3 is the magic number...

Today's blog is brought to you by the letter P and the number 3. But it's not kid's stuff.

There are three distinct stages in the life and times of a cyclo cross racer. There's before the 3 Peaks, during the 3 Peaks and after the 3 Peaks. Let me assure you, the place where you want to spend as little time as possible is the middle one, it's by far the hardest of all three. I am now in the third one, and having completed the course I am now fully qualified to dispense random advice about how to conquer this race. That said, if you're hoping to get yourself under 4 hours I'd suggest you find yourself another blog. I didn't even manage my goal of under 5, but we'll get to that later.

Let's rewind the clock to that other slightly worrying state, before 3 Peaks. I've blogged about my preparation already, so no need to bang on about all that. What I didn't mention was that I'd also spent the last year or so, well exactly the last year, asking anyone and everyone for advice about how to race this event. Fortunately for me, our club and team have huge experience in this department and are happy to share. To mention just a few, let's start with the DS of course (Steve), then there's Edwyn who despite his tender years is rapidly becoming an expert, Sarah who bagged the U23 last year, Tony Mills (York Cycleworks), Ian Caswell, Tim Evans, Paul Lehan (all Harrogate Nova), Simon Pateman (Saddleworth Clarion) and Phil Ingham (Pedalsport). Alongside these veterans of the race I've enjoyed long conversations with other newbies about gear and strategy. Put it all in the mix and I kinda knew what I was in for, I just didn't realise quite how challenging the reality would be (very, no make that ridiculously). Technical bike details at the bottom.

Fast forward now to 'during'. So I'm on the start line with 650 cyclo cross riders. Yes it's a MASS start. Off we go, I've been warned that the first road section is fast, as all the riders are trying to get to the first pinch point like, you know, first. Just like a regular 'cross, only with 650 of 'em! Crashes are also a hazard here, and we had some, but the squeal of canti brakes was ample warning to avoid these from mid pack where I was. I offered to pull team mate Joanna along but she soon got bored of that and let fly on up the road. Next time I would see her would be on the last descent after an unplanned over the handlebars incident.

Then left turn, onto the dirt and up we go: peak #1 Ingleborough. Following some great advice I took a look around me. A long string of riders (now walkers) carrying bikes up a very big, and very steep hill. How steep? I needed to pull myself up using the farmer’s fencing and dry stone wall. The strangest thing is the silence, all you can hear around you is deep breathing, no gears, brakes or shouts. It was probably one of the hardest ascents I've ever done (with a bike on my shoulder), and worryingly only one of three. As the Spanish say, poco a poco was my method, and bit by bit I did finally get to the first checkpoint. 

A big, steep hill
[Photo: Jack Chevell  @jackchevell]

Riding the bike again after such an effort is tricky, but you need to keep your wits about you 'cos there's all sorts of hazards. Nonetheless after a rip roaring descent (I think I was smiling at this point) I reached the cxmagazine.com Racing Team support crew at the base. Slick is the best way to describe this, a bit like an F1 pit stop I was fed, watered and off down the road chomping an energy bar and doing 30mph when I was stung on the leg by an insect of some description. I pulled over but the creature was long gone leaving a searing pain in my left leg. I re-joined the race, hooking up with the eventual Dad and Daughter winners for the road section to, you guessed it, peak #2 Whernside.

Happy days (Photo by John McCann)

Well, they say it's not as steep, but it's longer and the endless stone steps make it harder. Poco a poco once again, I made it to the top. It was not good though, I was slow. On the plus side the searing pain in my leg took my mind of the pain in my legs. On the downside the insect bite seemed to trigger a severe bout of cramp, and I had to stop at one point on the way down as dismounting my bike became impossible. Lots to remember on this descent, I think I used the Caswell escape routes once or twice, and best of all the DS was on hand to wave me away from the lethal stone steps where I would surely have perished. Another F1 pit stop, this time Heather dug out a life-saving bag of crisps as I thought salt would cure the cramping. 

Tireless (tyreless?) CXM support crew: Heather, DS Steve, Alison 

[Photo: Jack Chevell @jackchevell]

Back down the road I found some more riders to work with, but dropped them before Horton for the start of peak #3 Pen-Y-Ghent. This one is different in that it's the same route up and down. Different in this case equals danger with riders flying down at 20+ mph occasionally in control, but mostly not. But now you get a sense of how you are going as you see all the riders you imagined you might be close to come flying down knowing that you're still 30-40 minutes from the top. This is where I saw Joanna, and she tried to tell me she'd crashed but all I could see was a rider on her way down while I was still on my way up. By now I given up on my dream of sub-5 hours and set about just finishing. At the top one last gel and away I went, me too on the last downhill. A tricky one this, stone drainage ditches, loose surface rocks all make for an engaging time, but finally I reached the bottom where the support crew had sportingly stayed on to check I was OK.

