Cransley Big Cycle and a whole lot more!

The main event this week was my longest ride of the year, all for the well deserving Cransley Hospice. Its also ten years to the day that my good friend Nigel did his LEJOG tandem ride. A few other bits to discuss including the return of professional racing with the Strade Bianche.

My first exercise of the week after a couple of rest days was a 10k run. I realised I hadn't ticked off my July 10k on Strava so with a few days left I decided to get it done! I felt strong on this run, it wasn't quick but it was comfortable.

On Thursday I went for a light morning spin. I wanted to get my legs moving but keep some energy for Saturday's planned 100 mile ride. It was a beautiful morning and just enriching to be out on my bike!

The ideal preparation for Saturday would have been clean eating, alcohol in moderation and plenty of sleep...well Thursday night didn't go to plan! I was a good boy on Friday but the extremely hot day led to a poor night's sleep. 

On Saturday I met up with the usual crowd at Kettering swimming pool. It was a 07:30 start so I'd expected a small group. There was 13 of us! We organised into two groups to make a 6 and 7. Almost compliant with guidance! I set off with the first group of Mark, Neil, Adam, Pete and Ashley. Group 2 was Andy P, Mike, Marcus, Amy, Nat, Paul and Richard G.

My plan was to tuck in and conserve my energy...that lasted for a couple of miles and then I found my legs and started taking turns in the front. My brakes for some reason were the noisiest things on the planet. My early theory was that I'd got some GT85 on my rims when I cleaned my bike. However I'm now going with Pete's theory that I need new blocks! I've purchased them already Mr Rowbotham!

Another point of interest was Neil's pink and orange drink combination. Apparently its koppenberg and hooch. 

First banana 🍌 break, nearly 30 miles for me. Spirits were high, the weather was glorious and we were making good time.

The pace was good all the way to our cafe stop at Grafham water. An average of 17mph is great for me...I can't remember the last time I sustained that over 55 miles. For other cyclists I know this wouldn't be unusual, I'd love to be like that one day!

Group 2 arrived at the cafe shortly after us. They'd reduced to 6 after 10 miles because Richard G needed to go home. Not his day! Never mind Richard there will be better times for you! Also at Grafham Nat and Ashley decided 100 was too much. Details of why shall remain in the group for Nat and for Ashley he's recovering from an injury and like me had probably been pushing too hard on the front! 

I'm never good after a stop and it took a while to get going again. I had planned to drink both bottles by the first stop. However I still had a whole bottle of my special mix of 50:50 pure orange juice and water with a pinch of salt.  Big mistake! I started falling behind but in my usual style I'd catch up on the downhills and flats. On one such downhill I rounded a corner to suddenly find the others stopped at a junction. I locked up those noisy brakes, did a power slide and ended up on the wrong side of the road narrowly avoiding a collision with a car. What a pillock! The adrenalin kick did help my peddaling for a few miles!

At around 70 miles I gave some of Bruce's magic magnesium a go! No cramp on the ride so I think it worked!!! I've ordered a load more and will use it on every ride. We had to stop at Hamerton for the traditional picture. Adam took it and so we took a picture of him!

My drink was nearly gone at 75 miles but that was okay, the next stop at Elton wasn't far. Group two joined as there shortly after we'd made our purchases. It was a perfect place to stop. A can of coke plus a solero went down nicely. I bought a couple of bottles of lucozade sport too. I didn't tell anyone but I had a headache and felt a bit sick. A clear sign of dehydration! Anyway the banter in the group distracted me nicely and it was less than 30 to go. I knew I'd make that!

An excellent range of fruit and veg. Lots of general buffoonery and Adam got excited about a lovely salad.

