Box Hill Gravel - Solo Ride

 Box Hill Gravel - Solo Ride

This post is just some musings on a ride I did at the weekend by myself.

Saturday weather was fine, and I fancied doing a longer gravel ride. I decided Box Hill was a worthy destination and got to planning. 

I tried the Komoot app on my phone, and then because I was having some difficulties downloading to my Garmin from there (I could have done it, but extra faff) I tried the Strava website instead and it calculated  pretty much the same route as far as I could tell. It was just a case of a simple point and click on start and end points and I had about 100k of riding.

Interestingly, the return leg is completely different, and did not look as interesting, with a lot more road sections. However, I prefer a circle to an out-and-back, so I went with it.

I am still not really used to the Garmin 1030+ bike computer I have, and I spend quite a lot of time arguing with it. I started following it to Swinley Forest - and I know the best way there for off-road - but my route was different. No worries, I just followed the Garmin.

But once inside the forest (where I entered by the wrong gate), the Garmin threw a wobbly and did a complete reroute trying to send me out to the dual carriageway. I ignored this, tried to start the routeing again and eventually gave up and started riding what I thought was the right way. As usual, I got lost, and went around in circles for a while. Eventually I persuaded the computer to give me a proper route, and made it to the exit near Bagshot. I lost about 30 minutes, but I guess it was fun in the forest.

Followed some roads, a little gravel past an MOD training area, and then went down some steps at Deepcut onto a canal. I've never been here or even heard of the Basingstoke Canal. This was a revelation really. Peaceful and almost deserted, 4km track by the canal passing multiple lock gates. I'll be back here for a walk.

Basingstoke Canal

There were a lot of roads after this, then I arrived in Guildford. I usually struggle through the town on a bike getting stuck in busy traffic. Even this route started with some dodgy dual-carriageway, but then I was onto a nice path by the River Wey. After crossing into the town I was routed up some quiet, and very steep streets - that's Guildford for you. I emerged from the town at Pewley Down - another new place - it has terrific views but I was late and not stopping. Probably the best riding section of the day was here, through some forest and quiet roads with little elevation, past Newlands Corner (not stopping again) , Denbies Hillside and a steep descent into Dorking.

I know the cycle path to the bottom of Zig-Zag hill well, but then rather than take the road up, my route was the more direct and steeper flint strewn path. I struggled on this. The vibrations, and the narrowness, threatened to knock my front wheel over the left edge. I was tired, and hot, and didn't fancy falling, so I walked some of it.

About four hours after setting off, I was finally at Box Hill - and sat down to enjoy the view and to eat my snacks.

View from Box Hill

Robert at Box Hill

I took the main road back down - faster, and no gravel, so less likely to cause me an accident.

Quickly I was diverted off road again near Mickleham, and into my least favourite part. Although it was nice to be off road and in woods, there were very rocky/flinty paths, and lots of ups and downs. It was hard work. 

I went over the M25 - I always like to take a photo on motorway bridges for some reason.

Bike on bridge over M25

Down then through a town (Ashstead) and then onto some flatter paths. Then - disaster. I hit something on the track, and heard an ominous pfttfuufff sound. Fearing the worst, I stopped and felt the pressure on my rear tyre. I wasn't great. A few seconds later, there was none. My first MTB puncture in about 10 years.

At least it was warm and sunny. I had a spare tube and slowly and carefully replaced the old one. All in all I took about 25 minutes, but it is best to take time and get it right - mistakes can damage your new tube, and I had just the one spare, and no puncture repair kit. Only five cyclists, in three groups passed me in this time. Two of the groups, one being a young woman riding solo, stopped to ask if I was OK and had everything I needed.

There was a little climb on Ashtead Common - on a very grassy track, some nice paths, and a strange bit of field at Arbrook Common. Then I was in Esher, and the last section of the route was all on roads.

