Devil ride 10th Aug

kingi

Hola
Noobie here

Anyone doing the :twisted: Devil ride this weekend?

just 10,000 feet of climbing in the 100 miles...can't be that tricky can it?

mozwyn69

Yep I will be there with a few mates (one travelling down from Glasgow). Fantastic part of the world but it's going to be a tough one I think. Lets hope the weather inproves.

Brian B

Me and my bro are traveling down from Scotland. Looking forward to it and hope the weather improves a tad. Give us a wave if you see us on the Day - We both big blokes and will be riding a Storck Scenario and Orbea Orca bikes.

Now only if I could win a Orca frame - that would make it GREAT day out.

Bikerbaboon

forcast for the weekend is rain with more rain and then some fog to improve the views....... sounds like fun :twisted: :twisted:

alanmcn1

Found out am free this weekend just as the ride sold out........................arse!

have a good one

Brian B

Sundays weather looks ok on the Met and BBC sites. I dont put much faith in 5 day forecasts anyway. Hope its not raining though as I got more than my fair share on the Mega Challange sportive

howiejmidlands

I will be there, opting for the shorter option however.

Wearing my bee jersey.

Hoping for warmer weather, but not as hot as 2 weeks ago on the Tour of Black Mountains.

kingi

weather forecast seems to have improved. Sundays predicted rain will now fall on Saturday.

I will be mostly riding my Parlee probably with blue shorts & top

Rich.H

I'll be there as well and will be hoping for a dry ride - I deserve one after some of the UK events I have done this year and the Etape. I am really looking forward to it as it expect the route to be fantastic, given the reputation of the organisers.

And yes, it would be a bonus to win the Orbea frameset!!

I'll be on a white / black Look and assuming its dry, a white jersey.

Good luck

Rich

timetrialler

I'll be there too !
Having done the Dave Lloyd Mega Challenge, I'm thinking that the Devil ride can't quite be as extreme as that one was - but I'm taking nothing for granted and I'll still treat it with plenty of respect !
It doesn't have to be sunny, just dry roads would be nice !

petboo

this is my first sportive so quite excited,been doing plenty of hills. bit worried about the 25% bit but did the mowcop killer mile in the week just to see how it felt.gets the heart rate up a bit.

howiejmidlands

Oh it hurt!

As some of you may know, your fat bloke here is not a climber, so the 25% hills straight out of the start gate hurt...a lot.

Then the wind, rain, more rain, and going over the moors was a little character building to say the least. Then there was the cattle grid that took out 3 riders, i dont know who they were, but i hope they were OK. They had a guy on the grid telling you to go around it was rather dodgy.

Eventully got to the bottom of the staircase, good job i didnt have to climb it on the bike, would have killed me! A gentle walk up the 25% beast, quick top up at the feed then onto the Little Devil. Sun is now out, wind is doing its best to blow me off, and some of the roads were rather unsavoury with all the grit and muck on them.

I eventually drag my fat and weary body back to the Sports Centre, was hoping for a sub 7 hours on the little one, only managed 7:06. Bit disappointed, but a hot cup of tea and a bacon butty made the world a better place.

To the guys that said hello, hi to you all, i was struggling a lot today. And a big respect to the lady from Essex, who i caught and passed before the Staircase. I am gald you got round in one piece it was a little tricky at times.

Big rest now and build up to the Autumn Epic......bring it on.

MartinJ

That was tough! The first 32 miles were brutal with over 4500ft of climbing. Climbing at 16% after les than a mile set the tone for the ride, soon to be followed by 25%. Not helped by the wind and rain!

I think the Devil's Staircase is the steepest hill I've riden up - though strangely it was more comfortable than some of the other climbs - jsut taken very slowly - I was glad of my 11-28 cassette.

It was a relief to reach Tregaron and no longer be riding into the wind. Managed to recover after finding the early part really tough. I took 4:08 for the first 57ish miles to the second feed, but only 2:20 for the folowing 43. I was really pleased to get a gold on such a tough day.

Organisation was spot on - very clear sign posting. I liked the sports centre as HQ - I enjoyed the chance to sit and chat with a few other riders at the end. And the bacon roll was excellent!