I was slowy mcslow face as we headed out again. I'd have occasional bursts of energy but started to fall off the pace. Andy and Mike hung back and drafted me to Aldwinkle. The hill up to Islip was agony. The group waited for me in the grim bus stop and banter flowed before Andy headed back down the hill to Denford. I let the group know I was heading home via Grafton. Neil helped me to the crossroads where the rest waited to say goodbye. That was a lovely gesture, my ride mates are great people. We occasionally forget ourselves and have a full on love in before returning to more socially acceptable put downs and banter! Unbelievably some of them are doing another 100 tomorrow! 

Then I ground home. Those two bottles of lucozade sport were nearly gone and I was still very thirsty. I wonder if I could keep up if I hydrated more effectively or if its just not possible for me to get enough liquid in to compensate for the amount I lose on a long ride? Its very gross but the steady drip of sweat from my helmet tells a tale. Another purchase I've made today is one of those cooling skullcaps. It might be a game changer!!! 

I planned to ride from Geddington through Newton and onto Rushton but I couldn't face that terrifying road crossing. So instead I went a bit gravel classic and headed through weekly woods to Glendon. Then it was just down bunker hill into Rothwell and up the hill to my house. 111 miles. I was the most knackered I've been in ages. After a pint of milk and a shower I weighed myself and was 3lbs lighter than I'd been before I set out that morning. Most of that must be water and that just shows how dehydrated I must have been. Also the headache and sickness went after a few cups of tea! According to myfitnesspal I'd also burned over 5000kcal! So I put that back in with a few quality ales and a barbecue of steak, chicken breast and pork belly!

Charity supervised the cooking, but after I felt recovered I wore her out with a long walk. It was the best thing to stretch out my legs. Earlier on I had to ask Sam to take my socks off because I couldn't bend over!!!

On Sunday Sam and I headed over to Cottingham so I could show him the Rockingham Forest Wheelers TT course. We did a very leisurely lap and I think Sam will get on great. More money was spent as his bib shorts now look about 3 sizes too small and so are his gloves! At least he fits my bikes...for now! No strava to show you because we both left it running on the drive home!!!

This time ten years ago I joined my good friend Nigel and his friend Keira for a ride from Chipping Norton to Northampton. This was one of their shorter days on their tandem ride from Lands End to John O'Groats. It feels apt that this 10th anniversary has happened in the same week that the round the world record for a tandem was beaten. No pressure Nigel and Keira.

Here's Nigel's account:

10 years ago yesterday!

Day 5

Chipping Norton to Northampton

52 miles

38.6 mph top speed

Total milage yesterday +52!!

Yesterday started with the short journey up the hill with Kyla and Callum for company. As we turned the corner to the Town Hall we were greeted by a fantastic group of friends from the sailing club and C block of Northampton Saints.

We had the team photo and set of in a long line. Looking in the rear view mirror was like seeing the pelaton on the telly. The first casualty of the day was Harry. After a couple of miles he had a blow out in the rear. This meant the whole group split into pieces. And that is how we carried on for the rest of the trip, despite having several stops to get together again.

It was so much fun riding with friends around us that the miles just flew by. Thanks must go to the support crews who followed and swapped bikes and cyclists as the day went on.

One of the stopping points was the White Heart in Flore. Derek, a C blocker has recently had a stroke and was out of hospital for the day to come back to his pub to meet us. Strongie organised a whip round and our total has been boosted by over fifty quid.

From Flore we rode over to Northampton to Eric and Carol's place to be greeted by a fantastic spread and the required carb loading for the next day. We would like to thank everybody who turned out to make this day so special. I think I smiled for the whole day.

There is one small point that needs to be made. If you are riding along, beside your father, make sure he doesn't force you off the road into the brambles. Poor Emma's arms and legs looked like they had been dragged through a hedge backwards, or was it forwards.

Chunky videoed whilst riding and the results can be seen here.

In racing news the Strade Bianche took place this weekend. With lots of gravel I'd say this is my type of ride. This GCN video tells quite the tale and if you've never read about Gino Bartali then you're in for a treat!

I think that's enough for one blog!

Happy Pedalling 

Road, Off Road, Group, Solo and a bit of running!

