61 Days to Go: Drumlanrig Tearfund Challenge

What a fantastic day yesterday, cycling the 82 mile Drumlanrig Tearfund Challenge around the beautiful, quiet Dumfries & Galloway countryside.  After the past few weeks I knew that this would be a real test of my fitness, especially as I had not ridden longer than 50 miles for awhile.  The forecast was for light rain and temperature of 8 deg, a bit of shock after the 18 deg we had been having.  Driving down in the morning through heavy showers I was bracing myself for a grim day, but the blue skies appeared as soon as I turned off the M74.

Wrapped up in mostly winter kit I set off in a small group at 9am.  After a couple of minutes I realised that there was another West Lothian Clarion rider in the group, who I had ridden with previously on our Rad Tour in March.  As our pace was pretty similar we ended up riding together, which makes a nice change as I often end up on my tod in these events. 

My decision to wrap up rapidly turned out to be the wrong one as I was overheating on the first climb, but this was quickly fixed when I removed my thermal top before the nasty 20% Dunnregan Brae. While this was not as long as those in the Lakes, the potholes and gravel made it very tricky.  Even worse was having to negotiate around riders walking up the climb!  

After that climb I felt properly warmed up, both mentally and physically and settled into the ride. Next came lovely open climbs with beautiful views.  We saw a flash of yellow, white and black as another Clarion rider passed us on the next long climb.  By this point I was used to the constant ups and downs and before I knew it 35 miles had passed, and there was only 8 to go until the lunch stop, and I was desperate for a cup of tea.

Now I am not sure if I have been spoilt by the last events that I have done, but I have got used to indoor feed stations with hot drinks.  I had forgotten that I should not expect more than a bit of food and some water.  As I have learnt my lesson, I don't generally partake in the food on offer as it can result in stomach pains if something doesn't agree.  I had just had four nights of pretty bad insomnia so was very tired mentally, so imagine my disappointment when there were no hot drinks or coke at the food stop. I hasten to add that this is not a criticism of the organisers at all, just my desperate mental state.  So I grabbed a banana, top up my bottles, dumped my superfluous clothing in the car, and headed off again. 

I was a bit concerned that I had ridden the first leg too hard, as my average heart rate was 154.  Normally I ride in the 140s.  This, coupled with my lack of caffeine, meant I went through a bit of a rough patch for the next 30 minutes.  When a couple decided to sit on my tail, without so much as a hello or the offer to work together, I was pretty hacked off.  They took off past me after 20 minutes and I tried to get in behind them but couldn't quite do it.  So as you can imagine I was not good company.  Then I remembered that I had some gel shots in my pocket - WITH CAFFEINE!!!! Yipeeeeeee!!!! So took a couple of those before the start of Mennock Pass.  Then I caught up with a couple of ERC riders, one of whom was very positive and commented on what a lovely ride it was with a big grin on his face, which put me back into a good mood.

Mennock Pass was fantastic! About 6 miles of climbing, albeit into a head wind, but when there is a trail of riders ahead of you there is something magical about everyone suffering together.  I started picking off riders one by one and felt the best I had all day.  Before I knew it I was at the next feed station with only 18 miles to go. 

I joined forces with the two ERC riders I had passed earlier.  We rode pretty well as a team, and picked up David (my morning's companion) and we made a team of four.  Pretty soon it was down on the drops for a beautiful fast descent to Elvanfoot.  Working as a team again we rode pretty strongly to the castle grounds before the last small push back up to the finish line. My total time was 6hrs and 1 minute!!!! I was gutted as I was aiming for under 6 hours. But then I won't let 2 minutes spoil a brilliant day and what was, for me, a strong performance.


  

68 Days to Go: Uphill Struggle

It's been a funny old week, pleased with my efforts considering that I am coming back from illness, but a bit freaked out that all is not going to plan.  Conjuring up images of Wonder Woman I thought I had fought a virus off in record time last week and went out for a normal training ride on "Ash Wednesday" (i.e. the days the planes stopped flying).  Unfortunately the next day I woke up with a chest infection and feeling rough again.  I realise now that the virus was not out of my system.  For once I listened to my body and completely rested.  Last Monday I was back into it.  Did a ride tempo ride after work and, although I didn't feel 100% on the bike, my recovery was normal. 

Wednesday night I linked up all the hills in the Bathgate Alpes to focus on getting my climbing muscles into shape.  600 metres of climbing and loved every minute of it!  Great, I thought, 2 days to recover until Saturday's long ride.

