The Season Opening Sportive

The first Sportive of the season is always a nervy affair. How has my training been? How is my bike? Can I remember how to sort mechanicals without my entertaining and mechanically savvy club mates around me?

Whilst a sportive is not a race I defy any rider to not feel that wave of competitiveness and anxiety when they pin on a number and have at timing chip. Naturally you want to do yourself proud, and there are other riders around you so naturally you can’t let them overtake now can you.

My first event this year was the always fun and always windy “Ware’s Cambridge” – a ride I try and use as my season opener to mixed success. A few years back myself and Steve Slater shared a relatively hard day – me struggling through the first 70km, him struggling through the last. Two years ago was more fun, but this year I had more lofty goals – a top 5 finish in times on the long route.

I rolled onto the start line, listened to a quick safety briefing, and then at exactly 7.47am headed out into the Ware countryside. The start is a fun one, straight into a climb up Thundridge hill – so far so good, legs were feeling strong, coffee had hit the spot and I was flying by some of my fellow riders….not for long. Precisely 8km into the ride disaster – a puncture. The very reason for riding my gravel bike was to avoid this nonsense, and why oh why did it have to have its first puncture now. My hopes of a decent finish in ruins, I changed it as fast as I could (and as my clubmates will know this is not fast…..). Tyre back on I began the laborious use of upper body strength to pump it back to full, only to realise further crushing disaster – the inner tube I had swapped had a faulty valve (probably from sitting in my saddle bag for a year or so….).

Finally having a fully working bike again it was back to it – and powered by frustration I pushed hard to find ANY group I possibly could to jump on. This is where I met Atilla. Atilla was riding with a couple of mates, but decided instead he was going to drop them and ride together with me. I say ride together, it was Atilla’s riding world – I was just living in it. His wheel was brilliant – with me only being able to offer support on the rolling climbs – and together we made some real headway, averaging a fun 30km/h. Soon we were almost back on home turf – the only additional drama having been Atilla’s spare tube coming loose and threatening to tie up his back wheel….One big push up the Thundridge climb again and a smooth descent into Ware and we were home. I bought Atilla a victory and thank you beer for his help throughout the day as we waited for his long forgotten friends!

A great ride and one I would thoroughly recommend as a season opener

Ware’s Cambridge

Distance – 126km

Elevation – 1300m

Avg. Speed – 30km/h