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James Flying his Sport 2
James flying is Wills Wing Sport 2 at Bo Peep and about to embark on a little cross country epic
15 Jun 2014

Why?

In 1995, after completing my degree, I finally uprooted from my home town of Frome in Somerset (UK) and relocated to the South East, eventually settling in the village of Southwater in West Sussex. In the years that passed, I had contemplated the feasibility of cycling home to home, Southwater to Frome. It’s over 100 miles and by car and often takes over 3 hours. At the time my, all my cycling was on a mountain biking and a ride of this magnitude on a mountain bike in a single day was out of the question.

Many years later (where do they go?), I celebrated my 40th birthday and for this momentous occasion, my partner purchased me a Cannondale Bad Boy 2; a hybrid commuter bike! It was only after a few short rides on it that I realised I now had the equipment to tackle this long-term ambition.

Would it Happen?

As the years passed my personal life changed substantially and with the birth of my twin boys (Kieran and Lewis) my availability and fitness began to dwindle. By the time I had recruited my long-term cycling buddy Daniel into this endeavour, a further 2 years had passed with the idea discussed but not gaining traction.

By 2019 I was beginning to contemplate if this challenge were ever to happen. My father had now been diagnosed with terminal cancer and I really wanted to complete this challenge for him to witness! I’m not entirely sure why, but I was very keen to see the look on his face if I succeeded.

By June I had pencilled in dates and had dropped off end of ride supplies (change of clothes etc) at my parent’s house in Frome. The first proposed date was 15 June 2019. I had only been out on my hybrid bike the once in 2019, with the rest of my limited rides being on my mountain bike, or my hybrid hooked up to my turbo trainer and the Zwift App in my garage. Furthermore, the weather in June had been diabolical with a low-pressure system sat over the UK bringing with it high winds and unreasonably high amounts of rain. In fact, one day alone in June received the entire monthly rainfall average!

The planned route was predominately in a westerly direction and I had originally intended to ride with an assisting tail wind. The weather however had a different plan with near gale force south westerly winds and torrential rain in the days that lead up to the 15th. On the Wednesday before, I began to see what I considered to be a window of opportunity on Saturday with the weather, dry(ish) with head winds increasing throughout the day! There was also a front crossing the country headed west to east, this was expected to bring some light rain and weaken. Thursday’s forecast was similar, and I was once again tempted to postpone, however, with the fear of it never happening, I decided to call it on. I contacted Daniel to let him know.

The Plan

We had planned for an early start, with Daniel driving over in the morning with a view of setting off from Southwater by 5.30am. Friday night was focussed on fuelling and rest, so with a large bowl of pasta consumed and continual hydration, I headed to bed early. I didn’t sleep particularly well and woke at 4am with a splitting headache, got up, took some painkillers, consumed a large bowl of porridge and drank a banana milkshake. I was ready although not as fresh or as fit as I had hoped!

After Daniel arrived, we readied our bikes and set off at 5.20am. We were both using a Garmin Edge for navigation, the idea being we wouldn’t have to continually stop to check maps for directions. We had pre-planned the route and loaded on to our devices. Most of the route would be unfamiliar as I hadn’t really explored much west of Southwater (most of my rides tend to be north to the North Downs, south to the South Downs and occasionally East of Southwater). We also had to be self-sufficient as there was no recovery for us until late Saturday evening. Our route would aim to utilise as many back roads as possible, however some smaller sections of unavoidable A roads would have to be ridden to link everything together.

Strategy

I needed a strategy for this endeavour as I was not as fit as I’d preferred so adopted the following:

• For hills; to conserve energy, will would drop to low gears and spin up the hill and not push hard – it was not my intention to walk any part of this ride!
• 20 km/h was our target average speed, when the bike would roll at or above that speed, I would freewheel or put minimal power in to maintain momentum.
• Fuel; I had a bag of jelly babies on my cross tube, I would pop one in every 4-5 miles.
• Hydration, my aim was to take regular sips and avoid developing a thirst and most importantly, refill when I started on my second bottle.
• Stops, would be brief to avoid stiffening up and I would aim to walk around when we did stop.
• Drafting, I didn’t really want to draft Daniel all the way, so when I could I would cycle alongside him and when possible, allow him to draft me (he’s annoyingly fit so I did spend considerable time behind him!).
• Fun; I wanted to enjoy it – it’s been an ambition for over half of my life to complete this ride and I wanted to have fun while doing it.
• Be seen; both Daniel and I had flashing LEDs on our bikes and very brightly coloured clothing – as a cyclist you must maximise your opportunity to be seen by other road users!

