After months of training, Nightrider 2013 arrived!

Nightrider is a unique 100km challenge which see those taking part cycle through the streets of London in the middle of the night.

Personally, I think this challenge was far harder than the half marathons I have completed in the past, probably due to my complacency at the start of training when I thought that because I would be sitting on a bike, it would be far easier. This was not the case which I quickly realised when we began our long training rides.

The starting area at Alexandra Palace

We arrived about 45 minutes before our 12.05am start time at Alexandra Palace. We felt good, albeit it little tired and chilly from the wind, however once we were underway, speeding down the hill, we quickly forgot our tiredness and the cold.

Now, I know I don’t have the greatest knowledge of our Capital, only really visiting London once or twice a year, and despite having looked at the profile of the ride beforehand, I was of the understanding that Alexandra Palace and Crystal Palace were the only killer hills – this was not the case! As soon as we got to the bottom of Alexandra Palace hill, a kilometre or two from the start, the first big incline began. Some riders were already beaten, dismounting to walk to the summit, however we kept peddling.

About 15 kilometres in we reached central London, dodging traffic and revellers enjoying the night life. As we approached Piccadilly Circus, passing all the exclusive nightclubs we hit a traffic jam! Joining the queue we were surrounded by London buses, taxi cabs, tuk tuks and the most amazing car showroom – Porches, Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Bentleys to name a few. Slowly we edged forward and made our way to the river, cycling alongside the Thames and crossing it numerous times.

 The amazing sights of London by night

 

Normally when I’m in London my time is limited because of what is known as The Last Train Home so I have never really seen the spectacle that is, London at night. Seeing all the historic and iconic buildings lit up and shown at their best was truly amazing. Especially as there was little traffic and no crowds, it did feel like we were being let on in a little secret that nobody else, apart from our fellow Nightriders, knew about.

Onwards and soon upwards we peddled. At about 30km we passed the WaterAid offices in Durham Street and shortly after began the climb to the top of Crystal Palace. The majority of the  incline through residential roads was relatively gentle and I could keep up with a comfortable speed, then, with about a kilometre or two to go, the real climb began. Again, I managed this mini challenge with relative ease which was a huge boost to my confidence.

Shortly after we reached the top the decent began and we took our first pit stop at the 40km mark. After a 20 minute rest and having taken on board some sweets, energy drinks and doused our sore muscles with pain relief gel, we continued.

The pit stop at Crystal Palace

Similarly to the decent of Alexandra Palace hill once we reached the bottom we were faced with another hill, although this time the hills kept coming. I lost count of how many there were and they were beginning to take their toll on my legs – the burning sensations I experienced on our last long training ride were kicking in. The wind had also picked up; as we passed through Blackheath it felt at times as though we were being pushed backwards.

The new day was dawning and as it did the realisation that we still had a long way to go. Descending towards the Thames again, we stopped just shy of Tower Bridge for our 60km pit stop. Further fluids and sweets were taken on board, and another application of our pain relief gel before we sat back onto, what was swiftly becoming, the most painful seat you could imagine.

Sitting on that again seat was worth it though, cycling across Tower Bridge with barely anyone else around is now a moment I will remember forever. I have always marvelled at the London Marathon runners crossing that landmark and wondered how amazing it must be, now I have some understanding.

We then turned towards Canary Wharf, cycling through residential roads before reaching the financial hub. Shortly after leaving Canary Wharf, we made it to our final pit stop with 16 kilometres left.

 

Canary Wharf

 

We were stiffening up, struggling to move, wanting to sit but our only seat caused immense pain. Five minutes relaxing on the grass stretching out made a huge difference. The mood here was different to other pit stops, much quieter, however the smell of various pain relief gel was stronger than before. We were not the only ones suffering, many other cyclist were succumbing to the heady mix of Voltarol and Deep Heat too!

After a short break we began our final push. I noticed that everyone’s speed was far slower than before. A small boost was had when we joined a group where one cyclist was playing Bob Marley music through a speaker. It was that little extra kick I needed.

