Review of the Year 2017

Well let us get the basic statistics out of the way first.

Total distance cycled = 6295 km
Total Ascent   = 47712 m

all encompassed in 173 rides

These are massively down on last years efforts but I still managed to achieve my Annuity Target

I could claim excuses for these figures such as bad weather and a prolonged period of family illness but the real baseline reason I fear is that age is catching up.

Never the less this has been a really enjoyable cycling year and illuminated by two main adventure streams.

The first of these was my Great Railway Journeys and the second was my participation in the Derby Mercury All Inclusive Social Rides.

My wife tells me that like most men I never really grew up and that I am basically a little boy at heart. And when I was a little boy I loved nothing better than Train Spotting and riding on steam powered trains. Latterly there has been a resurgence in Preserved Railway Lines and this last year I decided to make day trips on my Mercian and visit a few of the ones local to us, with my sandwiches and chocolate bars packed in my saddle bag as I used to do so many years ago;  Great Railway Journeys Revisited.

The first trip was to Shackerstone on a wet and dreary morning but it brightened up and I arrived ready for cup of tea and a bit of train spotting.

Even though it was mid week the trains were operating and a steady stream of walkers and tourists meant that the Station Buffet was doing a roaring trade

I have to confess that have not been very adventurous in plotting the routes to these stations and in some cases the return journey was just a replica of the outward bound. But at ~100km per trip it was enough for an Old Age Pensioner

The second trip was to the Foxfield Railway

This was another thriving establishment and I must say that these Preservation Railways do remarkably good value for money in the food department

My third trip was to the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway. This involved much more climbing than is good for me as though the railway line is relatively flat , the terrain around Wirksworth is certainly not..

This was the only non-operating on the day railway I visited but my trusted packed lunch came to the rescue

My final one for this year was The Great Central Railway at Loughborough

and this had an excellent buffet bar

In terms of cycling enjoyment this was the most disappointing journey as I just relied upon RideWithGPS, loaded the route and went. I ended up pushing, then carrying, my bike across muddy fields and water filled ditches before it asked me to ride around Castle Donnington Motor Race Track..at this point I opted for Plan B and stopped at a local house and asked for help:-(


My second stream was my participation in the Mercury All Inclusive Social Rides. These were instigated to widen the participation of the membership by promoting rides at a much more modest pace and incorporating a coffee and cake stop.

I have reported on all these rides throughout the year and they were extremely successful regularly attracting over 35 riders drawn from those who do not normally ' compete ' in the weekend SpeedFest '.
It was not a very auspicious start with only 8 out of the original 36 riders making it around the designated route, and I was one of those who took a diversion to a local coffee shop and rode at a more leisurely pace. I was not alone...

and had the opportunity to come to the aid of a damsel in distress when Sasha discovered that puncture repair in arctic conditions was not her forte.

A selection of photos from some of the other Social Rides follows

Perhaps for me, the highlight of these trips was my 70th Birthday Celebration

I have really enjoyed my cycling year with Mercury and made to feel very welcome and the club has expanded and involved a wide range of ages and abilities

It became increasingly obvious though that as the year passed by, my ability to stay in touch ebbed away and whilst people waited for me I know that I am acting as a brake on proceedings. So, next year I must alter my approach to perhaps ride with a different group of Mercury Riders or just do a section of the Social Ride.

The Derby Mercury All Inclusive Poppy Ride

For those who have been following my posts you may well recall my report on the first Mercury All Inclusive Social Ride , an event which attracted well over 30 riders of all ages and abilities. You may also recall that the leader, Dave B managed to set a world record for attrition with only 8 survivors making it grovelling to the finish line.

For the Poppy Remembrance Ride, once again over 35 riders gathered at Broadway for the  event.  This time though, due to the mud and freezing temperatures, there were two echelons, the Off Roaders and the Overlanders with the Touring Secretary Nigel C leading the Muddy Ones and Ian S leading the Road Warriors. Meticulous planning by our famed duo had arranged for the groups to intersect at various points along the route before finally all meeting up at the Queen's Head in Little Eaton for food and refreshment.

Sadly I have to report that only 2 riders managed to complete the designated route and neither of them were the ride leaders.

