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Anyway…
here's how it went...
Overall
summary
 I
managed 9th place overall in
the male solo category with 13 laps. My mission to be top placed
single speed soloist was foiled by the arrival of an American hotshot who
had done 18 of these solo single speed 24 hour races and was highly rated.
At the end, I was just 26 minutes behind him, so it was a narrow defeat
despite a
great
comeback in the latter half of the race - how English of me!
Nevertheless,
on a tough and treacherously muddy course, I was very happy with the result
given the general consensus that it was the toughest 24 hour race yet in the
UK. My mileage was approx 133 miles over the duration of the race
(ignoring the distance covered by going sideways in the mud) - a lot lower
than previous years but a reflection of how tough the course and the
conditions were. The total vertical distance I climbed was in excess
of 20,000 feet (quite a lot for a one geared bike!) and my calorie
expenditure was approx 15,000 kcals during the race.
Lap
by lap report
Lap 1
(2pm Saturday) - It had been raining hard all morning, turning the course -
which had been dry and dusty on the Friday - into a slippery mud fest.
As I strolled the 800m "run" with the other cycling-specific
soloists, my motivation was at a low with the prospect of battling with the
elements for the next 24 hours.
The
course was hilly, with some long tough climbs and some lethal downhill
sections. The usual traffic jams occur during the first lap at each
difficult section and the rain just kept getting heavier.
Lap 2
(3.33pm Saturday) - I expected the course to improve as the rain dried up.
Very wrong! The mud was churned up and thick, making the course even
trickier to negotiate. I take my first fall of many early on in the
lap, as the bike washes out and I slide after it.
I
passed a mate later in the lap who was competing in a team and was walking -
apparently, his 'neck had gone' and he asked me to pass on the message to
the next team member. I later found out that he had actually said his
"(rear) mech had gone" and I managed to cause some unnecessary
panic in the team who thought they were already a man down and would have to
take him to hospital!
 Laps
3 to 5 - The course gradually dries out and becomes more rideable. The
mood amongst the soloists was still quite sombre, though the occasional
optimist predicts dry and dusty trails come Sunday. It's not nice to
be smug, but it was a struggle to hide the smug knowing grin of a
singlespeeder as I saw countless riders at the side of the trails with their
bike upturned, poking out the thick clay-like mud that clogged their gears
(justified at last!)
The
lights go on for lap 5 as the light fades and I enter the quiet and slightly
eerie night time.
Lap 6
(10:32pm Saturday) - It starts to rain. Heavily. And I take 3
heavy spills in a single lap. The mist also rolls in, just to make it
even more interesting!
Lap 7
(12:34am Sunday) - The rain has subsided, but the freshly churned mud has
the same effect as on lap 2 and, combined with the darkness of the night,
the course was almost unrideable. It was turning into as much a
question of mental strength as physical strength, and I try to keep my
thoughts positive, plod on and laugh at the mayhem going on around me.
The solo riders seem to be dropping like flies.
Lap 8
(3:01am Sunday) - I'm passed on a descent by the guy I saw earlier on an
off-road scooter (that's one less gear than I have!). I thought he was
crazy when I first saw him, but now I'm resorting to a similar scooting
technique to survive the treacherous downhill sections (not pretty, but
effective). The downside is that I seem to have twisted my left knee
and slightly strained the right side of my groin. Pushing off with my
left leg is very painful, but it's something I just have to grin and bear
for a mere 11 hours more…
Lap 9
(5:20am Sunday) - It's light again and I can get rid of the weight of my
lights - unfortunately, I can't get rid of the mud that seems to be doubling
the weight of my bike! The course is starting to dry out again and the
choice of line is again more obvious in the daylight.
I'm
still struggling with my eating habits with the longer lap times, but
liquorice sticks come to my rescue and I munch on one during each of the two
long climbs when I have to push the bike.
 Lap
10 (7:36am Sunday) - I hear that the American singlespeeder is not far ahead
of me after he struggled in the night time conditions. Given how tired
I feel, the last thing I need is a chase!
Lap
11 (9:44am Sunday) - At last, there is a dry line appearing on the course
and the pace quickens at last (apart from the 4x4 climb which is a shin deep
quagmire). I had intended this to be my penultimate lap, but then I
start to actually enjoy the course…
Lap
12 (11:35 Sunday) - I'm gradually closing in on the American and reach 8th
place briefly.
Lap
13 (1:16pm Sunday) - I start my final lap with plenty of time to spare and
try to dig in as deep as I can. I eye the numbers of anyone passing
suspiciously to avoid being over taken at this stage, but I haven't quite
got enough in reserve to catch the American or the 8th placed solo rider.
I finish to the cheer of my helpers, friends and others, politely refusing
the beer that I'm offered. I collapse into a chair and sit in a
confused daze, whilst my whole body seizes up. And I'm very sick of
liquorice!
Thanks
to Brant at On-One for sponsoring me and to my trusty helpers and those who
supported.
So
that's 18th place, then 15th place, then 12th place and now 9th place in my
four 24 hour solo races to date. At this rate, I should win overall in
2007...
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