Over and Out

Well, it's about time I bought my Etape 2009 blog to a close. A new route has been announced and I've decided to have another go. So, I'm about to start a new blog: Etape 2010 - Pau to Tourmalet!
It's all a bit empty at the moment but will soon be filling up with Etape information and how my training is going. I hope that you will continue to read about the next adventure.

It's almost two years since I first started this blog and it's been an amazing time - Etape 2008, the discovery of the heart problem, recovery, and then finally my personal victory on Ventoux. That day in July really has changed my life; somehow, I feel different inside. I struggle to articulate what the difference is; each time I write it down, it just sounds like a load of hippy rubbish. All I can say is that I feel strong, right in the middle of my chest - it's almost like I have become aware of my soul. I know, it sounds like nonsense but that's the only way I can describe it. Well, whatever the change, it feels damn good!

Thanks to everyone who has been reading and commenting - it's been fantastic :-)

I leave you with a picture of me, a happy woman on the top of Ventoux.

First Cyclo-Cross Race

On Saturday, I tried my first cyclo-cross race. I had always fancied having a go, saw that there was one happening not too far away from my house and decided to go for it. I don't have a cyclo-cross bike so I had to make a few adjustments to my mountain bike - I changed the pedals (currently flat one side and spd on the other over to double-sided spd) and took off the clamps for the child seat and the tow bar. I didn't have any suitable shoes so I got a bargain in Evans - some Scott carbon soled MTB shoes reduced from £160 to £89! I was thinking about changing the tyres but decided to wait and see what a cross race was like before spending any more money on upgrades.
It was quite pleasant and somewhat luxurious to have an organised ride planned for the day and not have to leave the house until 1pm. When I arrived at the venue, I unloaded, got myself ready and went in to register. It cost me £13 to take part as I didn't have a Racing License and so had to pay an additional £3. I rode over to another MTB rider and had a bit of a chat and then moved off onto the course for a bit of a recce. Flippin' 'eck! within 100 metres, I was off the bike, climbing a flight of stairs with my bike under my arm then it was over some very lumpy grassy land. I was in the granny ring, legs pumping away and getting nowhere fast. We went down a tree covered descent, rocks helpfully painted white, and I was just laughing out loud. What the hell had I got myself into?? I wasn't sure where the start was so went up the stairs again, over the lumps and was then directed to the left where riders were all lined up and ready to go. The organiser gave a little speech and a blow of the whistle started us on our way.
It was fast and furious, right from the start and from the off, I was in last place. I couldn't have put any more effort in but I was going nowhere. I didn't use my Garmin, as I was worried about it getting caked in mud, so I had no idea of my heart rate, but my perceived effort was very high. I had to keep pedalling for the entire course, even on the descents, or I ground to a halt. I was soon on unfamiliar parts of the course and good grief, it didn't get any easier. One section was on a very narrow grass verge, the smooth tarmac tantalising close but sectioned off with tape. For me, this was the worst part of the course - my tyres soon filled with mud, essentially becoming very fat slick tyres. I had no grip and my back wheel was going everywhere. Shortly after the finish line, there was a steep but short hill - I saw some people dismounting but I thought I'd have a crack at it - mistake! I came to a stop, struggled to unclip and then fell slowly to the left. Lap 1 was not going well. It wasn't all bad though - whilst climbing the stairs, I overtook a lady on a mountain bike (who I later found out had to stop to be sick) and then another girl on a cross bike a bit later on. The effort was high and relentless - within half and hour, I was asking spectators how long we had to go. I just kept plugging away, getting lapped by the fast guys whilst trying not to slow them down too much. I didn't enjoy it too much - sometimes the guys shouted that they were going to overtake and gave very little room; I felt I was going to be forced off into the wooded areas. At one time, a guy shouted "on your left" and then another came whizzing by on the right, just as I was trying to move into that space to avoid the guy who had shouted up. Towards the end, I just stayed well to one side, even if that meant going over more difficult terrain.
I was really glad to finish. After a really tough hour, it was nice to have a chat with the other riders - I met Amy (Trio) and her partner Ali. I also spotted Tom (who I first met on the top of Ventoux) and Andy (from bikeradar forum).
Later that night, once the bike was cleaned (took ages) and I'd had a nice hot bath, I started to look back on the day quite fondly and even started looking on ebay for cross bikes. I will do it again - not until I've changed my tyres, but I will do it again. Hard work but fun (I think).
Here's a link to some pictures from the day - http://www.flickr.com/photos/26379578@N08/4000523917/in/set-72157622561174766/