Slowly we approached Alexandra Palace. I knew I would struggle up this hill and I certainly did. The burning in my legs was extremely intense as we climbed the last 500 metres, but for the first time, we had a few spectators cheering which was an energy boost in itself. I had to pause a couple of times as I climbed, not wanting to walk after a 20 second break I would continue until I reached the summit where John was waiting.

We crossed the finish line together at about 7.30am and collected our medals. I must admit, there were a few tears - a mixture of happiness, achievement, relief, pain and complete exhaustion!

 

The finish

 

This is an amazing challenge which I recommend people try. You see the magnificence of London in a unique way. However, as you can tell from this blog, it is tough, but as we prove, you don’t need to be a top cyclist with expensive equipment to complete it. As we cycled we saw people on a whole range of bikes; fold up, tandems, mountain, hybrid, road and bikes that are so old you wonder how the wheels are still turning.

Twelve hours since we completed the challenge, I ache all over, even my arms are painful which is surprising since they didn’t really go much! However, it is a pain I am enjoying, we have raised a huge amount for WaterAid which makes every ache feel worthwhile.

Would I do it again? Ask me in a few weeks when I can walk and sit with ease again!

My husband and I undertook this challenge to raise money for WaterAid. If you would like to retrospectively sponsor us, just click here.

The Nightrider countdown

It is less than one week until we embark on the 100 kilometre Nightrider challenge through the streets of London!

Our event numbers

 

As with many things in life, socialising with friends has a tendency to ebb and flow, currently it has been in full flow with hen/stag weekends, weddings and reunions. All this fun, along with the recent appalling weather, has been playing havoc with our training plan and I am now left feeling extremely underprepared for what awaits me.

We did, however manage a 77 kilometre ride on Bank Holiday Monday through the sunny back roads of Kent from Gillingham to Broad Oak via Herne Bay. It was a lovely ride, and one I am sure we’ll do again, however it has put the fear into me. I now understand what the phase “feel the burn” actually means! After approximately 40km every incline we hit the muscles in my legs would burn and sting. It is far from a pleasant feeling, however a mid-climb rest stop for a few seconds would reduce the pain enabling me to continue the slog to the summit before the burn would overpower once again.

On Thursday we went on a planned visit to London and decided to take a look at our starting point – Alexandra Palace. On the night if I have not already been finished off by the previous six hour cycle ride, the last kilometre or so will certainly do just that!

I always knew Alexandra Palace and Crystal Palace, one of the other landmarks we pass, are on the top of long, steep hills, however I was unprepared for reality. I think blissful ignorance would have been the best thing for me as it has contributed to feeling completely out of my depth.

The London skyline from Alexandra Palace

I know I’ll get round the course, there is no question of that, but it is going to be a lot tougher than I originally anticipated.

We are putting ourselves through this pain and sleep deprivation to raise money for WaterAid, a charity which brings clean water, sanitation and hygiene education to those not as fortunate as ourselves to have taps and toilets in their homes.

I would like to thank all those who have sponsored us so far. If you would like to sponsor us, just click here.

The best £50 I ever spent

Cycling helmets... When I was a youngster cycling around the cul-de-sac in which I lived, fields around my home and to and from school I rebelled against wearing one. They were un-cool, ruined hair styles and in the 1980s/90s generally unflattering in style.

Today it’s the opposite, everyone wears them, they’re stylish, if you don’t you’re seen as foolish and not serious about the sport. So, I wear one.

I, along with my husband, am training for Nightrider London 2013, a 100km cycle challenge around the country’s Capital in the middle of the night in June.

It’s going to be a great challenge and like all challenges I take on, I train as hard as I can. The longest distance we’ve been so far is 40km around rural east Kent. Today we aimed for 50km along the north Kent coast, something we felt was completely achievable.

It was a lovely 11km ride to Herne Bay then along the cliff then down onto the promenade for a luxuriously flat ride.

Cycling along the promenade between Herne Bay and Whitstable

About 20km in, just as I was thinking about suggesting to stop for a drink, I found out how vital helmets are and how foolish I was as a child for believing I was invincible and not wearing one.

Somehow (it’s a little bit of a blur), I cycled at 20km/hour off the promenade, falling about three feet and landing head first in the stony shingle below.

