Coast to Coast in a Day

Wow, what a Coast-to-Coast weekend. After Friday's travel debacle, I eventually got to Seascale, on the coast of Cumbria, at 11:30pm. I had resigned myself to pitching the tent beside the beach in Haverigg and getting the first train in the morning. However, James the event organiser arranged for a very nice chap to pick me up from the station and take me to Seascale.

The day began at 5am and after a bowl of cereal I took my tent down and headed off to the start line, a slightly slippery jetty on the beach. A light drizzle was falling but it wasn't enough to require a jacket. The good news was that there was a prevailing tailwind. The roads started off quite rolling but nothing to bother even a big lad like me. It wasn't long before I reached the first climb of the day Hardknott Pass. Neil from work had said it was relatively short and not too bad! The 30% sign and seeing the hill snake into the distance told another story. With my gearing and bodily mass, there was no hope of me getting very far up it. I was soon walking. Some were getting up ok, but I saw one chap flip his bike backwards and another 3 fall because of the steepness.

The descent was no better, slippery with the rain and incredibly steep. On about the 3rd corner my foot jumped out the pedal, I wobbled and then went careering into a grassy bank. Shaken...but no damage, or so I first thought! Then I looked at my shoe cleat to see it was broken. It just wouldn't engage in my pedal so it was impossible to either ascent or descend any hill over about 3% gradient. A slight problem in such a mountainous area....and with the Wrynose Pass still to go. I didn't look at my watch but I must have lost me around 90mins!

Ambleside was the nearest town and I was lucky enough to be directed to Ghyllside Cycles, who soon produced a shiny new set of cleats for me. They knew Neil.....and weren't surprised he had said that one of the toughest hills in the UK wasn't that hard.....he was known as one of the best climbers in Cumbria and was a natural in such an environment. On then to Windermere for the first dib-point followed by a fast ride to the feed station in Kendal.

There was a toughish climb just beyond the town, but nothing too extreme....then rolling roads to Sedbergh. I was feeling strong so pushed as hard as was sensible for the next 19km but didn't see another soul on a bike.....hmmm. On reaching a junction near Kirkby Stephen, all became apparent. No direction signs!!! I had taken the wrong road out of Sedbergh. One option would have been to turn back but that would mean an additional 38km to end up back at the same place. Rather, I decided to miss the 2nd feed and head for Catterick via Tan Hill and the Long Causeway Road. The next climb was really tough, it was windy and it had started to rain heavily. I felt tired and a bit down...close to tears in fact. The road was beautiful though, quite barren, dotted with traditional stone farmhouses and hardy mountain sheep. Being miserable was not an option. Just as the heavens opened again, a tea room in the village of Thwaite appeared timeously. Perfect for a jam scone and a latte. The scone was definitely baked the day before and warmed in the oven....disappointing, but it had filled a hole that needed filing and better on the tummy than a sports gel!

The next 40km was plain sailing, especially with a continuous slightly downhill road and the tailwind. The coffee had perked me up and even the occasional monsoon type shower didn't dampen my spirits. They were pleased to see me in Catterick as I hadn't dibbed at the last check and I in turn was pleased at the offer of as many cheese baguettes as I could manage. I didn't have much due to my diet!

The penultimate section wasn't the prettiest but I was feeling amazing. Despite the standing water on the road, I focussed on trying to keep my speed up around 25-30km simply because that was the speed Rosemary had ridden at last week in her big race. A cheery monkey arrived at Ingleby Greenhow and I felt guilty refusing a bowl of chilli made by the lovely lady in the village hall. I was also very excited about seeing a full double rainbow for the 1st time. A wee square of flapjack and chocolate brownie would suffice....after all, it was only 40km to the finish in Whitby.

I set a "realistic" target of 90mins to get there.....riding as hard as I could for the first few hills, not expecting what was to come. Yeah, I knew there were 2 tough climbs but, like most of the other participants, hadn't accounted for the numerous 15-20% shorter ones. It's one thing riding fast just below threshold after 220km and another to deliver multiple above-threshold efforts just to get up the hills. I finally bonked big time on a short climb going through a village. I dismounted my bike and nearly collapsed.....I necked 2 gels and instantly felt better but still not good.

What kept me going was that it was amazingly beautiful around me. You could see competing weather fronts.......dark rolling clouds filled with rain, warm evening sunshine, amazing rainbows, a stunning red sunset behind me and another red sky in front. I saw a bird of prey, oyster catchers, song-birds, bats and a deer in the space of 20 mins. Monet would have cried, the light was so good! It was moving beyond belief....and kept me going despite not being in a good way.

It started to get dark just about the same time as I entered avenues of trees....I had only taken a piddlie wee light as I had estimated that worst case scenario would be finishing at 7:30pm....it was now nearly 10pm. I could see Whitby down below.....9km downhill to go, if I had followed the main road that is. The route planner had, however, managed to fit in another few climbs for good measure....bastard! They were re-chipping the final section of road into town too....so even that was a bit sketchy.

Supposedly, the final directional sign had disappeared so I wasn't sure how to get to the finish. Fortunately, there was a policeman in a van getting some snacks in the local garage and I asked him. Next thing, I was being provided with a police escort through the streets of Whitby, to the finishing line. 270km(ish) and 4.5km of climbing in a day! I set off just after 6am and it was now after 10pm.

After a short ride back to the campsite, I had a quick shower and then pitched my tent.....I wanted to ask for help but was so exhausted that it was a real task to string a sentence together. Best night's sleep in a tent that I've ever had. Many thanks to James Thurlow and his team for putting on a great event. They were so cheery and helpful over the full weekend. The chap who gave me a lift to Seascale (sorry, I've forgotten his name) also helped me box up my bike for the journey back to Penrith! Amazing service made helped add to a brill weekend.