@grallochgravel weekend - always one of my favourite weekends of the year! Such a stunning part of the world.
Wanted to do the ultra for some exploring, and knowing I haven’t done the training needed to be competitive in the UCI race.
It was always going to be a tall ask after 2 weeks minimal training post neck tear, followed by 3.5 weeks being wiped out by some virus - but I wanted to give it a go!
5 hours of feeling relatively ok, followed by legs severely falling off. Made the call to scratch at 150km given the incoming weather and not wanting to get cold and wet and ill again. Love the ultra community - getting to hear about some of @troglodyt_e adventures, and lots of miles with @grahambaxtertri
On the plus side got to enjoy the bbq at our favourite place to stay @castlecreavie , and hang out with friends.
Love to see Gralloch growing every year, and always get such a warm welcome from the local community
#gravel #scotland #exploring
Truefuels fuelling system
Making it nice and simple with 3 key products to get you through training and racing
Use the link in my bio to check out the range. And code RUT10 for 10% off
Drop me a dm if any questions
#truefuels
No Traka 360 for me this year 😢
The hits keep coming - having managed to get back on the bike post the random neck muscle tear been absolutely wiped out by the lurgy the last few days, so in no way race ready against such a stellar field
Super disappointed and frustrated - would just like to be able to ride my bike please!!
Unfinished business for next year. . .
#gravel #traka
One of my absolute favourite rides around Yorkshire - one of the best descents you can do!
You can see how much I was having to work to get up the last steep bit (could do with a few more gears!) but well worth it for the descent and the views.
#cycling #yorkshire #springishere
Update:
Consensus on the neck swelling seems to be haematoma cause by a torn neck muscle.
No one seems to have any real ideas of how I managed to tear a neck muscle just cycling along, but I seem to be the Queen of mystery, unexplained injuries
Rationally- obviously relieved nothing sinister, and in the grand scheme of life very minor
On a human level though just f***ing frustrated and fed up of one thing after another
Dales Divide 2026 - scratched
What I thought would be c40 hours of riding turned into 6 hours of riding and 11 hours in A and E 🙈
What an event this is! Rolling out with c200 (?) people at 8.30 on Good Friday from a small town in the lakes, heading out in the drizzle and wind.
Had a great time chatting to various people the first few hours, battling muddy fields, boggy moorland and slippy rocks. Some stunning parts around Ribbleshead viaduct.
I was feeling pretty good and leapfrogging one of the other girls, Justyna a fair bit - she would get past me on the more MTB sections and I would get back past on the more gravel bike friendly sections (would say mainly fine on a gravel bike with suspension if you have skills!)
Around 50km I suddenly felt a weird pinch around my left collarbone as I was riding, which initially was quite uncomfortable and then became quite painful. It made the gates pretty tricky with one arm I couldn’t move that well! I let riding to see if it would ease off, and stopped at Chris’s house to try and loosen it off. I kept going to see if it would get any better but it could progressively worse to the point of pins and needles all down my arm.
I knew I wouldn’t make it through another few hours let alone the whole ride! So managed to get rescued by my dad.
When I went to shower I realised I had massive swelling around the base of my neck, so figured I should probably get it checked out. Queue too many hours spent in an and e and some inconclusive tests of what caused the swelling - however have ruled out anything sinister.
Next few days need to try and figure out what caused it and get the swelling to go down before deciding what is next.
Will definitely have to come back for Dales Divide - although I might go for summer and choose a good weather window!
#dalesdivide #bikepacking
Adventure time!!
Super excited to be taking on @dalesdivide tomorrow
Have never done anything overnight before, so intrigued to see how I enjoy that.
Have all the best equipment to try and make it as fun as possible (despite various challenges of a tiny bike!!)
@rideparcours FKT wheels - ready for the rough, tough and smooth
@restrap various bags - have gone for race bar bag, race saddle bag and the race top tube bag, and the hydration vest
@coros_uk Dura - no need to charge with the long battery life
@truefuels - selection of gel and electrolytes - will be doing majority of the ride off food given the length but enjoy having the flexibility of gels especially for some of the rougher terrain
Any last minute tips for doing an ultra bike event please let me know!
Link to dotwatch in my stories
#bikepacking #adventure #dalesdivide #gravel
Scotland exploring Day 4
More amazing gravel, stunning views and a real taste of everything the Novar Estate has to offer
Excited to see their mtb plans come together!
#gravel #exploring #gravelriding
