Sister Cycle: Pedalling against the Patriarchy

Rapha womens 100

Sunday 7 July was the Rapha Women's 100, a global event where the cycle company Rapha encouraged women all over the world to ride 100km on the same day. Working as I do in an organisation with many fabulous feminists, we decided we could take this one step further and make this not only a women's ride, but a feminist ride.

We didn't have as much time to plan as we would have liked but we managed to plot a route taking in a few of sites of feminist significance, starting and finishing in Cambridge--where the first women's college in the UK was founded. It felt approrpiate to do a feminist ride given the historical connections between cycling and women's liberation.

On Sunday morning, I cycled to King's Cross Station with a mixture of anxiety and excitement. I've only very rarely cycled a long distance without Alberto there to sort out mechanicals (and just generally be nice company of course!), and I haven't spent much time on the road bike this year so I wasn't sure how fit I really was. But I'd also literally never ridden a route without a man along for the ride and the idea of spending the day with only women was exciting. The forecast was for hot weather, sunny skies, and calm winds -- so we really couldnt complain. It was going to be a great day.

Four wonderful women--me, Emma, Rachael, and Kate--set out to takle the route in the 27 C (80 F) heat. Our route took us south out of Cambridge, first on the traffic-free cycle route for the first few kms, and then onto quieter roads. We all had a lot of enthusiasm early in the day, and the temperatures weren't quite so high, so before we knew it we were riding through Great Chesterford, where apparently the feminist icon Germaine Greer lives (we didn't check her address!).

We carred on South and the terrain got a bit hillier as we headed into Saffron Walden. On the approach to Saffron Walden we rode on our only really busy stretch of road of the ride, a B road combined with an uphill is really never a good plan. But we made it through and soon we were out the other side and onto quiet country lanes. By the time we arrived in Great Easton we were all ready for a break.

Enjoying the shade in Great Easton

Great Easton was home to Hannah Woolley, a woman writer in the 1600s who is believed to be the first woman to have earned a living by writing books (even if they were about household management!). On the approach to the town we found a pub with an inviting, shady beer garden and promptly stopped to have a soft drink and a small snack, reapply sunscreen, refill our bottles and recharge our bodies. We were 50km into the ride, and would now turn north to head back up to Cambridge.

Attacking the hills

Leaving Great Easton we had some more lovely country lanes back to Saffron Walden (some of which were retracing our steps from the way out) and, after Saffron Walden we passed our final feminist landmark, Audley End, an English Heritage site where Henrietta Howard omce lived. She was a mistress of King George II but also a feminist ahwad of her time, leaving an abusive husband, writing about women's equality, and eventually becoming self-sufficient and not needing a man's support at all after the King and her called it quits.

A quick break at Audley End

After Audley End came the only categorised climb of the day (as they would say in the Tour de France commentating), but it really wasn't too bad. I actually enjoyed it quite a bit. We finally decided to stop for lunch shortly afterwards, at a random pub we passed with about 15km to go from Cambridge. We sat in the beer garden, ate a pub lunch, and caught up with the Wimbledon final. Then it was time to get  back out on the road for a leisurely ride to the finish.

Taking in the view

Riding with women was really a different experience. I've never not enjoyed riding with men, but there's something different about being on the road with just women. We had a great time--I don't think I've ever laughed so much on a bike ride before! I'm so glad we got a chance to participate in the Womens 100, but I hope it's not another whole year before I ride with women again!

Murphy's Law on the Shaftesbury Spring 200

We hadn't registered for the Shaftesbury Spring 200, but it had been in our heads as a good possible first 200 for me this year. We thoroughly enjoyed our experience on Up the Uts last year, and this ride was another one of those that starts from the cycling club bungalows in Saffron Walden and visits laney Essex at its best.

Come Friday night, I was still uncertain as to whether or not I wanted to ride it. The forecast was for rain and temperatures below 7C, I had had a long and somewhat stressful week at work, and we had lots of chores to do at home. I wasn't sure I was quite up for 200km in these circumstances, but since the ride loops back to the HQ after 100km Alberto tried to convince me that we could always pack after 100km. I remained unconvinced, I was exhausted, and I went to bed before Alberto had even finished prepping the bikes.