By now I had run out of my 750ml drink, and my two cereal bars and my banana. I looked for food. I stopped at a Nisa just outside Walton and bought a can of coke, a scotch egg and a big bag of Hula Hoops (this was enough to get me home - well, that and a few more Jelly Babies)

The next hour was boring - Chertsey, Virginia Water and Ascot - all roads I know very well, but slow as I was on my knobbly tyres. I could see better off-road options in places - I will try and do a better route for the future.

It was a long but enjoyable day. 

• I found a lot of new places - and will be back to explore on foot
• I had no problems with fitness (though never pushed it really)
• I have no injuries which slow me down
• I tested my MTB puncture repair in the wild and passed - my pump is very small, quite slow to inflate, but really does the job well. 
• Learned more about the quirks of my Garmin 1030+. I need to master this. It's battery life is good, after 7.5 hours it only went down to about 64%

Actual Ride here on Strava

 

   

Cotswolds Classic X - Glorious Gravel

 Cotswolds Classic X - Glorious Gravel

My first Gravel Sportive. I don't actually have a gravel bike, and thought 90k might be a bit far on the hardtail mountain bike, so I used Anna's cyclocross bike. It is too small for me, but I have ridden it many times before and it was fine, though it did have a few problems coping with the terrain in places.

Anna and I drove down in the morning, and I was ready to go with plenty of time. I spilled electrolyte drink all over my gloves, so didn't wear them - sticky hands all day would be a pain. It was a little chilly, but I knew it would be a warm day so also ditched arm warmers and gilet (which is actually my long sleeve light rain jacket - I don't actually have a gilet).

Robert and bike at the start of the ride

Most riders had already set off, and when my group reached the road, only two us us turned left for the long course. I did not see that many people on the road, and cycled by myself for the whole duration. At many points I could not see anyone for long distances ahead and behind me. Anna ought to have booked a place too and joined me instead of enjoying herself looking around the beautiful Cotswolds for the day. 

After some tarmac, I turned right into a field. This was when I realised it could be a hard day. The dirt was hard packed, and very uneven. The bike pushed every bump into my arms. After a few minutes I wanted that to stop.  There were a few sections like this, but happily not too many.

I was following the pink arrows setup by the organisers, and I also had the route on my Garmin. I did not have any idea really where I was as I have never been in this area. It does make the day quite exciting, not knowing what's around the next corner - especially with gravel, where it might be through a hedge, up a grassy hill, or down a busy A road.

There was a good mixture of terrain, and quite a lot of climbing. I realised I was faster on the road than others, as I generally caught people there. Off road I was quite slow - I do not have the skills, and also maybe a dedicated gravel bike would have made a difference.

I was worried about running out of energy, as my training has mostly been indoor rides of around one hour. So when I got to food stops ( there were two) I filled up on sandwiches, crisps, sweets and cakes. I ate far too much in fact :)

I just could not cycle up the steep hills though; the bumping and sliding on rough terrain, and also in one place wet mud, forced me to walk in a few places. Hills were generally where I saw other people and I was walking as fast as they were riding anyway. There were only two decent climbs and a nice view at the top of one - the countryside was interesting in the first half especially and we cycled through Badminton Estate and passed some kind of big horse show.

I was looking forward to Fosse Way - an almost 20km straight stretch. I had images of leafy groves of trees with smooth gravel, and just relaxing and enjoying it. But it wasn't really like that. There were some bits where I could sit back and look around me, but there were a lot of junctions, some main roads, and I had to keep my wits about me. There was a nice ford, where I stopped and took a photo.

Bike by a small river ford

At one point I saw a massive airplane through the trees. It looked like it was sitting just in a field. I didn't know of any airport, but later discovered there is one called Cotswold Airport. I wonder where they fly to? (Update: it is a Boeing 747 - ex-British Airways and available to book for parties - but only on the ground :(

I was a bit tired after 85k, not too bad. But maybe that's why I made a wrong turn. The arrows said go left, and my Garmin said straight on. I followed the pink arrows, but some other riders called over and persuaded me to follow them on the Garmin route. We ended up in a very muddy wet field, where I gingerly walked around the huge puddles as best as I could. I'd managed to stay dry until then. I asked later and the organisers had made a last minute change to the route to avoid this bit. Note to self : always follow the arrows.

