I didn’t sleep all that well. Every position I lay in caused a different type of pain. I rose at 5 am a little gloomy about the coming ride. As I filled my bottles, I told myself, “Don’t hurry. It doesn’t matter when you get home.”
I left the house and rode to the end of the street. A young cyclist was waiting across the road. He waved and asked if it would be alright for him to join me.
Colin had read of my exploits and, needing some training miles, decided to give me some support. He is quite an accomplished cyclist and a specialist in time trialling. He is also fit, thin and 25 years younger than me.
He said he would keep to my pace and to that end, I set off ahead except in places where we could ride two abreast. The traffic was light. We reached High Beech. It was earlier than I had reached it before.
And we rode on. My wrist was still swollen and so I had left my watch at home. I had no idea of the time. We passed all the familiar landmarks, climbed the now oft climbed hills and descended the same old descents. Barkway was upon us sooner than I had expected and then the descents to the flatlands.
Once we were on the flat, Colin took the lead and I tucked in in his slip stream. We sped by churches and thatched cottages, hedges and fields.
We saw the Arsenal supporting construction worker, still sadly out of his kit. I do hope it comes back but I fear I will not be cycling past to see it. The DNA path, the BioMedical campus and then Cambridge.
They were surprised to see me in the cafe just after 10 am. I had taken almost 45 minutes off my best time. I was feeling fine.
After eating we were off again. Colin suggested that I should keep a little back which I gladly did. I paced myself carefully up the five climbs to Barkway with Colin following close behind offering encouragement. Looking at Strava after the ride, I climbed those five ramps faster than ever before.
We rode at a gentler pace as we crossed to the Pelhams but I still achieved personal records. We were moving like proper cyclists. Well, Colin was moving like a proper cyclist enjoying a gentle ride out whereas I was looking like a fat old chap in Lycra puffing and sweating on a bike but doing so with more speed that I had until now.
There is a point in the ride when I start to dread three of the climbs in the last 40 k. The climb out of Roydon, the climb into Epping Green and Col de Clapton.
The Roydon climb is not that long or steep. It is just unnecessary. No need to have popped a climb there and no ability to carry speed into the climb and use momentum to ascend it. The Epping Green climb is no more than 4% but is saps the legs of energy. Today, I prepared for them mentally and stared coldly at the tar mac as I fought. As neither is as big in reality as it is in my imagination, this proved a good tactic. I was up them both before I realised that I was actually climbing.
The traffic had built by the time we emerged onto the A104 and the brief dip into the forest to High Beech was a relief. Re-watered we rode on into the descent into London and then faced that final obstacle: the Col de Clapton. On Strava it is misnamed The Millfield Riser. I am not sure why. It is the part of the Lea Bridge Road from Chatsworth Road to Lea Bridge Roundabout. Is is about 0.4 km long and has an average gradient of 2%. And it’s a killer at the end of a long ride when you’ve been descending for eight miles or so.
The surface is corrugated and refuses to allow a rhythm to be built and to compound everything, it ends at the Roundabout whose navigation requires sprints at three separate traffic lights. Just at the moment that one is preparing for an end to the ride; just when the last four or five kilometres are on the flat, there is this nasty little kicker.
Today, however, we sailed up it. Didn’t actually notice it and then surfed a green wave through all the lights and round the roundabout.
Arriving back in Canonbury, I thanked Colin profusely for his company, support and encouragement. He kindly pointed out a slight buckle in my rear wheel. I was home early enough to sort it out.
I whipped off the back wheel and pulled out my spare. I decided to clean the bike. I twisted the chain. I couldn’t untwist it. I sat for a while looking at the problem. I tried again. It was still twisted. Panic was rising.I had a good idea,. I posted an urgent request for help on LFGSS. Ten minutes later I was speaking to Ludwig; an hour later Ludwig was at my house. Two minutes after his arrival, the problem was resolved. My relief was indescribable and so I won’t try.
Thanks to Ludwig’s kind intervention, a great day was still a great day.
I was home by 3:30 pm. Over an hour earlier than on any other day. 1600 km done and “only” 400 to go. Average moving speed of 14.8 mph is not shabby over 125 miles. My total mileage is now 1000.
I will not ride as fast tomorrow. I will savour one of my last rides.
Again, thank you everyone for your support, particularly, today, Colin and Ludwig. All donations gratefully received:
,https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/cliveo2000ksin10days
2000 km in 10 days 