And so the day arrived. With weeks of pretending to train behind us, Matt and I set out to Biggin Hill to take part in our first sportive. What exactly possessed us to enter the gruelling seven-major-climb-110km-ride-in-the-middle-of-winter, I can’t actually remember – but on our way to the start line there was no turning back.
It was great to pull onto the open road and gather some speed to stick with a group that looked like they meant business. It was at that point that I got the unmistakeable feeling of a flat tyre. After ten minutes of faffing about with tubes all our momentum and enthusiasm had drained away, we set off to complete the remaining 109.5km.
It was only after a short while of getting back in our stride that Matt disappeared up the second major climb of the day. It’s fair to say that since our last ride he has improved immeasurably. A slight role reversal had occurred and I now felt like I was holding up progress. From Hever to Hartfield the roads became incredibly icey, with some sections needing to be walked instead. This seemed to really annoy some of the more experienced guys, but to me it was all part of it and added to the challenge.
The first feed station was in Hartfield where I was reunited with Matt after him waiting for “ages”. Tea, milk, three sugars, and back out on the road. Starting again after a stop was hard all day as you get cold so quickly. Still after five minutes all is forgotten, and you’re warm… apart from your hands, feet, and face.
Next, was Kidd’s Hill AKA ‘The Wall’. We have a little competition going in FutureCycles to see who can get up it the fastest. You can forget fastest times though, it was all about not stopping today. It has never seemed so steep, and I was very please to get to the top and see all those who had arranged to see us there.
A quick spin over Ashdown Forest and then a decent into Groombridge (and a climb out again). It was a very long way to the next feed station, and I think I took on about roast dinner’s worth of calories getting there. By this time Matt had dropped right back, and I had to wait “ages” for him.
Matt would be the first to admit that he may have gone of a little hard to the half waypoint…
There was the sudden realisation that I still had the same to do again.
….He may have died after Kidd’s Hill, but it’s fair to say that we have found our FutureCycles Cycle Team sprinter!
From the second feed there were only 20km to go, and they took an hour. On the way to the finish we stuck together as we navigated the icy patches and final climbs back towards Biggin Hill.
110km in 6 hours 18 minutes 6 seconds, start to finish including all stops… and punctures, which added up to over an hour. Not bad for a first run, and even though my legs were burning at the end, it’s a performance we can both build on in the future…
Yep, there’ll be more!
- David