So yesterday came the shocking realisation that I am not Wonder Woman.  My plan was to do 85 miles in the Scottish Borders. I didn't feel particularly strong from the off and had to admit I wasn't enjoying the first stretch.  I felt knackered and looked that computer and realised I had only completed 10 miles.  Pulling myself together I took in the scenery, felt the warmth of the sunshine and tried to feel a bit more positive.  I had just began feeling a bit happier when some stupid woman let her ankle biting mutt chase my bike.  She just looked at me like a gormless idiot while I yelled at her dog to get away.  Well at least it got my speed up but didn't put me in a good frame of mind.

Then I got overtaken by someone!!! I must apologise to the poor guy who went passed just as I was clearing my nose on the roadside (and probably him - oops!). Not very ladylike I know but he didn't seem phased by it (but oddly took off pretty quick after saying hello).  I continued my battle of the wills and made a deal that if I got to Clovenfords with an average speed over more than 22 kph and an average HR less than 140 I would do the planned 85 miles.  However, as I struggled over the last small climb I realised that I was not being sensible.  If someone else was looking at the situation objectively I would be advised to not over do it as I would just pay in the long run. Plan B - stop for a coffee at Clovenfords and cut the ride short.

So I went all continental and stopped for a latte in the sun.  It was so nice to sit in the sun, in a short sleeve top and feel warm.  I felt a lot happier after deciding to do the shorter route.  Buoyed by my dose of caffeine I headed off to Innerleithen. Another impromptu speed session happened when I caught up with a bunch of mountain bikers at the lights for a single lane bridge.  As they pulled out in front of me I had no choice but to go on the outside of them to avoid a collision. I caught the lights as they changed and sped off from the lights, but one of the guys took umbrage and kept on my tail.  I always treat this section as a bit of a time trial effort as it is dead flat, so wasn't really trying to race him, honestly!  OK maybe I was racing him just a little bit. But near the end I was definitely racing him and left him for dead!!!

Back on the continental theme. I was in the Pyrenees last year and stayed at this weird village that had life size puppets everywhere.  Well when I pulled up to take off a layer in Innerleithen I was reminded of that village when I saw this lot looking out of the window.

That just left the final climb to get back to the starting point. And what a climb it was!  Beautiful constant gradient for the first 30 minutes, then a drop of 50 or so metres and then it's up again for another 15 minutes before the best descent ever.  So managed 50 miles, 1050 metres of climbing.  I had done what the books say which is to pick up where you left off when coming back from illness.  I hope I have made the right decision and will catch up with the training plan in the next few weeks. And I leave you with this image of my alter ego....

82 Days to Go: Down the garden path

A frustrating week as I have been fighting off another virus!  Two days out of the office, one of them spent in bed, so of course not much time on the bike. This weekend I have spent more time "relaxing" in the garden than on the bike. I have been extremely sensible and have been out for a very gentle 20 miles today, just to enjoy this lovely weather.  My biggest worry is that this disruption is down to overtraining, but to be honest I have been through it before and it doesn't feel the same.  Today, while I felt a bit weary, I didn't have those heavy legs that you get from overtraining, and I was desperate to get out on the bike (with overtraining I just lose interest in cycling).  I think it is just bad luck.

As a result of too much time on my hands I have now convinced myself that I want to buy some decent wheels. After much research I have my heart set on the Shimano Dura Ace CLs.  Unfortunately these cost over £500 (at a reasonable discount), which I am struggling to justify. Firstly, I have managed with my Mavic Askiums for a long time now, and they are not much heavier. Will I really notice the difference of the highly rated, highly priced Dura Ace?  Secondly, there is the opportunity cost.  All those things I could spend the £500+ on, a week's training in the alps, the new laptop that I desperately need, etc, etc.

So then I got thinking wouldn't it be great if you got a tax break on sports equipment.  Now I know that there is the cycle to work scheme, but come on I can't justify a set of racing wheels. Besides my workplace is home so a bit difficult to explain that one.  While the cycle to work scheme is fantastic, there is no "run to work scheme" or a "climb munroes on the weekend, to keep you fit for work scheme".  It would be too difficult to give people tax breaks for keeping fit, as how do you prove that unless you are monitoring gym visits or carrying out regular fitness tests.  So the answer is.... NO VAT ON SPORTING GOODS!!!!  I mean it makes sense.  Save 17.5% on the kit you want need for your chosen sport.  Plus you can import goods from the States and not have to pay customs charges (a real gripe of mine trying to source women's cycling tops - the USA have a much bigger range).  You can keep your tax breaks for married couples. Any party that comes up with that promise to remove VAT on sporting goods will have my vote.

