Uncharted Territory

Tynemouth Castle

As much as I love the variety of cycling that Shropshire offers, it’s always nice to cycle somewhere new. New roads mean new challenges, and unexpected terrain to keep up on your toes.

Earlier in the week a business trip to Newcastle offered up the perfect opportunity to venture further afield. Just knowing that I had a ride to look forward to once we’d finished for the day made the ludicrously early start almost bearable.

Meetings completed, and hotel found, it was time to put the bike back together and hit the road. My plan was simple. Head from Newcastle city centre along the northern banks of the Tyne, then turn left and up the coast. Riding along the coastline always takes me back to my younger days when I lived on the Kent coast, seemingly a million miles away from the landlocked county of Shropshire.

The following two hours served to illustrate why I love cycling so much. The simple act of pushing the pedals the perfect antidote to the drudgery of the afternoon’s meeting.

Whitley Bay came and went and was so reminiscent of my hometown. A proud seaside town; perhaps not as grand as it once was, but still retaining a certain charm. I turned inland as I reached Blyth in the now fading light. The bright lights of the city centre guided me back to my hotel, and a well earned beer.

It’s not what you ride, or where you ride, what’s important is that you do!

Vive la Velo!   

The Hell of the Wrekin – Telford Toothpaste 2013

Getting ready to HTFU

It was as I battled my way through the six inch deep sand which claimed many a victim on the Creamery secteur that I realised just what a special event I was lucky enough to be taking part in. The ‘Toothpaste’, Shropshire’s very own tribute to the greatest one day race in the world, was underway, and was surpassing all I’d hoped it would be.

A couple of hours earlier, over 60 Toothpasters gathered at the event’s start point, shivering from the sub zero temperatures, but all looking forward to what promised to be a special day in the saddle. A loose amalgam of riders, some from local clubs, some from further afield, many I knew, more that I didn’t.

Organised largely via social media, by the man known to many only as Teddy Smerckx, this was the antithesis of the current love affair with sportives. However, this wasn’t just a glorified club run. Many of the riders were sporting jerseys to mark the event, we had a support crew taking photos (thanks for letting me use them here!), and to top it all we had our very motorcycle outriders. All very pro, and not at all what most of us were used to.
 
The ride itself was over all too quickly, the ever challenging off road secteurs breaking up the relative calm offered by the tarmac. The final secteur along the cycle path which tracks the River Severn offered up perhaps the perfect metaphor for the entire ride when we came upon a rider limping along who’d suffered yet another puncture. Only a few kms from the finish and a hard earned beer, this was a puncture too far, and all his spare tubes had been used. Mart, my riding partner, did the only decent thing, and passed on a tube to our stricken fellow Toothpaster.
 
Beer, Frites, and Faboo completing his third Paris Roubaix victory followed. The ‘Hell of the Wrekin’ had been a resounding success, and talk had already turned to next year.

A massive thanks to Teddy Smerckx for organising what can only be described as a truly unique event.



Mr Smerckx!

 Vive la Velo!

Consumed by the Challenge – #TrainingLikeTaylor

In my mind cycling is often defined by the challenges it presents. From my young daugthers trying to better their times on a lap of the local BMX track, to their middle aged father dragging his tired frame up an Alpine Col, it’s the challenge that drives us all on.

As much as I’ve resisted the lure of Strava, it’s recently taken hold, and it’s the challenges that have tipped the balance, and in particular the Training Like Taylor example. 31 hours and 51 minutes in 16 days. Some longer than normal weekend rides, complemented by extended commutes should see me through. Challenge accepted!

In the past the challenges I’ve taken on have all been relatively short, and have never lasted more than a couple of days. Ok, there has been one or two very long days in the saddle, but the end has always been in sight at the start. A challenge over three weekends was going to be a much tougher task.

Day 1 went well, but on day 2 disaster almost struck. The weather was good, and I was feeling  great. Spinning along towards the back of the group as we neared the far point of the Newport Cycling Club Reliability Ride, we approached the turn via a fast downhill section. In an instant I was off and sliding down the road, taken down by a hidden pothole! Fortunately I didn’t hit anything, or anybody else. Once I’d established that I was all still in one, albeit slightly shredded piece, my attention turned to my bike. I feared the worst, but miraculously it was relatively unscathed. A scuffed pedal, ripped bar tape, and the smallest of scratches to the rear mech. Amazing.

