#Festive500 in Five

Christmas isn't just about tinsel and a long Doctor Who suggests Philomena Cunk in her own Christmas special for BBC2. No, the cycling cognoscenti take advantage of quieter roads and time off work to get a head start on preparation for a new season of sportives, sprints and crits. It's a great opportunity to have a social ride and the perfect excuse to leave the house on those days when staying in bed might seem like a better idea. 

#1

Christmas Eve falls on a Saturday in 2016 so I'm off work and can get a good length ride in with the fast boys at Holmfirth Cycling Club (HCC). It's one of the windier days left in 2016 so the company of a group ride is appreciated. The HCC fast group have a ride planned pretty much every day for the #Festive500, today's will lead east towards Pontefract with a stop for cake at the Womersley Blue Lagoon dive cafe.  The strong westerly is down to winter storm Barbara and she blows us up the climb from New Mill to the Sovereign crossroads and rapidly east past Barnsley and Wintersett. It's only when we reach the A19 and turn north that that we really notice the strength of the wind, and on turning west towards Womersley we are working hard in pairs to make progress across the exposed flatlands.  

RAF plane at the Blue Lagoon

The Blue Lagoon is a dive cafe in every sense, it sits in a Portacabin in a car park next to an uninviting pool of grey water presumably frequented by scuba enthusiasts on days warmer than today. Today the cafe is occupied by a couple of dogs, a large ginger cat and the aroma of stale cigarettes. Still, it's the first time I've received change from £2 at a cafe stop and there is soon smoke pouring from the grill in the kitchen as cooked food is prepared for our table. The cat is polite enough to wait until we've finished before jumping on the table to tidy up bacon scraps. The return home is a slog into Barbara's teeth, we only manage a couple of miles each on the front before retiring to catch our breath at the back. We haven't been looking forward to this part of the ride, riding out on a tail wind is a bit like riding down a massive hill in the knowledge that you've got to ride back up to the top to finish your ride. Everyone gets stuck in and eventually we've made it back to the Sovereign junction from where it's downhill to home. 132km done, 368 remaining.

Christmas Day is a busy one so I do Park Run in Huddersfield, this doesn't count so I'm now dreaming up ways of making sure I ride the distance (ride to Scotland and back anybody...?)

#2

Tandem action - hands free stoker

By Boxing Day Barbara has given up and been usurped by winter storm Conor, he's not much better and appears to dislike tandem teams. I head out anyway with my eldest boy who is complaining of sore legs after giving it the berries at Park Run on Christmas Day. It's only our second ride on the borrowed Cannondale tandem but we're getting it together as a team and the traffic light track stands are impressive. Arran's sore legs subside as we keep it easy on the Calder and Spen valley greenways although we are forced into an emergency Costa stop for hot chocolate as he runs low on fuel and enthusiasm. 
Post hot chocolate we've picked up a couple of mph and smiles have returned. Another 55km done, 313km remaining. 

#3

 Tuesday sees Arran and I up early for a trip to the Llandegla MTB trail centre to meet up with friends for a couple of laps. En route we collect regular mountain biking accomplice Andrew before driving west across the Cheshire plain to the wooded slopes of Llandegla. I'm looking forward to a second ride on my Cannondale Habbit, I normally ride without suspension so I'm interested to see if the trail centre will be more fun with suspended wheels. It always takes longer than expected to hustle the large group of adults and kids in the direction of the trails but we get there and drag everyone to the trailhead. Hoar frost adorns the grass and the normally grippy hardpack trail is made treacherous by the water turned ice dropped by the wheels of the early bird riders. I'm also trying to scrub in a pair of  new Nobby Nics which is tricky riding on ice, needless to say it's a bit steady until we reach the wooded sections which have been saved from the previous night's frost by their heavy green cloak of needles.

