southerly 9mph which had been a bugger to ride into, but not as fast on the return stretch - compared to Etwall with similar conditions it is a slower course in my opinion. Our weather was a stronger wind at 12mph, with a SSW wind - so stronger than the day of my trike effort !

Tricky had an early start as he had to be away, something about it being his birthday ! So, I buddied up with Sean and used the two hour trip to Crathorne to pick up some useful tips from our Club Champ. A few wrong turns and we made the car park with some 40 minutes to Seans ride, and tricky must have already been on the road. I seemed to have all the time in the world to get myself prepped and then eventually warmed up. My start time would be eight minutes past three, which meant I would be time trialling all the way through City's game with Watford.

The first mile was largely single carriageway and slow as we made our way up and over the A19, so that we could wind our way down to the dual carriageway and start the business or settling into our record attempt. Ave speed 20.something, so concentrate, get into a good position and then get a good tap going - which I felt I managed to do quite early on. The course undulated as I remembered it, which meant a few long drags, and a climb of sorts, and a headwind that seemed to come in and out of focus randomly. It was hard work for sure, but if I'm something at all, then it's a decent wind-worker, so I tried to counsel myself that I would be making good progress and any shortfall would surely be made up as I enjoyed a taily on the way back.

I saw tricky at 31.5 minutes on the other side of the road, absolutely burying himself on a drag, and then Sean a little bit later on at 45.5 minutes - both had been kind enough to pass me at easily remembered points and both had looked to be going extremely well. Thoughts of not making two hours kept creeping in and then thinking about having to come in last and fessing up to a bad ride. Time trialling can play tricks on you like that and it's best not to dwell on those thoughts.

Meanwhile, I circling Thirsk, and the course was feeling easier and I was making up time again. the average speed crept to 24.4 I think, before falling back up the slog that is Dishforth Mountain. On the crawl up the Garmin showed 1.02.10 and by the time I had circled the roudabouts it was 1.03 as I felt the first backwind of the day. Whoosh, instantly 30 mph, and holding comfortably. BETTER !!

It was a very nice feeling seeing the average speed creep up by 0.1mph increments and at that point I knew, just knew, I would be done within the two hour target. I passed Sean's marker over two minutes down on him, managed my way through a slower, draggier section of the home leg,and then enjoyed a battle with my minute man which made things easier to pace.

With the to-ing, and fro-ing with no.67, I almost missed the point I passed Tricky, but remembered in time, and saw that I was c.25 seconds up. This meant that as long as we all finished, then surely we had done it.

Those last miles were a hard chase of no.67, who himself was trying to beat the two hour mark, and although I passed him again, he would eventually go past me again and finish five seconds ahead of me.

The record was ours - we had done it ! A 1.55 from Sean, a 1.59 from Tricky and my 1.58, saw the record lowered to a new level of 5.54.06.  Mission accomplished !

Team Swift Charity 10

Just a week after the '12' and I've scheduled in a 10 on the *fastest 10 course in the entire country (*subject to conditions)! Nice planning, but I was up for it in any case.

The week had gone like this :
Monday - recovery !
Tuesday - train badly
Wednesday - Train less badly
Thursday - 10km run - died at halfway
Friday - train better
Saturday - 5km parkrun, race 3km, jog 2km.

So the week had been a bit of a mixed bag, albeit towards the end, I had started to feel like myself again. so onwards and upwards, and this was an event for riders with a PB above 22 minutes, and with my 22.32, I got a place. I was to be no.16 on the day, which had a 20-22mph near easterly wind howling as we gingerly made our way to the start.

Plan of attack was simple, bury myself into the headwind to the turn, and then hang on for dear life with a backwind for comfort on the way back,

My ride sort of went like this :

1) Approached 40mph down the start ramp, hit the headwind, and abruptly slowed to a more normal speed.
2) Worked bloody hard into the wind, and kept wishing the miles away.
3) Got to the bottom of the halfway ramp at 25.7mph. Crawled to the top to see that drop to 24.2mph.
4) Immediately feel the benefit of the push home and wish that I'd switched to a 55T chainring, 8 weeks earlier than I plan to.
5) See the speed drop in the middle and wonder if I'm bonking
6) Ride a very fast last mile and a half where that 55T would again have been welcome.