At the end I got my medal, and free 0% alcohol beer and waited in the sun for Anna - who turned up with a nice picnic.

Ride finish

Times/placings are not that important on Sportives. I did 90.84 km in 4:23:23. Bib number 4304 and official time of 4:42:15 - so I spent nearly 20 minutes at food stops or taking photos. 

Links: Strava Results Photos

Gallery of Photos from above

Photos of Robert taken during the ride

[Official event links often expire after a few months years, but included here anyway]

RideLondon 100 Essex 2022

 RideLondon 100 Essex 2022

29.05.2022 

Bib No 103660

Robert @ Start

RideLondon has been away for a couple of years due to various factors, Covid probably, but also finding a new route. When it was announced I can't quite remember now why I entered. I expected to not get a place, but apparently the first 10,000 to click all got in. So I paid my money, thinking Anna might want it, as I've done it five times already and she only did the first one. Anyway, that didn't happen, so I had to do it.

My training up until 3 weeks before was just short turbo sessions, and 5-10k runs as the Cliveden 10k trail run was my main aim. I quickly increased my bike endurance rides, which was very tiring and not to be recommended.

I've always maintained that riding 100 miles is simple, compared with the Herculean task of getting to the start line. This year was a little easier as I only had to get to Parliament Square, and not Stratford in East London. But my 6.10am start time still meant a 3.20am alarm clock, a one hour drive to an undisclosed location in Battersea where I hoped all day Sunday parking would be available, and a 6k bike ride. Luckily, the weather was fine so I made perfect time.

The weather. With no bag drop facilities (and so no chance to put some dry clothes in for the finish), the weather forecast was even more important than usual. Riding 100 miles in the rain would be bad enough, and I've done it before, but I decided if heavy rain was likely I'd stay in bed this year. But all weather reports improved right up to Saturday night, and with only a slight chance of a shower. I decided to wear my Castelli Perfetto with a base layer, and arm warmers. It's already a thick jersey, and is water repellent, but I did not want to be cold in the early morning, and I wanted the option to cool my arms if the sun came out. My backup was a normal jersey with a raincoat I could remove. But the raincoat has no pockets for food, and is not that breathable, so I left it in the car. I made the right choice as it never did get warm, not until about the last 5 miles.

At Parliament Square we had to get off and walk, and followed directions back onto the embankment where we waited, slowly inching forwards. Usually someone is there on the microphone, whipping up the crowd, and counting down each wave for their timed start. I couldn't see any start line yet, and the morning sun was bright in my eyes, but at 6:05am I realised that we must have passed it as everyone was speeding up. I activated my Garmin 800 bike computer and got going.

Did I mention my training wasn't great? I knew I could ride 100 miles, as I did about 70 the weekend before. But it was not fast, and hard. Today would be the same. I tried to get some early pace, but the pelotons going past me were too fast to hang onto. The long tunnels are always a highlight for me, traffic free, like the whole ride, but also wind free so it seems faster. It was Limehouse Link on the way out East to Essex. However I made fairly good time until after about 45 minutes - maybe that's when the morning bagel fuel ran out. I had to lower the power, and try to eat.

Robert with random Evo member

I do not know Essex at all; I did visit Epping Forest once, over 30 years ago, but that's it. The ride could have been interesting, but to be honest, it was pretty boring all the way round. Fields mostly, some trees for about 10 minutes (I guess that was Epping Forest), the odd small town. There were no big hills, which are nice as you get the elevation which gives great views. Some people say that Box Hill and Leith Hill made RideLondon in Surrey too difficult, and that this route is more accessible. I found the rolling roads just as challenging on my legs, with an overall gain in altitude very similar to the old route, but with none of the long descents where you get a good breather.

