[LEL17] Stories of 2013.

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I find it interesting to read the details of riders I encountered along the way. I interviewed Agnes Baudry at the beginning of LEL 2013. She was in the earlier starts, so I was relatively fresh. We caught sight of her in Great Easton, massaging a fellow rider's neck, so it's nice to fill in the space between.

http://www.leicesterforest.org.uk/london-edinburgh-london-1400k-audax.html

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A detailed account from a Canadian rider with lots of good tips.

http://www.randonneurs.bc.ca/newsletter/submissions_2013/080_lel_luis-bernhardt.html

[mattc]

...  wasn’t quite a victory lap, but I think I sped up as I smelled the barn
?!

Every day's a school day ...

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He's particularly good on bag drop logistics and how some people treat wheelsuckers. The gap opening up before you reach the back of the line is familiar, albeit from a long time ago.

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His opening paragraphs explain a lot about the behaviour of riders who might be expected to be faster.

In order to complete a brevet of more than 600 km, or more than one day, you need to adopt a strategy. Paris-Brest-Paris, for example, has two basic strategies, depending on your start time. If you start on Sunday afternoon/evening, the general strategy is to ride thru the first night and into as much of the next day’s daylight as you can before stopping. Ideally, this should put you at around km 800, maybe 900, and setting you up to finish the next day. If you start Monday in the early morning, the likely strategy becomes riding as many daylight hours as possible, trying to complete three consecutive 400-km days.

London Edinburgh London allows you five days to ride 1400 km. Because everyone starts on Sunday morning, it is more conducive to the second strategy above. Underscoring this is the fact that the organization provides all of your meals and lodging for those five days, so it makes sense to treat this as a fast tour, covering the average of 280 km per day for five days, and getting a decent nights’ sleep each evening.

With that information it's possible to think of riders jumping over the main bottlenecks, Pocklington, and Brampton at the point that outward and inward streams converge. These accounts reveal the meat on the bones of LEL.

If you are aware of the basic structure, they reveal the strengths and weaknesses of the skeleton. You can recognise the behaviours that come with different levels of experience.

A reader with less experience wouldn't pick up on minor points, or give a different meaning to them. The passage on dropping a rider from a group mightn't seem supportive of ones fellows, but it's one of the classic scenarios. Many have ridden road races, and that behaviour kicks in.

Before the punctures, I was pushing the pace by myself. It’s common practice amongst randonneurs for one rider to pull a string of riders for kilometer after kilometer. Eventually they swing over and the lead changes. My pulls tend to be much shorter, but drifting back, I would sometimes find the last rider opening up a gap so he could stay in the sheltered last position, out of the rotation. This happened once, and I just kept slowing down to decline the opening in the pace line. So he slowed down to try to get on my wheel. So I just let the gap open, and by the time there was a good 20- or 30-second gap, I accelerated just hard enough to get back to the string by myself, not bringing the slacker up with me! Yeah, a racing background makes you not very nice, but my motto is to just leave the weak out there to die... heh heh!

[frillipippi]

I'd be wary of considering reliable such "likely strategies" extended to the mass: as far as I know, only a minority of the riders starting PBP on Monday morning closed in three days, in 2015. You can check here: http://axel-koenig.com/results/pbp2015 using filters X*, Y* and Z* in "Stnr." column. I dare say that about one third of us closed within 72 hours, and of course if you want to consider only the daylight hours you should use an even lower threshold.

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There are a diversity of strategies.The one adopted by Agnes Baudry in the first article is based on the experience of her companions, who rode in 2009. They favoured using hotels, and she encounters those with stress injuries, including Shermer's Neck. She shows one way in which a new rider copes. Ride with experienced companions, and control unknowns, she is also supported.

Luis Berhardt is clearly an experienced randonneur. Once he realises that the support allows a relaxed approach, he relaxes. From an organisers viewpoint this is a bad thing. The expected fast riders then occupy the beds more than anticipated, and they eat more meals. A system that charges them a lot for beds and food as they go along would make them speed up. That's the intention of the 100 hour groups, but they will still aim to get the best value, and will take close to 100 hours. We know that the record is around 62 hours, and there is a tiny number who could challenge that.