I pinged off on to the tarmac and chased down two riders ahead, got on the wheel only for full blown cramp to set in on both legs and forced me off the bike a couple of times and pedalling with one leg at others. But after a few very dodgy moments when I thought I may not be able to ride on I found myself at the finish where Tony was changed and ready to greet me. Job done. Time? 5:04. '04! First question of course was about next year. Regular readers will know this was a one off. But '04! (?)*

Always an upside to everything, finishing a little further down the field meant the queue for the bar was acceptable so with pints in hand we politely applauded this year winners but of course went crazy ape for the U23 female winner, once again from cxmagazine.com Racing Team, this time Joanna Rycroft. A super nice way to end the day.

Joanna mildly concussed and blissfully unaware she's about to be called to the winner’s podium  

[Photo: Jack Chevell  @jackchevell]

So now I too get to bask in the glory of being a cyclo cross racer in the 'after 3 Peaks' phase of life. This is a pleasant place to be, the huge effort behind me, so my advice is to put all your efforts into the phase before, and train properly. Forget your bike, you need to be able to ascend, that's what'll get you (me?) round in the magic number: under 5.

Clutching that all important timing chitty: 5:04:12

[Photo: Jack Chevell @jackchevell]

* Weather conditions this year were perfect: warm, cloudy and best of all almost zero wind. Course times need to be factored against this.

Bike details:
Scott Addict CX carbon
Hope pro3 hubs, 28h Mavic open pro rims, handbuilt wheels
Shimano dura ace 10 speed old style shifters
Mix of TRP mini V front and Avid rear brake, Swisstop pads
Shimano 105 triple chain set using only the 30 and 39 chainrings
11-32 rear cassette, 105 short cage rear changer
Vittoria cross XG 34mm tyres, Conti 'cross inner tubes, 70psi

Spare bike: Unused
Punctures: None

Marks out of 10 for bike: 10
Marks out of 10 for rider: 7

Discs or cantis? With all the attention at the moment over brakes I'll share my thoughts. At no stage on this race did I feel I could have gone better with different brakes, they simply were not the defining issue for me. But it was dry, mostly. I'd put it like this, I'd happily have a disc brake equipped bike if it was not one single ounce heavier. That'd be my trade off benchmark. It's the deadweight going up that defined this event for me. You may be different. Yes you, get yourself entered and start a new phase in your 'cross life.

Clearly a massive thank you is due to the support crew of Alison, Heather and Steve, the many advisors and supporters both trackside and other competitors out on the route. Finally a quick thanks to the guys from OTE and Zipvit who took pity on me at the bike show when I mentioned I was doing the 3 Peaks and sent me back to Yorkshire with a stash of energy bars and gels. And to Jack Chevell and John McCann for the nice pictures. All much appreciated.

Stumbling across Cyclocross ...by Joanna Rycroft

Stumbling across Cyclocross ...by Joanna Rycroft

My first ever 'cross race (photo by Neil Hendry Ph-Mas Racing Team)

As this marks the start of my ‘blogging’ I thought I should give people a little background to which led me to pedalling like fury around fields… for fun.

I'm just about to start my second year at Leeds Uni, studying Sport Science. Other than the odd family bike ride at home, cycling has never been a competitive sport for me - I’ve always been a runner and a hockey player through school. I took a year out after school to work and travel and decided I fancied getting a road bike. Ending up in the Specialized Concept Store one day, I bought a bike on the spot… best money I’ve ever spent.

By the time Uni came around I had spent more and more time pottering around the country lanes at home and had ventured out on the odd ride with my Dad and his fellow MAMILs. Joining the Uni cycling club gave me a perspective on how big cycling really is and introduced me to a great bunch of people to train with. Cyclocross was first mentioned at one of the pub socials and I was asked if I fancied doing the BUCS (British University Championship Series) race… having never even heard of cyclocross I agreed thinking it would be a laugh. Its fair to say my first experience of ‘cross wasn’t a very successful one, but I came away wanting to do more.

We were very lucky to have Chris Young, Mark Thwaites and Ted Sarmiento come to Leeds over the Spring term to do some cyclocross coaching. The sessions covered all the basics and provided a great platform to get into racing.

Standing at the start of my first race in Huddersfield, I was more worried about getting round the first corner in one piece than anything else. I loved the intensity of the race and came home already thinking about the next race. Results were released, with me 101^st out of 156 finishers. Whilst I was told its all about getting experience to begin with, my competitive instinct was left feeling a little disgruntled by how many not-so-aerodynamic MAMILs were ahead of me! I then made it my aim to get further up the order with every race, and chase down the leading ladies.

After a few more races, I was asked to join Cyclocross Magazine Racing Team and jumped at the opportunity. The black and orange skin suit has definitely knocked a few seconds off my lap times. Ted and Steve’s enthusiasm is infectious and I’ve already learnt so much from them both.

