Well that was good day out, but a bad start and sadly never really met anyone to talk too for any length of time.
On pumping up my tyres in the car park, my front valve unscrewed with my valve cap and blew out, I had a quick look for it but with the air pressure behind it, it was probably just flying over Halifax but it turned out to be still in my hand so I screwed it back in, but something said its going to cause problems and change your innertube whilst I had time.
Riding down to the start line just behind Allan to catch up with everyone else, just as I pulled up to the start line, I became aware my front tyre was soft, so a quick exchange of words to someone to check the time, I cannot remember who with, it was panic stations, I raced back to the car park, tried to tighten the valve as best as I could and just as I was about finish, I heard the shout to start. As I peddalled back into the main drag, there was cyclists to the left and right, so I just tagged on in the middle in a gap and had a quick look round for everyone to no avail so I just kept going with the flow.
When I got to the top of the first 4 mile climb, I suddenly had that horrible feeling, hell, I hope the others are not waiting for me on the start line to return from the car park
Around the 12 mile mark, once again I got a horrible sensation, my front tyre was softish again, but I still plodded on hoping to make the first check point, but cornering at speed downhill was enough to give me kittens at time and at Laneshaw Bridge on that junction where the little climb is, where its hard to clip back up again if you get stopped, I thought this is a good spot to change tubes as once again I had been stopped by cars, so I was off and walking up the slope. I have not checked my inner tube yet but I may have slow punctured by broken glass or bottle in Hebden Bridge so it may not be entirely my valves fault, but to prevent it happening again, it will get knifed.
Just as I was about done, Svendo pulled up, who recognised me, but I would not have done so if he had not stopped, and together we set off to ride most of the way, and as he posted, we disscused all the shortfalls of Garmin Edge's. Svendo recommended thread lock to secure and seal the valve but this inner tube deserves the knife for ruining things for me and any inner tubes with screw in valves I may have will get the same fate, its a stupid design.
But between then and the finish, not much exciting happened, as I cannot do long sustained hills with a bit of gradient, I kept telling Svendo to just keep going, mostly I would catch up, or at a checkpoint. I myself had an impulse for best speed as I had only a parking ticket till 1600, so I could not dawdle, another reason why I could not hang about on the top of the first hill to wait. I actually worked out that the machine had robbed me in the car park, whilst I had been putting my money in for my ticket, I got talking to a young stunning girl who I got besotted with waiting for me to finish so I was not paying attention to what I was doing, I had a feeling the machine was not clocking the time up as fast as I was putting my coins in and I lost count. The young girl said three pound will cover you for the day, but I put more than that in as I worked out in my head as I rode around. I may have even missed my moment as she might have ment three pound would be enough to take her out for the day.
In the last seven miles I started to get twinges of cramp and up the last hill. On hindsight I put it down to dehydration as when I got to the finish I still had half a bottle left out of two I started with and only a small top up at the first checkpoint, not good. Looking forward to the downhill into Hebden Bridge, I was awarded with that head wind and not untill I hit the steeper part did I get a good turn of speed. From last year I could not remember the bend where cars park around it out of sight, till once again, I nearly became part of a parked hatchback. Down the steep bit into Hebden Bridge, I realised, these cars are not going as fast as me and at the last moment walloped my brakes hard to be awarded with the smell of burning brake blocks.
Looking at the Garmin download into Sportstracks, there was very few places where the wind was not behind us, luckilly it was not that strong to really notice at times, mostly it was a crosswind.
I watched out for "Buster" from last year but I never saw him, so maybe he finally got "busted", and managed to get up that 20% hill, I fell off on last year, when my gears jammed solid and I rolled down the hill backwards before I could unclip in time.
At the HQ, after putting my bike away, I caught up with Svendo getting stuck into the buffet, despite the good spread, I could not really eat anything as I had that sick feeling I get with solids at times. Usually around 70 miles, I suddenly find that I cannot eat solids and have to rely on fluids, it is a well known problem with cyclists so it is not unusual. I did find out fructose causes it with me so I avoid it now on long rides, perhaps it was dehydration this time or maybe that last emergency gel I had may have had fructose in as it was a new type to me, which was why I left it till last in case it would cause a problem.
Overall I had forgot how hard the ride was, the first and last hill which are not the hardest seem to linger in your mind and you forget about all the little harder ones in between. As I said to Chris at the end,"cycling must be similar to childbirth, you forget how painful it was the last time, otherwise you would never do it again". (No doubt, I'm now in line for a battering from the females, telling me "what do you know about childbirth?").
Anyway, good to meet you all, even briefly, and thanks to Chris for organising a good day out again.
Not sure about 15th May as its my flexi week at work, but as the pain of yesterday disappears from my mind again, anyone up for "Season of the Monsoon", sorry I mean "Season of the Mists" later in the year.
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