My aim was not only to finish the ride, but also make a good time. I'm still doubting whether to start the next PBP in the 80 or 90 hours group. Until now I never had a real good long ride. The route of my first 1000km-ride (1994) was to tricky to ride at night, while in 1995 I was overtrained during PBP as well as during the 1000km. So I made a schedule of 86hours, planning to be back in Thorne somewhere during the second night, have a short sleep, and finish it of in two day-rides of 300kms each. Of course such a schedule is always just an indication and prone to change.
Travelling towards Thorne
This time I opted for an easy travel towards the start. Normally I work until the last moment before leaving, and race towards the start, but now I had enough overhours done at work so plenty of spare time. On Thursday morning I still worked a bit (7.30 am to 11.00 am) so I still had some time to spare until I had to take the train at 12.30. After a three hours train-ride I arrived at the Maassluis railway station. On the road I met Yvonne at Rotterdam railway station. Together we biked to the harbour still having some troubles finding the way (bike sign-posts were missing of course).
The ferry-ride was uneventful, most of the time was spent
sleeping or preparing route-sheets. In Hull I had my first encounter
with British truck-drivers when two of them tried to sandwich
me. Luckily I managed to keep my bike straight and avoided a dangerous
crash. In Hull we did the tour of Hull-bike shops to acquire some
necessary bits, especially a rackpack for Yvonne, who originally
planned to ride with panniers.
Battling a fierce headwind we rode together to Thorne
in a very easy way. From Howden on we followed the cue-sheets
which were very easy to follow. Arriving in Thorne we were quickly
greeted by various organisers, including Bernard. Here it proved
that I had forgotten my passport-pictures, so first thing in the
morning would be to hunt for them. In the evening we together
packed our bikes, first I packed my luggage, then I packed hers.
Already during that evening I got quite some comments about my earlier posting discussing the differences between British and continental randonneurs. Later on I even heard that this posting and my report on the Gravesend audax ride already were adapted for the magazine of Audax UK! I seems that a lot of people are reading the randon-list, and only very few posting articles. Well, I work the other way round. Until late in the evening we kept talking in the Thorne rugby-club, so I settled for the main hall for sleeping because I didn't like to disturb the already sleeping people in the gym. Yvonne had borrowed my mat so I slept without one on the tiles. After many years of camping I don't mind this anymore.
At six in the morning we were already waken up by the kitchen-crew arriving. After a hearty breakfast I set out to solve the picture-problem. One of the volunteers drove me to the centre of Thorne where we waited nearly half an hour for the photographer to come. More than 10 minutes after his shop was scheduled to open it still wasn't open so we went back to the start without any pictures. I had to start out without a picture on my control-card. Before hunting for pictures I had already prepared my bike so I still had some spare time until the start would be given. Since it was quite cool I added a thin fleece-jacket to my luggage. I would be very grateful later on to have done this.
Thorne-Slingsby (0-79.9kms)
The start was given in different groups. I advised Yvonne
to start in the first one, so she could profit from all the passing
groups. I opted for the second group. While starting I missed
the usual mad dash. Since I still wanted to make a decent time,
I opted for pushing it myself, and see who would join me in faster
riding. Well, only one other rider joined me. Directly after Boothferry
Bridge (km 18.8) the first problems arose. My cue-sheet read '1st
exit O' while the cue-sheet of the other rider mentioned 2nd exit.
I didn't check if the new cue-sheets were different from the ones
I had received one month earlier. Luckily, while still deciding
what to do I saw a big group heading over the bridge taking the
2nd exit, so I followed them. I was very lucky about this, finding
the just route afterwards, also with old cue-sheets wouldn't have
been a big problem, but just after the roundabout the only secret
control was located. So I informed the people of the control about
the difference in cue-sheets. Yvonne was already at the control.
I set out in a small group, and discovered soon afterwards that
Yvonne had also joined it. Since the speed was at her upper-limit
I did some 'domestic-work' for her riding her back to the group
several times when she lost contact. Only when two riders from
Gravesend CTC started to speed up at front she finally lost contact.
I even had to stress quite hard to go back to the group after
a final effort to pace her back. Their group-riding was not very
efficient, since anybody taking the lead of the group opted for
another speed, thus making the group behave like an accordion.
