Beast tamed, finally

Two points to start. Yes i completed the Exmoor Beast 100 mile Sportive today. I know I should leave you all in suspense about whether I made it or not, but well, it's a bit like the encores the bands do at the end of a gig (showing my age). You know they are coming back on, they know you know they are coming back on, so why do we all have to go through that ritual of shouting for me, and then they come back. Just stay on the stage until you've finished, for sure.

So I finished the ride, but the blog is in the telling, not the destination. Do you think I would be blogging if I hadn't made it? Actually that's more of an open question than you might think. I really don't know. I did bail from the 100 mile Cheshire Cat in favour of the shorter distance earlier this year.

I digress. The other point is that Bunny and I finally finished the 100-mile event nearly a year after we first started it. Well technically we didn't start it because they cancelled it on the day because of the weather (see last year's post) but we had entered and had every intention of giving it a go.

So 7AM this morning there we were on the start line in Minehead. This year's B & B was next door to last year's, quite by chance (although our host can only be generously described as somewhat grumpy and uncommunicative), but we did eat in the same Italian restaurant as last year. I had the same food. Well the same menu items. Sorry that's gratuitous, For some reason all the waitresses had face painting of cats and a clown, I didn't like to ask why, but the girl with the clown make up was particularly scary.

Lastly, but most significantly, the weather was next door to last year's too. While not in the hurricane envelope, it wasn't nice. Wet, damp, misty, rainy, very windy and loads of leaf mulch and squashed conker shells all over the roads. Tricky on a 20% gradient.

We set off into the gloom of the clocks-turned-back moment, just after 7AM. I had put my back-upz lights on and quite a few other bikes were blinking away, and there was a preponderance of hi-vis rain jackets. I had opted for shorts and the ACG coat thing, because I'm hard. It was quite mild and I didn't want to get hot either so opted for Skip's favourite tactic: layers! I think I got it spot on, as I didn't need to add or divest all day, so apart from frequent use of the zip, and half of Exmoor's topsoil all over my face and legs, it was spot on.

After a bit of undulation out of Minehead, the EB gets serious as it heads up to Dunkery Beacon via Luccombe. After a gradual interaction the route turns left and hits the 20% through the forest. Now I'm not one for petty officialdom, but when the instructions say "don't ride over the cattle grid, you will crash and burn" I tend to take note. Almost all the riders rode through the tarmacked opening by the gateway. But as they say "there is always one" and sure enough he ended up doing an impression of someone looking for his keys at the bottom of a cattle grid whilst clipped in to a road bike.

I had ridden up this hill on the Tour of Wessex, only in the dry and without the road slime. Or the face slime (my cold threw a couple of last gasp presents at me). So eventually I emerged onto the Moor proper, and after the short descent, which involves a hairpin bend and a crossing of a stream whilst riding on cobbles (and yes the current was un-nerving), we snaked our way up the ascent of the west shoulder of the Beacon. The hill on the ToW is harder as it does the Beacon proper. Lightweights aren't we?

Now if a highly competitive, ultra-fit skinny cyclist tells you he is just out for a nice ride and isn't going for a time, don't hear a word of it. Bunny told me this last night and I laughed at the time and I am laughing now. What's that story about the fox and the scorpion? It's in my nature. So that hill was the last I saw of him until the end, but that was OK as I couldn't see much of anything, the moor was completely shrouded in mist. Luckily I could remember which of the descents had a road junction at the end of it, and which had a bridge with a sharp turn. It was harem scarem riding.

By now we had the easterly wind behind us, for the only time during the whole ride as it turned out, as it swung round to the north in the afternoon. I decided to make the most of it as we bombed across the moor towards Lynton. Or Lynmouth. Or both of them, I don't know do I? I looked behind me and found I had a peleton in my wake, somewhat to my surprise. Eventually we fragmented as we descended Contisbury Hill, the climbed up again towards Simonsbath.

This climb is a joy. Moderately shallow, about 5-8% I think, it cuts through a gorge (with shelter) and the leaves were at their spectacular Autumn best. The best bit of the whole day.

It was still a bit bleak up on the top, and after lovely hot soup at Simonsbath, we climbed to a southern ridge before heading east. Into the teeth of the wind. I actually managed to organise a group of six disparate riders to work together for this bit, apart from that I was on my own most of the day. As i was descended into Dulverton, something went funny at the back of my left knee, very suddenly and somewhat painfully. By the time I was on the road going up the Exe valley I had to stop for a couple of minutes it was so painful.

I thought about bailing, I really did, at the very least I thought I might just cycle back to Minehead. At this stage it was about 48 miles on the clock, and every pedal stroke was hurting. But the human body and mind are strange, well mine are anyway. By Weddon's Cross it was easy to kid myself that it was not too bad. So I turned up the hill and carried on. The second feedstop was in a muddy field but the tomato soup was excellent, as were the paracetamol (in fact I'm going to have that for my dinner I think, tomato soup not paracetamol. [although come to think of it....]). I re-traced some of my Bristol to Land's End route back down towards Dulverton and Exebridge, in fact I'd seen a couple of my compadres from that trip on the EB. As well as no less than 4 people from work.

Eventually the route swung north, then west again before a final 1200 foot descent back to Minehead. 100.70 miles in 7 hours 12.30 of cycling time with a respectable 13.9mph. Total time of 7 hours 29 minutes earned me a bronze certificate. Which actually means something because if you come in over 8 hours you get "finisher". If you are a girly 7 hours 25 gets you silver, and Bunny, while not a girl, also got silver with his 6-45. (I think). All of this statistics stuff is a long-winded way of saying I was pretty pleased with my efforts. I had also thoroughly enjoyed the day, despite the weather it was marvellous to spend a day in a beautiful part of out great outdoors. And I'm glad i don't have to do it again, now that I have finally done it.

If you like hills, mud, wind, rain, soup, and lovely countryside, this is the ride for you.

As for the knee, well it's getting RICE at the moment. But the signs are not good. I am resisting Internet self-diagnosis and have opted for bury head in sand and hope it is nothing. I'll know in the morning.

That's the last big ride of the year for me. I want to round off the year by hitting 5000 cycled miles. I have 307 to do, so no rest for the wicked. Anyone wanting to make this easy for me by giving me a draft over to Glasto and back, or up the gorge, is more than welcome.

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/55019740