Day
1 – Time allowed: 7 hours.
Saturday morning greeted us with clear, bright blue skies and
a savage wind coming from the South West. Convinced that
I was not on the best form for an epic 2-day’s riding
with 12 hours in the saddle, I was keen to avoid the really
hard climbs going for the 6 Cps to the South, so I was
already toying with the idea of riding an anti-clockwise
route. Knowing I couldn’t possibly get all the Cps,
it would mean that I would tackle these last and probably
only have time for a couple (and associated climbs). The
strength and direction of the wind made my mind up.
As ready as I could be, I entered the start tent and cleared
my electronic timer then triggered the start as Dean handed
over the CP scores. Holding the map down and marking on the
scores proved a little tricky in the wind but after a few minutes
I was in the saddle and heading out of the campsite. The scores
and dummies held no surprises so I elected to make my provisional
plan definitive.
The first leg took me through the streets of Shanklin and Sandown,
and with skinny tyres and a following wind progress was fast.
On through Brading and shortly after I left the road to head
for my first CP. 28 minutes. Next I virtually doubled back
to collect the second CP on the lower slopes of the central
ridge to the West of Brading. Two more on the other side meant
I needed to straddle the top via a short sharp climb. Good
tracks and lanes meant progress was not too demanding. Keeping
an eye on my heart rate, it was hitting the high 160’s
at maximum effort. If it dipped below 145 I was spurring myself
on a bit.
The bike was running almost perfectly and the newly-serviced,
platform upgraded rear shock was doing its job…working
hard off road yet staying stiff under pedaling on it. I say
almost. I had a problem with some rogue shifting at the back.
This only happened on the rougher off-road sections. Putting
the bike back together in a hurry the day before had meant
no time for a road test and fine tuning. The rear mech needed
sorting. Rather than waste valuable time stopping every now
and then, I put up with it and waited until I reached a CP
before making any adjustment. After the fifth CP I had it right,
and from there on the bike ran perfectly all weekend.
Back over the same ridge for the next two Cps almost due North
before another U turn toward the centre of the island. 2 hours
10 minutes and I had eight of the ‘easier’ Cps
under my belt. Now I had a long slog for a couple more just
South West of Newport, the second of which followed a hard
off the bike push up to it – not so easy, that one. I
had three more to the West and into the wind to collect before
I could turn to head back. Up until here, I had been virtually
alone, only meeting the odd rider here and there. Now there
was an almost constant stream of them, coming toward me…it
seemed the majority of riders had chosen to circumnavigate
the island clockwise.
By 3 hours 45 I was at the furthest CP on the outskirts of
Freshwater…the opposite end of the island to the start/finish!
But now I had the wind behind me, making the off-road climbs
so much easier. They needed to be for I was beginning to tire
and my legs were cramping. This I staved off by slapping the
offending part every time I felt cramp welling up. Must have
looked a bit comical…an old fart riding along slapping
his thigh every pedal stroke! Tally Ho! Eh what!
Coming down off Brighstone Down I had my first (and only) navigation
problem. Ahead, where the CP should be I could see about four
riders milling about looking lost. As I came up to them they
confirmed what I had thought – the CP wasn’t there.
My fix was positive. A gateway where a footpath left the bridleway…the
only one for about three hundred yards and down hill a little
way from a barn marked on the map. I didn’t waste too
much time looking. If others couldn’t find it then it
probably wasn’t there. I moved on to the next, making
a mental note to mention it when I checked in.
Grinding my way up a hard but smooth climb along a surfaced
track, I envied the pair of younger riders who passed me almost
effortlessly on the climb. Oh to be 30 years younger! This
bought me to the next high point just below the massive aerial
on Chillerton Down and another 40 points. With just over an
hour and a half left, I was looking at which of the remaining
CP’s I should miss – and more importantly, which
I should go for. The next two were a must…each worth
40 points, then there were a couple fairly close to the finish,
one of which I would pass through anyway. In the meantime I
readied myself for the climb up to St. Catherine’s Down
by taking on some disgusting and sticky but highly effective
Power Gel. It worked and I reached the top feeling better than
I thought I would.
The home stretch. Or it should have been – but greed
got the better of me and I headed up for one penultimate CP.
It was a gamble that didn’t pay off, with the climb taking
my tired legs longer than it should have. A minute or two wasted
looking for the CP, a few yards away from the gate where I
thought it should be, and then a mad fast descent back to the
road followed by a strength sapping blast through the undulating
and twisting singletrack of American Wood. Then the bone jarring,
energy robbing stutter bumps after the last CP. A final push
through the farm yard and across the camp ground to the finish
tent.
Recovering from my mad dash, I propped up the bike against
one of the marquee guys and walked into the huge tent to download
my score from the timing chip. I mentioned the ‘missing’ CP
and Malcom confirmed it had been put out in the wrong place.
The offending Team Trailbreak member responsible had been suitably
flogged and I was not to worry, it would be right for the following
day.