Anyway various groups were passed and passed and I did my share of pacing whenever it was possible. After a while a big group of several dozen riders had formed, in which it was very good riding. I stuck with the group, especially since my old cue-sheet was very scant at this part. Shortly before the first control in Slingsby, the Castle Howard hills (photo) broke up the group.
Slingsby-Barton (79.9-153.5kms)
Since my cue-sheet was still not accurate for the next part I waited for a small group to ride with. So I rode together with one of the riders I had met while riding the Gravesend 200km ride the month before. We settled for a relatively easy part. When a bigger group with most of the riders I had been riding with towards Slingsby passed, I hopped in, thinking that the rest of the small group would do the same. At least that is normal on the continent. I felt a bit embarrassed when they didn't, so at the next control I told them that I thought that they also would join in. In this group were also riding Dave and Ann from Wales. I had a good time chatting with them and others. I had some scant memories of meeting her somewhere before, just as she had, but we both couldn't figure out where. While I was doing my share of pacing one of the other riders rode to the right of me. Not being used to left-hand riding I constantly tended to veer right, so he blocked that way for me.
Barton-Teesdale pass (153.5-215.1kms)
In Barton I had my first encounter with British truckstop food. Already the truckstop itself looked like one of the 'valgyklai' in which I often ate while studying in Lithuania. Not knowing the cooking-style I ordered some food. I was absolutely astonished by it's looks. It just was one puddle of fat. Still I swallowed it. While eating I solved the problem where I had seen Dave and Ann before. We had been remembering each others faces and voices from somewhere during PBP, but now I could be more accurate. In fact it was the supermarket in St. Quentin-en-Yvellines where we had been discussing various French muesli-bars. Later on Ann was one of the first 84-hour riders who overtook me. While some of the people I had been riding with, including Ann and Dave, still were eating I already headed out. My speed was just below them so they would overtake me sometime. Jack, the oldest participant also rode out at that moment. During the first hour I rode badly. My stomach was still digesting the truckstop-food. Although I hadn't been eating the fattest food available, I simply don't understand how British randonneurs can ride on beans and chips. My legs quit when I do that! The scenery was pleasant enough to ride calmly. After the scenic Barnard Castle the ascent of Teesdale pass began. it was a nice one, but I still didn't have the right legs to make it into a fantastic climb. Several kilometres below the pass the group overtook me and I couldn't join in on this part. Meanwhile I was developing a pressure-point on my right foot, so at the control I taped my foot.
Teesdale pass-Carlisle (215.1-274.8kms)
Daylight was already fading when I headed down the pass. I was already wearing nearly all my clothes for the descent. It was an easy descent, topped of by a cobbled steep part in Alston. The only problem was one turn with some sand in the corner, where I had to correct a rear-wheel skid. The further ride was uneventful. I met two of the South-Africans while I was checking my cue-sheet and together we rode on to Carlisle. During the descents I had problems keeping up with the heavier one. At only 65kgs. I simply lack the body-mass to gain lots of speed in the descents. In Carlisle I again had my problems with truck-stop food. I had ordered a vegetarian tagliatelli, hoping to get a nice big pasta-dinner. In stead of this I got a big pile of chips with underneath some messed up tagliatelli. Half of the chips I gave away. Luckily I could buy some cola at the adjacent shop so the night-ride wouldn't pose a problem.
Carlisle-Gordon Arms (274.8-358,5kms)
While most of the riders I had been riding with were wasting away their advantage asleep, I headed out alone over the dark A7. There was hardly anybody on the road and my double-headlight setting worked great. This was truly one of the night-rides I love. A quiet road, nice scenery still visible and good lights. Only at daybreak I was passed by another rider. I absolutely enjoyed this part. Halfway the stage I misinterpreted an indication. On the cue-sheet I read 'Right over bridge'. Looking at my map I saw a bridge in the next village, so I went right, over the bridge, and into a valley heading north. 6 Kilometres later the road ended in a village. I had to retrace. When I came back to the mainroad I saw one of the Scottish riders. By chance it was the guy who wrote that part of the cue-sheet. He directed me back to the road. Later on he apologised for the mishap, since he should have written 'road turns right over a bridge'. Because of this detour I finally lost touch with my schedule. I had been a bit behind already, but the fierce northern wind would be beneficial for the return leg to Thorne (at least I was still thinking at that moment). Riding on towards Gordon Arms I heard that there was a Tibetan temple just at the side of the road. It was absolutely worth the 10 minutes I spent visiting it. The further part towards Gordon Arms was beautiful, but uneventful. The control was simple but good. All-you-can-eat two times for , 5,-, quite a good deal. It was only very cold.