At 5:50am Alberto nudged me and asked me if I wanted to ride. I said no, but somehow a minute later I was out of bed and layering up in lycra ready for the ride.

It turned out that we had only ten minutes to get dressed and leave the house if were to make our train. We did the best we could, and were making good time until we took a wrong turn on the way to the station and ended up adding about five minutes onto our journey which we did not have to spare.

No matter, we bought tickets for the next train which would still get us there in okay time, just not much time to eat at the 'ut. We loaded our bikes onto the train only to be told that bikes were not allowed on this train. The train was empty and there was plenty of space for the bikes, but we were forced to remove our bikes from it and wait for the next one that would take bikes, which would mean getting to the start about 20 minutes after start time.

Create Maps or search from 80 million at MapMyRide

We managed to set off about 30 minutes behind the rest of the pack, which we thought we had a chance of making up. It was mainly disappointing because we love the atmosphere of these audaxes and it was sad not to be a part of that.

So we set off trying to make up some time, until about 10km into the ride I got a flat tire. My first ever on an audax. The road conditions were not great (we had not heeded the organiser's warnings that skinny tires were not recommended!) but it turned out my flat was not to do with any sharp objects. It's possible there was too much air in the tires or else the tube was just very old, but either way there was a split in the tube.

We changed the tire but realised this was probably the end of our hopes of catching the peloton.

We carried on until the tea rooms at Stisted, where there were still plenty of riders having tea and cakes. We couldn't tell whether they were on the 200 like us or on the rides of shorter distances. We found another guy who had started even later than us and had managed to catch us just as we pulled into Stisted. Chatted with him over cakes and then rode with him a for  bit as we headed back to HQ, before his pace became too much for me (even though he was on fixed!).

Stisted Tea Rooms (photo from last year's Up the Uts when the skies were a bit friendlier!)

I was still feeling quite good at this point and mulled over the idea of doing the full 200, but as we pushed the pace a bit and as the hours added up, I started to question the wisdom of that. My feet had taken longer than normal to get to their frigid state (feet strategy today: thinner (polyester) winter socks, Sealskinz waterproof socks, and thin plasticy overshoes), but they were there now. I wasn't at my limit, but I could feel that I would reach it before another 100km were up. I told Alberto that I planned to head back to London after 100km but that he could carry on if he wanted.

We reached the HQ after 104km and enjoyed some of the yummiest, best value food I've had on an audax. As with last year's Up the Uts, there is something about cyclists cooking for cyclists that transforms the food into exactly what you didn't even know you needed.

We warmed up a bit and Alberto considered his options. Eventually we decided we just had too much to do in London so we headed back toghether to the station. I suppose Murphy's Law might be a bit extreme, but it certainly was not the most successful day we've had on the bike.

Still, it was great to get some kms in the legs as it is really time for me to start ramping up for another season of audaxes and touring. If only the weather would start to cooperate we'd be in business.

Ride report: Hereward the Wake 300 (via Ireland!)

Friday July 6th and I found myself on a commuter train full of suits out of central London heading for Bishop's Stortford. What a complicated name for a town, even worse to pronounce if you are Spanish! I was about to embark on yet another loooong (overnight) ride. On this occasion also, with a night time start. The distance to cover, something in excess of 300 km.



The 15 km or so from the station to the start in Great Dunmow were not the most pleasant, with plenty of traffic due to the proximity of the area to Stansted Airport. But the roads were pretty well surfaced and I arrived with plenty of time to spare. At the car park the usual sight of people assembling their bikes, chatting, getting the brevet cards etc, and a very pleasant sunset with warm temperatures to allow shorts and short-sleeves.

Sunset in Essex before the off. 8:45 pm

At 9:01 pm, with British punctuality, the town crier (dressed in the most appropriate clothes) gave a speech and let us go. It certainly was the most special off for an Audax I have been to.

