The 39 Stone Cyclist Goes Cancer Fighting – Rides Manchester To Blackpool 2010 (Report)

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EDIT: Now with a video of me passing the finish line, scroll down !

Today I cycled the 2010 edition of the Manchester to Blackpool ride for The Christy. When I set about losing weight by cycling this was to be my first major event, the fact I actually rode it last year meant that I had to pull out all the stops this year and

Pre Ride:

Preparations started last night:

It Makes You Go FASTER You Know !

6.30 am was upon me and I was ready to go….Wait….There was something I was forgetting, Ohh it was the man who put the “O” into Dean, it was Dean-O….I text him to say I was ready and to meet up…The reply wasnt one I was expecting nor wanting…

Hummm we said 6.30 !

Delayed Start:

The reply was that he had just woken and was running late, not to worry I thought, he only lives 15 mins away……60 mins later I get a call to say he had turned up…AN HOUR LATE !!!! I was freezing, it was cold and windy and stood around was doing things to my man parts I don’t want to discuss in public !

I did snap this however !

Manchester to Blackpool 2010 Start Line

All was good however once we got under way at 7.30am and boy did we fly outta the blocks….well right until the traffic lights about 20 yards up the road stopped us.

Go Go Go:

We were then moving again, the first 10 miles were done at an average of 18mph, we were passing most people on the road and both felt amazingly strong, the second 10 miles came and passed us by without really noticing it, then we were at the 25 mile point, Dean wanted a drink, I needed a pee, seemed ideal….We pulled into the Golf Club and I snapped the best picture of the day

Cheap, Nasty And Tacky Looking Those Caad 9 's 😉

A Quick Pit Stop:

Our stop lasted no more than 5 minutes. Once we pulled out we were immediately faced with a fair old bit of climbing, I was shocked at just how well I was doing, even passing some other roadies, BONUS.

Before long we were at the top and ready to descend Haigh, now both Dean-o and I are fearless descenders and we went for it, topping out at 39.7Mph I had a couple of club riders so worried that they gave EVERYTHING to make sure they passed me 😀

Our Pace Would Only Get Better.

Into The Thick Of It:

Over the next few miles until we hit Preston we were in a relaxed rhythm behind a few guys that looked like club riders, moving along at between 18-21mph with very little effort and chatting along the way, it even got to the point where we both agreed that it was just too easy.

There was one last climb to a right hander (Sorry don’t know the name) where loads of riders walked, there was no way I was going to be oe of them, I attacked in the big ring and by the top I had dropped chaninrings but I was still cycling.

The next 5 miles were uneventful and we peeled off for another pee.

Picking Up The Pace:

Our pace had gone up to 16.9Mph , the major hills are in the first half of the ride and we had passed that, now we were headed for the head winds of Lytham.

4 Miles before Lytham the winds were whipping up and I took the lead, both Dean-O and another Random roadie were taking my tow and we cruised along at 22Mph, about half a mile before Lytham Dean offered to take the strain and I got out of the wind behind him.

Nothing was going to prepair us for what we were about to encounter. As we rounded the coastal road in Lytham we were hit by gusts of winds.

Ride Away From The Group Gaz:

Dean was doing his best but our speed had dropped to singles figures, I had promised myself to give EVERYTHING to get there in under 4 hours, now this was in serious jeopardy, I stood up and offered to take the lead and try to get us some momentum, the wind was nasty, my legs and lungs were on fire but I had got our speed up to 14 Mph and was passing everyone else.

What happened next was the closest I am ever going to get to being in a break away in the Tour De France, I looked behind to see I had dropped Dean, he couldn’t cling onto my back wheel, I didn’t want to slow down just yet, I kicked again and got to 17 mph, then as we left the coastal road I got back up to 20 mph, I kept looking behind and couldn’t see Dean, in fact there was no-one in front of me either, I had no one to defend and no one to attack, it was physically and mentally tough, it was ALL ME !!!

Do I Or Dont I ?

With a Mile to go I decided to stop and wait for him, I went to change down gears only for them not to work, bugger, the wind was still bad but nothing like Lytham, I wasnt sure what to do, I was stuck in the highest gear, if i stopped I wasnt sure I would get going again.

I made the hard choice to not wait and picked up my pace again, looking at my Garmin I was going to do it ! I was going to beat 4 Hours ! now it was just a question of by how much ?

as I pulled onto the Sea Front I was amazed to feel the wind change, I kicked and finished with a classy 30mph sprint finish !

Blackpool Tower , Amazing Shrinking Gaz

Dean was just 2-3 Mins behind me. We congratulated each other on a great team ride and rushed to look at the stats on my Garmin (stats Below):

I also have a video of my finish, I will upload it in the next few days.

Number 2

PLEASE dig deep and sponsor me, it’s for a GREAT cause ! I put myself on the line and beat last years time by 1 Hour and 30 Mins and didn’t even take a rest stop  !!!!! If that doesn’t deserve sponsoring them maybe doing it in under 4 hours at 20 stone does ?

http://www.justgiving.com/39stonecyclist

Avg Moving Speed:	16.4 mph
Max Speed:	39.6 mph

Time:	03:46:41
Distance:	61.74 mi
Elevation Gain:	2,249 ft
Calories:	4,654 C