Audax Rides

py

44Km/lap.

Further details on the website: http://audax24hour.com

py

Info up on the Facebook page too: https://m.facebook.com/Audax-Ireland-National-24HR-Time-Trial-1952391798363737/

py

Small number have pulled out for various reasons but everyone else going well with spirits high. Lead rider has done just over 530Km with just over 6 hours till he finishes. Closest riders behind him are a lap behind. Helen just completed her 8th lap.

py

Going to start consolidating the riders on to the smaller route now with riders expected to finish between 12-12:40pm.

Lusk_Doyle

Swords CC rider Finbarr McGurren the winner I believe.

py

Lusk_Doyle wrote: »

Swords CC rider Finbarr McGurren the winner I believe.

Yup, I'd to split straight after the riders were finished so didn't see final numbers but he was defo out ahead of the pack, probably in around the 700Km mark if I had to make a guess. Was a good day and no major incidents to report. Well done to everyone who participated and helped out.

Wishbone Ash

py wrote: »

Yup, I'd to split straight after the riders were finished so didn't see final numbers but he was defo out ahead of the pack, probably in around the 700Km mark if I had to make a guess. Was a good day and no major incidents to report. Well done to everyone who participated and helped out.

711k - savage going Finbarr. :cool:

nilhg

Firstly, congrats to all those who organised and helped out at the 24hr TT, it was a credit to AI and all the individuals who were on the committee and those who helped out on the day, also a nice idea to have the bit of gurb afterwards where you could meet the riders who because it was a TT you didn't really get much of a chance to interact with on the road.

Secondly, that was the hardest thing I've done on a bike, apart from the bits of my body that are numb, everything else hurts.....

Great to finally meet NP in the flesh, well done to her today.

ford2600

nilhg wrote: »

Firstly, congrats to all those who organised and helped out at the 24hr TT, it was a credit to AI and all the individuals who were on the committee and those who helped out on the day, also a nice idea to have the bit of gurb afterwards where you could meet the riders who because it was a TT you didn't really get much of a chance to interact with on the road.

Secondly, that was the hardest thing I've done on a bike, apart from the bits of my body that are numb, everything else hurts.....

Great to finally meet NP in the flesh, well done to her today.

Super ride, you left it all on the road by the looks of it.

magicbastarder

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

711k - savage going Finbarr. :cool:

am i right in thinking that that's over 29kmh average (and that includes breaks)?

Inquitus

magicbastarder wrote: »

am i right in thinking that that's over 29kmh average (and that includes breaks)?

Yep 29.625kph average for the 24 hours, including any stops, sleep etc etc.

Wishbone Ash

magicbastarder wrote: »

am i right in thinking that that's over 29kmh average (and that includes breaks)?

I don't think Finbarr took any food breaks - his support crew supplied his food/drink by musette bag.

nilhg

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

I don't think Finbarr took any food breaks - his support crew supplied his food/drink by musette bag.

Yep, and it didn't slow him down any.

Inquitus

nilhg wrote: »

Yep, and it didn't slow him down any.

He did take a short nap however.

buffalo

I was overnight support for one of the riders, and wasn't much looking forward to sitting at the side of the road in the dark. However with the long breaks (1hr+) in between his stops, there was plenty of opportunity to stretch the legs and chat to other supporters and riders taking breaks.

There were all sorts - Finbarr's family with their campervan were well set up, and a few had one or two in a car ready to help. It was all the little stories that made you realise what people were going through to get through the ride or help others through it - from the son who had to take a break from support to drop his aunt and uncle home from the pub, the husband who had to reassemble the tent in a quiet spot at short notice, the mate doing a handover to the wife at 5am...

Not to take away from anyone's achievement, but It was the self-sufficient riders that are the really amazing/mad ones. I have some pity (i.e. the poor lad who locked his keys in his car at 2am and had to break the window to get back in), but mostly admiration and respect. The mental resilience needed to keep going in the wee hours must've been massive.

The one who sticks out was a Romanian rider who had set himself a target that many here would consider modest, but wanted to show his medical condition could be tamed, so it was a challenge for him. He had the most relaxed attitude to the event, taking necessary long breaks in between laps and having great chats with the organisers, and it was a delight to see him at the finish with his wife and kids!

Kudos to the organisers, but massive respect to my own man who battled through some horrible hip pain and had a nap in a ditch for a bit before getting a second wind and powering through twenty four fecking hours of cycling. And likewise all participants! Hope the cheers from the roadside helped keep you going!

