@bill Kenknock otherwise nsfw. I went on that road a very long time ago on my first 300, the Tayside Transgression. It was only just roadbikeable then. If it's not been improved I expect cycling on 23mm May be out, but rough stuff types will be happy enough
CityCyclingEdinburgh Forum » Events, rides etc.
Audax and Sportives 2022
(220 posts)-
Posted 2 years ago #
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I completed my first 600 at the weekend. Extending the Border Nights 400 route. The weather was mild but that doesn't mean dry. By the time I got to the start I had already been soaked twice and a gentle headwind meant that I had used all my spare time.
I made it to the Brampton coop but didn't have time to eat my food which wasn't an ideal way to start a 400. The Jacket was on again by the time I arrived in Eskdalemuir, although perhaps unnecessarily so. Food was provided there which was very welcome. I also took a 5 minute power nap which meant by the time I got going I was towards the back of the field. DaveC was along for the ride too and suggested we ride together which was welcome.
Chatting our way through Gala, Peebles and Moffat made for a pleasant evening and early morning and we eventually arrived at Lockerbie Lorry Park shortly about 3.30. I had booked a twin room so after a bite to eat we made use of it to get a couple of hours shut eye (and a little sleep).
The morning was when things got interesting. I ordered a bacon roll but had a couple of bites and realised my stomach wasn't going to be happy with it so pushed on without breakfast. By this point the rain had started again and kept coming in various intensities for the rest of the morning. There isn't much by way of shelter on the road to Abington but after an hour or so I pulled off onto a track under the railway to dig out my emergency apple. Thankfully I was now able to eat and the apple (followed by pork pies) revived my flagging pace.
Having left Lockerbie after the control closure we were relieved to make Abington half an hour early (despite the rain). Porridge and coffee gave the required receipt before heading south again. It quickly became apparent our earlier speed had been helped by the wind as we were now fighting it . Thankfully it died off as the morning progressed and we headed through the spectacular Leadhills to Dumfries, which was all new to me.
We had a comfortable time buffer again by the time we arrived in Dumfries but used a lot for a longish lunch stop. After a brief stop in Gretna we upped the pace and made it back with 45 minutes left on the clock.
After a break and some time to chat I had 50km left to finish the ride. By this time it was warm and sunny and i finished just as it was getting dark, meeting my family for a lift home.
Posted 2 years ago # -
That Abington to Leadhills road is a farookin beauty. Saw no traffic on it at weekend. Except a K Reg Commer Van with the sliding door open to allow the exhaust fumes out of the cabin.
Also so no vehicles from elvanfoot to Leadhills nor from Leadhills to Crawfordjohn.
All about 11am. All new to me too. We only did about 100km though due to not being mental.
We were plagued by four helicopters as Apple TV filming a period drama at Drumlanrig. On the back road from Sanquhar that sort of merges into Chooky buck’s estate road I looked back and saw a chopper heading west up the nith valley like a shot from Apocalypse now. Nith not Nam
Posted 2 years ago # -
Hmm, so it seems my naming of the hills around the village of Leadhills is incorrect. The road we took was Elvanfoot south to Thornhill. Considerably less climbing than the one via Leadhills and Wanlockhead but no less stunning.
Posted 2 years ago # -
The Lowthers would be the usual shorthand for those hills
Posted 2 years ago # -
Elvanfoot to Thornhill down the Dalveen Pass?
Posted 2 years ago # -
That's the one. I knew it had a name I just couldn't recall it. It's definitely a road I would return to though.
Posted 2 years ago # -
I’m not sure if this will be of use to anyone now or in the future but here’s some thoughts reflecting on my ECE at the weekend. I rode 150km before the event and 50km afterwards.
Riding the entire ECE before the event means that once you finish the event you are free to stay and chat with no need to watch the clock. However doing it this way also means that any time buffer you build up during the ECE is lost as soon as the event starts. You time limit for the ECE is defined by the time you leave. So if you're riding 200km and only leave 10 hours before the start of the event then you must complete the ride in those 10 hours. Any rest time you wish to have at the start is also decided by when you leave and the speed you travel at.
Riding the entire ECE afterwards is the opposite. Any extra time you have remaining at the end of the event transfers to the ECE and you can use as much or as little of it as you wish, however any time you spend at the arrivée is on the clock. Doing this also means you will be riding on alone after the buzz of the event and you are less likely to have company to help you through what might be the toughest part.
Splitting the ECE gives a combination of these. Any time you build up prior to the event goes off the clock until you complete the event. At that point you can use it on the final miles or to stay and chat if you wish.
On my ride I gave myself 7 and a half hours for the 200 which I expected to leave me with some time to eat and rest in Brampton prior to the start, however progress was slightly slower than I expected and I arrived with 5 minutes to spare. This then meant I needed a longer stop earlier in the event and was chasing the clock for much of the first 300km in order to build up and use a buffer of time for a sleep. I finished the event with about an hour to spare, although at that point I actually had 7 hours available to ride 50km so could take my time and finish the full ride with 4 hours spare.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Have audax platform on the way. N-1 has been concluded so time to initiate n+1.