Robert @ Forest

All the way out there was a cold headwind and I was glad of my warmer jersey. Almost everyone who I saw wearing arm-warmers kept them on. By half way I was glad to stop. There was a fair selection of food - I had some crisps/flapjack/energy bar and are my weird jam and peanut butter wrap. I felt quite full quickly, but kept eating, and had some jelly sweets too. I took a couple of photos, put a banana in my bag, and got back on my bike. My relaxed time was over 20 minutes, but a new innovation where the clock stops at two particular places means it doesn't show in my overall time - yay! :)

I felt much better and stronger on the way back (definitely the food). More fields and small towns, but no trees this time. Even colder initially, but as we got near London the sun did come out and I started thinking maybe the sun cream applied at 5am to my face had in fact been worthwhile. 

I played unofficial cat and mouse with another rider who kept overtaking me, and then slowing, and then I overtook her, and then I slowed. Through the magic of event photos, finisher results lists, unusual names, and public Twitter accounts, I discovered who it was and have decided that her new bike, which is worth just under £10k, was the reason I had so much trouble going faster than her. But a big group of riders overtook after half an hour of this, and I jumped on the back and rode with them for a bit, and she missed that train, so I did get away in the end.

Robert in some random Essex town

Cycling back into London along the three lane dual carriageway of the A12 was a bit cool. Amazingly, at many times I was quite alone on this ride of 20,000 people, and here I had a bit of fun with no one around to see me in any direction, weaving in and out of the lanes, just because I could, and will never have the chance again probably. Sadly, my Garmin didn't record this - more later on that.

It was a bit of a slog after this. Mentally calculating what 100 miles is in kilometres, I felt that somehow we were further from home than we should be. Sure enough, it was after 164.11km (102 miles) when I crossed a fairly unimpressive finish line on Tower Bridge to end my ride. (The Mall is much better). It took me just over 5 hours (5:02:02). I'd have liked to be under that .

Robert @ Finish

Sadly my Garmin 800 gave up after 3 hours 37 minutes; even though it appeared fine and counted the miles happily to the end they do not show on my downloaded file. Oh well. It does show the temperature was around 6 degrees when I started, and only 11 degrees at 10am, far colder than I'd like for an enjoyable ride.

I'm not keen to do this ride again - it was very dull compared to the Surry route, and the earlier May date means it's more likely to be cold. I do like the new start location though as getting out to Olympic Park was a real trek. But I'm glad to have done it this time, and proved to myself 100 miles isn't really that far on a road bike. Olivia and Gina were at  the finish waiting for me and we went for a lunch, which was nice.

Burger

 

RideLondon 2022 Certificate

RideLondon 2022 Splits

Links

Official Results

Strava (some of the ride at least)

Cliveden Cross Country 10k 2022

07.05.2022 = Cliveden 10k

I'd had another fairly decent training period coming to this race - maybe not enough hills, but a few 10k runs with some fast sections. I'm not injured, and so I felt as ready as I could be.

The event is usually held on a cold January morning, so a  balmy May evening is a bit of a departure. In the end it went against me I think - more on that later.

Anna and Lyra came with me to Cliveden to support, and soak up the atmosphere, which was very friendly and fun. It was sunny and warm and we had plenty of time to prepare. The course I know was slightly altered because of a wedding at the house, but I could see one less hill to climb in the route map, so was hoping for a good time. My record here was 48 and change, so I thought I could beat that - or even to go under 50 minutes would have been nice.

I started quite near the front and didn't have many difficulties with the crowds, and seeded myself comfortably quite quickly. It's a fast start, then a little hill and more steady running before a steep descent. My pace was good, I was worried it might be a little fast and slowed to keep my HR on track as it was already high.

The first climb of the steps was OK. I ran quite a bit, walked a little, but by the top my HR was at max and I was getting warm. I was glad it was over and tried to recover. 

Robert climbing steps

My average pace was now below my target and after some dodgems around the main house we were on a nice long straight through trees which went slightly downhill for over 2.5km. I improved my average pace, but only slowly. I was tired.

Robert Running

After negotiating a gate, not something we've had to do before, there was another steep descent to the river where we had the last flat section. I knew this was my last chance to pick up the pace, and for 1.5k I managed to gain a little and hold off the runners behind me. But I also knew, as the second climb of the steps approached, that I hadn't done enough.

