Cheshire Cat ride reports!
Comments
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Cheers for that Marko1962, I'll certainly keep a close eye on that site. There was a photographer crouching by the righthandside of the road as I was going up, perhaps he's taken the pics. Thanks again !Marko1962 wrote:Lastpubrunner, you mentioned not being photographed, well keep an eye out at http://www.philoconnor.com/sportivephoto.htm , Apparently there was over 8000 photos taken at the Cheshire Cat. I wasn't shot either over at Rob Crayton photography either so was a little disappointed at not having a memento for my first ever sportive, still at least we got a goodie bag full of advertising leaflets and a buff like thing to remember it by :roll:0 -
ooh, I cant see any of the pics as the work filter blocks access to the site :evil:
will have to wait until later to see the strange face I'm undoubtably making!! :?
I remember there being a photographer just before the Cheshire View pub on mow Cop and also on crouching part way up Swiss Hill...so either way its not going to be a pretty picture of me :oops:0 -
on the rob crayton page - have you tried the last few pages (not sorted by rider number)? Lots in there - that's where I was.0
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I do love Buffs - I must have about 6 by now ? Maybe the pink on this will match my Rapha pink jersey !0
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A great event all round with the shun shining all day what more could we ask for?
My ride started off badly with a puncture early on and lost the group I was riding with. I had hoped to catch them up but the repair took a little longer than anticipated hence a few miles on my own.
Stocked up on bananas at the first feed station and then rode most of the route to Mow Cop with a guy from the Wirral (apologies forgot your name) I hoped the Banana I gave you helped with the poor legs?
Mow Cop was a breeze and I appreciated the guy at the top shouting at me to try to avoid the grid and the ice (THANKYOU)
As I had never ridden the route before it felt like a mystery tour and "thankfully" didnt know what was coming around the next corner.... YES ANOTHER HILL!!
Stopped to collect a waterbottle that had jumped off a guys bike on the way down from Macc Forest, it was like a relay race.
A great descent and fast from the Mac Forest but did worry slightly when I saw the photographer jump out of the bushes for an action shot as I thought he was the local bobby attempting to get cyclists that speed. I did clock 48mph though
A nice rounding off up swiss hill to finish the ride and a gentle 19mph back to Knutsford with the guy I am pictured with sorry forgot to say well done.
http://www.veloriders.co.uk/phpBB2/view ... 2d03823689 (last picture)
Was a tad upset with the qualtity of the contents of the "goody bag", a power bar/ flapjack would have been more suitable than more reading material.
Hope everyone who I spoke to enjoyed the ride too.
Nick0 -
singlespeedexplosif wrote:Oh - one other thing. White jersey, black bib shorts. Bib over top of jersey. you know who you are. More a crime against humanity than a crime against fashion, that one.
NO WAY! :shock:0 -
Taylor - cheers for that link...
woo!!!
a pic of me (top one)....I remember the big hole as you turn into Swiss Hill too that I'm obviously consciously trying to avoid!!0 -
Who was that??
Crime against cyclists!0 -
spanielsson wrote:The best part of the day was one particular chap asking the question "are you the real Will Hub?!"
Will Hub, cycling legend. Move over Eddy Merckx!
And that chap would have been me, (By my powers of later deduction, I take it that the other two were spanielsson and sportbilly? ?)
Started off in a good group untill the routes split, they all went on the 102/5 miler. On own for a bit then tagged on to a passing bunch until the first feed stop. Meeting bikeradar 'stars' after first feed stop and seeing Howie at the bottom of the climb, tried to say hello, came out more as a gasp!.
Managed Mow Cop on 39x27, (no pics tho
)had to walk the final bit of Macc forest, but managed all of Swiss Hill.
Very cautious on the downhills, (getting cramp in my arms from braking!!) Hit a bad patch between the two feed stops, had to force myself to eat, could only manage a mouthfull at a time,
Finished the 66 miler in 4:52, Happy that I managed Mow Cop and Swiss Hill, should have tried harder on Macc Forest! Weather could not have been better, lovely lanes (loads of walkers though). As has been said by others, a finishing certificate would have been nice, and the chance for a bacon buttie at the end!0 -
I did the 102 miler, a much better route this year - Macc forest was ace. I’ve no idea what my time was, are they going to post them online or what?
The signage was passable, but there was a poor choice of food at the feed stations (I actually like sausage rolls but plenty of people were moaning) – and no food at the finish at all, shame.
