Coast to Coast, Scotland, 17th September, 2011

That was a good race - very, very hard but great fun!! I kind of planned for the race but forgot about the other stuff like somewhere to sleep the night before so ended up sleeping on the floor in Ruth And Alice's room - not the best sleep and a little late in the morning running down to the start in Nairn. I did quickly go dip my toes in the ocean though before setting off at 6.30 am for the first 7 mile run. The run was actually quite cool - alongside a river and then zig zagging through the woods - surprisingly I felt really good considering I am terrible at running - but I did run pretty well - slightly slower than i wanted to but that turned out to be quite good - I was at the back of one group for a while then skipped ahead to the back of another! Anyway I did pretty good and made it to the Cawdor Castle OK where all our bikes were ready for the first transition. I was a bit slow making the transition but as soon as I hopped on my bike I felt really good and started overtaking other riders. I was flying by and felt awesome - finally (been a while since I have been able to say that!) Surprisingly the route was pretty flat - not a great road (thought it would be more hilly) - but it was actually pretty easy and I was having a great time!! 48 mile road ride in two and a bit hours - so was doing really well! Then the next transition was to the kayaks (Loch Ness) - after leaving my bike there was a little run which was rather difficult/painful in bike shoes - about a mile or so! I was then a little surprised to discover the kayaks were all doubles - you just jumped in with whoever was ready - kind of cool as we were able to have a little chat along the way and it was nice to have some help - not as difficult as being solo! Enjoyed that! This brought us to Fort Augustus, which would be the end of the first day for those taking the two day challenge (Alice and Ruth)

But for us it was back to our bikes for the off road section - though it wasn't really off road initially. However there was soon some single track through the woods where it was bumpy, sloppy and muddy - also some very steep hills which I had to hike up. My calf muscles had started hurting about 30 miles in and now they really hurt - but I tried to ignore it. I did go through a bit of a bad patch here - maybe paying the price for trying to go too fast earlier.

When we started that morning the weather had been pretty miserable and it was raining - however as soon as we really got underway the weather just got better and better - of course that meant I soon had too many clothes on and as I stripped off I had to find somewhere to put them - shoved in pockets and sticking out of my top - so that was a bit of a pain! Also I had had the brilliant idea of zip tieing my running shoes to my bike as I didn't have any space in my backpack - however it turned out to be not such a good idea as they were continually in my way, especially when I had to stand for the steep parts where they just bashed in to my knees!! A good idea that didnt really work and made the single track section annoying!! After some time on a gravel road we were back on the single track and the bolt fell out of my water bottle holder making my bottle rattle all over the place - quite funny really! Back on the road again and I realised I had overtaken quite a few people by now as I couldn't really see anyone off in the distance any more. Felt good though. I had ridden as hard as I could on the first ride but took it a bit easier on the second as I knew I had a hike up a mountain ahead of me! At the end of this bike ride we had our times recorded - the clock was stopped to give you a chance to get organised for the last section. So I left my bike at Glen Nevis and was surprised to see only 5 others there before me - I was in a really good position. So I was now able to get changed and get rid of all the extra clothes ready to head off up the mountain - Ben Nevis. I tried running for about 5 minutes but decided that hurt too much and that I would fast hike instead!

I felt pretty good the whole time except for one bad patch - I decided my goal was to finish and still feel good rather than try to run to gain a few places and then collapse half way up the hill. So a few people overtook me on this section but as we got into it a bit more I could see others in front of me also struggling to run too so I didnt feel so bad. Wasn't just my complete lack of running training - everyone was feeling the same. We hiked up a gravel road for a while, then a path and then up the mountain side - we zig zagged around and got all bundled up at one stage - and approached a steep rockside which I managed to scramble up faster than some of the others in the group - however they then overtook me going down!! The down was awful - wet grass - I fell over a few times as did others ahead of me - in fact you could see the marks of where they had fallen! That section was pretty hard! By now my ankles, calves and knees were all burning and I was ready to be done. You could see Loch Leven at the bottom - but it was really difficult to get to it down a very steep and awkward hill - but eventually we did with another very painful 1 mile run along the road to reach the final kayak. Once again we paired up with the closest person - I was with a guy from the RAF - was quite cool chatting with him. When we reached the other side of the Loch we ran for the Finish line and I was told I was in 16th place! So I was very happy about that!!

I felt good that I had done so well despite not having been able to put in the training I should have - especially with the running. Today was the longest run/hike I have ever tried and the longest bike ride I have been able to attempt for quite a while, having been feeling so ill since Africa. So yes - pretty pleased with myself. The scenery was very cool - breathtaking, and the weather has been awesome - a glorious day, which really helped! Absolutely shattered when I finished! Great fun!!