The Cat & Fiddle Challenge ride, 4th October

I'm getting a bit blasé about sportives now. In June and July, I would have my "pre-flight" countdown - three days of carb loading, a planned ride pattern for the week prior to an event, weeks of weather checking, outfit planning, nutrition strategies etc. Come October and the Cat & Fiddle challenge, things are a little more relaxed. I did a ride on Wednesday, ate a bit more cake than usual on Saturday and at about 10pm Saturday night, thought about checking that I'd got some washed kit for the following day. I checked the forecast on the morning and it looked reasonable - rain forecast for the afternoon but I'd be home well before then.
The ride starts from Brian Rourke's shop in Burslem, Stoke on Trent. On the drive over, there were a few spots of rain but the sky was bright, the temperatures cool and it looked as though we were going to have a lovely autumnal day for it. As I was unloading my bike and getting kitted up, it was noticeably colder than anything I'd ridden in recently. My ill-chosen mitts left my finger tips cruelly exposed to the elements. After registration, I hung about at the start, waiting for someone to get us all of and running, but it never happened. Riders seemed to be slowly meandering off onto the road, with no fanfare, and as soon as I realised what was going on, I joined them.
The first few miles were an escape from the built up streets of Burslem and Tunstall. I used to go out with someone from that area years and years ago (my first boyfriend in fact) and it was quite interesting to see the area again. The vast majority of the route was on A roads, roads that I would normally try to avoid. It was early on Sunday morning so traffic wasn't a problem. In fact, it was an interesting game of join-the-dots to see how the quiet routes that I usually take are linked together by these busier roads.
Rain started around Congleton so that by the time I got to the foot of the day's main climb, the Cat & Fiddle, few kilos of water were swilling around in my shoes. I don't think the Cat & Fiddle is a climb to be feared - the start is a quite steep with gradients up to 10% ish, but you get some flatter sections higher up and even some descents. I made it up, even overtaking the odd one or two on the way (also overtaken a lot), and then it was straight over the top and a descent towards Buxton before a right turn saw us climbing back to Leek. I found this climb much more difficult - it seemed steeper and it felt cruel to making such an effort to regain the altitude that we'd lost so easily on the last descent. From here on, it was a bit of a roller coaster, some nice long descents and some tiring long drags up. Nothing as big as the Cat, but plenty to test the legs. I'd originally hoped that this ride would be a renaissance of Colin's interest in Cycling, and I'd promised not to drop him and ride all the way round with him. In the end, a problem with his back put him off joining me. As I rode around, I thought that it was possibly a good thing that he didn't choose this as his comeback ride - the rain made the Cat quite miserable and those long drags, which seemed to keep coming right up to the finish, well, it might have been a bit too much for a first ride back since Annecy. I know I found it a bit of a challenge after a few weeks of lighter riding.
Back to the community centre where sandwich and tea had been promised earlier. I did a double-take when I saw the spread on offer. I wondered if the food was meant for some other group of hungry people. Picture the scene: two long tables laden with plates piled high with sandwiches, salad veg, oranges, pork pies, sausages, cakes, cakes & more cakes including my favourite, caramel shortbread. I opted for a few sandwiches, a cup of sweet tea and a caramel shortbread. I took a picture to show Colin what he'd missed out on.
All in all, it was a good ride - the route, while on busier roads, was certainly challenging with some quite picturesque sections. The signage was good and there were a few marshals out on the route. There were feeds stops at the top of the Cat plus a few other locations - stocked with water, energy bars and some home made cake. The highlight was definitely the hospitality at the end - other sportives could learn a lesson or two from the Cat & Fiddle Challenge. When you've done a challenging ride in wet conditions, there is nothing to beat a nice piece of cake and a hot drink.