Indeed it was only the Lanterne Rouge, ( Lorraine and myself ) who did actually complete the journey.

And so a new Attrition World Record was set. Step Forward Nigel and Ian !

This ride was different to the other Social Rides in that there was a time cut off of 11-00 to reach the War Memorial at Weston Underwood

 but a delayed start, punctures, and the hills, ( oh those hills! ), meant that the Overlanders were always struggling to meet the target time. Indeed Mugginton Mountain with its conveniently placed graveyard on its summit managed to decimate the peleton and only a few survivors made it the top .

Withe the blustery wind, and temperatures trying valiantly to get into positive territory, refreshment and a warm welcome was urgently needed.

However the conditions must have been so severe that the Off Roaders could stand the conditions no more and took refuge at a hostelry in Holbrook rather than go to the designated meeting point.

Meanwhile the main peleton continued to splinter and the excuses for leaving the plan were both varied and creative. Julie thought her dog might be missing her, Ian claimed to have lost a son, Gill thought her daughter was in danger of getting cold whilst others had just given up the will to live.


And so, this was a Social Ride WITHOUT a cake stop !

Though in conclusion, someone managed to heartily refuel

Brooks and Me

Women tell me that childbirth can be a painful experience ( but obviously nothing as bad as man flu which can be verified by talking to any man ) but once the act is accomplished then the pain is soon forgotten.  Well in the world of severe pain then breaking in a Brooks Pure Leather Saddle can come pretty close to suffering man flu.

I wrote about this Battling With Brooks just after  my birthday when I turned 65 and acquired my custom made dream bike, a Mercian Vincitore Special.

My first Brooks saddle , acquired when I started cycling at age 62, was a Brooks B17 Honey Leather Saddle with copper rivets and after 8 years and thousands of kilometers it has at last softened and acquired a very comfortable shape.

Like many cyclists I am aware of the saying that ' Weight Kills ' , especially when climbing, so the obvious conclusion is to lose weight.  This can be achieved by one of two ways, eat less cake or reduce the weight of the bikes components...being a Tea Shop Tourist type of cyclist the former was obviously out of the question and so component weight reduction was the only option.

And so I have acquired a Brooks Swift saddle with titanium rails.  Being narrower than the B17 and with the lighter support structure this seemed the obvious way forward.

BUT..I had forgotten the pain and suffering involved in breaking in the new saddle..indeed I am not sure that my life expectancy is long enough to achieve that task and so far all I have been able to achieve is a load of saddle sores :-(


However there is a very good reason for riding a bike with a Brooks saddle in that, if things get really tough, you can always eat it. To do so would not be entirely without precedent. Snowbound in California's Sierra Nevada mountains, the ill-fated wagon-train migrants of the Donner Party resorted to eating their leather clothing and bootlaces, before moving on to eat one another.
There are no known cases of cyclists dying from starvation, resorting to cannibalism, or even eating their leather saddles, yet hunger is a regular companion on any long distance bicycle journey.

So think then of those outlanders who next March will be attempting the Indian Pacific Wheel Race from Freemantle to Sydney Opera House, a distance of 5500 km and which will be completed solo and completely unsupported

Review of the Year - 2016

This has been for me a good cycling year.

The annuity distance target was achieved with ease, and indeed, I managed to cycle further in a year than I have ever done previously.

                                      Total Distance   7147 km
                                       Total Ascent     57384 m

even though the total number of rides was down by 5% to 189 outings

Persuaded by a friend to try some Baby Audax ( 100km ) I entered Rutland and Beyond in  early February. The weather was bitter, the hills steep and my friend decided that only fools rode in tose conditions so stayed at home..I rode..and froze. But I did complete it.
This was soon to be followed by another event around  the Three Fields of Alfreton and indeed I had also entered Charnwood in the Spring but went down sick two days before and was forced to withdraw.

The standard Derby Mercury club runs are obviously too quick and too far for me but instead  I started to ride with a group of Derby Mercury Veterans. This group of past cyclists used to race and  tour decades ago before the introduction of these modern new  fangled carbon electronic gear changing things were ever thought about. It is great to listen to stories of races past and places seen.  They travel now more at my pace and every ride involves a cake stop .

Indeed it was with  this group that this year I cycled abroad for the first time when we went to France to watch the TdF and follow in the tyre tracks of Stage 1.