Robert running near river

I had no energy left and was feeling hot. I walked as quickly as I could and only managed a bit of running uphill when I saw Anna and Lyra cheering me at the top. I could see my friend Steve ahead; he must be flagging too I thought as he had been far in front previously.

The last section was surprisingly hard. I notice it has 10-15m of climbing in a just a short distance, and with tired legs this is not insignificant. I caught Steve and offered encouragement, but when the finish was in sight I got a second wind and sprinted for it.

I am disappointed I didn't have more pace, 5:15 min/km is slow (though my Garmin has misjudged the distance, so maybe it's slightly faster). All I can think is that the heat raised my core too much, taking my HR too high. And I may not have eaten enough at lunch - evening races are rare, and I wasn't sure if filling myself with food would be a good idea, but I definitely lacked energy. Perhaps more gels beforehand would have worked - I think I only had one. I would have benefited from a gel at about half way through the race too, or a sip of water.

It was a great event - kudos to Burnham Joggers for putting it on and making it all run so smoothly.

Results.

I came 102nd out of just under 500 finishers, in a time of 51:45. This race attracts a lot of good local club runners so I'm not surprised I'm outside the top 10%, which is where I aim myself for things like Parkrun. I'm not even that high up in my age group - definitely some work to do - but first cycling, as that's my next race.

Strava  

Results currently here

Official photos here.

Swim Serpentine 2021 - Two Miles

 Swim Serpentine 2021

Having already completed the London Marathon in 2012, and The RideLondon100 in 2019, I heard about the London Classic Medal.- I needed the Swim Serpentine (2 Mile version) to complete the set and get a special medal. [Spoiler alert - I got it :) ]

Robert with Swim Serpentine and London Classic Medals

I tried to get a place in 2019, but missed any cut-offs. 2020 was obviously a disaster for sport. I was at the front of the queue for 2021 and got my place.

Training was a bit hit and miss. I had a swim lesson in July as part of a set, but didn't manage to get my next ones. I relied on just long lake swims at Bray and Westhorpe Lakes, mostly Bray. I got my distance up to 2800m, just short of the 2 miles needed, so was fairly confident I'd finish, but I was still nervous.

The weather for September was fantastic. 23 degrees, warm, sunshine, very little breeze. Water temperature around 19 degrees which meant I didn't need boots or neoprene hat. This is warmer than two weeks ago where I got really cold hands on a long swim.

I started in the red number 9 wave at 2:20pm (which I'd chosen to give me time to get there comfortably). Standing in the sun in my wetsuit waiting to go was very hot - I was quite glad to get in the water. I started with a slow relaxed stroke, ignoring everyone around me.  My new goggles (Aqua Sphere Kaiman Exo, tested only twice) were great. My Zoggs Predator Flex goggles never worked properly from day one, and frequently leaked.

It's two laps of the lake, one mile each. I don't have great eyesight, and don't wear contacts any more, but I figured I'd manage. More on that later!

It was fairly pleasant in the beginning, and I felt relaxed. I'm experienced in swimming in busy water, so the odd push doesn't surprise or bother me much. I did get kicked in the chest by someone in front who suddenly decided to breaststroke, but not hard. It was good to have so many swimmers around me in fact. In most triathlons I gradually lose the pack and swim alone a lot.

The sun was shining but not blinding the route buoys, it was mostly easy to see where I was going. I completed the first lap easily and swam past the start line for the second one. Near the end of the second lap I noticed less red hats, and some fast swimmers in blue hats overtaking from the next wave. I was getting tired by now - which is something faster swimmers may not experience due to less time in the water. My energy levels were down and I could have used something to eat.

Serpentine Swim - Final corner (Photo take by me after my wave finished)

After the final corner, I wished I'd had a better look at the finish area beforehand. It was tricky to see where to go, and the red hats I wanted to follow were partially obscured by the new blue ones. I did get out at the right place, but wasted a bit of time breast stroking and sighting instead of just keeping swimming. As I was a bit tired, and my lower back was aching a little,  maybe I was looking for an excuse for a break.

