DIY 400km audax (the Dean plus extension)

After my failure to complete the Dean 300km audax earlier in the year I was determined to have another go. I decided to get a train to Oxford, ride the Dean route and then ride home to Birmingham bringing the total distance up to 400km. I quick check confirmed that this should be submitted as a DIY ride. I submitted my ride plan, including all the controls for the Dean plus additional controls at Warwick and the garage at the end of my road. It was a slow start, I lost me rear light early on. At Stow-on the Wold I wasted time searching for a bike shop that didn't exist in the hope of buying a new back light. I arrived in Newton and stopped at  co-op to buy food. I chatted to the owner of a estate agents next door.

I was very cold my the time I got to Chepstow. I locked my bike in the foyer of tesco and wandered the isles looking for suitable food options. A pack of samosas and a danish pastry later I noticed a costa coffee at the petrol station.
Layering up with warm jacket, leg warmers, reflective and full finger gloves I rode into the night. I brief stop in Malmesbury at a cash point and I carried on. By midnight I was cycling between villages and passed several wedding receptions in marques decorated with fairy lights. At 3am my helmet light suddenly went out. I'd run the battery down, I was only 15km from the M4 service station. Minutes later I felt that familiar slowing, my rear tyre had punctured. I was on a single track road but found a patch of gravel to pull onto. Lifting the bike upside down I balanced my front light on my shoulder and started to take the tyre off.
A garage forecourt in the middle of the night is a welcome sight, A motorway service station is pure luxury. I wheeled my bike through the corridor past signs for toilets and showers, parking it in front of a costa and wHsmiths. I sat down on a chair for the first time in nearly 24 hrs and sipped a mug of coffee. Sofas, hot food, I could have stayed here for hours.

Three Steps to Severn 600km Audax

Having ridden 200, 300 and 400km  events I needed a 600km ride to complete a super randonneur series. Three steps to Severn had the benefit of an organised sleep stop with food provided at Chepstow. I had managed the 400km event without any sleep but for the 600 I needed to bank as much time as possible during the first half to give me a chance to sleep for a few hours before riding the second day. As I left work on Thursday evening a colleague asked "are you cycling this weekend Sarah?"
"yes I'm cycling from Macclesfield to Chepstow.."
"Wow, that's miles, good luck"
I didn't even need to bother with the "and back"

I stayed at Macclesfield travel lodge. High glucose overnight was followed by an over correction at breakfast. By the time I arrived at the start my watch was buzzing as my glucose dropped to 3.2. Topping up with croissants and orange juice I thought I'd be okay but soon after starting my watch was alarming again. I stopped several times in the first 15km to eat glucose tablets and flapjack. Paul messaged to ask if I was okay given the glucose alerts and because I'd neglected to send him a strava tracker. I was feeling hungry again as a approached the first control, a transport cafe. I ordered an egg sandwich and found a seat. Chatting to Dale another audaxer his face suddenly fell, "I've just seen the weather forecast" he said pointing over my shoulder at the TV.  I didn't need to look, it sounded pretty bad. The prospect of heavy rain still seemed unlikely as a cycled down through mid wales in the sunshine. I was soon rolling down my arm warmers and reaching for the sunglasses. A long stretch of main road led to the next control at a supermarket. Time for a couple of samosas and a croissant. Heavy traffic and multiple sets of lights meant the other riders were soon out of sight and I was riding on my own again. As I reached bluith wells the rain had started and there were no other audax riders  to be seen. A quick stop at the co-op and I was on my way. It was 6pm when I reached the cafe in Llandovery. Cold and dripping wet I joined the audax riders inside and ordered apple pie and custard.

I forced myself back out into the rain. Stuffing my lightweight waterproof in my bag I put on my thicker jacket. I didn't see any other riders until I cycled through a rather soggy street festival in Brecon. Here I was joined by an audaxer with a malfunctioning gps device. We rode together for a bit pausing to check the route sheet to find the access point to the canal. I recognised Talybot on Usk having ridden there on a Tewksbury audax. I was soon riding alone again on the road to abergaveny and despite waiting for several minutes a some very slow traffic lights my follower didn't catch up. As I rode past a garage a group of cyclists flagged me down. I rode the final 40km to the sleep stop with them. The roads were awash with water and we arrived at the community centre drenched and very cold at 00:30. We were welcomed in and offered hot food, and towels. I was glad I'd packed a change of clothes in my bag drop. I was worried about hypoing in the night so gave a very conservative novorapid injection and 2 units of levemir. I selected an airbed, booked a 4am wake up call and fell asleep.

I woke at 3:50 and was soon tucking into a plate of beans on toast. My glucose had been high all night so a correction was needed. I didn't take any more levemir as it had only been 4 hours since the previous dose. I left promptly at 4:45, onto the cycle path and over the Severn bridge. My club mate John caught up with me soon after. An hour or so later my watch alarmed as my glucose dropped to 3.0. My breakfast insulin dose had been a little heavy handed and I pulled over to eat half a flapjack. We stopped for a second breakfast at the M5 motorway service station (via the back entrance). Further on at Alcester (toasted tea cakes at cafe espresso) I felt like I was nearly home. I had to keep reminding myself that we were riding back to Macclesfield not Birmingham. By Meridan I was struggling. With 2 consecutive nights of hyperglycaemia plus 350km of cycling the previous day I was really dehydrated. I forced myself to carry on, just 100km to go. As drizzly rain came and went waterproof jackets were on, off then back on again. At the final control I drank half a bottle of fruit smoothie and poured he rest into my water bottle.

20km from the end I came across another audaxer with a split tyre, a couple of repair attempts with tyre boots had failed. I emptied everything out of my bulging saddle bag and pulled out the 25mm tyre that the Derby mercury riders had given me on the 400km moors and wolds audax. Handing it over I felt pleased to be ale to help another rider and satisfied that the spare tyre was being passed on.
I arrived at the finish exhausted but smiling, a super randonneur!

Glucose control was good for the first day but generally very high on the second day. Before the end of the ride the I accidentally turned off transmission of results to my phone and lost the last few hours of data.