It's rare to get a clear run at a section of trail on a day as popular as today but when I do the Habbit flatters, messing up the landing from a jump or drop off ceases to worry, the suspension and lazy geometry lap it up without drama but it's on the climbs where I'm surprised by the ease with which it flies upwards. I'd always been under the impression that full suspension bikes don't climb well, not this one. Arran gets a ride on the Habbit after an al fresco cafe lunch of beans on toast so I take his single speed which is no hardship, fortunately he returns the Habbit in time for the big drop offs of the final free ride section. By mid-afternoon he is exhausted and it's time to head home to clean the bikes by torchlight. Today's 28km may not sound like much but there's more to the #Festive500 than pure distance, it's the people and places along the way that make the endeavour worthwhile. 

#4

285km remain and my cunning plan is to ride most of them today on a long loop out to the Humber Bridge and back. I wake up before my alarm to get a fifteen minute head start on the day but opening the bedroom blind reveals a familiar mosaic of thick ice; it's going to be one of those deep winter base layer days. I have the roads to myself at this hour and spinning up the Holme valley towards Honley I'm glad to have made the effort today. The temperature lifts towards the positive as I climb out of the Holme valley but it soon plunges back below freezing as I pass Barnsley. This part of my route is familiar having ridden it last July to reach the Humber Bridge on the first leg of a 400 miler. Today I'm aiming for the south side of the bridge rather than the north so I veer away from the familiar near Doncaster to slog out what feels like a hundred miles on the straight as an arrow A18, it's actually only ten miles before I can turn off on to some back roads to dodge Scunthorpe. Dodging Scunthorpe is definitely a good plan, instead I find quiet back roads winding through picturesque villages and there's even a bit of climbing to break up the grinding monotony of the flat roads I've been stuck on for a couple of hours. 

Eventually the twin towers of the Humber Bridge come into view and I'm soon stopped mid-span for some homemade flapjack and a few photos, the scale of the bridge still impresses on this, my third crossing on two wheels. On the north side of the bridge I negotiate the cycle ways to find my route north past Beverley. I've haven't ridden much in East Yorkshire and I'm pleasantly surprised by the scenery and gently undulating lanes. The sun lazily skims the horizon at this time of year, the payoff is dramatic light at every turn, the photo opportunities are many but I need to keep these wheels turning if I'm going to make it back home this afternoon. Turning right down a steep lane between dense hedgerows is the surprise highlight of today's ride, the lane follows the base of a narrow, steep sided valley. The scenery reminds me of the South Downs, only minor panic as my back wheel locks up on the hoar frost mars the serenity of the moment as the lane winds down the dale. Eventually I climb up to follow more lanes towards Pockington where I stop at the Co-Op for a croissant and a water refill. From here it is nearly flat all the way to Rothwell, but I am treated to a beautiful sunset south of York. When I finally reach Dewsbury riding through the late rush hour traffic is in stark contrast to the empty roads I've enjoyed for much of the day but these local roads are the quickest route home. Today's 280km take me within 5km of completion. One more ride remains.

Sunset near York

#5

New Year's Eve dawns as I return to Holmfirth for the final Holmfirth Cycling Club ride of the week. This time we climb south out of Holmfirth towards the knarly ten miles known as 'Strines'; the steep twisty descents and climbs of the Strines are frequently strewn with gravel and require full concentration. Riding them in the southerly direction is easier, a popular choice today as it's been a big week for the time of year. A cafe stop at Tideswell is followed by the return ride which skirts western Sheffield through Stocksbridge culminating in a slog past Penistone into a strong headwind. Turns up front are brief but everyone pitches in to get us home for the evening festivities. Another 117km completed, my Croix de Fer is rinsed, lubed and racked in my shed for another day. By midnight I've resolved to ride another #Festive500 in 2017. Now where's that bottle of Ardbeg, I'll drink to that.

