Reflections

Wow. I'm on my sofa in Malvern (with wine!)

What a journey :  9 days, 934 miles, 47525 feet (9miles!!) of climbing, 70.45 hours riding time, 13.25 mph average speed.

I had really no idea what to expect. I signed up in haste; drunk at a Denplan Key Client Forum 2 years ago. Thanks to Henry Clover and Mark Garner at Denplan for that!, but how hard could it be??

Before our training ride in March I had not ridden more than 30 miles in a day on a road bike. That day in Yorkshire (81miles) was one of the hardest things I had ever done. BUT I was training well, and getting long miles in on the bike.

I was fairly confident that I was fit enough, and reasonably sure in my mental toughness, but not so sure how my body would cope- especially my knees ( right one broken in 1992), neck and back (regular pain and problems after an hour or so) and legs (regularly very very sore after 50+ mile rides). I was however unsure about Day 8. 10,000 feet of climbing over 100 miles is immense. ( A regular one day road sportive will have 6000-8000 feet over a similar distance on a single day. The Fred Whitton sportive in the lake district, widely considered to be one of the hardest has only 8200 feet over 120 miles!).

BUT I was committed, so off to the start I went.

What I Learnt in no particular order

• The human mind (mine in particular for our purposes) has an infinite capacity for digging deep. Then deeper again. My friend Mark Oborn taught me that. he gave me an image of a giant digger, which I visualised often at weak moments, to remind me to keep going
• Pain is controllable to a large degree
• I can climb ANY hill. I'm just not sure I want to. Bill Tweddell taught me that last week. He told me to keep pedalling at all costs, no matter how slowly. As long as my lungs were not bursting, my legs would keep turning. He was right!!
• My friends are incredibly supportive and generous- Thank you all so much
• 100+ miles a day is a long way, but quite possible if tiring
• It is worth it having a recovery routine- cold bath, stretching, compression and foam roller, and nutrition. Thanks to my trainer Jack Clayton, Sarah Wheeldon, Dan Pinder and many others
• Cornwall is beautiful but way way too hilly.
• The Denplan events team are awesome.
• Ive met some seriously impressive cyclists- Richard,Simon, Andy T  and young Tom (super star), incredibly persistent mentally strong heroes- Big Andy and Sarah. Great friends and patient teachers Lawrence, David and Bill. Im sure I should mention more. You are all heroes.
• Steve Timms is amazingly patient, supportive and wonderful.
• I'm not doing this again.

 



Day 9- St Austell to Lands End

64.7 miles, 5 hrs 36, 11.6mph, 4793 feet of climbing

The last day! "A short one", lots said.  " Easy ride to the finish" others said. "All downhill"!!!!

None of those really. it was one my toughest days, a day I doubted I could get through at times, even so close to the finish line.

I had looked at the route quite closely, and it was obvious that it was a continuation of the previous day, and maybe even harder. - almost 5000 feet of climbing in only 60 miles!

The day started badly. I dropped my chain twice on the way from the hotel to the start line/meeting point. By the time I got to the meeting point EVERYONE HAD GONE!

Cue grumpy call to Denplan Gemma- as I had no map of the route and no trust in my garmin. I waited 10 minutes or so for Gemma, so I reckon I set off about 20 minutes after everyone else. I had a vague hope that someone would realise and wait, but no. ( I found out that later, that the riders in the front thought I was behind and vice versa!).

So a solo ride from St Austell through Truro to the meeting point 28 miles later. The hardest leg of the whole journey for me,. Relentless climbing out of river valleys (Psst Cornwall-- BUILD SOME BRIDGES!!), and constant pain from my knees and neck.

I arrived at the meeting point, where Sarah and Lawrence were waiting for me, as they had now realised I was behind. Sarah was a superstar riding with me to the end, and tolerating my regular stops for the next 10 miles or so.

I started to improve at Helston, with about 25 miles to go, most pain had gone, and from that point we FLEW!

The sight of St Michaels Mount as we arrived at Marazion was breathtaking. The end is (almost) in sight

Ice Cream on the beach at the meeting point and then onwards for the last 15 miles.

We had discussed between ourselves taking the main road to Lands End (shorter and less steep hills), but we were told by the support team that the other riders would be waiting for us 4 miles out, so we could ride in together. So the hilly coast road it was then. (as it turned out, we were misinformed).