I probably say this a lot but...that was another great week of cycling (and a bit of running!)

During the week I've enjoyed a lot of walking with Mrs L and our splendid dogs. I also had a couple of runs. The last run I did this week was the best I have done in ages. 

My only bike ride in the week was also pretty good but I lost my data so I can't show anyone what I did. The reason is the WiFi dead spot in my side entrance. For the rest of the week I sat on the front wall until i could see the data sync! First World problems eh!!!

On Saturday morning we arranged to meet at the swimming pool again. Only two groups this week with the theory being that the weather forecast was poor and people have finally been able to get away on holiday. Our group picked up a 7th meeting Mark at Loddington. I think this was okay. We had a mixed ability so there was plenty of distance between riders most of the time.

The star rider of the group was clearly 17yr old Amy Bird. Way too quick for us old men and the sprints for village signs were often no contest. I got a couple of signs off her...yes you guessed it, with some downhill assistance.

It was good to see Mike back from his adventures on those big Tour de France hills.

Ian's aero shell fogged up at one stage.

This was quite a hilly route right from the start. We skimmed Leicestershire and Rutland at times going through The Langtons, Weston on Welland and Sutton Bassett.

All that silly racing for signs meant I was pretty tired by the time we made it to the tea rooms in Geddington. We caught up with group one there who looked a bit ruined. The explanation for this was that Graham on his Trek wonderbike had set a blistering pace! Calories were put back in with the magnificent croque monsieur they serve!

 

Having burnt all those extra kcal I was able to have some guilt free quality ales. Rothwell Wine Time has a great selection of German and Belgian ales. This was the pick of the bunch! 

I advertised a Sunday off road ride and selected more of a gravel ride at the request of Mark C who considered testing his shoulder. However overnight rain put people off so it was only me and Andy P today. Uncle Bob apparently had his bike in pieces or he would have joined us too!

Before I could set off I set the barbecue up to smoke a pork shoulder all day. This is my first go at this and I'm excited to see how it works out. I also hope I don't ruin a perfectly good joint of pork.

I met Andy on the market Square in Rothwell. I wasn't late for once (its 30 seconds from my house!)

We had a quick chat and decided to make the route more interesting. So first stop was Rushton and the bridleway to Pipewell. From there it was onto East Carlton Park and then the bridleway to Ashley (pictured.) With that overnight downpour you would think ploughed fields should be avoided. However this part of Northants drains quickly and the ground was dry and firm!

The view between East Carlton and Ashley is stunning! Then the descent of the hill is a great deal of fun.

In Ashley I've missed the bridleway I wanted a few times but with the help of Andy's OS subscription we found what will be a firm favourite for years to come!

Andy rode this hill. It was too much for me and I probably need a dinner plate rear cog!

Once over the hill there's another glorious descent!

The other side of that is a great section through to Wilbarston. It was quite overgrown in places though and my legs are still tingling from the stingers!!!

From Wilbarston we headed through Desborough airfield and then through to Arthingworth on more firm field tracks. At Arthingworth we were a bit wary of the cows but another rider assured us he'd passed through safely recently so we headed on towards the Brampton Valley Way.

The tunnel today was very busy with families walking and cycling. I'm sure the kids will feel they've been on quite the adventure. 

Andy and I picked up the bridleway to Harrington and back into Rothwell making this almost exactly 30 miles. We said our fairwells after the first ride in ages without mechanical issues of any kind. Big thanks to Andy for being great company and helping find that bridleway in Ashley. For me that was the final piece of the route that is now as good as it gets in Northants.

In other news I was reading on Instagram about my friend Damian's incredible long distance run. Have a read of his blog. This would make a challenging long bike ride. He RAN this Damian!!! 

Damian Carr Ridgeway ultramaraton

Okay thats it.

Happy Pedalling 

Summer miles and summer smiles

Another lovely week riding bikes and one 5k run. I've been out on road and off road, solo and in an appropriately distanced group.