21.25, a new PB by a minute, and something to aim for in 2016.

ECCA 12hour

I'm wondering what to call this one :

- How to spend a nice day mullering yourself ?
- How to ride 8 hours after deciding you don't want to ride anymore ?
- 101 ways of motivating yourself to keep going ?

I began the day with high hopes, I was going to have a good ride, I was aiming for 240 miles, I was going to enjoy the variety on the course, and then I was going to visit 'The Colonel' on the way home for celebratory fried chicken' - what could go wrong ?

6.05am was my start time, 200m from the HQ, which is good, cos no warm up is required for a 12 in any case. Queue up, see no 64 is not there, joke with the time keepers that I got a late start penalty from the same scenario last week - they say they won't do that, but let's see eh ? 6.05 tick by and I'm off, heading for the A11 dual carriageway used for the ECCA 100 that I rode last year. Brilliant start, holding a good speed and well above the 20mph I'd need at the end for 240 miles. Wrong turn up a slip road, no bother, get of and scamper down and embankment, back on the bike, not real time lost, crack on. Overcast and windless, I could really determine wether I had a backwind or not, I was enjoying these first miles. Up to Red Lodge, turn, back down to Four Went Ways. Some bloke was supporting his wife and although you were only supposed to pass your rider once in 10 miles, this bloke was doing layby to layby, in some cases a mile apart - I don't know why it irritated me, but it did !  On my way back to FWW, I saw Richie Bideau for the first time, absolutely steaming East toward Red Lodge - the fastest I've ever seen a rider - a true time trialling monster !!

Back up to Red Lodge again, and back down to FWW for the last time. Sounds bad, but I was chasing a lady at this point, and I was riding just a notch above where I should have done. Circle FWW and back up to Six Mile Bottom for the first of the loops of c.12 miles. Bad news, puncture, or so I thought, it actually looked like the valve had made its way loose, so I CO2'd that bad boy and that seemed to do the trick. Back on, into Six Mile Bottom, saw Heidi for the first time, so stopped for some food to take on, a wee, and most importantly, lashing of nut cream !!

This section B loop was a bastard, a 12 mile loop of minimal joy, that climbed out of SMB, and didn't really give anything back ! I was scheduled to do six laps of this soul-less route, but after just three, the timekeepers directed me off and I could have whooped for joy - this section had made me so miserable !

Stopped on the DC, ring Heidi to let her know I had gone to section C, and get back on with it, the speed of the DC perking me up a bit. Finally, I got to the second loop of the day and what I call section C - what a difference, I loved this part of the course, it was great, and i could have ridden it for the last 6 hours easy ! In reality, I did 5 loops and whooped for joy when I just made cut off to start the last lap. I was holding an average speed of 20.5 mph when I finished the circuit and was knocking on the door of 200 miles when I exited and went to find the finishing circuit. I was in a lot of pain by now, everything hurt, and I was motivating myself by breaking the ride down into 30 minute sections.

The finishing circuit then, grovel city ! The old A11 was just a horrid grovel for half a mile uphill, a fast but short section of the DC, lots of ups and down through to Little Chesterford and back, and then a faster A505 out and back section with another grovel toward the end. It was a sadists way of saying 'tough enough to do a 12 ? Have a bit of this !!

I saw Heidi at 207ish miles, and my Garmin died on me at this point and I rode blind for the last couple of hours. This actually took some pressure off, and I began to feel good again ! I saw the battle between Richie Bideau and Adam Topham unfold, and Topham would claw back a deficit, to take the win by 4 miles overall. I was honoured to see this !

For me, a made my way round the circuit twice more, and got back to Heidi with 25 mins to go. I desperately wanted to get to the timekeeper station on the A505 to finish, but got there too early, and then timekeeper 0 told me two minutes left. In a final kick in the balls, I had to race my way up that old A11 climb to my finish !