Was looking through the audax uk calendar and all events seem to be on a Saturday which is a shame - Sunday is the day I can generally escape.
Am thinking of a diy 150 to see how I get on. That’s a fair bit beyond my existing time sitting on a non-recumbent so probably sensible to start relatively easy. Have a route planned through east lothian.
I will try not to think about my punyness in relation to you titans on here :)
Posted 2 years ago # -
Good comments acsimpson. I dislike ECEing to a start as deciding how much or how little time to leave adds a stress to the day. I remember ECEing to a Gala start and popping out on the A7 at Falahill with about a hour to go, clocking the "Galashiels 19" sign and basically having to time trial the rest.
Posted 2 years ago # -
@nobrakes, Judging by your performance on TotB I don't think you can describe yourself as puny, you are clearly far faster than I am. Riding the longer rides is just a matter of building up slowly, pacing yourself and ensuring you have a fuelling strategy which works.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Audax isn't so much about tremendous athletic performance as it is the ability to suffer through bad patches while still keeping the pedals turning slowly, in my experience at least!
Posted 2 years ago # -
Definitely agree @dave!
Posted 2 years ago # -
Yes it's the suffering part I'm worried about :)
Posted 2 years ago # -
Knowing what causes the bad patches so that you can avoid/minimise them also helps. In my case I seem to have developed an intolerance of fizzy drinks while on long rides.
Of course there's always going to be times when something unexpectedly affects your mood too, and you need to keep moving while playing mind games with yourself.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Next two rides for me aare the Dick McT from Gala next weekend then the Moulin Muir's two weeks later. Anyone else signed up for these?
Posted 2 years ago # -
No long rides for me planned at the moment due to an impending house move at the end of the month.
I hopeful that I might manage a DIY 200 before the end of October.
Posted 2 years ago # -
I’m still waiting on my audax bike to be built. I’m the meantime I’m planning a 150 round east Lothian tomorrow. Have made my Tarmac as distance friendly as possible. Stuck my wife’s MTB crud guard on the back and flipped the stem. Not ideal but I do now have a Carradice saddlebag which must be worth something :)
Posted 2 years ago # -
@acsimpson good luck with the house move!
@nobrakes plenty go around 200s on pretty racy bikes. But yes, comfort is key.
Posted 2 years ago # -
@amir I am down for Moulin Muirs. Really enjoyed it last year.
I was hoping to lunch at Escape Route in Pitlochry. It was stowed out with Ronde bunch last year. I hear it's their annual outing. Does anyone know if they are there on the 1st or 8th of Oct this year?
Posted 2 years ago # -
Anyone doing the Poppyscotland sportive on Sunday? I've signed up for the middle route (the long route smacks too much of masochism for me!)
Posted 2 years ago # -
@mcairney not this year. The jerseys look very nice.
Posted 2 years ago # -
@bill hope to see you this time!
Posted 2 years ago # -
I've booked myself for a first DIY 200 on Saturday. Going down from Stow to EskdaleMuir, then up back towards Innerleithen / Heriot. I did a 150 on Sunday past, which went not too bad. A bit sore afterwards but I'm a newbie at 7 hour rides on a road bike and riding an aggressive race bike so not that surprised.
Here's my proposed route: https://www.strava.com/routes/3007652001355670006
New audax bike is arriving tomorrow - woohoo. Now the stooshie about whether I ride the Tarmac which I know will leave me sore by the end or risk a very long ride on a new untested bike with new untested saddle. I'm tempted to stick with the Tarmac. Mainly on the saddle. The prologic saddle on the Tarmac I find quite comfortable as it has no cutout. I have tried one saddle with a cutout (Selle) and it left me with bumps developing in painful places. Might just be a bad setup but don't fancy that again on a new saddle on a 200.
It will be hard not to ride a shiny new bike though.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Swap the saddles ?
Posted 2 years ago # -
That sounds too simple :)
Not sure why I didn't think of that. Brain is turning to mush.
Posted 2 years ago # -
@nobrakes would you have a chance to test the new bike tomorrow/Friday?
I found that when I swapped the saddle it still took me a few rides to get the angle and position right. I ended up stopping several times on my commute to tweak it.
BTW. I love my Selle Italia saddles with cut-outs.
Posted 2 years ago # -
@nobrakes your route is similar to the Dick McT route also running on Saturday, except in the opposite direction and no loop over Alemuir. I will be passing through Stow on the way to the start. We may cross over so see you and good luck!
Posted 2 years ago # -
Not going to have much time, no. I'm tempted to leave it until I can get some time on it and get it tweaked.
I haven't given up on the Selle saddle yet, as I didn't spend a lot of time tweaking it. It was in the run up to the Tour o the Borders so I needed something comfy and the Prologic has been reliable.
The new bike comes with a Fizik Tempo Argo R5 which is completely different from the Selle or the Prologic. Short nosed with cutout. Uncharted territory for me.
Posted 2 years ago # -
@amir have a great ride. Perhaps we'll meet on the road somewhere. I'll be the guy looking knackered and sore, probably on an inappropriate bike.
Posted 2 years ago #
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