Vale of Belvoir Audax
My first 200km audax. I persuaded Paul to enter the 100km BP audax starting an hour later. He had laminated his route sheets and added velcro patches to stick them to the handlebars. Feeling a bit nerdy I did the same. I still hadn't mastered the art of self navigation although I had progressed from google maps to an app called Osmond. An overnight hypo was not an ideal start to the day. I was a little over cautious in my breakfast novorapid injection. Glucose was 17 and rising at the start so did a small correction dose. Nervous about getting lost I hung on to a fast group for the first 50km. I had cramp in the top of my thighs which appeared to be related to persistently high glucose levels. The first cafe was excellent and I chose a raspberry frangipane tart, glucose still high so 3 units of novorapid plus 2 more units correction. After the multiple traffic lights of Melton Mowbray I found myself riding alone. I soon got used to the osmond app and navigating myself. Arriving at the A1 service station at 12:30 I was surprised to see only 1 other cyclist at the road chef. Food options were not very appealing so just bought a coffee to get a receipt and began the return leg. My speed dropped considerably and my glucose went into the hypoglycaemic range. I stopped multiple times and ate my way through my emergency energy bars but struggled to get glucose above 4.  Thankfully a group of audax riders came past and I tagged on the end and followed them to the next cafe stop. I was eating my last energy bar as I sat in the cafe waiting for my cake to arrive. In the final 15km it started to rain. My phone battery was too low to leave the screen on and I couldn't charge it due to the rain. I retrieved my laminated route cards from my top tube bag and stuck them to the handle bars. After a section on a cycle path I took a wrong turn and somehow added an extra loop to the ride.

   Overnight hypo, levemir reduced from 8 to 3 units on morning of ride, several corrections during first few hours, causing persistently low glucose after half way point. Good control after final cafe stop. 

Clee to Heaven 120km Audax

Clee to Heaven Audax

I signed up for this audax because it was organised by Beacon, a local club I'm a member of and occasionally ride with. I'd previously ridden several 100km rides but nothing with this amount of climbing. I had the route loaded on google maps in my phone but was concerned I would get lost. I'd wasn't used to navigating myself on rides having previously just followed other cyclists on group rides. I even remembered to bring a tupperware box full of raspberry and amaretti cake. I memorised the instructions for the first 10km or so by following the route on google street view. I started in the second wave of cyclists leaving Belbroughton but soon found myself cycling alone having failed to catch up with the faster Beacon riders. I was joined by 2 riders from Twyning cycle club who kindly rode with me for the rest of the route. Arriving at Ray's farm we had our cards stamped and joined the queue for refreshments. A coffee and a millionaires short cake were just what I needed, topped up with an energy bar to keep the glucose in check. The next section was the toughest and included a particularly steep climb. Seeing other riders around me kept my motivation up and I stayed on the bike to the top. Soon after I discovered that my strava had stopped recording so hadn't included the hill climb! Back at Ray's farm there was time for another coffee before the last leg home. The intermittent rain required several stops to put on then remove jackets. Then back on again for the ride back to Belbroughton. I somehow had a burst of energy in the final 20km hitting that ideal glucose range. Arriving back at the HQ cold and wet but triumphant I handed over my brevet card for checking and filled a plate with cake and scones. I'm very grateful for Martin and Andrew for riding with me, without their support and encouragement I may well have not made it to the end. I was exhausted, the thought of riding an additional 80km just seemed beyond me. Maybe if I chose a flatter route I could do 200km ride.

 

Levemir reduced from 8 to 2 units on the morning of the ride, with 2 units of novorapid for the mid ride stop and 4 units for the post ride cake.