19 of us and the town crier

The first 50 something km to Cambridge were ridden in almost no time. Despite trying not to push very hard (I thought - I still have 300 km ahead of me!) I found myself at the front with a guy sporting a PBP vest (the Paris-Brest-Paris official), a woman with a time trial bike and bigger calves than mine, and Nick with proper audax gear (i.e. steel frame, bar bag and all that). The four of us made very good progress and managed to average nearly 29 km/h. The time trial woman was doing this as her very first audax, and funnily enough, was fluent in Spanish. So there I found myself having an interesting chat in Spanish, on a warm Friday night. This is lots of fun! Getting into Cambridge, being a Friday night, was sort of amusing, but could not stick around for long. Got our ATM receipt and carried on.

The next section was also very flat and I could feel a bit of tailwind pushing us up North towards Peterborough. At some point, time trial woman and PBP guy shot off and so I rode with Nick until the next control. Together we made good progress at a more relaxed pace, yet managed to keep the average pretty high for my standards, completing more than 100 km in less than 3h 30 min. Quite impressed at myself, although I think the wind helped a lot!

At the Peterborough control we saw PBP guy and time trial woman again, but they left minutes after our arrival, and we would not see them again. Ate a chocolate bar and drunk an orange juice to obtain the precious receipt. The roads were completely empty at this point, and I decided to (finally, being almost 1 am) put knee and arm warmers on. Still, quite amazed at the British summer, so far so good. 

Heading out of Peterborough, we took the lanes again. Mist had settled down in the area and made the whole thing very atmospheric as Nick described. The terrain became more rolling, and we could now feel not only the little hills, but also the headwind. The average dropped a bit, but we were still in good spirits. It was good to have Nick as a companion, as so far I had never ridden on my own at night. Also, it meant some conversation in the darker hours, when you feel more sleepy. Luckily, despite the lack of caffeine intake thus far, I was quite awake. However, the stomach was starting to make funny noises and I could feel problems coming. At some point they became so bad that I had to tell Nick to carry on. I stopped a few times to recover, feeling weaker and weaker every time. Eventually, I sort of felt a bit better and pressed on on my own. This was at 140 km into the ride.

For the next 60 km I would ride solo, through the night. There has to be a first time for everything, so here I was in the countryside enjoying the misty, wet roads of Bedfordshire. But I was having a great time to my surprise, and really enjoyed my solo time. Got to see the sunrise and felt obliged to take some pictures

The sun is about to rise. 4:00 am, somewhere in Bedfordshire

I kept on riding, and stopping every time stomach problems came back, until the third control at Newport Pagnell. I was very much looking forward to getting some hot food and drink here, but realised they only opened the services proper at 6:00 am, and it was 5:00 am. Luckily I had been carrying my own pasta salad (being inspired by Javier's reports on diariodeunbiciorejon) just in case I could not find palatable/convenient food. Also, because I am not new to an upset stomach on long rides, and I thought home-made stuff was a safer bet should problems arise). Made yet another visit to the toilets, and ate half of the pasta.

While waiting, another rider arrived. It was Bruce, who I had seen sleeping some km earlier in true audax style, in a bus shelter. He had been feeling very sleepy and decided to go for a 20 min nap. After some chatting I felt a lot better and said good bye to him.

The roads were still super quiet, and I was again on my own. Felt quite energetic, so tried to press on a bit. I had noticed that the routesheet was not fully accurate with respect to the km markings and meant the ride will be 15 over the proposed km. Not a big deal I thought, but I was probably not going to make it under 15 h (my quickest 300, the Dean) anyway, so slowed down a bit and stopped every now and then for pictures, food and water.

Empty roads. Silly o'clock.

Nice isn't it?

I was not sleep deprived, but started to see signs indicating Ireland 3/4 of a mille to go. I knew I was travelling West and long distances, but not as far as Ireland! Yep, there's an Ireland, England. 

I don't appear too convinced

Not far from Ireland I stopped for some more food. Stomach problems had gone for now, so I decided to get a coffee and a baguette at the Biggleswade control. Sat down on the sun and relaxed for a bit. By then Bruce had also arrived, and we chatted for a while. Not sure if because I had been riding for very long or what, but he did not seem to understand much of what I was saying, and I was finding it quite frustrating! I think my accent deteriorates significantly when riding and especially when tired. But could not do much else other than repeating...