 The atmosphere was great, the food even better though the entire trip did expose my deep lack of linguistic skills .

Whilst I have mentioned that I am too old and slow to go on the normal Mercury rides I did join the 78th Anniversary Ride out to Denstone. This involved for me a 78 km trip alongside about 100 other cyclists from the Club covering the entire age range from 7- 70 years old. The pace was good, no-one got dropped and there was a marvellous BBQ prepared for our return.

I have also tried to integrate myself a little more into the Club by helping out at Time Trials and in particular the epic Everest Challenge undertaken by JK  and taking a few photos

All in all, I have had a good year
Next year I hit 70, and may lead a Social Ride in early March to celebrate the event..we will see

As for my new non-target driven approach, well the Annuity Chart says that 1000 miles ( 1610 km ) needs to be covered..better go and get my bike ready !

The Mercian goes to France

Being a very late convert to cycling, my experience of touring is limited, and when it comes to cycling abroad, then non-existent.  So, when I received an invite to join a party of Derby Mercury Veterans and Friends on a trip to Normandy I was delighted.

Eighteen of us met up in Derby and York Bike Liners who had made all the travel and accommodation arrangements soon had all our kit loaded onto the coach and trailer

Our trip coincided with the start of the Tour de France and it was our aim to try and watch the Monday Stage which went through Villedieu les Poles, the town where we had our base. But first it was onto Portsnouth and the overnight ferry to Roscoff

before racing down to Hilaire to watch the peleton flash past as can be seen in this short video

The enthusiasm of the local people was a joy to behold and one thing that really struck me was how much more  Cycling Friendly all the drivers were.

To celebrate the visit of Le Tour, Villedieu had put on a street party in the evening

We were there for a week and the group split up into different sections each day as riders were of different abilities and energy levels, but one common theme throughout all the rides was the necessity to try out the local Boulanger and Patisseries

In passing I noticed that the French Letter Boxes were of a similar design to our own with a similar reference system, though they chose a different colour

Stage 1 of Le Tour had started from Mont St Michel and was referred to as a ' flat stage '

Though that would not have been my definition and as I sped along in their tyre tracks it was nice to dream I was actually taking part

The weather was great and for those interested in seeing the scenery then there are a couple of videos

A Trip to Granville and the experience of cycling on cobbles

A Group trip to the Abbe d'Harbye


Being a load of Old Age Pensioners, then all the bikes were traditional with no carbon in sight

But Steel Rules through our Mercians !!

Now for next year..and let us hope that my language skills may improve

Bonsoir!!

Boys Toys...or Essential Purchases

I just love numbers.

Not that I actually take the analysis of my cycling data and then feed it back into a structured training regime..I leave that to the young road and track  warriors.

I just LOVE numbers

So when I had the chance to grab a BARGAIN ( defined as something I don't need at a price I cannot afford to  refuse ) of a Power Meter I was overjoyed ... loads more data.

Just think of the spreadsheets and graphs I would be able to produce AND I would have proof that cycling up hill into a head wind was hard work :-)

And using something called FTP ( whatever that is ) I will be able to digitally prove that I need a rest after a hard ride and so give my wife true explanations about why I am not able to tackle that list of ' household jobs ' she has constructed.

The PowerTap came fitted to a wheel, and so obviously I needed a matching set, and  so I acquired a new wheel set, Pacenti SL23 rims. Following my purchase of HPlus-Son Archtypes for Witchcraft, my Giant Advanced TCR, I really do like the ride that the wider rim gives and so these Pacenti wheels were an obvious necessary purchase

An other advantage of the Pacenti is that they are made to accommodate Tubeless Tyres.  The lanes around where I live are very badly potholed and the surface is forever covered in thorns from the incessant hedge trimming that the farmers carry out. Punctures are a regular occurence and having nearly lost my fingers to frostbite changing a tube whilst out in the wilds of Dalbury recently I decided that a set of Hutchinson Fusion tyres needed to be added to the list.