Dusk near Rothwell

Riding Morocco

Acclimatisation

I've been here nearly 20 hours and the appeal of loafing by a pool has evaporated as rapidly as the water splashed on the pool side in the 30 degree heat by our kids, I'm Itching to get out and look around. Outside the steel gates of our villa is a different world, Range Rovers barge past single speed bicycles and Docker mopeds (imitation Honda C90's) on the road to the villa and I find my place on the ragged edge of the road, ready to jump onto the gravel shoulder if a lorry should come by. Further along the road I take a short cut along a dusty gravel track, rammed earth walls line the track past a quarry and on up to a main road. The N8 trunk road crosses Oued Ourika on a new bridge but I ride the old partly collapsed bridge which has developed some interesting ramps and holes as it has collapsed. Once out on the main road progress is rapid with a south westerly tail wind blowing me towards the mountains, I overtake a couple of mopeds and in less than thirty minutes ten miles is behind me.

Turning right onto a minor road I thread between farm buildings and houses passing donkeys, three wheelers and mopeds, occasionally a car comes past but most of the traffic has two or three wheels. Hamlets seem like sociable places, groups of locals gather outside shops or around a broken moped and I'm the only one rushing to get anywhere. This road winds past fields of increasing size until I'm reminded of fenland roads; mile straight, ninety degree bend and another mile straight all the way to the end of the road.

Right turn again for home and I'm riding a ten mile straight road into a headwind, sunset is drawing close so I'm fighting to get back before the light goes. Progress is measured by milestones to Marrakech which I count down from the drops doing my best to get out of the headwind. 

Back at the village by the semi-collapsed bridge there is a festival vibe, the  scent of spices, BBQ'd meat and diesel fumes. The pavements beside the main road are filled with people and it's all lit by strings of light bulbs hanging from the the roadside shops. It's now dark though and I need to get back to the villa so I pick up a tow behind a lorry and enjoy free wheeling at thirty mph along the dual carriageway to my turnoff. On the back roads navigation is difficult, it's totally flat and it's difficult to distinguish between these single track roads. Checking my GPS a few minutes later I see that I missed my junction resulting in much improvised route finding and a couple of dead ends in dusty fields dodging thorn bushes. Following the blue arrow of the GPS in the darkness I eventually pick up a side road that leads me back to the villa, later than expected but in time for dinner. 

 

Atlas Raid

Time for a ride to the mountains, I can see them from the balcony of the villa and they look a long away but Google maps assures me that it's only twenty or thirty miles to the foot hills. Various routes between 100 and 120 miles are planned and I set off after a breakfast of cereal and bread rolls with most of a plan. Armed with a pancake and a couple more rolls in my back pocket I get on the N9 out of Marrakech to the mountains. It feels like slow going but checking my watch I see that I'm climbing all the way past wooden shacks and new towns. As traffic thins gradient increases and the towns and villages become more rural, sheep and goats wander out into the road, barren hills cast a heavy shadow over the settlements. 

shop swept away by winter rains

Slate at the summit

prickly pear cactii

Sticking to the N9 keeps route finding simple and the first proper climb of the day is a relief after miles of grinding away on the plain. Verges are lined with prickly pear cactii and thorn bushes, little else appears to grow without cultivation hence the only animals I see are scraggly goats and sheep. Signs warn of steeper sections, presumably because many of the cars and vans I'd seen on the plain would struggle to make it up a 8% gradient, it's also the first time in years I've seen a cow in the back of a pickup truck. Roadside stalls display rows of local mineral stones and fossils, trade looks slow and it isn't until the Tizi ait Barka summit that I see much evidence of tourists. On the way to the summit I pass one of King Mohammed's forrest reserves where pine trees have conquered the barren scrub and the scent of pine trees fills the air. Round the next corner I glimpse a tanker climbing up to the summit, there's plenty of climbing left and I drop a gear to settle in to the rest of the climb. As I round a left hander a group of kids playing at the roadside stop to shout encouragement and one put his hand out to offer a high 5 which is returned. At the summit groups of Europeans pull up in 4x4s, take photos and continue to their next destination. A local asks if I would swap my bike for his moped, 'non merci' is my reply, I'm enjoying the challenges of the Atlas. Truck drivers pull in up here to have a drink whilst their trucks cool down, I eat a pancake and free wheel off down towards Zerkten. My plan was to turn left onto a minor road at Zerkten but when I get to the village which clings to the side of a lush, steep sided valley I can't see my turn off so I continue on expecting the turn off to be just around the corner. 

