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The Blog/Log of g0g

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  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Sunday 6th March 2011

    Route: Home – Sally Gap – Laragh – Wicklow Gap – Blessington - Home


    Back to the mountains this week for what might I think have been my longest cycle to date, plus we took in two good climbs over the day! I met up with jimm and drumbren around 9-ish this morning and off we headed! With the nice weather yesterday I had been up for a drive in the Wicklow Mountains, so that was useful as I hadn’t been over that pass from Laragh before.

    Unfortunately the weather wasn’t quite as nice as yesterday, plus bright spark me decided to wear a S/S jersey instead of the usual L/S for the colder days! Oh well, sure we got back in one piece anyway!

    The first hill of the day was a tough one for me I have to say. I normally find up towards Cruagh Wood fine, but today wasn’t as easy. I think it was a combination of not having been up that way for a few weekends plus chasing to keep up with jimm!:pac:


    routev.jpg

    Up over the top was pretty cloudy/misty and wet enough too but we did of course plough on! Thankfully there were zero punctures throughout the day. I was a little nervous with this being my first spin on the new Gator tyres (and I even had a second spare tube instead of one just in case!), but they were perfectly up to the job!

    As we approached Sally Gap I have to say I was starting to get pretty cold. The Garmin at this stage had the temperature down below 4c, plus it turns out my new great gloves are not in fact at all as waterproof as the guy in the shop said they were! :mad: I wonder once gloves get soaked through are you better off taking them off or leaving them on?:confused:

    Really enjoyed the descent as we approached Laragh, although I think it’s best to put the shades on for the fast downhills when it’s raining! Once we got into Laragh I had my first experience of this café that everyone goes to in Laragh – previously I thought it was that Ann’s Café place everyone goes to, but it would appear that I was mistaken! I was a little nervous leaving the bike outside, but there seemed to be lots of cyclists around and sure mine was probably worth least of those sitting out there anyway!:pac:

    The stove turned my gloves from wet/cold to wet/luke-warm (better than nothing I guess!) and the brownie gave me a little bit of motivation for the next tough climb! They also let me off 15c as I didn’t have enough money, so now I know I’ll defo be back to pay off my debt!!!:)


    statsem.jpg
    (Spot where we stopped from the temperature!!!)

    The Wicklow Gap was a long drag up. In a way it’s possibly a good thing the weather was fairly pants because we could never see too far ahead to become demotivated by how much further there was to go! There were some great downhill stretches after the top (although jimm tells me it’s even better in the other direction) and I clocked around 67km/h at one point.

    We took the scenic route between the lakes, and at the lower altitude we could at least see a bit of the view having lost the clouds. In fact we even had a brief bit of sun a little later on before getting back to Dublin. The stretch from rejoining the N81 until the descent to Tallaght felt very long for me. I’m used to turning right at Sally Gap and rejoining the road that way (a lot closer to Dublin!). That last big descent wasn’t quite as much fun as usual because I was kinda banjaxed plus there was a bit of a headwind.

    Once in Tallaght we took it easy and made our way to the end of the route. I really enjoyed today’s cycle but have a feeling my body’s gonna be wrecked tomorrow!

    Jersey Sightings:
    One outside the café in Laragh but I can’t remember who jimm said he was!

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) Completing it!

    2) Having a bit of boards company all the way!
    3) No problems with the new tyres

    4) That brownie in Laragh was fairly excellent!

    Low points of the cycle:
    1) Gloves soaking through!
    2) Lack of nice scenery with the bad weather

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    Still no sign of that pump, but hopefully it’ll show up this week!

    T minus 3 weeks ish until my wife is due, so I suspect this’ll be the last long loop cycle I do until April sometime. Oh well, I can just do laps of the Phoenix Park in the meantime, although I can’t imagine there being very much to write up about!

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    Badminton Tue and Fri (again!).


  • Registered Users Posts: 650 ✭✭✭jimm


    g0g wrote: »
    Jersey Sightings:
    One outside the café in Laragh but I can’t remember who jimm said he was!).

    That was Last Gasp. Sorry LG for not hanging around outside but we had to get indoors fairly pronto to defrost!!!

    Thanks g0g and drumbren, really enjoyed that. Hope all goes well with the new arrival (the baby, not the pump :)). You'll have to post up a photo of him/her (in new Boards jersey of course).


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Thursday 17th March 2011 - Loop around Phoenix Park then laps all round it!

    It's been a while since my last entry, but that was expected after playing badminton all last weekend! Incidentally we were knocked out of 3 of the 4 events, but at least we made it to one final this weekend! The catch is then that the only possible cycle for the weekend might be Sunday. With that in mind I decided I may as well grab a local cycle this morning!
    20110317.jpg
    Not wanting to be too far from home I decided to pretty much just arse about near the Phoenix Park. In order to get to the park I did a long clockwise loop of it first, not realising how steep (albeit short!) that hill after Chapelizod is! I also kinda regretted the route choice as I went around the outside East wall of the park - the surface along there is fairly pants, so I'd have been as well off just doing some more time inside the park!

    Lots of people out and about as expected. Model planes, hundreds of deer and even a squirrel refused to move off the road until I was nearly on top of him/her! Yes there were a fair few cyclists too, although only 5-10 seemed to be out for exercise/training and the rest out to explore the park.

    I made another attempt to cover off every single path in the park on the cycle, so that gave the brain something to think about for a couple of hours. I also got thinking about GPS Art - see thread in main Cycling forum. It took enough effort to make out a basic g0g on one of the football pitches! I reckon it could be interesting though to find a street route via bike that actually spelt or drew something!

    I got bored of the park before hitting the 60km mark so added in a spin just up the quays then around through Inchicore to make it add up ok! Won't do my usual lists as not all that much happened!

    Happy St Patrick's Day everyone!:)


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Doubt I'll be getting too much cycling done this weekend so had my first evening spin of the year this evening! Just a quick 30km but did it a little faster than my normal pace to make it feel tougher. Lots of cyclists out in the park, many of whom flew by me on their fancy tri-bar bikes or whatever they're called! Route. Kept the average at 28km/h just about so was happy enough with that. Really need to get some longer weekend spins done now but doubt they'll happen in the immediate future!


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Saturday 26th March 2011 - 09:00

    70km around the Phoenix Park - Approx 2:30

    With "Due Date" having come and gone yesterday, once again I decided to keep the cycling local. I wasn't sure if I'd get out at all, but the Phoenix Park is closer to home than work so I knew it'd be grand!

    My god I didn't realise how cold it would be at 09:00 yesterday! After a week of seeing temperatures in the 'teens in the car I assumed it'd be a nice warm morning - silly mistake! I was gonna just wear a S/S top for the cycle but thankfully opted for a base layer too! Unfortunately though I went with the basic gloves so my fingers froze for the first while! It was sub 6 degrees for the first few laps I did. I was glad to see the temperature go up a few degrees before I'd finished!

    20110326.jpg

    I was determined to get up to around 70km, so with my medium lap (as I call it) taking about 8-9km I knew I needed 8 laps plus the journey to/from the park. I've never done a cycle with that many identical laps before. It actually seemed ok in the end.

    Two things helped along the way. Firstly, on lap 3/4 I caught up with someone doing the same loop at a similar pace so that gave me someone to kinda race against. I found he was faster in some sections then I was faster in others. Secondly, for nearly the entire cycle there was another guy at similar pace doing the same laps in the other direction. We passed twice on each lap, and the point of passing helped me compare our rough lap times relative to one another!