Lewotsil

Not sure if it is correct to say 'winner' but kudos to Finbarr for massive distance - it is insane ......... I would echo @buffalos sentiment re. the self sufficient riders.......... I actually thought when the event was announced months ago that support would not be allowed ?  It seems a little incongruent with the spirit of audaxing to have support cars and vans on route or am I off the mark ?

ford2600

Lewotsil wrote: »

Not sure if it is correct to say 'winner' but kudos to Finbarr for massive distance - it is insane ......... I would echo @buffalos sentiment re. the self sufficient riders.......... I actually thought when the event was announced months ago that support would not be allowed ?  It seems a little incongruent with the spirit of audaxing to have support cars and vans on route or am I off the mark ?

Audax organised but not Audax rules as far as I know. Nothing wrong with competing or having support. Most were probably just racing themselves.

https://www.cyclingtimetrials.org.uk/race-results/16889#anchor

The first lady home won the UK equivalent with a similar distance(716km) to the first home in Kildare, while the first man home rode 852km.

The Irish record is held by Ultan Coyle at 825km. The UK record is 871km I think.

thebouldwhacker

An amazing job by Audax Ireland. From sign on to post ride food it was miles of smiles and encouragement. The organisers and volunteers are just a big bunch of genuine cycling enthusiasts and it was a great experience to cycle the event. A pure out right 'club ethos' organised celebration of long distance cycling. The last rider got as much support as the first and that support was greatly appreciated.
In an environment where events are costing a small bank loan to enter and are focused on who podiums this event catered for all, regardless of their aims. It was so inclusive of the speedy riders and the more Audax inspired riders, never change it.
Looking around at the start line was a great thrill, knowing that each rider was in their own way going to tackle the course 100%. All too often A class racing is all about chasing wheels, staying off the front and trying to grab a sprint while avoiding a crash. As Tim Krabbé quoted Hennie Kuiper in The Rider "racing is about licking your opponent’s plate clean before starting on your own." However what struck me about yesterday was that every watt, km, hill or freewheel was ridden by each rider themselves. While a short TT is an all out attack this event relies on doing something now that will be of benefit in 20hours time.... while also holding a (relative) all out attack 😀
I've cycled many endurance events but yesterday felt like it ticked so many boxes of what a real endurance is.
Chapeau Audax Ireland.
Chapeau to all who supported.
Chapeau to all the riders.

cdaly_

What a ride! Ronnie certainly knows how to work a rider...

The gorgeous ride down the Barrow way took too much time and energy (I had to break out overland to BallyWilliam 'cos my hip was getting too painful on the towpath). I got there at 20:10 and refueled before heading north with 12 hours left to do 210k - pretty doable.

The lumpy stuff that followed kept my speed down and sucked more energy and, by 01:00 I was getting sleepy and inefficient so I stopped for a break - an hour in a hammock tied to a roadside fence did the trick. The rain had started coming down earnest by then and my timing was all gone to hell. By the time I got to Tullow at 03:00 I was looking at a 21kph average needed and best I'd do is about 18kph. I'd already been finding 20kph a strain with heartrate getting too high so I decided to call it a night.

There wasn't a hotel in Tullow and I didn't want to face more torrential rain heading to Carlow so I hung the hammock in a petrol station forecourt and snoozed for about 1.5 hour until the rain passed. Headed west to Carlow, found the railway station (first train 10:10) then found a hotel. "What time do you serve breakfast?" "Not until 8" (this was 06:00) "Could I get a pot of tea in the meantime?" "Certainly". So I settled in an armchair in the lobby of the Seven Oaks Hotel to await breakfast with a pot of earl grey and a bit of light snoring...

The welcome phrase "breakfast is served" roused me from slumber at 8 and I breakfasted on grapefruit, orange juice, scrambled eggs, mushrooms, toast, croissants and more tea. Heaven!

I settled again in the lobby to await the train (I'd booked my ticket online for €10 vs €18 at the station) and amused myself snoring at the departing guests.

I got to the train to discover it wedged. Match day with people getting the early train to avoid the crush. There was an empty space in the bike rack but one of the passengers refused to move "ye can feck off, I'm sitting here". I stood in the carriage lobby with bike and 5 others who very politely didn't spend the journey gasping for breath beside the 28 hour smelly cyclist. When getting off the train I noticed the cycle rack sitter had chain oil smeared over the back of his jacket - karma's a bitch...

So, an enjoyable day out all in all and sure there's another ride in August for another crack at RRTY ('cos this was supposed to be month 12)...

Lewotsil

@cdaly_ gutted for you missing out on RRTY like that (I did think it brave of you to leave this ride as your 12th) - Ronnie is the King of testing and interesting routes!

cdaly_

Pfft. Doing the ride was fun enough and there's always another Y to RRT...

paul a newman

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

I'd forgotten this was on today and it was only after a few minutes after getting a shout from Paul Newman when cycling up the R448 that the penny dropped. I was initially wondering why he was standing around in the middle of nowhere!