high above a deep ravine

Five miles later I have to admit that I've probably missed the turn. My GPS doesn't have enough detail for me to work out exactly where the turn should be and I am running out of time to ride either of the routes I've planned. With data to my phone costing £5/MB I'm not about to use Google maps either so I decide to return to the summit at Tizi ait Barka. From there I race some trucks down the far side of the pass and back towards the plain. Back in the barren land of the prickly pear I take a right turn sign posted Sidi Rahhal which should drop me on to the plain in around fifteen miles, and a very empty fifteen miles they are, nothing but occasional thorn bushes, cactii and tumbleweed holding on to dirt that looks to to be resculpted by every rain storm. At the end of this road lies Sidi Rahhal, I'm reminded of a frontier town; thick smoke, earth movers and tired buses mix it up with taxis, pickups and rickshaws on the main street. I take the Marrakech road and settle in to a thirty mile spin straight across the plain.

 

Back to the Atlas

sculpture in the Atlas foothills

Another ride to the Atlas but this time I have offline maps app maps.me installed on my phone so I have a much better idea where I'm going. Today's route sets out on gravel tracks dodging the main roads and aiming for the Atlas by a cross country route. It seems slow now because more route checking is required but it pays off later in the ride. As I near the mountains I hear a moped coming up behind but it doesn't pass and eventually I look round to check I'm not imagining the sound, the kid on the moped asks me where I'm from and which Manchester football team I support (always a tricky one if you don't care). We chat in broken English for a few minutes before he turns off, I am reminded that this is why I love to explore on two wheels, in a car you are passive and paranoid, by bike approachable and adventurous. The back roads are always more of a treat for the senses, the scent of honey suckle and jasmine greet me in every village whilst villa walls overflow with brightly coloured blooms.

camels for the tourists

Once on the main road into the mountains I'm overtaken every few minutes by tourist mini-buses and hire cars. Camels and honey vendors have set up camp in the lay-bys on the Atlas approach and villages are peppered with artists' studios. The road kicks up out of the valley and winds upward along a tributary towards the higher peaks of the Atlas. It's not evenly graded like an alpine pass which makes it difficult to pace, I stop a couple of times in the steep sided valley to take photographs and take in the sounds of the place, children playing across the other side of the river, goats on the hill above and bird song all around. 

A few miles further up the lush valley is a junction, straight on is a dead end and right climbs up out of sight to a ridge, the right turn is mine. I quickly gain elevatIon out of the green valley up the red earth slopes which are mostly bare until I reach a ridge where pine trees grow. From here the road hugs the conour of the steep wooded slope, tight gravel strewn corners need concentration but the view west over the plain back towards Marrakech is distracting. Eventually the road descends out of the woods back to barren slopes, far above to the left is a peak with a radio mast on it, this road is at nearly 2000 metres so the. mast must be very high. I see goats from the road in the woods above and further along the road a boy shepherds the rest of his herd which includes several kid goats. Although not busy this road is in poor condition and the road surface at nearly every switch back and water crossing dissolves from tarmac to mud and gravel, I'm glad of some tread on my tyres as I loose grip in another corner. The descent is quick and I'm soon bouncing over speed bumps and free wheeling into a traditional mountain village, thick red earth walls, small windows and tiled clay tiled roofs. No sign of tarmac now either, just gravel and as I stop to check my route the call to prayer is sounds from the mosque I just passed. 