Whiskeyjack

First ever sportive, first time I've ridden over 60 miles too.
Respect to MartinJ, I only managed 7.42 and I'm younger than you!
I was hoping for Silver before the race, but the weather and the insane amount of climbing put paid to that foolish misconception, I was just pleased to finish without walking up any climbs in the end. I'll get silver next year hopefully.
Met a nice bloke on the way who helped keep my speed up for first 50 miles or so, then I helped him get through the last 50 so we were quits.
Great organisation, very clearly signposted. Very professional at the end.
Didn't like the wet roads and cross winds on the descents though
Overall top event.

skinsey

I'd just like to second the comments on the organisation. These events get progressively slicker, and this was excellent - really good pre-event communication, everything worked smoothly on the day, good feedstops, great route and signage that left no room for doubt whatsoever. Just a shame the weather couldn't have been organised too!

I'll be back next year if it's run again - although I was on the verge of cramping from 60 miles onwards, I managed to keep the legs in check on the last few climbs and come in with a time of 6h20, to give me my first ever sportive Gold. Maybe that's why I'm so effusive!

Anonymous

Yes, what a great day...Me and Brian had a great experience.

Much much tougher than most expected I presume...however I had did my homeowrk on this and they claimed 10,000 ft of climbing....when I Memory Map'd the route it came out at 3800meters...now MM over-estimates routes of this size with around 250meters...so giving the beneifit of doubt I'll chop 400meters, still it would be 3400meters? which is more like 11500ft climbing.

I hear a lot of Lads saying "this is one hell of a tough event" enroute..and they were right!

Since I'm a dreadful starter the first climb out of Builth gave me a right kickin...fairly steep ramps straight away...one sign said 25% but no way was it 25%...maybe 18%?....anyway it hurt like hell in that wind tunnel up there...lot more dipping and climbing before the big scary descent into near Beulah..guys were taking chances here...in fact guys were flying passed me on the first 20miles or so...and I did think "they are either Sh*thot or they will die later on...seen it so many times now on Sportives"...off onto the Abergwesyn Pass...the weather was looking very iffy...gorgeous scenery unfolded...then onto the showcase...said to my bro "Good luck"....now we have been up mostly all the steep brutes in the country and I must say even I was fairly alarmed at the sight of the first ramp...Crazy Steep...had a very Hardknott feel about it....a Very tough and steep climb....very unrelenting..however with a bit of balancing to avoid wheel slip we managed up ok...at the first feed we had a downpour...off we went onto Gammalt..the weather started to really lighten up here and it lifted our morale bigtime....Gammalt was very slippy and my Pro2 tyres just kept slipping everytime I got out the saddle...had to sit the steep sections out in the saddle...up and over this..not as bad as the Staircase IMO...then onto 'Cenglau'...this was a stiff climb after the previous efforts(especially into a strong headwind)...met Robert Cole here and had a nice wee blether.....then the VERY treacherous descent into Tregaron...at last we hit a good long flat stretch...we made good time along here...Brian put a fair pace on....then onto the unspoken climbs nearing Devils Bridge...one said 16%...and boy did it feel it...then there was an enormous long cracking climb right up the shoulder of a mountain before the 2nd feed...we were climbing well here...passing many...we then descended into a stunning valley with what looked like the remnants of an open slate mine..beautiful...then onto the 2nd feed...gorged myself as usual and met up with JamesB(the designer of the route)..had a real nice talk with him...off again into the most stunning climb into the Elan Valley..but now the feasome wind enemy of the Abergwesyn Pass morphed into our Allie for the climb out of here...great tailwind...this steepened nearing the top and a photographer had positioned himself...Brian put his best 'Freemans Catalogue' Pose on...I just had a wee laugh with the guy...the descent off that was great...then through Ryhader(sp) and up to Aber-Cwm-Hir...that was a steep sod...after the switchback it really steepened up to the summit...seen much suffering here!....then more dipping and ducking to the final Feed....a very quick top up then off for the final stretch...very flattish downhill to start with...then 2 big long straight drags presented themselves...Me/Brian were hoping for a clear run to the finish but I remembered 'JamesB' telling me "keep a bit in the Tank for the final stretch"...we seen a 10% sign...hah...if that was 10% then I'm gonna be the next pope!...more like 20%...think they must have run out of Road signs...up this...then it just went on and on...with more steepish ramps..these were hurting us I must say....anyhow we finally topped off and took a wee left onto a lovely back country road...much more wee steep climbs came in quick succession...for us this was a tough ending...we finally plummeted down to Builth....our times 7.32...rather pleased with that...as I've put nearly a full stone on on my holiday to Gran Canaria...and it did affect my climbing ...Brian was on great shape and could have got a better time but hey!...we were there to enjoy it all...and we certainly did.

