3 counties challenge

andy610

anyone entered this yet or done it last year im thinking of doing the 100k one, does it get full quick

ash68

hey andy, doing it this year. Already got my entry in otherwise i would leave it too late or forget.Doing the long ride, can't remember how many km 's it is.Think with it being new last year entries didn't seem to fill up too quickly. But it got lots of good reviews so probably best not to leave it too late, better safe than sorry. Understaned it to be a very demanding ride so I'll be doing plenty of training for it.Hope you get your entry in and might might see you over there.

LeighB

Hello Andy I did this event last year and thoroughly enjoyed it. The course covers quite a few good climbs and the distance was 125 miles. The three hard climbs were-
the ‘Coal Road’ from Dent Station over to Garsdale Station which kicks in with a very steep climb then keeps on going up, ‘Buttertubs’ from Hawes to Keld was quite hard, then after 100 miles you have to climb Kirkstone Pass from Ullswater. Kirkstone is a hard climb but after 100 miles it becomes a monster climb. For training I did the climbs individually on shorter routes from home and this gave me what I thought would be a good idea of what was ahead; on the day the combination of climbs and distance made this a very real challenge. I would like to do this event again this year to try and improve on my time.

ash68

hey, Leigh what time did you do it in last year? I cycled over the Kirkston Pass from the Ullswater side last year on the way to Ambleside. II did it on my touring bike and your right it is a very hard climb from that side. Is that the hardest climb on the ride or is there worse ones on the route. Thanks in advance, Ash

LeighB

Sorry for the long wait with the reply, just been out with family and dog for a walk. It took me just under 9 hours so this year I would like to be a bit quicker. Kirkstone is the hardest climb but other bits are very wearing. After Buttertubs you drop into Keld but then keep climbing until you drop again down to Kirkby Stephen; I found this a bit of a grind; after this you are half way and I was in need of a rest at the feed station. Going down the side of Ullswater I became quite unsettled at the thought of what was coming and when I caught another cyclist I did not want to go past, my confidence had gone and I some how thought if I went past I would fail on the climb. I did go past and made the climb up Kirkstone but three quarters of the way up my right leg felt like it was going to cramp so I began to alternate between sitting and standing and made the climb ok. After this you still have another few small hills but nothing too serious. The route was easy to follow, the feed stations were excellent and altogether it was a good day out. The finishing times went from just over 7 hours up to 12 hours so there was a good spread of ability so you should not get to lonely.

ash68

thanks for the info, Leigh