    Busy morning in the park anyway with absolutely loads of joggers out, but maybe not quite as many cyclists! I'm finding on the main stretch of the Park I prefer to use the cycle lane than the main road, but when approaching the roundabouts you have less of a right of way to plough through compared to if you're in the flow of traffic!

    Overall it was a good cycle, although I'm a bit concerned as to how near the W200 is and I'm still not doing >100km cycles every weekend! Oh well, I'll just have to up the pace I guess!:)

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    1) What is the most anyone has cycled in the Phoenix Park in one single session? Have people ever clocked a couple hundred km in a day there, or would you die of boredom first!?
    2) If you ignore wind, should a given lap route on a bike use the same amount of energy in either direction? i.e. say one way it's one steep hill and one slight decline but the other way it's the long uphill and then a steep drop at the end?
    3) I've finally sorted out adjusting the mechanical disc brakes now. I'm finding with the back brake that after each long cycle I need to twist the stationary pad in about one notch to keep it close. Is that the norm or does it mean I'm going through them too quickly?


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  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Saturday 23rd April 2011 – 09:10

    Route: Home – Brittas - Sally Gap – Roundwood(ish) – Enniskerry – Rathfarnham - Home


    I can’t believe it’s been just under 7 weeks since my last venture into the mountains! Time does fly, and the Wicklow 200 is getting ever closer! :eek: Granted yes I had a few spins in the park after that, but they don’t really compare to proper hills plus I’ve also had a few weeks with zero cycling at all as the baby arrived on April 2nd! :)

    Having run the marathon a few years ago and experienced what must have been “the wall” at around the 20-mile mark, I understood that this was something more associated with running. Today I learnt my lesson when I came up against what could only be described as a cycling wall! Basically I tried to make up for lost time today by giving myself a bit of a tough first cycle back, and my legs are regretting it ever since!!!


    route20110423.jpg

    Made a bit of a last-minute post on the W200 thread yesterday to see if anyone was around. I reckon it’s a good thing no one joined me because I’d only have wrecked their head(s) with the slow pace at times during the cycle! :o

    It all actually started off very well this morning. Kept a good pace all the way out the N81, even on the climb after Jobstown things were looking very good. As I headed up the hill there millions of cars seemed to be passing with bikes on racks – was there some sort of event on up that way today? I really couldn’t believe how well I was feeling when I reached the turn off at Manor Kilbride. It was my first time to cycle up to Sally Gap from that side, so I was a little nervous as coming down there always seems like a very long descent. But it was actually ok enough. I took my time on the way and had a few cyclists fly past me. I think I read on here once that the last km before Sally Gap is the hardest, and I’d definitely agree now.

    The top of the Gap was almost exactly 40km from home, just under half the planned route, and I was feeling great! I freewheeled the first descent towards Lough Tay and absolutely flew down it – such a great buzz! All was still well passing Ballinastoe Woods, and on the steep drop after that I hit around 77km/h. It was quite scary because at the bottom of the drop there’s a tight enough turn and I just couldn’t get the bike to turn sharp enough. To turn harder am I better banking the bike more or turning the handlebar more? :confused:


    stats20110423.jpg

    By the bottom of that hill section my legs were shaky and my braking fingers pretty sore, but it was worth it for the speed! But once I hit the main Roundwood-Kilmac road things started to go a little downhill. I just had absolutely no energy left, and realised I’d bitten off more than I could chew! But I was still able to move so I carried on and flew down the stretch to Rocky Valley where I took the sharp turn left for Enniskerry. Along here things got progressively worse, with the bike almost stopped I was so banjaxxed! I was hoping that a load of chocolate in Enniskerry would save the day. When I finally got to the village I decided I couldn’t face the climb out of the place so took the backroad around the village and continued on to the petrol station on the road to Kilternan.

    Once I got off the bike I was convinced that I wasn’t going any further. This was strange territory I’ve never been in before. I’ve been tired on cycles before but never looked to quit! I even got as far as calling my father on the mobile to give me a lift, but when I heard he was out and about away from the house I didn’t have the heart to ask for a lift and had a chat instead. 1 Yorkie, 3 Freddo bars and half a bag of reduced Haribo later I mustered up the strength to continue!

    It did get better from there on. I kept the jellies open in one of my back pockets and munched as I cycled. It was a great feeling getting up to Lamb Doyle’s because at that stage I knew I was pretty much done with climbing for the day.

    To say I was glad to make it home in one piece would be an understatement! It ended up being just under 90km in total. I’ve certainly learnt my lesson for next week – pace myself!!! At this stage I dunno if the full 200km is going to be doable. The thought of trying to do over twice what I did today makes me nervous, but hopefully I’ll be back fitter by then!

    23042011565.jpg

    Jersey Sightings:
    None!

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) No punctures or numb fingers
    2) The fast descents!
    3) Loads of cyclists out and about
    4) Sunny weather in the second half of the cycle

    5) Lots of lambs in the fields made it very picturesque!
    6) Surviving it despite planning to quit

    Low points of the cycle:
    1) Being absolutely on the verge of collapse!
    2) One scary corner where I was probably a bit too fast and drifted a bit across the road

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    Lots of walks with a buggy! Back to badminton on Tuesday now.


  • Registered Users Posts: 995 ✭✭✭Ryder


    I dont think you will have any problem with the 200. 90k solo in wicklow prepares you well. Before my first wicklow 200 the longest spin I did was 100k in flat north dublin.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Monday 2nd May 2011 – 09:00

    Route: Home – Glencree – Devil’s Elbow – Lamb Doyle’s – Phoenix Park - Home


    Ok I’m a bit behind on myself now so going to do two entries this evening. The first relates to last Monday when I went for a cycle on the Bank Holiday. After the disaster that was the previous cycle, I was a little bit nervous and thought something a little bit shorter might be a better idea! It was perfect timing then that a few friends who are getting into cycling were heading out that morning. I knew there’d be hills involved, but distance-wise it wouldn’t be too bad and I’d have company also!

    That roundabout at the bottom of Stocking Lane or whatever it’s called seems to be a great meeting spot used by lots of people! We took a slightly different route up the hill than I’m used to, turning down Mount Venus Road (as if there weren’t enough hills already!). One of the lads was flying up towards the car park at the top and I have to say I was struggling to keep up! :(


    route20110502.jpg

    There were 5 of us in the group, and that made it great because there were a few breaks along the way to regroup! Coming down into Glencree we took a break and had an ice-cream in the sun. :) I’d never been in there before – seems like a popular cyclists spot? It looked fantastic out on the desk in the sun and they might even sell beer too!? Could be a dangerous combination on a cycle! :pac:

    We headed down the rubbishy-surface road through Curtlestown etc to the Devil’s Elbow turn-off on the left. I cycled that road in the other direction a while back, but this was my first time in this direction. We flew down the last part of the hill, over the bridge and I took a charge to hopefully use my momentum into the first corner…. Not a chance! Those two turns are an absolute killer I must say! :eek:


    stats20110502.jpg

    Beyond Johnny Foxes the downhill around the Blue Light is great fun, although a little narrow and the turns are tight! It’s one of those areas where I find bikes are so much faster than a lot of cars, so it’s weird sensation having a car of all things holding you up!

    I felt like a sprint coming down from Lamb Doyle’s over the M50 and I think hit around 74km/h :cool: – great fun! Left the group at the canal. At that stage I knew there’d be about 60km on the clock when I got back, but I still had more energy so threw in a lap of the park. With the W200 so close now at this stage I simply can’t afford to not push myself!