Conclusion...the route was perfect...it was VERY VERY hard...only the DLMC had a tougher first 100miles...but the roads and scenery on this ride were tremendous...I really mean it...what a fantastic route...with well surfaced small backroads galore...the Abergwesyn Pass was a really serious effort....not for the light hearted...but what an amazing piece of road...I must congratulate JamesB bigtime for his efforts in designing what we think was one of the most fantastic routes we have ever ridden.....the organisation was just superb aswell....even 'caution signs' at every T junction with a main road...we just had one of our very best days ever....and since I never got home until 11.45pm lastnight I've not had a chance to look in my goody bag...by the way...how do you fnd out who won the Orca Frame...I could do with another one:-)

My ONLY gripe...the mass start...Very dangerous so many starting at once...usually ends up with far too many going out too fast and taking too much risks on the Downhill stretches...maybe better to stagger the start from say 7.30-9.30?

Ever since I seen the Kidderminster CC article on the 'Elenith' Audax I've been gagging for a pop at the Devils Staircase/Gammalt etc...and to think that this brilliant event all got started because of an entry I put in on the www.Cyclosport.Org forum asking 'why no devils staircase sportif?'....and smart guys like JamesB and Phil Weaver took up the challenge and have created this whopper of a challenge...it really is a satisfying feeling....me/brian spent £80 on Diesel..£50 on B=B...spent 14 hours in terrible Driving Conditions...and you know what?...it really was still so worth the effort!...thanks a million to all the Organisers and all the support staff.

antonylp

Great report RICHYBOYcp. Inspirational!

I am thinking about having a go at a sportive, maybe the Autumn Epic.

Well done!

MartinJ

Results now posted:

http://www.sportident.co.uk/results/2008/DevilRide2008.pdf

Brian B

Not much else I can say as my bro richyboy has done a good job of it. The scenery was great - in fact fantastic and i saw my first red kite(actually saw several that day).

I apologise in advance if i offend anybody here - but I saw a fit girl yesterday with the nicest pair of legs that I have ever seen and they were even better than the scenery.

howiejmidlands

Any links to the photgrapher???

Phekdra

Looks like a fantastic day out - I really hope it's on again next year as I've only been seriously riding for about six months and reckoned it was too early for me. I'm looking forward to reading more stories to get me in the mood! :shock:

Phekdra

Campervan27

What an absolute corker !! First ever Sportive and loved every minute (I think!!)
Felt great for the first mile then someone threw in continual hills, rain and wind at me for the next 60 miles which put me off a bit. Regreted saying to God that I felt freezing cold after the staircase, to which his response was to throw in the Gamalt !! Soon warmed up again after that first feed station.
Seriously, felt ok until the last feed station and then slowed to an hour and a half for the last 15 miles.... my little boy can go quicker than that with his stabilisers.
Funniest bit (if there was a funny bit) was chatting to someone for about ten miles then looking across at him and his face had completely changed ... "oh crikey, now I'm tripping!!" I said to myself and quickly gobbled up another energy gel.
Looking forward to the Epic next, if I can get it past the mrs.
Also a big up to everyone else who did it, great community who made the event a real pleasure. Massive personal achievement, dare I say it, I'm a little bit pleased with myself!!
:twisted:

mozwyn69

Oh well I didnt win the frame...
Fantastic scenery, great organisation and more hills than you could shake a stick at. A great event and destined to become a bit of a classic methinks.

bonk man

ERRRR didn't suit my time trialler legs very much :? Bit slow going up but didn't walk any of it, nearly threw the bike in a hedge as the front mech was doing what it felt like , mostly chucking the chain over the big ring.....

The sheep dodging was fun going into Rhayader at 50 mph.

Best bits.......... seeing a buzzard being mobbed by 2 Peregrine falcons up the Elan valley, beating the guy I had been racing [ after a fashion.. ] all the way round, he was better going up hills as he was extremely skinny and I was much quicker on the flatter bits and descents,, got him for 1 minute and the best bit one of the marshals telling me there were quite a lot of folk stuck in the hills unable to finish

Worst bits.......... gear problems, 1 in 10 hills that were more like 1 in 8's and driving home feeling a bit pukey from all the energy drink.. blech....

Excellent event and well organised.

If you liked the route there is a similar ride this weekend from Gladestry [ nr New Radnor ] 130 miles and including the Elan valley up and down.. It is an audax so easier time limits but nearly as hilly, lights might be needed for slower riders [ like me] .. There is a pub at the finish,,, good old Audax :P
The Elan and Ystwyth is on the Saturday [16th] and a hideous event called the Tregaron Dragon is on the Sunday.... and guess which hill that takes in...
:twisted:

http://www.aukweb.net/cal/index.htm for an audax calender