The post-event glow is fading like a late summer sunset, so it’s time to record a few thoughts before they too vanish into twilight. I’ve said before that this blog is primarily a way to stop myself from forgetting what I’ve learned, so you’ll have to forgive me if there’s a lot of navel-gazing in this one.
Teams work
One of the big benefits of riding together was that it stopped me from getting trapped in that horrible mental state where the walls close in and my thinking gets more dark and catastrophic. It’s kind of how I was in 2022 – feeling crap and just spiralling downwards, rather than making sensible decisions that would have pulled me through. With a team mate, there’s a constant distraction and an awareness that the ride isn’t all about me. It’s hard to put into words, but having a team mate means having a sense of duty to someone else. That makes it harder for negative thoughts to take over.
Riding LEL as a team was a good move and made it a much better experience. We had our control routine worked out, we managed not to lose each other and we kept the show on the road when the going got tough. Both of us have goals for 2026 and beyond. They don’t neatly overlap, because we’re not in each other’s pocket, but Team Less Cargo will ride together again.
And if We Rode it Again Tomorrow?
We were fast, very fast, on the flat roads heading north from Writtle. Most stages we averaged around 26-27kmh. It felt comfortable and I think we got the balance right between banking time and pacing ourselves so as not to blow up.
That said, I wonder if we were a bit profligate with that banked time at controls? As far as I can tell, we were on a good schedule by the time the plug was pulled, but it wouldn’t have hurt to have been a bit stricter with our time stopped. Not to the extent of putting an egg-timer on the table, or being as hardcore as Ian ‘just half a cup of coffee’ McBride, but we could definitely have banked an extra hour or so by being a little brisker. What’s impossible to say is whether being slightly more relaxed at controls was actually a net benefit. At no point were we concerned about time, and that perhaps was the ideal situation to be in.
Chuffy: The Golden Years?
This is probably the best I’ve ever been as a rider. But how long will it last? I’m getting older and it’s going to be harder to keep this up, but for now I want to enjoy being this fit. As well as being physically fit, I’ve learned a lot and gained the ability to put that learning into practice. Hopefully that will continue as well.
I made good decisions about pacing on LEL and didn’t have any really bad spells. There was one point where my nose started running – a sure sign that I’m pushing too hard – so I deliberately slowed just enough for it to stop. It barely cost any time or speed, but it saved me from doing what I’ve done on countless rides and battering on while feeling slow and rough. It might seem blindingly obvious, but it meant I was fully in control. That’s rarely been the case, even on rides this year. On the Buzzard 600 I was pretty spent before getting to my hotel – a wiser audaxer would have slowed a little and paced himself, rather than wearing himself out for the sake of an extra km/hr.
Already I’ve started to feel a little more tired on rides, so I need to accept that my form will probably dip, especially over winter. I probably need a bit of a rest, just a day or two off the bike perhaps, so my legs don’t get stale. I have rides coming up and those need to be ridden at a steady pace, without any self-inflicted pressure to go faster.
Future Goals
Obsessing about LEL for most of the year has kept me going. I need something else to replace that. That probably means another SR series, improving my time trialling and keeping an eye out for any potential 1000km audaxes. And keeping the weight off too.
Right now I’m enjoying the feeling of being light, strong and fast (by my standards) and I hate the thought of going back to being fat and slow. It’s probably inevitable that my fitness will dip over winter, which I need to accept and not panic about, but I’m hoping to keep the weight off. In fact, I’m hoping to carry on losing weight through to next spring. With luck I’ll be down to about 70kg by the time I start booking 300s, 400s and 600s. Being a whole 10kg lighter than I am now will make a huge difference.
I’ll definitely have another crack at the Mersey Roads 24hr. This is unfinished business. I dropped at least 40 miles in 2014, thanks to spending about 4hrs sitting on my arse. This time I’ll be much better prepared, with proper fuel, less time wasted off the bike and a better bike. Oh, and a portaloo at base camp. I ought to manage 400 miles at least and if all goes well, somewhere in the region of 420-430. There’s no 1:1 scale training for a 24hr, but I’ll probably have a crack at a few 100 mile TTs. Those are the preserve of proper racers, speedy boys and girls who can knock one out in about 4hrs. I’ll be happy with anything under 5hrs, but it’s about the best training for a 24hr that I’ll find.
Shorter TTs will also be on the menu. I managed a PB this year with Priscilla, but she’s a long way from being properly dialled in, so the constant tweaking and fiddling will keep me entertained. I should probably think about going to the gym as well – my legs are fast, but I struggle to mash a big gear, so a bit more strength wouldn’t go amiss. There’s a very fast 10TT course near to where my Dad lives and I’m itching to have a crack at that. Wind permitting it ought to be a nailed-on PB, as it’s a much faster course than the usual one out of Honiton.
Thousand kilometre audaxes aren’t common, but there are a few around. They tend to be geared towards riders who like scenery, which means hills. No matter how mighty I feel, I still climb like a sack of spuds and that probably won’t ever change. So I’ll have to find one that isn’t a silly distance away (Scotland? No thanks) doesn’t finish in the most bloody awkward spot in the whole UK (LEJOG? Nope) and isn’t epically lumpy. TBH, it’s a bit of a unicorn hunt, so I might have to work out a DIY version. Feasible, but without the structure of a ‘proper’ event and the support offered by LEL it’ll be a lot harder, mentally if not physically.
One other project will be building Huey into a fast audax bike. Huey was always faster than Achilles, but with a few tweaks (like these lovely wheels) the difference should be even significant. Achilles has all the lights and heavy salad (that massive Carradice) that I need for things like LEL, as well as wall-climbing gears and sturdy mudguards, so he’ll still be my weapon of choice for 600s or rides in less than perfect weather. For fair weather single-day rides, with minimal kit, Huey should be an absolute blast.
One other potential aim is to finish LEL. Starting at Malton (or Richmond) and riding the northern leg as a 600. That’s eminently doable, it’s just a question of arranging the logistics.
Well Chuffed Cycling 