More riders arrived, and I had to visit the toiled one more time. It would be the last, luckily. Bruce set off, and I followed him shortly afterwards. The roads were still quiet. Started to see quite a lot of club riders, and even another guy riding a Canyon. He had a top end bike, but despite his efforts to stick to my wheel, he could not catch up. I was trying to keep an steady pace, but felt that it would be nice to talk bikes with him. After I slowed down and chatted a bit, I found out he was on his way to a club ride, to which I was kindly invited. I had to decline though. Told him that I had been riding since 9 pm and for some 280 km, to which he replied: in two days right? - No, since yesterday. Non-stop. Oh, so you may want to take it easy then - he said. He was quite right!

I then caught up with Bruce. He was a very experienced audaxer, having just ridden the Mille Alba up in Scotland, a 1000 km ride in the most precarious of the Scottish weathers. Together we made good progress to the last control in Reed, at a "biker's" cafe. But bikes of the motorised type. Grabbed a quick drink and set off again, for the last 50 km. It was good having Bruce as a companion, it made the last section seem a lot easier. Also, got good advice regarding rides and cycling clubs in London, as well as some funny memories of his audax outings. 

The weather had been fantastic so far, but of course, we had to get some rain, this being the rainiest July in recent years. I had just got a text from Lucy saying that rain was super heavy in London, so I guess we would get it sometime soon. I was right, and it hit us with no time for putting the water proofs on. The roads became so slippery that when I tried to stop to put the rain gear on, I slipped off. Not harm or injury, but it was such a stupid fall.

With non-stop heavy downpours we managed to get back to Great Dunmow by 12:30 pm. Tom and his son, who had organised the ride, greeted us with a bacon/sausage/egg/onion rolls, which I ate in milliseconds. After some more chatting I was ready to head back to the Smoke.

Back at HQ

All in all a very good ride despite my stomach problems. Home by 3 pm having ridden for more than 360 km since leaving work on Friday...not too bad is it? My fastest ever 100, and 200 km distances, and a good rolling average for such a long ride. A 9 pm start means very little traffic, sunrise and sunset all in one go. Very nice scenery in the morning hours. And very good company. Definitely on my list for 2013, perhaps as training for London-Edinburgh-London (or Madrid-Gijón-Madrid, or even both?). Who knows. Being caught by the bug, as the veterans call it.

The stats for the day:

Ride report: Dunwich Dynamo XX

It is nearly a year ago when we first joined the infamous Dunwich Dynamo peloton from London Fields, in central London, to Dunwich in the Suffolk Coast. This year the ride had been proposed a bit earlier than last year to avoid clashing with the Olympics.

It was also the first time I was going to attempt a ride of more than 130 km on my Long Haul Trucker, with a yet unbroken-in saddle. A lot to fear, maybe, but surely would add a bit of spice to an otherwise easy and flat ride to the coast.

Saturday evening and we, as always, are rushing to get things done on time. Pack loads of food, drink, check bikes, lights, clothing, weather forecast, routes, batteries, spares, and again, weather forecasts. The night promised to be very pleasant, with temperatures above 10C throughout and a tailwind all the way to the beach. Lovely, especially when comparing with last years predictions of rain (which never turned out to be true though!).

Relaxed atmosphere before the off

At 8:15 pm we made an appearance in the park, where we met our companion for the night, Dan, on his very first night ride. People were chilling on the grass, drinking beer, and some were already gone or about to go. We took things easy, chatted a bit and waited until almost 9 pm for the off, tagging along with a large group of relaxed cyclists. The fast boys had either departed already, or were leaving it till the end. Still, quite do not get why some folk take this really nice ride as if it was a race. There were large groups of club riders in their club gear and sporting featherlight bikes, with no more than a tiny saddlebag attach to it. I, on the contrary, was carrying a >15 kg bike and two half-full panniers, totalling more than 25 kg. There really is no rush in getting to the beach as it is usually freezing at silly o'clock and I rather have a siesta when it is nice and warm.


By 9 pm we were already battling our way through traffic to get out of Hackney. Heading North East we soon got on the road leading to Epping Forest. I grabbed a coke here as was already feeling tired and sleepy after a busy week with not much sleep. We re-joined the train of riders and made good progress, crossing the M25 still in (some sort of) daylight.