I believe that this wheelset with the tubeless tyres may be slightly heavier than my previous tubed Archetypes... but perhaps I will have one less flapjack to compensate :-)

Now it is often said that we Old Age Pensioners talk a good ride but rarely actually get on a bike and go for a ride. This is obviously nonsense as the tea shops of Derbyshire and the surrounding counties would not survive without our trade. But just to prove the point I have also bought another bargain from a friend who deemed it surplus to requirements

This camera is really small and I have mounted it underneath my saddle but am still getting to grips on how best to use it but with luck I will be able to record some of our adventures in France later this year when the Cycling Veterans go looking for mountains
.

But it does work..as shown here when the Derby Mercury Veterans went to Prison

The Audax Apprentice

Audax is a cycling sport in which participants attempt to cycle long distances within a pre-defined time limit. Audax is a non-competitive sport : success in an event is measured by its completion.  Audax has its origins in Italian endurance sport of the late nineteenth century, and the rules were formalized in France in the early twentieth century.

The distances covered can be huge, with some events incorporating overnight stops, but for an Apprentice then the distances I am concerned about are around 100km+, a baby audax if you like.

For those who dont know me, or have not read my profile, then I should say I am a very late comer to cycling, having only taken up cycling after I retired when I was 60 yo, and so have no inbuilt reservoir of core cycling endurance; 100 km is a VERY LONG WAY !

My normal cycling involves much shorter distances and is invariably aimed at discovering new tea shops. However at the beginning of this year a friend, a veteran racing cyclist who is still incredibly fit, told me of his aim to cycle 10 audax events this year and suggested that I should give it a try.

In a moment of foolishness I agreed and the randonneurs at my local cycling club, Derby Mercury RC,  also gave me encouragement.  A previous post described my first adventure and now I have completed a second audax, The Three Fields around Alfreton and the Nottinghamshire lanes which was another 104km and involved another 1100 m of climbing.

Team Mercury were again out in force making an early arrival at the food stop

I have to say that stopping at this Church Hall was a delight; the local church ladies had provided streams of tea and coffee all supplemented by a vast array of home made cakes. It seemed a shame to leave but leave I must and so on towards Holocaust Hill and then some splendid  scenic views

Cyclists need food, lots of it, when attempting long distance rides and I treated myself to a wonderful plate of beans on toast with a fried egg on top at Southwell...true rocket fuel

It has been explained ( INSTRUCTED!! )  that all audaxers should have a rear mudflap on their bikes, the use of mudguards is of course not up for debate, and so, in an attempt to obey ' the rules '  my Mercian now proudly boasts a rear mudflap in Mercury Blue.

This was an excellent ride, though I could have dome without the loss of my climbing gears on the last 10km hilly climb to the finish, big gear hill climbing is not to be recommended for Old Age Pensioners, but Mercian have now fixed this problem for me and replaced the ruined gear cable.


Next up will be Charnwood In The Spring, another baby audax but with hopefully slightly less climbing and somewhat warmer weather.

I doubt that I will complete 10  events but I am certainly enjoying new rides around the country.

Driven by Targets

For most of my working life I was driven by targets...targets usually set by others.
 So much so that it became to be part of me.
 Now retired, and fully away from the business world I have found that since I took up cycling a load of self set targets came along with the package.

But after my  last year's abysmal performance ( See the last blog post )  I determined that ' Targets ' would be assigned to the bin of history...

.... except for the Annuity Distance Target which stands at 1771 km this year

and then a friend suggested I might join him on a few audax rides...nothing too arduous you understand, just around the 100 km mark

and then another friend said I expect you to come to Harogate and have Tea and Cakes at Betty's this year

...and really, 1771 km is not THAT much..perhaps 5000 km would be more of a challenge

..and then another friend said how about getting fit enough to cycle with us for a week in France

..and that Brompton you have just acquired...you really should use it to explore by train and bike

...and I noticed that my time over a favourite segment was down on what it used to be...not that I am competitive of course any more

Anyway, I am no longer driven by Targets

A Final Hurrah...