A couple more miles through olive groves to a junction where to my surprise I join the road from Imlil which we were driven down a couple of days before on a day trip to the high Atlas. From here it is downhill across the plain all the way to Marrakech, pick a big gear and ride straight to the hazy horizon. I've no idea how far remains, it always seems further on the flat without the distractions of the mountains. I can tell that I'm getting close to Marrakech, the road improves and golf course and leisure club developments line the road. The last few miles to the centre are a typical colonial boulevard, wide road, ornate street lamps, palm trees and prestige buildings set back from the road. It's only another ten miles from here though the back streets near the palace, mixing it up with the Marrakech traffic which isn't half as scary as a Leeds rush hour, trucks and buses leave loads of room when passing and nothing no-one is in enough of a hurry to put anyone else at risk. Many of the roads have a metre wide bike lane for cycles and mopeds, I can't help thinking that contrary to first impressions this is a pretty good place to ride a bike. 

street market in Marrakech

Nearing the villa I end up riding through a deep pothole to avoid an oncoming car on a narrow back road, the hiss of air from my rear tyre that follows is one of my least favourite sounds. I park my bike up-side down to see that I can't remove the rear axle - the splined collar that should be on the axle has fallen off at some point today and now I can't remove the wheel. I can't even grab the axle with any other tool as it's in a recess, as I'm only a couple of miles from the villa I decide to ride on carefully putting as much weight as I can over the front wheel. Arriving back at the villa with a flat tyre, two broken spokes and several more loose ones I'm glad to have made it, a flat in the mountains would have been a major problem. 

Road to Nowhere

The backup Planet X bike is deployed and as I've been to the mountains a couple of times I fancy finding the nearest thing to desert that's within an hour and a half of here. Looking at the map heading west from our villa should take me into some pretty empty territory and an off road shortcut will save time and add interest. After only eight miles I run out of road and pick a track heading out of a village into a barren vista of red earth and rock. Other than the occasional dry river crossing this is pretty straight forward although I'm being super careful to avoid punctures as I'm down to just one spare tube and no puncture repair kit. There are tracks heading off in all directions, I'm tempted to explore them but I need to be back at the villa for lunch so I stick to the planned route. Using the offline map app maps.me on my phone it's fairly simple navigating through this red wilderness although I'm glad to see a milestone for the P2118 once I find tarmac again. Typically the P2118 is absolutely straight to the horizon in the small hills ahead, progress marked by pot holes and milestones passed. Nothing grows here without a great deal of work, occasionally I pass a riad (courtyard house) in its own oasis created by pumping water from deep aquifers to satisfy the thirst of palm, olive and herb. Everywhere else bears more resemblance to the moon, it's difficult to even grasp the scale of the place when all you can see is rocks of varying sizes and dust. 

After twenty miles or so it's good to meet a main road which will return me towards Marrakech but the sun is now high in the sky and I'm not used to riding in 30 degree heat. The air is so dry that every breath sucks the moisture from mouth and nose, I've nearly run out of water and a few miles later I stop at a roadside shop for a cold coke. Once we've worked out what variety, size and style of Coke I would like a mug of cold water is poured for me and a kid asks me how I find my way. I explain about the phone and down the cold bottle of coke, before leaving he takes a selfie with me.

It's just after midday and most people are hiding in their houses or have found a patch of shade, riding fast in this heat is not clever but I have to be back for 1pm so I press on down the N8 towards Marrakech computing milestone markers as I go, 50 km - that sounds like more than one hour...

Fortunately the villa is this side of Marrakech and I make back in time to puzzle over how to remove the rear wheel from the other bike so it can be packed up for the return flight to Manchester. Eventually I source a hacksaw and slot the other side of the axle so it can be undone with a screw driver. I'm reluctant to leave our villa where we've been treated so well, if I return to Maroc it will be to the Atlas with better maps and some pre-planned gravel road routes. There are hundreds of possible mountain riding routes in the Atlas, I just need to research them and drag some accomplices out with me next time.

