by huw williams » Mon Jan 28, 2008 10:19 am
[quote="Sylv"]It's all about the bike
Hey Sylv - I hate to admit it but it wasn't the Look - I was afraid of crashing it/getting it dirty. No really - I haven't been on it yet and I didn't want to risk a ride like that on a totally new bike (obviously I'd have been 30 minutes quicker if I was riding it etc etc
)
Like Andrew says there were a load of awesome machines on display - and not just under the Rapha/Recycle/Arctic/Rochford boys. I felt like I was slumming it on my 4 year old Time.
Andrew - Pro teams on Reliabilty rides/Sportives. Seems like a bad idea when they turn up with full support, ride round as a group being aloof - then come into the hall at the end and have their OWN pre-prepared food handed out by the manager. Imagine the positive PR for the team if each rider (there were about 9 of them) had ridden with different groups just to give us mere mortals the chance of saying "I rode with so and so form Rapha Recycle" Ah well....
Snoop - don't worry I felt exactly the same on the first Reliability ride I did about 6 years ago - took me three attempts before I even finished one. You'll be back.
Speed wobbles - I had a chronic one on the Dolan - discovered after several near-death experiences that the stem was cracked underneath - check it in case. Otherwise, refrain from holding the brakes on - ie just brake in short hard intervals to control your speed rather than holding them onto the rim. And locking your knees against the top tube will help.
Fantastic reports guys - and its still January. This is only the beginning...
[size=150]Reality check:[/size] At 114 miles and 3793m of climbing, the ToBM (which a lot of you have signed up for) is pretty close to being twice the distance and twice the climbing as Hell of Ashdown
Snoop if someone had said to you at the top of Star Hill at the end - "Right, now you gotta go round again..." See what I mean?
[size=150]How lucky were we with the weather, its FREEZING this morning [/size]