Mersey Roads 24HR 2019

[cygnet]

The flattest part of the course is the Espley-Shawbirch-Espley leg. As it wasn't on the night circuit, the amount of climbing in that 8 hour period was effectively doubled. That's where I'd look for increases in climbing.

Oops deleted my post. (How much climbing was there...)

Having looked at a few other gps tracks I think mine over-recorded the climb by a significant amount, possibly not helped by having different head units as I was forced to change bike for a lap of the Espley-Shawbirch. Everyone else's seem comparable with the last time I did it (with Battlefield in) and not as much as the ESCA course.

[Exit Stage Left]

Part two of Mersey 2019.

[rob]

I have 12,000ft on my Garmin.

[mattc]

Part two of Mersey 2019.

Crackin' stuff!

(and I've finally found how to get into one of Damon's videos; forget the bike - hang around a roundabout with him all night. He can't edit you out of all the footage!)
Now - my google-fu is weak this week; did the tandem record go or not?!?

[rob]

No. Arctic lads had to pack.  I think Adam had stomach trouble.

Current results not final as the organisers are investigating a complaint.

[cygnet]

I have 12,000ft on my Garmin.

See that's in the region that I had. I think it's high for some reason and the actual is more like 3.6m/km. Mine shows 4.8m/km which was more than I recorded on the ESCA course.

Crackin' stuff!

Indeed. A new earworm too. Didn't spot you out there mattc, but thanks for volunteering with the marshalling.

[Karla]

I got 2700 metres so about 9000 feet.

[basset]

I had 8300 on a garmin 200 which always reads low compared to other units I have so I think 9 to 10000 is about right .

Great films Damon 

I also have probably scratched my itch with this great event, I’m very time short at this time in my life and like Wilko said to me after the event , racing tends to get in the way of being able to ride your bike , it’s a big commitment to do a 24 if you’re pushing your personal mileage.
Everyone should do it though it’s special.

[Exit Stage Left]

One of the supporters asked the timekeeper if there was electronic timing. Edwin answered that the watch he was using was digital.

The 100 mile times, and 12 Hour distances used to be printed off when the Raven cafe was open all night. They now appear on Twitter, giving the event a hybrid feel, with information produced on paper, and broadcast on the net. It has been suggested that a big screen at Prees Heath could keep spectators informed, but everyone's got access to their own screen now.

That's what led me to using 'Living by Numbers' as a backing. It's just accidental that the lyrics fit so well. It's from 1979, so it's an anniversary as well as being remarkably prescient. Heather and I both rode the Mersey for the first time in 1999, we were celebrating the moon landing in 1969, and the internet is held to date from 1989.

[Karla]

the internet is held to date from 1989.

No that's the world wide web, not the internet

The WWW is one application that runs on top of the internet's hardware.  Given the rise of smartphone apps, most of your internet use these days probably isn't WWW-based. 

Sorry to burst your bubble!

[Phil W]

Indeed a lot of people (like ESL) confuse the WWW with being the Internet. 

[Exit Stage Left]

the internet is held to date from 1989.

No that's the world wide web, not the internet :p

The WWW is one application that runs on top of the internet's hardware.  Given the rise of smartphone apps, most of your internet use these days probably isn't WWW-based. 

Sorry to burst your bubble!

I did say 'held to date', and by that I meant accessible to the public.
https://nicelydonesites.com/worlds-first-isp/

The first ISP is widely believed to be Telenet, which was the first commercial version of ARPANET introduced in 1974. The first ISP for the Internet we know and use today is considered to be "The World" who started serving customers in 1989.

I don't have a video for 2009. The first one I did was in 2001, which was a combination of the 24 and LEL. In 2009 LEL clashed with the 24. I rode LEL and Heather ran the Alston control.
I put a video of 2007 on Youtube, and that's now defaulted to 240p resolution, which is what happens if they aren't watched.

I started putting videos on Vimeo when I got a HD camera, as they accepted 720p. The 2008 Mersey Roads still looks good, and has lots of YACF interest. A Vimeo staff member started a cycling group around then, and that's his comment.

There's a lot of 'noise' online these days, which is why I'm tending to concentrate on themes that I've got archive for. It's for the current generation to focus on what's happening now, I tend to have one eye on the rear-view mirror.

