Yesterday's Reliability Trial report

[huw williams]

Not many ACCers out on yesterday's ride which is a shame because it was a superb, sunny day. Actually I think I was the sole represenatative on the 104k ride and Connor was out on the shorter ride. Was it because this was the first hilly one?

Gone are the days when you used to register for a 4hour, 4.5hour or 5hour target in this event. In recent years its been hi-jacked by racers in early season training and these days they start off in ability-based groups of either 'Slow', 'Fast ' or 'You really shouldn't be riding at this speed in January!' As well as this you get any number of maverick 'Testers' belting around solo in preperation for '100's' later in the year and getting really pissed off if you sit on their wheel. There are also a lot of riders who join in for short periods along their local sections of the course.

In an attempt to try and beat my previous best of 3hrs40mins (set 2 years ago) for the circuit I joined a group of anorexic looking guys from Agisko/Viner who had all turned up in full team kit and stressed their intention of trying to break 3hrs15. I considered this time a physical impossibility under known laws of physics but figured if I sat with them for as long as possible I'd go close to my target time.

We set off in the first group and were joined by four riders from the 7oaks tri club and about 10 others. Madness ensued straight away. A strong tail-wind whipped us along at 26MPH for 30minutes along the A25 to Oxted where it split, eight riders went off the front and the rest of us chased in the second group at a just about sustainable 24mph through the lanes around Lingfield and Copthorne.

After 28 miles I attacked on the first climb (Turners Hill) with James from CW and we dropped the entire group. We chased hard through Sharpthorne and Wyche Cross where we were caught by 1st cat Chas Hollosi and Reg Smith who were on a suicide mission to catch the leaders. We played out a tough through-and-off past the ski station up on Ashdown Forest (there's a lot of snow up there) and just about stayed together.

Chas went ballistic on the short rolling hills, putting in massive turns on the front into the headwind through Hartfield and Wythiam (what a rider!) and we got to within about 50 yards of the leaders going into the bottom of Groombridge Hill. I was about to attemp to jump accross the gap on the hill but James went BANG! and his doors fell off completely.

I couldn't leave him to die alone, so far from home, so I sat up and nursed him through Fordcombe, Penshurst, and along Chiddingstone Causeway to the final feed station at Four Elms. Leaving him to refuel with cakes I rode the rest of the ride solo, passing one of the shelled-out leaders on Ide Hill and another two on the final climb up Star Hill.

Got back about 8th rider in slightly over 3hrs 25! PB by 15 minutes.
Shattered. Legs empty, hands cramping too much to hold the excellent Bananna loaf on sale in the village hall, even my hair felt tired.

Awesome event.

Week off next weekend then it's the two big hilly ones (Old Ports & Sydenham) on consecutive weekends. Can't wait for the racing to start, it's got to be easier than this!

[Jon H]

I had intended to do this ride, but looked outside at 7am, saw a heavy frost on the cars and decided to have a rest day instead. I was very pleased with my performance yesterday and managed to have a whole day of full-on resting.

[David Lombari]

Didn't get to Knockholt til 8.55 and set off to do the 104 km with Gavin about 9.15. The route notes, in my opinion, were crap and relied heavily on the rider having good local knowledge. We soon lost the route and interest.
I got home, via a hilly route, having done 67 miles but annoyed that I hadn't had the benefit of a 100 mile steady ride like last week.

[Conor Cormican]

I agree with David that the instructions were not the greatest, I relied a little on local knowledge and met a few riders who put me right. I did deviate a little from the short route to take in a few extra hills, (Titsey, Toys and Star) so at the end when I got home I felt I had done a good ride of 62 miles in total at my own pace. I can confirm that Hue was looking quite tired but very satisfied with himself.

[huw williams]

I think youre both right, this ride has become far more of a training ride than a reliability trial and as I said in the above report, the guys at the front were treating this ride even more seriously than that. If you get full teams including 1st and 2nd cat riders trying to drop each other from start to finish then you're racing pretty seriously. My av.speed for the 30 flat miles to the half way point at Turner's Hill was quicker than my av.speed for the last circuit race I did at Hillingdon, which is amazing on open roads in traffic. That's not what Reliability Trials used to be like.