I might have been bloodied and bruised but I was also about 30 miles from home, so there was really only one option. Take a large dose of Rule #5, get back on the bike, and ride. The ride home took my mind off my injuries, but  getting in the bath when  I got home was agony. However, after the first two days of the challenge I had nearly 8 hours of riding clocked up!

The rest of the first week saw commutes extended whenever possible in order to chip away at the goal. Typically for the UK, the weather went downhill,  and as I was battling against a killer headwind on Thursday’s ride home I came close to throwing in the towel.  But it was just a minor blip, and another couple of hours were in the bag.

Beyond the halfway mark and the countdown can begin. Every hour ridden is an hour closer to the target. Into single figures and you’re almost there. SubZero mountain bike rides and ever longer commutes saw me within minutes of the goal. And this morning, with 2 full days to spare, I past the 32 hour mark. Take that, Mr Phinney! I’m now looking forward to a rare Saturday off the bike, it’s safe to say I’m in serious calorific defecit.

The next problem though is the same one which exists on the completion of every challenge, what’s next?

Bike Designation - Not as simple as you'd think..

Whilst any cyclist worth his weight in Reynolds tubing will fully understand the enduring principle of N+1, it’s what follows adherence to this rule which I want to discuss..

Last year I was fortunate enough to take delivery of my dream bike, a full custom Rourke in oh so glorious 953 Stainless Steel. This was always going to be Bike #1 and it’s difficult to see this ever changing if I’m honest. ‘Brian’ enjoys all the benefits that come with a #1 designation, and his place in the pecking order is as solid as the TIG welding holding his tubes in place.

But what about the rest of the bikes in the stable? Which is #2, #3, and so on? Does it matter? I think it probably does, but how should we designate? Value is far too crude; versatility perhaps; looks maybe? It’s no easy task.

Bike #5 takes care of itself. My off road option is a bike which I still love as much as the day I collected from Dave Mellor Cycles back in 2007. You can keep your 29ers, as well as the next big thing, the ‘650b’. I’ll stick with my trusty Orange 5, surely one of the greatest do it all, go anywhere bikes that have ever been produced.

It’s #2 and #3 that are causing me most problems, and it come down to a straight fight between two bikes which although seemingly so different, have much in common. In the end it’s the Specialized Langster which wins the #2 spot, with #3 going to my trusty On-One Pompino. This one really could have gone either way, it was that close.

What about #4? Well the tandem can take this spot. It’s quite apt as well as it’s the only bike in the line up which all 4 members of the family have ridden.

So, with that tricky little conundrum sorted, I can now get to work setting up the new Alfine back wheel that I’ve recently taken delivery of for London2Paris2013!

 

Vive la Velo

 

WrekinSportCC Reliability Ride Report

Who are we trying to kid?

A cycling friend of mine recently said that if a Sportive is a ride where ‘non racers pretend to race’, then a Reliability Ride is ride where ‘racers pretend not to’. Having just experienced my first Reliability Ride I now know exactly what he meant.

I really didn’t know what to expect as I arrived at the sign on, and the first thing that struck me was how many bikes were outside the venue.  Inside there was a mix of familiar faces from WrekinSport along with riders from many of Shropshire’s other cycling clubs. It was certainly a good turnout.

Whilst signing on I was asked to choose which of the three groups I’d like to join. The options was the ‘slow’ 4.5hrs group, the ‘middle’ 4hr group, or the ‘fast’ 3.5hrs group. With the route measuring a shade under 60 miles, I opted for the middle group. The 4 hour target time equated to an average speed of just under 15mph, if anything a little conservative.

From the start the pace was quick, and the guys at the front were really pushing on. I was on my Langster and on the flat sections it was all I could do to keep up. It was clear that my 52/18 was just not a big enough gear to keep up with the faster guys in the group. As I rounded the island just south of Hodnet I checked my Garmin; we’d covered the first 14 miles at a shade under 20mph! It was no wonder that my legs were feeling it a bit!

