Since buying a road bike back in 2018, I’ve toyed with the idea of planning and riding across the country. Whether it’s top to bottom, across, or even down into Europe. Multi-day cycling (or bike packing) is absolutely on my radar! Before I wheel out on a bigger adventure, the first hurdle I thought I’d need to tackle was a 100-mile sportive. The RideLondon event is just that. 100 miles out into the Surrey hills and finishing up on the Mall. It’s a test of endurance, and certainly not for the feint hearted! It also constitutes a third of the London Classics, something I’m definitely now interested in finishing… In 2019, I embarked on the 100-mile Ride London sportive, and it was an event to remember!
London
The stage for this needs no real introduction. Many people visit London, throughout the year, for both business and pleasure. There’s something there for everyone (unless you really can’t stand bustling cities) and sport is definitely catered for! For anyone who’s taken part in any large-scale event, the few days preceding are for registration. They give each participant the opportunity to collect their timing chips, have a shop around and (usually) socialise among fellow ‘athletes’. Where to stay in the capital city can be a challenge, as usually hotels book up pretty early for events.
Those that are left are usually quite expensive! Additionally, the logistics of getting around the city for registration, the start-line and any other activities you may have planned should all be considered. It’s definitely worth checking your pre-event information pack before booking any accommodation! It’ll tell you where you need to be and when, which can help you to pick the right place to stay.
For the RideLondon event, registration was at the Excel. This in itself is worth a visit, as the huge event space regularly runs expos, conferences, and events for a whole host of things. Once I passed one hall for Disney, followed by a wedding cake supplier event – a real mix! It’s accessible on the DLR, or as many people do for an event like this, you can run/cycle there. After all, London’s great for its cycle links! Many 100-mile sportive training plans will likely include a light session the day before the race, so why not double up and use it as your way to get to registration!
Night Before – ‘Race Prep‘
After having registered and explored some of the various cycle related stalls in the exhibition hall, I headed back to the centre of town. If you’re thinking of taking on this epic cycle challenge, you’ll probably already know how important proper nutrition is. I certainly didn’t follow any focussed plan on the week leading up to the event. Nonetheless, the night before I made sure to get myself fuelled up on the good stuff!
London is a fantastic place for food. As with any major city (New York still so far one of my favourite), there are a whole host of foods to satisfy even the pickiest of eaters! When it comes to endurance events though, I personally find avoiding any form of fast, fatty or overly processed foods the night before a must. While there are the nutritional elements, having a funny stomach on race day is something I’ve fortunately never suffered, and never wish to!
Much research suggests carb loading should take place on the days leading up to the event, and the night before is no exception! While some people may read that and instantly consider how many carbohydrates a nice cold pint of beer has, I don’t mean those carbs! It can even help by increasing time to exhaustion by 20%, which is a massive bonus when taken on an endurance event like Ride London.
Listing the best pasta places in London here would be a great start. As a non-resident, I’d hate to cause offence by missing off any back-street gems. Additionally, it would totally depend on where you’re staying. The main thing here though is to think about and plan your race prep day! Even down to laying out all of your kit, energy gels, checking over your bike and planning your route to the start; the race begins with your night before preparation!
Race Day
For me, waking up the morning of ride London was pretty nerve-wracking. I had only ridden one longer distance sportive before, which was Ride Rutland’s 70-mile event 2 months prior. This meant London, for me, was a big challenge. I also have a habit of not training properly for endurance events, as life and other activities take over. This was also playing on my mind!
Still, I got up and utilised the Holiday Inn breakfast to get my fix of porridge and banana, continuing the fuelling process. On reflection, I think getting out for a walk and trying somewhere else for breakfast would have been better, to loosen my legs up a little. The only issue is with a 6am start time, it can be hard to find somewhere open. Even in London!
The Route
Starting in Queen Olympic Park, the ride started off relatively flat. It took me down to Canary Wharf and along the Northern side of the Thames, through the heart of London. Even at the early hour people were already out lining the route and showing their support, which really adds to the occasion! After the first 45 minutes, I was crossing over the Thames towards Richmond, as the heights of the city fell into the backdrop behind. Richmond Park was a beautiful setting to catch the full sun coming up behind the city backdrop, even if I did need to turn my head to see it!
Coming out of Richmond, around the 25-mile mark, I experienced my first (and fortunately only) puncture of the event. Since this, I’ve upgraded to tubeless tyres and the reduction in punctures has been totally worth the price!! A quick fix (I’d become quite swift at fixing punctures by now) and I was back underway. The route took us through the country roads towards Woking, where the inclines began as we approached the Surrey hills.
The first major incline is Leith Hill, where you battle against up to 11% incline, a nice way to introduce the second half of the sportive! This is the tough part of making sure you don’t stop, as restarting on this kind of incline is pretty difficult, especially without being a racing cyclist and having the power in the legs!
The Hills of Surrey
After conquering Leith Hill, you are rewarded with a couple of miles of downhill. However, in the Surrey hills, what goes down must come up. And it comes up with a vengeance!
Box Hill is the second of the big hills, and while not as steep as Leith, it’s more enduring. A real test of determination keeps you peddling up, moving at nothing more than a walk. Honestly, I think that if I dismounted and pushed my bike up it’d be quicker. However I was adamant to stay on! As I was 4 hours into the ride at this point, I was throwing everything at Box Hill. Fortuntely the final 30 miles from this point were kinder! Leaving Surrey behind, the route winds through Leatherhead and Esher. From here, you witness the beautiful city skyline up ahead, and feel the warmth of the August sun.
We came back into the city by Kingston-upon-Thames, then out to Wimbledon. We crossed the Thames at Fulham and followed the river towards the coveted finish line!
Finishing
What event in London would be complete without crossing the finish line on The Mall?! Looking up at Buckingham Palace, the sides of the road packed with a mixture of residents, supporters, and tourists, all seeing dozens of cyclists crossing the finish line. 100 miles in the bag, the last push on the straight with the end in sight. Crossing the line was such a relief and sense of accomplishment, but met quickly by fear of how jelly-like my legs will be when I finally dismount my bike…
Overview
Ride London is a fantastic event. From the registration buzz around the Excel, to the finish line outside Buckingham Palace, everything is an experience. I would definitely recommend training properly, however it is a great test of mental and physical grit if you don’t! The scenery is stunning, support along the route is second to none and the atmosphere is great. Sure there were some quieter patches out in the Surrey countryside where all you can hear are the occasional heavy breaths around you, but I wouldn’t have changed any bit of that experience for the world! If you’re not yet inspired, check out Ride London’s page for yourself. You won’t regret it! Oh and did I mention, you get free access to the race photos afterwards!