    Survived the Phoenix Park grand – in fact it’s almost like a warm-down after the hills earlier on!

    Jersey Sightings:
    None!

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) Having some company
    2) Stop in Glencree
    3) Not feeling like last weekend!

    Low points of the cycle:
    1) Struggling on the first big hill

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    If your front and back cog are exactly the same size as one another, does it make a difference form an energy-usage point of view whether they’re both big or both small? I don’t think so but thought I’d throw it out there!

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    Lots of walks with a buggy! (this will be a recurring thing I suspect!!!)


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Sunday 8th May 2011 – 09:00

    Route: Home – Sally Gap – Brittas – Harold’s Cross – Phoenix Park - Home


    Update number two in the space of an hour – this must be a personal record! Things were looking dodgy on Friday night. My right leg was not in a good way – think I injured a tendon or muscle or one of those thingies (don’t worry; I’m not on here seeking medical advice!). I took it easy yesterday and thankfully all felt well this morning. After last week’s success with the gang we decided to push a bit further and do the loop turning right at Sally Gap.

    I looked out the window this morning and the weather seemed grand from Kilmainham, but having seen the rain yesterday and the forecast online I kinda had my doubts! Still, I won’t be able to pick what the weather’s like the day of the W200 so headed on out. From the start I knew it was gonna be a tough ascent with the wind in our faces! Met the gang (4 of us in total) at the same roundabout and took the same route up. Thankfully I found the initial hills less of a struggle than last week. We got up to the viewpoint carpark fine.


    route20110508.jpg

    From there on though we started to really feel the headwind. In addition to that the heavens opened on us a couple of times, especially on the way up past Lough Bray. I really got a feel for the wind on the high up part before coming down to Glencree. Normally that stretch is fast enough, but today I think we were only doing low 20’s along there. It was nice to be a little bit more sheltered near Glencree, but as I said then heavens then opened!

    The tricky thing about around Sally Gap is the lack of anywhere to shelter. Has no one ever considered putting a little hut up there somewhere? Is the fear that it would be lived in / blown away / vandalised / obstruct the scenery!? There was a great feeling of achievement reaching Sally Gap given the rain and headwind.

    The first descent from there was amazing, probably my favourite downhill to date since I got the bike! I knew it was going to be good as the wind was almost directly behind us. I missed 80km/h by just 0.2km/h on the way down. The feeling was absolutely fantastic, although there’s an element of holding on for dear life! Even the first slight right turn is tough at that speed!


    stats20110508.jpg

    In fact the whole way from there down to the N81 was pure bliss. Even the uphills didn’t feel like that with the wind behind us, and of course the scenery along there is beautiful too! I must at some point learn an alternative route down there. The only way I know is straight down, but I know there are a couple of right turns towards the end that could mean you join the N81 closer to Dublin.

    We had a couple of brief showers between Sally Gap and getting back, but nothing like those on the way up, so we were all dry by the time we got back! Couple of hairy moments coming down the N81 into Tallaght – I think cars often have a habit of overtaking very close to cyclists in parts!

    I left the gang at the canal and decided to do the same as last week. This week we had about 70km on the clock so I used the park to make that just over 80km total.

    Really enjoyable cycle and great to be building up the distances again! I know I keep saying it, but at this stage I REALLY have to start doing midweek cycles or else I’ll never build up enough stamina! With us heading away for a week at the end of the month I’m rapidly running out of time! At least there’s always the backup plan of the 100km route if I die a death on the day!


    Jersey Sightings:
    None, despite there being heaps of people out cycling today!

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) Having some company (again!)
    2) Downhill from Sally Gap
    3) Being dry by the time I got home!
    4) Long time since I've had or seen a puncture!

    Low points of the cycle:
    1) Headwinds!

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    In random news next weekend as part of joining Bray Wheelers I’m helping out with the Shay Elliott race. First time marshalling at a cycling event. “Bring a yard brush” they told me – sounds like a fun day out…. Ah well, hopefully it’ll be good to see proper cyclists flying by! That said, it puts a stop to my great plans of another Sunday morning cycle! Any of you lot from on here doing that race? I’ll be the confused-looking person at the corner that hasn’t been yard-brushed by an experienced marshall!!

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    I’m going to count last Monday’s cycle as that falls under being in the same week!


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Thursday 12th May 2011 – 18:30

    Route: Home – Mt Venus Road – Cruagh – Johnny Fox’s – Lamb Doyle’s – Mt Venus Road - Home


    I’m falling behind on things again! At least this update is being done within 5 days of the cycle, but I still have to catch up on two again! Fortunately these were identical routes so I doubt I’ll bother describing it in detail twice! Thursday was a solo attempt. I needed something that would take around 2 hours or just less but including hills. I had great thoughts of Sally Gap but then decided to be realistic and kept it closer to home. Conditions were nice enough on Thursday with quite a few cyclists out and about.

    I adopted the same climb from the previous weekend cycle, breaking up the big hill by cutting across Mount Venus Road on the way up. I found it easier going than last time – could it possibly be that I’m getting fit again!? :pac: Given that it was a shorter than normal cycle I did the route pretty much non-stop, plus I was under strict instruction not to be out too long!


    20110512route.jpg

    Once I reached the top of the big hill I headed straight down, but cutting across to Glencullen. That stretch from Cruagh across to Glencullen is really nice, with a good mix of flat, uphill and descents, plus the views are nice too! Took a left in Glencullen and followed the upper road back down past the Blue Light to Lamb Doyle’s. There were a few steep looking left turns along the way there – do any of them possibly loop over the mountain for a challenge? Speaking of which, after Lamb Doyle’s and just before the M50 bridge there’s a left turn – is that a dead end or a loop? Where does it end up? :confused:

    I had a bit of energy left once I reached Marlay Park so took a left and headed back to Mt Venus Road for good measure. All in all the full cycle was just over 1:50 moving time, so I was delighted with that. With the badminton season finished it’s good to know that you can get reasonably far into the hills in the evening and make it back before dark!

    Jersey Sightings:
    None!

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) First mid-week hilly cycle
    2) Nice weather conditions
    3) Great to clear the head after a day in the office!

    Low points of the cycle:
    1) None!

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    See road questions above!

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    N/A


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  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Monday 16th May 2011 – 18:00

    Route: Identical to last Thursday! (just different stats)


    There were great plans for a weekend cycle, but I had a lot on so never made it out! Both Saturday and Sunday afternoon I thought might be options, but the combination of the weather and being banjaxed meant I never got out! :o To make up for it I headed out with the gang last night!

    There was possible talk of a lap to Glencree, but it was pretty windy, late-ish starting and weather looked a bit unpredictable so we kept the route closer to home. As per link above we cycled the exact same route as I did last Thursday, so I don’t really have any new thoughts or comments! With there being four of us it meant a few stops to re-group along the way, but I enjoy the stops for having a chat and adding a social element to the spin! :)


    20110516route.jpg

    Unfortunately the weather conditions weren’t ideal, but I still really enjoyed it! We had a headwind right up the first hill and drizzle later on for a good bit! I was a little bit disappointed that the GPS altitude readings didn’t exactly match the previous time around this lap. Last night I saw -9m on the altimeter at one point. Oh well, it’s never going to be an exact science I guess.

