Sorry no pics - but I just got back from Horsens after riding the Giro sportive (110km length) after the SRAM distributor gave me a sponsor entry at very short notice.
Didn't train atall for this as most of my riding this year has been fun MTB or with my 14 year old who's still learning roadcraft.
Had a lot of fun. Rode it on the De Rosa Giro D´Italia (from 95-6 with a few 98 upgrades) that I rode from Copenhagen to Odense for our wedding in 1999. Had considered the Gios as a signal that I wasn't going to be very fast but am very glad I didn't - there were some very steep inclines for a 42-22 block! The De Rosa was just plush all the way round. Never felt I was fighting with it for one second.
I didn't see a single steel bike all day apart from the ones owned by the fixie kids who were hanging out with Didi the German diabolo at his caravan. Everything I saw on the roads was alloy or carbon.
Arrived 5 mins too late due to roadworks and the master start had left. Took me 25 mins of getting lost to find the route so I ended up riding totally alone to the first depot - which must have been after 50km plus the extra KMs I'd ridden due to getting lost at the start. Route was all big roads and quite windy so I was pretty dead by then. Luckily I managed to latch onto some stragglers who were aimiable and let me take some shelter til I got my breath back. Most sociable cyclists I've ever had the privilege of riding with in Denmark.
Not the best recorded time ever. Not the most fun route I've ever ridden even with dual carriageways and sidewinds for a large part of it. But I did it. I've got much faster at descending (10kg ballast makes a big difference) and got through it with 39/53 13-27.
It was a once in a lifetime chance to ride this event so I'm pretty chuffed.
Didn't train atall for this as most of my riding this year has been fun MTB or with my 14 year old who's still learning roadcraft.
Had a lot of fun. Rode it on the De Rosa Giro D´Italia (from 95-6 with a few 98 upgrades) that I rode from Copenhagen to Odense for our wedding in 1999. Had considered the Gios as a signal that I wasn't going to be very fast but am very glad I didn't - there were some very steep inclines for a 42-22 block! The De Rosa was just plush all the way round. Never felt I was fighting with it for one second.
I didn't see a single steel bike all day apart from the ones owned by the fixie kids who were hanging out with Didi the German diabolo at his caravan. Everything I saw on the roads was alloy or carbon.
Arrived 5 mins too late due to roadworks and the master start had left. Took me 25 mins of getting lost to find the route so I ended up riding totally alone to the first depot - which must have been after 50km plus the extra KMs I'd ridden due to getting lost at the start. Route was all big roads and quite windy so I was pretty dead by then. Luckily I managed to latch onto some stragglers who were aimiable and let me take some shelter til I got my breath back. Most sociable cyclists I've ever had the privilege of riding with in Denmark.
Not the best recorded time ever. Not the most fun route I've ever ridden even with dual carriageways and sidewinds for a large part of it. But I did it. I've got much faster at descending (10kg ballast makes a big difference) and got through it with 39/53 13-27.
It was a once in a lifetime chance to ride this event so I'm pretty chuffed.