The main cycling objective for this year was to ride the Reivers Route and go Coast to Coast, and this was completed in the height of summer.  However as the weather has been so dry and mild, I thought I might attempt to repeat a challenge that I set myself in the autumn of 2012 when I was in training for the inaugral Ride  London 100 ( earlier blog posts describe my trials and endeavours of this event ). The challenge was to complete a 100km audax. This is run by CTC Derby and is titled ' Over and Over the Trent ' . In actual fact it is not 100km, but rather 109km and those extra metres can make a huge difference to a doddery Old Age Pensioner.
I have been having a few problems with my right knee of late but I thought if I strapped it up, took a couple of ibuprofen and took it steady, making sure I used all the gears and not be tempted to go with the proper cyclists then I might survive.
Last time I did this event the weather was boiling hot and the biggest danger was sunstroke; not this time.
As about 75 of us gathered at Darley Abbey for the start, the rain, which has been absent for the last  eight weeks began to fall and it fell in bucket loads. To add frisson to the ride, the autumn leaves had already fallen and lay strewn across the lanes and the combination of fallen leaves and pouring rain made descending quickly a very dangerous pastime.
In terms of hardship, the first half of this course is the most testing and the combination of strong winds, driving rain, poor visibility and the hill climb route of Pistern Hill meant that I was really pleased to see the half way stop at Moira and looked forward to a break from the elements. Unfortunately a group of walkers had decided that the weather was too bad for walking and so had decided to invade the tea shop for cake and chat instead, making room for bedraggled cyclists a premium.
Eventually however, I got a seat and tried out the restorative powers of beans on toast. I am not sure if it had any real effect on my energy levels but it certainly made an improvement on the weather as the rain stopped, the sun made a fleeting appearance but the wind remained a constant menace.
My endurance levels are not perhaps as good as they were even over a couple of years ago and on reaching Rolleston-on-Dove I could feel my energy levels beginning to fade

As I passed over the River Dove I felt that these swans, swimming against the flow, were kindred spirits as I rode into the wind.

The last 20km was proving hard work and the route was what cyclists would describe as  undulating but what I thought was proving mountainous.  Eventually though I made it back to Darley Abbey and was greeted by the site of a sumptious tea. I felt that I had well earnt the sandwiches and cake on offer and a heart felt thanks to all the organizers, both admin and bakers, which had made it once again a memorable day.

What did surprise me though was that when I compared my time to that which I achieved last time, I found that I had completed the distance 43 mins quicker.!  Perhaps I am not THAT doddery after all

For those who like stats, then my effort is chronicled here.

The Challenge which is Reivers

'Summer is for grazing, but autumn is for raiding, pillage and rape'

Let us get one thing clear from the outset. I am NOT a lithe, muscled 65kg climbing machine.

I AM a 74kg lump of fat and bone who lacks any noticeable muscle. Also, I am old.

Given the above you can instantly tell I am not a naturally born climber.

Indeed I dread hills - and the Coast to Coast route via the Reivers is jam packed full of them as I was about to discover.

A motley crew of 20 cyclists, with a wide range of youth, experience and fitness, set off from Whitehaven marina in dribs and drabs, riding along the coastal path and waving back to the children on the train as it trundled past.

Then came the first climb of the day, a short test for the legs with a kick at 10% gradient to give an early warning of what was to come, as the path turned eastwards towards Workington. A rolling route over the Caldbeck Fells then followed with some beautiful scenery to give a reward for the suffering my legs took from the repeated 20%+ gradients.

As I looked over to Bassenthwaite memories flooded back of the week I had spent there as part of an Outward Bound Training exercise whilst being groomed as a manager at Rolls-Royce plc so many years ago.

It was then onwards to Cockermouth for a lunch stop. Much of this village had been devastated by the floods a couple of years back and work was well underway to restore the village centre.

The whole ride was well supported by Dave and Mel and the sight of them each day with their chuck wagon was always welcome. A time to grab a banana, a slice of cake and drink as well as meeting up with some of the other cyclists to share experiences before the onward ride to Caldbeck for the first night's stop.

Day 1  Distance 60.5km with 850m of climbing.

Tuesday dawned bright and very hot, the temperature rising to 31degC and proved to be a very arduous day in the saddle.  The climbs kept on coming as we headed towards Carlisle where we stopped for lunch at the Cathedral. The roof in this place is majestic and well worth the detour.

It was not that long ago that strangers here would have been treated with suspicion. It was the nerve centre for bitter feuds and bloody battles created by the long-running dispute  over the border between England and Scotland. During a period of Scottish occupation the ruler of this stronghold was one Macbeth, no wonder they built a castle here.