Back at HQ, so happy to be finished, felt wobbly, threw up for the first time after an event, I had left nothing in the tank.  240.4 miles completed according to the estimated finishing board and my last 12 hour for a while.

ESCA 100

Every time there was a 100 that I fancied doing, the event clashed with something else that I wanted to do. I fancied the London 100, but that clashed with Outlaw Half, I liked the look of the EDCA 100, that clashed with Outlaw relay, and then the National Trike 100 clashed with the Stockton. Running out of options, I decided to go for the ESCA 100 which is run by Eastbourne Rovers Cycling Club on the South coast.

It was a long drive down and I managed to book the smallest hotel room in England at Crawley ! It was a warm night, but I couldn,t open the window because of the planes ! needless to say, I woke the next morning rested ????

50 minutes in the car and I'm at the HQ! First decision - start oil of sun cream on the legs - could I do both ? No, I decided there might be some catastrophic chemical reaction, so used the sun cream as was expected a warm day. Got ready and rode out to the start , no 45 was a no show, so I rolled up next and chatted about triking to the start guys. I wasn't late, so when I got a 1min 10sec time penalty against my time at the end, I was a bit shocked ! ( I have sorted this out although my time stands !) .

6.46 and I'm away ! I knew the course was rolling and had 3000ft of rolling climb on it - so I set myself a target of 4 hrs and 30 mins for the day.  An average speed of 22.2 miles per hour would be needed if I was to beat it. Having figured that out, I set about the first of the three laps of the course.

I previously hadn't been able to find a GPS of the G100/861 course, but eventually came across this map  https://evententry.ctt.org.uk/Local/2015_ESCA_100_Course_G100861.pdf

The course profile says it all really, nothing steeper than say 200ft, but continually up or down ! .....and this is how it proved to be out on the road. The first lap of the course was enjoyable, as I held 22.6mph, but everything was fresh and for the first time. It was chilly sure, and there were parts of the course covered in early morning mist which cooled the legs down and misted the visor - in fact, I felt fresh as a daisy, and wondered if I had gone off a little conservatively.

The second lap soon put paid to that, as the climbing began to irritate, and getting back on top of my pedal stroke at the top of these 'ups', seemed to take a fraction longer. Second lap though, done, bang on schedule 22.2mph.

Third lap, and I took advantage of the drinks station and changed my bottle ! I also had a massive wobble between miles 70 - 85 where I flat out began to hurt, and the climbing was really getting on my tits !!  At 85, somehow, I came out of the other side of this flunk, and got it together for a final push. the hills didn't bother me anymore, and I was fully focused on getting to the end. 22.0mph for the third lap - by my calculations I'd done it - a time of 4.29 was surely mine.

Back at HQ and my time shown as 4.30.52 - gutted, but accepted the course may have been long. Official results have me down as including a 1.10 late start penalty, which would concur with the feeling I was under. I called the timekeeper, and although he agreed it wasn't me who was late - my time of 4.30.52 was accurate.

It is what it is then, and to be fair, If I can get in to the BDCA 100 in September and get a good slice of luck, I should better that time in any case.

Outlaw 2015 - Relay

Following on from the half at the end of May, I managed to get me-sen a nice spot in the Sleaford Tri3 mens relay team for the full Outlaw event.
Our swimmer would do 3.8k, I would ride 180k and then hand over to our runner for a full marathon. Doing it solo is a very long days as I found out in 2013, however, to me, it was a 112 mile time trial in training for the ESCA 100 in tow weeks time, and the 12 hour a week later.

It kind of went like this :
After our swimmer had knocked out a 1.07 (153rd) and we had had a really swift transition, I was let loose on the bike course with a sub 5 target in mind. We were in 89th place overall and in 18th place for the Relays. There was little in the way of wind and I knew I had to maintain an average speed of 22.5mph if I was to go under the 5.

I set off on a real charge taking 55 places in the first 16 miles of the bike. It felt good and I was easily averaging 23mph and loving the southern loop of the course. Jumping on the pedals like Contador when climbing a rise, and racing through the feed stations the Southern loop was dispatched swiftly. i made my way up past Lowdham on the Northern loop and all was well, even climbing Oxton Bank in good order. First 57 miles done in an average of  22.8 mph so on target.