      

 

Gear:

• Cannondale Slate Ultegra
• Planet X custom XLS
• Osprey trail bag with 2.5l water reservoir

A Very Yorkshire Race: 3 Peaks Cyclocross 2016

Weeks of planning, hours of preparation and now only minutes remain. For many a return to a familiar spot but it's my first time waiting in the drizzle gazing up at the cloud-bound summit of Penyghent. I'm telling everyone it's 'only a bike ride' and it is, but once that countdown finishes we are all going to push hard because we love to race, otherwise we'd have stayed in bed this morning instead of rising in the darkness and driving for hours.

There is nothing quite like the 3 Peaks Cyclocross Race, this was the 54th edition of the race and the Dales village of Helwith Bridge has played host to most of them. It's the kind of race that you wouldn't be able to get off the ground if you tried in 2016, it doesn't make any sense. Except that it's a proper challenge, and that is why every year the race is massively oversubscribed, the 650 riders gathered here this morning are the lucky ones. 

The countdown starts but it is barely heard in the mid pack, instead the sound of hundreds of pedal cleats clicking into pedals marking the start of the race. A commisaire's car neutralises the front of the pack and I fight my way forward to get closer to it taking every gap to make sure that I'm forward for when we leave the road under Simon Fell. There are plenty of sketchy moments as I'm not the only one trying to make it forward, as the road narrows in Horton in Ribblesdale a handful of brake is needed to avoid riders in front, my rear wheel locks and I'm reminded to allow a more space. A gentle climb out of Horton sorts the impostors from the contenders and then an open gate and the start of race proper. 

The climb to the start of Simon Fell is soft in places and many of us dismount to run rather than spin up rear wheels in the rapidly dissolving grass. I glance at my watch to check heart rate, 160bpm isn't sustainable but feels ok for now. Gears are skipping which is odd as they were spot on last night so I put it to the back of my mind instead focusing on picking a good line through the soggy fields. Legs spin wildly, arghh, no drive. Snapped chain and in a split second I'm out, no longer a racer. Tens and hundreds of riders stream past and if I'm lucky I'll be at the back of them all by the time I'm pedalling again. Chain tool out from my pack and I can't find the handle for it, a few riders ask if I'm ok but most are focusing ahead until Star Wheeler Gary stops and lends me his multitool just as I'm considering calling it a day. 

Fix complete but by now most have passed and my calves are burning by the top of the steep and tussocky climb up Simon Fell. Overtaking opportunities are scarce on the singletrack towards Ingleborough and the ones I take frequently land me knee deep in moss and peat. The descent from Ingleborough starts off rideable but I soon shoulder my bike to take more steep shortcuts from the summit. It becomes nearly rideable and I hang on for a rough ride to Cold Cotes. The violence ceases near the timing point giving way to smooth grass and tarmac, time to drink and take stock, tubeless rear tyre feels softer than it did but it's ok for the downwind section up to the Hill Inn. No time for passengers on the straight road past White Scar caves, hangers on are swiftly ejected unless they take their turn. 

thanks to Phil Hinchliffe (HCC) for the photo

Whernside is less steep but more imposing, the view back down the valley is spectacular, low light reflects off every flood in the valley whilst the cloud close above frames it beautifully. Shame I left my camera behind. Near the top my rear flats and I change it but it flats again within a few minutes on a sharp rock. Ok then; I find a sheltered spot behind a wall past the summit to fit my last tube. 'Must more ride carefully, must more ride carefully, must ride...' chants a small and hopeless voice. These steps look fun though, and no one else wants to ride them, maybe I could though? I'm soon hanging over my back wheel bouncing down Whernside's slabbed footpath. Any idiot could tell me that it's not going to end well, a loud 'pfttt' and I've just bought myself a 4 mile run to Ribblehead Viaduct. The novelty of running pushing and carrying a bike soon wears off as more riders pour past me.  Yup, I'm now riding to finish, any hope of a respectable time well and truly out the window.

A couple of spare tubes are secured at Ribblehead and I manage to ride more like a grown up from here. Road to Horton doesn't take long but the climb up Penyghent is a slog, descending riders taking the best lines on this out and back section. Hands ache on the descent and I don't envy those riding old skool cantilever brakes. The final mile or so on the road is full on, no point in saving effort now, grab some cheeky air into the finish funnel and that's it. One 3 Peaks down, perhaps more to go. 

