Shame on those who missed the Autumn Epic cos of the rain

cheaperholidays

Fair weather cyclists missed a good one even with the rain


Does your little bikey wikey go rusty or fall to bits in the rain.


Edit: Fair play i think you have been teased enough now..

wicked

My hero :roll:

Anonymous

cheaperholidays wrote:

Fair weather cyclists missed a good one even with the rain


Does your little bikey wikey go rusty or fall to bits in the rain

Jens Voight eat yor heart out, eh ? :roll:

pauln99

What time did you do cheaperholidays?

dbg

That was pretty tough, never seen so many punctures - or rain - or standing water, that one flood was up to the bottom bracket! Fair play to all those who turned up but I wouldn't blame anyone who didn't! 6.40 for me, an hour longer than I usually take.

danowat

Did you get the special "adverse conditions" badge?

vs

Got up at 3am, drove 4 hours through the pouring rain, completed the long course in 5.30 in fantastic riding conditions for me (no wind!), drove 4 hours home, had roast chicken, fell asleep in front of the X factor.

A Perfect Sunday!

Highlights of the day - The Elan Valley, the lack of wind, I didn't puncture, the free hot food and coffee at the end (other sportives should take note).

Lowlights - The stiff/bad link in my chain that made a click every time it went through the rear derailleur and made me think it could snap on every revolution after the 5th mile. The traffic on the way home through Wales,

cheaperholidays

The problem i found was the lack of competitors, meant i rode the whole thing on my own, groups were either too fast or too slow ..

I did it in 7hours 40 not bad considering i am riding a hybrid but could have been faster if i did not have use the brakes so much..

I did get off and walk about 60 yards down one hill in the Elan valley, just before you go over a rickety metal bridge as i was running out of brakes :shock:
...

Some of the road lakes were so deep you had use a high gear just to stop falling off.

Saw a few who turned around on the climb up the Elan Valley, the rain had stopped by then.

danowat

cheaperholidays wrote:

The problem i found was the lack of competitors, meant i rode the whole thing on my own, groups were either too fast or too slow ..

Considering its not a race, "competitors" isn't really the right term to use........

pauln99

With respect cheaperholidays I think you are a bit quick to judge others for not riding.

If you enjoy muddling round a waterlogged and dangerous course, walking down hills, riding a hybrid bike at a poor pace, whilst getting soaked, with a good chance of puncturing and a reasonble chance of coming off then so be it.

To me that doesn't sound like a great day out. I might judge, as I did, to quit whilst I was ahead and head home to spend some time with my family.

vs

cheaperholidays wrote:

The problem i found was the lack of competitors, meant i rode the whole thing on my own, groups were either too fast or too slow ..

I really dislike riding in a group so I ride every sportive on my own.

Solo is the only way to go, no hiding, letting others do the work while you sit in the draft is just one step up from staying under the bed covers in my book.

cakewalk

Was it as bad a two years ago?

vs

Worse I think, there was more standing water and many more punctures; may I suggest Schwalbe Durano heavy but never puncture - ideal for sportives.

The Exmoor Beast 2009 was much worse though because of the very high winds, so much so they canceled the long route. That day was EPIC.

cheaperholidays

pauln99 wrote:

With respect cheaperholidays I think you are a bit quick to judge others for not riding.

If you enjoy muddling round a waterlogged and dangerous course, walking down hills, riding a hybrid bike at a poor pace, whilst getting soaked, with a good chance of puncturing and a reasonable chance of coming off then so be it.

To me that doesn't sound like a great day out. I might judge, as I did, to quit whilst I was ahead and head home to spend some time with my family.

So what happens if you had started, do you then stop and go home, me i'm new to these things, but i have a history of long distance running where rain tends not to stop play,

Besides what does not kill you makes you stronger Plus i think my time was ok since i am 51...

vs

Congrats Cheaper, but I wouldn't rely on your age to make too much difference; I'm 46 and did 5.30, when I'm your age I'll be 5 years fitter. Malcolm Elliot, he's 49!

cheaperholidays

vs wrote:

Congrats Cheaper, but I wouldn't rely on your age to make too much difference; I'm 46 and did 5.30, when I'm your age I'll be 5 years fitter. Malcolm Elliot, he's 49!

