Adam and Nick take on the Big Stuff
There are long rides, and then there are the sort of endurance cycling challenges that make most of us quietly check the weather app to see if it might provide the excuse we’re looking for.
Two Lewes Wanderers have recently tested themselves at the far end of the endurance spectrum. Adam Goward took on a self-planned 400km ride to the New Forest, and Nick Miles raced the inaugural Aethelred Ultra Gravel event over 300km.
Adam’s Audax
Adam has only been a member of Audax UK for three and a half years, having got back into cycling around six years ago. In that time he has steadily challenged himself to see how far he can go. Like many riders drawn to long-distance cycling, he is intrigued by how people such as Mark Beaumont and Lachlan Morton achieve what they do. It is both a physical and psychological test.
The ethos of audax is self-reliance. Events are largely unsupported and can range from 50km to well beyond 600km. Anyone can take part, and you don’t need to be a member of Audax UK to give one a go. The appeal, they say lies in the planning, problem-solving, resilience and occasional negotiation with your own legs!
Into the New Forest
Adam planned his 400km ride as part of his preparation for LEJOG in August. The weather looked good for the bank holiday weekend, although “good” soon became “over 30 degrees and frankly a bit much”. He worked out where the cafés and 24-hour petrol stations were, estimated his likely average speed, and planned when to leave to cover the first 150 miles before camping in the New Forest.
He was bang on schedule for day one, reaching camp after 12 hours and putting up his tent at around 11 pm. Night-time birdsong from nightjars and cuckoos was interspersed with curses from the tent as his legs retaliated with cramp. Not much sleep was had. Still, he was up and away at around 5 am, hoping to tackle the less enjoyable busy roads around Southampton before the day properly got going.
Heat, Bottle Stops and a Bonk
There were plenty of rewards along the way: lovely views, villages and towns, plus those odd moments where a place feels familiar and Strava later confirms that yes, you really have ridden through it before. But the heat made the challenge much harder. Adam needed more stops than usual to refill bottles, some of which were poured over him rather than into him. Even with that, he suffered heat exhaustion and bonked 30 miles from home.
Objective achieved, though, and plenty more learned.
Nick’s Ultra Gravel
Nick’s challenge was different in format, but very similar in spirit. He took part in the first running of the Aethelred Ultra Gravel Race. Starting from Salisbury race HQ, riders competed solo or in pairs, choosing either the 300km or 600km route. Both distances were self-supported, over a stunning but demanding mixed-terrain course of roughly 60% gravel and 40% country lanes.
Around 100 riders took part, with Nick opting for the 300km solo event. Rather than sleep out on the course, he pushed on through the night in mild conditions and finished just as dawn was breaking, rolling in at 4.08 am.
His total time was 19 hours and 8 minutes, good enough for an excellent 9th place overall.
Why try Endurance Cycling?
Both rides say something about the quiet appeal of endurance cycling challenges. Yes, fitness matters. But so do patience, preparation, humour, stubbornness and the ability to keep making sensible decisions when your body is making increasingly unreasonable counterarguments.
The Aethelred Ultra looks likely to grow into a regular annual event, and audax offers a welcoming route into self-supported long-distance riding.
If any members are curious about this sort of thing, Adam and Nick are happy to have a chat. The adventure, they say, starts with a route, a bit of nerve, and a willingness to find out what happens after the point where any normal ride would have sensibly ended!