Audaxer (left) meets Mario Bros

Through Epping Forest

While passing through the town of Epping, we got the usual cheers from the drunk locals. Exactly the same thing as last year! It is fun though. Shortly after Epping, there's the first pub stop, or rather, where people stop to drink/eat something before the pubs start to shut.

Crazy number of cyclists going through

From here the ride become more laney, and our recollection from last year was that the field spread all over and you do not feel a part of large group anymore, seeing the occasional cyclist every now and then. However, this year, numbers have increased quite a lot, and we were surrounded by other cyclists throughout the ride.

Proper night time cycling it was now. Very few motorised traffic, and the lanes became ours, with the exception of a few random drunkards that we saw on the roads, in the dark, going who knows where. We made progress passing through familiar Essex towns, and eventually got to the half way stop in Sibble Hendigham by 2 am. As expected, it was packed with cyclists, with queues that were completely off-putting for getting food. Luckily we had brought our own food, and it was still relatively warm, so ate our sandwiches happily while observing others pulling in and out.

All types of bikes, at the half way stop

Still another 90 km or so to go. Sunrise scheduled for 4 am, so very little left of night riding and clear skies were to be expected after we left. Still, plenty of us on the road. I was feeling great - all the night riding done up until now seemed to have a positive effect. Also Lucy was in very good spirits, and so was Dan, who was doing very well for his first night excursion - and was clearly capable of going much faster than us if he had wanted to.

Sunrise in the countryside

Lucy in good spirits

50 km or so to the coast we came across the famous bacon butties stop, in someone's garden. We too stopped here last year, both feeling completely knackered and in much need of a rest. This time though, we knew what to expect and made a quick incursion into the garden for some hot food and a coffee. Dan was being hit by the sleep deprivation bug, so he was happy to get some caffeine in. Pop up stops are all over the place now - people have realised there's potential for business here! The owners of this garden had also set up a tent where people seemed to be having naps in their cozy sleeping bags! Had it been cold and rainy I would not have minded, but it was time to go hit the roads again for the last stretch to the beach.

Bacon roll and coffee stop

Wheat fields and sunshine

The final km to the beach were rather nice, pootling around with others at a very relaxed pace. You could notice the type of bike and rider at this point. Most of us carrying panniers, heavy bikes, and lots of them not even wearing cycling-specific clothes. But it does not matter, this ride accommodates everyone. Some of the faster guys were already heading back home, having probably reached the beach by 4 am or so.

Lucy enjoying the final kms

Lucy & Dan followed by many others

The final bit into the beach is always very pleasurable as it passes through the Dunwich Heath. A bit of gentle up and downs, the famous sign to Dunwich, and we were there!

Final lanes

Made it!

Rolling into the beach, although not as spectacular as the very first time you do this ride, is always a highlight. A field packed with sleeping cyclists is something that we cannot get to see everyday and something that will certainly impress anyone. It was 8:30 am.

Finding a clear spot for a snooze

The beach full of tired bodies

After we found a clear space and ate some of our snacks, we went for a well-deserved siesta. For most, this is the end of a very long night on the saddle. Plenty of coaches organised by the Southwark Cyclists would take them back to London, but we found this to be extremely stressful last year. Also, prices had gone up, and the bikes got some abuse being loaded onto the trucks last year. For said reasons, we had decided to return by train, via Diss, some 40 km East of Dunwich.

Some folk came very well prepared!

Siesta time!

All in all, it was an excellent ride with great and warmer weather than last years. Something I would suggest all people to do at least once. Everyone gets to the beach, on all sorts of bike and styles. It was also the first time I had taken the tourer (>25 kg of weight!) on a >200 km ride, and it felt so comfortable, despite slowing me down quite considerably on the hills! The brooks saddle seems to be breaking in and had no sores at the end of the day

Bring on Dunwich Dynamo 2013!!!

Ride report: Green & Yellow Fields 300 km audax

For the first time that I can recall, I did not wake up to an early morning alarm to catch a train to the start of a ride. Instead, I had handed in my PhD thesis that same morning, and worked pretty much all day. It seemed like I was going to be productive. We had also signed up for an unusual ride starting at midnight, from a random town called Manningtree in the Essex county. It was going to be Lucy's first attempt at riding a 300 km, and only my second one following the Dean 300 in March.