Easy Going

Despite the forecast, the early hours of the day provided near perfect cycling weather. Winds were light, the sky overcast and the temperature unusually cool for June. The roads were quiet and for the most part, Daniel and I cycled alongside each other and chatted. The first major A-road was the A272 just west of Billingshurst and except for one or two cars, it was clear running. We established a comfortable pace and were only interrupted at Wisborough Green when our Garmin’s indicated we were off course. A quick double back and we were back on route!

We passed some beautiful villages until we hit the village of Fernhurst. Last year we did a little recognisance ride in preparation and in doing so, realised that our route had failed to spot a one-way street which we (rode the wrong way). I failed to remember where this was and it wasn’t until we passed the village cricket ground and spotted the dreaded no-entry sign that I remembered. It was still the early hours of the morning, so we repeated our past action and continued.

Daniel had plotted a pretty good route that cunningly missed some of the biggest hills in the area. We couldn’t avoid all and hit the first notable climb in the Haslemere area, Honeycombe Lane, which delivered us into Liphook upon its completion. Soon after we crossed the A3 (one of my mental landmarks) and continued in a westward direction.

Our first scheduled stop was at the Drift Road Stores shop just south of Bordon at mile 32. We arrived there a 7:30am and Daniel popped in to buy some water and snacks while I remained with the bikes. After a quick stretch were resumed our westward journey.

Pain

By mile 45 I had become aware of an unusual pain developing in my left knee, nothing nasty, but certainly something that had come to my attention. As Daniel and I continued to chat our Garmin’s failed to annunciate a right turn at mile 46, so we continued to follow the road we were on. Shortly after, our Garmin’s alarmed to state we were off course and after a quick double back, we were back on course.

It wasn’t much longer before we crossed under the M3 at mile 53. This was a significant landmark as the M3 had limited opportunities to cross and was one of the constraints for consideration when we planned our route. It was also approximately the half way point so had psychological significance with that regard. I was feeling good and we continued above our planned average speed – we were making good time and the weather was still on our side!

Early Lunch

The villages west of the M3 were stunningly beautiful and I confess to this being my most enjoyable part of the ride. At mile 65 we arrived in Chilbolton at 10:30 and stopped at our planned lunch break at the village store and post office. It was a beautiful thatched building with a good selection of cakes. I chatted with some of the village locals while we enjoyed our purchased selection of cakes and after refilling our water bottles with sparkling spring water (I should have checked the labels), we resumed riding.

Weather

Despite having to ride on a busy stretch of the A243, this was only limited to a small section before we veered off it to follow some quieter roads that took us towards the A303, our next notable landmark and worst offending obstacle when we planned the route. In fact, on the Thursday evening before I had spotted an issue with our intended crossing of the A303. Garmin’s route planning had mistaken a rough bridleway across a field as suitable for our road bikes! It clearly wasn’t and with the A303 being such a geographical constraint, we only had the option to ride a short section of the A303 and cross near Amesbury. This was not pleasant with cars racing past us at 70mph or higher, but we were quickly on the slip road that took us into Solstice Park at mile 82. The weather front was now upon us and with persistent rain and an increased headwind, it was time for my waterproof jacket.

After a quick break at the service station, were resumed riding on what I expected to be the worst stretch of the route. I was now beginning to feel tired and the pain in my left knee was now at the point that it dominated most of my thoughts.

We were now headed northward towards Bulford. We had to climb a hill and for whatever reasons, the traffic here was horrendous with impatient drivers hellbent on pushing past me as I climbed this narrow road in the driving wind and rain. As I reached the apex of the hill, all that traffic had come to a standstill and as I rolled down the other side of the hill, I repassed all the idiots that had dangerously passed me. At the bottom of the hill the the front of the ½ mile queue and as the lights turned green we were released and set off headed towards Lark Hill.