BUCS mountain biking was the next race in the calendar, so a trip to Dalby forest with the CX mag team was organised. Turning up with my mountain bike it didn’t take long before I realised there was still SO much more I needed to learn about becoming a competitive cyclist. Mudguards on mountain bikes are NOT cool; not wanting to show up my new teammates, it was removed before we’d left Ted’s back yard. What followed was nothing short of a baptism of fire… following Edwyn to the black route trail signs, I assumed we were heading in the wrong direction... we weren’t. By the end of the day I was riding the bike more than I was pushing it so the day was deemed a success.

BUCS MTB XC race completed, Team Gold in the bag

A week later, it was time for the real thing. This time my bike was stripped of its reflectors… but the bell still stands. The course was a mud bath from start to finish, and that was before any racing had taken place. As the gun went, Sarah flew off into the trees, never to be seen again till the finish. I got myself into second and managed to stay there, despite opting for the belly slide instead of cycling on one part of the course. Team gold for Leeds, hooray!

My first breakthrough in the summer series was in Killinghall, when I finally managed to catch Marie and Sophie to finish second lady. I struggled to get anywhere near Sophie in the next two races, until my final race of the summer in Leeds, where it was a sprint for the women’s race win. My bike crossed the line first, barely a meter between us both, and it was great to finish the series on a high. This left me placed 3^rd woman and 65^th overall for the series.

In the Alps training for 'cross (3 peaks style!)

Next up... the 3 peaks! Living just 10 minutes from Ingleborough, it was too tempting for me not to enter. I guess we’ll find out in two weeks time if that was a wise decision or not! A fortnight of running and cycling in the Alps has put some much-needed miles in the legs, and the fuel tank is stocked up with pastries galore! Good luck to all others racing… the day will no doubt be a memorable one! 

Less than a month to go (before 3 Peaks of course)

So with less than a month to go (!) before the big race it's time to summarise my 3 peaks run up. I did indeed get the running shoes out and entered and ran a full 10 kilometre running race on a course that I know well on our local farm tracks that I use for CX training. Suffice to say I completed the run, but I didn't worry any of the local club runners other than finding my way to the excellent tea and cakes well ahead of the 'faster' competitors. Always thinking!

I also managed a walk up the final hill of Pen-Y-Ghent (hill of the wind) and by golly it was. That's when I realised I needed to either A) bail out completely or B) get radical with my CX bike gearing. I've gone for option B for now. Local gal Joanna Rycroft recommended Ye Olde Naked Man Cafe in Settle for post fell recovery.

I then retuned to Horton in Ribblesdale a few weeks later to take part in the excellent 3 peaks training day organised by the legendary John Rawnsley which was truly epic. Horizontal rain, a broken front brake, and some of the trickiest terrain I've ever encountered on a 'cross bike. And we didn't even go up any of the fells! Coffee and an abundant supply of cakes courtesy of Phil and Nora Thackray saved the day (seems like a theme developing here.....?).

In the mix also I've 'competed' in our club time trail league (slashing a whopping 35 seconds off my 25 mile PB) and combined that with a few of the local summer 'cross series (although a cynic might say that by combining these two I deliberately avoided a series ranking in either). Still, all good fun. And did I mention the little training ride we took with the entire IAM Cycling Team who we found lost in Harrogate looking for the sumptuous Rudding Park hotel where they'd been billeted for the start of the Tour de France. 

I even dug out the old MTB to take part (race?) in the final round of the Nutcracker MTB series on a seriously challenging course above Reeth in the Yorkshire Dales, persuaded by Tim Evans that it'd be good 3 peaks style terrain. It was just that. This time I didn't take any chances and brought along some Eccles cakes from our local baker but I needn't have bothered, the organisers had a full on BBQ on the go so it was burger and salads all round after the racing was done (with a latte to wash down the cakes).

Then the real training began, after an excellent (for me) sub 8 minute Norwood Edge hill climb I began a week of intestinal issues that saw me drop 3 or 4 kgs and become weak as a kitten. But I'm down to 3 peaks fighting weight, only with a serious lack of power and endurance. Oh well, one out of three ain't bad?

So like a naughty schoolboy I'll be cramming for my exam now just a few weeks away by taking a trip to Majorca to see if I can find some of that elusive strength and/or endurance. But most likely I'll find some café con leche and tarta de almendras. ¡Que bien!

Finally, assuming all goes well and I find myself on the start line I'll be thinking of club mate Darryl Varley who has been seriously injured while out riding his 'cross bike in preparation for the peaks race.

For more cyclocross in your life head over to Cyclocross Magazine where you'll find a free (yes Yorkshire folk, you read that right) digital edition of the magazine including an excellent article on the upcoming Milton Keynes World Cup race.