Right, re-set the Garmin, go through Southwell, turn a steep left, and then headwind. he wind had gotten up ahead of the weather front of rain, and turned it cold. My legs began to stiffen up, and the enjoyable ride turned into hard work. the second half average was bobbing along at a disappointing 21.2 mph and it was slow progress and draggy. then it began to rain down on the Southern loop. people were catching me  and although I was in 25th place, I found myself having to take pace in a paceline.

I was wet through when I finished the bike - strongly I might add as I picked up a bit, and had moved the team up to 25th overall, and 11th team - bike split 5.08.59.

Our runner had a stormer, and we finished in 9.16.37 - 8th overall, and 6th team on the day.

VTTA North Mids 25

Saturday tea-times used to be Basil Brush and then that fella that fixed shit for ya that no-one talks about now, but everyone had the theme tune on their mobiles a few years back !

No, tea time yesterday involved lycra, three wheels, nut cream and lashings of start oil !

It was the VTTA North Mids event on the A1 and I was riding the big pink trike at no64. A similar event was cancelled at the start of June due to crosswinds, but this event despite 14mph cross winds did go ahead. the wind had been a worry, but it had dropped through the day and the night looked to be OK.

The HQ was at Sutton On Trent, and not too far from the start. The course was a simple up and down the A1 job. Going on at Sutton On trent and coming off and through Long Bennington, before looping round and re-joining the carriageway North. I was chasing the clubs record of 1.04.28 and had a good weeks training behind me going in to it. I would also be trying out my new Aeroshell helmet and wondered how I would get on with it. Overall though, I was looking forward to the event.

Start time came around quite quickly, and I was soon haring along and ready to join the Southbound carriageway. It felt quick, there wasn't too much traffic, but there was cross head which, when there was little in the way of shelter, knocked the speed off a little. There were rises in the road, but nowt like the T502 or Bingham courses and I was able to tap it out going up them. In fact, I got to the Long Benno turn in approx 22.7mph and knew that a good ride was on the books.

I didn't know if there would be a cross bcak push on the way back, but soon smiled when the approach loop to the Northbound carriageway yielded that unmistakeable push. It was now a 12 mile go for the line whilst nervously waiting for the speedo to creep above the record 23.3mph.

It was a great second leg and I managed to leave the A1 with an avg of 23.6, and a short sprint later had taken the record by nearly a minute.

1.03.35 on a not quick day - might be back next year for an improvement.

TA Fliss Beard National 100

I've just had a very long drive back from South Wales where I competed at the Trike Associations National 100 Champs using the R100/8a course - Raglan-Abergavenney-Mitchell Troy on the A40.

I stayed at Newent Golf & Lodges last night, and managed to arrive in good time so that I had time to drive the course and hide a couple of bottles in the hedgerows. the course looked fast when I drove it and really looked forward to riding it as I was confident of a good crack at the clubs 100 mile trike record.

With a low Southerly wind, I was optimistic when I lined up at no.6 at just past 7. I would have 5 Trikies in front of me, and this would help me chase down the 21.1 mph average I would need to maintain over the 100.6 mile course.

7.06 and I'm off. Maybe I went too hard, but the first 6 miles was rolling SC and I was happily keeping above evens knowing that when I got on the DC, I would be even faster. One turn later onto the Dual Carriageway and uurghh ! Slow as you like (for a DC), a real grovel with some faster bits granted - a bit of a let down to be fair. (They had a float day on the Stockton 100 as well, how does that work ?). Half a lap on the DC, and then up a ramp from Raglan onto another SC section, this was the hardest but fun part of the course - I was fast through here despite the climbing and it broke up the dual carriageway monotony.

First of four laps done in 21.1 miles so bang on what I needed, lap 2 got even better 21.2 mph so I was ahead of record pace at that point. Same at 57 miles, but then it started to hurt and I dropped to a 20.4 mph average for the third lap - this increased to 20.5 for the last effort, which threatened to be a wet one, but was just a quick shower thankfully.

