This was a day which, rather than April showers, we saw April downpours. This was a pattern all day. Indeed, I declined to take my time trial bike to work due to horizontal rain (usually I ride the bike to work and go straight from work to the evening '10'). I was still swithering about whether to race when I got home, but conditions brightened slightly (as they do) and off I went.
Now, I've used the heavy rain symbol not so much for the race itself, but for the conditions around the race. I could see extremely dark clouds obviously emitting heavy showers up ahead, and in fact they looked to be on top of Astwood itself. Reaching the meeting point, I discovered five other apprehensive-looking cyclists (but I think not many of us had ridden up) and the start crew. So it was definitely race on!
I ended up as last rider, at #6, and as Lindz and I waited to start, the rain started again. Thus dampened, the ride itself wasn't affected too much by your actual rain (though the highways were really wet, with significant puddles). I had fitted a rear light in a vain attempt to increase my visibility to traffic, and I took every corner with some trepidation.
In the falling light, I could barely read my computer display. Actually, that might be characterised better as beng due to a combination of failing light, ageing eyes and steamy glasses. Anyway, I could see by the time I turned at Chicheley that I wasn't exactly on a ride. But I did feel a lot better than in recent events, notably the Team Salesengine '10' and the Beds RCC '25'. No really pressing problems occurred - not traffic, no potholes, so little to report other than the generally wet and depressing conditions. It did feel as though there was a bit of a headwind out to Chicheley, but thankfully nothing as bad as we'd seen earlier in the day.
I finished in 4th place with 24:54, which isn't quite as bad as it sounds given the conditions (I think). Things got really bad on the way home.
It was just starting to rain as I set off. I have to say at this point that several people offered me a lift home, so what transpired was really my own fault. The rain got really heavy, and after a bit I was so drenched that any further rain wasn't really much of a worry. I was felling a little cold on the descent from Cranfield though! What really took the biscuit was puncturing just over 2 miles from home, then getting caught at the village level crossing. I decided I wouldn't stop to repair the tyre, as my fingers were pretty cold, it was pissing down, and the light was failing fast, so I bumped home on a flat rear tyre, in my own personal cloud of blue language.
I suppose this is character-building, but this is the third puncture of the year, and in fact happened in exactly the same place as the last one!
Results (at the NBRC website) 
Astwood '10' 18th April 2012
This was a day which, rather than April showers, we saw April downpours. This was a pattern all day. Indeed, I declined to take my time trial bike to work due to horizontal rain (usually I ride the bike to work and go straight from work to the evening '10'). I was still swithering about whether to race when I got home, but conditions brightened slightly (as they do) and off I went.
Now, I've used the heavy rain symbol not so much for the race itself, but for the conditions around the race. I could see extremely dark clouds obviously emitting heavy showers up ahead, and in fact they looked to be on top of Astwood itself. Reaching the meeting point, I discovered five other apprehensive-looking cyclists (but I think not many of us had ridden up) and the start crew. So it was definitely race on!
I ended up as last rider, at #6, and as Lindz and I waited to start, the rain started again. Thus dampened, the ride itself wasn't affected too much by your actual rain (though the highways were really wet, with significant puddles). I had fitted a rear light in a vain attempt to increase my visibility to traffic, and I took every corner with some trepidation.
In the falling light, I could barely read my computer display. Actually, that might be characterised better as beng due to a combination of failing light, ageing eyes and steamy glasses. Anyway, I could see by the time I turned at Chicheley that I wasn't exactly on a ride. But I did feel a lot better than in recent events, notably the Team Salesengine '10' and the Beds RCC '25'. No really pressing problems occurred - not traffic, no potholes, so little to report other than the generally wet and depressing conditions. It did feel as though there was a bit of a headwind out to Chicheley, but thankfully nothing as bad as we'd seen earlier in the day.
I finished in 4th place with 24:54, which isn't quite as bad as it sounds given the conditions (I think). Things got really bad on the way home.
It was just starting to rain as I set off. I have to say at this point that several people offered me a lift home, so what transpired was really my own fault. The rain got really heavy, and after a bit I was so drenched that any further rain wasn't really much of a worry. I was felling a little cold on the descent from Cranfield though! What really took the biscuit was puncturing just over 2 miles from home, then getting caught at the village level crossing. I decided I wouldn't stop to repair the tyre, as my fingers were pretty cold, it was pissing down, and the light was failing fast, so I bumped home on a flat rear tyre, in my own personal cloud of blue language.
I suppose this is character-building, but this is the third puncture of the year, and in fact happened in exactly the same place as the last one!
Results (at the NBRC website)