    Total moving time was about 15 minutes longer than last week, but that makes sense I guess with the chatting along the way and the rain making us need to take it a bit easier. Seems like solo cycling makes you push yourself a bit more I reckon.

    In good news one of the others in the gang is defo doing to W200 (and planning the full version) so I’ll have some company on the day! Last night was only 46km so we’re planning to do a big loop on Saturday morning, similar to what I did with drumbren and jimm before I reckon, or maybe even further! Watch this space for a more eventful cycle if I survive it!

    Jersey Sightings:
    None!

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) 75km/h on one downhill
    2) The rain not getting too heavy
    3) Company!

    Low points of the cycle:
    1) Wind

    2) Drizzle!

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    I marshalled at my first event last weekend (see post in main forum) at the Shay Elliott Memorial race. As I joined Bray Wheelers this year part of the membership involves helping out. It was interesting to see the whole operation, but cycling in my opinion isn’t exactly the best roadside viewer sport in the world! I set off down to Tinahely armed with a flag, hi-viz jacket and a yard brush! The race was gone by in about 2 minutes total viewing time. I then legged it back up to my second spot just before the finish. It’s amazing how traffic always obeys anyone in a glowing jacket with a flag. They all happily (thankfully!) sat there for 10 minutes while the finishers whizzed by! It was a little bit more exciting there as I could see them sprinting, although the winner was a fair bit ahead of anyone else!

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    See previous post! Hopefully a big cycle this weekend around by Laragh or something.


  • Registered Users Posts: 24,462 ✭✭✭✭Cookie_Monster


    g0g wrote: »
    I was a little bit disappointed that the GPS altitude readings didn’t exactly match the previous time around this lap. Last night I saw -9m on the altimeter at one point. Oh well, it’s never going to be an exact science I guess.

    Gog, always set the altitude correction to "enabled" when uploading a route. This uses know points around the place to correct the altitude reading from the GPS, which will vary as it may not get the initial point correct when connecting to the satellites. all those crazy below sea level numbers will disappear


  • Registered Users Posts: 795 ✭✭✭tawfeeredux


    g0g wrote: »


    There were a few steep looking left turns along the way there – do any of them possibly loop over the mountain for a challenge? Speaking of which, after Lamb Doyle’s and just before the M50 bridge there’s a left turn – is that a dead end or a loop? Where does it end up? :confused:

    That's probably Ticknock Road. If you go straight up there you'll come to Ticknock Forest park on the left. There's a tough climb up a service road there to the tv masts on top of Three Rock. Good road surface & a great view over the city once you get to the top. You need to have your wits about you on the descent, very fast & twisty. There's also a right turn before you get to Ticknock park that brings you down past Stackstown golf club to Taylors pub at the corner of Marley Park.


  • Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 15,685 Mod ✭✭✭✭smacl


    And if you've got wide tyres on, you can cut across the fire roads at ticknock to come back down Kilmashogue road into the back of Marlay park. I do it on the hybrid with 32mm Marathons occasionally, but wouldn't recommend it on anything less that 28mm tires.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Gog, always set the altitude correction to "enabled" when uploading a route. This uses know points around the place to correct the altitude reading from the GPS, which will vary as it may not get the initial point correct when connecting to the satellites. all those crazy below sea level numbers will disappear
    Thanks yeah I've tried that in the past and a couple of times got bad readings. I found if cycling in places with a steep drop beside you all it took was for a couple of your markers/waypoints to register as down the drop and that would muck the results up equally badly! I guess for such a tiny and great gadget I should be grateful for whatever I get out of it!


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Saturday 21st May 2011 – 08:45

    Route: Kilmainham - Blessington – Wicklow Gap – Sally Gap – Glencree - Kilmainham


    Another long gap since my last update, but another good excuse! Two of us did the cycle on the Saturday morning and then I was away on holidays from the Sunday until Sunday just gone. As we’re both gonna give the 200 a bash we decided we’d at least need to get past 100km and do a couple of the big hills. Not a bad day rain-wise, but the headwind nearly killed me at times! It was one of those days where no matter which way you point the bike it feels like the wind is in your face!

    route20110521.jpg

    As I still haven’t figured a backroad to Blessington we took the N81. After the top of the big hill beyond Tallaght there are a few left turns before Kilbride turn – I assume some of these lead to roads that track parallel? Or can you turn off to a backroad at the start of the hill in Tallaght?

    Average pace was only about 20km/h over the first hour, but we improved as the day went on! Took the same route I’ve done before via Valleymount and then headed up the gap. We were both pretty drained going up the hill (my first time to head up the climb from that side) and needed a break along the way. Having read good things about it on here I was really looking forward to the descent to Laragh, but the wind was still fairly howling so it was almost a challenge heading downhill!

    I need to dedicate a paragraph to the stop in Laragh because I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed a roll so much! It was nice enough to sit outside so I stuffed my face with the roll and a rock road bar thingy – bliss! Probably undid all the goodness of the cycle but it was worth it! Spotted a couple of Boards jerseys there and met some lads also training for W200 – however the guy I spoke with was doing Slieve Mann, Shay Elliott, Sally Gap and back to Blessington that day so I felt a little bit lazy relative to that!

    stats20110521.jpg

    FINALLY after leaving the café we found a bit of a tailwind. We’d been tempted to head home via Bray but decided to go for Sally Gap. The wind helped us all the way up, and to be honest it wasn’t too bad in the end! Having done those few big hills I even found the hill after Glencree easy enough. We tore down the side of Lough Bray and then the last hill back into Dublin, and suddenly I had a much bigger smile on my face! I know I always seem to be talking about downhills, but they’re just so much fun! Yeah I know the uphills get you fit and challenge you, but they don’t put a silly grin on your face!

    To top it all off we got green lights most of the way in from Rathfarnham and finished on a high note! I kinda though this would be the last long cycle before W200, but see the next post for the final punishment!

    Jersey Sightings:
    A couple in café in Laragh – one lad inside eating and I think he had a specialised bike or something and then someone else outside.

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) The butter/chicken/stuffing/pesto/cheese/lettuce roll!

    2) Hitting ~70 on some of the downhills

    Low points of the cycle:
    1) Wind

    2) Descent to Laragh was disappointing

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    Can’t remember back that far!

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    Can’t remember back that far!


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Monday 30th May 2011 – 10:00

    Route: Kilmainham – Brittas – Sally Gap – Laragh – Roundwood – Sally Gap - Glencree - Kilmainham


    So yeah I thought I might not do another long cycle, but after a week in Sicily eating pizza every night I became a little concerned that if I didn’t get a decent trip in after my return I’d definitely die on the day! I had the Monday booked off work anyway so crossed my finger for good weather and made plans to clear 100km and do some more hills! Solo cycle this time – I find I tend to push myself a little faster on them, but the time doesn’t pass as quickly when you have no one to chat to except yourself! I’ve contemplated listening to music but am a little nervous of the dangers that might bring into play…

    route20110530.jpg

    With it being a workday (and miserable weather!) there weren’t exactly many people out! The main roads were busy as usual, but Kilbride to Sally Gap was fairly dead. It was great to see Wicklow County Council out filling in holes on the road (I assume in preparation for the W200) along there. It was actually sunny all the way up the climb. But when I got to the top the rain caught up with me, and it brought the wind with it too! Within about 5 minutes the temperature reading dropped from sixteen degrees to seven point something! Things like this drive me mad as it’s so hard to judge how much gear to bring/wear! Thankfully I had a L/S top and tights for a change, so that helped keep me warm!

