No, I didn't get in till 7pm (on the 200) and there was another chap behind me (Ivan?) on the 160. Also 2 older chaps who were behind me at Bala but mysteriously got ahead by the last stop even though they never passed me. That was only 10 hours' cycling (clocked up just under 140 miles through at least one detour), I overdid it at the start and was bonking for the last 5 miles before Verny, needed a couple of hours to feel OK again. Also it was a bad idea to ride a faired bike with soooo many hills - again, was it really only 2000m of climbing?
But yes, it was a great day out and v well organised, good weather and smashing scenery. I'd ridden part of Gavin's 400 with John (above) in the past. I camped out at Houghmond Abbey and got pitched just as the first of several lightning storms struck. Later the custodian came over flashing a lamp but luckily let me stay.
One real PITA was the amount of cars going up Blwch-Y-Gross from Verny - I think they need a one-way system due to the narrowness of the road. In particular a red MG and a vintage sports car kept cropping up at regular intervals. At one point a mother with 2 prepubescent girls in the back of her 4x4 was coming down while the red MG was following me up, and started doing an elaborate and pointless reversing manoeuvre (including the mandatory blocking me off just to exert some control and perhaps punish my scarcely-concealed contempt for her). I just thought, poor kids, there are ANY number of better things they could be doing with their mother up there than re-enact the school run as a recreational activity - like the other families I saw out hiking, closer to Bala.
Luckily the traffic dried up once the fat, lazy people had spilled out their vehicles at the top to admire the view.
