A Big Ride – in Every Sense (LGD -286
Days)
Sunday 30 July 2017, 100 Miles
Click here for Route Flyby
With
the alarm on my phone set for 5:00 am I was in bed early and soon asleep. I’m
usually a heavy sleeper and not much wakes me. I’ve been known to sleep through
a riot kicking off, complete with breaking glass, police sirens and so forth,
on the street below me. I’m also pretty good at waking up at the allotted hour
– the alarm, a rather loud and annoying rooster crowing, is my safety net. Well
today I woke up at 2:30 am. I was staying in my daughter Megan’s flat in north
London. The bedroom I was in was on the fourth floor right up in the eaves.
Immediately behind the bed is a round window, a bit like a large porthole on a
ship, with views stretching northward across the city towards Epping Forest
nearly 10 miles away.
Peering
out of the porthole I realised that it was rain that must have woken me. Now I
am not talking showers or even heavy rain. What was falling was a monsoon
standard of rain. Large drops which I could see bouncing of the roof of my car and
sheets of water running down the street below me. This did not bode well for
what was ahead. Turning over and burying my head under the pillows I told
myself that there was nothing I could do; there was no point in fretting and
every point in going back to sleep. Fortunately, that is exactly what I managed
to do and two and half hours later I was fully awake again and able to kill the
infernal rooster before it started crowing. Peering out of the porthole, it was
now daylight. Although there were grey clouds above they looked like they were
thinning out. And best of all there was no water on the tarmac below – the road
surface just looked slightly damp. Things were looking up.
I
donned my lycra, downed my porridge and was in the car just after 5:30 am
heading for the Lee Valley Ice Rink where I had arranged to park before riding
the 3 miles to the start of this year’s London-Surrey 100. By the time I was
ready to set off there was even a vague hint of blue sky. Knowing that I would
be standing around for up to an hour before starting I had brought an old rain
jacket and some trackies with me, that I could chuck away, in case it was
raining before the start. But it now seemed that they wouldn’t be needed –
phew!
As with last year, the start arrangements were organised with military precision. It is no mean feat marshalling close to 30,000 riders – the organisation of this part of the day was better than some much smaller sportives that I have ridden. Within 5 minutes of arriving I had dropped off my kitbag - an excellent, fully recyclable jobbie provided by the organisers. The next time I saw it should be at the finish alongside Buckingham Palace. Then I made my way down to the loading area to wait. Observing my fellow cyclists, with a sly bit of eavesdropping thrown in, while waiting around in the loading area was quite entertaining.
There
are those who were full of banter and recounting their previous – and always
hard – rides. They were closely followed by the experts, who have a view on
every part of the route – which bit was going to be the toughest or which
segment is a doddle. I heard the same segment (Leith Hill today) described in
both categories. Then there were the fiddlers making some minor adjustments to
something on their bikes. I watched one rider squeeze his tyres several times
over the space of about 10 minutes before getting out his pump, attaching it to
the valve which then followed the loud hiss of escaping air. He then frantically
tried to tighten the adapter on to the valve before pumping furiously. It stuck
me that this was a novel way to keep warm! I also saw three riders hastily replacing
their inner tubes having already punctured. Finally, in this brief analysis
there were what I call the gear wannabe’s who were eyeing up all the bikes
around them to see who’d got the latest gizmos. This year SRAM Red eTap (look
it up on the Interweb if I’ve lost you here) seemed to be the item of greatest
envy. Amusingly I noticed one rider with eTap standing next to a rider with a
rather magnificent 531 steel-tubed frame complete with lugs that were works of
art, downshifters, centre pull brakes and a Brooks B17 saddle - that dates me! Anyway,
enough of this. It’s time to go.
My rider card said I had start time of 07:24. I actually crossed the timing mat towards the back of my wave of 300 riders and started my Garmin at 07:25:20. Like I said, military precision. We headed out onto the A12, turned westwards and were soon passing the Isle of Dogs and Canary Wharf. Tower Hill, The Embankment, Trafalgar Square and Pall Mall passed in a blur. Then I did something I have never done before. I rode west through the Hyde Park Corner underpass using the eastbound tunnel! Why? Because I could! One of the joys of closed roads! Harrods and the museums flashed by and after just 50 minutes I was crossing the Thames on Chiswick Bridge.
I
had already spotted several Bianchi riders and I kept my eyes open for others
as I rode along. I was also mentally ticking off the different models that I
saw. These included Oltres (XR1, XR2, XR4 but no XR3s), Specialisimas,
Infinitos (CV and pre-CV), Nironnes (several variants including quite a few
Dama Biancas), Sempre Pros, Intensos (spotted more of these than any other
model) Intrepedas, Impulsos, a Freccia (I think), a couple of Eroicas and
several older models that I couldn’t easily identify. Celeste in its various
shades was by far the dominant frame colour. I tried to imagine having a
dedicated Bianchi start pen. Now that would be a sight to behold. It was not
just the bikes that got my attention. Most of the Bianchi riders who I passed
or got passed by did so with a smile or grin, a friendly wave and often a few
words of mutual encouragement. We are a sociable bunch. Indeed we are.
