It was 3 weeks ago that I heard that I had won a competition to join the 9Bar Team with sponsored athlete Ed Clancy to ride in the hills around Llangollen. This was a lottery type proze and my name, along with a few others, had been drawn for this excursion. The prize also included a post-ride meal at the White Waters Hotel with Q&A from Ed. A great opportunity for sure; however, I was mindful that this hilly ride would be just 6 days after the Outlaw Ironman Triathlon. Whilst I was on a high after the Outlaw race, my legs were shot. A test ride on the Friday before the evnt confirmed that I would struggle big time. Well, I would just have to suck it up as i could not forego the opportunity of riding with an Olympic Champ. Additionally, I have been trying to get on the 9Bar race team. So this would be a good chance to meet the team.
I had the opportunity to bring a buddy also; so I invited my Ironman guru buddy Mat Stephenson.
The morning started with terrible weather. The rain lashed down, as the forecast predicted. I had prepared for a wet ride and was my normal nervous self on the shimmering roads. Some of the lanes were narrow and muddy also; this added to my nervousness. I started off steady as I had expected my legs to object to pedalling again! But miraculously, I felt ok. Once I realised that the legs were working I opened up a bit on the hills and really enjoyed the riding. The rain stopped soon after and the sun even shone at times.
Half way through the ride we were descending a wide sweeping road and one of the riders over-cooked a bend, crashing badly to miss an oncoming car. It was an ambulance job and subsequently I discovered that she suffered a pneumothrax and broken shoulder - ouch!
But the ride went on and we met up at the hotel for a really nice meal. 9Bar really did put on a great event at their expense. This company is passionate about their product and sport/health in general. So thank you for a great day out.
I had the opportunity to bring a buddy also; so I invited my Ironman guru buddy Mat Stephenson.
The morning started with terrible weather. The rain lashed down, as the forecast predicted. I had prepared for a wet ride and was my normal nervous self on the shimmering roads. Some of the lanes were narrow and muddy also; this added to my nervousness. I started off steady as I had expected my legs to object to pedalling again! But miraculously, I felt ok. Once I realised that the legs were working I opened up a bit on the hills and really enjoyed the riding. The rain stopped soon after and the sun even shone at times.
Half way through the ride we were descending a wide sweeping road and one of the riders over-cooked a bend, crashing badly to miss an oncoming car. It was an ambulance job and subsequently I discovered that she suffered a pneumothrax and broken shoulder - ouch!
But the ride went on and we met up at the hotel for a really nice meal. 9Bar really did put on a great event at their expense. This company is passionate about their product and sport/health in general. So thank you for a great day out.
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