5 minutes over the 7 hours. I had covered 120 kilometers and
was five minutes late. 25 penalty points and the CP that cost
me that was only worth 20, so I was 5 down. Total for the day,
675.
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Day
2 – Time allowed: 5 hours.
Suffering from the effects of too long in the sun the
day before, I had covered my arms and legs for day 2.
The wind had dropped
and the sky was overcast for the time being. It was cooler
too. Being only five hours today, I would not be able replicate
the previous day’s route. I decided to bite the bullet
and go round clockwise, taking in the heavy climbs early
on. The legs didn’t feel too bad, but my maximum heart
rate was only around the 150 – well down on the day
before.
As I climbed to the first CP the sun broke through the
clouds and I started to overheat rapidly. Reaching the
CP I stripped
off the tracksuit bottoms and long sleeved top, stuffing
them behind a tree to collect later. The climb continued,
and this
time I had company. A group of slower riders in front, and
some faster coming up behind. Once on the ridge, we headed
south to the island’s highpoint – St. Boniface
Down above Ventnor. Next a quick descent to the fringes of
Ventnor. It should have been quicker but I was slowed by
having to follow a wary driver negotiating the steep narrow
lane.
On the climb out of Ventnor I was passed by about four riders.
I tried to convince myself that I was pacing myself and they
would run out of steam before the day was out. I was caught
by a couple more – one of which was an old and constant
adversary who had elected to ride the event with a colleague
in the vets team catagory. They were going well and I was grateful
that he was in a different category, for I am sure he would
have fared better on his own and beaten my score. On the next
descent they sandwiched me as we dropped some 500 feet through
fast and sometimes muddy singletrack. Lower down the slopes
the track opened out wider, allowing us to pass a group of
slower riders as we neared the road. Once on the road the pair
regrouped, while I continued, but it wasn’t long before
they passed me on the next road climb. I probably could have
stayed with them for a while, but we still had a long way
to go and I did not want to over do it so I watched as they
gradually
pulled away.
By the time I reached the next CP on St. Catherine’s
Hill high above Niton, they were a pair of silhouettes making
their way along the skyline to the next CP by the monument
on St. Catherine’s Down. 10 minutes later I too passed
through the CP and headed down toward the low arable lands
around Atherfield. The next two CP’s took little effort
as they were comparatively low lying. Then a pushed climb found
me back below the lofty aerial on Chillerton Down. Next I headed
North, choosing to ignore the three most outlying CP’s.
Worth a total of 90 points, the time taken for me to reach
them would jeopardise me getting to 3 CP’s later on,
each worth 40 pts. For a short while I retraced a couple
of legs I had sweated over the day before and collected two
more
CPs.
My next problem was to negotiate the streets and traffic
of Newport. This would be a long leg with no scoring, but
I needed
to reach those 40 pointers. My only consolation was that
it was all on the road. Even so, the long gradual climb out
of
Newport seemed to go on forever! Now I was back on familiar
ground, having collected these CP’s the day before too.
One last Gel-aided push up the ridge to the West of Brading
and I claimed the last a the 40 point triple. I had a hour
left. Enough to collect at least a couple more – and
get back to the finish on time. A short run along the road
running atop the ridge bought me to my turnoff, where I would
drop down the steep side of the ridge and collect another
30 pts on the way through. Here I had my hairiest moment
of the
weekend. Bum over the back wheel and both brakes applied
to control my speed, I was too eager with the front brake.
The
back wheel was just sliding, but the front bit in and came
to a halt. The back started to lift and for a moment I thought
I was going over the bars as I struggled to keep balance.
I released the front just in time and we continued our non
too
elegant descent to the gentler slops below.
Two easy Cps followed in quick succession. I now had a little
over half an hour. A couple riding the last few 100 yards
with me turned to head back…with 20 minutes left. I elected
to go for one more – a repeat of yesterday? This one
was different. Along an old disused railway track now converted
to a cycleway. Head down I headed along flat out. Time was
tight and I wasn’t sure I would make it. At least I knew
exactly where to go for it was another I had visited the day
before. I tagged the timer at the CP. 22 minutes left to get
back.
I dropped onto the cyclepath and ran up through the gears.
What little breeze there was came from behind – I needed
all the help I could get. Back to the road, fortunately a
lull in the traffic meant I could cross without waiting and
get
into my stride for the push back to the finish. Now I had
nothing to do but focus on getting back. I cursed myself
for falling
into the same trap again. I was sure I would be over just
like the day before. It hurt. My legs were all but finished.
One
last gentle slope to conquer and then it was downhill to
the site entrance. By now I knew I was in. This time the
gamble
had paid off and the extra points were in the bag!
4 hours 57 seconds. I had covered a further 81 kilometers
and added 590 points to the previous day’s score.
Enough for second in the Super Vets. This is becoming a
habit!
WDC
2005 Results
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