Crossing
back over the Thames at Hampton Court we headed for the Surrey Hills and the
hillier part of the route. I was having a quiet chuckle to myself about some of
the earlier comments I had heard people make about the hills I was heading
towards. But it wasn’t all fun and games. I had to concentrate quite hard
though. A combination of narrower roads, wet surfaces with a few deep puddles
under the trees, and catching up slower riders meant that I had to stay alert.
And then there were the faster riders who had started later than me, many of
who seemed to have trained in the kamikaze school of riding. Maintaining good
road awareness was absolutely essential.
The
first main hill was Newlands Corner. With a wide road, this was all pretty
straight forward. The descent on the A25 is fast, very fast and a delight. A
smooth road surface, long sweeping bends and no traffic was an invitation to
wind it up a bit. Which I did. The next challenge was Leith Hill which, by my
standards wasn’t particularly steep but was quite narrow. In theory, slower
riders, including those who might stop and walk, were meant to stay on the
left-hand side of the road leaving the right-hand side free for faster riders.
I count myself as an inside right-hand side rider - work that one out!
I
witnessed one incident, which was side splittingly funny. Ahead and left of me,
the first rider in a group of six slowed to a standstill. Unfortunately, he
couldn’t unclip in time so gently fell over onto the left-hand grass verge.
This was followed by the next five following riders riding into each other and
also falling over – literally like a line of dominoes. Happily, the only
bruises appeared to be to their pride. As I passed, some of them were even
laughing as they picked themselves up! The descent from Leith Hill was a bit
more technical. The road was narrow, the surface quite rough and a lot of it was
under dense dark tree cover which reduced visibility. As my speed touched 40
mph here I reminded myself that today was about enjoyment and not road rash so
I backed off a tad.
Box
Hill was the third main climb of the day and is much lauded for its (two)
alpine style hairpins. Having ridden in the Pyrenees, Box Hill doesn’t do it
for me anymore. It’s a pleasant enough ascent but not an iconic one. From Box
Hill it was a fast blast back Leatherhead and Esher to Wimbledon. By now it was
late morning so the streets of the various towns I passed through were full of
spectators cheering us on. This always gives me a real buzz and a boost. In
some places the crowds were several rows deep, all cheering, clapping, ringing
cowbells and anything else that could make din.
There’s
a little sting in the tail of the route at Wimbledon with a short drag up to
the Common. The roadsides here were absolutely heaving with spectators cheering
us on. Ahead of me I could see lots of riders struggling with this short uphill
section. It’s not especially steep (4%
average) but coming at 85 miles it’s enough to test many riders and break a few.
Crossing the Thames again on Putney Bridge and I knew I was in the home
straight. I always enjoy the ride along the Embankment. As I sped along I
passed my daughter Katie who shouted a supportive (I think) greeting and then
it was up Whitehall to Trafalgar Square before turning under Admiralty Arch
onto The Mall. Seeing the finishing line ahead of me with the magnificent
backdrop of Buckingham Palace gave me a real thrill. There were massive crowds
lining the Mall up to the finish line. Where else in the world can an amateur
rider like me get such a wonderful experience?
The
organisation at the finish was as efficient as it was at the start. I collected
my medal, retrieved my kit bag and had put my bike into the secure bike park
within 20 minutes. Apart from a couple of bike traffic jams and the scene of a
crash where I had to walk for a few yards I rode the route non-stop and was
quite chuffed with my finish time. For me today was all about enjoyment; a
reasonably quick time was a bonus.
But which one's Geoff? |
One
of my mates Geoff, who’s also a member of Team Super Six, was riding and had started
about an hour after me. We had arranged to meet up in Green Park after
finishing and he rolled in about an hour behind me which meant that we had both
completed the event in pretty much the same time. That shows consistency. Geoff
doesn’t ride a Bianchi though; he uses another species which I’ve sort of come
to terms with! Then after downing a fruit smoothie (thanks for that Geoff!) we
both rode back to Blackfriars Pier to get a river taxi to Canary Wharf. Riding
through the centre of London on now open roads was quite a challenge. I had to
concentrate quite hard and remember to stop at the red lights! At Canary Wharf,
with a cheery “see you later” we each went our separate ways – Geoff to his
hotel near the Excel and me back to my car at Lee Valley. The see you later
comment was because we met again in the evening to hit Chinatown to carb load and
reminisce a bit. And some alcohol may also have been involved! Purely for celebratory
reasons you’ll understand.
Today
had been pure enjoyment. Ideal weather, a great route, 5-star organisation and
support, lots of friendly riders including loads of Bianchistas and above all
the crowds. I have to confess that from time to time as I approached a large
crowd I turned up the riding style dial in the hope of getting an even louder
cheer. Did I? Well, I like to think so!
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