The toughest ride I’ve ever done

Today I did the toughest ride that I have ever done.  It was tougher than the first sponsored ride that I did which knocked me for six.  It was tougher than my 100 miles to nowhere ride.  And this one was less than 40 miles.  It was the London to Southend off road.

This route was graded by the organisers as grade 2 – 3 and, the website said “provides a tough challenge”.  But I was lulled into a false sense of security when I read the definition of the gradings:

• Grade: 2 – Cycling events rated 2 are of moderate difficulty and suitable for riders with some experience and a reasonable fitness level.
• Grade: 3 – Cycling events rated 3 are challenging. They are suitable for cyclists who ride regularly, and who have a good fitness level.

I’m sure it was more like this!

Cycling events rated 5 are extreme and suitable for only the most experienced, fit, skillful riders

Having done the ‘normal’ on-road London to Southend many times before, I thought why not do something different.  Pete Arnould also thought it might be a good day out.  So we signed up.

The ride started well enough as we left the Ingrebourne Valley Visitor Centre and passed through Hornchurch Country Park and out of the city, and then continued on what was described, and was, “a tranquil trail through the RSPB reserve at  Rainham Marsh, with wonderful views over the city and estuary”.  It was great to round a corner and see the QEII bridge at the Dartford crossing.  Maybe not the greatest of views, but nice to see anyway.

Then we turned away from the Thames, though a track alongside a wood in Purfleet.  Just as I was really beginning to enjoy it, the ‘fun’ began.  We started along the banks of the Mardyke river.  And so ended the gravel tracks.  We were on grass.  And when we thought we’d just about had enough of the grass, it became the edge of a farmer’s field.  Talk about a bone shaker.  As Pete put it, it was enough to rattle our fillings out!  But this was no short-cut onto a quiet road or gravel path.  Oh no.  From what I can tell from Strava, this went on for 8 or so miles.  It felt like forever.  I said Pete “Is this hell and we are going to be riding this path for eternity”?  But it could have been  worse.  It could have rained heavily last night and we’d have been riding through thick mud.  Correction, trying to ride through thick mud.  Correction, pushing our bikes through thick mud.

Finally, we were back on tarmac and both cheered.

We arrived at the first feed stop, and after a quick top-up of the water bottle and having munched down a banana we were off again.  We headed up Langdon Hills.  And man, hills they were!  And not the sort on a nice tarmac road you can get stuck into.  No, these were through the forest.  It was impossible to ride standing up as my back wheel slipped all over the place.  So it was lowest gear, gritted teeth .  Finally, I gave up and walked when confronted with large tree roots across the track.  But, of course, what goes up must come down.  And down was a narrow single track path that I have to confess was pretty scary at times.

Hill profile from 15 miles to the finish line

We were then back on cycle paths through Basildon and off to Wickford.  To my great surprise and joy, we went past the Gable Racing kennels where we adopted one of greyhounds from.  Being a Sunday morning, the dogs were all out being walked by owners and volunteers.  I just had to stop for a quick chat.  Sorry Pete!

It was back to roads and cycle paths again until we reached where I think was Coombe Wood.  The single track we rode down was a very real white knuckle, life or death ride.  I have to confess to having my brakes on for most of the way which was just was as there was a pothole that would have had me off.  But we then hit the final hill.  And if I thought Langdon Hills were bad, I hadn’t seen nothing yet!  Coming out of the woods, the track was impossible to ride.  One person who was pushing their bike up the hill even commented that it was vertical!

After that it was back to the roads. Although hilly roads nonetheless.

Riding up the hill

We thought we had about 3 or 4 more miles to go when we turned a bend and there was the finish line.  Complete with balloon arch.  I can’t say I wasn’t glad to have completed the ride but, at the same time, felt disappointed that the organisers hadn’t used any of the olympic track that is open to the public or the cycle tracks in Hadleigh Country Park.  Maybe to do so would have posed a risk to the general public.  Don’t know.

