The Aftermath of a 24 hour Race

So you’ve sat on your bike for 24 hours, pedalled your socks off all night, created several buckets of sweat, burnt off 23,000 calories, consumed 30 energy gels, drank several gallons of liquid, and not slept for 30 hours. How do you recover from this?

Oh, and your legs ache, your arms ache, your back aches, your neck aches, you’re covered in mud, you don’t know what you want and you can’t think straight.

You’ve just competed in a race at European level, everyone is praising you for your achievement, and you feel like a jabbering wreck and want to curl up into a ball and go to sleep.

I gulp down a recovery drink as I’m escorted to the shower with wobbling legs. Anyone would have thought that I smelt or something. I’m handed my prepared ‘Finish’ bag with a change of clothes as I shut myself in the tiny cubicle. Fumbling with my fingers that had little sense of feeling, I awkwardly operate the shower controls to eak out a squirt of mildly warm water.

Removing my sodden clothes with arms and legs that didn’t bend very well while bashing against the walls, must have looked like a poor impersonation of Houdini getting out of a straight jacket in a box.

Eventually, looking relatively mud free I emerge from the closet and wobble like Scott Tracy from Thunderbirds back to the pits.

It’s an odd experience; you’ve spent many months slogging away in the gym and on the bike, pushing your body that extra bit each time. You’ve deprived yourself of indulgent foods and alcohol, limited your social life as you focus on your race. You’ve thought for hours about the logistics of the event and meticulously planned every item of equipment. You set out on a journey that will last all day and all night, where you only have yourself as company. You’ve then gone and pushed your body far beyond where it has ever been before, tolerating immense levels of pain until they hurt no more.

And then you cross the finish line. You’ve done it. You can get off your bike and say “Yes! I’ve completed the 24 hours of Exposure” which no one can take away from you. The achievement is awesome.

Discovering I had qualified for the World Championships was doubly awesome. The feeing is just amazing, making all the training so worthwhile.

So how do you recover from a 24 hour race?

I couldn’t eat much immediately after the race so I consumed recovery drinks and found a fruit salad the most palatable form of solid food. I stretched my limbs as much as possible, but the 7 hour drive home cramped up in the car was most uncomfortable.Sleeping very well that night, I had a massive protein craving in the morning. Whole packs of sausages and bacon were cooked and devoured for breakfast.

A gentle swim loosened up my joints and a sauna helped to sweat out the toxins. Compression tights encouraged the blood flow and a gentle spin the following day finally made my legs feel more normal. Gentle Pilates sessions and regular stretching loosened up the limbs to regain some mobility.

Amongst the physical recovery, the car needed unpacking and the vast array of kit had to be cleaned and put away. It took virtually all week. Hitting the caffeine after a month of deprivation improved my state of consciousness to just above Zombie level.

Also, in my muddled condition, I had to write reports for my blog and the Surrey Mirror. This in some ways was harder than the ride itself.

A physio session sorted out a torn muscle in my calf and the various knots that appeared in my neck and back. The nerve damage causing a pins & needles sensation in my left foot took longer to heal.

It was 2 weeks before I got back on a bike, which was a slow and social ride with friends. The next week I ventured a bit further but still had to take it easy.

Four weeks after the race I set out for a ride with nothing much planned, only to find my legs were like coiled springs wanting to pump the pedals and power the hills. I take advantage of this renewed vigour and complete 50 very hilly miles in a personal best time. From this, I consider myself suitably recovered.

Was it worth it?

Ask a new mother if it was worth going through pregnancy and labour pains to have her baby.

How often can you get a pass to spend all night doing what you enjoy most, being on your bike?

Bring on the World Championships as I want to do it all again!

South Downs Way – Again!

The lure of the South Downs Way beckoned again as the BHF hosted another of their well organised events. My specific challenge was to beat my personal best time of 11:17 hours for the 100 miles.

Arriving at Winchester, we saw a large group of about 50 riders set off at 5:30am. Not wanting to get caught up with the masses, we held back for a few minutes. I was riding with Julian, Mark and Chris from Redhill Cycling Club, who kindly said that I didn’t need to wait for them if I wanted to go a bit faster. During the next few minutes several other riders set off so we picked our moment and hit the trail at 6:10am.

