A bit more detail from the ride as all I wanted to do was go to bed when I got home and get rested for work today all stats from my Garmin download into Sportstracks:-
Began to wonder what I had let myself in for when I got to Sheffield and saw those big grey hills in the direction that I was driving, then knew what I had let myself in for when I got through Sheffield and in the last mile, I had to climb that hill in low gear in my car to the start point.
Then we set off, and on that first descent I was doing just over 36mph heading for that first right hand bend, and other riders where hurtling past me, then I thought this ride is going to be madness as well.
I crawled up Holme moss at speeds of around 5mph, give or take a mph, so it must be on par with Nunburnholme, just over half a mile longer, then there was that crazy descent, I couldn't see a thing, my eyes were watering that much even with glasses on, saw I was just nudging 50mph (this was not recorded on the garmin or my other computer for some unknown reason) so slowed down a bit as I did not know the hill and did not fancy trying to go round an S bend at that speed.
Then at the bottom of a hill near them first reservoirs, we got mixed up with a lot of motorcyclists, who overtook us, but on the bends, they suddenly became less manouverable and slower than us, so we started overtaking them on the outside, and we ended up well mixed up, the only problem being when we got to the junction, we wanted to go right and them left, so it must have looked like a road junction in Hong Kong, chaos as we untangled ourselves out and went our seperate ways.
As the route was well signposted, I stuck to the profile view on the Garmin so I could see the hills and know how and when I would hit the summit, plus look out for nasty upward bits that might catch me out in the wrong gear, as it did on one of Colinj's rides at Hebden bridge.
Why I struggled on Winnats, I have no idea, I had to stop to catch my breath three times as my heart rate rocketed, according to the Garmin I hit 220bpm, For quite a distance on the climb, I sat comfortably in the mid 170's, climbing steadily, then for no reason at all, it shot up into the 190's in just a few yards and then the 200s and I could never get myself going again properly, perhaps I looked up and cacked myself when I saw that road just going up and up and no end to it, or maybe a car made me slow momentarily as they squeezed past us and then that extra effort to get going again may have put me over the edge. After a short distance with my HR in the 200's, I took caution to the Garmins warning alarm and stopped. I know the hill was not that excessively steep as I got going again and managed to clip up in one. Only at the top was I able to recover fully. Last night I found a film on youtube of someone climbing it, all I recognised was that green grit bin halfway up. It makes you cringe watching it, let alone doing it.
Sadly it was at the top of Winnats, that the fun had gone out of the ride, despite a handfull of riders passing me on Winnats, when I got to the top, there was no one in front of me or behind, so all the big groups and individuals that I had been mixing it with had gone and despite the vast number at the feed station when I left along with others just arriving, I only recall one other rider catching me up, so the remaining 30 miles was almost a lonely ride apart from about the last 8 miles when I paired up with some one else. Perhaps only a few of us was doing the 150k and the majority turned off just before Winnats and did only the 100k. I know when I got back to the start, the street which was packed with cars where I was parked, was empty apart from a couple, so a lot of riders must have finished and left. But there was still a lot of certificates left on the table to be collected, which ment there must still have been a lot of riders still enroute. Even Phil Liggett was all changed when I got back and left shortly after I had spoke to him, so maybe he did the short route as he was still sorting his bike out when we set off at the start.
Monsal Head, according to the Garmin had the steepest section of road, very short though, but with all those riders looking down from the pub who I managed to catch up too, it was just a steady grind upwards, trying not to stop, it was not till I got to the top and saw that big viewing area packed with tourists overlooking the road as I stopped at the pub and looked back, that I thought how embarasing it would have been to walk up that one, I think Malcolm Elliot has the record on that hill, in just over a minute, almost 700yds, I did it in just over 4 minutes.
Timewise, I did it in 6hrs 57min of which 3hrs 25mins, was spent climbing, 2hrs 18mins on the flat, which leaves only 1hr 14mins decending.
I was still sweating about three hours after the event, could not stomach solid fuel and felt sick every time I tried eating it, half my Chinese went into the bin.
Cramp, I was fearing I may get it like in the Big G, I got lots of minor twinges from Holme Moss onwards but it never gripped me properly. At the end though for those last miles, I felt very fresh which surprised me and was hurtling along at 27mph to 29mph along with another rider
Don't worry about your time Mathew, you got round, I bet some did not, but its participation that counts at the end of the day, you can't beat a good challenge. Think I might try "Flat out in the Fens" next year, I think it only has one little hill in about 100 miles, so good chance I'll get a run at it and coast over it.
Dreading tommorow, its always two days after a hard ride, that I stiffen up.
Despite saying never again, think I might have another go next year.