I’m sure that it might sound to you as though we didn’t have fun on the ride.  It might come as a surprise to learn that actually we did.  It was challenging.  It was tough.  But it was fun.  And we now know what to expect, so we’ll be back next year.  You can count on that!

Pete and me at the finish

London to Southend bike ride 2015

Click to access ride data

It was that time of the year again.  Time to get up with the sparrows, eat the obligatory bowl of porridge and then catch the train to London for the sheer pleasure of cycling back to Southend.  That was also the raison d’etre for this blog back when I first did the ride back in 2007.  For the past three years, a group of us from work (the GDS Peloton) had done the ride.  This year I was doing it on my own again and wondering what that would be like.

As usual, I’d been checking the weather in the run up to the ride.  And it wasn’t good.  It looked as though I was going to get wet, at least for the first half of the ride.  But as the day drew closer, the weather forecast did what it so often does, and the time rain was due to start and stop was forecast as earlier and earlier.  On the train into London, the skies went very dark and the promised rain fell from the skies.  But, thankfully it stooped by the time the train arrived into London and, apart from a few spits and spots on the way to the start line, stayed stopped.  The sun then came out as I rode across the start line as it turned into a glorious day.  Although I missed having the company and chatter of the GDS Peloton, it was a truly great ride.  Possibly one of the best I’ve done.

London to Southend Bike Ride 2011

I made my first post in this blog  just over four years ago primarily to keep track of my progress in training for my first London to Southend bike ride.  Since then it is has rambled on about various things relating to cycling although, selfishly, mainly about my own exploits.  It does seem amazing that really was four years ago but then, as they say, time flies when you are having fun.

So, as has been the case for four years running I was up at 4:30 trying to eat a hearty bowl of porridge before setting off to catch a train from Southend to London for the sole purpose of experiencing the sheer joy of cycling 52 miles back again.

There seemed to be even more queues of people with bikes trying to get out of Stratford Station and over the foot bridge before riding to the start line.  And getting out of London itself also seemed to take an age.  Perhaps not surprising as there was a reported 4,800 cyclists taking part

But things soon got going and we started to leave the traffic behind.  As the bikes became more strung out, so it became easier to maintain a decent cadence – for me that’s around 75.  The weather was behaving as predicted, overcast with sunny spells.  We did hit the odd shower but nothing serious – the downpour would come after I had got home.

I had hoped to get in under 3 hours 30 minutes this year but the ford at Butsbury was flooded to a height of three-quarters of a metre – even a 4×4 trying to get through the throng of cyclists gave up.  We had to across the bridge in single file which must have added a good 5 minutes to my journey time.

The ford at Butsbury

In the event I managed to take a minute of my previous fastest time.  Not a great deal admittedly but it could have been worse.  What I was pleased about though is that the hills seemed to be easier so I definitely knew that my fitness and ability was still improving.

Looking forward to 2012!

Click to see ride data

Times from the last four years – click for more data

BHF London to Southend Bike Ride 2010

Once again I was up at 5 a.m. on a Sunday morning eating porridge and getting ready to catch a train to London.  All for the pure joy of taking part in the London to Southend bike ride and cycling back again.

The weather this promised to be great cycling weather and indeed it was.  Well all apart from the headwinds for the last few miles, but more about that later.

This was one day whenIi was very grateful for there being engineering works on the C2C line to London as it meant trains were diverted to Liverpool Street and so stopped at Stratford.  This meant not having to change and catch a train from a different Southend station as Stratford was the nearest station to the starting point.

And so it was that I got to the starting line and ready for the off at 7:50.

I didn’t have any targets this year.  Just get to the finish line and enjoy myself.

Getting out of London was nuts as there were a lot more people taking part this year.  The local newspaper reported that:

A RECORD number of cyclists took part in the British Heart Founda-tion’s 11th annual London-to-Southend bike ride.

Almost 5,000 people completed the 58-mile ride, from Victoria Park, in Tower Hamlets, to Priory Park, in Southend, in hot weather yesterday.

Determined cyclists, some wearing fancy dress, pedalled through the sun-covered back lanes and villages of south Essex to raise thousands of pounds.

