Wow, what a brilliant day it was, don't even know where to start the story of my Wicklow 200. This was my 4th W200 and it was surely the best one yet! Well, first of all, we had a brilliant weather all week before the event and Sunday was the hottest day I've seen in Ireland for a very long time! Good start, isn't it?
My alarm went off at 4:40 am on Sunday morning and after a massive brekkie we were all ready to go. The ThinkBike van was fully packed the night before, so all we needed to do was to wait for our mate Dani and off we went. Even the drive to Greystones was great, the three of us were in a good mood already! :)
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| The Dudes are ready to rock: Dani AKA Lizzard, Jani & myself :) |
The plan was to stick together as long as we can and help each other out as much as we can along the way. We left the carpark at 7:15 am and started to eat up the kilometers on the N11. By the time we got the the first little climb the sun really started to give us some heat. Was such a nice morning to be on the bike!
We arrived to Laragh in no time and we went off to do the Wicklow Gap climb straight away without stopping in the village. Lizzard and me went ahead and put the hammer down a little bit just to test the legs (and each other just as always). I felt really fresh and comfy on the first big climb of the day and had a blast on the way down to Hollywood. We re-grouped at the petrol station there and after a super short break we kept going.
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| This is how we roll: Lizzard & me on the Wicklow Gap climb |
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| Still smiling after the fast descent |
It turned out I needed this little break to catch my breath 'cause before I knew it we got into a hardcore group on the N81. The three of us and three lads from Swords CC teamed up and started to work hard to speed up the day. Everyone took their share at the front. We were doing about 40-45 km/hour for a good while...that felt brilliant...after I realized this is a bit too much at this early stage of the day. So I dropped out of this fast front group 'cause I knew I was going to pay the price for this "being-a-superstar" type game later.
Once we turned off the N81 and started to head into the Wicklow Mountains again we started to gather our strenght to get ready for the second climb of the day, the Slieve Maan. The climb started at 120 km and I think needless to say what it's like to hit that road after you have 120 km in your legs. Bit of a shock to the system indeed.
This was the point where we just had to make the decision and let each other do our own thing. Lizzard took off, then me and Jani has settled into his own zone as well. I felt pretty good but soon I started to feel that havin' a cyclocross bike with a single chainring on the front was a bot of a disadvantage. Didn't feel like I have the power to keep the cadence high enough while I'm in the saddle, but getting out of the saddle wasn't something that I was happy with either. Luckily I pulled myself together quickly and finished the climb the way I wanted.
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| In action on the Slieve Maan |
Didn't stop at the top, went into the descent straight away and enjoyed the speed. Man, that donwhill is so much fun when it's dry!
The fun filled, fast rolling downhill was just enough to get recharged before I started the Shay Elliott Climb as our last big challenge along the way. I have done this climb many-many times before, but I never felt so good and fresh on it like I felt at that time. I was a bit surprised to be honest, I was expecting a lot of suffering after what I felt on the previous climb. But the suffering got cancelled, what's left was a fast paced, great climbing experience. Just the was I like it! :)
After we have completed all the big climbs there was nothing else to do, but to start heading back towards home. At this point I was on my own for a good while, so I've decided to listen to some good 'aul fashioned rock music and let the rest of the day pass by a bit faster this way. Climb...descent...flat...climb...descent...flat...and then I got that funny feel off the bike that you never really want to get. Yep, there it was: a sneaky front puncture...
After a quick repair in the sun I was back on track and on my way to the finish. I passed by places that I remembered from two years ago and also remembered who much trouble I was in at that time. And how much I didn't like it back than... But this year was different. This year was soooo much better! Stonesplitting sun, blue skies and amazing time on the bike. I was tired but still in a great mind setting as I was doing the last 10 km. I knew I'm about to have the best time I've ever done on the W200 and that really put a smile on my face!
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| Only 10 km to go! |
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| Smilingface.com |
5 km to go. 4...3...2...1...and FINISH! The 2013 Wicklow 200 was over. I was tired but for the very first time I felt like I wanted to keep going a bit more. Just didn't want it to end! I was absolutelly delighted how my day turned out, there are very few moments like this I think! :)
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| At the finish |
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| At the carpark after the long & hot day in the mountains |
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| There it is: the longest and the fastest 200 km I ever done! Happy days! |
My Wicklow 200 in numbers:
Total distance: 202 km
Clear riding time: 7 hours 42 minutes
Total elevation gain: 2584 m
Calories burned: 5610 calories
Max. speed: 61,9 km/h
Avarage speed: 26,2 km/h
Food and drink taken: High5 Gels x 5 , PowerBar HydroGel x 1 , banana x 1 , High5 Performance Bar x 3 , PowerBar IsoActive drink x 2 litres , water x 1 litre
So, another Wicklow 200 is done, looking forward to do the next one! The experience was outstanding but for different reasons compare to the one back in 2011. This year's event was super hot with real summer conditions that I'm well used to from Hungary. It was a gift!
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| The weather was a gift, the massive sunburn not so much. Still sore as hell... :) |
One of my cycling goals are donefor 2013. My time was better than what I was hoping for, so that is another massive bonus for sure. And to achieve all this on cross bike with a single chainring setup on the front was the icing on the cake! :D
Congratulations to everyone who has done it, especially my friends: Jani and Lizzard! Thanks for all the help and for the huge laughs as well! Well done lads! :)
...check the link here for thousands of great photos:
