Today's Bike Ride

[Hanneke]

Lancashire RC 12 Hour 6/9/09
I quite enjoy a long ride so decided to enter the 12 (along with 3 other club members), quite a niche event which reflects in the number of entries – just 38. There aren't too many 12 hour races annually in the UK and this one was local(ish) to me out on the A6/Fylde. Everything on the run up to the event went well apart from lack of training miles so off I set at 06:34 on a dry and overcast Sunday morning. I had decided to ride to a HR and for the 1st 3 ½ hours I seemed to be moving very well with nobody passing me. My 50 split was just over 22mph but then at 3:25 I started to feel terrible. I was on a section into the wind and I had to drop onto the small ring and my speed dropped from 20 down to 16. For 40 minutes I felt like my body had had enough – little energy, aches, cramps, the voice in my head shouting stop. The keyword to this event seems to be ‘just keep going’ which sums it up very well. I carried on but left it in the small ring and soon rode through the bad patch. After that I felt good all afternoon with no other lows. I rode on the small ring for around 4 hours before banging the 53 back in and then it stayed in. After the 4 hour mark my HR dropped 10 into the high 140’s (around 45 less than max) and stayed constant at that for the rest of the day so I suspect I had set off a little too quickly. Around 20 club members were out on the course at various times of the day shouting support and offering up bottles which really gave a boost and put me on a high. In the last 4 hours of the race I was able to wind it up and managed to finish very strongly, getting my average back up from the morning’s slow section. My eating/drink strategy went without a hitch and 2 hours from the end I stuffed a Zipvit caffeine gel into my cake hole which was like pressing a turbo button. For around an hour I was flying, leaving behind 3 guys that I had been close to for an hour or so – great stuff but tasted bloody awful! This morning my left hand is still tingling and my legs are a little on the stiff side and I expect I will eat like a horse today! I Am yet to look at my Garmin which should have recorded the ride and managed to stay on for 12 hours, albeit with a battery low alert for the last hour. A few days off now before some running and cycling in Sunny Mallorca and fingers crossed for some fell races when I get back!

Stats:
5 Litres of fluid (mosty PSP22 & GO)
5 Bannanas
6 cold sausages
5 PSP GO gels
1 Zipvit caffeine Gel (turbo tackle)
2 Terys Chocolate orange bars

227.94 miles covered (19 average as near as damn it) with 3,500' of ascent.
1st Team (twenty quid each)
2nd team counter (got beat by 3 miles from an 18,000 mile a year clubmate)
Winner did 253 miles

WOW! That is impressive stuff... Do you have any idea what caused the dip in pace/power? Lack of food, general tiredness, lack of high mileage training volume??? Good to see you managed to ride through it though!

I was tempted to do the Welsh 12hr, which was on last weekend... But decided it was too close to Three Peaks and I wasn't prepared enough for it, not enough long hard rides. Maybe next year. Very few women do it...

[daz h]

Just under 90 sunny miles for me yesterday. Amazing weather and a bit too hot.
I managed to get to Buxton and back in a round about way.

Its funny though how things happen.
I stopped for an ice cream at White Lodge on the way back and realised Id forgotten my cash so didnt have one.
So I pressed on when suddenly 2 x time trial riders whizzed past on there PLANET X machines. So i thought im no having that and gave chase. I caught them at Bakewell and rode away from them as we left the town. I paced them for about 3/4 miles and they went past again. Suddenly another guy came past me and i kept with him for a while and we had a chat.
Turns out the two on the Planet X bikes where being chased by some of the academy GB ladies.
Within seconds I was surrounded by eight women on bikes. 3 of them had GB kit on.
They guy asked me if I could pace them down to Ambergate from Cromford . So I went to the front and didnt let off until the wire works. The girls all coasting behind me. God knows what speed we went but it was fast.
Well it must be about 7 miles and at the Hurt Arms the girls said a very nice thankyou and I watched them ride off as I turned left for home.
A great experience.

As usual I bonked at Heanor , no food again.

Those planet X bikes look a bit hi tech for me.

[daz h]

And I maintain that there is no finer sight than a woman in LYCRA.

[Stagger]

And I maintain that there is no finer sight than a woman in LYCRA.

[daz h]

cleaned the rourkie today
crap all over the patio and her indoors nagging

okay i did use 2xtowels
well what the hell are you supposed to use

[emmilou]

cleaned the rourkie today
crap all over the patio and her indoors nagging

okay i did use 2xtowels
well what the hell are you supposed to use

holey race t-shirts surely??

[Ady In Accy]

Another wondefull ride out on the back roads to Inca and then some very very quiet cycle lanes to Selva for a short stop in front of the impressive looking church in the square decorated with blue bunting. 5 of us opted for a ride up Lluc and I rode up with an ex pat called Liz who was out yesterday also. Went up briskly to very briskly and was well impressed with her riding but it turns out she is an ex national UK RR champ!!! There are some very dark horses riding out over here. I believe there is also a V50 Cat UK Tri champ that lives down the road that gets out on the rides on a regular basis. Fantastic riding over here, X2 more trips planned already for next year.

[Ady In Accy]

Do you have any idea what caused the dip in pace/power? Lack of food, general tiredness, lack of high mileage training volume???

I can only put it down to going too hard for the 1st 3 hours or so. Have looked at Garmin stats and it seems I would have been best trying to maintain 80 percent throughout. See how it goes next year Hann.

Do you know the guy in Cardiff that has the Cyclopedia bike shop? Ian Jeramhia? He is over here at the moment and is very strong.

[stevefoster]

The Original Mountain Bike Challenge at Hade Edge above Holmfirth on cross bike.
Approx 30 miles on/off road 2h 34m. Good fun and good training session for the 3 peaks cyclocross, no guinness in local boozer though
Nice t-shirt though

[stevefoster]

And I maintain that there is no finer sight than a woman in LYCRA.

Well said that daz