I was pleased to finish in just about exactly my estimated time, 1:28:37.

Swim Serpentine 2021 Certificate

I met Anna and Lyra as I walked through to get my medals. It felt good to have this one - and join the Hall of Fame! I don't know anyone else who has one of these medals.

London Marathon 2012

Ride London 100 2019

Swim Serpentine 2021

Robert in Hall of Fame

Results - Official

Parkrun #16 - Maidenhead

Parkrun #16 - Maidenhead

Hot on the heels of Portrush, only two weeks later I'm back at Parkrun.

This time it's my 10th time at Maidenhead. I needed to do a swim at Bray Lake, so made sure I finished in time to pop next door for this. I didn't feel much like it after swimming 1km, but it was good to see if my 'warm'-up would be successful.

I was aiming for a steady run, starting without a customary sprint, and just see how I feel. I didn't want to pressure myself into pushing hard, as I want to try to enjoy the runs more.

My pace in the beginning was good. I had run the previous day, but I felt ok.

The field quickly spread out, and I found myself behind three people pushing buggies. They were fast enough, and in fact overtaking and pulling away from me.

The ground was firm and dry, an unusual thing for me in Maidenhead. I like it.

I didn't wear my hat, and just shorts and t-shirt, and was glad as I started to heat up.

After the first lap, I noticed my HR was now higher than usual, over 160, and going up. I maintained a good pace, and steadily overtook runners one my one. I even passed the buggies, one in the final two-way section as he was jammed in by a slow runner we had lapped.

Happy to finish, and a little surprised I beat my Portrush time.

Time 21:51.  25th out of 334 finishers.

Links

Parkrun

Strava

Parkrun #15 - Portrush

 Parkrun #15 - Portrush

After the race

After a long break of over a year and a half, I finally got to do another Parkrun.

On holiday in Northern Ireland, and hoping for good conditions, I wasn't disappointed. It's always a bit windy by the sea, but the day was not cold, and not raining, and the breeze was fresh, but not strong.

I drove down by myself, and got the time wrong, again, and was far too early for the 9.30am start.

Read my book, and had a little warm up.

Got a free sports drink from some company doing a promotion - bonus.

I'm quite fit, and working on a 5k plan, but I've not hit the speeds I would like in training yet. I expected somewhere between 22:00 and 22:30 - which is a kind of self-fulfilling prophesy.

The start went well, and I cruised down the beach with the tail wind. I think I took it s bit too easy, and even held back a little, to give me a half way average of around 4:20 min/km. (I'm now monitoring my speed in min/km rather than min/mile). That would translate to my target time OK. 

Having held back, I hoped I'd have enough in the tank to push against the wind and not lose too much time running along the beach to the finish. The third to fourth kilometre was a bit of a mess, but I caught a big group, and once past didn't want them to get me again, so I kept going. I was tired but finished strong, and even caught someone near the line who had overtaken me around the half way point.

I came 36th overall, out of 317 finishers - almost top 10%, with a time of 22:15 (only 1 second different from my last Parkrun!)

Strava link
Parkrun link

TriathlonX HalfX Triathlon - 03.07.2021

TriathlonX HalfX Triathlon - 03.07.2021

View from Nab Scar on a clear day

THE WORLD'S TOUGHEST 70.3 HALF 'IRON MAN'

MILE FOR MILE THE TOUGHEST TRIATHLON IN THE WORLD

Surely anyone sensible would run a mile (or 13.1 miles) when they heard claims like this. Well I guess I'm not that clever, and have done this event once in 2018, and tried and failed to do it in 2019.

2019 was a big disappointment, so I signed up for another go last year. 2020 came and went with no events due to COVID-19, and with about 10 weeks notice this year, I made a decision to take up my deferred place for 2021.

The race is a 1900m swim in Lake Windermere, a 90km bike ride over the hardest climbs in England, and then a half marathon climbing Fairfield, the 7th highest peak in England. Sounds fun yes?