Will be back next year all the same.0 -
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Mettan wrote:Marko1962 wrote:The route signs were mostly OK except for the first right hand turn off the first main road we came too, didn't see it...
Marko - was that the Smithy Green/Lower Peoover turnoff near the start of the ride?
Yes I'm pretty certain that was the one, the right hand turn on the A50 Toft road for the B5081. I was expecting the turn but didn't see any sign at all, not saying it wasnt there just that I didn't see it. I did see another rider in front of me go straight past the turn before being called back so perhaps there was a problem with the sign, it either wasn't there or badly placed.0 -
Well that was interesting !
Another super sunny day, out in the sunglasses – a whole of Summer of this, bring it on ! 8)
Things have improved with the Cheshire Cat – last year it was pretty easy, this year they’ve stuck some more climbs in it and now it’s worthy of being a sportive !
I got in some quick groups to start with and spun round very nicely without too much effort until that really muddy lane before Mow Cop which broke it up.
Mow Cop itself was a chunk harder than last year, because this time we had the loose gravel : I went wide on the steep bit to pass a couple of slower riders, got on the gravel and had a bit of a heart-stopper as the back wheel spun-out for a couple of pedal revolutions until I got traction again. There was a car trying to get past, but with slipping on the gravel, plus all the parked cars, spectators and slower riders all over the road, I decided he could wait, although I did feel a bit sorry when I let him past at the top and smelled his clutch...
The descent to Rudyard was good, some seriously quick descending but very narrow, muddy and loose gravel :shock: ...plus that ford...
Although it was a bit depressing then to have to struggle back up towards Heaton, up the road we zoomed down with such ease only a fortnight before on the Leek CC mini-sportive...
Danebridge and Wincle were good : rapid and twisty down, then a big steep bugger and people zig-zagging all over the road in front of me Over the top and...there’s an even bigger one ahead !
- some rather unladylike language from the ‘lady’ triathletes I was passing at the time !
Knowing the route down to Sutton, I cracked-on and must have sailed straight past the last feedstop - perhaps next time I should look for signs rather assume I know the way...
Up Macc Forest, taking it easy on the bottom bit and then having to force-on over the top – that was hard, I was reduced to switching-off the brain, concentrating on the next 10 feet and not looking up to the top.
On the other hand, the bit afterwards, that steady climb up to the Cat&Fiddle road which I’ve always hated, seemed easy to just get into a rhythm on.
Quick but safe down to Lamaload, rather quicker down into Bollington but again with a bit of a squeeze on the brakes where the lump is and the side-turning – just as well as suddenly there’s a big white van coming-up on the middle of the road...
Swiss Hill was very straightforward – lots of tyretracks and mud brought onto the cobbles just above the flats, but having done it three times previously I’d got the technique and was confident I could get up.
My problem was just in that last few miles back from Alderley Edge to Knutsford. Having missed the last foodstop, I’d now run out of water too and was starting to bonk, so instead of a push to the finish I had to watch the group I’d passed earlier go past me, tried to tag-on but got dropped. Fortunately another lone rider caught me and I was able to stick with him, he was a bit quicker than I could manage and I nearly dropped-off, but I knew the way so kept catching-up at each junction.
I made the ‘102 miler’ actually 107, and with cycling to and from the event I totalled 128.3, longest day so far this year, and my time was about 25 minutes longer this year than last, but for 107 miles rather than 98, and with a lot of extra hills, so I was pretty pleased with that.
KiloToGo seemed to have made a much better job of the event this year.
The signage was good – last year, quite apart from those which were taken-down, the signing wasn’t very good at all and quite easy to miss; this year there were usually signs in advance of a turning, at the junction itself, then after the junction to confirm you were on the right route, which is exactly what we need.
Perhaps the hazard signs were a bit inadequate though – other sportives have big warning signs at dangerous junctions and other hazards, but I only saw a few yesterday, at Lamaload and the ford for instance, and they weren’t very big or very obvious. It would have been easy to go steaming-in far too fast downhill to that t-junction give-way at the Highwayman on the way down to Bollington for instance. I suppose it’s a balance – too many warning signs might encourage people to assume it’s safe if they’ve not seen a sign, they miss one and doo something silly...
The (two I saw !) foodstops were crowded and with queues, and the choice was poor : a nice fried doughnut before going up Mow Cop ? Other sportives manage flapjacks as well as energy bars and gels.
And it was a shame there was no food at the finish, although this year there was tea and coffee, but it would also have been nice to get an energy bar or something in that goody bag – High5 were supporting, I’m sure they could have provided something to KiloToGo at bulk trade price.