A lovely ride around the bay at sea level, dodging the tourists and we arrived at Mousehole and the climb that took my prize for hardest of the trip. Short but 20% in places.
By the way, throughout the whole trip, Sarah and myself rode every climb, without stopping, and without walking- I would never have thought that possible before this week.

The last 10 miles from Penzance to Lands End were relentlessly hilly and incredibly beautiful. 6 hills in that short stretch is a sharp sting in the tale.

But arrive we did. To a rapturous welcome from the other riders, our families and the support team.

WONDERFUL.

Photos and food and many goodbyes and then it was all over.

I was off to a fab Hotel with my lovely Steve for some relaxation before getting home.

9 days, 934 miles, 47525 feet (9miles!!) of climbing, 70.45 hours riding time, 13.25 mph average speed.

Thanks to follow
D

Day 8

Taunton to St Austell

105 miles, 8 hours 50, 12mph average, 9600 Feet climbing (9600!!!!, thats Almost 2miles of vertical!!!)

Ive now left the hotel, on route home, but still trying to catch up with blog relying on my dodgy memory.
By the way, ive been writing these posts on my tablet, often in the evening when I was very tired, so forgive any typos or smelling mistooks.

So, another sunny warm day greeted us at the start in Taunton.  Everyone looked anxious, as this day had been at the ba k of our minds for many months. 105 miles across south somerset , the whole of Devon and into Cornwall,  with 14 categorised climbs and countless "smaller" climbs no doubt.
I was very stressed waiting for the off. The idea of being able to complete such a mammoth days cycling seemed inconceivable at 7am.

Never the less I set off with my riding buddies for the day Bill Tweddell and David Buchanan, the Essex/Suffolk double act. My immediate focus being merely to get to the first checkpoint 26 miles away unscathed.

A brief aside, -I had ridden with Bill and David a few times over the week, and found them always to be great fun, good company and sources of good advice for an inexperienced cyclist like myself. Both are talented experienced club cyclists, but both were happy to ride with me and wait when necessary, and chivvy me along. Thanks guys. ( I did get a little bit quicker down hill by the end of the week, but not much).

My neck and knees were now going for it full time, so my dietary supplements of nurofen, paracetamol and ibuprofen gelwere not diminishing.  Despite that I made it to lunch in Okehampton.
50 miles done, but only 3500 of the promised 10000 feet of climbing completed.

Anxious lunch , then news came through that Lawrence and Sarah had arrived and,  Lawrence was pulling out as the pain in his knees was too much. Ive rarely seen such a more forlorn sight as Lawrence,  sitting in the back of the truck. As sarah was now by herself,  I would ride the rest of the afternoon with her and let The esses/suffolk boys fly without having to wait for me!

That afternoon will never be forgotten, about 6000 feet crammed into 55 miles of Devon and Cornwall.  Relentless steep down to a river then immediately steep up again, and repeat,.... about 10 times.

The worst being Ennislake on the river Tamar. Stupid steep and long. Im still smiling in the picture because I have climbed the hill yet! The poor denplan support team got a very grumpy me at the top. Sorry... x

Somehow we made it mile by mile through Okehampton, over the edge of Dartmoor toTavistock, Ennislake, Liskeard , Lostwithiel to St Austell. ! And our hotel. We arrived at 820pm. Not too bad really.

What a day. More climbing than most 100 mile on day sportive rides would contain.

Sarah Herbert is a superstar for getting me through it.  No walking,  and no stopping on any climb.

D

Day 7 , Upton to Taunton

116 miles,  8 hrs 35, 13.5mph, 4885 ft of climbing

Now, Im writing this from the luxury of a fab hotel having finished ( have been too tired to update), so I might miss stuff out. Day 7 seems like months ago!

Hot sunny day again, as we rolled out of Upton in a big group ( too big really on such a busy comuter road at 0800).
We picked up 3 guest riders today from Birmingham,  keen and eager to get going ( more later.....)

Unusually,  by the time we hot to Tewkesbury,  I was in the leading group on the road!!! Especially good as I was meeting my buddy Kevin Rose to ride together for a few hours.

Kev had a particularly impressive "Go Dave" homemade sign to spur me on. ( where did he findvthe crayons by the side of the road?!).