I remember the hard impact on the top of my head and wondering if this is it, one of those defining moments which last just seconds but you live with for the rest of your life. Over dramatic? May be, but laying hunched on the floor and in pain I began testing my body while my husband (and another man) came to my rescue.

I was extremely winded, couldn’t breathe so need to calm and relax, which I did. With my husband then at my side telling me not to move I wanted to test my legs, yes, they worked and I could wiggle my toes. I would be fine - relief.

Slowly, very slowly, I got up, sore, stiff and my ego bruised, it took a while but I was soon perched on the edge of the promenade which I had dived off resting, recovering and gently stretching out the stiffness. My eyes then did something very odd, I began seeing everything as if it were extremely over exposed, fortunately after a minute or so of lying on the promenade everything returned to normal.

I looked at my helmet; it was battered, dented and saved me from more serious injury than the jarred back and neck now currently have.

They say the best thing to do after a fall is get back in the saddle, so that’s what I did cycling a couple more kilometres on to Whitstable when the shock kicked in and I realised I was not going to be able to get home by bike. I was stiffening up so didn’t have enough movement in my body to feel safe cycling so the decision was made. My husband cycled home to collect the car while I walked the short distance to a supermarket where he would pick me up.

As I walked the enormity of what happened hit me, without that helmet my injuries would have been far more serious without question. Ultimately I walked away, something some don’t have the luxury of saying.

As well as being thankful for that helmet, I’m also extremely annoyed at myself for ending up in that situation in the first place. I still managed a 25km ride, half of what I set out to do, but hopefully after a week of R&R I’ll be back in that saddle with a new trusty helmet, re-tracing my steps and conquering that 50km ride, and above all staying as far away from the edge of that promenade.

RIP – my special Specialized Echelon helmet – the best £50 I ever spent.

Fundraising and fitness

Four years ago the thought of entering any sporting event filled me with dread.

At school sporting success never graced my path and I was regularly found towards the back of the pack no matter whether it was a cross-country, track or team event. So when in 2009 I donned a pair of trainers and began slowly jogging the short distance around the block a couple of times a week I was just as surprised as my friends and family. However, as the metres slowly turned into miles I became hooked and if I didn’t go for a run, for whatever reason, I felt the excess energy building up.

After watching with great admiration the London Marathon fun runners for years with the dream that one day I would actually take part, I suddenly felt that this is something I could do, well maybe not the full marathon, not yet anyway. So I signed up for The Great Bupa South Run 2010 – 10 miles running through the streets of Portsmouth. Raising about £500 for the MS Society, I thoroughly enjoyed the event and as soon as I returned home I began looking for my next challenge - queue The Bath Half Marathon 2011.

I thoroughly enjoyed training for The Bath Half and when, two weeks before the event, I managed to run the 13.1 mile distance I felt ready and prepared. Now, I know Bath is not the flattest of places and I had incorporated steep hills into my training plan, however those hills in Bath were tough! Although my pace was not great (not that I have a great pace anyway) I got round in 2 hours 25 minutes without walking! Again I raised money about £500 for charity, this time WaterAid, a charity which I was becoming increasingly involved with.

Exhausted following The Bath Half 2011

Due to the support I have given WaterAid through my work I was selected to visit Zambia with the charity in 2012 which was an amazing and eye opening experience. You can read my blog of the trip here.

On my return, with the people I met in Zambia my inspiration, I ran the 2012 Paddock Wood Half Marathon, again raising about £500 for charity (there is a fundraising theme here). This course is fairly flat and I got round in 2 hours 15 minutes. I felt really good at the end and even ended up going to the gym after!

 

Feeling good following the Paddock Wood Half Marathon

I do really enjoy running, unfortunately I have lost my running fitness now, but I really want to get back into my trainers and start again. Watching those amazing fun runners today conquer the London Marathon 2013 is a huge inspiration once again.

I’ve applied to run the London Marathon through both the ballot and through charity places for the past three years and been unsuccessful in winning a place, fingers crossed 2014 will be a winning year!

Although I’m not training to run at the moment, I am training to take on the 100km NightRider through the streets of London with my husband in just 48 days with both of us raising funds for WaterAid.