My time was 10 hours 40 minutes - not too bad all in all. Average heart rate was about 170 - very high in the morning but I slowed down a little in the afternoon! Great fun!! Did I say that already?

Only trouble is I originally thought Dean was coming so didn't really organise the transport very well. So looks like I will have to get up in the morning and cycle coast to coast again to pick up my car. Then I will drive back here again to see Ruth and Alice finish tomorrow.


PS.
I did indeeed cycle back the next morning - 98 miles! And got back just in time to see the girls finish. I was absolutely exhausted!!

Coast to Coast, Scotland 2011

Still waiting for Paul's official blog of the day to arrive - but just to report briefly on his behalf that he finished in 16th place - a fantastic effort considering he had only just been diagnosed with Tropical Sprue and had just begun treatment. The gluten free diet obviously has had immediate positive effects - great to see Paul getting his energy back after all this time!!

Next Saturday

Only 1 week to go till the Coast to Coast in Scotland!! Check out the website for more information: http://www.scotlandcoasttocoast.com/

Gluten Free in Denver

Its been a while since writing anything here - I've had a few things to sort out! Basically have been feeling really ill and tired ever since returning from Africa. The two races I attempted (Tour Divide and Breckenridge 100) turned out to be the most difficult and exhausting things I have ever done because of this. I was initially advised that I just needed to give my body time to recover. So I tried resting up but that didn't really seem to help. Eventually went for loads of tests here in Denver and have just been diagnosed with Tropical Sprue, which is a disease very like Coeliac disease which prevents the absorption of nutrients in the stomach and intestines. Kind of explains a lot - especially the stomach pains and the chronic fatigue. So - this means a gluten free diet and antibiotics for the next 6 months or so!! The good news is that I started the diet a few days ago and already am beginning to feel a lot better - hopefully when I start the antibiotics tomorrow I will feel even more so!

I still plan to participate in the Coast to Coast Race across Scotland next week (September 17) - though it will probably be a bit of a struggle still. Then when I return to Denver I can now think about doing some local races - which was what I had originally planned to be doing all this summer!!

As well as this I am working on my truck and getting ready to start work on the ski slopes in November. Check in for further updates and to see how I get on in Scotland. Looking forward to seeing some fellow TDA'ers there as well!!

One Hell of a Race - Breckenridge 100

What an amazing race!! The hardest race ever!! 100 miles of off road up a couple of mountains! Had to register the night before - after doing so Scott and I had a quick look at a couple of the loops - to me it looked like about 10 good climbs - ~ 12000 feet of climbing - not much point in checking it out further at this stage. It would be a hard day! There was a riders briefing meeting at 5.45 am and then we set off at 6. I was trying out my new Hammer products - a selection of supplements and I had sorted the gels and shakes into hourly packs - and was hoping they would do the job! As soon as we started I felt sick - maybe the food for breakfast - maybe the altitude. Even here at the start I was higher than I had ridden my bike this year! Almost immediately we hit Breckenridge Mountain - up the steepest ski trail!! Unbelievably difficult! My heart rate was immediately through the roof - I just couldnt seem to calm it down! So painful all the way up! Then the down though - really cool - the part I love! Real fun - right across the hill - if you'd fallen off the side you would have tumbled all the way down the mountain!! I managed to overtake a whole load of riders here - very cool! Then up and down again along a few bike paths - and then back to the starting point and the end of the first loop. Scott asked me how I was feeling - pretty terrible was the answer!! We did a great switch over with supplies and I was off on lap 2. Seemed a little easier climb at first - more of a dirt road to the top and then an incredible down - the next climb was harder - more like a 4 wheel drive track - and ended up with quite a bit of walking. At mile #4 I was so exhausted - at mile # 44 I really didnt know how I was even going to finish!! I was pushing, walking, hiking, riding - anything to get up that mountain! Another guy was struggling similarly along with me and declared he was going to call it quits after the second lap - but no way was I going to quit - I was determined to finish even if it killed me!! We chatted and yo- yoed our way along - he seemed to walk while I rode and vice versa! It was a killer hill - there were so many people walking!! The trouble with this section was all those doing the 32 or 68 mile courses joined it with us and so if you stopped to let someone by you ended up having to wait for another 10 or so. Bit of a pain!!