Gordon Arms-Dalkeith (358,5-408,4kms)
Setting out from Gordon Arms I met the first riders coming
back. One of the fixed-gear riders even was the second I encountered!
In Innerleithen I paused at a news-agent to buy a can of coke.
I had run out of my litre of coke in the bottle and was a bit
sleepy. Passing the Moorfoot hills I encountered Sheila, who had
been entering the Barton and Carlisle controls just before I entered.
Being less than one hour from the Dalkeith control I judged that
the detour on the previous stage had cost me about an hour. The
Dalkeith control was small but again too nice. I spent too much
time there eating, drinking and chatting.
Resetting my bike-computer I found out that I had been
riding 433.6kms, so in total I detoured 25.2kms. I finished this
stretch in somewhat over 24hours, 5.5 hours behind the planned
schedule, but still well ahead of the cut-off time.
Dalkeith-Gordon Arms (408,4-458,5kms)
Going back from Dalkeith I was already missing the hoped for tailwind. Instead of that a light drizzle started to fall. Now there were slower riders to meet and greet on the road back. About halfway to Gordon Arms I met Yvonne. She was still placed well in the field and wasn't having any problems, apart from leaving her rain-jacket in Gordon Arms. Somewhat later on I stopped for talking with the 'Banana-man' who was having a small break lying next to his recumbent. At the control there were still some riders who had to head north, including John Rowe. I recognised his bike as the one of the rider with whom I had been riding the final kilometres into Brest. We had met in the Sizun patisserie. Later on I had dropped him when I managed to jump some traffic-humps, a technique he didn't know of. The classic Dutch biking childhood pays of in such a moment; as a schoolboy I indulged in silly things like bicycle-long jump. John also remembered me from PBP. He was very back in the field, having problems with his pump.
Gordon Arms - Carlisle (458.5-541.9kms)
I headed out from Gordon Arms together with Dave and Ann.
To my surprise Dave told me that he speaks a bit of Dutch, which
he picked up when he had a Dutch girlfriend. Having had a German
girlfriend we talked for a while about the (dis)advantages of
having international relationships. They were real nice company.
We rode most of the stretch together, until they stopped for the
temple which I had seen before. I opted for a water-stop in Eskaldemuir.
Later on I passed Dave while he was mending a tyre. Again this
stretch was very scenic. I must congratulate the route-planners
who found this great stretch of Scotland. Only the last bit towards
Carlisle was a bit problematic during daylight.
Ann heading for Carlisle
In Carlisle I again tried to get some decent food. It was impossible to get the tagliateli without chips, so I had to settle for a huge salad, also very enjoyable. In Carlisle I skipped my plan of getting towards Thorne in one go. Now I opted for sleeping in the rough somewhere between Barton truckstop and Raskelf village hall. This would mean that I still stayed within a fairly fast schedule. I would be in Langdon Beck too early for sleeping, since I ride good at the beginning of the night, while sleep sets in only at the end of the night, whether I've been sleeping or not. It's a pity that in Barton there was no place to sleep.
Carlisle - Langdon Beck (541,9-613,4kms)
Fully loaded with cola I set out for the Teesdale pass. It was about an hour before nightfall, the time I enjoyed most for biking. I was riding together with a rider from Manchester who was planning to ride another 1200kms within a month from EL. He had dug out an old Sturmey-Archer dynohub to power his light. Together with another rider who ran an Union Wing hubdyno and Yvonne and myself with Renak dynohubs we were the only riders using this old/new design.
Photo: bike
repairement in Langdon Beck.
Somewhere between Brampton and Alston I wanted to shift
my gears. While doing so I heard a 'knack' and held the gear-lever
in my hands. Heavily cursing I stopped and watched the damage.
The whole lever broke of. I had had a problem like this once before,
when the handle was only bent, so I knew what to do. The other
guy didn't, so I showed him how. I simply loosened the cable bolt
of the rear-derailleur and fastened it somewhat more upwards on
the cable. Than I did some fine-tuning with the tuning-screws
to get the chain well aligned on one of the cogs. In this way
I could still use one cog at the rear (I selected the 18) and
shift at the front. So I would have to do the Teesdale pass and
the Alston cobble-hill using only 30x18, 42x18 and 52x18. Not
ideal, but possible. But it has to teach me a lesson not to use
too cheap bikeparts, like the outdated Campagnolo Stratos.