    Once again I found myself drooling at the thought of a roll in Laragh! Heading over from Sally Gap I passed a lot more cars – most seemed to be tourists out exploring. I felt sorry for them with the weather! In Laragh I saw a couple of other cyclists – nice to know I wasn’t the only one suffering! Now my plan from here on was to try and get back up Sally Gap the other way. God it was tempting after Roundwood to head back towards Enniskerry or Bray and take a flatter route! I knew that side of the hill to Sally Gap had some steep parts. But bloody-minded me decided to take the left turn after Roundwood and head back up. I had dried off at this stage and was game for the challenge!

    I’ve only once headed up in that direction before and it was about 18 years ago on a mountain bike. I couldn’t believe how tough I found it. Granted it was later in the day and maybe a couple of hours earlier into the cycle it’d’ve been ok, but it nearly killed me! It really is so steep in parts I have to say! But I made it, and once again the rain showed up when I got to the top. Fortunately it wasn’t at all as heavy this time.

    stats20110530.jpg

    It was fairly uneventful from there all the way home to be honest. Once again I enjoyed flying down the hills. Oh yeah, I did find the climb after Glencree extra-tough on this occasion as I was just generally wrecked! Hard to imagine how my body’s going to hold up attempting 200km now. Guess I’ll just have to join the back of a group/train or whatever it’s called and enjoy the free ride for a while!

    I’ll probably get out again this weekend, although I’d say it’ll be just an easy spin. Might go back to the Bray Wheelers gang again and see where there weekend spin takes me!

    Jersey Sightings:
    None – I hardly saw any other cyclists even!

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) Another tasty roll in Laragh!

    2) Getting to Sally Gap twice in a short space of time
    3) Not giving in and taking the flat route home!

    Low points of the cycle:
    1) Rain

    2) Being more nervous about the W200!

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    Got my W200 entry pack now. Number #70 – hope that doesn’t bring with it the burden of performing well on the day! I thought this was going to have 2-3K entrants in it!? Not sure if that’s gonna be the case as a friend who entered only recently got in the low one thousands I think.

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    Lots of pizza eating!


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Sunday 5th June 2011 – 08:40

    Route: Kilmainham – Sally Gap – Laragh – Roundwood – Bray - Donnybrook - Kilmainham


    So much for the easy spin! Well it wasn’t as tough as last Monday, but today’s cycle took as little further than I had planned! Thankfully the return journey was relatively flat, so I should still be well-rested for this day week! I’m only in the door a while, but with the baby asleep I know if I don’t type this now I’ll never get it done! With just a week to go I’m delighted that I’ve kept a complete diary of all cycles since I set out with the plan last year! :)

    route20110605.jpg

    I had one of the other lads along with me today, so chatting away throughout the cycle made time fly and it didn’t at all feel like 4:20hrs / 100km. Looking out the window this morning it seemed fine so I went with short bottoms and S/S jersey, but the minute I opened the apartment block door I had my doubts as it was very lightly spitting rain. But at that stage it was too late so I just headed on. Fortunately it was enough gear to keep me warm for the full cycle.

    My own thoughts were something like a simply up-and-back cycle to the crossroads at Sally Gap, but the other lad was more ambitious and felt like a trip to Laragh. We decided to review once we got to Sally Gap! From the bottom of Cruagh Road we could see it was gonna be pretty foggy! In fact after the carpark at the top of the first hill visibility was down to a bare minimum. It makes it eerie, but I was just glad that it wasn’t raining! What I find about is that yes you might not fly along downhills quite as fast, but it does wonders on flats and uphills by not letting you see the scale of what’s ahead and becoming de-motivated!

    At Sally Gap we decided to continue on and take the “flat” route home via Kilmac. Thankfully on the far side of Sally Gap the fog started to lift and we were able to enjoy the descent to Laragh. At that hour of the morning I couldn’t justify a big meal at the café so just grabbed a carb-loaded rocky road thingy! I was feeling sociable so said hello to a couple of Boards lads who were sitting out front – Daragh_ and I can’t remember the other lad’s name (maybe fastrack?). As usual, talking to other cyclists makes me feel like my own cycle is a doddle! This pair had been up to the top of Shay Elliott and back, in addition to Sally Gap plus they had a way to go yet. Oh well, I’ll get there someday.


    stats20110605.jpg

    It was an uneventful trip enough from there back to Bray (where we had to make a quick stop). Passed a lot of cyclists along that stretch, and as usual the friendliness between cyclists out on the road really is a feature of the sport that I like a lot. Quite a change coming home via the N11 – haven’t done that in months. The hills there are so small relative to those in the mountains, although the road makes up for it with headwinds and other traffic to deal with! As usual, near to home I realised I was just under a 23km/h average so pelted along the last few km until I got back – damn the Garmin!!!!:rolleyes:

    So this is it then. :eek: Maybe a <50km spin during the week, but otherwise the next cycle is gonna be the big one! Fingers crossed I have what it takes to get around! Hopefully meet a few boardies along the route on the day anyways, and will of course be back on to write up my experience afterwards!

    Jersey Sightings:
    Daragh_ in Roundwood!

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) Marshmallow-coated Rocky Road in Laragh

    2) Having company again
    3) Heading out with low expectations yet covering 100km!
    4) Not being rained on

    Low points of the cycle:
    1) Couldn’t get up to speed coming down Rocky Valley to Kilmac due to headwind

    2) Red lights – I’m sick of them!

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    Contemplating leaving my bike back to Halford’s for a service this week, but based on what I read is there a risk that the lads there might do more bad than good!!!??? :confused: I’ve been problem-free for so long that a big part of me wants to just leave the thing as it is and go with it!


    I’m also still trying to decide whether to bring food next week or not. Probably best bet is just bring money and if the food at the stops is muck I’ll just find a Spar/Centre-type shop and grab a roll in one of the towns/villages!

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    Nothing since last Mon other than a few walks, but hopefully pushing a pushchair is better for fitness!


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Wednesday 8th June 2011 – 18:45

    Route: About an hour of Phoenix Park cycling!


    It’s hardly long enough on the scale of things to be logging as a cycle, but so far I’ve written up every single one so I don’t wanna leave out the very last one before the big day! Just to keep the legs moving and check that me and the bike are/were feeling alright I headed out for a short spin on Thursday evening after work.

    Bit of a headwind heading outwards on each lap up to the far end of the park, but it fairly blew me back along the Liffey stretch each time! I didn’t want to push myself faster at all for the risk of a last-minute injury, but as usual I saw a Garmin target (should I call them a Garget?) of keeping my average to 27km/h and went for that! I fell slightly short in the end, but the more important thing is that the silly idea didn’t cause an injury!

    route20110608.jpg

    The rain threatened to LASH down a couple of times but never did! Part of me though it might have been good practice for the W200 (given the forecast!) but the most of me was happy to come home dry (which is so much easier in an apartment!).

    Since starting the blog/log at the end of October I’ve done 26 cycles (doesn't sound like very much does it!?!?) covering just over 1,952km. Tomorrow alone I hope to increase that figure by 10%!! It’s taken me just over 83 hours cycling at an average speed of 23.5km/h so far. I’ve climbed over 20km of hills, apparently burnt just under 55,000 calories and hit a maximum speed of 79.8km/h. Not sure if I’ll bother my bum continuing the log other than writing up on tomorrow’s event, but a new goal might motivate me to do so!

