2022 100k July 2 – Cotswold Adventure
Because I’d done no long rides in Jun, I thought I’d get in 2 in July to make up for it. A family trip to Bristol set me up for some different scenery and I re-used a ride I’d done in 2013 taking in some beasts of the Cotswolds: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/9179065533
Unfortunately, I hadn’t gotten over a chest infection from the previous week, but thought I’d give the ride a go anyway.
The ride consisted of a flat leg out to the North, unfortunately into a headwind, followed by big hills back towards Bristol. I didn’t push it too hard on the A38 because I knew what was coming and had plenty of opportunity to stop on the Severn Levels for photos.
The first big hill, Haresfield Beacon, truly was a beast! Starting steep and getting steeper, ramping up to 25% with terrible surface near the top. Alarmingly, a mountain biker passed me on the steepest section as I gave it everything, gasping for air. It was then I heard his electric motor!
The second big hill, Frocester, I actually quite enjoyed as the gradient never got above 10% and the surface was good. The only problem was that I thought my rear tyre was going soft. This turned out not to be the case and I managed to pass a couple on a tandem.
From there, it was a pretty flat run to home. I couldn’t make much speed though, so ended up much slower than my previous few 100s. Not the end of the world though, considering how rough I had felt that morning.
Listening
- One Lost Soul – JM Dalgliesh
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