The guy from Manchester stayed with me for a while until
I sent him forward. I was just climbing to slowly for him. Two
times I had to walk when the hills were to steep for 30x18. I
really began to admire Ann who had to negotiate everything on
42x17. The Alston cobble hill went surprisingly well. In 1990-1991
I studied a year in Gent, so I did plenty of Belgian cobble-hills.
In this way I learnt to ride them smartly. So I rode most of it
on the right-hand footpath, which was very smooth.
The ascent of Teesdale pass was simply great. A silent
night with enough light to see the surrounding area. The mountain
was still somewhat visible and lined with tiny red lights of cyclists
climbing it. After the pass the downhill was a great pleasure.
My double lights let me whizz downhill without any danger. Nearly
all the riders which passed me because of my gear-problems I could
pass in the downhill. Some joined in with the fast ride, concentrating
on my lights. The Youth hostel was very well lit so easily findable.
Since Barton Castle has a bike-shop I wanted to wait in
Langdon Beck until it opened. But in the Youth hostel was a mechanic.
He even had a 7-speed Shimano downtube shifter. Cursing heavily
about these 'modern continental bikes' he fitted the shifter to
my bike. So now I could continue.
Langdon Beck - Barton truckstop (613,4 - 664,3kms)
Just after sunset I saw that Sheila and another rider were getting ready to go downhill to Barton truckstop. I decided to join them. Because of all the stress I hadn't been sleeping in Langdon Beck. Around 4 am we headed out. It was extremely cold at that moment. I didn't last long until I was getting very cold. Also the lack of sleep caused me lots of problems. I had to leave Sheila and the other rider, swerving heavily over the road. Just before Barnard Castle I tried to sleep leaned against a fence, but it was too cold. Several riders had already remarked that I was having serious problems and were keeping a watchful eye. In Barnard Castle I found a newsagent who had some hot food, enough to get warmed up a bit. Finally the sun started to shine from behind the clouds and at the first sunny spot I stopped and slept for at least half an hour. Somewhat refreshed I resumed the road, but I still was in a very bad shape. I simply rode on autopilot. Still I managed to arrive in Barton unharmed, where I took a good rest and tried to get a decent breakfast.
Barton truckstop - Raskelf (664,3 - 723,6kms)
While setting out from Barton I was already somewhat refreshed.
I even sometimes found some riding companions. With one of them
I stayered for a while behind a tractor, who was riding at a comfortable
30km/h. The disadvantages of the downtube-shifter showed to be
big. After several years of using Campagnolo Ergopower and Suntour
Command I was absolutely disused reaching down to shift. Also
I couldn't double shift because the front I still was shifting
with Ergopower. The main problem was that I couldn't use my lowest
gear of 30x21, which already is quite big for this course. To
top this of it was impossible to shift while climbing out of the
saddle, something I've gotten extremely used to. The other rider
mentioned that in York is a good bikeshop so I wanted to ask directions
in Raskelf.
At the Raskelf-control they knew the name of the bike-shop.
One of the other riders was carrying a GSM-phone, so he got the
number of the bike-shop from the inquiry and phoned them for me.
Luckily the bike-shop had Ergopower-levers on stock, and would
keep them at hand if I came.
Raskelf - York - Glews Garage - Thorne (723,6 - 812,9kms)
Getting out of Raskelf I simply followed the signs for
York. In this way I was directed towards the A 19, which proved
to be far to busy for cycling. So I took a B-road running parallel.
In York I had to ask several times until I found Tony Boswell
cycling. I had gotten a map in Raskelf, but it was not on scale.
Riding towards the shop my front mudguard broke off at the brake.
So now I only had half a front one. In the bike-shop they indeed
had Ergopower-levers, Mirage quality. I opted buying both of them,
and install the left one at home. After fetching some money, they
installed the right-lever for free, a great service. The chain
and gears were lubed by them, and the rear-wheel trued again.
So I didn't just get the bike repaired, but also a basic bike-check-up
done! The shop-owner shop was also teaching a young guy the job,
so he gave him a quick run-down on an audax-bike, using mine as
an example. So now this young guy knows the way an audax-rider
thinks. It was a pity that they didn't have any leg-warmers in
stock.
