EC Cycles 10 - 9th March 2014

In 2013, Team Grumpy regrouped as usual for the Port Talbot Wheelers 2-up ’25’, but on that occasion I was suffering too much from a bad back to ride. This year, work commitments made it impossible to enter that event (which was a week or two later in the calendar), so we entered the EC Cycles ’10’, on the R10/22A. Unfortunately, this event had no 2-up event listed either at entry or on the start sheet (though indications from at least one results listing indicated 2-up entries had been expected).

After a few days of typical Team Grumpy preparation (i.e. takeaway curry and Leffe), we set off for the event, some 45 minutes from Team Grumpy’s welsh base. On the drive over to Resolven, the weather just improved steadily, and ulimately we rode the event in quite balmy conditions - bright sunshine, warm temperatures and a light breeze from the south-east. We warmed up briefly on a nearby road, and found no mechanical issues - unlike two years before, when I punctured while warming up! Gerry was down to start a minute ahead of me, so we finished our warmup together near the start. The course starts some way down a minor road to an industrial area, and no sooner had I got up to speed than I had to do a sharp left turn onto the dual carriageway at a roundabout. This briefly checked my speed, before accelerating again. The outbound leg is largely a gentle descent, though it does undulate somewhat. I was cruising at a decent speed in the southbound leg, often at more than 30mph, but though ny HR seemed to be up where I expected it, my legs didn’t seem to be chucking out as much effort as I would have hoped. I reached the turn having caught my 2-minute man, and never saw another rider in the race. I negotiated the turn as best I could given I only ride this stretch of road once a year - it’s an extended flyover junction that seems to go on for ever! The return leg was quite a bit tougher, as it was mostly slightly uphill, and what little breeze there was didn’t seem to offer any assistance. But then again, it dodn’t seem to offer too much hindrance, either! The finish is just off the same roundabout that we entered the dual carriageway section, and I gave it everything to get round the corner quickly, then motored on to cool down on the smaller road alongside the course. I finished with 22:47 for 18th place, not bad for this point in the season, though my legs didn’t feel like they’d done enough work! That being said, my heart rate was about where I’d expect it to be… Result EC Cycles 10 Mile Time Trial (9 March 2014) Course R10/22A (revised)