There were two really good downhills on this section though - but all I could think of was getting back and finishing lap 2 - I needed then to reach the cut off point on the third section in time!! I switched camelbaks etc with Scott again and set off on the final lap. The bike was doing really well - Scott lubed the chain for me. Lap 3 was really one peak - straight out and back again! - so up, down, loop round and return. We had to reach Borea Pass before the cut off time otherwise you would not be allowed to continue! This was a killer - climbing a 4 wheel drive track with huge boulders all around. At one point I turned around and could see about 40 people all hiking!! No one riding!! We were tired and it was a hard trail!! Finally got out on the road and reached the aid station at the top of the pass in time. It was good to have a rest! Then we headed off down the road turning off road onto an amazing single track through the woods - down into the bowl - almost like a roller coaster - up and down - great fun! It lasted for ages but I felt good and was enjoying it - I thought this would turn out to be my best lap!! Caught up with a load of people - the supplements seemed awesome and although I still felt sick I was used to it and could cope fine and had some energy!! Then as I reached the bottom of the mountain I started to crash!! Maybe dehydration? I dont think so - maybe just the altitude?? But my body could no longer cope!! After the rest there was a 12 mile climb up a gravel road - should have been easy! I set off at a decent speed but then just got slower and slower - I could barely go for a mile at a time! The really disappointing thing is that at least 40 people passed me on this final climb. But anyway I eventually made it to the top where I practically collapsed and ended up just sitting there for 10 minutes! Trying to drink and eat. Decided it wasnt really making me feel any better and there were only 10 miles left which would be mainly downhill so I should get it over and done with!!

So I went flying down another great single track and then my front suspension went. The air in the fork had leaked out and this caused the spring to rebound too much. I had to take it steady now as I didnt want to do more damage. Now I was just wanting it to end! Every now and then there was a little climb - each one killed me!! Eventually I crossed the finish line - it was great to see Scott! It had been an ordeal in many ways. The toughest 12 hours ride ever - in fact my time was 13 hrs 45 mins including the rests and me dying by the side of the road!!

But all in all what an amazing race!! Such a cool day - such a cool race. I just wished I had felt a little better! But I absolutely loved it. I would be surprised to find a harder race than that. And I do need to train a lot more at altitude - even the start was higher than anything I had ridden since Nepal. But the weather had also been pretty good - I just cant wait to do it again next year - and beat my time!! Disappointing that I ended up last in my age category - I lost at least 6 places in that final climb! Never mind - that doesnt really matter. To be honest - the way I felt at the half way point it was amazing just to finish! One hell of a race. The winner had an incredible time of 8 hours 10 minutes - no idea how he does that! Overall an awesome day - great fun (OK I am saying that as I am collapsed here on the couch just trying to recover). I will be back next year - hopefully on a different bike more suited to this type of race!!

Breckenridge 100 Today

Article about today's race:

Summit Daily

Course Description: Featuring an inspiring, sprawling course nestled between 3 ski resorts, participants will face a unique challenge of strength and fortitude. The distinct clover-leaf loops offer team competitors the opportunity to strategize their efforts and pick which loop each participant will tackle. Our goal is to provide you a unique and rewarding experience in cross-country competition. Our renowned course architect has linked together an amazing, interconnecting network of backcountry trails, dirt roads, double track and bike paths that will take you far beyond the typical boundaries of endurance racing. From start to finish, you will be both pampered and pushed to your limit at the same time. You’ll cross the Continental Divide three times, climb 12,000 foot passes and forge high mountain streams while all the time returning to the support and encouragement of our staff, friends and teammates who are waiting for you at Carter Park in historic downtown Breckenridge.

Off to Denver

Have had a busy two weeks since Tour Divide. Returned to my old school in North Wales, UK (St David's College, Llandudno) to present the prizes to the leavers and talk about my Guinness world record - many thanks to everyone for making me feel so welcome - I had a great day and managed to meet up with a few friends while there! Not sure about inspiring others but certainly managed to motivate myself into further preparations and planning for my ultimate adventure - to pedal round the world - more on that later!!

After that returned to Roswell to organise my collection of bikes and parts (sorry about the mess mum!) - and how to get them to Colorado. All ready now - my flight to Denver leaves in a couple of hours - my new home for a while!! Plenty of races to keep me occupied. First one - the Breckenridge 100 - is next Saturday! Am not feeling 100% fit still so not expecting a great result - but intend to finish!! Sounds a great race - this incredible course climbs 13,719 feet over its 100 miles and features a sprawling course nestled between 3 ski resorts. It crosses the Continental Divide three times and climbs 12,000 foot passes over a snow field, ending back in Breckenridge!!

Breckenridge 100

Looking forward to my TdA reunion with Scott - thanks to him and Tori for offering to let me crash at theirs for a while.