It's a race that's so hard on bike and body that I don't think you'll ever get it 100% spot on.... I've done it three times and it has never gone to plan. The last time in 2008, when I scraped under four hours, I got two flats and manage to snap off my front shifter in a crash coming off Cold Cotes... this limited me to the small chainring for the rest of the ride, making for some mad cadences on the road and real problems keeping my chain on coming off Whernside and PYG.....

Just be dead proud you finished what I reckon is the toughest cycling event in the UK.