88 Days to Go: Girl Interrupted

The change of seasons has bought the inevitable next round of bugs in the office.  The symphony of racking coughs is enough to put the wind up anyone in training, and sure enough I spent last weekend fighting off a virus.  Luckily this only resulted in a couple of days of feeling like crap and then I was back to normal by Monday.  So no long rides for me last weekend.  Oh and then that lovely white stuff made a reappearance three days after "British Summer Time" began.  I had the summer bike service last weekend and was really excited at the prospect of getting back into training after work.  But Monday night saw the summer bike firmly back on the turbo.

Managed 3 rides in 3 days this Easter Weekend.  Friday was a 33 mile local ride over the Lang Wang.  About five minutes into the ride I caught up with a local lady and, as we were planning to do the same route and were fairly evenly paced, we rode together. While the roadside was shoulder high with snow in places the roads were passable. Woolford cottages, which is not normally much to look at, looked like a picture postcard winter scene. With the lovely spring sunshine, and good company, it all made for fantastic riding. 

Saturday was an unplanned speed session as I needed to pick up my car from a workshop before it shut.  With about 90 minutes notice, the ride taking about an hour, and not being ready to go it was the fastest I had ridden in awhile.  Made with about 5 minutes to spare. 

So yesterday was the long ride with some long climbs.

http://www.mapmyride.com/route/gb/borders/426127046401722629

The forecast was for 100% cloud and 0.1mm rain, which usually means no rain or at the most light drizzle.  But when we arrived at the starting point it was freezing cold and raining.  Now I have to confess I am most definitely a fair weather rider so this was a test of my commitment to La Marmotte.  I put on all the layers that I had, gritted my teeth and got on with the task in hand.  The first climb was the most miserable experience on my summer bike ever!  Absolutely soaked legs, cold and poor visibility due to my cycling glasses being clogged up with rain.  But then once over the top I could see sunshine in Innerleithen.  Yipeee!!!  Rewarded for my efforts at last!  For the next hour or so it was lovely dry roads and a fairly easy run, albeit I was still cold. 

Once I turned back into the wind though, for the stretch between Clovenfords and Innerleithen, it was a struggle.  I felt so slow I thought I was back on the winter bike and every hill seemed like a challenge.  I really wondered if I had the mental strength to get back over the last climb.  I stopped for five minutes and ate another bar.  Well, after that I was flying and hardly felt the last long climb!  Wondered what all the fuss was about.  Lessons learnt in poor nutrition I think.  I put it down to needing more calories than normal due to being cold. 

Oh and the highlight......being rewarded with stunning views of mid lothian on the final, amazing descent of the day.

103 Days to Go: Spring has sprung

Finally felt like spring was here this weekend.  Felt very warm yesterday when I went out for a "hard as you can" burst around one of my normal training routes in an attempt to get faster and stronger on the hills.

Today's long ride was the route of the Selkirk sportive. Not as warm as yesterday, due to a horrible horrible head wind.  The ride started out with the climb over to Gordon Arms from Innerleithen into an energy sapping, demoralising head wind. No matter I thought, everyone else who was out will be in the same boat....until a women cyclist went past me.  Well that soon made me feel like utter crap, especially when I couldn't catch her (it's a girl thing, we don't like to be passed by another girl).  The only saving grace is that (I am sure) she was on a lighter bike.  Now bearing in mind that I was still in full winter kit the biggest shock was that she was wearing short shorts. To my delight I saw her turning around at the Gordon Arms crossroads, with a very red face and even redder legs! 

Still it was onto the next climb, back into the wind and avoiding the sheep up the berry bush.  All I could think about was the tailwind I was hoping to get once I dropped into the Ettrick Valley. And how right I was, a lovely fast run all the way to Selkirk.  Even managed to fit in an extra climb on the way. 

Have to say though I didn't feel that great as my legs hurt.  Good thing this was my easy week as I wasn't finding the ride particularly enjoyable on acount of feeling tired. Not sure if it was from Saturday's effort or not fully recovered from last week's long ride. 

After some Selkirk bannock and a cuppa with Mark I headed back to Innerleithen up the Tweed Valley.  Luckily the wind had dropped by this point so it was a nice amble back past some real signs of spring.

