Thanks to everyone for their sponsorship, your generosity is much appreciated. To raise over £350 is far more than I originally expected. Thank you.

The ride was a little tougher than I expected and it's fair to say it wasn't without several incidents!  Key questions like "did I fall off?" are answered below.

The heavy rain made the course, including the first 3 miles or so pretty tough going, puddles as deep as the wheel hubs were common, and there was so much mud everyone was sliding around.

After going through Hodson, and about an hour and 9 miles in we hit a big hill - it was really hard going for us novices, and the guys on the £3k bikes were getting off and walking.  Mark and I kept going, and got close to the top, but did get off and push the last bit.

After that the mud and leaves were everywhere, clogging up the brakes and forks, all very messy.  But it was just before mile 12 that the first incident occurred.  I thought I had something stuck in my spokes, Mark was alongside and confirmed I had a puncture. Arse! Who ever gets a puncture?  I've never had one but the terrain was rough - the tracks were littered with flint.  Fortunately the tyre levers and inner tube purchased from Halfords on Friday now seemed like a sound investment.  And as Mark is a mechanic we did a Forumla 1 style change and were back on the trail in no time, well about twenty people passed us which was a tad demoralising!   

We hit the trail again, but I was slowing up.  Mark was about 500m ahead and missed the next incident.  Lets just briefly say the guy following me down the steepish and slippery descent described my fall as "quite impressive", it looked much worse than it was, I jumped backed on and tried to catch Marathon Mark.

Within a mile were were at the halfway (ish) point and I caught Mark for refreshments, but as I pulled away I noticed it was just too hard to pedal.  The back brake was knocked in the fall and after trying every single allen key and adjustment possible we managed to get the brake fixed. (I nearly didnt take the tools!)

As we approached Barbury, Mark was some way ahead.  I was determined to stay on the bike for the climbs, which some how I managed. The weather by now was lashing it down, and the fact that the winds were at their strongest and head-on as I got towards the peak was just bloody cruel!

Surely, that's enough fun for one day. But not quite!  I really thought this wouldn't be much more than a walk(ride) in the park...

After turning off at Barbury Castle, it was some considerable distance before I saw the next marshall.  Who asked are you on the 40k? Yes. "Ah, sorry, we had some signs stolen and we didnt have a marshall on the last point so some people are now on a 60k". JMMoG!  Not what I wanted to hear.  He advised us of the best route back to the finish, and the two guys I was now with ploughed on.

The good news- the detour did extend the course a bit, but not by as much as the Marshall suggested.  Rather... I crawled back to the Pavillon at the Croft Trail in about 3 hours, having covered 27 wet and very muddy miles which I think is about 44k. If anyone wants to increase their donations by 10%...only kidding... although I seem to remember the generous Bevan brothers said it was per mile!

Thanks again to all of those that sponsored me, it really was kind, its for a great cause, Thanks again.

And finally, if you have read this tail of woe and mud, and didn't have time to sponsor me, its not too late!!! JustGiving say that 20% of sponsorship comes after the event, so any new sponsors are welcome.

Julian

 

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Thanks for visiting this page. About The Charity: There are so many deserving charities I appreciate it's hard to decide which ones you're able to support. Prospect Hospice is charity that has been special to me personally for about 20 years, info opposite, any contribution you can make is very welcome. 

The ride: It's 40k off road on mountain bikes. Here's a map - for those that know the area you'll see it's pretty hilly, albeit not mountainous! 

My pedigree and prep for this event is impressive: The last time I entered 'an event' was a 10k run in Chippenham, I threw up at the end (that was 20years ago).  In terms of training- equally impressive- I have been out on my bike once this year and the ride is in four weeks.  But there's no need to worry*, I read Lance Armstrongs biography on holiday, so I have covered the bases!

Thanks again for your donations.

How to donate: Donating on JustGiving is simple and secure. Once you donate, they send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

*There's no need to worry unless a little girl knocks me off my bike and I spend the afternoon in A&E again!