I think 4.51.04 and the win on the day. It really really hurt though - a 100 on a Trike is worth a 12 hr on a regular bike - or at least thats how it feels !

TA Mids 50

A very first ride on the super fast Etwall course as this Trike event was being run in conjunction with the BDCA 50 event. HQ was easy to find and the whole trip from Lincoln was about an hour and forty, I hadn't realised that the course was so close to me.

Once signed on, I met with the rest of the Trikies, and then made my way to the start on the outskirts of Etwall.

Bad start ! One set off, I failed to follow the left turn sign at the first roundabout and within 100 metres I had gone the wrong way ! One circle of said roundabout later and I was down in the bars and going for it down the A516. After a mile or so, I was on the fabled A50, but with a headwind of c.10mph, I couldn't see what the fuss had been about. I was cranking along at an average of 22 something but it didn't feel special. First roundabout negotiated, and then after 12 miles or so, the road becomes draggy as you start the slog up concrete mountain. I always felt that I was on the lower slope as I expected to see a wall of concrete that I never saw, and smiled when I realised I was already up the top and ready to make the turn home. My ave. was 21.6 ish.

 

Woooosh ! It was super fast all the way down and I literally span out ! My average climbed and I was very comfortable holding 26/27mph. Halfway through the return leg, there is a seven mile intermission, where you get sent up a SC to Rochester, and apart from having to sit up behind a tractor for a mile, this was still reasonably quick and when I got back on the A50, my average was already 22.6mph.

It was a case of just hammering the final 12 miles or so, staying hydrated, chewing jelly babies. Who says I can't multi-task. I loved the second half of that course and can now see why its a favourite, 

2.09.19, a new PB and a Lincoln Wheelers club record. I also trousered the Handicap on the day :) 

Next up is the 100 in South Wales next week.

TLI Grantham Road Race

This was my second TLI road race of the season, and my second time doing the Grantham Road Race - a quick re-cap of last year was to get dropped at the end of lap one, riding two laps solo, and then getting lost on the way back to HQ !

So, plenty to improve on then !

I turned up and signed on to the very large group two and inevitably it was that group that got split into two - so the line up for the night was group 1, and then groups 2A, mine 2B, 3 and then 4 !

We set off a minute behind group 2A, and I very nearly got dropped leaving the start at the Cricket Club. Got into the train though and made my way to the front to start taking turns. This worked well for the first couple of miles and then I found I was taking longer and longer turns on the front. The last one of these was a couple of miles and the game was up, we were to just wait for group 3 to catch us, which they did after 12 miles. Sitting on the back of group 3 and then 4 when it passed was a learning experience - reacting to every little break, and trying to keep on the end of the elastic so that it didn't snap. I worked very hard on the uphills not to lose touch and was in the pelton with 1km to go.

There was just the one big hill to go and I attacked it going for the finish - one crash between the Wheelers later though, and I sat up and went back to check if the guy who had veered into the hedgerow was OK. That was my race over for this year but it didn't matter - I had gotten out of it more than I'd expected !  :)

Wheelers Summer TT Season 2015

08.09.15 LW Autumn 5    13.07

OK, so I technically quit midweek racing back in july, but was to ride back to back Trike events the coming weekend, so decided to chuck one in last minute. 13.07 chasing down Pete & Dave also on Trikes made it an interesting ride. Was dying by the end, must have been far too keen at the start !

11.07.15  LW Charity 10    23.19

I quit midweek riding this week as racing two or three times a week just doesn't suit me. Recovery race number one would be todays Charity 10 which is run on our very own Ingham C10/28 course. Last years effort was a 24.14 and my course PB was 23.46 from last year so this would be a good litmus test as to where I was. Wind was an alsmost direct cross wind to the course of 12/13 mph from the West so not the quickest or worse conditions. First leg out to the roundabout was fast enough and I reached the turn averaging 25.6mph or so, so happy with that. lost some time on the way back, but still going along reasonably well. Crossed the line in 23.19 (new Wheelers course PB). Found my back brake rubbing again so could have lost time on the return. Either way happy with the ride as it represents progress.