Left work on time to have a siesta, having not had enough sleep during the week. Riding all night meant I had to catch up on sleep or else it will turn into a unpleasant experience. From our previous rides with the Fnrttc folk, we already knew how tired we feel after a long night of riding. Similar to when you go out all night, you can easily fall asleep anywhere and anytime, and the same applies here. Somehow managed to fit in a two hours siesta and were soon on our way to Manningtree. A few riders were going on a pre-ride curry, something very English it seems, and we decided to join them.

Once at the station, we asked a local about the location of the High Street and he dared to ask what we were doing in full lycra at 9:30 pm. After Lucy explained our intention to ride from there to the top of Norfolk, and back down, he just wished us luck. This, together with a facial expression of "you're mental/what?/get a life/why?" seems normal when we get asked about where we're going or came from. After a short ride we arrived at the restaurant and had the promised curry with another 12 riders, some of who had ridden a good number of miles from places such as London, Greenwich or Cambridge, to the start.

Bike park at the curry house

The ride itself was not meant to be particularly challenging or over difficult terrain. The overall climb was just about 1000 m, which is rather flat, given the distance. The only problem would be riding through the whole night, and into a great deal of the second day. And of course, the great English weather. All those problems will make a presence at various points during the ride.



Left the curry house and headed for the station to meet up with the rest of the riders, about 40 in total. The atmosphere was nice, and once again,  good reassurance that we are not the only crazy people in this part of the world getting ready for a ride, with forecasts of down to 3C and potentially heavy showers. While chatting to one chap about his custom made Roberts frame, we saw people leaving. It was 00:01.

23:55 at Manningtree station, ready for the off

The first leg of the ride involved 75 km to the first garage control. The weather seemed rather good, and I was still feeling optimistic to those comments over dinner "I've checked the forecast and it said dry overnight, with the occasional shower the following day". We managed to stick to one group, but were left behind shortly afterwards and ended up riding with a Scot and Paul (with whom we've completed Up the Uts earlier in March). I did not attempt to talk to the Scottish guy, as literally could not understand a word of what he was saying. After all these years in the UK it was very discouraging. Paul kept him entertained until we somehow dropped him, never to see him again on the ride.

At some point rain started and we decided to put some waterproofs on. It turned out to be a good decision, as it was very cold by then, and the last thing you want is a soaked, cold body in the middle of the countryside. Paul had stopped a bit earlier and we thought we had lost him, so ended up going round in a roundabout waiting for him in order to keep the warmth up. A police car was resting nearby, and surely wondered what the hell we were doing past 2 am in that heavy rain. Luckily they did not bother to ask. At around 4 am we made it to the garage control, which we were all looking forward to. Warmth and hot coffee were waiting for us. We later learnt that the nice man in the garage had actually opened the shop for us, as it usually only serves through the hatch. What a huge difference that hot drink made!

A typical audax photo. Garage control, 4 am.

Lucy's GPS predicted sunrise in 2.5 hours from now. We set off again for yet another 75 km to the top of Norfolk, where a hot breakfast would be waiting for us. It was on this section were I hit my first down of the ride. I cannot remember much of it now, just feeling very tired and trying to avoid looking at the GPS or anywhere other than the horizon. Luckily for us, rain had stopped and we were dry, but still very cold.

We then joined the A1065 for almost 40 km. Although a busy road during the day, it was very quiet at night and we enjoyed it very much. It is on one of these roads where I think to myself how nice it is to be doing this. The scenery was fabulous, with trees lining the road on both sides. The sun was also trying to break through the clouds. I had to stop and take a picture, while seeing Lucy and Paul get lost in the horizon. 

Light beam and the A1065 at sunrise, 5 am (ish)

The kms went past very quickly. We were in good spirits and very much looking forward for a sit down meal in the halfway control. Not much happened here, just kept the pedals moving, fought a little bit with my sleep deprivation, and tried to enjoy the ride as much as possible. The scenery was quite nice and I kept myself entertained (and hot) sprinting up to take pictures of the scenery, Lucy and Paul.

