What's your next Audax?

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Ian H

Ancient randonneur
Having succeeded on the wettest 400 ever, I thought I'd try a 600. Friend Richard foolishly agreed to accompany me. We chose the Kernow & SW, despite it being one of the toughest in the calendar. The weather was kind. The hills were cruel. At 300k we were both crawling up any incline. So we packed and. after trying a few, found a hotel with vacancies. The following morning. after a reasonable breakfast (it promised more than it delivered), we cut across country to St Awful and caught a train back to Exeter. I don't think I'll try again for a 600 this year.
 

ianrauk

Tattooed Beat Messiah
Location
Rides Ti2
Having succeeded on the wettest 400 ever, I thought I'd try a 600. Friend Richard foolishly agreed to accompany me. We chose the Kernow & SW, despite it being one of the toughest in the calendar. The weather was kind. The hills were cruel. At 300k we were both crawling up any incline. So we packed and. after trying a few, found a hotel with vacancies. The following morning. after a reasonable breakfast (it promised more than it delivered), we cut across country to St Awful and caught a train back to Exeter. I don't think I'll try again for a 600 this year.
A like for the attempt Ian.
Sorry to hear it was a ride of attrition
 
@oreo_muncher How did you get on today?
I completed my first audax. Had about 4100ft elevation. The first 80/85km were okay but the last 40/45km were hard. The Chilterns were a bit brutal. I did all the climbs in the first 80km but after that, there were a few Im ashamed to say I walked my bike,one of the last ones was a 10% gradient hill and didn't have much power left in my legs to power through that anymore. Average speed was nothing to write home about, about 18.9km/h but I was doing the audax with my sister and she was out of shape after not cycling for over a month, so I had to stop a lot for her and go at a really slow pace. I'm proud I managed to do some of the harder climbs, I used the tips on here, don't change gear whilst doing the climb and sit back and relax and focus on breathing. It was quite cold the whole day and the merino wool long sleeve Jersey is not even warm, something you would wear for spring so I wore a long sleeve turtle neck and t shirt underneath it, wore bib shorts and some long sleeve sports leggings over it. Ate less than last time, and didn't use a sports drink mix, only water with hydrating tablets dissolved in it. I did 125km on total and finished at just a few minutes past 6pm, so just in time before it got dark and got the tube home. I have front lights but my back lights either fell off or got stolen. I don't know when I'll do another audax. This took me about 6.5 hours. There was just so much climbing! Or is that a normal amount of climbing for 125km?it was meant to be 117km but made some wrong turns or missed a turn and had to backtrack a few times,but I navigated well. Bike computer said my max speed at any point going down hill was 90km/h but I don't know if that is possible on a bike? Sounds inaccurate even though the Chilterns are very steep and have very long climbs and lots of hills. I just feel really exhausted. But I think I can see lots of improvements in my Hill climbing from when I started. The hills that I used to struggle with in Richmond Park, I can get up them now and not feel like my lungs will explode or have to give up and walk my bike. Also no tyre punctures :smile: When I wax cycling, I saw 3 people in the beginning 20km on the side of the road fixing tyre punctures. Also had to walk through a hedge in Waddesdon Park because the gate blocked the path, and this guy punctured his tyre for the 2nd time because of it. Really nice scenic views though. I don't know if i completed it in the time limit though 😅
 

DCLane

Found in the Yorkshire hills ...
Well done. Which event was it?

You'll have a 'latest' time limit and, as long as you're inside that, you've finished in the time limit. Otherwise well done for finishing.

Each audax is different in terms of climbing. Some will be completely flat, others have massive hilly sections. That's why in my SR series I did the Skeggy 300, Llanfair 400 and E&W Coasts 600 at the start as they were flatter overall. Now I'll add variety into it.

And yes, we all take wrong turns. On the Llanfair once, after my gps device went pop, I did circles in the Welsh town of Llanfairpwllgwyngyll and then simply went along the A55 North Wales Expressway until a nice man called Phil (you'll meet him if you do lots of audax events ;) ) came along with a working gps.
 
Well done. Which event was it?

You'll have a 'latest' time limit and, as long as you're inside that, you've finished in the time limit. Otherwise well done for finishing.

Each audax is different in terms of climbing. Some will be completely flat, others have massive hilly sections. That's why in my SR series I did the Skeggy 300, Llanfair 400 and E&W Coasts 600 at the start as they were flatter overall. Now I'll add variety into it.

And yes, we all take wrong turns. On the Llanfair once, after my gps device went pop, I did circles in the Welsh town of Llanfairpwllgwyngyll and then simply went along the A55 North Wales Expressway until a nice man called Phil (you'll meet him if you do lots of audax events ;) ) came along with a working gps.
https://audax.uk/event-details?eventId=8130

I just checked and the new finish line I was there at exactly 17:52 which is the max finish time. I got to Ruislip station at about 6pm.
I don't know when I'll do another audax and if I will. Think I need a Garmit or wahoo first because my phone battery does not last that long. I don't like cycling by myself and don't think my sister is going to agree to another audax sadly
 

DCLane

Found in the Yorkshire hills ...
https://audax.uk/event-details?eventId=8130

I just checked and the new finish line I was there at exactly 17:52 which is the max finish time. I got to Ruislip station at about 6pm.
I don't know when I'll do another audax and if I will. Think I need a Garmit or wahoo first because my phone battery does not last that long. I don't like cycling by myself and don't think my sister is going to agree to another audax sadly

So you've got a finish on the record. Improving speed and navigation are the next steps.