Training

Here is where I give my excuses for not doing better this year - I basically did next to no proper preparation. A race like this needs long endurance training. Luckily I have 15 years of this already under my belt, and the body does remember. And all I had time for was a refresher course; it would have to do.

Swim training was my worst ever - rubbish weather and pools closed or hard to get into meant my first swim for nearly two years was exactly three weeks before race day. I went to the lake 2-3 times a week, and got my distance up to 1500m with no issues. I bought a new wetsuit as the old one was full of holes. I was ready for the distance, but knew I'd be slow - just didn't realise how slow.

My road bike had been inside on the turbo trainer since HalfX 2019. It needed a new chain, and rear tyre, and once I'd done that I had a couple of outings to the Chilterns. I had to get used to being on the roads on this bike again, but I had a decent base level of fitness from fairly consistent indoor training - only short rides though. As with swimming, I had no issues. I was good on the hills, and hoped my chain change would hold out.

Running recently has been good and consistent. I took it up a notch with a 10 week half marathon training plan from Garmin. I was lucky and avoided injury, and did most of the sessions recommended, building up to running nearly 15k. This is my best running for years.

Feeling less than confident, but expecting I'd manage, and with super-expensive accommodation already booked, it was time to leave.

Race Day

A summer start is much better, and though I hardly slept at all, I was wide awake and cycled the five minutes down to transition in daylight. Sadly no sunshine, and rain/thundery showers were forecast.  I had really hoped for easier conditions than autumn 2019.

Swim

Swim Start - Lake Windermere

Walked in to Windermere for the deep water start and the temperature was warm, so that was a relief. Conditions were calm and clear. I found a position near the back, and the klaxon sounded, and I started swimming. My goggles have been misbehaving and the right eye keeps leaking, which it did today. I stopped and adjusted, and magically got it working. In training I swam 1km as a test with one eye full of water, but I didn't really want to do this today. My plan was to swim as slowly as possible to avoid hyperventilating and panic attack in the early stages, something which helped derail my race in 2019. I saw a lady clinging to a canoe who made that mistake (she recovered and overtook me later). As the other swimmers got further away, I had my own support canoe keeping me company for the whole swim. I got to the far side of the lake and turned right, then a short distance to another right and headed back home. I hate this; plod, plod, plod; no issues just bored; until I got to the finish. A+L were there to cheer me into the empty transition. Turns out I was 8 minutes behind the previous competitor, I had a lot of catching up to do. Maybe I overdid it on the slow swimming and could have tried a little harder.

T1

After a relaxed change into my cycle gear I was off - all good, though a bit lonely, this was the pattern for the whole the day.

Bike

After a wobble in Ambleside where I followed the wrong sign, I started the longest climb of the day - The Struggle. Feeling quite warm I did OK, and started ticking off other competitors as I first passed my Evo club friends, and by the top had overtaken 6 people. I'd hoped for more but with only 65 in the field, realistically this was good enough. The descent was fast, as the roads were still dry. The route circled back to Ambleside, and I waved to A+L as I passed by on my way out for the remainder of the ride.

By the time I reached the next climb, a very steep but not long Wall-End, it was raining and the wind had picked up. I was wearing only thin tri-shorts and a cycling jersey, but chose to ride on without my jacket hoping the shower would pass. It didn't. Eventually I gave in when I started to get cold on the return leg about two hours later. I was overtaken when I stopped to get the jacket out of my back pocket. Damn.

Nearing the top of Wrynose East climb

It was a lonely ride, and I rarely even saw other riders. Wrynose and Hard Knot passes are very steep, with sections going up to 30% gradient. I've done them before, but today I found a few too slippery to ride so I walked them. The downhills were treacherous and needed both brakes full on just to avoid going over the edge on corners. I went down slower than I went up, skidding on locked wheels a few times. I saw riders walking down the hills - I've not seen that before. I know a few riders fell off, and I saw one sitting with a bandaged shoulder back at transition later. My friend Paul fell three times - he finished the ride but wasn't able to run. I haven't even mentioned all the insanely slippery cattle grids - just missed a motorbike falling at one.

