Got July's one done on Saturday 13th, as part of the 'Exe-Barnstaple Branch' 400k audax running out of Bristol. I finished the ride (or as far as I got, see below) the next morning, but I passed the first 100-mile mark around the Saturday lunchtime.
The start was at 4am in the centre of Bristol, so I stayed the night before in the YHA which was a stone's throw away (and got only about 3 hours good sleep, once the noise of all the surrounding nightlife had died down!). We were a small group of only about 10 riders, and in some confusion, as the organiser had a mechanical en route to us, the decision was made to set off anyway without Brevet cards, meaning that all the info controls on the route now became pointless. But not to worry, or to complain, we were off in the first light, heading into banks of light mist as we hit the countryside.
I rode with some others for the first 20 miles or so but then gradually dropped behind, and must have been the slowest participant as I never saw anyone else from the audax after about 8.30 in the morning, and rode for the next 18 hours alone. It was a great, scenic route and I had a wonderful day out, but I had really not looked at the ride profile before signing up - I just thought '400 km in the West Country, that'll be nice' - and had not been expecting quite
that much climbing, which was around 6100m for the whole 400km. There were several long climbs, but I found the regular shortish and sharp ones hardest, especially those on the North Devon coast where we seemed to go down to, and up from, every little cove that interrupted the cliffs. On a couple I lost my momentum on a bend at 25% and had to push a few yards to get to somewhere flat enough to remount.
The highlight for me was crossing Exmoor alone in the last rays of the setting sun, and the long unbroken descent into Dulverton, where the chippy had just closed but still sold me a hot pie and cup of tea, and a chair outside to enjoy them on.
From then I was riding in the night. During the afternoon I gradually realised I was slipping towards the last cut-off time for each control, and finally at 1am I messaged the organisers to say I definitely wouldn't make the only manned control in time, and was therefore 'DNF'-ing as far as the audax was concerned. I nonetheless carried on on the route, and gave up at 2.50am when tiredness was getting the better of me and I found a suitable (just) bench to sleep on. Needless to say my hour's sleep was cold, damp and uncomfortable, but filled a need at the time. I rode on down to the town of Chard where I got another 15 minutes on a better bench, and finally stopped the ride on my Garmin. A little later I set out again to make my way to Bath at a more leisurely pace for a train home, but that is another ride and another story.
I've got no complaints or regrets about anything on the ride, I had a fantastic day (+night). Faster might have been a bit better, but next time I should read the description on the box a bit more carefully!
Distance 203.5 miles / 327.5 km. My 148th century ever, and the 67th consecutive month of doing one. The route is on the 2024 imperial century log thread, but was basically Bristol to Ilfracombe and back, crossing Exmoor twice.
and a song to remember the ride by