The more stories we can find the better understanding of the event. I'm in the position of being able to put a face and a voice to many of the participants. I met Agnes Baudry in 2013, and the Brazilian she rides with for a bit, in 2009 and 2013.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpbii3szGv8

[toestrap]

On a ride some years ago when I was young and naive (now not so young, but prob just as naive) I was pushing into a strong headwind on a 200k when a couple of older gentlemen in full club kit rolled up behind me. As the km's passed they just sat there gossiping away - I didn't know the system of pulling out to the right, nor how much of a benefit it was for them for me to be taking the brunt of the wind. Not once did they impart any wisdom, offer to take the front etc etc

So, if you are of a certain age, sporting a pepperpot beard there is no way I'm going to be doing a turn at the front, ever! 

Before the punctures, I was pushing the pace by myself. It’s common practice amongst randonneurs for one rider to pull a string of riders for kilometer after kilometer. Eventually they swing over and the lead changes. My pulls tend to be much shorter, but drifting back, I would sometimes find the last rider opening up a gap so he could stay in the sheltered last position, out of the rotation. This happened once, and I just kept slowing down to decline the opening in the pace line. So he slowed down to try to get on my wheel. So I just let the gap open, and by the time there was a good 20- or 30-second gap, I accelerated just hard enough to get back to the string by myself, not bringing the slacker up with me! Yeah, a racing background makes you not very nice, but my motto is to just leave the weak out there to die... heh heh!

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I was never that bothered about 'passengers'. They're usually hanging on for grim death, so would just slow down the group if they did a turn.

Everyone has a 'natural' speed, and some can only go faster by wheel sucking on the flat. What often happens is that larger riders tow a group along to the bottom of a hill, then the lighter riders shoot off. You sometimes get to read about that in accounts. Usually in a reference to the writer's great climbing skills. 'It was a relief to leave the boredom of the flatlands', or a variant of that. It's especially boring for them when they've been watching the back wheel of a tandem for 20 or 30 miles.

The hills between Edinburgh and Brampton can be interesting. The 'climbers' attempt to shoot off, but the wind holds them back. It confuses them into pushing too big a gear, and they get achilles and knee problems. The need to remain 'aero' also causes saddle sores.

In reading accounts it's useful to look at elements of overlap. It's also useful to work out 'outliers'. The rider might have specific dietary needs, be more fastidious than average, inexperienced, or too experienced.

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There's a good introduction to 'pace lining' from Canada.

http://www.randonneurs.bc.ca/toolbox/paceline.html

But remember to reverse this instruction.

Now here's an important part that, for some reason, people don't seem to understand. When the lead rider's turn at the front is over, he (or she) does a shoulder check for oncoming traffic, then peels off TO THE LEFT and begins to soft pedal in such a way that the rest of the line overtakes him on his RIGHT side. As the last rider in line passes by, the erstwhile leader accelerates enough to fall in behind, thereby becoming the caboose.

[mattc]

I was never that bothered about 'passengers'. They're usually hanging on for grim death, so would just slow down the group if they did a turn.

Everyone has a 'natural' speed, and some can only go faster by wheel sucking on the flat. What often happens is that larger riders tow a group along to the bottom of a hill, then the lighter riders shoot off. You sometimes get to read about that in accounts. Usually in a reference to the writer's great climbing skills. 'It was a relief to leave the boredom of the flatlands', or a variant of that.

[alwyn]

The hills between Edinburgh and Brampton can be interesting. The 'climbers' attempt to shoot off, but the wind holds them back. It confuses them into pushing too big a gear, and they get achilles and knee problems. The need to remain 'aero' also causes saddle sores.

Yup. This is especially the case to Innerleithen, along some really long, exposed climbs. The first long climb out has always felt much tougher than it looked.

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This peculiar object marks the highest point of the National Cycle Network Route 1.