After that I left York to go for the route. I didn't see
anybody anymore. Apparently everybody who passed in Landon Beck
passed, while the first riders who slept in Carlisle didn't catch
me yet. Into a heavy headwind (yes the wind had turned) I continued
south, stopping in Howden to get my bike loaded for the following
night. At the Glews-garage control I saw the first other rider,
I guy from Glasgow who was having knee-problems.
In Thorne I had to decide what to do. The Lincoln control
wasn't having sleeping-facilities. Because of the time (8pm) this
would have been al logical place to sleep. The various bike-repairs
had costed so much time that I couldn't get to Lincoln in time
to go to the Youth hostel. After some thinking I decided that
I would try to tough it out until Thurlby, or find a soft ditch.
While resetting the computer again I could see how much I had
been detouring. According to the cue-sheet Dalkeith-Thorne would
be 404,2kms, while I rode 415.7. So the detour to York was manageable.
But the time-loss because of the repairs meant that I had to throw
all my schedules into the dustbin.
Thorne - Willington - Lincoln (812,9 - 881,0kms)
Finally I set out from Thorne about an hour before darkness.
Within a few kilometres I already sensed that I wasn't going to
make it until Thurlby without sleeping. So I started enquiring
about a possible B&B in Gainsborough. When I turned back to
the road, after enquiring, I met a Welsh trike-recumbent rider.
He told me that John Spooner would be there soon, and that he
would be sleeping in the house of John's parents. Shortly afterwards
John caught up, and he invited me for this sleeping place. Calmly
we rode on to Gainsborough, until the Welsh rider got some light-problems.
His bulbs continued to blow, and when he ran out of them I borrowed
him my spare one. Within a few kilometres this also blew. I could
only diagnose it as a blown protection-fuse inside the front-light.
Using my Petzl-headlamp he managed to get to the Spooner's residence,
jut outside of Gainsborough.
After a short, but very good sleep (about 4 hours) we
ate breakfast and headed out for Lincoln. No problems anymore!
In Lincoln we had a good second breakfast at the petrol station,
together with some riders we had met on the road. John already
warned us that although Lincolnshire is very flat, Lincoln itself
isn't.
Petrol-station picknick with John Spooner
Lincoln - Thurlby (881,0 - 951,4kms)
Climbing out of Lincoln everybody had to adopt his own
pace. Since I was first on the road I continued slowly on, but
missed the turn from the A15 to the lane towards Scopwick. Since
I hate retracing I continued on the A15. Traffic was dense and
uncomfortable, but not too much of a problem. In Sleaford I decided
to go back to the small roads. On the map I saw a small lane heading
south between the original route and the A15. When I asked directions
in a news shop I heard that this was a great bike-road of roman
origins heading straight south. It indeed was great, a small and
quiet lane. I don't understand why the original route was taking
a detour here while there was a good opportunity going straight
ahead. Shortly before I reached the A 15 again I even had to cross
a small ford.
In Thurlby the control was very cute. A tiny Youth hostel
of the type I like most. We ate in the kitchen, were some riders
already were there. Also here the food was rather peculiar, pasta
with custard-sauce. The controllers told me that they mostly use
the roman road I had taken when coming here. While I was eating
here the first two riders heading north came in. They were surprisingly
relaxed, having nothing of the nervousness which the first PBP-riders
have. They had even been sleeping in Epping. It turned out that
they were riding only a bit faster than my original schedule which
was far too fast for me. Shortly before I wanted to retake the
road, John came in. He had been taking the original road in a
calm manner.
Thurlby - Longstowe (951.4 - 1034.6 kms)
Several kilometres outside of Thurlby I saw the bikeshop
Deeping St. James. Since my front-tyre had grown bald I decided
to buy a new one. They hadn't got my usual make and size (Hutchinson
25mm) so I settled for a 25mm Vittoria, which was fairly cheap.
A wrong decision afterwards. This tyre proved to be hopeless in
the wet, being very slippery. When I just finished changing the
tyre the Welsh trikie appeared. I spent about an hour helping
him in getting a new lighting system on his trike.
The further ride from Thurlby to Longstowe was nice and
easy. Only I still had to battle a headwind. I passed some riders
who were in a very bad shape having eaten something wrong. They
had to head for the bushes in a regular routing. For about half
an hour I could trail a shovel which was riding at a nice pace.
In this way I caught a lot of the riders which had passed me when
I was changing my tyre and helping the Welshmen with his lights.
