We are the champions!

The London to Cambridge – my first-ever sportive, and it won’t be my last

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We did it! On 27 July CP and I cycled 60 miles between London and Cambridge. And it was AWESOME. In fact the whole weekend was fantastic, with lovely food and drinks with lovely friends and a great festival in Lloyd Park in Walthamstow.

I was pretty nervous the night before the event. I had never cycled 60 miles in one day before and I’d never taken part in one of these ‘sportives’. I don’t know how to fix a puncture or change an inner tube, and what on earth would I do if I buckled a wheel? I was also concerned about the amount of time I’d be spending in the saddle.

Never having taken part in something like this before, I really didn’t know what to expect. Would the route be well signposted? Would I turn up at the start line and just find a few people milling about? Would it be properly organised? Would there be medical people on hand? It’s entirely possible I worry too much.

As it turned out the event was fantastically well organised and I had nothing to worry about. Not only was the route fully signposted, there were volunteers pointing out the right direction at every turn and roundabout.

Our start time was 0830, but CP and I arrived early because she’d managed to forget her number and registering card. We didn’t know how long it would take to get replacements, but it was sorted in mere minutes and we quickly progressed to the start line.

As soon as I was on my bike all my concerns were forgotten. Cycling’s like that for me. Everything bad disappears, and it’s just me and my bike and a great big smile on my face.

We were quickly outside of London and cycling along country lanes through picturesque Essex villages and crop fields

The ride itself was so enjoyable. We were quickly outside of London and cycling along country lanes through picturesque Essex villages and crop fields. Sailing through the first rest stop, where lots of other cyclists were taking a break, felt amazing. We had a quick toilet break at the next stop and then another – taking time to munch on a flapjack – at the penultimate stop. The rest of the time we were in the saddle.

Mechanically we had no issues at all. I think that’s because CP used up our quota of punctures on the Friday she came to mine. Three punctures in one day. One of which was just five minutes after getting a new inner tube from Halfords and the chap there saying there was nothing in the tyre. Luckily we took the bike to someone who knew what they were talking about the next day. A very nice lady at Dr Bike fixed the puncture and pulled three bits of glass out of the tyre.

We finished the event in 4 hours and 14 minutes, according to my Strava. I don’t know how this compared with other entrants, but I was thinking it would take about six hours, so I was incredibly pleased. Our parents, who were meeting at the finish line, had been looking forward to cheering us across the line, but we actually arrived there before they did – oops!

So we had a great time and between us raised more than £600 for Breakthrough Breast Cancer. I'd like to thank everyone who sponsored us. I'm so incredibly touched by how generous my friends are.

Now I want to do more sportives. More and longer. A 100 miler is my next goal.

A happy me after completing the ride.