Bet you were not riding a hybrid, on a road bike i could go much faster

vs

You're right but that's your choice...and didn't someone once say 'it's not about the bike'

danowat

Shame on those who wimped out and used a hybrid

pauln99

:-)

cheaperholidays

danowat wrote:

Shame on those who wimped out and used a hybrid

Thats it pick on the bike, that started and finnished..

coyot3

I agree with Mr 99, that was not the weather to be riding fast along flooded lanes. Spending today not buying a new bottom bracket or chain or brake blocks or finding someone to repair my wheels that took a hit from a submerger pothole.

Sorry not to have ridden but pleased to dry and warm.

vs

and that's your choice. I prefer the one that gives me a warm feeling of accomplishment today. It was fantastic.

cheaperholidays

I was impressed with the speed some of you guys and girls could fix a puncture, a guy behind me said puncture stopped and 3 minutes later he,s back again

danowat

A spare tube and a Co2 cannister does wonders, I punctured on the "Flatout in the fens", wheel off, tube out, new tube in, Co2 cannister on, job done, would have been a two minute job if I hadn't left my saddle pack open and emptied its contents all over the road after I'd finished!!!

I wasn't ragging on you about your choice of bike, it was a tongue in cheek post attempting to point out that its unfair to "shame" on those who thought better of riding it.

vorsprung

I would have thought anyone entering a ride called the "Autumn Epic" which goes to Wales is going to expect to get wet. Very wet.

dewei

I was too late for the online entry and joined on the day. The registration sheet with 10 min to go was barely half signed.

The first two hours of heavy rain made the third hour of light rain positively comfortable. After the rain stopped, it would have been enjoyable if it was not for the savage slopes of Glascwm! The last few downhill miles on dry roads in the golden late afternoon sunshine seemed like nirvana.

The event was well organised - good signage, well stocked food stops (maybe because many people stayed away), the hot meal at the end is a nice touch. The scenery was stunning, augmented by raging rivers and waterfalls. I had no falls and no punctures but it was nice to see the motorbikes of the safety officers patrolling on numerous occasions.

However, it could have been easily a disaster. Braking was scary down the steep descent. I was a bit out of control as I came rather close to the photographer camped at one of the steep hairpin descents. I understand why many stayed away.

cheaperholidays

That last hill was a meat grinder, a total mind game. A vicious end to one hell of a ride i swear there were more ups than downs.

But that last 2 miles downhill as dewei said was like nirvana, i had nothing left by then

bob_the_bike

Did anyone get any pictures of the floods . . . No one believes me just how bad the roads were. 5.30??!!, 5.40??!! I was pleased with 5.50. Well done all.

Excellent event, great food, distinct lake of riders, lets hope the weathers better next year.

Bob

Mooks

I rode the epic for the first time in 5.40 with a puncture. It was a hard, mentally tough ride, but ultimately very rewarding. It's great to ride when the sun is out, but surely to be an all round cyclist you need to be able to control your bike on slippery downhills, be confident to group ride in the wet and find out what clothes work in poor conditions. I may have missed gold by a few minutes but I'm quite pleased with my ride.

pauln99

Mooks

Good ride. Respect to anyone that decided to have a go despite the appalling conditions.

"but surely to be an all round cyclist you need to be able to control your bike on slippery downhills"

I'll happily live out my days without feeling the need for this particular skill.

"... find out what clothes work in poor conditions ..."

I can save you some time if you like - no clothes work in the kind of conditions you had on Sunday :-)

friso

Hi

I was really looking forward to this event as it was my first ever sportive last year

This year i bought along 5 other riders on my recommendation, opps!

There were noticable many less riders than last years event, although i understand many would of stayed at home due to the weather the pre-event sign up list only had about 400 entries compared to about 800 i believe last year

Despite the weather i enjoyed it as much as i hated it at the same time, on crossing the finishing line i dont mind saying i got very emmotional due to the relief of finishing

I was extremley disapointed with my time of 6.54 (full route) which was only a minute faster than last year, although looking back i did puncture and the weather was very bad this year

I dont blame anyone in pulling out as its personal preference and well done for everyone who took to the start line whether they finished or not

As someone said earlier, the last climb completely tore me apart as i was expecting another long climb after that as last years event finished on a different ascent, what a relief to discover i had climbed the last climb afterall

I will be back!