Three weeks ago I did something that I had no idea I was capable of - I cycled 100 miles! In the grand tradition of this blog I thought I'd share my experience of Ride London 2019 but as usual brevity is not my strong point so grab a cuppa and settle in for a long read...

What, why, how?!
Around a year ago I idly entered the ballot for the Ride London 100 sportive - a one hundred mile bike ride around London and Surrey. It was a complete whim - I was in a bit of a rut with my cycling and wasn't making much headway with speed or distance. I also struggle to call myself a cyclist - I ride a fairly cheap bike, I'm scared of using clipless pedals, and I'm not a middle-aged man who thinks he's Mark Cavendish. But my brother (who is the inspiration behind a lot of these adventures) had just done Ride London again and I sort of thought it might be cool. I barely considered the possibility that I might actually have to do the ride! So of course, in February, I got a lovely letter through the door letting me know I'd been given a place via the ballot! I then almost immediately had a training partner - Andy got a charity place raising money for Shelter. I still didn't really think I was actually going to be able to cycle 100 miles but it looked like I was going to have to at least give it a go.

Training
Luckily I'd been doing a little more cycle training through the winter - having finally got around to setting up the turbo trainer (basically a device for cycling indoors...) that Andy had bought several years previously with the main aim of being a bit less terrible on the bike leg of triathlons. I'd also been trying out something called Zwift which is essentially a virtual world for indoor running and cycling - it's currently very trendy amongst "proper cyclists" but is quite good nonetheless, allowing you to do specific workouts rather than just cycling aimlessly and also providing a more exciting backdrop than the kitchen windows (but less exciting than BBC Parliament...) It also enabled me to actually do some cycling during the hectic process of planning and executing a move from Leicester to Surrey.

Said move meant that it was nearly the end of April before I got on my bike to actually cycle outside! I had a surprisingly good bike leg at Chirk Triathlon and then managed 30+ miles a few weeks later when my Dad and I cycled over to do some Chester Half Marathon spectating. Andy and I then did our first ever cycle race at the Evans Sportive in Woking with some friends but played it safe by doing the short course (32 miles) when we probably should/could have at least done the 50 mile route. Training then plateaued a bit - we planned a 50 mile ride during our Lake District holiday in June but badly underestimated how punishing the hills would be and so only managed around 36 miles (albeit with 2,700 ft of climbing). In a fit of panic when we got back I managed to find another sportive for us to do - a local charity race in nearby Farnham to get us over the 50 mile mark. However two days before, disaster struck - I fell over whilst we were out running and landed heavily on my wrist. It thankfully wasn't broken but I was extremely battered and bruised - I wasn't quite sure how I was going to be able to cling onto a bike for 4 hours! So of course, like an idiot, I did the ride anyway - meaning many more stops than normal as I couldn't eat or drink on the bike due to essentially having a non-functional hand...

Finally, we "entertained" my poor mother and father when they came to visit at the end of July by taking them to the seaside - the only catch being that we would cycle down, meet them there for chips and a beach break, then cycle home. Andy's written about this (and several other of our training rides) on his blog but suffice it to say a good time was not had by all. However we did manage 80 miles (just about!) and were at least nominally Ride-London ready...

Getting to the Start Line
Ride London day started well before dawn as we had early start times - I needed to to be in my start pen by 6 (allegedly) - which, combined with a dearth of transport options, meant a distinctly unpleasant 2.30am alarm. Our plan was to park at the O2 Arena, get the cable car across the river, then cycle to the start at the Olympic Park - none of this was what I would call the ideal way to prepare for 100 miles in the saddle! However it pretty much worked - we were applying suntan lotion in the dark with several hundred other cyclists next to the Millenium Dome (a very surreal experience) by 4am and then flying over the Thames at a fairly terrifying speed and height as the sun started to come up. The Emirates Airway is incredibly cool but not for anyone nervous about heights!!  The problem arose when we looked for the cycle path to the Olympic Park and discovered that we essentially had to cycle on the road (in the semi-darkness) for a mile or two to reach it. Traffic in London is apparently terrible even at 5am...