Salisbury Plain Pain

We were now on the open plains of Salisbury Plain and with a strong headwind, driving rain and the undulating landscape, progress was hard and painful. It was an uphill grind through Lark Hill and towards the village of Shrewton. I often drive this stretch of road and I knew what awaited after Shrewton; a four mile up-hill drag! This was the part of the ride I was least looking forward to and this was further compounded by the worst of the weather! I was now beginning to struggle and as Daniel ploughed off ahead, I concentrated on keeping the pedals turning. Somehow I passed Daniel (I suspect he had another of his toilet breaks) and as I entered the village of Chittern at mile 95 the pain in my left knee had become very uncomfortable to the point where I had to stop.

As I walked around in the hope that the pain would ease, Daniel caught up and asked if I was ok. When I mentioned my pain, he offered some pain-killers. Despite my preparations, the idea of carrying pain killers hadn’t popped into my mind; what a great idea! As I took two, Daniel told me that it’s quite common for professionals to do this. I’m far from being a professional but certainly appreciated the sentiment!

I got back on my bike, gritted my teeth and began to push the pedals again. The stop was probably a mistake and it took a further 10 mins before my legs began to get back into rhythm at which point we joined the A36 towards Warminster. The road was horrible and traffic zoomed passed us, sometimes a little too close for comfort, but at least the rain had begun to ease, and the baking hot sun had begun to appear.

100 Miles

As soon as we exited the A36 and joined the A3414 towards Warminster I began to relax and enjoy the scenery and road again. I was now on familiar ground and knew my goal was within reach! It was around here that I watched the odometer (well, distance cycled) clock 100 miles. Although tired, I did manage a little ‘whoop’ as this was the first time I had ever cycled 100 miles! With another 12 or so miles to go, I limited my celebration and popped in two more Jelly Babies!

The End Is Near!

As we approached Warminster the route veered off around the east side of the town and along some quieter roads that took us out towards Westbury. We skirted around the contours of the hills that marked the boundary of Sailsbury plain without need for significant climbing. I knew I was near Westbury White Horse and began to consider a return with my hang glider to fly, but thoughts quickly returned to the cycling and we pressed on towards the village of Dilton Marsh.

All the village names were very now becoming very familiar and with each stroke of the pedals, the end neared! When a road sign for “Somerset” appeared, a stop was required to record this momentous moment having fully crossed the counties of Hampshire and Wiltshire. After the obligatory photo was taken, we continued towards the village of Berkley. I knew there was one little climb through the village, but mentally I had achieved my goal; it had now become an informality! I no longer needed to rely on my Garmin for navigation so continued to push the pedals.

Finish Line

Ahead of me, I noticed Daniel continuing towards Bath having missed the turn for Frome. I briefly contemplated letting him continue but shouted and gained his attention. He U-turned as I continued towards Frome while I searched for an elusive ‘Frome’ sign for that final photograph opportunity! It wasn’t there (and its absence later confirmed on Google Street view). As I turned the final corner towards my parent’s house, the words “Finish Line” were boldly pinned on the garage door – that certainly made up for the lack of a Frome sign! We had arrived at 14:30, considerably earlier than I had expected!

Well that was it; done! Amazingly, we had no punctures or mechanical issues on either bike, one or two idiotic drivers attempts at taking us out, a numb right hand from the grip on my handlebars and a persistent pain in my left knee. As for Daniel, well he looked amazingly fresh and I believe he would have cycled back if he had the opportunity. It was now time to shower and freshen up and await the arrival of transport that would return us to Sussex later that evening.

Thank You

This ride had been an ambition for many years and I do not think I would have accomplished it without the drive and support of Daniel. It was a pleasure having his company throughout and despite him being annoyingly fit, he stuck with me at my pace throughout the ride. He had also been a constant source of good humour and post he made on Facebook echoed that…

A huge thank you to Daniel for making all this possible!

For the record, we are also planning on repeating this ride again but with some route tweaks!