Good luck to all involved.

I thought for a second that you were doing the event, had to check the entry sheet to make sure !

Wishbone Ash

paul a newman wrote: »

I thought for a second that you were doing the event, had to check the entry sheet to make sure !

Jesus no - only for the hardy folks!

ford2600

Got the chance over the weekend to ride the inaugural/route check of Blackwater 200 with three others including the man who came up with it.

Route is very simple in that it starts at mouth of river in Youghal and follows northern bank to Mallow before returning on southern bank. It meanders (see what I did there!) through West Waterford and east/north Cork in the main with a brief visit to Tipperary.

Be it event or permanent there is no easy route currently available in Munster; Midelton with over 2000m climbing is the easiest with Pink Elephant, Inner Ring and Forgotten Roads being hard for 200's.


This route isn't easy either, without climbing anything that high(250m is probably max elevation) the constant undulations with the odd ramp add up. I'm not in the best of shape at the moment but at a guess I'd put it at Midelton difficulty level.

The route is a thing of beauty though; really quite roads predominantly, ideally suited to the solo RTTY cyclist. The section east of Doneraile, Killavullen to Fermoy and Clondulane to Lismore were particularly nice and for me mostly new.


A Cork man showing me around my own county took a bit of swallowing though! A great addition to Audax Ireland routes

ford2600

Another one added to list and off bucket list; Long Heron and 5 Aqueducts 200.

Described as 150km off road 50km on road by organiser and he wasn't lying. Starting in Whitehall in joins Royal Canal in Drumcondra before heading off west almost as far as Mullingar, 20km or so of back roads across to Rhode before rejoining Grand Canal for return journey east.


200km with 500-600m climbing, piece of p1ss right?


The organiser does warn its and arduous/punishing route and he's not kidding. No idea on exact number but must be close to 50km of grass of various lengths (cycling on grass is hard!), lots of gravel compacted and otherwise, roots, section that looked like they were closed given the growth on both sides. The organiser need not have bothered with control cards, a photo of your legs ripped by briars would have worked! I nearly forgot the rock(concrete block) garden around 90km.

Tough day on bike, despite the no climbing. 11 hrs in total; typically including stops 200's, even hard ones like Pink Elephant I've done solo in under 9 hrs. There was next to no freewheeling, stop pedalling at all and you just stop!

Really enjoyable interesting way to see country; hardly saw a car for most of day; walkers, dogs, cyclists, fishermen, leisure craft. The bridges, locks and canal houses are pleasant on the eye and have aged well. The interactions with other used was very laid back and pleasant.


The slightly inebriated gentleman in Drumcondra who quipped "Jaysus wats dis the over 60's cycling club" and the gent putting green diesel into his car in the midlands were two of the more colourful characters we met.


Huge range of bike on show despite small field of 15 or so; two old school audax bikes, a full suspension mtb, two hardtails and a selection of cx/adventure bikes.


35mm tubeless schwalbes were perfect on day but might struggle after a very wet summer.


All in all a brilliant event and something very very different.

thebouldwhacker

Crikey, if you're saying it's tough it must be a right challenge 🀔

Carawaystick

My local french audaxer had photos of the rock / cavity block section from 2 years ago, when he did it on a fixie and I chatted to a Belfast based fella who arrived with fancy Zipp wheels to do it the same year...

cdaly_

ford2600 wrote: »

Another one added to list and off bucket list; Long Heron and 5 Aqueducts 200.

Described as 150km off road 50km on road by organiser and he wasn't lying. Starting in Whitehall in joins Royal Canal in Drumcondra before heading off west almost as far as Mullingar, 20km or so of back roads across to Rhode before rejoining Grand Canal for return journey east.


200km with 500-600m climbing, piece of p1ss right?

11 hours? Well done. I made it back in 13h12 with 8 minutes to spare. Fantastic day but seriously tough. Among other things, I spent a while yesterday unwinding lengths of fishing line from my rear hub.

Month 1 of RRTY complete*...








*Hold on, I seem to remember saying that before...

Macy0161

Eyeing up a couple towards the end of the year - I've only done the Mick Bryne, which I take isn't a typical audax is more supported than usual. Do you get the route in advance/ down load a GPX file when you sign up? Happy enough with the distance, even my on the fly mechanics, but I don't think have the energy at this time of year for on the road map reading!

halvis

Macy0161 wrote: »

Do you get the route in advance/ down load a GPX file when you sign up?

The route is available from the associated Audax Ireland page, for example - here is the link to the Dying Light -

http://www.audaxireland.org/events-calendar/gazetteer/200km-events/dying-light-200/

There is a Map My Ride link and you can download the file from there any time. I think you may need to be registered to Map My Ride though, doing so makes it very easy to download to your GPS computer.