Was a lovely ride, chatting in the sun, riding through the cotswolds and up some good climbs.

At the break, we picked up Richard Marsden. Rich was having terrible trouble with his knees, but is normally an excellent rider in the fast group.  So carrying an injury, he was handicapped down to my level.

Richard is one of the nicest, most generous guys i have ever met.
Always the first to congratulate me and the other slower riders at the end of the day. Always there with words of advice support a smile and a hug at tough moments. Thank you for all of that Rich.

We rode together through the rest of the day, alternating between helping each other through a long hard painful ride.

It was all quite straightforward untill just north of Bath. ( other than a lot of abuse and tooting from motorists - the worst day for that in fact).

Bath to Wells was 4 hours of hellishly steep climbs, until finally getting to the wonderful fantastic lovely beautiful flat non hilly even ( get the picture?) Somerset Levels.

We had spent the day following directions from my Garmin Sat Nav , all good until getting lost in Taunton, and ending up in the wrong place.  Cue grumpy riding aroumd trying to find the right
premier inn, and a late finish at 830.

Poor Denplan Simon got a lot of stick from me, as he had downloaded the garmin. Sorry simon.  Thanks for putting up with me.

Meanwhile elsewhere,  others were having a worse day. Poor (much less Big) Andy broke his rear derailleur ( gears on the back- VERY IMPORTANT). After roadside and bike shop repairs he limped home very late and in the dark, with Simon for company. The Birmingham 3 guests were even later. Not getting back until almost 10pm -shell shocked and battered from the journey.

It was a long hard day,  made bearable by a great riding buddy and lots of good chat. (Also the best lunch of the trip in Lansdown,Bath).

Early night of course, ready for the horrors of thenlong awaited and feared day 8.

Day 6. Warrington to Upton upon Severn

110 miles,  8 hrs 3, 13.6mph, 3163 ft climbing

A day that I have visualised for 2 years has finally arrived. The day I riqde past my home and into Upton to be met by my friends. Wow...

But first , the small matter of riding from Warrington 110 miles away.

Todays riding partner was David, after our epic ride into town last night. ( I stormed up the last hill, after being towed by David for 60 miles!,. Sadly my storming was a little too energetic as I sailed passed my hotel!

Anyway, we rode relatively uneventfully to the first stop at market drayton. Uneventful for us, but not for Sarah, Andy and Lawrence who all got a bit lost!!

Andy joined us for the run to Albrighton,  through the Shropshire lanes to Newport then down the A41 -not any sort of fun in heavy traffic.

Shortly after lunch, Andys mechanical troubles continued with a broken spoke followed by a second. We left him with Denplan Simon to ride to the rescue. Andy rode most of the day with simon and arrived well after dark (again).

A quick word about food. My diet before and during this ride is fantastic. When you are burning 4-6000 calories,  there are little restrictions on eating. Puddings!!!!!!
I shall miss them next week. I recommend riding a bike 4-6 hours a day, to fully enjoy a great diet.

Great ride through the lanes to kinver in the sunshine, then canal to Kidderminster and then to Worcester.

My ride from worcester to upton was fantastic.  Everything I had imagined over all of my training rides on those roads.

Met by friends putting a beer in my hand. Just perfect..

Day 5 -  Penrith- Warrington.

115 miles, 8hrs 52, 13mph, 5144 ft of climbing

Wow - what a tough long day. From the incredible beauty of the Cumbrian Fells and Eden Valley, through the Lune Valley,  then through the industrial bleakness of Preston, Wigan and Warrington.

We said goodbye to Katherine and Emma from Denplan and welcomed thier replacements Chris-Bob and Aneka. It goes without saying how invaluable thier support has been. Along with Simon and Gemma of course.

The day was once again gloriously sunny and warm. Yesterdays sun, resulted in some very odd red burnt bits ( my wrists for example), so sun cream all round today.

A lovely slow start for the  group today , with the majority of good riders leaving promptly ( and me!). We all knew that the climb up and over Shap awaited, so the pace was very gentle.

As it turns out, that wasnt the hardest climb of the day. That honour was reserved for the road from Tebay to Kendal,  going over the top to the Lune Valley,  high above the M6.

Today was notable for the fact that I made contact with the fast group 4 times today( 4 times more than any other day). And even rode with them very briefly twice ( before young Tom towed them away from me).