As we approached Market Drayton, we were caught by the ‘fast’ group. If these racers were pretending not to race all I can say is that they were not doing a very good job of it. They absolutely flew past the small group I was in, a very impressive sight.

As the miles past I got hooked up with a fair sized group and we were soon speeding through Wem and turning back towards Wellington. I was back on familiar roads now, and it was time for one last effort. It was looking like I’d finish well inside of the 4 hour target originally set.

The last climb back up into Wellington from Admaston was despatched and as I pulled up back the the Leisure Centre I stopped my computer. As I glanced down I was genuinely surprised to see the clock stopped at just over 3hours and 17minutes. Not too shabby at all, and a fair bit quicker than I’d anticipated.

Ride details here -

So, another box ticked as far as cycling experiences go, and I’d have to say I thoroughly enjoyed it. I’m hoping to give another one a go before the season ends.

Vive la Velo!

Project London2Paris 2013 - All I need is a bike..

Riders have committed, dates have been confirmed, the route’s been chosen, ferry crossings and hotels have need booked, there really is no going back now.

This all started as @ASL191’s idea as a way to mark a significant birthday which she’s celebrating in 2013. A few possibilities were discussed, but we soon settled on what’s got to be one of the truly great rides, a box that needs ticking by any cyclist.

It’s all too easy to join an organised London2Paris ride, but we want to do it the hard way. Unsupported, and carrying all our kit with us. Doing it this way means that you need the right bike for the job, and whilst the other members of the group all had suitable bikes, I didn’t.

I know what you’re all thinking, but I really didn’t want to go down the N+1 route. Instead, I’ve decided to utilise what’s without a doubt the versatile bike in my stable, my On One Pompino. However, loaded up with panniers and on unknown roads leaving this in its current singlespeed spec’ is not really an option.
 
After trawling around on the web for solutions, a gearbox hub seemed the obvious choice. As much a Rohloff appealed, the quite ridiculous price tag ruled this out immediately. It came down to a straight choice between Shimano’s Alfine offerings, and in the end I’ve opted for the 8 speed variant. I just couldn’t justify the extra expense of the 11.
 
So, the hub’s been ordered from Rose bikes in Germany and is currently on its way courtesy of DHL. All I need to do is get it laced up and on the bike. When it’s built and on the bike I’ll report back.
 
Hang on, what could this be…….

A present from Germany!

Confessions of a Cycling Obsessive – The Numbers

Obsession can, and in my case does, take many forms, and this is especially true when applied to the bicycle. Let me explain using numbers.

It all started as couple of years ago; slowly at first, but it soon gathered pace. The logging of ride details; Just distances to start with, but scope creep soon took hold. Times were next along with the obvious extension of average speed. In turn of course, it becomes critical to record which bike each ride was completed on. Without this comparisons are meaningless. My downhill spiral into obsession had started in earnest. Resistance was, as they say, futile.

I could bore everyone with totals et al, but in a desperate attempt to keep the reader’s attention the following numbers jumped out from my 2012 ride log as worthy of note.

62 – The number of non riding days I enjoyed in 2012. Perhaps more importantly this meant that I got to enjoy riding my bike on over 300 days. That’s certainly going to be hard to better in 2013.

314 – The longest day. Looking back I’m slighty annoyed that this doesn’t read over 320, but 314km was the longest ride of 2012. From Shifnal to Abercovey and back again; crossing an entire country twice, all in a single day.

2645 – The height in metres of the Col du Galibier. On Wednesday 11^th July 2012, three members of the Society conquered this brute, experiencing both pain and pleasure in equal measure. Going higher in 2013 is going to be difficult.

953 – As in Reynolds 953 Maraging Stainless Steel. I’m obviously biased, but surely the perfect material to make a bike from.

13,582 – The number of kilometres I cycled in 2012. My initial target for the year was 10,000, but as my obsession intensified, the total kept going up. I also passed 30,000km since I began keeping a proper log at the beginning of 2010.

0 – The number of things I’d change about my cycling year in 2012. It’s not all been positive, but it has all contributed to a truly vintage year.

I can only see the obsession continuing into 2013 and well beyond…..