The Great Shakespeare Ride 2011

Three words to describe the Great Shakespeare Ride: Friends, hills and food.

It’s good to see the Shakespeare ride back for a second year. Having a local sportive makes some of the roads I’m used to covering in training just that little bit more interesting, plus I get to find a few places, and hills, I’d not seen before.

I was joined at the start by the usual suspects, a few friends and a couple of people I knew from the athletics club. In tour style we started behind an escort and hundreds of riders quickly filled the main road into town.

Turning into the lanes there was a relaxed, friendly spirit as riders of all levels began to find their place. The majority of thinning out happened on the first sharp climb out of Wellesbourne. From then on it was time to find a bunch and get on with it.

Sandy, Mark and I were joined by a club ride who seemed keen to share the workload. This got us to the first food stop in no time.

Normally I don’t hang around at food stops or write about them but on this ride they’re worth the mention. The spread of food, service and atmosphere provided by the organisers is superb. I thought last year’s spread would be a one off but no, the same array of sandwiches and cakes was there again.

Following a tummy full the route split. Mark left Sandy and I to return on the 100k route as he was still feeling unwell. From the map I thought the 100 miler looked ok and didn’t expect it to take much time.

Now what followed wasn’t quite what I expected. Last year I did the 100k and bar a couple of sharp climbs there was nothing of significance to report. Well this year I can say that the event billed as “tough(ish)” held the meat of the challenge in the extra miles.

We were hit by one leg sapping sharp climb after another. It felt like a cross between riding the rolling roads of Northumbria and the saw tooth profiles of North Cornwall.

I can never remember where I’ve cycled through but the hill leading up to Sudeley Hill Farm stuck in my head as it’s not often I have to zigzag up a hill. Definitely one I’ll be adding to the training routes.

After Sudeley and a few others I thought that was enough but then we headed into familiar territory of Broadway. I thought to myself “we can’t be going up to the tower”. But then we turned the corner and onto the familiar lead up to Snowshill. Sandy’s legs were already burning by this time so I just told him to just keep pedalling.

The upside of doing Snowshill was that the route proceeded to go past Broadway Tower, which for all my climbs up there I’ve never been up close to. From then on in I knew the route all the way home. Sandy and I were joined by a small pack, including the club rider from earlier in the day, and we span out the miles.

By all accounts we had a lucky escape from the storm we had seen in the distance. Still, whatever the weather, the BBQ at the end would make anyone feel better.

I felt good all the way round the route with my legs burning only in the last few miles but strangely I got home and was wiped out. I’ve never finished a ride and then just fell asleep in the bath!

To sum up this had been a superb day out and the course is one I won’t take for granted again. I’m not an authority but after having done a few sportives I would classify the long route as a good challenge. A big thank you to the organisers and the wonderful volunteers at the food stations and around the course.

Overall time: 06:38:1o (Bronze)