This year, the British Heart Foundation hopes it has raised more than £150,000 for the fight against heart disease – about £30,000 more than last year’s total.

I’m sorry to say that I wasn’t in fancy dress, although I’m sure that my daughter Vicki would disagree and argue strongly that my cycling gear is fancy dress!

The ride was as good as ever, although the marshalls at some of the road junctions would have been better employed watching out for traffic for us instead of sitting there chattering away on mobile phones (organisers take note please).

The ride covered pretty much the same routes as last year and I felt fitter going up some of the hills.  The last few miles though was a total pig as the route turned into a headwind.  Having given my all for about 45 miles, the last thing i wanted was to ride the last 10 miles into a strong wind, and my body agreed.  At the same time the gel I had just eaten decided it wasn’t going to agree with my stomach and I began t feel sick.  Ah well, that’s life.

I was well pleased as I finished in 3 hours 31 minutes, 9 minutes faster than last year and 20 minutes faster than the year before.  Maybe 3 hours 20 minutes next year? Oh and I was interviewed at the finishing line.

Photo album: is here

London to Southend 2009

So what was I doing up at 5 am on a Sunday morning, eating a large bowl of porridge? Simple. Getting ready to leave for the London to Southend bike ride. As I live near Southend I had to get the train to London and then cycle back again.

The London to Southend is my favourite ride of the year and this is the third year I have ridden it. The ride is organised by the British Heart Foundation, a charity that is important to me as I underwent an angioplasty six years ago.

Getting out of Stratford Station and making my way to Victoria Park seemed to take forever due to the usual crowds of bikes. Still, the weather was nice and sunny (hi Alex). From the look of the roads there had been some heavy downpours along the route but luckily I missed them and didn’t get as I had feared I would.

There seemed to be a lot more people taking part this year and the roads out of London were a lot busier than usual. It would also have been a lot easier and less risky if people taking parts in events take some lessons about how to ride in group or at least think about what they are doing. I lost count of the number of times someone cut in front of me or overtook on the inside as I as pulling in. Never mind though as I got to the end without incident.

Still, there is nothing like the excitement of starting off in a ride like this, knowing there is around 55 miles in front of you before you get home. The route wound through the backstreets of Hackney and Leytonstone, before leaving the city behind and winding up the long, steep hill of Chigwell Row. The bonus though is that there is a long straight downhill too! The uphill is what looks like a mountain range at around seven miles in.

But once that is over, it is out into the country lanes of Essex. And time to play spot the bank robber’s house as we ride through Chigwell and beyond (only joking).

The rest of the ride was a lot of fun, cycling mainly through leafy lanes. The training I had been put in paid off too. There was though one hill climb near the end where my thigh muscle cramped and I couldn’t bend my leg. But after a couple of minutes rest all was fine again.

The wind was blowing fairly strongly for the last few miles too. But that did nothing to dampen the flood of emotion as I crossed the finish line 52 miles and 3 hours and 40 minutes later; a 10 minute improvement on last year.

Seraphina and me at the finish line

Ride data: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/9150415

London to Southend 2009

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London to Southend 2008

Do you ever have one of those days when the gods seem to conspire against you and something you had planned to do, you begin to wonder if it’s such a good idea after all? Well, today was one of those days.

It all began yesterday when we went to a BBQ. Rather than sticking to fruit juice and leaving at a sensible time, I stuck to the Budweisers, didn’t eat as I was going to have a pasta when we got home, but then didn’t leave when I had planned to and so missed dinner altogether. Had a terrible night’s sleep, woke late and missed the train I had planned to catch and had to miss breakfast as I was running late. No problem though, as I bagged some bananas and an energy bar planning to eat breakfast on the train. All well and good but I left the extra Gatorade at home and so was feeling quire dehydrated.

Once on the train though, things started to change for the better. There were engineering works on my line which meant all trains were being diverted to Liverpool Street – and one of the stops included Stratford. So, no need to have to change and get the organised train. There were lots of other people on the train taking part in the ride and it was good to while away the journey chatting to like-minded souls.

