"Each step forward has a sacred meaning of its own"   Sri Chinmoy

Dursley Hills 100k DIY Audax - August 6, 2023 - Gloucestershire

After my last testing run gave me a bit of a scare (some kind of pull or spasm in the hamstring - not what you need a month out from your key race of the year) I throttled back on the running and took to the bike for some cross training. This was probably a bonus anyway, as I have really neglected my riding in 2023 and it's the biggest part of a triathlon, so that's not smart preparation. Anyhow, the physio seems to think my hamstring isn't serious (he described it as just a bit shouty) so fingers crossed, I should still be OK to race at Helvellyn. With that as the target, I chose a 100k route I'd planned a while back that didn't score any AAA points, but did include three massive climbs (and a few less massive ones) as part of the loop.

2023 has seen some pretty strange weather - first several weeks of drought and scorching sunshine through late May and June, then rain every day and cool temperatures that are more like winter than summer. In early August we had a mixed weekend, perhaps the sign that the biblical rains were coming to an end, so I was able to pick the dry and sunny Sunday for this ride. That's one of the great things about the Auxax DIY....

I got out of the door at 7 on my Tri Bike, with the Tri Bars off (to save weight AND to make some handlebar space for my phone) and soon I was cruising up the familiar Old Gloucester road in cool but gloriously clear weather. I didn't need to get my phone on for navigation until Tytherington, where for some reason I'd plotted a strange route for myself up by Cutts Heath, but if anything my unusual route choice (which I could only vaguely remember) was making it more interesting. Coming back towards Cromhall on a silent lane, a roe deer leapt out just ahead of me and stayed motionless on the road, staring upwind in the other direction where I could make out a dog walker in the distance. She didn't hang around for long, leaping up and over the opposite hedge.

After Cromhall, I hauled myself up the slow climb to Wotton knowing that what came next would be one of the two big tests of the day - Blackquarries Hill. It would tell me if my hamstring was in shape for Kirkstone Pass or not, that's for sure! When it came, I was glad that the road was fairly dry as that allowed me to climb out of the saddle a little and give my usual climbing muscles a rest. It was hard graft as 20% hills always are, but I got myself up and as I eased past another pair of dog walkers in the lane above the steep section,  a part of me felt they should have applauded or handed me a medal or something. Perhaps if they'd been cyclists they might at least have looked impressed. I had to settle for my own quiet satisfaction that I'd taken on one of my nemesis hills and prevailed.

Once up on top of the Cotswolds it was easy riding out towards the long and fast descent into Horsley, then a further descent through Nailsworth and a right turn heading for the next big challenge - The W. This was to be one of my Sixty Climbs, the only one of the day as Blackquarries and Broadway were already done and ticked off. At the bottom I stopped and took a photo of the start of the hill with its 12% sign and started chatting with a trail runner who had stopped to tighten his shoes. He was off to run the Standish Woodland Chase which triggered an animated conversation about the course, which I remembered vividly from around 20 years ago. It as crystal clear in my memory, the trance-like feeling as I lapped the silent woods on the hill and the sound of my feet (too loud!) as I descended without enough control on the steep road down towards the finish. That was a race that triggered knee problems for me and part of the reason I ended up switching to Triathlon. Somehow fate turned what started out as a depressing and frustrating injury into a positive experience.

Race-chat over I wished the runner good luck in his race and headed up the hill. There are not many switchback climbs in my corner of England, but this is one of them and it's a real treat. The photo I took didn't do it justice of course (I never want to stop half way up to take a decent photo) so I tracked down a black and white one online that shows the bends.

The climb was longer than Blackquarries, but easier, and soon I was finding my way over the common to Minchinhampton. I allowed myself the luxury of coffee and breakfast in the sun, taking an outside table next to my bike at the bakery. Back on the course, my next challenge was the muddy road towards Avening, complete with traffic jams, as there was a showjumping meet going on and the roads were like farm tracks, covered in a thick layer of mud and dung. It was slow going in queues of horseboxes, with the roads simply caked in greasy and tricky layers of slippery stuff, but I just took it easy and got myself through it. The descent to and through Avening was easy enough, as the roads there were dry and clear, then a new road for me (I think this is the first time I've ridden through Avening) looped me back through woodland on the side of a valley to Nailsworth. For some reason, I'd chosen 3 miles of A46 here, which surprised me, but that did take me to a lovely scenic lane with grass down the middle and a hidden valley that was exquisite. Planning routes on a map/app with some random road choices does spring these surprises.

Another long haul ascent got me to Uley, then a roll down into Dursley where I picked up the next killer hill of the day, the last of the three, which begins as Hill Road (clue's in the name) then morphs into The Broadway, touching 26% according to Velo Viewer. This one was a wet road which made the lower sections very tough - in fact the rains of the night before had turned the lower slopes into a running stream. Once up and round the tight bend that marks the steepest section, I was able to keep it going steadily in my 32' gear and wind my way up. On the downhill towards Waterley Bottom, my hands were hurting from squeezing the brakes at full effort and I was glad when that descent was over. Lovely roads through North Nibley took me back to Wotton, then a  succession of B roads and lanes through Wickwar, Iron Acton and then home. Towards the end I was tired, this was my longest ride for ages and took a lot out of me, but I still managed to keep up a reasonable training pace and I didn't need the second coffee stop I'd promised myself after all.

So, the mysterious hamstring injury is not affecting my cycling and that means I should be OK to race the Helvellyn Triathlon. After that come the Black Mountains and then the North Coast 55 Ultra but we'll have to see if I am in shape to start those. Based on today I think I will be.

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