The long road to Devon

So, the week of the back-to-back long rides was here, the first real test of whether I could string together more than one long-distance ride. It started fairly innocuously with a perfectly normal return to work after 10 days away from the office, although I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the 5.15am alarm call. But by Tuesday lunchtime I was beginning to feel distinctly average – cold, achy joints, headache and an upset stomach. Not the best preparation for two mega days in the saddle, or perhaps worse still, I could be forced to cancel the whole weekend’s trip.

I had a ticket to the Chelsea v Bolton game on Tuesday night, but the thought of sitting in a cold draughty stadium did not sit well with my condition. And I know the part of the stand that my seat is in has only 2 proper loos – and those are usually occupied by smokers trying to get a nicotine fix before ejection by the security staff. Too risky. So I went home and went to bed early instead, hoping to wake up in a better state next morning. After a torrid night, I didn’t feel any better, so stayed at home in bed for the rest of the day. More out of hope than expectation, I got all my cycling clothing and gear ready on Wednesday evening for Thursday’s ride to my parents’ home near Swindon.

Thursday morning I woke to a pleasant day and feeling a lot better. Thankfully, it seemed like my illness had been nothing more than a 24-hour bug. Still, I hadn’t eaten much over the past 2 days and that inevitably meant I would be short of energy. It was also a cold day, due to a NE wind, especially when the sun disappeared behind a cloud. I rode very conservatively, with Friday’s tougher and longer ride ahead of me, but did worry that perhaps I’d got back on the bike too soon.

Having reached my parents’ home after an 85 mile ride I felt relatively okay, and certainly less tired than I’d done two weeks ago after battling a headwind the entire way. Didn’t sleep particularly well though – legs still seemed to be turning! Departed at 8am the following day to begin the long slog to Exeter, with my spirits lifted by another sunny day and a very welcome tailwind. The first 40 miles or so were pretty flat, or could even have been a bit downhill overall, and it was a constant battle not to get carried too away and blast along. All the same, I made good progress to Bradford on Avon, through some very pretty Cotswold villages – amazing how many villages win ‘Village of the Year’, but a new designation I spotted along the way was ‘Longest Village in England’ (distinctly unimpressive, but Brinkworth at 6 miles, if you’re interested!). Thereafter, the riding became steadily more challenging as I passed through Frome and Castle Cary on the edge of the Mendips, before stopping for a much-needed lunch in the rather plain town of Somerton after 80 miles. Refuelled and slightly rested I continued on, knowing that the really hilly stuff was still to come in the latter part of the ride.

The road started to get much more challenging around Ilminster, with some proper climbs over the Blackdown Hills, but by then I knew that I was only about 40 miles from the end – and could look forward to stunning views at the top of every climb. Strangely, and encouragingly, I almost started to feel a bit stronger in this part of the ride – maybe the tailwind was getting stronger! It was only in the last 25 miles that I started to cover the same ground as my ride down to Cornwall 5 years ago – and I was pleased to recognise a farm shop on top of a ridge near Smeatharpe that I’d stopped at on that trip – for an ice-cream. So I did the same this time – the nice old dear in the shop even offered to give me a cup of tea, but I didn’t think that would go too well with my Solero. She also repeated her advice of 5 years ago that it was all downhill to Poltimore from here – a cheering thought, but not exactly true! I eventually reached my destination some 130 miles and 10 hours after setting off – a pretty sedate pace on that basis, but about 8.5 hours of cycling and mission accomplished.

What’s really started to encourage me is the fact that I seem to be recovering from long rides much more quickly than I did before – this may be because I’m not trying to go at breakneck speeds, but hopefully it shows that my body is starting to adapt to the increased demands I’m asking of it. Given I’d feared the mid-week illness would scupper the ride completely, I very pleased to have ridden over 230 miles, which is my largest weekly mileage in 5 years.


Weekly totals
Commute – 15 miles
Other rides – 216 miles

Funds raised to date £1928.