The ride up and over Shap was incredibly beautiful,  and I was in great shape at this point until the first stop at Tebay. For some reason , once we had left Tebay I struggled with my form and also my neck pain. I quickly lost touch with my companions and rode alone for 25 miles or so. (a little grumpy and down).
I met them again at Devils Bridge in Kirkby Lonsdale,  which marked the halfway point in our journey!!

The appeltize was cracked open (2014 vintage). Andy had his supportbteam in attendance in the shape of the lovely Bernie, who endeared herself to all with a plentiful supply of malteser cake!

Lunch in Caton, just outside Lancaster, was taken with only 50 miles out of 115 gone. Still a long way to go.

The break allowed me to meet up with David and Bill who had started later. I hoomed up with David and (medium sized) Andy and carried on towards Preston.

Bill, however, decided that he hadnt done enough work, and went to climb the nearby Jubilee Tower climb (one of the best 100 climbs in Britain app apparently). Surprisingly no one took him up on his offer to join him.

I hung on for dear life during the afternoon, still feeling rubbish. Towed and bullied along by David.

2nd lunch (it was a long day!) was taken just north of Preston, with the beautiful scenery behind us, and industrial Greater Manchester in front of us.

Fortunately,  this perked me up no end, and I was able to ride strongly to the finish just south of Warrington.

Cycling through Preston and Wigan during rush hour is not to be recommended. Very scary, and busy. Luckily every one made it unscathed with no abuse from car drivers and no road rage ( we had expected both today).

I reached my hotel at 830pm, more than 12 hours after
 setting off from Penrith! Andy got lost in Wigan and was even later.

So, the midlands beckons tomorrow and familiar roads for the next 2 days. We pass 4 miles from home tomorrow and finish in Upton on Severn, a town I know very well, and close enough to be able to see friends in the evening.

Night Dx

DAY4 - SUNSHINE!

What a challenge this is. Mentally tough-, incredibly so. It becomes very difficult to carry on sometimes.  My way of dealing with it is in very small chunks,  one day at a rime, or more likely one section ( 17-35 miles), distance to the next townor even to the next lamppost or sign on a climb. Its the old saying-

 "How do you eat an elephant? A- in small chunks.

I can cope with 25 mile chunks. The idea of riding a bike more than 100 miles a day for 9 days is impossible.

The physical challenge is not what you might imagine. Speaking for myself, the challenge is not aerobic, in otherwords I am rarely out of breath.  No, it is a challenge for the rest of the body staying healthy- neck, shoulders,  legs hands back and of course bottom!
My big problem is the pain in my neck, which is unrelenting, my legs and bum are in good shape as it were.
I was given good advice from friends and this has proven very successful.  Big thanks ro Daniel Pinder for recommending lovely ice baths and compression leggings. It has worked well.

So back to the cycling

Well, at last the sun came out, and so of course the legs came out en masse too.
Breakfast in Lanark was outstanding at the Scottish equestrian centre hotel, with easily the best coffee so far.

For the first time since JO'G we set off together, but obviously that didnt last, and true to form Andy (not so big Andy!) and myself dropped off the back and promptly took a diversion ( not the same as getting lost!).

We were in the beautiful Upper Clyde valley, a really pretty area, especially if you ignore the A74 running through the middle of it.  It is also the area of Scotland that my ancestors came from!

We made it to the first check point and linked up with the Essex team of David, Bill and Debs. A fast run alongside the motorway followed, and we got to Lockerbie for lunch for the next checkpoint and almost lunch.

I was overruled on the lunch point :-(, so we carried on to Gretna. A very odd place, clearly playing on the Wedding theme to a Blackpoolesque level. Costa once again, came to my stomachs rescue. And then the most wonderful thing happened.......

We arrived in England.

Reunited with David, Bill and Debs we got  to Carlisle and road rage galore.  After a close shave with a passing car ( actually, a passing car brushed Bills side), "young" Bill showed a fantastic turn of speed and chased after said car, catching up at the next traffic lights.  Cue, angry shouting by Bill and blank bewilderment by confused elderly driver. As it turns out, Anee in one of the other groups had a similar incident in the same place 20 minutes earlier.
Must be something in the water in Cumbria.

