Lakeland Loop

Yesterday, I took part in the Lakeland Loop cyclosportif, organised by Epic Events. Starting off from the New Dungeon Gyhll Hotel in Langdale, the route is ~112 km, finishing off with climbs over the infamous Hardknott and Wynrose passes. It was a great day; perfect weather, a well organised event and great guys to cycle with. (Pic shows me and George at the top of Hardknott).

I really enjoyed the ride but Hardknott and Wynrose are total b@st@rds!! I was doing pretty well on all the other hills, managing to stay in the saddle most of the time. But when I hit the 1:3 sections and had to get out of the saddle, my power drained fast and I struggled. About four fiths the way up Hardknott, on one of the 1:3 ramps, I got caught up in some stones at the side of the road, lost my balance and fell off, bashing my right thigh. George very generously sacrificed his own climb, hopping off to help me back on my way with a big push. Using every ounce of energy left, I ground my way up the last few ramps and got to the top. After a recovering at the top and down the other side, I did ok most of the way up Wrynose but then, ~100 m from the end, out of the saddle again, I just ran out of juice, ground to a halt, and fell off for a second time, this time bashing my left side!

Got back to the New Dungeon Gyhll Hotel in just under 6 hours, which included generous rests at the feed stations. So, a great day but I certainly feel that I have some unfinished business; definitely plan to sign up for this again next year and, with a bit of power training in the meantime, I will get to the top of Hardknott and Wynrose without falling off!