Once we made it to any kind of cycling infrastructure it was a fairly plain sailing to the various starts which was a relief. Because Andy and I are the sort of people who follow instructions we split up to go to our respective start venues which were on opposite sides of the Olympic Park. My start was of course the furthest away, right up by the Velodrome, so I toddled off alone, sticking firmly to cycle paths and following anyone else with a green start sticker on their kit bag. Once I reached the start I realised that no-one else had adhered as closely as we had either to their allocated start area or to the cut-off times for getting to their start point. This essentially meant I could have a) had more sleep and b) ridden the whole way with Andy - an irksome fact, particularly as I now had over an hour of hanging around by myself to do before I crossed the start line.

The First 25 Miles: Missed Connections
I started pretty much bang on time at just before 7am. The start line was relatively low key despite the compere getting each starting group to select a "motivational" tune to cross the line to - ours was Copacabana which was utterly bizarre. Andy and I were due to rendez-vous at the first water stop at about 17 miles so I took it pretty easily, knowing that his start was slightly later than mine, and enjoyed cycling through Docklands and the City of London on closed roads whilst successive waves of speedy people flew past me. I got a notification telling me Andy had started about half an hour in, just as I was going past the Tower of London! The plan went to pot a bit at the first water stop - I stopped, topped up my water, had a snack and checked where Andy was on the tracking app. He was only a few miles away so I settled down for a few minutes wait - only he didn't appear and I soon worked out he'd actually passed me already. A quick phone call confirmed he was several miles down the road so off I went again, this time a little bit faster! We finally met up next to the 20 mile marker in Richmond Park but by this time the course was getting both busier and a bit narrower. We narrowly missed a crash on the exit to the Park and as we headed out through Kingston and past Hampton Court Palace the course was starting to feel a little crowded.

Miles 25 - 70: Hills, Crashes and Congestion
Given the time we'd lost trying to find one another neither of us felt the need to stop at the food stop a quarter of the way in. The miles were still flying past easily and at around 38 miles I was just starting to think about the first big climb on the course which is Newlands Corner, just outside Guildford, which is near the halfway point of the course. Then we were stopped for a pretty nasty accident which meant standing still for a good chunk of time whilst riders were funnelled past the injured person and ambulance on a decidedly narrow country lane. I assumed this would be a one-off but we were stopped again within a couple of miles for another accident, this time less serious looking but still not pleasant. I was also starting to get a little worried - riders were now very bunched together on increasingly narrow roads and the standard of riding was pretty poor with lots of close passing, often on the inside, and next to no verbal communication from overtaking riders to tell people they were planning to come past. Whilst there'd been lots of detail in the pre-race briefings about safety and communication, it felt like very few people had taken this on board - even the so-called "rider safety captains" who were supposed to help people get through the ride safely were cutting people up. Some of the faster riders were riding particularly dangerously once we'd been held up as they wanted to make up the time.

However there was precious little I could do other than try and not get hit by an idiot so on we went to the first climb at Newlands Corner. It's a long, steady drag of just over a mile and whilst it was hard work, it was nothing compared to some of the hills we'd ridden in training. Plus I knew we were stopping for a rest at the top as that's where the next food stop was! We took a reasonably long break at the top for water and food that wasn't a gel or an energy bar - I was very excited to see a packet of crisps! Then we were back on the road again for the next section of the course which has two big climbs - Leith Hill at just before 60 miles and Box Hill at around 70 miles. Despite the fact that we were only down the road from our new house we'd not recce'd either hill so I was feeling distinctly nervous. We ended up being stopped again before we got to Leith Hill, this time due to congestion, which was frustrating as I think everyone just wanted to get it out of the way! There was also a lot of climbing before we got to the "official" ascent so there was a distinct mood of "are we nearly there yet?" from the assembled cyclists.

Leith Hill definitely deserves its reputation as the worst of Ride London's hills - it's much steeper and narrower than the other hills on the course and I wouldn't much fancy it on a completely empty road and fresh legs. I managed to do the first section of the climb without too many issues, even overtaking quite a few people, but had to get off the bike for the middle section as my kneecap felt like it was about to explode. I did then manage to get back on my bike for the final section though and was tired but elated once Andy and I regrouped at the top. Onwards to Box Hill!