Then a dash to Penrith through the Cumbria fells,  and arrival just in time before the heavens opened.

A good day's work, fast at times, no big climbs,  and I felt strong all day, with only my neck causing any difficulties.

However or Lawrence and Sarah had a torrid time, finally arriving at 830. Both had suffered joint trouble and had a very tough day. Not sure if they will start tomorrow.

Bed time.
D x

Day 3 - tough, hilly and tiring

Aberfeldy-Lanark. 95 miles, 7hrs,35, 12.5 mph, 6074 ft climbing


The day began with a fantastic breakfast cooked for us all by the great couple who ran The Bunkhouse at Glassie Farm. ( in Aberfeldy,  highly recommended if you are ever in the area).

Then down the track to start the day, once again in the rain, with full winter gear on.

First up , the long climb out of Aberfeldy heading towards Crieff. 4 miles of 3-4%.. Not as bad as advertised, but a bit grim in the wet. Loch Tay, at the top must be lovely in the sunshine.

The descent off the top would have been amazing in the dry, however it was raining hard, and it wasn't much fun.

First stop was Crieff, where the Denplan ladies were waiting with hot drinks. Big smiles all round at that point Of course. We were joined by my good friend Jan Clarke,  who came by to show support, and say Hi.

Then on towards Stirling via some steepclimbs on country lanes. Lunch at Costa in Stirling, but not before a section of cobbles ( not nice on a road bike after  ycling almost 300 miles- ouch).

Lots of hills followed all the way through the central belt of Scotland to our overnight stop off in Lanark. 

I must have had something special in my coffee at lunch, as I felt very strong all afternoon, until the last 5 miles, then staryed counting the yards off...

The last sting in the tail - arriving at the edge of Lanark and being directed by the support team to "carry on, your B+Bis just around the corner, not far. Halfa mile..". 5 miles and a phone call later, I found my destination.  Not at all happy... as I had , entally finished 4.5 miles earlier... :-(.

Anyway.  Mountains of food for dinner sorted me out, and all was well again. 

Something I noticed today,  other than the noticeable increase in traffic was that the standard of driving and consideration of drivers has got worse as we have moved south. Also the roads, which were generally fantastic in the north, are in much poorer condition. 

Tomorrow we get to England!!! Hurray. 

Night all x

Cycled past lots of these close up. (We were very high a lot of the time!)

Day2 . At least 2 seasons in this Day.

 So, 102 miles was promised today from Inverness to Aberfeldy, crossing the Cairngorms and going over the Drumochty Pass. The day started early again of course with Premier inn's finest breakfast ( surprisingly good coffee by the way).

 Overcast skies but no rain and cold. Due to the weather forecast, there was a distinct absence of shorts on show this morning, unlike yesterday. Everybody opting for long leggings and rain jackets. This proved to be the correct decision! The heavens opened half an hour later.

 A great bonus today was very little riding on A roads. We stuck to lanes, B roads and the famous A9 cycle path. The first 15 miles involved some short steep climbs, and rain. By the first stop at 25 miles, it was very cold and wet, so it was a short stop. BUT a big change from yesterday was that our little group arrived at the checkpoint BEFORE the lead group had left! That is a result! The weather it should be noted was now terrible. cold and driving rain.

 By the time we arrived at Aviemore, mid morning, my fingers had gone too numb to properly work the levers. Fortunately the Denplan van passed us at that point. Great I thought, I can warm up and get my winter gloves from my bag. Cue- frantic waving by me, and guess what ... Frantic Cheery waving from Denplan Gemma. But, no stopping. !!!! However, it did start getting drier and warmer by that point. In fact later in the day, when the sun came out, we were all far too hot in wet and cold weather gear, with no room to carry the excess clothes. Ah well....

 We then rode through beautiful scenery ( a theme for the whole day) through Avimore and onto the splendid Highland Folk Museum for lunch. ( yes the leading group was there too. ).

 A word about my riding partners today: All day we rode together and had a good laugh taking in the majestic cairngorm scenery and stopping often to admire the view. ( the rain stopped by 12). Sarah and Lawrence Herbert were great company all day, and and again the now famous ( and slightly less)Big Andy. By the way , it came out today that Andy has raised more than £12000, for macmillan!!! Helped by the incredible support and generosity of his community in Spofforth, North Yorkshire. ( I thoughni was doing well with 3000!).