    Jersey Sightings:
    N/A

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) Not being rained on

    2) Happy with average speed

    Low points of the cycle:
    1) Bit of a headwind

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    Hopefully the bike is ready. Did a good check today on oil, brakes and air. Anything beyond that exceeds my knowledge of bike maintenance/repair! The gear is laid out for tomorrow and (god help me!) I plan on driving down leaving home around 05:20 I’m guessing, to start by 06:30! Good luck to all doing the event and hopefully see some people on the day! I'll be the guy with the "g0g" Boards jersey!

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    Nada!


  • Registered Users Posts: 795 ✭✭✭tawfeeredux


    Good luck tomorrow g0g. Great log so far. Can't wait to see your Thoughts for the Day at the end of it.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Saturday 12th June 2011 – 06:40

    Route: Wicklow 200 2011


    I always knew this’d be a tough one to write up. It’s tricky enough remembering the short/medium spins, so I reckon I’ll forget a good bit of this long one! Nevertheless, I decided my best chance of remembering as much as possible would be to put pen to paper (finger to keyboard!) this morning rather than a week’s time!

    It was an early 04:50 alarm clock to get everything ready and hit the road. The most bikes I passed all day was probably on the spin down around the M50! From there on it was people passing me! I wasn’t sure how mad the car park would be so left the car at my sister’s house about 1.5km from Shoreline – guess that means I nearly hit a full 200km for the day! Even as I approached Shoreline I saw there were a fair few people on the road already. Minor point, but a pity they were only putting up the start line thingy after we left (06:35) – no idea why it wouldn’t have been up earlier! The four of us met up and got ready to set off – 1 was doing the 100 and 1 decided he’d be slower than the other 2 of us. We agreed to stick together until the split anyway. So at 06:35 we set off, praying that the rain would at least hold off until Sally Gap!


    IMG_0698.jpg

    Picked up our first group on the way along the N11. It was a nice benefit early on, and increase us from around 31km/h up to 35+km/h for the spin to Kilmac. The 100/200 split really does come very early on in the journey, so we said goodbye to the other lads and headed on. I had never done that route via Powerscourt Waterfall to Glencree. For some reason I was convinced the road ran right along the bottom of the valley and would have the mother of all climbs at the end of it, but it was actually nice and gradual all the way. I got a “boardsie” call from lads who passed with ISAAC jerseys on or something like that. We passed each other over and back for the next while. It was mad climbing up around Lough Bray seeing a string of bikes both in front of and behind us. (note this is by far the biggest bike event I’ve ever done!).

    Nothing too much happened up as far as Sally Gap. I was raging I looked the other way as we passed the photographer – I’d love a decent “action shot” of me from a cycling event. We tore down the hill after the ‘Gap, hitting 77.5km/h on the way down. Having done this route a lot I was well aware of the sharp turn in advance, but I can imagine anyone doing it for the first time could absolutely sn0t themselves on it. There had been a bad crash before we passed, and I felt sorry for whoever it was – ambulance passed on the way up the hill shortly after that.


    w200route.jpg

    I’ve never done that lap around the bake of the lake at Blessington but my god it went on forever! I’d say it’s a lovely route on a sunny day, but we were being drizzled on all the way around! Met Inquitus along here and was chatting for a few minutes. My guilty moment of the day happened along here when I passed a woman/girl who asked what distance Donard was at – I told her about 68km. I’d say she’s wasn’t my biggest fan yesterday!!!

    When we left the N81 and joined that forest trail thing I just wanted the food-stop to come! It was a bumpy enough surface in parts and I cursed myself for having inflated the tyres to 110psi the night before! Passed a massive dog along here which thankfully didn’t decide I’d make a nice moving snack! Timing-wise I think our early start benefited us in Donard as the queue was only about 15-20 people to get in the door.

    120620111170.jpg

    I was surprised by how nice the sambo was, but in that weather I reckon anything might have tasted like gourmet food! It must have been some sight for the people working there that day – hundreds of people standing around shivering. Everywhere I looked there were people unable to hold their hot drinks steady and bits of them spilling everywhere! Not being a tea/coffee drinker I just went with an exciting cup of hot water! Felt sorry leaving here as the queue to get in was massive at that stage – looks like we just missed the rush!

    120620111172.jpg

    I’ll give mention at this point to my various pieces of gear that packed it in during the day! First, my backlight is now flashing randomly without being turned on – Halford’s finest! Guess I can’t blame brands as yesterday’s conditions were a little unique. I had a cheapy mini camera on the front of the bike that also went mad.

    Sadly, Mr Garmin also didn’t perform incredibly. The cadence sensor packed it in after Donard. I’m not sure if it was the weather or if the battery is gone. Would be surprised if it’s the battery as I only got it in January. Haven’t been able to look at the bike yet so that’s another day’s concern! The built-in altimeter also went mental halfway through the day. See attached graph comparing unit data to google maps. I just can’t win – the unit data is clearly wonky, but when I enable correction you still see one or two mad peaks that are clearly errors and equally muck up the stats! Fortunately my phone (N8) without being in a plastic bag survived fine in the saddle bag all day.

    Pre and post correction.....
    aludecomparisons.jpg

    So where were we? Oh yeah, leaving Donard. I can’t remember too much of this stretch. I had a laugh coming out of Rathdangan with the sign showing your speed. All I could manage was a disappointing 36km/h. Very thankfully somewhere along here I got chatting to a guy who mentioned there being a short nasty hill before Sliabh Mann. The poor lad who was with me thought that was SM when we got to the top, and I had to break it to him!

    Sliabh Mann was defo toughest hill of the day. Lots of walkers on the way up here. I wondered what those who were clearly limping up the hill planned on doing – were they hoping that after freewheeling down the far side of the hill their legs would be fine to deal with the rest of the day somehow! I also came across the tandem somewhere along here. Fair play to those lads. When I passed the one on the back was busy eating a sandwich – handy him not having to do the steering! They must have passed me at the top while I was waiting for my friend. The food station at the top here was a blessing, and the tent offered a LITTLE bit of welcome shelter!

    I didn’t realise how soon after the bottom of the first hill we’d hit the second one! At least for this one I knew what to expect, and in fact it didn’t seem quite as bad as SM! At the start of the hill I passed the tandem again, and one of the lads had packed it in with injury – felt sorry for the other one continuing after that! As a few people mentioned on the main thread, those cars at the top of the climb made all the difference – god only knows how long they must have been there with the spread of cyclists over the day! The coffee man at the top must also have been making a mint!

    I enjoyed the run down the far side to the main road. When we hit the road I heard a lad screaming down with his heels on the road (and clearly no brakes!). He was lucky that turning right wasn’t the only option or else he was in the ditch! He headed left and (I assume!) did a u-turn when he eventually managed to stop! From here onwards there was a lot more traffic to deal with on the road, and in some parts we were passed by some right nut-jobs flying along close to cyclists!

    w200stats.jpg

    For some reason I thought we’d be approaching Rathdrum from the other side and have to do the hill, so I was VERY grateful to realise we were up high already! This food stop was even less of a queue than the previous one! Like the last stop, I didn’t want to stay too long and not be able to get going again!

    I saw the tandem again twice in Rathdrum. Once was before the food stop and his chain had just snapped. He must have fixed it, but I passed again just after the stop and again his chain was broken – tough day!

