Seaside Pier 2 Pier 2 Pier cycle challenge....Southport to Blackpool and back to Southport again! 70+ miles.
The night before....
Well out of madness and a little boredom comes great ideas right?.. Well maybe not. More like out of boredom comes stupid ideas.
The next day was going to be a long awaited day off, but also a chance to get some of my weekly cycling challenge miles in, as I have to do 50 miles a week avg to achieve my 2017 miles in 2017 'Risk it for a biscuit' challenge.
I'm currently on track despite only starting in March, but have built up a little buffer with several 100 mile weeks when I first got my new road bike and was extremely enthusiastic.
The stage was set the night before when I decided that Blackpool was doable as I'd run from Blackpool to Southport before as part of the Seaside24 Pier 2 Pier charity run which was 35 miles. That made me feel fairly confident that I could do double that on a bike, as it equates to about the same effort.
Early the next morning.....
I woke up early but had no intention of getting up as it was only 6.30am but I was hungry so decided that I could get my breakfast now and go back to bed. I opted for a cup of coffee and some peanut butter on toast and a couple of good old cheery bakewells....breakfast of champions right??
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| Breakfast of champions...or is it a subliminal cookie monster advert? |
Time to get kit ready....
So I hadn't prepared at all, but had a good idea what I would need with me. I soon discovered it wouldn't all fit in 3 pockets on the back of my cycling jersey so I went with my running back pack/race vest. This had lots of room and space for a 1.5 lire drinks reservoir and drinks tube etc. Problem was I had taken it out of the race vest previously and couldn't remember how to thread the stupid tube back through the various holes and loops in the vest so that it sat upfront and was easily reachable while riding.
I wasted 30 mins trying to remember how it fitted but gave up on decided on my standard 500 ml drinks bottle that would just sit in the bottle holder on the bike.
I stuffed my pack with flapjacks and a banana and 3 or 4 gels and a Mars Bar, money, phone for photos and keys....and some tissue just incase I had issues :)
11.30am and time to go.....
So off I went and I was an hour late as I was supposed to be dropping into a friends Deli on the way out of Southport for a brew but decided I couldn't afford to lose more time as I needed to definitely be back by teatime preferably after breaks etc.
The route.....
The route was simple enough, bypass to Preston and another bypass to Freckleton, Warton, Lytham, St Annes and finally Blackpool itself....
Southport to Preston was pretty normal as I'd done it on foot before as mentioned earlier so was familiar with it. Most of the cycle path was OK, but many parts of it were quite frankly poor, pitiful, damn right dangerous and non existent.
It's no wonder cyclists choose to cycle on the road instead of the cycle path when you are constantly avoiding pot holes, patchy tarmac, glass, gravel, stones and junctions that you have to stop for and try and cross unlike all the cars on the road which are free to proceed unhindered.
Preston took me an hour to get to and was roughly 18.9 miles into the route. I stopped just beyond the dockside and had a banana and then carried on toward the next bypass/dual carriageway which headed toward Freckleton etc..
The Freckleton dual carriageway has a 2-3 ft strip of tarmac lined off on the left hand side of the road surface itself. It is as rough as hell on road tyres and was no fun at all. It also slowed me down a hell of a lot, that and the wind that was getting worse as I went.
Past Freckleton and next was Warton where the British Aerospace site is and this section was an abomination of is it or isn't it cycle paths and cycle lanes that just disappeared into thin air leaving you wondering where you were actually supposed to be cycling. The strips of designated tarmac it did have was half worn out had loads of holes where your wheel dropped down to the previous layer of tarmac and then back up again which endless jolts through the handlebars and frame.
Next up eventually was the lovely Lytham and the prom and a proper cycle path shared with pedestrians and nice and smooth as well. I reached here at 1hr 35 minutes into the ride and promptly parked myself up at the windmill to take a pic to prove I was actually there....
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| Little windmill or big head?...and look at that nose! |
The promenade was actually very windy and I had forgotten to check the forecast for the area. I had checked Southport which had forecast 16mph+ winds which is bad enough on a bike, but here it was more like 20-25mph it was hard work even with my head down, and it was a long prom.
The Promenade continues on past Fairhaven Lake etc and onto St Annes and as I was on the coast it was still exceptionally windy and it was slow progress. I was now thinking where I would stop for some decent grub, but was limited as I hadn't brought a padlock and chain as I wanted to save weight, and I didn't want to leave my bike anywhere anyway.
I decided to at least wait til I got to Blackpool itself and decide there. I took a gel to keep me going and to ensure I was topping up my energy supplies.