Catford cc are used to the same hardcore of riders turning up year in year out plus a few first timers, but the icy conditions early yesterday must have put a lot of people off. I think they have (wrongly) assumed that there will be riders in any given group who know the route.

Usually there is a much bigger turnout and a much steadier main group including Catford CC members who act as navigators. That didn't seem to happen yesterday probably down to the reduced numbers. That's fine as long as they produce an accurate route card but that doesn't seem to have been the case.

Maybe you could drop the organiser an email via their website at http://www.catfordcc.co.uk. They're a very well meaning and 'agreeable' bunch at Catford CC and would appreciate your feedback if it helps them improve next year's event.

[Ian A4size]

I'm with Jon H with this one, i never intended getting up for an early at all -least of all to haul my ass round some of kents finest at breakneck speed, or my version of. I had intended to have sunday off and clean the bikes etc and get everything ready for majorca- it was really hard to not get out as i have ridden every sat and sun for most of last year and the weather was just great. Very frosty here on sat night and the frost stayed on the ground where it was out of the sun all day, the back lanes home on the club run on saturday were still icy at 12 midday!
When i get back its full swing to the hills again. Huw- praps we can arrange a Kent raid along the lines of our last saturday version excursion, it seemed to go down well or praps a "all new hills ride " starring loads we didn't do last time ending up with a full on TOSH in the middle of march?

[huw williams]

Yeah there was a bit of ice around on Sunday but none on the roads we used thankfully.

Good idea about another long one. If I can stay alive for the next three weeks I'll re-instigate the '3-counties 100' which is 100k (plus a 100 miles option for sportive riders) and takes in hills in the 3 counties of Surrey, Kent and West Sussex. It's got some pretty big hills but plenty of flat too to recover. It's not relentless climbing like Tosh.

Last couple of weekends in Feb? Then a complete ToSH plus the ride out there and back in early March? Weather permitting of course.

What do you reckon?

[Ian A4size]

YES I AM UP FOR IT! (CANT SEEM TO TURN OFF THE CAPS) GUESS WE HAVE TO JUST HOPE FOR GOOD WEATHER AROUND THE TIME AND HOPE WE GET LUCKY_ SHOULD BE A GOOD TURNOUT AS WE HAVE QUITE A FEW SPORTIVE COMBATANTS IN THE CLUB

[Gavin]

As Dave said we got completly lost.

We did have a nice trip to Edenbridge though and over to westerham.

Not worth the 3 pounds though.

[siwickm]

I have got a soft copy of the ESCA reliability ride which goes from Horstead Keynes which is close to the Ashdown Forest. This ride is about 60miles and has some good little climbs in. Nothing majorly steep but a few long climbs of reasonable gradient.

I did this ride late last year and it was really good. As I say I have the route sheet so it would just involve a bunch of ACCers riding down to Horstead Keynes for the start and then we can do it. I reckon all in all it would be about 115miles from CSS to do the route and get back. You could always get the train to and back from EG which would cut a large chunk of that out though.

What do you reckon, fancy a ride around the Forest, it is a really good route.

cheers

Marek...

[huw williams]

What date is this one Marek?

[siwickm]

Sorry Huw, maybe I did not make it clear. This can be done anytime we can get some people together to do it. Basically I got the route sheet off the organiser so I can print off enough copies for however many accers fancy coming along. I am not around next weekend but the weekend after is a possibility, although I won't be doing it at 25mph. Maybe we should wait until the Reliability Ride season has slowed/finished and then do it.

Cheers

MArek..

[huw williams]

Yeah, sounds good - seems like a lot of people want long rides towards end of feb and right through March.

Set a provisional date as soon as you can (anytime after 19th feb) and we'll do it.

[siwickm]

Sunday 5th March would be best for me.

[huw williams]

OK, weather permitting (Temperature must be above freezing) we'll go for it.