    It’s a lovely rolling stretch along the river towards Avoca, which is a good thing to build up some energy for that bl00dy hill on the way out of it! Tough going, especially with that many km done at that point! I couldn’t remember, but someone told me before the event that there were either 1 or 2 nasty hills after Avoca. At one point after the first hill I suddenly realised we were nearly on the N11 and smiled, knowing that it was just one hill……… and then the sign said turn left! Dear god, another tough hill at a very late stage in the day. You could only laugh! At least somewhere soon after the hill was a lovely straight enough downhill stretch to enjoy!

    Another of the day’s highlights happened somewhere before Glenealy when I got a fast enough group and stuck with them for a fair few km’s – it really does make all the difference and I got to chat with some other random people again! Just before Rathnew I was disappointed to see a load of people flying ahead straight when the course clearly went left – heard a couple shouting along the lines of “f that I’m not going that way!” Pity, because it means times on the site aren’t necessarily all 100% honest!

    At that stage I could nearly smell the manky pasta at the finish line, and that pushed me on! Kilcoole Village was the last push of the day, and then it was plain sailing (appropriate given the conditions) to the finish line. Got my cert but I think they had run out of medals somehow. I was told to leave my number and it’d be posted out. How did they not know how many medals they needed!?

    120620111180.jpg

    Total time from website was 10:54:06. However, that includes farting around at the start/finish, food stops, SM summit stop and a few stops to wait for the guy I was cycling with. Total moving time for me was 8:57:05 at an average moving pace of 21.9km/h. 196.01km covered in total. As expected, the first (23.4km/h) and third (23.0km/h) legs were the fast ones, with the middle (19.0km/h) being a LOT slower! Mr Garmin says I burnt 1,687 calories which I suspect may be a slight understatement for the day!

    Overall (even despite the weather) it was a fantastic experience and I’m delighted to have achieved the goal despite probably not being as prepared as we should have been. By the sounds of it that’s nearly as tough a day as you can have to do a long event. Would I do it again? Absolutely! In fact I think I’ll try finding a few other similar events before the summer’s (what summer!?) out and while I’m still feeling fit for it!

    Hope this hasn’t rambled on too long, but thanks to anyone who’s had a read of this, has offered advice or who said hello to me along the way!

    Consumption (during event):
    5 x Caramel Rice Krispie Bars
    2 x Chocolate Rice Krispie Bars
    2 x 800ml bottles of water with Nuun / High5 tablets
    2½ Chicken Stuffing Sandwiches
    1 x Pack of Haribo Kiddiemix
    1 x Citrus Energy Gel
    1 x Strawberry/Raspberry chewy Energy Bar (Sliabh Mann)
    1 x Cup of Hot Water (Donard)

    Jersey Sightings:
    Heaps of them along the way! Talked to jimm (finish), iregk (finish), Inquitus (lakes), Murph85(?). A few lads passed and said hello heading up after Powerscourt with Isaac jerseys – think one of them might have been Murph85. Think I saw Seamus crossing finish line as I was leaving. There were a few others but my memory’s a bit blurry!

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) Seeing how fast I could get on the speed trap thingy leaving Rathdangan

    2) The descent from Sally Gap
    3) People cheering us on at the top of Shay Elliott
    4) Completing the event!
    5) Not having to walk up any of the hills
    6) No mechanical problems the whole way
    7) Chatting with randomers as they passed me
    8) Getting past Sally Gap before proper rain started (that was my goal!)
    9) Tagging in with a group from just before Glenealy for a fair few kms
    10) The cheerers-on at the finish line!
    11) Discovering some new really nice routes for future reference
    12) Shay Elliott not feeling as tough as I remembered


    Low points of the cycle:
    1) Food at the end was very disappointing

    2) Sad to see one or two crashes
    3) Biting into the energy “bar” at the top of Sliabh Mann expecting to cut right through it but then realising it was rock hard – that hurt my teeth a bit!
    4) The combination of chamois cream, enclosed spaces and cold weather doesn’t make toilet trips the easiest experience!
    5) Most of my electronics packing it in over the course of the day!
    6) The moment water finally got through my thick overshoes and into my socks!
    7) Foggy/rainy shades!


    Event Criticisms/Suggestions:
    I wouldn’t have much bad to say about the event, I really enjoyed the day overall, but there are a few things I’d change:
    1) More signs/marshalls indicating the sharp turn after Sally Gap
    2) More people at food stations to speed up scanning and giving out food/drink
    3) Better food at the end!
    4) Have enough medals!
    5) It’s called the Wicklow 200 so make it 200km!!!!
    6) If not a mass start, why not hold people off and release groups every 15 minutes, whoever’s ready at that time?
    7) More photographers along the way might have been nice – I’d have paid (reasonable price) for photos!
    8) Don’t know if this is a bit much to ask, but can you hire in cheap mass bike stands for food stops?

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    I would pay good money for a service at the end of events where someone cleans your bike up for you before you go home!

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    Just that one preparation spin!

    Note - may add more posts if I remember more!


  • Administrators, Social & Fun Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 74,773 Admin ✭✭✭✭✭Beasty


    g0g wrote: »

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    I would pay good money for a service at the end of events
    A bit too much info g0g:D


  • Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 15,685 Mod ✭✭✭✭smacl


    g0g wrote: »
    More photographers along the way might have been nice – I’d have paid (reasonable price) for photos!

    Great log and some good suggestions. You may want to keep an eye on the W200 galleries section, as more pictures have come up and I expect (hope) there are more yet to come. Got a bit lost a one point myself, and ended up clocking 202k, but I didn't think I was more than a couple of km off the beaten track. I heard it was supposed to be ~194k, but I'm wondering did the diversion add or remove distance.

    Keep up the blogging!


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    ROUTE

    Ok so I'm maybe not as motivated as before to upload route maps and all that stuff, but am hoping to keep a log going of the cycles! Hadn't been out on the bike since W200 until this week. Went for a short (relatively) 46km spin on Wednesday evening. Bike and (more importantly!) body appear to both still work ok! :) Lovely evening for it although I didn't pass too many others out on their bikes!

    Main reason for cycle was to see if I'm ready to give another event a bash. Weather permitting I'll be giving this route a go tomorrow morning on the Wicklow Peaks cycle!


  • Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 15,685 Mod ✭✭✭✭smacl


    That would explain the long stream of cyclists coming up to the Sally gap from Blessington direction so. Would have made a nice pic, all the cyclists profiled against the hill, wish I'd brought the camera.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Saturday 3rd July 2011 – 09:30

    Route: Wicklow Peaks Cycling Challenge 2011


    10 days later, here’s my summary of the Wicklow Peaks Challenge! Yeah it’s a bit late, but better late than never and all that stuff! When I talk about 120km now is it normal to say that this was “only” 120km!? Well it certainly didn’t feel like that anyway because they picked a tough route in parts and a HOT day!

    So I got down there fine and signed in ok. Thought numbers might have been a bit higher, but all day long there were others near enough to us (2) so it was grand. I think maybe on average the standard of people doing the full 120km was higher than the W200? I think we felt like we were 80-90% towards the back of the entrants (I know it’s not a race….) whereas in the W200 we were maybe around the 70% mark I think. The reason I say this is because of the start.


    20110703route.jpg

    I loved the idea of this Neutralised distance at the start with people sticking together. What no one told me was that the pace would be on the high side (for a relative newbie) and they weren’t waiting! We stuck as far forward as our legs could hang on, but by the time we got to Blessington the front big group had disappeared into the distance for probably the whole day! I don’t know what I was expecting, but maybe just not quite as fast as it turned out.