After the shovel finally drew away from me (it accelerated too
fast in an uphill corner), I continued with one of the other riders,
chatting nearly all the way towards Longstowe.
Longstowe - Epping Forest (1034,6 - 1108,3 kms)
In Longstowe I again had a full sized dinner. That's one
of the advantages of audax-riding, you can eat lot's of delicious
food. Anyway as a long-distance cyclist other people always are
absolutely surprised whenever you start eating your usual amount
of food. At work my colleagues sometimes ask if I need an extra
table to put all my food on.
There were still several small groups on the road during
the whole stage, just as lot's of riders passing now. I saw many
riders with whom I had been riding in the previous part of the
ride. When I finished my second fotofilm I gave it to one of the
riders going back, so that he could bring it to a shop in Thorne
for development. Meanwhile I had been constantly passing and being
passed by a small group of riders. Once I passed them when one
of them was phoning home, probably saying that al was still going
well. I rode for a while together with them, until they took a
small break to change clothes.
Darkness already fell when I was near Epping Forest. The
cue-sheet was difficult to read now, since there were many roads
to find. Luckily my Petzl helmetlamp was still functioning well.
There were hardly any riders coming back now, apparently they
were all sleeping at the control. Luckily somebody came back just
before the final ascent, so he could tell me how long the hill
was.
Arriving at the Epping Forest control was great. I wasn't
fully dismounted yet when one of the controllers already took
my bike to put it away, another one grabbed the bottles and asked
what I needed for it, and the mechanic approached with his toolbox.
Also inside it was great. For the first time during the whole
ride I could have food I really love, a cross-selection of various
Asiatic dishes. Great! At the control was also one of the riders
I had already been riding with at the beginning of the ride and
during the Gravesend 200km ride. He was carrying a small teddy-bear
on his bar-bag. He couldn't understand though, why I wanted to
head out into the dark while there still was plenty of time to
sleep. Well, some people really love night-riding!
Epping Forest - Longstowe (1108,3-1181,5kms)
The first part of the night-ride was great again. Many
riders still encountered me. Only few were heading the same way.
Among them were Brian and Barbara on their tandem. I saw them
while they were standing at the roadside. When I stopped to control
if they were alright I heard that they were having pedal-problems.
Barbara's shoes didn't click in anymore. So I spent about 20minutes
fiddling around on the pedals until I must have done something
right, since the cleats fitted again. I rode for a while together
with them, but it proved that they were riding a lot slower than
I was. They were completely exhausted and finished. After we stopped
to check for the route they even fell down while starting again.
After that they sent me on. Shortly afterwards I met Yvonne. She
was still in good shape, but dangerously close to the cut-off
time.
Not long after daybreak I was hitting serious problems
again. I got very sleepy and after a while combating the sleep
I saw a nice bank along the road and slept for half an hour. A
fast time was really impossible now, but arriving would be no
problem at all. I still had 7 or 8 hours advantage on the last
schedule. So in Longstowe I could sleep again for 4 hours. In
Longtowe they weren't expecting me at that moment, maybe nobody
could think of riders riding even a fourth night when not absolutely
necessary?
Longstowe - Thurlby (1181,5 - 1265,8kms)
The biggest part of this ride was uneventful. I finally could profit from a real tailwind, so it was easy and flat. I even took some time to have an extra food-break in Thorney and a foto-stop in Deeping St. James. There I also tried to get a new rear-tire, but apparently I had bought the last 25mm tyre they had in stock on the way south. But in Market Deeping I finally managed to get some passport-pictures done. While most people look already awful on passport-pictures, but after more than 1200kms with many problems I looked simply disgusting, probably best comparable with a just arrested junkie. At the control Bernard was also present, so I could hand him over the pictures. Also many other riders were standing there. When I went out Pete Gifford arrived. Already in Longstowe he had reported serious problems with his gear-hub, fearing the trash it completely,
Thurlby - Lincoln (1265,8 - 1335,5kms)
Heading out of Thurlby I again opted for the Roman road.
But first I had to cover some of the A 15, of course during the
rain. Now it proved that the Vittoria-tyre was disastrous during
the rain. It skidded away several times, but I could correct everytime.
Because it was rush-hour again I wanted to take the official route
from Seaford on, and after asking directions several times, I
found the right way out of Seaford.
