Anyone going to try the Rapha Festive 500 this year?
Discussion
yellowjack said:
I did consider staying out to finish the challenge tonight, but to be honest I was spent. My average speed today was a lowly 12 mph, but no matter how slow I'm riding, it'll always be faster than hobbling around on crutches...
That’s the thing that I notice most, doing this challenge each year. It doesn’t sound all that tough on paper. But towards the end I’m so drained that no matter how much effort I try to put in, my average power goes for such a Burton, that I’m only managing 12-13 mph average at best. It’s harder than it sounds, for a non pro, with a normal Christmas schedule, that’s for sure.
lauda said:
Master Bean said:
4 rides. 522km. Now to chill.
Bloody good work, we have a winner!I’m 350km in as of today and should be done by mid-morning on Sunday so I’ll have one day to spare.
To everyone else still going, good luck and keep pedalling!
423kms done, averaging 28kmph. The slower than planned start with only 75kms on Xmas Eve with sore throat was a frustration, but will be finished tomorrow with another 80kms loop.
Been fun to do, but with limited time I have to be out of the door at 8 and back by 11 every day, except yesterday when I got a 4hr window. 5yr old, parents, family stuff etc. Has meant whilst this is a nice ‘badge’ to collect I’ll likely not bother again. Although to be fair once I’ve done something I’m not a big one for doing it again to just prove the point.
In the 15hrs so far this week I’ve only ridden with one mate also doing the 500 for 1.5hrs in total. My other riding partner has just done 40k loops to get to 9000kms for the year and hung his riding shoes up today.... don’t mind the time alone, but it’s nice to have some company.
80 more tomorrow and 40kms commute Monday and I’ll hit a little over 9656kms or 6000miles for the year, so a good way to finish.
Been fun to do, but with limited time I have to be out of the door at 8 and back by 11 every day, except yesterday when I got a 4hr window. 5yr old, parents, family stuff etc. Has meant whilst this is a nice ‘badge’ to collect I’ll likely not bother again. Although to be fair once I’ve done something I’m not a big one for doing it again to just prove the point.
In the 15hrs so far this week I’ve only ridden with one mate also doing the 500 for 1.5hrs in total. My other riding partner has just done 40k loops to get to 9000kms for the year and hung his riding shoes up today.... don’t mind the time alone, but it’s nice to have some company.
80 more tomorrow and 40kms commute Monday and I’ll hit a little over 9656kms or 6000miles for the year, so a good way to finish.
I've got 120KM to go. Today was a struggle. My left knee is painful when I'm out of the saddle and the headwinds didn't help matters. Going to spend the day/night with Friends in the Peak District tomorrow so I'm going to ride there which is around 65KM but there is a punchy finish up the brickworks to contend with. The plan is to ride home the following morning which will be interesting as I'll have consumed quite a lot of beer the day before. Hopefully the knee holds out.
I'm finally down to my last 40miles now. Will be getting that done tomorrow and having monday off!
In the peak of the off season it really seems to take it's toll. saddle sores, knee issues, fatigue have all been bad.
Well done to those who have finished and good luck to those on the home straight!
In the peak of the off season it really seems to take it's toll. saddle sores, knee issues, fatigue have all been bad.
Well done to those who have finished and good luck to those on the home straight!
Completed this earlier today, could have done without having to be in the office for a couple of days. With a hour planned on the trainer tomorrow to stretch the legs out, I will also turn over 4,000 miles for the year. 33% more than last year, happy with my progress, for a big heavy old knacker.
Managed to finish it off this morning and even added on an additional 15km for good luck.
It definitely felt a lot easier this year than last. Partly that was my fitness but I think the biggest factor was the weather. It couldn’t really have been any better.
I was particularly surprised to see that my average speed over the whole distance was 28.7kph. I’d have struggled to maintain that speed on a single ride 18 months ago.
Well done to all those who’ve now completed it and good luck to those still going. Not long to go now!
It definitely felt a lot easier this year than last. Partly that was my fitness but I think the biggest factor was the weather. It couldn’t really have been any better.
I was particularly surprised to see that my average speed over the whole distance was 28.7kph. I’d have struggled to maintain that speed on a single ride 18 months ago.
Well done to all those who’ve now completed it and good luck to those still going. Not long to go now!
lauda said:
Cracking effort yellowjack, especially considering he year you’ve had...
Thank you! It's been tough, but I'm so glad to be back on my road bike now. I can even unclip (relatively) safely too!The challenge was finished off this morning, bringing my total to 505 km with a 'StravaArt' bit of nonsense on my MTB. The road bike is jiffed again after having a new front gear cable fitted just a couple of days before the #Festive500 started. I think the clamp bolt has loosened off and the cable has been getting pulled through instead of activating the derailleur. A couple of times I managed to get the big ring back by winding out a barrel adjuster, but eventually there was no more adjustment in it so it was 30 miles home in the lower 11 of my 22 gears.
Also suffered one puncture, on the same ride as the cable failure. Happened just at the end of the Thames Path in Kingston-Upon-Thames, so I had a street lamp to work with. Only one tyre lever didn't help. I had the "wrong" saddle bag on the bike, and it contained nothing of any use when called upon.
Two rides, on consecutive days, over 100 miles, although one of them was split into two smaller rides after my Edge 500 decided that a fully charged battery would only last 4 to 5 hours. 107 miles and 104 miles my two big rides. I even made my first ever visit to Richmond Park during the 104 miler.
There will be no riding now until New Year's Day at least. For me, the Festive 500 is over. This morning was enough of a motivational struggle even though I only needed another 14 km to finish it off.
Anyway, here's the StravaArt silliness I got involved with this morning...
https://www.strava.com/activities/2044730987
...which I got a bit "creatively carried away with" to make this...
Happy New Year, everyone, and the best of luck to all who are still riding to complete this crazy challenge. It's addictive is all I can say, really. That's number four for me now, and even the lingering effects of surgery for a broken leg couldn't keep me away from it. I must be truly insane!
Well I finally got my woven patch...
...in this (last?) years design.
Anyone else got theirs?
This year it looks like Rapha cut costs as much as possible, as there was no fancy "wallet" containing the patch this time, instead there was a much simpler envelope. Still no idea what to do with this one, nor any of the previous patches. They just sit in a plastic storage box with my out-of-use clothing and a pile of old race number boards.
...in this (last?) years design.
Anyone else got theirs?
This year it looks like Rapha cut costs as much as possible, as there was no fancy "wallet" containing the patch this time, instead there was a much simpler envelope. Still no idea what to do with this one, nor any of the previous patches. They just sit in a plastic storage box with my out-of-use clothing and a pile of old race number boards.
Rapha have confirmed that it’s back on again for 2019. Who’s in?
https://www.cyclist.co.uk/news/3737/rapha-festive-...
The weather was so good last year that it can only really be worse this year. Still, provided it isn’t icy, I’ll be having another crack in a vain attempt to undo some of the damage from my excessive eating and drinking.
https://www.cyclist.co.uk/news/3737/rapha-festive-...
The weather was so good last year that it can only really be worse this year. Still, provided it isn’t icy, I’ll be having another crack in a vain attempt to undo some of the damage from my excessive eating and drinking.
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