07.07.15 25 Champs  1.13.34

Just two days after the 100, I was daft enough to attempt a 25 and it ended badly :(.
Started well enough averaging 25.7 to the first turn, but as soon as there was any headwind or climbing, there was nothing in the tank. Empty and after a final rotten 10 miles or so, I crawled over the line almost dead last on the night. lesson learnt.

30.06.15 10 Champs 26.28

Having taken the Wheelers record at the weekend for the Trike 50, I thought it would be a good idea to ride it at the 10 Champs. On a windier night with a westerly-ish 10/11mph wind, I never felt fully on top of it and finished with a 26 minute ride. Previous course trike PB from last years inaugural trike ride of 27.43 was smashed !

23.06.15 Newton 10m - 23.29

This was the Inter club with Lincoln Tri club which had been organised following some facebook smackdown chatter. 59 riders on the night, and the busiest I've seen the car park. I had some organisational duties to attend to, so ended up going last at no.59.

Like the week before the was little wind albeit more of it. The first stretch was as fast as the previous week, and I was going along at just over 26mph. One uphill grovel took that to 25.7 and then unlike the previous week - a stronger headwind, took the bite out of the average and I came home 8 seconds slower than the week before. It is good though, to be consistently a whole minute quicker on this course than the same time last year.

8th on the night, and the Wheelers took the Inter Club crown.

16.06.15 Newton 10m  - 23.21

Wow, not too much wind around, and a lovely evening for time trialling. My first club time trial of the year. I had a good long warm up and then hit the road. Settled into a good tap, and kept an average of 26mph for the first 4/5 miles. There was a drag halfway through and it dropped under, but with an excellent carrot to chase, I managed my club PB of 23.21 on a course which is actually 10.1 miles.

Previous best last year on this course was 24.39 !

12.05.15 Lottery 2up
Thorney 10 course and strong easterly wind which made the first stretch hard work, the middle stretch side work and a nice bit of backwind on the way home. Pleasing as did 9 of the 10 miles on the front albeit my partner accuused me of killing him and we slowed down a lot. There was lots in the tank and I felt really good. 25.07 was also quicker than 2 years ago when I was dragged round for 9 miles - funny how fortunes change when you stick at something eh ?

LRRA 50

County 50 Champs is basically what the LRRA 50 is all about. I have ridden it in the previous two years, having a bad ride the first time around, and then a very good ride of 2.08 last year.

This year I was going off at no.77 of a field of 80 so there was every chance that I could have ended up last on the course and that all the cake at the HQ might have gone by the time I got back !! ( That obviously would have been a disaster ! )

There was good news and bad news when I signed on at the Village Hall in Osbournby - the good news being that it was finally a day of light winds, the doubly bad news was that it was going to rain all the way through AND the course had been changed due to roadworks - we now had to negotiate the 6 mile undulating climb to Grantham twice, and the course had been extended to 50.35 miles. This would be my third soggy 50 miler in the last 4 weekends, so I felt calm about the whole thing.

I took a chance and went with a disc wheel with tub after a lot of self doubting as I needed to finish today for both the short & long distance county all round competitions and I fretted a little about pucturing, but in the end figured that any puncture in the rain would probably be a race ender so took the quickest set up possible.

2.17 and I was off, doing a sort of reverse of the C10/10 course and boy did I feel good. In a stark contrast to the same morning when I really didn't feel like racing, just a few hours later and I was enjoying the opening stages, making my way up to the Sleaford roundabout where I made at least 10 seconds on my minute man, and then promptly lost them queuing in traffic at the roundabout !

Hammering down the return leg, I was maintaining good speed, and looking forward to the first climb to Spittlegate. On the first ascent, I could see my minute man getting closer, and I could gauge my effort not to lose touch with him, which helped enormously. I caught him by the roundabout and then had a good six miles or so to hammer back down the the Osbournby roundabout where I clocked an average speed of 24.5 mph. I deliberately re-set my Garmin at this point as half the race had elapsed at this 25 mile point.