It's at about 1,400 feet. It's the top of the climb out of Edinburgh, so the total ascent is over 1,000 feet. It's worth remembering that Alston is at about 1,000 feet, so there is less than 1,000 feet to the top of Yad Moss. There's about 250 feet more climbing from the Middleton on Teesdale side heading North.

The lowest point on the ride is over the bridge at Longtown, that's about 14 metres above sea level.

This is a typical Moorfoot Hills climb.

[wilkyboy]

The lowest point on the ride is over the bridge at Longtown, that's about 14 metres above sea level.

I think you might mean "the lowest point on the northern loop" — because there's a spot-height on the OS map of just 2m on the run into Spalding, and I wouldn't be surprised if there's the occasional 0m contour in the fens where we cross down into a subsea zone — don't forget to hold your breath!

Just sayin'.

[hellymedic]

Certainly, 10m contour lines are 'high points' on much of the southern loop....

[alwyn]

Ramsey Heights marks the start or end of the Fens for our purposes. The settlement is 2m above sea level, before dropping noticeably down to Pondersbridge heading north.

[Exit Stage Left]

The lowest point on the ride is over the bridge at Longtown, that's about 14 metres above sea level.

I think you might mean "the lowest point on the northern loop" — because there's a spot-height on the OS map of just 2m on the run into Spalding, and I wouldn't be surprised if there's the occasional 0m contour in the fens where we cross down into a subsea zone — don't forget to hold your breath!

Just sayin'.

We're that far into the Fens are we? At least the Dutch will feel at home.

[hellymedic]

I don't think LEL enters Holland in Lincolnshire 

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There was a Vermuyden house at Thorne Grammar, Heather tells me she was in it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornelius_Vermuyden

[alwyn]

There's a long stretch through South Holland.

[redfalo]

Before the punctures, I was pushing the pace by myself. It’s common practice amongst randonneurs for one rider to pull a string of riders for kilometer after kilometer. Eventually they swing over and the lead changes. My pulls tend to be much shorter, but drifting back, I would sometimes find the last rider opening up a gap so he could stay in the sheltered last position, out of the rotation. This happened once, and I just kept slowing down to decline the opening in the pace line. So he slowed down to try to get on my wheel. So I just let the gap open, and by the time there was a good 20- or 30-second gap, I accelerated just hard enough to get back to the string by myself, not bringing the slacker up with me! Yeah, a racing background makes you not very nice, but my motto is to just leave the weak out there to die... heh heh!

That's a bit mean. As long as a wheel sucker doesn't mess up the rotation, and the rest of the chain gang is big enough, I don't have any objections with giving somebody a lift.

However, on what I guess was the second night of PBP, I had a really annoying experience. We had a small train of three riders going which worked really nicely. On a climb, we caught a young French rider who was completely shot and unable to communicate.  He got on our back wheels, but did not clock the rotation at all and did not leave a gap large enough for a safe manouevre. We tried to drop him but it did not work out. Eventually, we decided to stop, gave him 2 minutes of lead and then passed him on the flat.

[hellymedic]

There's a long stretch through South Holland.

I sit corrected!

[Phil W]

Just looked at the OS mapping and there are spot heights of 1m on the road after Ramsey St Mary. Do we have a lower bid?

[Phil W]

Holme Fen Posts is considered the lowest land point in Great Britain at 2.75 metres below sea level. We pass just 6km east of that point at Ramsey St Mary.  Cool to know will have to visit next time up that way on the bike. Ramsey St Mary of course having a shop from which it was possible to get drinks and ice cream and take a brief respite from the strong head winds and heat of LEL 2013. Defintely the hardest day physically.  The northern hills were a piece of piss in comparison.

[yorkie]

There was a Vermuyden house at Thorne Grammar, Heather tells me she was in it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornelius_Vermuyden

..and, reasonably on topic, there is Vermuyden Cycling Club in Goole, who were, from memory, quite a big racing and Audaxing club in the 90's.

http://www.cyclinguk.org/local-groups/vermuyden-cycling-club

Also, New Holland and New Holland Pier are not far to the east of the Humber Bridge. New Holland Pier being the landing point for the British Rail cross-Humber ferries before the bridge was built.