Escaping from Carlisle proved a challenge but eventually the city sprawl was left behind and the rugged moorlands came into view, something that I could glimpse between the sweat that was running down my face from both the heat and the unforbiding terrain...there MUST have been some downward bits! The steep switchback trails took us down to Bewcastle with its famous cross which has survived 1300 years of relentless borders weather in St Cuthbert's churchyard. Any hope of using the downward momentum to tackle the long gradient with 25% inclines which were then ahead were thwarted by two tractors  filling the road. So it was a lung busting, knee wrenching standing start to get up the climb. 

Day 2 Distance 87.5km with 1035m of climbing

Day 3 commenced with the invasion of Scotland where its defences lay in it being again situated at the top of a very long hill.

Newcastleton proved to be very welcoming and the local tea shop is to be highly recommended.  The countryside is beautiful with many clear rivers and mountains as we rolled along the border before turning towards the Keilder Forest and England.

The tracks around Keilder Water give you many good sightings of what is the largest man made reservoir in Europe and at Leaplish stopped for lunch. It was then just a short ride to the night stop at Bellingham but this proved to be the most hazardous bit of the trip so far.  As I turned out of Falstone, 80% of which had been consumed by Keilder Water, the road rose like a wall in front of me. Two mad dogs lay in wait at the corner deterring any attempt  to gain.momentum. Having climbed the first long steep hill the surface deteriorated as the next challenge lay ahead. Across yet another cattle grid to be confronted by a huge beast of a bull, and very bully he was!  Bellowing loudly and waving his head, his harem of cows also joined in. I had read somewhere that cows don't like to be separated from their calves..and this lot were, with me being the separating barrier. The path was steep, pot holey and gravelly. So far I had managed to complete the ride without ever resorting to getting off the bike and pushing. But I gave in and got off. I was not sure on which side of the bike to walk up the hill, that bellowing monster looked as though it would make mincemeat of my Mercian. So I decided to let my companion face the herd whilst I sheltered on his other side....Mercians are after all very valuable pieces of precision engineering. Once just past the monster I got back on my bike and did a very impressive hill sprint up the remaining 200m to the cattle grid.

Day 3 Distance 75km with 908m of climbing

The next day began disastrously. I had been using my Garmin 800 to keep track of my journey and map the route with the aim that other intrepid adventurers could follow in my cycle tracks. But this morning I woke to find the garmin had failed; completely dead. In this part of the world mobile phone reception is a thing of dreams so even Strava on my phone was useless. So I had to rely on my friends stats for the day and he is not a numbers nerd like me.

The day's ride began by going up hill, again, and it was a very steep uphill but at least it was tarmac. With the temperature continuing to rise we turned right to continue a mountain ascent along sheep paths with the occasional llama eyeing us suspiciously. Mountain goats and sheep were well suited to this terrain of the Buteland Fells. Progress was slow, not helped by a farmer driving a flock of sheep along a narrow path. But at least this gave me time too stay upright recover my strength though I had noticed that after three solid days of climbing, many of them up tracks more suited to Mountain bikes, with the gearing to go with such machines, I was using one gear lower than my normal cycling on a road bike. The scenery around here was bleak and raw and buzzards, or were they vultures, could be seen circling in the sky.

Lunch was taken at a truly beautiful little village at Matfen. With its village green and young boys playing in the stream this was truly idyllic. The journey was now nearly over and the run down into Ponteland was quick with the sun on my back and the speed bringing a refreshing draft of wind.

The route from Ponteland into Teignmouth is best glossed over. The cycle trails were awful and it took all my mental strength just to stay upright. The Mercian was more than capable of handling such rugged ground but I am afraid I wasn't. And then it was down the hill and back to sea level on Teignmouth Quay and time for a celebratory ice cream

The end of the route is just beyond the promentary, looked over by the statue of Admiral Collingwood, and just after that is the beautiful ruin of Teignmouth Abbey.

A total journey of 300.5km with 3336 m of climbing.

It was a great experience and my first taste of cycle touring, though admittedly it was done the easy way with excellent support throughout.

If any of my fellow riders see this and feel drawn to comment, then please do.

For me it is now to consider what next year's cycling challenge will be.