    Our climb towards Sally Gap was initially on the other side of the valley which was a nice change. Didn’t make it any easier though! The big killer all day was the heat. I may have looked a bit weird with it, but I was so glad to have carried a bottle of suncream in my back pocket all day! The worst part as the flies. At times there were literally swarms around everyone on the climbs. They were big enough, not quite the size of bluebottles, but certainly in that direction. And when we stopped they’d be landing on us and the bikes. I was so grateful on faster stretches or when a breeze picked up and they’d be gone for a few minutes! Rant over!

    It was a grand old spin as far as Laragh, heading straight through at Sally Gap and back via Roundwood. Lots of people nearby along the road. The foodstop was very impressive in Laragh, just outside Ann’s coffee shop or whatever it’s called. They had OJ, water, fruit, mars bars, fig rolls, sambo selection, cream eggs. I probably ate too much and left too quickly but as food stops go it was right up there.

    20110703stats.jpg

    This was my first time up Shay Elliott or Slieve Mann the “wrong way”, and to be honest I don’t know which is tougher! From the more normal side you do the steep hill up and enjoy a lovely descent. This way it drags on forever to climb up it and the descent in both cases was a bit hairy at times! Coming down the first I wish I had kept the speed up over the hump of the bridge, but it just looked like a wipe-out waiting to happen!

    The top of Slieve Mann was like a Normandy Beach on D-Day! (hope that’s not offensive!). There were people lying in the hedges at the side of the road having come up the climb. I heard a few saying they’d never done the climb and it was the worst they’d ever done. To be honest I think the weather contributed hugely to this, almost moreso than the wind/rain/cold of the W200! The descent here was fast for the first part where the road’s good and then very slow after that!

    Can’t really say much about the rest of the cycle other than that it dragged on and there were a fair few long gradual climbs, including the glen of something and also up towards Dunlavin. Marshalling along the way was great given the number of entries.

    Food spread at the end was very good. There really was something to cater for everyone’s needs. I only hope now that the guy who was taking photos on Slieve Mann and anywhere else uploads them to their web page!

    Jersey Sightings:
    One at the start but he very quickly disappeared before I said hello!

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) Getting through 3 tough climbs fairly close to one another

    2) The sun (although maybe not the heat!)
    3) The food
    4) The marshalling

    Low points of the cycle:
    1) The flies

    2) Struggling with the initial pace more than expected!

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    Next event is the An Post cycle in Meath Sunday week. Really looking forward to it as it sounds like a bigger event and four of us are doing it together!

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    Well I did nothing the week after it but went for a spin last Monday which I’ll write up next!


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    ROUTE

    While I'm on the case I'm doing a quick log of the Monday cycle this week. This is the third time I think I've done this exact route and it's growing on me. Never too far from home in case I have problems or weather turns, but still up in the mountains with some nice climbs.

    What I like is being able to compare this with the same run a couple of weeks back as both were solo cycles. I was nearly 10 mins (1.4km/h) quicker this time than last. Average Heart Rate was same, plus I took a break at the carpark on the previous one to relax, so does that mean I'm getting better/fitter? Hope so!

    Next spin will be Sat with one of the lads. Probably aim for a medium/long spin with an early start, maybe Laragh or something...

    I'm registered for Trim so it's defo happening!


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    Saturday 16th July 2011 – 08:00

    Route: Kilmainham – Cruagh Road – Sally Gasp – Laragh – Roundwood – Enniskerry – Stepaside – Rathfarnham - Kilmainham


    It’s always tough heading out the door when it’s already raining outside! That was the case yesterday morning, plus I’d already decided on s/s base layer and jersey! I put on the windsheeter thingy for the sake of it, but that was soaked through by the time I reached the meetup roundabout at the foot of the hills! I was determined to get a decent spin done yesterday to prepare for the 160km one next weekend. The hope was to get at least 70/80km done, so I was delighted to just about cross 100km by the time I got home!

    The weather was pretty much miserable the whole way outbound to Laragh. By the time we were beyond Sally Gap although it was >12c temperature I was fairly soaked and cold. I had hoped to avoid wet feet by tightening my heavy overshoes against my leg with selotape, but I still ended up wet! I reckon I might chance that cling film idea on my next wet cycle!

    route20110716.jpg

    So anyway we were a bit apprehensive of that stretch along Military Road as I’d read about the loose chippings, but it turned out to be grand. It was early (09:30) when we hit that stretch and only met one car along the way. We cycled middle of road to find a smooth patch and also stop anyone from flying past us in either direction in a car and blinding us with a flying chip! I found that worked well, signalling the car to please slow and then moving to the side once it was nearby and slow. I know cyclists shouldn’t be policing the road, but I thought it’d be better than the alternative!

    I find a westerly wind always makes the flat stretch after the top of the Lough Bray climb tough enough as it’s fairly open there and you’re heading into the wind. We didn’t stop once from meeting up until we got to Laragh with the way the weather was. It was an early stop in Laragh but I still stuffed my face and imagined it was lunchtime! Not too many cyclists there yesterday as you might expect, but we certainly weren’t the only ones!

    Thankfully the weather got better from there on. In fact the sun came out and I was dry by the time I got home! We headed the flat route back through Roundwood and turned left in Rocky Valley. God I hate those hills coming into Enniskerry from that side – there’s one I always find particularly nasty!

    Took a quick break at the garage up past Enniskerry on the way to Kilternan. Saved some blokes Range Rover when we told him he forgot to put the handbrake on after he got out! It had rolled about 8m before he got it and it wasn’t far off smacking into a car!

    Very uneventful but still enjoyable cycle the rest of the way back. After coming down from Lamb Doyle’s I much prefer turning left and around Marley Park to spend less time on the main road – it’s a nice route around that way along the M50.

    Roll on next Sunday!

    Jersey Sightings:
    Don’t think so

    Highlights of the cycle:
    1) Food in Laragh!

    2) Getting to 100km (hadn’t planned that long a cycle)
    3) Having better weather for the homeward leg!

    Low points of the cycle:
    1) Car coming a little too close to me after Sally Gap towards Laragh

    2) Being absolutely soaked!

    Thoughts for the day / Random News:
    The Edge 500 altimeter is driving me mad! Each time I leave the apartment I have to set the altimeter to the right height when I reach the road. It seems like when you store a location it’s a very exact spot. Is there no way to set an approximate altitude for an area of say 10m x 10m? That way I’d be sure of having the right altitude when I head for the main road to set out!

    Other Training Last Week (to help me keep track)
    Nothing else since Monday.


  • Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 15,685 Mod ✭✭✭✭smacl


    g0g wrote: »
    – Sally Gasp –

    Love it. I found the gravel a bit of a pain myself, and was also gasping going up past lough Bray in the wind later that day.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 2,770 ✭✭✭g0g


    ROUTE

    Another quick entry as once again it's the same route I've done a few times recently. Delighted because I beat my previous time by another couple of minutes. I've got to make sure this doesn't become a competition against myself! :) I was in the mood for pushing myself a bit faster and the time (just about!) reflects it. I even passed a few other cyclists on the way up from Rathfarnham! Went for the short sleeve jersey and thankfully the weather was lovely for it! Just missed 70km/h on the downhill along Cruagh before right turn up across to Fox's. Oh well, can't complain, still a great cycle! Tomorrow morning is the Meath An Post cycle. 4 in our group so I'm guessing pace will be relaxed enough.


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