Overall, I wanted 24 mph so knew I need to hold 23.5 over the second half of the course to do this. Firstly, though, I would need to do the whole climb to Spittlegate again, and I can tell you that second time around, it f'in hurt - a lot !! I was relieved to hit the roundabout again, and the opportunity to make up some lost average speed ground on the six downhill miles to the roundabout.

My position was beginning to get to me, and I was re-adjusting my seating a lot, and shaking the hurt out of the tops of my arms. Back at the roundabout at 23.9mph and just the reverse C10/10 bit to do. Happy not to be climbing the whole way and knowing that I was not too far from the finish, I really put eveything I had into this stretch. By Sleaford roundabout I'd kept 23.9, and by the finish I had improved it to 24.

2nd Wheeler on the day, a new PB, a tenner for being in the fastest team of three for the day ! A good days work.

Outlaw Half Relay

Today, I popped over to Holme PierrePont to take part in the Outlaw Half Triathlon that I completed last year. This year, with giving up the old swimming, I entered as part of a relay team, which would consist of my mate Bob on the swim, and my brother Dave on the run. I had the easy part of riding 56.7 miles and eating Jelly Babies !

This is how we got on, on a cold , wet, and windy day in Nottingham :

Swim 32.24 - Bob had completed Ironman Lanzarote just last Saturday, so this was a warm up for him in distance. from the first wave of the day, Bob cranked out a fast swim to put me on the bike well up the field.

Bike - 2.29.40 - Right, Jelly Baby munching time ! Already wet, there was nothing to do, but try and get around as quickly as possible. It started well, and I was quickly down in the bars taking places around the lake and moving my way up the field. Out onto the A52 and my average was above 24mph.

I knew the Northern loop would be quickest so decided to make hay whilst the sun didn't shine, battling hard against the elements, and making sure I didn't daydream or take my foot off the gas. I rode Oxton Bank very well and overtook a couple of relay teams in the process. Back through Southwell, and over the ripples to Lowdham Island. I think my average was 23.5 at this point, but I was soaked through and still cold !

The Southern Loop was harder, however, knowing I didn't have to run, coupled with tangling with a guy from TFN , kept me honest and as I passed through Car Colston, a lady was giving out positions - I was 11th, and the guy from TFN was 10th !!! I had never battled at the front of a race before, and was enjoying the feeling. I planned to take back that 10th place to put Dave in a good position and had managed it by the time we rolled back into HPP.

Run - 2.55.44 - we had set Dave a target of 3 hours and in his first Half Marathon he nailed it - I was made up for him and the team when we finished overall in a time of 6.00.39.

My performance today is going in the smile bank !!

TLI Brattleby Road Race

 TLI season has started again in Lincolnshire and the first of the races that I could make was the daunting Brattleby Road Race laid on by Velo Club Lincoln. It's a c.30 mile affair which takes in 9 climbs of Brattleby Hill - a 1km climb rising to 38m - a real leg tester !

I'd always avoided this one because of the climbing, but as I seemed to be a climbing a little better this year I decided to chuck it into the training mix. Six Wheelers lined up on the night and I chose Group 2 as my nest for the evening.

It was wet and a little windy, so pleased to get under way at just past 7, where I took ages to clip in but once I had, I managed to get on the back of the Group and sit there ready for the first assault of THAT hill !  Turn left, wind a bit and there it was, I just kept my position and to be honest it wasn't that bad - in fact, at the top, I hit the front to do some work. Down the hill, again, and low and behold I made it up a second time - easy innit ?

My formula then was to save energy at the bottom, work hard up the climb, and then sit in the group on the bottom leg - this seemed to work really well. At the top of the 5th climb, something annoyed me so I attacked and led the race for ooh 300 metres or so, but that just meant another attack came and I followed that one breaking my no work rule on the bottom - group 3 caught us up the 6th climb and that was it - I was shelled along with others and coasted around that last 3 laps !

4th Wheeler on the night - and I FINISHED BRATTLEBY ROAD RACE !! V.happy.