Concentrating on the hill climb

I passed a workman cutting hedges. I had to cycle this stretch twice, hoping my tyres wouldn't pick up a thorn. I was lucky. A local festival was on, Eskfest. The teenage rock band  playing to a wet audience of three made me smile. I got stuck a little behind cars around there but nothing serious. The final 13km were undulating and the roads were still very wet - I made a wrong turn and stopped to check my map, then saw another rider flying off in the other direction. I followed him but he got away from me.

T2

Took my wet bike shoes, socks and jersey off, and put wet socks, trainers and t-shirt on - yes all my stuff was wet as there had been heavy rain in transition and I didn't pack it properly. It wasn't raining now at least. Feeling quite tired from the effort on the bike I told Anna not to expect me back for at least 4 hours. My legs weren't too bad, but my arms and shoulders were sore from the constant braking.

Run

The run up in the mountains can be dangerous; the weather can turn suddenly and you can get lost. So you have to take a rucksack containing coat/leggings/foil blanket/compass/torch/whistle and food and drink. I had 2 cliff bars, some jelly babies (which I never opened in fact) and two 250ml bladders of water. In my hand I carried a ham/cheese bagel and ran/walked while taking bites on that. It's nice to have something savory instead of sweet energy bars and gels. I made good time - the run training had worked. It's odd how after 6 hours exercise you are tired, and yet the change of muscles from bike to run is welcome and gives you a boost.

However, after the 4k flat section, the climbing started. The first part is steep steps up to Nab Scar. I started getting really hot, and realised I was thirsty and didn't have enough water. I would not get through a mountain half-marathon if I pushed hard and sweated a lot. So it was an easy decision to make to walk uphill rather than try to run. I monitored my heart rate and didn't let it get over about 145.

Nab Scar

After Nab Scar, the terrain evens out a bit and the climbing isn't so hard, but in this altitude we were above the clouds, and there was only about 20m visibility. With the slight wind it felt like constant rain though I think it was only fog. Not enough to warrant a coat but by the very top my arms were cold and covered with a layer of water. I couldn't see through my prescription sunglasses, and had to take them off. My eyesight isn't great, but was good enough to see the rocks at my feet - I hoped I wouldn't trip, and only did once, banging my knee. Not badly.

Every now and again a runner on the return leg appeared out of the fog running towards me. Every exchange was friendly, "Well done" - or "Not far now - keep going". But other than that I was alone with my thoughts for about 90 minutes. Handily my GPS watch gave me a distance, so I could countdown to 10.5km which was the turnaround. Little red flags at the limit of vision let me know I was headed in the right direction. My lower back was hurting and I stopped frequently to stretch it. I got a stone in my left shoe and had to stop and remove it eventually.

I reached the top, and had my photo taken - maybe to prove I got there :)

Fairfield Peak in the clouds.

I rationed my water as if marooned on a desert island. I need to rethink this poor strategy. It ran out about an hour from home. I did my best camel impression and just got on with it - it was all down hill anyway. My legs were good. My knees were taking a battering going down, constantly taking the pressure, but they held out.

I overtook a couple of people, but was also overtaken, I had no idea of my placing now. I knew I'd passed about 11 on the bike

Revisiting Nab Scar I came out of the clouds and could see the world again. I kept running down the steep section as fast as was safe. Once back at ground level I did some real running. I couldn't maintain pace for long, but the run/walk strategy was fine, and my run parts got longer as I got closer to home.

Glancing over my shoulder all the way to make sure I wouldn't lose a place at the last minute, I finally made it to the end, very glad to be finished,  I was welcomed back by cheering from A+L and Kevin, Victoria and Simon from Evo. Got a massive medal as usual:) 

Finished!

Evo Club friends, and Lyra!

I've redeemed myself for not finishing the course in 2019. I don't have to do this one again - do I?

Strava 55:58

Strava Bike 4:56:16

Strava Run 3:33:41

Total 9:39:31

I was 39th out of 53 individual finishers. 12 did not finish the race. I'm quite pleased with this - I felt in control all day and did what I came to do.