A phone will always run down, so it's either paper route instructions and/or a Garmin/Wahoo. It doesn't need to be an expensive one: my Garmin 200 was £20 second-hand.

Audaxes are often ridden solo, although you might ride with someone else all/part of the time. I've only ever ridden the whole distance of couple with others; one unplanned on the Skeggy 300 - bumped into each other at 2km and rode together - and a 200km from Lincoln last year with a club-mate. Done a couple with my son but that's different as both were ridden as fast 100km 'training' rides. All of the other events it's only been part-riding with others.

Why? You'll peak / feel strong at different points. However, if you ride with someone else then you go at the pace of the slowest rider. As a result you are both/all slower.
 
So you've got a finish on the record. Improving speed and navigation are the next steps.

A phone will always run down, so it's either paper route instructions and/or a Garmin/Wahoo. It doesn't need to be an expensive one: my Garmin 200 was £20 second-hand.

Audaxes are often ridden solo, although you might ride with someone else all/part of the time. I've only ever ridden the whole distance of couple with others; one unplanned on the Skeggy 300 - bumped into each other at 2km and rode together - and a 200km from Lincoln last year with a club-mate. Done a couple with my son but that's different as both were ridden as fast 100km 'training' rides. All of the other events it's only been part-riding with others.

Why? You'll peak / feel strong at different points. However, if you ride with someone else then you go at the pace of the slowest rider. As a result you are both/all slower.
Navigation was quite good, I would notice within 30 seconds if I made an error, I was looking at the map on strava- no audio cues, just following the dot. What slowed me down were 6 or maybe 7 toilet breaks- at least 25 minutes gone on just that, had to take off all my layers to get the bib shorts off! Speed would have been better if I was by myself, at least 19.5km/h.

Because I worry about getting into an accident-physical or a mechanical issue and being stranded by myself in the middle of nowhere by myself :sad: and I get lonely.
 
So you've got a finish on the record. Improving speed and navigation are the next steps.

A phone will always run down, so it's either paper route instructions and/or a Garmin/Wahoo. It doesn't need to be an expensive one: my Garmin 200 was £20 second-hand.

Audaxes are often ridden solo, although you might ride with someone else all/part of the time. I've only ever ridden the whole distance of couple with others; one unplanned on the Skeggy 300 - bumped into each other at 2km and rode together - and a 200km from Lincoln last year with a club-mate. Done a couple with my son but that's different as both were ridden as fast 100km 'training' rides. All of the other events it's only been part-riding with others.

Why? You'll peak / feel strong at different points. However, if you ride with someone else then you go at the pace of the slowest rider. As a result you are both/all slower.
Also there don't seem to be any events from Nottingham. I see a 200k in November from Surbiton (London), but I would take the train there anyway because that's not very local to me still, learnt from my first audax- don't ride far on your bike to start of events. It's also much colder now and it gets dark quicker. There was a 200km going on at the same time and some crazy guy cycled from Lewes in Sussex to Ruislip to do the event.
 

Ming the Merciless

There is no mercy
Location
Inside my skull
I completed my first audax. Had about 4100ft elevation. The first 80/85km were okay but the last 40/45km were hard. The Chilterns were a bit brutal. I did all the climbs in the first 80km but after that, there were a few Im ashamed to say I walked my bike,one of the last ones was a 10% gradient hill and didn't have much power left in my legs to power through that anymore. Average speed was nothing to write home about, about 18.9km/h but I was doing the audax with my sister and she was out of shape after not cycling for over a month, so I had to stop a lot for her and go at a really slow pace. I'm proud I managed to do some of the harder climbs, I used the tips on here, don't change gear whilst doing the climb and sit back and relax and focus on breathing. It was quite cold the whole day and the merino wool long sleeve Jersey is not even warm, something you would wear for spring so I wore a long sleeve turtle neck and t shirt underneath it, wore bib shorts and some long sleeve sports leggings over it. Ate less than last time, and didn't use a sports drink mix, only water with hydrating tablets dissolved in it. I did 125km on total and finished at just a few minutes past 6pm, so just in time before it got dark and got the tube home. I have front lights but my back lights either fell off or got stolen. I don't know when I'll do another audax. This took me about 6.5 hours. There was just so much climbing! Or is that a normal amount of climbing for 125km?it was meant to be 117km but made some wrong turns or missed a turn and had to backtrack a few times,but I navigated well. Bike computer said my max speed at any point going down hill was 90km/h but I don't know if that is possible on a bike? Sounds inaccurate even though the Chilterns are very steep and have very long climbs and lots of hills. I just feel really exhausted. But I think I can see lots of improvements in my Hill climbing from when I started. The hills that I used to struggle with in Richmond Park, I can get up them now and not feel like my lungs will explode or have to give up and walk my bike. Also no tyre punctures :smile: When I wax cycling, I saw 3 people in the beginning 20km on the side of the road fixing tyre punctures. Also had to walk through a hedge in Waddesdon Park because the gate blocked the path, and this guy punctured his tyre for the 2nd time because of it. Really nice scenic views though. I don't know if i completed it in the time limit though 😅

Well done, and sounds like you made it round in the time limits. Don’t worry about walking a few of the later hills. The Chilterns are quite punchy and fatigue can overtake the legs. One of aspect of endurance is the ability of the muscles to do repeated hard efforts without fading. Endurance takes time to develop and there are rarely shortcuts to getting there.