I wonder how many people got their free gel either – last year we got a voucher at sign-on which we took to the high 5 guy and exchanged for a free gel : this year no voucher but I wandered-over to the high5 guy and he had a box on the stand saying ‘Free Gels, one per rider’ : I wonder how many people didn’t realise and missed this ?
Although on the positive side, personally I’m quite happy with the freebie Buff/Hedy (aka ‘multifunctional microfibre headwear’) – too many t-shirts already, so another one wouldn’t have been that much of a treat and at least I could stuff this into my pocket and cycle home, which might not have been so easy if they’d given me a mug or maybe a chunk of Swiss Hill cobble mounted on a plinth !
And a couple of things that weren’t KiloToGo’s fault, but ours : too many gel wrappers and banana skins on the road and too many riders not bothering to look before they changed direction or pulled-out to pass a slower rider : you haven’t got mirrors or eyes in the back of your head, so please glance over your shoulder before you swerve out into someone else’s path !0 -
The times are up on the kilotogo website:
http://www.kilotogo.com/index.php?optio ... event_id=7
unfortunately, it does confirm my memory of just scraping in under the 6 hour mark!If I can feel the pain in my arse, I mustn't be hurting my legs enough.0 -
Hey! I'm on the list!0
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Yes, some interesting results there.
Some people I thought did the 66 are shown as 102 and vv.
And did some people really manage to do the 102 in sub-4:30 ?
:shock:0 -
Alan Baker Derby 102 miles 61 02:22:15
Stephen Holt Abingdon 102 miles 718 02:39:42
Something not right here, either people are cheating, Kilotogo have got it wrong or we have a new breed of supercyclists
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If you want to look at times - a Time Trial is best. This is just a bit of fun.
And anyone else thing gels should be banned ? They are bloody gooey once you've finished with them, and I wonder if thats why so many seem to get tossed rather than put back into a pocket ? FFS - if you're big enough to ride one of these events, then surely you have learnt to put rubbish in the bin ?0 -
Yes, a 43mph average for Alan Baker is pretty impressive.
To be fair, I think most of the gel wrappers on the road were accidental and just fell out of riders' pockets. I certainly saw it happen a couple of times to riders in front of me.0 -
cougie wrote:If you want to look at times - a Time Trial is best. This is just a bit of fun.
You are certainly right however it's good to know how you stand compared to everyone else, I look at my results and see I'm definitely average, which pleases me considering various issues that I have and can see that I'm not as bad at this game as I thought I was, finishing the CC is another milestone achieved so I'm well chuffed. Next year I will try it again and then I can compare next years self with this years self and hopefully another milestone reached 0 -
I think most people are average 0
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I think most people are average Smile
I'm not. For instance, I have more than the average number of legs.0 -
singlespeedexplosif wrote:I think most people are average Smile
I'm not. For instance, I have more than the average number of legs.
It depends on what average (did you know there's more than one meaning for average?) you take.
In this case the most appropriate type of average is the "mode".....you telling me you got more than 2 legs?0 -
andy_wrx wrote:Yes, some interesting results there.
Some people I thought did the 66 are shown as 102 and vv.
And did some people really manage to do the 102 in sub-4:30 ?
:shock:
I did the 102 and was down for the 66 miles. I told them at the finish what happened and they noted it down on a piece of paper with others. My time on the posted results is against my original 66 mile entry, so they have either ignored the list at the end or not updated it yet. You might need to give these riders the benefit of the doubt, they could have come clean at the end....
A bit annoying for me as I look like a proper slow coach! :roll:0 -
2hrs 10 mins for 66 miles, is that correct?0
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redddraggon wrote:In this case the most appropriate type of average is the "mode"
Show off I wonder what the mean or the median would be? :roll:
I'm still impressed I can remember my O-Level Maths.FCN = 4.5 Roadie, hairy legs, half a beard (say goateeeeee!)0 -
It depends on what average (did you know there's more than one meaning for average?) you take.
Thanks, yes. I do statistics for a living.
In this case the most appropriate type of average is the "mode".....you telling me you got more than 2 legs?
But outside of junior school, nobody uses 'mode'.0 -
singlespeedexplosif wrote:Thanks, yes. I do statistics for a living.
I'm surprised you made a boo boo then.
And why isn't mode important? Let's say you owned a shoe shop, and you came to order your stock, you can't say you'd order more of the mean shoe size (probably something like "8.11") would you? Surely order more of the mode?
And the example you used - "legs", the mode is definitely the best average....0