Time for a hot bath and a lovely green & blacks hot chocolate, with a shot of whisky.

110 Days to Go: RAD Tour

Fabulous day today, if not a wee bit challenging. Today was the West Lothian Clarion's RAD tour (Reliability Trial). 62 miles around the county, taking in 7 castles and what seem endless hills and undulations. To top that off I rode to the start and finish, adding 14 miles, to give a total mileage today of 76 miles.

The day started well, as the first 2 miles are uphill and then is a gradual drop of altitude over the next 5 miles to the start. Just under 40 of us started. I had opted to for group 2, with the aim to average 15 mph + breaks. It all started off well but then somehow I lost the back of the group, when overtaking the group 1. Took me a while to catch up to the stragglers but the main bunch were gone. As it was pretty windy this was not the best situation. But hey ho, I just had to make do. After a bit of cat and mouse on the next few miles three of us rode together. This soon dropped to two when David had a blow out and had to bail out. Steve and I rode on, riding at a consistent pace with a nice chat to take the mind off things.

Now I had thought the ride would not involve many hills. How wrong could I be. As well as those constant rises that sap your legs there was a endless climb from West Calder to one of the highest roads in West Lothian. But at the top was the most welcoming sign ever....3 miles to the feed stop! And what feed stop it was. After meanearing down a long drive we arrived to a very warm welcome at Neil's house and lots of happy cyclists. Three varieties of soup, bread, the best collection of cakes I have ever seen, bacon rolls, tea and in the comfort of a dining room. I wasn't the only one who could have quiet happily whiled away the afternoon here. Finally we dragged ourselves away and formed a nice group of six for the last 22 miles.

Bizzare moment at the traffic lights. A car came completely towards us as we were sitting in a filter lane (single lane). At the last minute they mounted the pavement in the middle of the lights and careened up off the hill almost taking out some other riders. We were so dumstruck we missed that the lights had turned green.

Looking forward to some downhill we trotted off and five minutes later there were two punctures. 15 minutes later we were finally off again. Beautiful country lanes were our reward but not as easy as we thought. Every time we turned west there was a very taxing head wind. The last ten miles were tough as mostly uphill with a head wind. I think everyone was in their own personal hell at this point, with most silently riding on their own. At 3:30 we finally saw the end, nicely situated by a cafe. Time to relax at last! or not as I still have 7 miles, mostly uphill to get home (and with that persisent head wind). Still there was time to gather the energy over a latte.

Not a pretty ride home. I don't think I have ridden so slow in a long time. I was having to use my granny on the most pathetic of rises. At about 3 miles from home I was confronted with the final hill, which was as bad as it looked (see above). Needless to say I sit here now extremely tired, but pleased with my efforts. And it was such a brilliant day talking to so many friendly happy local cyclists. Wonder what next week brings?

117 Days to go: Cracking ride

Cracked 60 miles yesterday, although I did wonder if it would be me cracking. Set out from Innerleithen in the Scottish borders to do some decent hills and mileage. I wasn't sure how I would feel as last spring I felt shattered on the first ride in this area after 40 miles. So I had an opt out, when I got to Clovenfords after 25 miles I could either take a rolling 15 miles back or do another 25 miles, to take in a couple of half-decent climbs.

Well I felt like I was on drugs for the first 25 miles. Best I have ever felt at this time of year, and that was on the winter bike too! so when I got to Clovenfords I decided to do the longer route. Happy days....but not for long. The next 10 miles were hell. I felt tired, my bum ached, I had real pain in between my shoulder blades and once I got to Selkirk I was committed to the two climbs. No worries I thought, I will stop at the pub at Ettrickbridge and grab a cuppa to gather my strength. Mark had started at the same time this morning. I knew he was stopping here for a brew so I was hoping I might catch him as he was heading out the door. Seeing Mark's bike propped up against the wall put a small on my face. That smile turned into a massive grin when I saw Mark had a full cup of tea so we could chat for awhile, and that I was only 15 minutes behind him!!!

30 minutes later I was on my way again. First stop was my favourite climb over Witchy Knowe. Still a brilliant climb. Descent was a bit slow on account of the snow on the road. Was dreading the next stretch to the Gordon Arms as I really struggle on this section. but guess what? NO WIND!! OMG What a difference!!! Don't know what the fuss was all about, with no head wind I flew along and before I knew it was heading over the last climb of the day.

all in all averaged 13.5 mph, which is pretty good for me considering the time of year and the bike I was on. Must be doing something right.