Thanks to Saul Muldoon, Gary Jackson and Pete Dukes for support on the day

The Bike

I built this up a few weeks before the event mainly with parts I had lying around - Planet X XLS carbon frame and fork with American Classic Race29er wheels and tubeless Sammy Slick tyres. 50/34 x 11-32 gears. 11 speed Ultegra shifters and Deore brakes.

GT 24: West Highland and Great Glen Way in Not Quite a Day

Midweek apprehension; a big weekend looms, plans and kit list ongoing but the memory of our last aborted attempt hangs heavy. The water bars of Conic Hill a reminder that we are heading back to serious mountain biking country where feed stops are 40 miles apart and black trail features surprise round every other corner. 

Dramatic skies on the M74 northbound

On the bright side we were returning better prepared and with some support, Emily had kindly agreed to drive the van from Glasgow to Inverness saving us an uncomfortable train journey back to Glasgow, and more importantly offering an escape route if something serious went wrong. The odds of 'something serious' going wrong seemed fairly high to me given that on our last attempt we managed two punctures, one concussion and a fatally collapsed freehub within 30 miles of the start. Hmm, maybe a weekend of football, IKEA and washing the car would be a better idea. 

Friday night and Saul, Emily and myself were out on the town in Glasgow, well nearly, we were in Nando's in search of a good veggie pre-ride meal. Our Ibis hotel room had more in common with a hospital than a hotel room but it was convenient for tomorrow's ride start at the Riverside Museum on the Clyde. After our meal we discussed the next day and foolishly convinced ourselves that we'd be done within 24 hours and therefore a late start would be a good idea to avoid getting to South Kessock near Inverness too early. Naivety was not our usual strategy.

Sleep interrupted by post revelry antagonism in the nearby car park and the incessant motorway noise, I was glad when it was finally time to ride. Along the riverside to the SECC where we spotted several cycle team buses parked up for the Tour of Britain stage the next day. 

A couple of cheeky selfies later and we were back at the Riverside museum, déjà vu. 

At least we had a better idea of the escape from Glasgow route and we were soon settling in for a big day as we rolled along an old railway line towards Loch Lomond. Amidst the walkers we passed a man carrying a bird of prey on his hand, we ignored the urge to shout 'nice bird'. This section was busy with walkers who often didn't hear our approach so progress was intermittent.

Start of the West Highland Way (WHW)

Busker in Milngavie

Problems with my eTrex GPS were worrying me, it was unable to load the route up despite testing it back at home the previous week. It was an hour into the ride before it loaded up the right maps and route, fortunately we knew this section from our last attempt. The climb up Conic Hill hadn't got any easier and we were really steady descending the far side, Saul was practicing his 'ride within myself' mantra avoiding the steps and carrying the technical sections. Passing the point where he crashed last time felt like an achievement and it was all new to us from here on.

Conic Hill

Loch Lomond went on forever, initially fun and at times technical singletrack became unrideable after several miles and we were into the 'hike a bike' section. We'd averaged around 12mph to here but this figure plummeted as we squeezed between rocks, climbed stairs and tried not to overbalance into the loch. Hours disappeared and we still couldn't see the head of the loch. Some parts were rideable but the drains and water bars had already caused two punctures to Saul's back wheel and we were soon replacing a third tube. My chain then snapped but fortunately I had a spare link and chain breaker so we were soon moving again. That was until I realised that I couldn't unclip from my right pedal due to a lost cleat bolt. Fortunately I carried spare bolts and cleat since a similar mishap whilst racing the Manx 100 had lost me valuable time and sapped my enthusiasm.

