There didn't seem to be a thread for these, so I thought I'd start one.
Here's what I wrote on Strava / Bookface.
Yes, the first couple of paragraphs explaining what LEL is are somewhat superfluous here, but it's a copy-paste job.
===
London – Edinburgh – London is Britain’s PBP, running every four years, interleaved with PBP. This year’s event was meant to run in 2021, but was postponed. With around 1800 participants, it is around half the size of PBP, but though she may be little, she is fierce!
The event is nominally 1400k, but this year’s running was 1500k. And then at the last minute, a road closure over Yad Moss in the Pennines resulted in a further 40k detour, which added two substantial climbs. This raised a few eyebrows, to say the least.
So it is that I am at Davenant School, in Debden for my 12:30 departure slot. The riders are set off in groups every 15 minutes, and I am one of the last groups to set off. We are summoned to the start area, and funnelled past the start timekeeper into a holding pen, where we are set off at the prescribed time.
The weather is dry and hot, and set to become more so as the week goes on. I am in a fast group out of the gate, and the miles click by easily in the flat lands, heading North, somewhere to the West of Cambridge. It is clear to me that this pace will not be sustainable long term, so I do not re-join this group after the first control point of St Ives, about 100k in. For me, these ultra-distance events are all about managing my effort carefully, not burning too many matches. Take speed where it is offered freely: on the flats and downhills. Get down on the aero bars and get the speed up whilst keeping the effort under control. This is not the 24h TT, and I can’t afford to be in that kind of condition after only 24h. No attacking hills. Gear down, and keep the effort under control.
The afternoon passes, and I ride into the evening. The sun begins to go down, and the flat land provides for a big sky with a long ribbon of red sunset to the West. Combine harvesters are working into the evening, their lights moving in the fields in the middle distance. The moon rises; it is a full moon, large rich orange hanging low above the horizon.
Just South of the Boston control, our progress is halted by a police road closure at the A17 junction. An LEL marshal directs us down a short detour. We re-join the route on the North side of the junction, where we see the cause of the closure: an HGV is stationary on the main road, and a mangled bicycle lies a short distance away, bearing an LEL frame badge. I subsequently learn that the rider has escaped with a broken arm which required surgery, but nothing more serious thankfully.
Things become a bit of a blur from here onwards, sunsets followed by sunrises. I typically will sleep for perhaps 3 hours at some point over the course of the night, at whichever control point I can reach. Managing your time is important. If you are not eating, sleeping, or riding then you are faffing. Minimising faffage is key to getting round in time. I am aware of the landscape changing as I head North, but I only have the most vague idea of where I actually am. Although I may have no idea exactly where I am, I am not lost. The Garmin guides me faultlessly through the endless lanes, and I can often see a string of tail lights in the distance, marking out the route.
The sleep provisions are inflatable mattresses in school gym halls, with blankets. On the occasion of my first 3 hour sleep stop, I wake up and attempt to get out of bed. The moment I try to bend my leg, it went into severe cramp. The other was not far behind. I am quite unable to stand up. I roll off the mat onto the floor, face down. I carefully bring my knees up under me, ending up on all fours like a baby attempting to crawl. I slowly stretch each leg out behind me. Anyone observing this must have thought I was doing some kind of yoga moves. Finally, I attempt to stand up and make it. A few more stretches and I’m good.
Things become significantly hillier as we cross the North York Moors at around 400k in, between Malton and Barnard Castle. Then we must cross the Pennines between Barnard Castle and Alston. This is where the last-minute road closure over the relatively benign Yad Moss has us divert over the steep summit of Harthope Head and down to the village of St Johns Chapel, followed by a further steep climb over to Alston. We are all aware that this must then be done in reverse on the return.
The terrain becomes easier as I cross the border into Scotland, and onto familiar roads. I arrive at the turnaround point of Dunfermline at around 2pm on the Tuesday, but do not linger for long. The Southbound route takes us through central Edinburgh, where I stop for an hour at the flat for a shower and change of kit.
The next control points are Innerleithen then Eskdalemuir; once again familiar roads. The days have been very hot, and I have been wearing minimal layers. However, the overnight temperatures on this stage are surprisingly cold. The nights have been very clear, and cool air has tumbled down into the valley causing a temperature inversion. Dense fog can be seen below clinging to the valley floor, and as I descend down into this I can feel the temperature plummet. There is a pervasive dampness that gets into everything and chills me to the bone. I am wearing everything I am carrying, and am still cold. Upon reaching Eskdalemuir, I find dozens of riders wrapped in blankets unable to continue until they have warmed up. I join them. It is around 3:30am, and I decide to wait for sunrise in a couple of hours before setting off again in the hope of the temperature beginning to rise.
The return route is not exactly the same as the outbound route, although several stretches are the same. The daytime temperatures are now in the mid 30s, which causes heat issues for some riders. My helmet is hanging from my handlebars, and I have a buff as a headscarf to keep the direct sun off of my head. I have upped my quantity of electrolyte tablets in my water, and seem to hydrating OK. Again, I manage my effort carefully, to avoid turning into ghee. Pushing on hard in this heat is foolish, yet I need to continue to make forward progress.
The steep diversion around Yad Moss comes as no surprise. It is very steep, with sustained gradients between 15 and 18% and several riders are walking the steep ramps. A velomobile is making ponderous progress by tacking left and right across the full width of the road.
The route back through Yorkshire skirts around the North York Moors, giving some respite from the hills. I cross the Humber bridge and once again I am in flat country, with only around 300k to go. The bridge is normally closed to cyclists and pedestrians overnight, and we have special dispensation to cross with the crossing marshalled to prevent public access.
I am routed through Cambridge town centre at around 11:30pm, and there is a real sense of the vibrant night life of a university town. The historic buildings are illuminated, giving a real sense of place and of history.
The final control point of Great Easton comes easily, and it is then less than 50k to the finish. It is around 3am and I do not linger here, instead pressing on to reach the finish at Debden at 5:30, and it is done.
It would be remiss of me not to mention the thousand or so volunteers who manned the controls and attended to tired rider’s needs with such dedication and enthusiasm. Many of these got less sleep than the riders did. Thank you to the organisers and volunteers without whom this event could not take place.
https://www.strava.com/activities/7647957011