Box Hill has a reputation for being difficult (mostly due to breathless cycle commentators at the 2012 Olympics) but after the two previous climbs it felt bizarrely easy. The road zig-zags up around the contours of the hill rather than just straight up the side so the gradient is much less extreme plus the road surface is racing track smooth (another Olympic legacy). The Box Hill part of the course is also very well supported and had lots of roadside banners ahead of the professional race later that evening so it is the perfect spot for pretending one is actually competing in the Tour de France. The views on the climb up are also stunning - this was one of my favourite bits of the whole ride. And once at the top, well it was downhill all the way back to the Mall (almost).

Miles 70 - 100: Everything Hurts
Andy had a brief spill off his bike at the top of Box Hill which meant that he was bleeding slightly as we rode down. Consequently we stopped at the 75 mile point for snacks, suntan lotion, and the first aid tent - mostly so they could wipe off the worst of the blood and gravel. Whilst we were on the home straight, 25 miles still felt like a very long way to go and I was starting to get pretty stiff and sore. It was very much a case of just keeping going - the sticker that I'd picked up showing me the main points along the route came in really handy as I was able to mentally break the remaining bits of the ride into more manageable chunks in my head. Once we left Surrey again, just after 80 miles in, I could count down to Kingston, then Wimbledon, then Putney, then The Mall. We were stopped, either for congestion or accidents, a couple more times but the streets coming back into Greater London were starting to get busy with people spectating and cheering us on. Wimbledon is at the 90 mile point and I'd been pre-warned by several people that Wimbledon Hill is, whilst not a big hill at all, hard on tired legs. However it was less of a challenge than anticipated and the crowds in Wimbledon were so amazing that I flew up despite being utterly exhausted. Once we'd gone past the 90 mile marker it also really started to feel like we'd actually make it and I could really count down to the finish in earnest. In no time at all we were across Putney Bridge and on to Chelsea Embankment, flying along next to the Thames past Battersea Powerstation, The Tate and on to Millbank. Then the Houses of Parliament was coming up on the left and, as it had been when I'd run through the streets at the end of the London Marathon, Parliament Square and Great George Street were a wall of sound. We turned on to Horse Guards Road and then on to the Mall and were trying to work out where the finish line actually was and then suddenly people were stopping to take selfies with their bikes in front of Buckingham Palace - we'd done it!

Overall Verdict: The Good, The Bad, and the Extremely Irksome
First of all, I mostly enjoyed the ride itself - cycling through London on closed roads really is the dream, particularly after spending months trying not to die at the hands of the terrible drivers of Surrey. Even though I'd felt my training was mixed it turned out I was actually really well-prepared for all the climbs - so much so that I actually enjoyed Box Hill(!) and managed not to completely die on Leith Hill. The marshals were good and there was plenty of food and water on the course.

However, the course felt overcrowded by the time we got to Surrey - there were simply too many cyclists for the roads. Added to that, most of the other riders were by and large terrible at riding in a large group - there was not a lot of awareness or communication on show, particularly from people who were faster cyclists obviously pushing for a time. I didn't feel very safe a lot of the time on narrower roads because people would whizz past on both sides without bothering to let you know they were there. I consider myself lucky not to have come off my bike. Ride London need to either reconsider the course or reconsider the amount of competitors - it was far, far too busy.

Finally, the logistics of getting to the start and away from the finish were a joke. There were insufficient public transport options to get people and their bikes up to the Olympic Park and away from Green Park at the end because you can't take bikes on the bus or tube which means that tired people have to cycle in busy London traffic or walk with their bikes through busy London streets. With 25,000 people competing you can't just wash your hands of the logistics of getting them to the start and from the finish line safely. So whilst I'd definitely consider doing another 100 mile ride, I'm not convinced I'd do Ride London again.

Final Thoughts
The experience of training for and doing Ride London has changed the way I feel about my cycling and made me feel much more confident as a cyclist, even if I am still scared of clipless pedals. I've really enjoyed the sportives I've done as part of my training and definitely want to keep up doing some longer rides and cycle events. Cycling a hundred miles seemed completely out of reach six months ago so it feels like a really significant achievement. I've also now completed two of the three London Classics events so there really is no excuse not to enter Swim Serpentine in 2020 and finish the set...

If you've made it this far - well done! As you know, I just did this for fun but Andy was fundraising for Shelter who do amazing work. If you've got a few quid to spare please consider putting it their way - Andy's fundraising page is still open at: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/andy-cowley-xmx-PRLS-2019-27131