[vorsprung]

I did say 'held to date', and by that I meant accessible to the public.
https://nicelydonesites.com/worlds-first-isp/

The story on that page is complete fiction.  I was using the Internet in 1988, it wasn't evil government agencies trying to stop the Internet from being free

[Exit Stage Left]

I did say 'held to date', and by that I meant accessible to the public.
https://nicelydonesites.com/worlds-first-isp/

The story on that page is complete fiction.  I was using the Internet in 1988, it wasn't evil government agencies trying to stop the Internet from being free

So what was the first commercial dial-up ISP?
http://www.theworld.com

I've got the first LEL as another 1989 event, so I'm not bothered at heart.

[mattc]

Anyone fancy a pint? 

[rob]

How are everyone’s bodies holding up ?

My neck and back are almost back to normal.  My legs are OK to the point where I can now do stairs properly again.   My appetite is starting to subside, but I have been in France for 3 days and there has been a lot of cheese.

There’s a small chance I will go out on my bike tomorrow.

Mentally it has been hard to reset myself after achieving a long term goal.   I suspect I could do a little better but I don’t want to spend more hours chasing daft goals.   There’s still a few things left to do this year.

[Karla]

There’s still a few things left to do this year.

Yeah, like clocking me two laps for every lap I do in the twelve you're marshalling

[rob]

There’s still a few things left to do this year.

Yeah, like clocking me two laps for every lap I do in the twelve you're marshalling

I think I’m just doing the pointy direction thing.  Mark wouldn’t give me a position of responsibility I’m sure.

[basset]

How are everyone’s bodies holding up ?

My neck and back are almost back to normal.  My legs are OK to the point where I can now do stairs properly again.   My appetite is starting to subside, but I have been in France for 3 days and there has been a lot of cheese.

There’s a small chance I will go out on my bike tomorrow.

Mentally it has been hard to reset myself after achieving a long term goal.   I suspect I could do a little better but I don’t want to spend more hours chasing daft goals.   There’s still a few things left to do this year.

Face has scabbed up nice from my little off but shoulder still oozing due to the hot weather and needing to keep it covered at work.
Neck was fine but I needed lots of ibuprofen gel on it and my shoulders during the 24.
Legs were terrible for 2 days was walking like a drunken crab but are fine now.
Undercarriage a bit flakey  :hand:I have yet to find I don’t suffer after more than 300k after trying loads of saddles I think you just have to get on with it.
If it’s not raining heavily I will get out on the bike over the weekend and start to enjoy cycling again .
I think a pint is on the cards tonight

[Exit Stage Left]

Part 3.


https://youtu.be/9smFTWoNhks

[tonyh]

ESL, many thanks. Again!

[24hourmaths]

I graphed the top 8 riders of men's race for this year and posted on FB; shared below 

[Exit Stage Left]

I was interested in the nostalgic power of 1969. Not only the moon landing, but also the first 500+ ride by a maths teacher. It's an interesting story, well covered on the TT forum. http://www.timetriallingforum.co.uk/index.php?/topic/32707-mersey-roads-24-hour/

That led me to search for a picture of Christine Moody, to no avail. Little did I know that she was very much in plain sight under her married name, Christine Minto. She won the ladies prize in 1969, and has marshalled at the Mersey for a very long time. She was presented with a special award at the prizegiving, and is visible at several points in parts 1 and 3 of the film, wearing a Birdwell Wheelers jersey.

[rob]

I graphed the top 8 riders of men's race for this year and posted on FB; shared below 

You can see how consistent you need to be at the pointy end.  I planned for a drop off in the second half and my splits were 255:229.   This was OK, but I suspect I could do better.

It will be a fair old while until I can think about doing this again.

[Exit Stage Left]

The graph does exaggerate the variation in speed by concentrating on the difference between 500 mile and 550 mile pace. Graham Kemp's blue line is based on six data points from Twitter, while the others are from Strava or a GPS.

A comparison of pace to watts would be interesting. As it would be a reflection of aerodynamic position, wind direction and climbing. I suspect that Mike's power output would be smoother than his speed. The sawtooth profile of the finish circuit in the last three hours or so is very pronounced.