Well worth the effort!

Paul in night riding mode

We made it to the café control, near Burnham Market at 8:30 am, and seemed to be at the back of the peloton. 153 km down. Another 150 km to go. Not too bad, and weather was holding up at this point. We were well within the time limits, with more than 1.5 h to spare. The next section, however, was not very enjoyable due to traffic along the B1355. Surely this road should have been fine for the faster riders, but for us it was not. Being an area with plenty of quiet lanes it was a shame that the organiser had picked the faster route instead of the more scenic. We tried to keep a decent average to the suggested control, a Waitrose in Wymondham. It was on this part of the route where my tummy problems started, with quite a lot of pain and the visits to the toilet. Once at the Waitrose, we got another receipt as proof of passage and enjoyed 5 minutes of sun.

My Canyon in audax mode, having a break

Left the Waitrose past noon, while seeing some threatening clouds head over us. Rain started hitting on us shortly afterwards, and did not really stop for the next 2 h. Next control will be in another 60 km, or 3 h of riding. The roads seemed a lot better now, more scenic and with plenty of green and yellow fields (thus the name of the audax, duh!!!). Rain stopped and I had a chance to take a few more pictures.

Lucy 's still going strong

No idea what the green is. The yellow is rapeseed.

Although we rode pretty much on our own for the entire day legs, we met a few others on this section. In fact we were pleased to see that we were not the youngest ones on the ride, as two other audaxers appeared to be in their early twenties, which again, is good for reassurance. Once again, I started to feel pretty crap here, in need of sleep and/or caffeine. I would have gone for a short nap here, but then I thought...20 more km and you can have tea and cake to keep you going. Easier said than done though. 20 km is not that short when you're tired, hungry and with stomach aches. I stopped thinking too much about it, stuck to Paul's wheel and carried on.

Shortly before the stop, we saw a very nice sign of what audaxing is. One of the riders had a snapped chain, and was covered in grease. That, together with the rain, had made it impossible for him to re-join his chain with his power link. However, another rider had stopped, took his gloves out and fixed the chain in seconds. Made a note on the tools to carry while out audaxing: nitrile gloves. Carried on for a little while to reach the last control: a Farm Shop.

First ever visit to a (posh) farm shop

It was a shame to be in this very nice farm shop in lycra and somewhat in a hurry. I was not feeling great and wanted to get going. But it was the right call. Lucy too was feeling tired and we stopped for some cake and tea. The menu looked great, but at this point, and with only 30 km left, I just wanted to get back to the station and have a beer.

Left the control to find ourselves on a dual carriage way. Weird, we thought. It did not appear as such on the maps, but somehow it was. Our thoughts were the same again, why would the organiser put us on these unpleasant roads? Lesson learnt for the next ride though: pick your own route if it does not look great.

The last 15 km went by very quickly, again on quiet lanes. Hit a few short hills, which were good to keep us awake. Pulled into Manningree station minutes past 6 pm, and a gigantic storm rolled in literally minutes behind us.

A pub in a train station. What a great idea! It actually got featured on the guardian as one of the best 10 railway cafes in Britain! Got our last receipt upon ordering a beer and an icecream. To our surprise, we happened not to be the last ones, as two more riders turned up after being hit by rain and hail from that storm we had just missed! Got on the train and fell asleep pretty much immediately.

Job done. 300 km. What's next Lucy?

Although the legs were feeling absolutely ok, I think it was the toughest ride I've ever done. It was not the distance nor the terrain, but the night riding and the lack of sleep from previous days. Also, have to sort out food habits while out on long rides. They say food is one the most difficult thing to master in long-distance events. I am certainly not surprised!

That's it for now, until my 400 km event in June.