The weather was overcast and drizzled for the first 2 hours. Some areas became slippery where fortunately the ground was generally firm. Riding with the others for the first few minutes gave me a controlled warm up, yet we still overtook loads of other cyclists. The South Downs Way route is now very familiar to me, except for the change last year via Exton (10 miles). I don’t like this alteration as it has an awkward climb with steps on Winchester Hill, taking about 10 minutes longer. It was somewhere around here that I lost touch with other Redhill guys as I continued to overtake small groups of riders.

Reaching the QE2 Country Park (22 miles) in 1:50 hours there were loads of riders taking a break. My strategy was to ride at least 50 miles before I stop. Carrying 4 litres of liquid with gels and Shot Bloks accessible in my back pocket, there was no reason to stop the wheels from turning. The number of riders had seriously thinned out by this stage so I switched on the iPod and settled down to what would turn out to be a solo ride for the next 75 miles.

The miles whizzed by as the hills came and went. At Bury (42 miles) it had taken me just 3:25 hours with an impressive average speed of 11.9mph. A 10 hour ride time was looking possible. I focused on powering up the hills and relaxing on the descents. From recent experience, this strategy can make a big difference to the overall riding speed.

Coming across another rider at Gatting Beacon (39 miles) who appeared quite fast, I stormed up the next hill leaving him standing. At Amberley Mount he tore past me where I couldn’t keep up with him on the hill at Washington. Seeing him again at Steyning Bowl, I upped the ante, and eventually caught him at the bridge near Steyning.

By this stage my CamelBak bladder had run dry so I planned to stop at Steyning for a refill. Unfortunately the tap was broken, so I continued on to the Youth Hostel at Truleigh Hill (60 miles). Passing the BHF officials, I was encouraged to hear that only 5 other riders had reached Steyning. This inspired me to keep up the pressure.

Reaching the Youth Hostel I took a well deserved break for about 10 minutes. Rehydrating the CamelBak and grabbing a banana, I also cleaned the mud that had collected on the gears. The sun was trying to poke through the clouds so a quick spray of sun protection was a worthwhile precaution, despite my legs being covered in mud.

Pushing on to the check point at Devil’s Dyke, I said a quick hello to the BHF volunteers who had just set off the 35 mile riders. Rapidly overtaking the small groups, I head up to Ditchling where I enjoy the long gradual descent to the A27. Seeing a couple of muddy riders, I discover they are also on the 100 mile route and pass them quickly.

Grabbing a banana to relieve the cramp, I set out on the long slog up the (400 foot) climb beyond the A27 (77 miles). Mentally it’s a tough climb as you can see the top from the bottom. 10 minutes later I rounded the first crest and tackled the gradual climb along the top of the ridge, which took me into the clouds. Visibility was less than 100 metres and it was difficult to stay on the right course. Coming across a gate I didn’t recognise, I retraced my tracks and flicked on the GPS to guide me back to the main route.

Powering along the gradual descent, I passed several walkers in full wet weather gear. Wearing just a thin top and shorts, I felt fine as long as I kept riding. Passing 2 more 100 mile riders I realised there couldn’t be many others in front of me. This felt good.

Catching a thorn at Bothops, I heard the rear tyre hiss until the slime plugged the hole. After a quick squirt from the gas inflator, I was back on the trail feeling pleased to overcome the puncture in just a few seconds. Climbing the hill after Itford Farm (84 miles) the tyre hissed again, this time due to a flint. The slime went everywhere and there was a small nick in the tyre. Changing the tube and using a small piece of plastic to patch the tyre, I was soon back in the saddle gaining altitude.

Passing Firle Beacon (88 miles), which was my last stop when I rode the South Downs Double, I knew I was nearly there. I also knew that I had two massive hills to conquer. The clock was on my side and a sub 10 hour time looked possible. Feeling a bit greedy I wanted to beat 9:50 hours. Pushing hard against the strong headwind, I rounded the top of the last hill. Changing into the big ring and standing on the pedals, I power across the golf course and down into Eastbourne.

Arriving at the finish I enter the sports centre after 9:48 hours. This is an hour and a half off my personal best time, which felt amazing. The centre was pretty empty and I heard that only one other rider beat my time, out of about 100 participants. If only they had a podium!

Enjoying the benefit of a sports massage I relax and reminisce over the day’s events. All my training and preparations paid off to achieve a fantastic ride.

Track Racing for a Mountain Biker?

Jumping at the chance for my son Dan and me to ride at the Calshot velodrome, we headed down to Southampton to join up with Sutton Cycling Club. Dan was with a group for experienced tack riders whilst I joined the beginners as it was my first time.