Somewhere on one of the lanes one of the AUK-cars checked
if I was alright. I asked them how Yvonne was doing. I was very
glad to hear that she was still within the cut-off time and that
Pete was riding with her. He was even riding an upright twowheeler
for the first time in many years! While entering Lincoln it began
to rain a bit.
Lincoln - Thorne (1335,5 - 1414 kms)
In Lincoln I met the banana-man and one of his companions.
They were planning to have dinner somewhere in a small restaurant.
I preferred not to ride a fifth night, so I headed on. But first
he had to explain to one of the other customers of the petrol
station how his recumbent was working, something which deems to
be one of his pleasures. Climbing out of Lincoln I met Brian and
Barbara again. Again I stayed with them for a while until they
sent me on. Meanwhile it was slowly getting dark. Riding together
with John I hadn't been paying any attention to the route, so
now it was sometimes a bit difficult to find. Anyway I managed
to stay on it. Before Epworth I was passed for the last time by
one of the fast riders. I always wonder what they have done to
be fast and so late. My reason is clear, but many faster riders
(at least on the road) seem to waste some time somewhere. Maybe
they are having full nights sleep of 8 hours? The last bit still
had it's problems, a passing Landrover deliberately blinding me
with it's roof-light, and some uncertainties while riding over
a bridge during the last kilometres.
Anyway, I finished well on time with about 5 hours to
spare. At the finish I had a good dinner again and chatted along
with some other participants. When most people fell asleep sometime
I opted to join them and fetched my mat. I only woke up when Yvonne
already was there. Being awake again I switched to the gym to
continue my sleeping in a sleeping bag.
Back to the Netherlands
Sadly we were waken up far to late so nobody was there
to continue the post-ride chatting. Also we had to hurry so we
would be in time to take the train from Goole. Yvonne was already
getting nervous. But first we fetched the pictures. Sadly they
were not double, so it would cost somewhat more time to have them
all prepared for Sheila, who want's a copy of all of them.
Riding towards Goole was easy for me, but for Yvonne the
speed was just too high. But we had to catch a train so it was
necessary. In Goole Yvonne had a nasty encounter with a mountain-biker.
Being very nervous with only a few minutes to spare she pushed
his bike away, something he clearly disliked. She had been hearing
lot's of horror-stories about taking bikes on British trains.
After boarding the train we talked this over with the train-attendant,
but these horror-stories proved false. I suggested that they are
deliberately circulated by the Dutch railways since they really
discourage bike transport by train. When I ask the same question
about taking my bike both in Maastricht and in the neighbouring
Belgian city of Liège I get completely different answers.
Apparently the Netherlands is the only country where a disassembled
and packed bike is treated the same as full bike, at least officially.
Neither in the Netherlands nor somewhere else I ever encountered
serious problems transporting my bike. The guards never bother
about the official rules!
Anyway following our way from Hull railway station to
the ferry-terminal was tricky again. This time Yvonne was nearly
run over by a truck. Still blazing with rage about the Hull-traffic
she looked for her cabin. When she saw other people smoking in
it she exploded. Afterwards I explained a bit why she was so stressed
and luckily Tessa and Wendy, against whom she turned her rage,
understood it. They were very kind afterwards. Since we all were
thinking that there would be plenty of room there were some places
short. Originally Tessa and Wendy wanted to sleep in one bed,
so I could sleep on the floor. While Yvonne already slept, I sat
in the bar for quite a while with Tessa and Wendy. Around midnight
I felt it necessary to finally hit the sack, and since they both
stayed in the bar I simply rolled out my sleeping-bag somewhere
between the reclining seats. I had a good sleep there and wasn't
missing the crammed cabin at all. Before leaving the boat we said
goodbye to both girls as we went to our bikes.
Aftermath
In contrast to the weeks after PBP I felt very good now.
On Saturday I delivered the mail again. The only thing I changed
was that I was wearing a bike-short under my pants to prevent
saddle-soreness. On Sunday I rode a club-ride, and nobody remarked
that I did Edinburgh-London. OK, I was missing some uphill speed,
and couldn't launch my feared uphill attacks, but I rode calmly
without problems. Also the nightshifts which I was scheduled to
do in the beginning of the week after posed no big problem. Several
extra sleeps in the previous days even filled my sleep-gap.
Riding the last part of EL very calmly must have been
the biggest reason to this and of course not too much riding before
EL. This year I perfectly judged my fitness.