Blackpool finally arrived at just over 33 miles and 2hrs 5mins into the ride, but I cycled on as I wanted to get to the South Pier which was where the Seaside24 charity run had started, and I wanted a pic with Blackpool Tower behind to prove I had got there.....
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| As near as I was going to go, it was 35 miles in at this point. |
By the time I got to South Pier and took the above picture it was mile 35 mile and time to turn around after only a few minutes of trying to take the picture.
The return leg....
Thankfully the wind was more behind me now and the cycle down the seawall was a treat, especially weaving down the wavy strips of different coloured SMOOTH tarmac, it was a true pleasure, much like the fairground used to be in it's day.
The Promenade at St Annes was not so much a pleasure sadly. It was like a competition to see how many odd squares of crap tarmac repairs they could fit on a once prime strip of Promenade. It was a shame as it really lets the town down.
St Annes Pier was my next target as I had spotted a Fish and Chip spot with seating outside so I headed for that. Thankfully it was still open mid afternoon as obviously it gets a lot of hungry visitors to the beach and prom etc.
I parked my bike up where I could see it and promptly ordered my self a portion of fish and chips at £5.80, not to bad a price considering it was at a prime seaside site.
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| Went down a treat. |
I had packed a windproof packaway jacket so put this on as I ate, as I knew my body temperature would drop while I was stationary. As soon as I finished eating I set off again and decided to leave the jacket on as it was getting a tad chilly anyway.
Back down the Promenade at Lytham and nice and speedily this time with the wind at my back, and even time to stop to take a picture across the Ribble Estuary back toward Southport as I reminder of how far I had travelled......and how flipping far I still had to go.
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| Somewhere way..way in the distance you can see Southports Marine Way bridge. |
The return journey now was obviously a reverse of the way there but on the opposite side of the road and on just as crap tarmac lol.
I hit mile 40 in about 2hr 29min of ride time, mile 50 in 3hrs 4mins and mile 60 in 3hrs 44min ride time.
At this point at mile 60 I was well on the way home and flagging as muscles started to ache with the ride position etc. Weirdly my bum was fine, I was expected lots of discomfort by this point, but maybe it was just numb or asleep.
Tarleton approached and another few sections of on and off cycle paths that throw you on the road and then off again without any warning. Sadly at mile 61 after another forceful reroute onto the start of the cycle path from the road and all the crap that accumulates I developed a rather deflated rear end....the back tyre to be more precise.
Thankfully I was kitted out with spare tubes and some tyre levers but no experience on how to remove the wheel and tyre and replace the inner tube on this my new bike.
I used a local bus shelter...as a shelter obviously and lay all the necessary kit out, including 2 plastic tyre levers! How crap were they.....I didn't realise how tight on the rim these road tyres are. Usually with most bikes a deflated tyre comes of easily and often without the use of leverage. I was doubting my abilty to get the tyre of but finally I managed it and it all went quite smoothly, including putting the new tube in and pumping it up to high pressure with just a small compact pump.
Half an hour lost, but I guess a bit of much needed rest and I was ready to go again and praying I had put the wheel back on securely and tightened the quick release kit properly.
What caused the puncture you ask?...This not so little beauty.....
How the nail had managed to achieve the necessary angle to go all the way into the tyre I'll never know, but to be honest I was expecting my first puncture on the new bike at any point soon anyway, I was just kinda hoping it wouldn't be the rear wheel, but to be honest it came off and went on again easily and without the use of any spanners.
The home straight....and straight for pizza.
So I had only 9 miles to go and the rest helped as I'd changed the tyre etc, but it was still difficult as the wind was pretty much back in my face, but nothing like the Promenade at Lytham etc.
Back in Southport and the final stretch and I was dying for a sit down on a bench for 5 mins but I plodded on knowing it would be over soon.
I was despite all the cussing about the road conditions, very pleased with this ride and my ability to get it done in difficult circumstances and conditions, and I was aware that my recovery from this ride would be far quicker a more painfree than if I'd run any great distance. Truth be told the cycling is a lot more of a pleasure than the running at the moment, and I sadly pulled out of my next hill marathon last night the Excalibur Marathon at Moel Famau in North Wales.
This was mainly due to hardly running and not training as I rest my right knee from running and impact to give it a chance to heal. This gives me painfree time to cycle instead though, and no stress of having to train for an upcoming event while not physically able.
Another plus point of the cycling, I can still stuff my face after big rides to regain the burnt calories, in this case 3500+ on this ride. Needless to say I stopped at my local pizzeria and ordered myself the largest pizza for my tea. I ate half before writing this blog and now I'm off to eat the other half :)
See you laterz folks!!....
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| https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1690266209 |
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