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| Southwell Minster |
Upon drawing the curtains this morning I was greeted with brilliant sunshine, what more could I want? Well the sun to stay with me would have been nice. As soon as I got in the car the sun went in. By the time I was on the M1 it was raining! Well 'rain' is a slight exaggeration, fine drizzle is more accurate.
Luckily the light drizzle had ceased by 08:30 when after my cup of tea I set off. Within the first kilometre I missed the 2nd turn of the ride, not the best of starts but a stark reminder to keep a beady eye on the satnav. After turning round and following the correct route I was taken through Blackwell, Pleasley and onto Shirebrook, not the nicest places in themselves but some decent cycling roads linking them all together. Once clear of Shitebrook (spot the deliberate spelling mistake) I was heading my first 'control point'.
For those who don't know Audax I'll briefly explain.... You follow a route which is unsigned, you have a detailed route sheet giving full instructions of the route. To prove you have done the route and not taken any short cuts there are control points. These can be manned by the organiser where your brevet card is stamped, they can be an information control where a question is asked on your brevet card. For example today's question was what is the name on the burglar alarm of a house on a T-Junction at Whaley? You simply write the answer on your brevet card. The other type of control is a 'free control' where you have to get a timed and dated receipt of any kind from a town to prove you were there.
On my way to Whaley for the first control I was taken up a quiet leafy lane which was covered in squashed frogs, two frogs seemed to have been squashed in a compromising position, fancy stopping in the middle of the road to do that! Control point done and I was heading for the second control of Bothamsall for tea and cakes and a brief chat with Dad who was manning the control for he is a member of Alfreton CTC who run this ride.
Thats the nice thing about Audax, you are given tea/coffee and often toast or sandwiches at the start, and more tea, coffee, cakes and sandwiches at the finish included in the price which is usually about £5, compare that to the price of a sportive (usually £20 +) and you can see the appeal of Audax. En route there is usually at least one stop where food and hot drinks are available.
I had made good time to the second stop helped by a tailwind which would carry me to Soutwell and the third control, this one being a 'free control' where a quick stop at a cash point gave me my evidence that I had passed through the town. Onwards to the finish back at Alfreton knowing that I would have to turn and face the wind that had pushed me most of the way. Everything was OK until 80k's, then bang.... block headwind and just to rub it in most of the last 25k was uphill as well. Head down and just slog it out was the only way to go, just over an hour later I was back in Alfreton.
At 80k my average speed was 27.2kph, by the finish that had been reduced to 25.1. After coffee and cake I was on my way home quite pleased with my (moving) time of 4 hrs 11mins.
A good start to my Audax year, not sure how many I'll get in as my silly shift pattern rules out most weekends but I have a few already booked and paid for and am looking forward to them already.
Distance = 105.5 km
Time = 4 hrs 11 mins
Ave Speed = 25.1 kph
Ascent = 1165m (11.1 m/km)
2012
Road Bike = 948.2 km
Indoor = 313.5 km
Ran = 121.5 km
Total = 1383.2 km
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