Training Rides

 Training Rides - Yorkshire, Lancashire and Surrey Hills

Making the training rides representative of what we would experience during LEJOG wasn’t as hard as it could have been if we’d lived elsewhere in the country, e.g., a flat part.  We live in the hills of Lancashire, surrounded by hills similar in altitude gain and length shown on the Sustrans LEJOG route maps.  The Yorkshire Dales, an area well-known for its ascents, is within pedalling distance for us, and we have family living a short distance from the Surrey Hills.  Our training runs, either from our front door (we also live at the top of a hill) or a short drive away, consisted of representative days out in the run up to the trip, with a focus of increasing our hill climbing speed, and pedalling distance capabilities.

Bearing in mind that Day 1 in Cornwall, from Land’s End to Truro, was 47 miles with plenty of hills.  Day 1 was followed by 3 more hilly days of similar distance.  Therefore, we had to be able to pedal 4 hilly days of 45+ miles in a row.  Our target was to finish those days knowing we’d had a good ride out, but not to be absolutely wrecked at the end of them.  

Here are four typical training days;

Thursday, July 20, 34.79 miles - We parked the car just outside of Clitheroe.  If we go from our house, we end up riding through 7 miles of a fairly built up area (or 14 miles if you count both ways) and oftentimes I prefer to spend our cycling miles pedalling through the countryside so Steve humours me and loads the bike on the car.  This trip was to climb Waddington Fell.

Climbfinder.com rates the climb over Waddie Fell at 810 feet (247m) with a 6.2% average gradient and the steepest 300 feet (100m) at 13.2%.

Friday, July 28, 31.95 miles in the Surrey Hills, including Leith Hill (the hard way)

Sunday, August 6, a 42.5 mile loop - leaving our home just outside of Blackburn on a chilly morning wearing ‘wind sheeters’, three jerseys, shorts and leggings for me, jersey / tshirt and shorts for Steve.  Drop down off our hill to the first climb over Revidge, through Blackburn and a climb up to Salesbury past the Bonny Inn and the first glimpses of the views of the Ribble Valley.  A long (and cool) descent into Ribchester, followed by the slow climb out of Ribchester to Longridge - we were passed by a (slow) jogger on the way up this hill as we were doing about 3mph at that point!

After a restorative cup of tea in Ribchester, we headed over to Broughton averaging between 16-17mph on a nice fast road.  Broughton out to Catforth was undulating, but it’s a fairly flat area.  The nice cafe out there, Roots, is a good place to split a breakfast and plan the route back.  

Retracing our steps, we picked up the route for the Preston Guild Wheel which we followed through the docks and Avenham Park.  Flat with a bit of people dodging, but well laid out.  Not fast, but easy.  We then headed for Samlesbury and Mellor Brook with a climb up the back lanes (not going anywhere near the A59!).  Another tea stop and then we were ready for the climb back along the ring road, into Blackburn and up the final hill to our house.