The stats for the day as shown on the GPS screen:

- 47.2 km/h max speed

- 14 h 55 min riding time

- 3 h stopped time

- 302 km (plus another 20 km to & from the station)

- Rolling average: 20.3 km/h

- Overall average (including stops): 16.9 km/h

Ride report: Up the Uts 200km Audax

Yesterday we completed the Up the Uts 200km audax, only our second 200 ever and coming much earlier in the season than last year's. I have been anxiously anticipating this event ever since we signed up in January, knowing that if I could make it through comfortably then I could start to think about longer rides such as the Green and Yellow Fields 300 that we intend to ride in late April! The route consisted of three loops, two East of Ugley, and one West of it. They can be found by clicking on the links below:

Up the Uts stage 1 (108 km)
Up the Uts stage 2 (46 km)
Up the Uts stage 3 (49 km)

We were attracted to the ride because it was based out of the Comrades Cycling Club HQ, one of the famous 'Uts (Huts, but pronounced with an East London accent!) in Essex. The 'Uts are a group of bungalows belonging to different cycling clubs that have been around since the 50s, when the clubs were given land to build clubhouses on--the condition of the gift being that they could only be used for cycling clubs! We have been intrigued by this ever since hearing about it on a podcast of The Bike Show. We also thought, being Essex, that the route would be relatively flat, which it was, although not as flat as we imagined.

Comrades CC bungalow in background. Me looking weird in foreground.

At the start of the event we met up with Paul, a rider who had posted online looking for company on the ride as he didn't want to have to cycle alone in the dark (at our pace, the last hour and a half or so was ridden after sunset). We got our brevet cards stamped and enjoyed a hot drink inside the bungalow, and then headed out on the first 100km loop that would bring us back to the HQ, several info controls and a cafe control later.

Inside the club HQ

It was a really lovely day, with temperatures in the mid teens (upper 50s Fahrenheit) and patchy sunshine. We rode along the very quiet lanes of Essex and enjoyed the friendly atmosphere. At the cafe control in Sisted we met Tom, the guy organizing the Green and Yellow Fields, so we're now very excited to do that ride! We fell in with these members of the Willesden Cycling Club for a little while, riding upright trikes:

Trikes!

Just before we reached the control at 109km into the ride I could feel the telltale hunger pangs and my first instinct was to push on as hard as possible to make it to the control and get some food... but I remembered from our previous 200 that you have to overcome the psychological tendency to treat each control as if it is the end of the ride -- if you sprint towards the end of each control you end up paying for it in the next stage! So I had some Haribo and kept an easy pace up -- we were back at HQ by about 2:00 and tucking into a bacon butty and warm apple pie with custard by about 2:05! I tell you there is something to be said about cyclists cooking for cyclists. The food was exactly what I needed, not to mention the outrageously cheap prices and the speed of service!

The cooks!

After lunch we headed back out into the lanes to do a 50km-ish loop. The field had gotten more spread out by then, and we only encountered a few other groups of cyclists out on the road. But we kept moving at a comfortable pace and before we knew it we were back at HQ again, having a quick snack from our own provisions and preparing for the night ride that we knew would come soon. We also had the disheartening experience of watching several riders finish the whole 200 while we were there resting, just 75% through. Those guys are machacas!

Los machacas riding the 200 (courtesy of PloddinPedro from YACF)

The last loop consisted mainly of B-roads rather than tiny lanes, which was probably good given the darkness. I think those roads are a bit faster, and the hills a bit gentler, which is exactly how you want it for the last stage of a 200. Although I could feel the miles in my legs, I had no trouble keeping up the pace we had set all day (a bit over 21kph) and could hardly believe it when we passed the final info control in Elsenham at 198km into the ride. Paul remarked that we were very close to finishing in under 11 hours, only for us to be stopped at the level crossing 500m up the road! After making it through that obstacle we sped back to the HQ and got our brevet cards stamped with exactly 11h! A big improvement from last year's 13:35.

Also on this ride I had the chance to try out my fancy new GPS, which Alberto says was necessary as a backup in case his ever fails, but I am starting to think was all part of his cunning plan of never having to wait for me at junctions again! I also rode for the first time with the handlebar bag that I won from Travelling Two before Christmas. More detailed reviews will follow after a few more rides but they both performed admirably over the 200km!

At the end of the ride with my new handlebar bag

All in all, a great ride, with a moving average of 21.2 kph and an overall average of 18.3 kph. I reached a max speed of 66kph which is a new record for me! Including our rides to and from the station we ended up with 235 km for the day.

200km!