Dave said "You can go now", but the start seemed to be one of reluctance for most, who stayed firmly put. So I set off slowly, presuming to be caught sooner rather than later.
Ron Lawrence caught me and a small group developed on the way to Arlesford.
I was then speeded through the Test valley by Chris Tracey and a Willesden guy, before being dropped shortly before El S's picnic spot adjacent to the A4.
After mugs of tea, beans/toast/cereal/cake/sun cream/rest I set off alone and enjoyed the open spaces up on the Marlborough Downs, and made my way to Cirencester where I had my own private bagdrop, courtesy of a friend and of me working in Ciren.
After much needed rest I just happend upon Martin Stovell at the The White Way traffic lights and we rode together for the rest of the event. The 'going' was reasonably easy via Newent and the Golden Valley to almost Hay-on-Wye,
in glorious evening brightness. The small lay-by was busy with El S' mobile kitchen, a dozen or so AUKs and a common discomfort of hot swollen feet. Steve Underwood had been there for some time and was on the phone to CTC Emergency Rescue with a broken seat-stem clamp.
Route to Magor was pleasant and non-remarkable in the best sense; except perhaps for the aforementioned Steve, who having passed me on route, arrived just after myself having ridden 'last years' route across a mountain instead of the new proposal, down a flat valley.
The fashion seemed to be for people to rent a room to sleep in at Magor, but
a) I'm not quick, so would have only have got a few hours
b) my body seemed to have no inclination to want to sleep
c) etc
So I set off an hour later on the relentlessly long ride to Gloucester, followed by the
horrible ascent of Birdlip, the Cotswold escarpment. At the top I felt shattered, but Martin and I skipped the next prescribed set of Cotswold lanes and valleys for the more pragmatic, time saving, A417.
My bag-drop in Ciren was 2min this time, too early to raise my friends I thought.
Instead, MacDonalds provided the fuel for the journey.
By now it was hot, only to get hotter and hotter in arid sunshine. Martin had been burned on Saturday and was forced into wearing arm and leg warmers all of Sunday!
I found the final 2 sections (100k) quite hard - it was a retrace of the outward bound section but the hills seemed relentless and sometimes gratuitously unnecessary! That said, there were some excellent long swooping descents, the kind of which you don't get in my home (Cotswold) territory.
At the finish, my brain was a bit cooked:
I twice typed in the wrong PIN number at the NatWest ATM and once again at the Barclays, before giving up and riding back up to the petrol station to simply make a purchase.
All in all, a very enjoyable weekend.
Julian
PS If I have any of the above names wrong I apologise - I don't ride many events and am not great with names.