My first ride of the week was a bit of a workout. After a slow start I wanted the most bang for my buck so did some hill repeats. These are not everyone's cup of tea but weirdly for a fatty who can't climb, I like this!

My 2nd session of the week was my standard 17 mile circuit. I had a false start having set off off without my spares and pump! How could I forget something so important! Anyway this ride was what I needed on so many levels and set me up nicely for the day!

Saturday was my biggest ride of the week. Not a monster but a lovely lumpy spin to the west of Northants.

The first thing to say is that 17 of us met up. However we split up into groups of no more than 6 and stuck to that strictly. 

At East Haddon we had a regroup where all 3 groups were together. By there our group had become 5 as Justin just needed to do his own thing. He'd also done the early birds and finished on way over 70 miles so I don't blame him for taking this approach!

Out of East Haddon we headed towards Brington but didn't get there. We turned right before Brington on a road I've never seen before. It was a lovely little track but Ian's words of warning were: "piddly little roads like this always lead somewhere horrendous!" He wasn't wrong it led to the biggest hill of the day!

Andy P had put the route together and I loved the section from this hill back to East Haddon, through Ravensthorpe and onto Guilsborough. A brief respite from the hills through Cottersbrooke and then full on again up Station Road into Brixworth. Andy's autoroute went a bit bizarre in Brixworth and we briefly lost Richard until he reappeared the other Brixworth on the road to Holcot! Having lost a rider last week there was great relief as we feared mocking from the other groups.

The cafe stop was Manvell Farm fishery and tea room. This is a superb place to stop with plenty of outdoor social distancing space and room for about £30k of carbon fibre!

Great cake selection.

Top quality sausage, bacon and egg bap!

From the tea stop it was a short ride home. Amy and Marcus Bird joined me as far as Loddington. On the Mawsley Road we were exposed to road rage from a driver who clearly thinks two abreast is an affront to his right to drive unimpeded to his urgent destination. I do hope he was in time to collect his daily mail. The excessive beeping was unnecessary. I guess for some people, living in a bubble means something different!

Pleased with my ride I treated myself to some quality ales from Wine Time in Rothwell. That Kasteel Belgian blonde is divine!!!

On Sunday it was a short drive to Lord Pendred's magnificent country residence. Andy, Uncle Bob and I set off for a 36ish mile off road adventure.

At the point of this picture all was well. I was thinking we'd make good time and be back for lunch. Banter was flowing and we'd covered topics such as George the local bull, Bojo, Trump and the comeback that hoovers with bags are making! With the heavy overnight rain suddenly things got a bit muddy!

Going up a hill, Andy's Sram rear mech jammed and then snapped. Andy hates Sram and will replace with a preferred brand! With the usual unhelpful banter he converted to single speed and we made it another 100 metres. Then it went again! 

Taunted by kites!

At this point I noticed my rear was going flat again. Oh no tubeless don't let me down again!!! I tried pumping up and sealant was leaking out of the valve hole. I tried tightening the valve but this made it worse! Also due to a recent repair there was a lot of fairy liquid involved. As Andy was knee deep in his 3rd repair attempt I decided to switch to a tube...at this point the problem became obvious...the valve had torn away from the rubber rim strip! Putting a tube in and then inflating led to an off road foam party!

Andy had to call international rescue and bring in the Lady Sue. He did invent the single speed scoot until we got to the designated meeting point. Bob and I rode back to Denford. Coffee and cake was provided by Andy's parents and I even had time to chuck a lure unsuccessfully in the river! Oh well somedays things go wrong! Andy very kindly hosed the bikes down too.

wonky telegraph poles and the Pendred scoot!

As soon as I got home my thoughts turned to ordering a new tubeless kit. However I realised the tube I'd fitted had a removable core. So I filled that with Stans sealant instead. This isn't as good as tubeless in terms of weight but just as effective in terms of puncture prevention. It seems silly to worry about a few grams of weight when I need to lose 10kg in lard!

That's all for now!

Happy Pedalling