Got to say I thoroughly enjoyed the ride and was well worth getting the train across from Norfolk for. Mike and helpers put on a fantastic route and were the perfect hosts and the airbed was a much required treat. I was lucky enough that Darrell on the Audax Facebook group got a drone shot of me so I wrote a "brief" ride report for him:
I left Poynton in a relatively fast group with four other riders which helped to build a time buffer and get the first few miles out of the way quite quickly, with the ride through Chester being especially pleasant due to the lack of cars.
The group thinned out considerably after the first control with just myself and Martin, who had also been in the group, leaving the petrol station together. With the exception of a few miles before the mid-way control we rode the whole route together.
Martin doubled up as a helpful guide as he knew the area a lot better than I am (I have only been to Wales twice before when I rode End-to-end in 2012 and London-Wales-London last year) meaning I have never been into Wales properly until this ride.
Coming from Norfolk and not being the lightest person means there is always an element of trepidation when I see any large spikes on the elevation profile and I knew there were a couple of instances where I'd have to make the decision as to whether or not to take the detours offered, I decided on both occasions to "take the high road" and didn't regret these decision.
The climbs were difficult by Norfolk standards but probably par for the course for the more hardcore seemingly local field of riders who are used to lumpier roads. It was also nice to have a rest take photos at the summits with some spectacular views over the coast and further inland.
After getting across to Anglesea and taking photos at the train station, we stopped at the nearby co-op for replenishment and I was tempted by the Bara Brith which after having a generous helping I just about managed to fit in my jersey pocket.
A few miles from the halfway cafe I had a puncture and after repairing that my back wheel wouldn’t spin. After a bit more investigation it turned out that the tread on my rear brake pads were non-existent and the pin holding the pads had broken and bent. Having not bought a spare set of pads I proceeded to remove the pads and pin, with some help from a tyre lever I pushed in the pistons and rode the rest of the ride using only my front brakes. Occasionally forgetting and having to remove the wheel and reset the calipers. It’s a good job the major descents were out of the way!
I caught up with Martin at the control and we proceeded to go up and down through Anglesea and back to Wales. As night fell so did my energy levels, I can remember trying to ride along the cycle bridges whilst feverishly eating the remaining Bara Brith to try and get some energy. Having taken a abstinence from caffeine, I was looking forward to my first hit in over a week to give me a boost and also had my first ever Irn Bru energy drink which was served to me by a particularly friendly and cheerful petrol station attendant (which you don’t usually see in the early hours) who, as his petrol station was slightly off route hadn’t seen any other riders and found the whole nature of the ride highly entertaining. We also spoke to a friendly paramedic there who actually realised we were on an Audax (I guess if you encounter cyclists at a petrol station at unsociable times it is probably quite obvious).
The night section was a case of keeping moving and counting down the miles to the next stop. One particularly frustrating section was leading into Flint where coffee was waiting, four miles the sign said, only to be followed by one a bit further up the road saying five miles. Things that would be a casual observation on a short group ride can be quite demotivating on longer rides.
The usual dawn chill did not seem to materialise and we rolled back into Poynton at around 7am. This gave me enough time to eat, sleep, have a freshen up, visit Waitrose and ride back to Stockport and still have two hours to spare before my train home.
Looking back I really enjoyed the ride and exploring the North Wales coast, the route used a lot of good quality cycle paths, including a newly opened section which at night was pleasure to ride knowing there would be no cars or more importantly, potholes.
The castle at Conwy was a particular highlight. As the commentary in one of the youtube videos about the ride says: “Audax cycling in Britain can be like athletic tourism. The castle in Conwy is a World heritage site in a well presented mediaeval town, you could easily spend a whole day there. Obviously we passed through in about three minutes, but we’ve been there.”
