Wicklow 200 - report

Rain, rain, rain, cold, wind, cold, wind, more rain...all day long... Needless to say: it was the toughest and longest day on the bike for a long time. This year's Wicklow 200 was absolutelly savage!

After all the preparation on the night before all the gear was ready so as I. The alarm went off at 4am, quick breakfast and my friend Jani and myself were ready to conquer the mountains. After a short drive we got to Greystones where the event start / finish area was. We met two more Hungarian friends there at the carpark. 

After a short prep and doublecheck on the bikes and all the food and gear we were ready. Dani even had a proper itiner fitted on the bike's top tube! Excellent work man! :)

The Hungarian squad for the day: Joci, Jani, Dani and myself (right to left)

We checked in and left Greystones at 6:43 am. Even before we left the town the rain started to fall and from that point it has virtually not stopped for the rest of the ride. As we agreed before we started together but got separated after a little while to be able to settle into our own comfort zone for the day. Dani and myself stayed together and started to push the pedals hard over tha Sally Gap. The peak was cold and very windy so we wanted to get over it as quick as possible. The descend was very wet and slippery but we still could manage to get as fast as 60,5 km/hour in the rain so we got to the Blessington Lakes quiet quickly. After the up and down bit in the savage headwind we pulled along pretty fast and got to the first checkpoint in Donard after 3 hours and 15 minutes. We got a quick bite and a hot tea indeed, refilled the bottles and we were on our way again.

After a little more flat enough section we have reached the bottom of the Slieve Mann, the second main climb of the day. This was the point where Dani left me behind and went ahead on the tough climb. The rain was heavy and the temperature was probably not higher than 3-4 °C up on the top. The fog was so thick, I could not see further than 40-50 meters.

But on the climb I was at least warm...one of the hardest bit was still ahead of me: the downhill from the Slieve Mann nearly killed me. I actually never felt that cold on the bike before...  At this stage everything was wet on me: hands, feet, legs, everything. My fingers got so numb I had difficulty to use the brakes and gears. It was a tough going indeed. 

The next on the list was the Shay Elliott climb which was difficult after all the freezing conditions for many hours already. I got up to the top quick enough and let the descent go fast as well just to get to the second checkpoint in Rathdrum as quick as possible. At this stage I was on the bike for 6 hours already. Quick hot tea again and couple of minutes rest in the heated room but after all this I had to keep going. 

The low point of the day was this time for me. I was extremely cold, tired and for some reason I started to feel some strange pain in my right leg. It wasn't the usual pain like I felt in my shoulders, wrists and fingers, it was something else. Every pedal turn gave me sharp pain... "Ah, well! This is all I need after all this..." I thought. 

After Avoca I really started to struggle and I admit it: I was waiting for the end like I never did before. But I got through the low point and I was cycling along pretty well as I got closer and closer to the finish. When I got back to Greystones and seen the building where we left from I felt fantastic!

It is done! :) I did the Wicklow 200 for the 3rd time! After all the suffering on the bike the achievement was huge! Totally worth it!

The reward

I got the certificate and the medal and got back to the car to get changed and warmed up. This certenly wasn't easy thing to do because my hands were completelly useless at this stage and my fingers were so numb I couldn't even use them. I was very tired and cold.

The wrecked and soaked hand...

But after I got changed and got into the warm car the world got better again! :) Got some drink and food in and shared the epic experience with my friend Jani on the way back home.

My Wicklow 200 in numbers:

Elevation graph

Clear riding time: 8 hours and 18 minutes  

Total elevation gain: 2733 m

Calories burned: 5341 calories

Max. speed: 60,5 km/hour

Avarage speed: 23,5 km/hour

Food and drink taken: PowerGel x 4 , PowerBar Performance bar x 2 ,PowerBar RideShots x 1, NutriGrain bar x 2 , Kellog's Rice Crispies bar x 1 , High5 Extreme drink x 1 litre , water x 0,2 litre , hot tea x 2 cups

So, another Wicklow 200 is done, looking forward to do the next one! :) The experience was outstanding and it feels great to know it's done. Escpecially in conditions like we've all seen yesterday. My time was not as good as I was hoping for but in fairness I can't complian. It was a hell of a long day on the bike. 

Congratulations for everyone who has done it! My friends: Jani and Joci, Adrian, Dave and Siobhan from ThinkBike.ie CC. Well done! :)

Special congrats to Dani who has set up his own personal record on the bike yesterday: cycled to Greystones, did the Wicklow 200 with a bit more than 7 and a half hours time and than cycled back home to Dublin. Excellent performance! 

I have suffered a lot yesterday but the moment when I finished can't be compared with anything! Great day! :)