 After lunch we made our way to the top of the Drumochty Pass, via the A9 cycle path. The climbmitself was VERY long but not steep and the path was not too bad, if a bit rough and gravelly in places. In had read before this trip that it was horrendous and impassable in places on a road bike, but clearly there had been changes as it seemed good to me. Some of our number opted to avoid the cycle path and take their chances on th A9, which was more than a little scary apparently. On reaching the summit of the climb, we stopped for a rest. We had been there for 5 minutes, when Lawrence pointed out the Denplan support truck parke parkedd only 50 yards away, hidden by a bush. So another rest was had of course. The descent off the top was an exillerating downhill for 15 miles. Not steep and good roads. What fun..

 Last break was in Blair Atholl, then a 20 mile "blast" to Aberfeldy. However, it is a universal law that the last 20 miles of any long bike ride goes on for EVER! and today didnt disapoint. Neck very sore today, but bum and legs were fine! We are staying in in a bunkhouse located on a farm high above Aberfeldy and the Tay valley. Beautiful. A great hog roast and hospitality. Everyone in bed by 930 :-). Tomorrow we have a short day ! , only 91 miles. But, it starts with a 4 mile 5% climb!

So, off to bed with me too. D x

Punctures punctures and lots of miles

Day 1. John O'groats to Inverness.  117 miles (maybe).

Ill come to today in a second, firstly a word about yesterday. A very uneventful journey from malvern via Birmingham and Edinburgh got me to Wick at 3pm .

Taxi to JOG and "relax". The best thing to say about JOG is that it seems like a great place to leave. There really is nothing there. 1 hotel ( which was very pleasant and super friendly staff and good food), a few bungalows, 1 sign proclaiming where you are and that's about it.

We did manage to see a pod of dolphins go past, which was a surprising treat. Also surprising was how close to the mainland the Orkmey islands are.

Anyway, to today. We set off together (24 riders from all over the uk , but mostly from Exeter and Yorkshire! And mostly called David- a perfectly fine name of course), at 0730 under grey skies but dry.

It is worth noting that the countryside around JoG is no more inspiring than the town itself. Bleak, no trees, and windy.( somehow  I think those things are related).

I had my first puncture at mile 10! Having set out with the front(ish) group I was quickly in the last group.  Second puncture came in Wick at mile 18.( there was some swearing). So I set off again, now in the very last group with only Big Andy for company . However I did now possess a very smart blue ti4e provided by Simon from the awesome Denplan support crew.

So from that point we decided not to rush and instead take it steady and stop when we wanted to.  As a result we took in the moor like scenery and saw lots of wildlife - Highland cattle, Stags, Seals ,lots of rabbits and almost some Otters.

So we slowly made our way down the coast, eventually getting to the point where there were trees!!! And a lunch stop in Brora. (Obviously in a pub!) Nothing at all to report at Brora, oh except ANOTHER PUNCTURE). and also a matching smart blue tyre.

By this time we had passed half way and my neck was starting to hurt, but no rain , and much less wind.

Spoke too soon though. A largish climb was followed by crossing the Dornoch Firth bridge with a wopping side wind trying to blow me into the carriageway ( not a lot of fun).

At some point around 2 I passed my longest daily distance (81), quickly followed by my first century!!

The run into Inverness seemed to go on for ever, along a busy scary dual carriageway. Almost finished,  but......
Having followed directions from the now suddenly less impressive Simon from Denplan,I went the wrong way by a mile or so.

Quick correctison and I was finished.
121.2 miles, 8:14:53, 14.8 mph average speed,  5772 ft climbed and most importantly 4877 calories burnt!

http://www.strava.com/activities/139583362?fb_action_ids=10152041228688204&fb_action_types=fitness.bikes&fb_source=other_multiline&action_object_map=%5B754309604609814%5D&action_type_map=%5B%22fitness.bikes%22%5D&action_ref_map=%5B%5D

Almost.  First though was the ice bath, stretching, foam roller and compression leggings as prescribed by PT Sarah.
I'll find out tomorrow how effective it was.

Ready for sleep now. 102 miles tomorrow.

Remember, im doing this for a reason!. To raise money for macmillan cancer care.  Please spare what you can and donate at
Www.justgiving.com/david-watson43.
Thanks