Riding a fixed wheel track bike with no brakes was a new experience that I quickly picked up. The most difficult part was riding in close proximity to others, which is usually avoided when mountain biking. The steep sides of the track are at a 45º slope going up about 20 feet high. It appears quite scary when looking down the slope from the spectator gallery, but when riding round the top it’s really exhilarating. I treated it as a massive berm.

Completing a ‘flying lap’ Dan managed 11.41s where I just pipped him with 11.34s. It won’t be long before he’s overtaking me on the sprints.

The adults had a 30 lap race. I’d never ridden in a close proximity race before, let alone on a track. The 7 of us set off on a rolling start where the first 10 laps were a bit messy as we rotated round taking in turns for the lead. The pace was moderate where I knew I could go faster. As soon as I reached the front of the group I applied the pressure stepping up the pace quite significantly. It wasn’t long before I could see the tail end of the group where I then lapped about 3 of them. Conscious that someone was coming up onto my tail, I tried to up the pace a bit more but my legs were beginning to feel the pressure. Had I broken away too early? He caught up with me with about 10 laps to go taking advantage of my slipstream. As I pulled up the bank he reluctantly took the lead so I could rest behind him for a lap or two. With the final lap in sight I applied extra power to ride up the bank and accelerate past him. Tucking myself in front, I hugged the black line round the final bend where he was now trying to overtake me on the outside. A final burst of power saw me take the finish line just ahead, giving me 1st place.

It was a fantastic race to ride and apparently also to watch. I’d never come first before in a race and was delighted to receive a medal to add to my very small collection.

The adrenaline was certainly buzzing during the race and it was a great day out. There’s a lot more in the way of tactics and ride positioning with track racing, however I also get a buzz out of a fast flowing single track descent. Both disciplines require a very different skill set, which in some ways may compliment each other.

Set2Rise - From Muddy to Magnificent

Avoiding the Bank Holiday traffic on the A303 we reached Erlstroke near Devizes in plenty of time.
With virtually a free choice in the field, we set up our camp on the side of the Set2Rise track in preparation for night's ride. This was the first proper outing for the new Redhill Cycling Club gazebo, which proved to be an invaluable shelter for the night. Downing a late pasta lunch then grabbing an hour's kip were the next priorities. I woke up mid afternoon to find the campsite a mass of tents and bikes where excitement filled the air. With heavy rain earlier in the day and a couple of downpours during the afternoon, the weather was not on our side. Riders returned from their practice laps covered in mud, which didn't bode well. Selecting intermediate tyres, the waterproofs went on and off just before the start, as the weather fluctuated. I finally opted for two thin tops and lycra shorts so if it did rain, they would dry out quickly.

The race started at 6pm where 200 eager riders jostled for position before the first set of singletrack. Determined to keep my heart rate down, I slid along the ice rink of the trails. Mud and wheels were everywhere. I reached an open space just as the heavy rain descended, soaking me right through. Recognising parts of the course from last year, I realized the layout was very different. I needed to revise my gel location so I could take one approximately 15 minutes before the big climb.

Quickly changing my top after lap 1, I head out for more mud and sliding. Returning back to base after lap 2, I swap my CamelBak for my spare that has a full bladder and grab a mouthful of pasta.

The rain had stopped for laps 3 and 4 where the mud now became really congealed clogging up everything in sight. On a couple of occasions it prevented my back wheel from turning forcing me to stop and clear all the cack.

It was a real effort to go back out on the track for lap 5 knowing how hard the first 4 laps had been. I forced myself out and took a gel with caffeine to give me a mental boost. The ground became firmer and I started to feel a bit better.

This was my first night ride for the year where I was uncertain how I would find it. With my bright Exposure lights on the bars and helmet, visibility was never an issue.
Lap 7 was fantastic! The ground was firm enough to get sufficient speed on the single track to swoop up the short inclines. Lap 8 was also good as I was really getting into the race.

Setting out on lap 9 at 3:30am, I realised that I only had time for 2 more laps. I was loving it at this stage and wanted more. Making the most of the final 2 laps I am rewarded by seeing the sun push through the small gaps in the cloud creating an awesome sight. After riding all through the night it's quite a magical feeling to see the sun rise at the start of the new day. All the pain form the night before simply disappears.

Finishing at 5:36am I am delighted to see that I achieved 9th place out of 48 other solo riders. This could have been even higher if there was a Vet category.