As to future events there’s nothing showing in the calendar beyond December at the moment. So don’t assume there won’t be something closer to Nottingham next year. Some of us continue audax all through the winter but many stop till Spring and begin again in late March. So maybe consider another one in the Spring.

Once again well done, and reflect on your success, no matter if you found bits hard. We all find it hard on audaxes at some point, no matter how long we’ve been doing them. It’s part of the attraction apart from great routes. You’re challenging yourself and you may or may not succeed but either way you have a bit of an adventure on the bike.
 
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Well done, and sounds like you made it round in the time limits. Don’t worry about walking a few of the later hills. The Chilterns are quite punchy and fatigue can overtake the legs. One of aspect of endurance is the ability of the muscles to do repeated hard efforts without fading. Endurance takes time to develop and there are rarely shortcuts to getting there.

As to future events there’s nothing showing in the calendar beyond December at the moment. So don’t assume there won’t be something closer to Nottingham next year. Some of us continue audax all through the winter but many stop till Spring and begin again in late March. So maybe consider another one in the Spring.

Once again well done, and reflect on your success, no matter if you found bits hard. We all find it hard on audaxes at some point, no matter how long we’ve been doing them. It’s part of the attraction apart from great routes. You’re challenging yourself and you may or may not succeed but either way you have a bit of an adventure on the bike.
I think next time I want to do a much flatter route :laugh: if I do another audax. You must have really muscley built-up legs from all these audaxes- like those folk in Richmond park!

When are you doing another audax? I don't know if I would just do another 100km or try push to the 200km? I still don't know how I ever did those 173km a month ago, I thought to myself whilst doing this audax yesterday!

The routes are very nice, much nicer than A roads.

I don't know what to do next now, probably catch up on weeks of uni work :headshake::secret:
 

Ming the Merciless

There is no mercy
Location
Inside my skull
I think next time I want to do a much flatter route :laugh: if I do another audax. You must have really muscley built-up legs from all these audaxes- like those folk in Richmond park!

When are you doing another audax? I don't know if I would just do another 100km or try push to the 200km? I still don't know how I ever did those 173km a month ago, I thought to myself whilst doing this audax yesterday!

The routes are very nice, much nicer than A roads.

I don't know what to do next now, probably catch up on weeks of uni work :headshake::secret:

Ha, my legs are quite long and thin. There’s muscle there, for sure; they are lean rather than bulky.

My next audax will be next Saturday, a 200km DIY from home. I’ll be passing through Captain Tom’s village.

Catching up on your Uni work sounds like a good plan whilst you recover from your audax.
 
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Ian H

Ancient randonneur
A like for the attempt Ian.
Sorry to hear it was a ride of attrition
The first 200 were enjoyable, but v hard (as I knew). After the hardest section (Bude to Looe) the legs didn't recover and we crawled to Penzance. Then we had the ghastliest meal ever at the only place open (KFC, utterly disgusting!) and ground our way to Newquay, but the prospect of a night-ride on to Bude was less than appealing.
But i knew it was marginal whether I was fit enough after lock-down, knee problems and the lay-off after the broken ankle last year. I think Richard was more disappointed than me not to finish.
 
Ha, my legs are quite long and thin. There’s muscle there, for sure; they are lean rather than bulky.

My next audax will be next Saturday, a 200km DIY from home. I’ll be passing through Captain Tom’s village.

Catching up on your Uni work sounds like a good plan whilst you recover from your audax.
So no visible muscles in them?

Good luck!! Did you plan your Chinese take away stop? How are you prepping?

That didn't really go to plan today ://///
 

Tribansman

Veteran
The first 200 were enjoyable, but v hard (as I knew). After the hardest section (Bude to Looe) the legs didn't recover and we crawled to Penzance. Then we had the ghastliest meal ever at the only place open (KFC, utterly disgusting!) and ground our way to Newquay, but the prospect of a night-ride on to Bude was less than appealing.
But i knew it was marginal whether I was fit enough after lock-down, knee problems and the lay-off after the broken ankle last year. I think Richard was more disappointed than me not to finish.

Top effort with all that going on. The ups and downs of the Cornish coast are always brutal and rhythm-busting, so tough no matter how fit you are.

I once had a proper existential crisis triggered by extreme fatigue and a rancid, cold and greasy, utterly repulsive KFC. Something like 'we do this to poor chickens to produce this filth, who do we think we are'!! xx(
 
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