Bruce Kingsford TA National 50

Same routine as the Stockton 50 a couple of weeks ago - up very very early, but this time it was a 2.5 hour trip over to Shrewsbury to arrive at 7.15am and my first attempt at one of the TA's National Trophies. This would be a tough ask as there were two World Champions racing and you don't become a Champ without being extremely fast ! 

My plan for the day was simple - try and be the fastest non World Champion ! 

The course was a revised version of the D50/3 which is single carriage undulating track and was a dog leg, out and back, out and back again affair with roundabouts every 5 miles or so to break up the ride and give some legs to aim for.

I would have no idea how I was doing as well, as I'd forgotten to switch the Garmin unit onto the Trike so would be riding the 50 miles blind. With the weather predicting rain all the way through, it could have shaped up to be a bit of a damp squib, but a bento box full of Jelly Babies was the silver lining as lined up for a wet start at 8.26. 

Don't go off too fast, don't go off too fast - oh FFS - I got very giddy straight from the line and I suppose that's the problem with not knowing how fast you are going. I felt like it wasn't fast enough so kept pushing. We had been sent off three minutes apart, so I couldn't see anyone in front of me and that didn't help things. Managed to catch my three minute man before the second roundabout at 13 miles and the caught up with Pete a little bit after. On the return leg from the roundabout I could get a time stamp on the rest of the riders and knew already that the World Champs were far and away faster than anyone else. I was doing well and had built up some time advantage in the battle of the non-champs though!  My round-a-bouting was better, but still painful for the watching marshalls !! The effects of starting too fast were yet to kick in and I made consistent progress in the middle twenty miles or so. 

So round Prees roundabout for the last time and a trek down to Tern Hill roundabout at c 42 miles or so. There is a climb up to Tern Hill and that is where my legs decided that they'd had quite enough and left me ! Turn right (gingerly) and then the final seven miles or so into a head wind that had whipped up somewhat - It had turned into one of those rides that I agonisingly waited for the finish flag that never came ! 

2.18.10 over the eventual finish line and third fastest of the day behind the Champs. For a guess paced 50 I am over the moon with the time and have another 50 race miles in the legs ready for next Sundays Outlaw Half relay leg - game on ! 

LRRA 10 mile Champs - Skegness

What's not to like ?

It's a time trial by the Lincolnshire coast which meant the opportunity for an afternoon by the sea - but first came the real order of the day, which was to test myself finally against my peers and to see my commitment to the turbo since October had paid any dividend.

My personal best performance last year had been a 23.08 which I had laid down on the super fast V718 course at Hull, but I felt like that could be under threat today as I was still feeling good after Tuesdays 2-up effort with the club. I hadn't raced solo club time trials this year so didn't know where I would fit amongst the main protagonists - it was a case of suck it and see !

HQ was Gunby Hall which is about 10 miles outside Skeg. We arrived earlier than expected so decided to drive the course which I knew nothing about. I was happy that we took the time to do it though as I could see that it undulated up toward a roundabout, and then undulated downward to the finish which was at the bottom of a gift hill a la our very own Ingham course.

We parked up at the National Trust property, and I had the pleasure of warming up on the turbo whilst cows congregated to watch in the opposite field ! Still, it was a good 20 minute warm up and my legs felt better for it. then it was just a short trip up the finishing hill and then I was good to go.

I felt really good, and despite the 15mph Westerly wind, I was making good progress along the first stretch. Yes, there was an occasion where I was onlt doing 18mph up a slight rise, but there were also occasions where I comfortably holding above 25mph, I caught my minute man before the roundabout and had an average of c.23.6mph as I exited. Hard work done, it was time to make hay while the sun shined on the downward and back winded leg and I was soon in the 11 ring and pushing hard. First to the 25mph average, past another rider, and by the top of the finishing hill I was at 25.6mph. Down that beautiful parting gift from the course gods and hammering along at stupid miles an hour and past the finishing flag in a time of 22.32 - a new personal best by nearly 40 seconds and an average of 26.4 for the 9.92m course.