Sunday morning in the middle of October can only mean one thing (to a few people anyway)...Dunsfold sportive, the last of the southern sportive series for the year. And for my life as a cyclist an anniversary of sorts, as this was the first sportive that I had done when I gave it a go last year.
The morning was a bright one, which would have been good news if it wasn't for the fact that it was around 5 degrees C by the time we started off and as we rolled out some concerned faces contemplated whether they had made the right clothing choice....surely it could only get warmer? Well, with the hills of Surrey calling us like the Sirens of greek legend, we were always going to feel some heat, mainly in the thighs and calves as they 'felt the burn'.
We all of us rolled out in good order...with the exception of Geoff and Nick who had left a little earlier as they were doing the long route (plus another chap who's name escapes me)...that left us 'mid-distance' lollygaggers to form our own peloton along with many others riders of all colours and sizes (even a few ladies too)...myself (Martin B), Chris H, Simon, Andre D, Matthew, Nick, Geoff, Gary (or as i call him, Ironman Gary), Kev...plus one or two others whose names I didn't catch (sorry gents)...and somewhere else Stuart G and Russell were enjoying the fun. Riding in such a large group really is an interesting experience, as you do own the road..and for once, passing traffic pays you full respect!
The first 18 miles or so passed by in a blur...average speed was 18.4 for the first hour, and with at least one hill climb worth a mention in that hour it was clear that a reasonable pace was going to be set. We also passed by Geoff and Nick fixing a puncture, which ultimately led to further trouble and meant they had to abondon the long route. Unlucky chaps. As for the pace, I had to ask a frisky Chris H to wind it down a notch (or three) for fear of blowing up on the impending Leith Hill. What a climb...plenty of riders around at this stage and none of them looking happy. Still, the redhill CC gave a good account of themselves, overtaken little and powering past some fancy looking riders...nothing like being on home turf to spur you on. We kept the speed up as we descended down to the A25 to meet the wall of tarmac that is known on the OS maps as Whitedown...nothing white or down about this part of the ride....all up, all grey and black. Still, having done this one a couple of weeks ago on a G3 ride we were in good form and by now a smaller group consisting of me, Chris, Simon, Andre and Gary were making our way along Ranmore to experience one of life's ironic moments...speeding down Crocknorth Road as riders from London Dynamo and Kingston Wheelers clubs hauled themselves up the steep gradient in the opposite direction!!
Some undulations later...and some excellent descents, saw us back on the A25, enjoying the wide open and blessedly flat road towards Gomshall, but the interlude was brief...before we knew it we were climbing once more, grinding past Holmbury St Mary to the top of the downs (again), only to descend into Albury...and this was the pattern for the next hour or so of the ride...some tasty climbs and some tasty descents...and by now the legs were starting to burn...well mine were. As were the lungs. In fact, even my right eye was starting to feel the pain, having burst a vessel with the strain of my efforts! Ironman Gary and Chris H didn't seem to be suffering from the same issues that the rest of us were, but this is the benefit of riding in the group...when you feel like you have nothing left, someone 15 years older peels past you on the uphill like it is the easiest thing in the world, and nothing other than pride keeps your legs turning!! I maybe slow, but I am proud!! Haha.
However, somehow we were still managing a gold standard pace...and my frantic 'on bike' calculations suggested that with 10 miles to go 'we' needed to average around 17-18 to get that gold...why 'we'? well, for the over 40s and 50s the time adjustment means that these boys could walk the rest and get gold, they were so fast up to now..well done lads. I pray that I'm 50% that good at your age! But this average speed was definitely doable...this last stretch was only supposed to have a few bumps, nothing too severe and by now we were on fire...in certain body parts, literally!
And so we found ourselves climbing once more...up a road that became increasingly poor...where we going the right way? Had we taken a wrong turn? The Garmin seemed to think we had, although where we were meant to turn will forever remain a mystery...and in any case, the ribbons on the side of the road suggested otherwise so we pressed on!! Gary now started to turn the screw and after a mile or two we had split put a bit of distance between us and the rest.
This, alas, proved to be a mistake, for as we reached the main road...DISASTER!!...myself and Gary turned left, following an arrow...but it proved to be a wrong turn, and it took a couple of miles to realise our error!! I won't deny it...at this stage, I was crushed. The disappointment welled up inside me like a volcano...was I close to tears? I was..the possible gold had now turned to silver for us both...the only consolation was that many other riders made the same mistake and we did manage to stop a few from making it as well, which was something. I wont mention those last couple of miles, my mood was dark and language was not for this forum. But as Gary and I rolled over the finish line there was Chris and Simon, who having dropped off the back of us had managed to go the right way at that female parent rodgering T-junction!! Andre followed on shortly after, as did Matthew, who also had some fun and games with poor signage. The moral of this story? Always ride behind Mr Chris Hall, never in front...ironically, this was the only time I have ever managed to be in front of him!!
Still, as we grouped together at the end we shared our war stories (admittedly, mainly me at this stage) and by the look of the weary but happy faces, all agreed that it had been a rather excellent ride, in perfect conditions!! Particularly satisfying for all of us was the fact that all riders felt they were stronger this year than last...a fitting tribute I feel to the club's excellent selection of saturday and sunday rides!
At this stage I'm not sure of all classifications, but I think Chris, Simon and Stuart got golds...silver for me, Gary and probably Andre and Matthew as well...but regardless of the classifications, everyone put in a storming effort and did the club proud on a route that takes in over 4,500 feet of climbing!