[swancvs]

Posted on Mapmyride, hopefully you can all view this, if you can’t then I’ll try plan b!

http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/43436302/?open_ive_done=1

[swancvs]

Thank you for a lovely ride tonight! I’d hoped to meet you in Narberth but it wasn’t to be, work issues. However, thanks to your most excellent maps I was able to pick a good spot to park and ride out to meet you so alls well that ends well.

I look forward to catching up with you guys again soon.

[swancvs]

wife’s birthday, I daren’t, unless she who must be obeyed decides to have a go.

[swancvs]

It was indeed a very hot day in the saddle, a cracking ride, with some cheeky hills and some downright horrors. The climb to Horeb was unexpected and very unwelcome! (Should learn to climb better, no excuses, need to suck it up more)

Times are up on the website, some very questionable speeds currently quoted, I was with the lead group for the first 26 miles and we had averaged 21mph ish at that point, so there is no way they managed 28 mph by the end!

Methinks some peeps decided that 104 was too far and bailed out. I arrived in the car park around 0630 and was able to pick up my tag and number so no shame in arriving early. The website said that the gates would open at 0600 so fair’s fair.

Hope you all had a good time.

Dai

Merlin 104m – 6hr 08m 50 secs 16.7mph avg.

[swancvs]

I’ve done my best at plotting the Merlin route for those with Garmin type devices. I hate not knowing where I’m going and how far I have to go.

Last year I rode as a domestique for my work colleagues however we came a junction, un-signposted and if we’d gone the wrong way would have involved the dreaded ‘where are we going now?’ rites.

So for those who have a device or want a better idea of the route than that afforded by the felt on the map. Here you go!

http://soc.li/gAg2TIJ

[swancvs]

Good man Valleyman,

I wish you the very best, I’ll be on there somewhere, looking forward to it. Did the 50 odd miler last year, in very poor weather not TOP poor but bad. Some sunny weather would be nice though, looking forward to seeing if the 104 is as bad as my colleagues have threatened.

We’ll see.

[swancvs]

Sorry can’t come to play, bike being rebuilt after Sunday’s white water rafting experience, however once rebuilt methinks it’s time I joined up, if I may!

[swancvs]

YAY!

Today I had a mail from activity wales telling me that they have amended the record to reflect my actual time. I feel so much better. No more explaining the DNF to my friends.

[swancvs]

Okie doke,

That was a wild white water ride but I have one question…

David Swan M42 08:52:55

1 – Goodwick 2 – Castlemartin Finish

02:51:58 04:33:18 01:27:39

Where was the link between Sunday’s log flume experience and a cycle sportive?

Egads that was a tough one, what a season it has been, The Angel was anything but! The Wales Sportive was like a ride in an oven, followed by a final 9 hours in a dishwasher!!!

I would like to extend a warm congratulations to my fellow idiots who can’t work out when you really should stay at home. Well done chaps, it was an experience!

Looking forward to catching up with you guys one day.

[swancvs]

might swap my Cycle Sunglasses for swimming goggles! Hard to believe looking out of the window now that in 12 hours it will be so horrid!

[swancvs]

no it’s going to be horrible but hey! Let’s go for it anyway!

Doubt I’ll put in a record time but I’m sure going to beat last year’s time!

Enjoy all, see you on Sunday!

[swancvs]

Lovely description of your ride.

I had a blinder of a ride, managed to hook up with a group way above my ability and somehow rode the first 3 hours at 20mph average! (don’t know where that came from) anyway made a rookie mistake at the ridgeway, I stopped to reload my drink bottles even though I had enough and as a consequence lost the group I was with. Worse, with the red mist down I tried to rejoin as I had at one point before ( I also noticed their hill climbing wasn’t so hot)

Yeah that went well, I chased a tail end charlie who’d dropped off the back and never caught him. Ended up, blown, empty and dropping pace. Decided to sit up for a bit on that hellish second time from Carew to Crosshands and hope I could recover. Managed to latch on to a guy in the end then another and we reformed a chase group. I left them on wisemans hill and kept on riding.

All in all I came in at a creditable 6 hrs 36 mins.

However, I feel awful now as I have been classed as DNF!

http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/36556758

I followed my group through tenby but did not stop at the feed station and now I’m wondering if we were supposed to have gone under the railway bridge and round Tenby like last year. However, the map was different to last year and I followed all marshall instructions. Just gutted now, thanks to a missed turn I feel as if I have been branded a cheat.

The worst thing is it was probably my best performance to date. Did the whole ride sans the little ring around Tenby at an average of 16.4 mph! But it is all for nothing according to the official timing.

I know in my heart I played with a straight bat but it still has left me with a sour feeling, so…

Tour of Pembs here we go!

The TOP was always my target event, some silly colleagues wanted to go for a gold standard 16.5 mph, I think I’ll have a go and see how things go.

I shall report accordingly!

[swancvs]

Okay folks I called in today to clarify the route and for those doing the extra leg I’d the full 112 miles after riding the course shown in the link above we ride out to lamphey hang a right and head up the ridgeway. Then route is as per the plan, my confusion was where was the turn point.

On a separate note, one day I will manage to get some quiet nights and good sleep prior to a Sportive. But not this time!

Enjoy all!

[swancvs]

no brainer, take the new toy for a spin!

Got to be done.

[swancvs]

I’m also signed up for the longer ride, would like to hope I can manage 15 mph but don’t know. Has anyone worked out the actual route?

I appreciate from the post above that we start from the Salterns and do the long loop, what I’m not clear about is how we get from tenby onto the second loop and where precisely to plot my route into my garmin.

I like to have it count down the miles as I ride!

Currently I think we are doing the full loop then riding to lamphey, into Pembroke, round the one way, straight out again the way we came in back to Lamphey then up the ridgeway and onto Narberth etc picking up the long route.

Anyone know? Help?

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