The Bike
Crashing my bike 5 weeks before the start of the ride
gave me the opportunity to get a new bike according to my newest
insights in Randonnée-bikes. So I had a new frame made
by 'Bioracer', the usual framebuilder in my region. Together with
them I designed a basically 'stretched-out' racer with enough
space for mudguards and plenty of braze-ons. Also I ordered an
oversized top-tube to get enough stiffness while riding with light
luggage.
I finished the frame partly with old bike-parts coming
from my crashed bike, partly with some new parts. Basically I
used race-parts, old Dura-ace brakes, Campagnolo Stratos Ergopower
grips with a triple crank (Shimano RX 100). Of course I use a
well broken in leather saddle, on this bike an Ideale made in
1952 which I bought about a year ago on a flee-market. The final
touch was added by a new front-wheel which I received the day
before leaving for Thorne. It contains an improved prototype
version of the Renak hub-generator, of which Yvonne would be running
a production version. I was meant to give it a good run. I combined
the Renak-dynohub with a new AXA-highlight lamp, running it simultaneously
with another Highlight fuelled by a lead-acid battery mounted
in the lower bottle-cage. The light-output was very good, more
than enough for fast riding. A 60km/h descent of the Pennines
was perfectly possible. This combination is very promising and
I will give the Renak-factory some suggestions to improve it (like
linking the dynohub with the battery and having everything controlled
by a small switchboard). My luggage I hauled in a handle-bar bag
and a Rack-pak. Also I had a small bag made for my mat and safety-blanket.
Since I was suffering from a pressure-point under my left foot
caused by skating and SPD-pedals so I switched back to my old
Look-pedals which have a bigger contact area.
Although part of the bike was new, I still had problems with it. My rear-Ergopower gear-lever broke just before Alston. Later I heard that the Stratos-model was prone to breaking. I had it replaced in York by a Mirage-model which should last longer. Also my front-mudguard broke of, and one tyre wore out. Finally, it showed that I couldn't lower the nose of my saddle enough, so I suffered from what in Dutch bike-jargon is called 'a third ball'.
The preparation
Two 1000km-rides and Paris-Brest-Paris gave me enough experience to prepare the ride in another way as usual. Preparing for PBP I got completely overtrained. So this time I opted for just getting myself in a good shape, without overdoing the training. So I didn't do any real long-distances during the spring. Three weeks before the start I rode an easy 400km randonnée in Tournai (Belgium. My general fitness-base was laid during the winter, when I rode nearly each weekend a speed-skating race. Also I participated in the Baselga 24hours speed-skating race. Nearly each weekend I chose a 'climbers-brevet' to get enough altitude meters. In may I hopped over to Southern-England to ride a 200km brevet overthere, mainly to get some impression of riding in Britain and getting a bit used to riding on the other side of the road. All this resulted in 4500km ridden between January 1. and the start of EL. More important than physical preparation was the mental. I rehearsed the ride and route many times in the previous month, to be prepared for all the possibilities. Having to rebuild my bike improved my mental training.
Things to change
As always at the end of such a ride, lessons can be learnt
from the errors. First and for all I have to try not wrecking
a frame again several weeks before a major ride. Starting a long
ride with non-tested material is a big risk. Also the old parts
should have been checked. The crack in the gear-handle should
have been visible before the start.
Not doing any huge rides before this one was a good experience.
For next time, though, some speedwork, for example participation
in some 'cyclo-sportifs' would be a good idea. With an overall
on the bike average of 21.2km/h I've been riding very slow. I
only did fast training-workouts during the winter speedskating,
not afterwards.
Qua ridingstyle I have to sleep sooner. Not sleeping for
about 60 hours is a lot. I've lost an enormous amount of time
in the Langdon Beck-Barton stage because I didn't sleep in Langdon
Beck. Also it would have been better to take somewhat warmer clothes
with me, especially for descending in the middle of the night.
In general I have to say that I really enjoyed the ride
and look forward to do some more AUK rides in the future. It's
only a pity that the ferry takes so much time. The people were
very friendly.
Also I want to use this occasion to ask John to thank
his parents again for the possibility to sleep there, if you contact
me through snail-mail I will send you some pictures I took from
the part which we rode together.
Since Yvonne headed for Australia I have no access to Internet for a while, so I can only be reached by snail-mail. Also the E-mail address which Yvonne made for me is unreachable for a while.
Ivo Miesen