At the beginning of the year I looked at the list of events and tried to find one that would fit into my training plan. This is harder than you might think, especially since I’m training for a marathon at the moment, so most of my weekends are taken up by long runs. But the York Leeds York event was quite early in the season and, on a Saturday, meant I could travel on Friday after work and still be back for a long race on Sunday.
On Friday night we drove to York (Adam and I had kindly agreed to come with me). Bikes on the roof of the car, trunk packed with tons of gear as the weather had been a bit unpredictable, it had snowed in both York and Leeds on Thursday, this could be a very cold event! Luckily the snow had passed however this was replaced by a fairly persistent downpour and it rained throughout the trip, the poor bikes getting very soaked on the roof of the car. We finally arrived in York at 10:15pm on Friday, checked with the hotel that we were okay to take the bikes to our rooms, unloaded the car, and then ordered Chinese takeout (well, we can’t do a sport without refueling). All in all, this made the night quite late.
Get up just before 6 am the next day to pack, eat breakfast, and check out.
Jenni had also driven from Southport to travel with us and arrived at the hotel quite late. Unfortunately, she was quite sick on Saturday and then couldn’t join the event, so it was just Adam and I riding together.
We headed to the exit at the York Auction Center and there were already a lot of people there. The parking lot was packed and there were many people around. I did not expect such a massive turnout at a sporting event so early in the season, especially as the weather was not good. It was raining when we first arrived, not too much, but it was meant to be a wet ride!
Adam and I made our way to registration and collected our rider numbers before heading to the Primal Europe booth to introduce ourselves. This was the first time I had met any of the team in person and it was wonderful to finally put faces to names and meet James and Ben. I took this opportunity for a cheeky selfie with James and then it was time to get the bikes ready and ready for the ride ahead.
Once ready, we joined a queue of runners ready to go, the queue winding around the outside of the auction center as the race itself started from inside the building. Everyone waiting to start seemed in good spirits and we talked to a few people who had done the event the year before (it’s always a good sign when people come back a second time). A poor gentleman managed to forget a wheel because he had to take his bike apart to pack it in the car and he didn’t remember to put the wheel in the car. The organizers called the tannoy to see if anyone had a spare, but unfortunately no one did, so he had to go to breakfast and wait for his friends and family to finish.
Quick briefing on the race and off we go. Almost as soon as we started, so did the rain, varying in intensity from a miserable heavy drizzle to a furiously heavy sideways rain. But this did not seem to determine any of the riders. Some of the roads were incredibly flooded, at one point I turned a corner in front of a small group and yelled ‘swimming pool’, there was no other way to describe the huge puddle that spread all over the road. Luckily it was only a few inches deep and we managed to make it to dry land! (I love a triathlon, but taking my bike for a swim wasn’t on the agenda!)
After some initial flooded and muddy trails, the trails to the halfway point were a bit easier, less mud and surface water, but colder! As we made our way to Leeds the temperature dropped noticeably and there were still patches of snow accumulating on the side of the roads. We arrived at Harewood House quite cold and damp. It was an absolutely stunning place and I’m sure on a summer’s day I would have stayed a bit longer, sat on the grass and taken pictures of the house, but it was quite cold and my fingers weren’t too interested in trying to take pictures i feel like i might need to go back one day just to appreciate how beautiful it really was.
I did manage to take photos of some participants’ bikes in the snow though!
We queued for a very welcome hot drink and I had a very sweet and tasty flapjack before a massive stripping operation to try to go to the bathroom. Cyclists – I’m sure all of you will sympathize. I had to strip off layer after layer of clothing to get to my Onyx Thermal bib shorts.
Then we hit the ground running in the second half, not wanting to stay too long or colder than we needed to. Once again all the riders seemed to be in good spirits on the return ride, even one poor lady whose rear wheel axle had gone bad, was happily waiting for the mechanics to pick her up and we stopped to chat with her for a few minutes. . minutes and check that it was ok.
I also managed to ride for a while with some ladies from the Yorkshire Lass Cycle Club. They were really lovely and friendly and it was so nice to spend some time chatting with some new people as the miles went by. One of the ladies’ husbands was a triathlete and had done Ironman Vichy last year!
65 miles later (we did the middle route) we headed back to the auction center to be presented with our medals, picture taken, and the all-important post-ride snack: a real grilled sausage in a bun! This is possibly the best post-event meal idea and was very welcome as a filling warm food after a fairly cold event.
Bikes back in the car, quick changes in the parking lot, thanks to Dryrobes, they really make post-event routines that much easier. Then a quick goodbye to the Primal team and it was time to start the long journey home. We got home at about 10pm that night. Crazy long, exhausting but fabulous weekend! I loved every minute. Now, where is the list of Velo29 events? I need a new goal!