South Downs Spring Sportive - event report

On Saturday morning I lined up at the start line with two of my friends / work colleagues for my first sportive this season. The event was titled the 'Cycling Weekly South Downs Spring Sportive', start location: Plumpton and organiser was www.ukcyclingevents.co.uk. We had gone for the 'Epic' route, which measured 74 miles or 120km in distance.

I do love the more informal and social aspect of a sportive, going off in small groups and generally building up speed over the first few miles. Saying that Team Brewin Dolphin (Ewen, Charlie and myself) set off at a decent pace from the start. Up to the first stop (60km) we were averaging over 30km per hour on a rolling course. After a 10min toilet break and an opportunity to load up on energy (great range of food incl. peanut butter sandwiches, flapjack, fig rolls and other goodies) we were on our way again. Our speed remained relatively high but the second half had many more hills that slowed the progress a little. Charlie was our hill man, being the lightest in the team by some margin. He shot up the hills like a whippet leaving us to catch him on the other side. Ewen was the powerhouse and took his turn at the front many times allowing Charlie and I to benefit from some drafting on the long flat sections. Then there was the oldboy 'Tri Hard Dave' - 'Mr Endurance', not bad throughout but probably the best at getting aero on the descents.

Thanks to Charlie and Ewen I think this was one of the best sportives I have ever completed. I always have no problem covering the distances but never really pushed the pace. The boys certainly made it a goal to get a decent time and help each other throughout the ride. We had no problem acquiring 'Gold' status, covering the distance in 4 hours 26 mins (ride time was approx 4:15), despite a slower second half because of the many hills.

Full details of route and stats can be found via my Garmin Connect page (cadence data incorrect):

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/315094103#.UZlOV8UQz1M.email



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Charlie, David and Ewen - Team Brewin Dolphin