Hike a bike 'til you don't like

Another puncture

Progress on the rocky singletrack at the head of the loch was steady so we were relieved to finally find a fast double track taking us north towards Crianlarich and Tyndrum. We were surprised to pass several groups of young girls and family group walking the route here, so far we'd only encounter older couples. It was strange to think that these walkers were taking a week to walk a route that we hoped to complete around today. More quality singletrack led through dark pine woodland and across moorland blooming with purple heather but we had little time to take in the view and the drizzle and idles kept us moving until we reached the Green Welly in Tyndrum. 

6pm. It was hours later than we'd planned reach this point, the light was starting to fade and we had a major section of trail to tackle before Fort William, nine hours to tackle sixty miles seemed depressingly feeble. Nothing to do but stock up on overpriced flapjack and nuts and carry on. The track to Bridge of Orchy was fast as was the old drover's road up to Rannoch Moor but darkness  arrived just as we crossed one of the remotest sections of the route. A further puncture to Saul's rear wheel whilst descending to the Kings House was fixed by torchlight as midges feasted on any exposed flesh they could find. This had become 'Type 2' fun, we pressed on regardless. 

The Devil's Staircase climb became a shove rewarded by the view back towards Rannoch Moor, tiny car headlights far below us the only clue to our progress. The top of the climb was cloaked in mist but the descent to 'The Electric Village' (Kinlochleven) was a blast despite the dark, wet conditions. What comes down must go back up, surely the next climb would be our last before Fort William? We had soon ground to a halt as Saul stopped to fix his Exposure light mount which unusually had worked its way loose. 

The long descent fooled us into thinking we were in the home straight for the WHW but the glow in the sky behind the ridge to our right confirmed my suspicion that there was more work to be done. We crawled up the steep climbs and dropped through deer fenced timber plantations to arrive at the back of Fort William. We headed to the rendezvous point but the van was nowhere to be seen so we had a look down Fort William high street to see if she was waiting at the end of the WHW. Again, no sign and I was growing frustrated as we wasted time dodging drunks in Fort William when we should be on our way to Inverness. A quick call and Emily and the van were located on the quayside, desperate for some real food I jumped in the van to pull out a sandwich I'd left in there the previous day.

Official end of the WHW

It was now 1am Sunday, hours later than we'd planned to arrive. We had eight hours to complete our ride, fortunately the Great Glen Way (GGW) started out fast and flat, a top gear mission in our tunnel of torchlight. To either side of our path was water but all we could see was the hard pack track stretching away into the darkness of the highland night. Occasional climbs broke up the monotony of the small hours and a donated caffeine gel kept me awake and on the trail. By this point I was craving some real food, flapjack, chocolate and cereal always lost their appeal after seventeen hours. Fortunately I had some nut butter sandwiches left but once they were exhausted my stomach grumbled, unaccustomed to the high energy diet we needed to complete this ride. I checked my watch and estimated how long it would take to the next village. It was pointless really, hours were flying by and we weren't hanging about but the scale of this ride was epic, we'd get there when we got there.

At Fort Augustus the character of the GGW changed, the GT24 opted for the high level GGW sections so we were once more grinding and shoving upwards through the forest round tight gravel hairpins. A wide singletrack roller coaster lurched towards the glimmer of dawn on the horizon. I fought with my gears which encrusted with mud were now very reluctant to work, I became convinced my brakes were dragging but it was just the thick gravel of the trail slowing progress.

Dawn arrived as we summited the second high level section of the GGW but we were far from done with our granny gears. More steep climbs and a great descent to Drumnadrochit for a final refuel before that last twenty miles into Inverness. We expected another climb and this one didn't disappoint but once done we rolled nearly all the way to Inverness, to our left the Northern highlands, to our right the the foothills of the Cairngorms. The last few miles were particularly great, a wide smooth downhill track was nirvana after some of the trails of the last twenty four hours and Inverness was bathed in sunshine. Along the riverside following the purple line on the GPS route to a final effort along the road into South Kessock where Emily waited patiently with here dog Spin. 10am, slower than expected at twenty five hours but we'd made it. Tough but not quite killer, there was unfinished business here.