Then it was off the train and cycle to the starting point at Victoria Park. I got there and was ready for the off at 8.00, my original intended start time. All was well that ended well.

The ride was great fun, and for the large part very well marshalled. There was the usual crap trying to get out of London as we sat at red light after red light. But once on the outskirts the roads were a dream. There are a series of hills just outside London at Chigwell which were a right killer last year and I have to admit to walking up the last one. This year though, it was ride all the way – not without a great deal of effort mind you.

The wind wasn’t too much of a problem apart from at a place called Hannignfield where there must be a two mile stretch of road running alongside the reservoir where 15 mph headwinds were blowing – not a lot of fun just over half way into the ride when the legs are starting to feel it a bit.

I must admit though that I was pleased to arrive at the finish line and the jacket potato was to die for!

I was very pleased that I considerably improved on my time – last year took me 4 and half hours, this year took only 3 hours 50 minutes.

Can’t wait for next year!!!

The Big Day

It was up with the larks at 5.00 to catch the train to London. I didn’t need to be at the station until 6.20 but had to catch a train from home to Southend to catch the train to London – if that makes sense!

Got to the Southend station at 6.00 only to find it hadn’t opened yet and there among the cyclist were an assortment of revellers of Southend’s night clubs waiting to catch the first train home.

We were told that our train didn’t leave until 7.00 but could catch an earlier regular service if we wanted to. So of course we all piled on the first train to leave which was a pity for others wanting to catch the train as there were bikes everywhere making access to the doors impossible.

On route to London we passed through a tropical thunderstorm, complete with forked lightning and torrential rain – everyone starts praying that that doesn’t become the order of the day. Luckily by the time we get to London, the rain had cleared and it was beginning to look like a good day weather wise was in store.

After riding a meandering route through the back streets of east London, we finally arrive at the start in Victoria Park. The start was very well organised, as was the rest of the ride, with no queues for registering as we rode through what was described as a drive through tent to hand in the registration form. Then it was on to the starting line a couple of thundered yards further forward. A five minute wait and the group I was in were off!

It didn’t take long to reach the outskirts of London, although that was when the fun began with a long, steep uphill climb. Quite a few people were already walking and, without being cruel, I did wonder how many of them would make it – there was still a further 50 odd miles to go and some already looked exhausted.

From then, it was a fantastic ride, going through country lanes. Mind you, whoever said Essex was flat should try cycling this route some time. And the headwinds we rode into all of the way, made it just that bit more challenging.

Total climb: 1788ft Total descent: 1784ft

There seemed to be a lot of riders getting suffering punctures along the way but no real mechanical breakdowns that I could see. And there were a wide ride variety of bikes – from carbon frame road bikes, to mountain bikes and yes, even a Brompton.

One particularly memorial moment was when I was with a group cycling down a slight hill, only to round a corner and be faced with a ford right in front of us. The person I was drafting managed to shoot across the road and brake in time, but for me it was hang on and pray. Luckily, in spite of the rain we have had lately, the ford had barely any water in it and so I got through ok. Although I did hear someone talking after the ride about how they had seen someone ad come off there.

With only 20 miles to go, I was still feeling pretty much ok but decide to stop at the next refreshment point for a break. Feeling rather peckish and tired of cereal bars, could I resist that big, fresh cheeseburger being cooked on the pub BBQ? You guessed it, no! And what a mistake that turned out to be. I got back on the bike and metabolism had slowed to a snail’s pace while my stomach got to work on the burger. The next 10 miles were a slow, hard ride. Never again!

I finally reached Southend and caught up with a group of riders as were crossed the finish line. That was fantastic as the crowd there waiting for friends and family clapped and cheered everyone home.

Finished!

And so it was that I met up with the family and we headed off to a local spaghetti house for recovery food – a large plate of pasta washed down with a pint. Oh well, at least I had burnt off the calories already!

Timewise, I completed the 60 miles in around 4 and a half hours, averaging 14 mph which I was very pleased with – but if only I hadn’t had that cheeseburger.

Would I do it again? Most definitely and am seriously considering the London to Paris ride next year.