10/1 Pre BBR Special - 40 Miles Of Headwind!

During the week Pete Buss had suggested we move the pre BBR Lewes special to Sunday rather than Saturday due to a forecast of strong winds. Unfortunately this was not possible for me so we had to go ahead despite the warnings.

Setting off from the bridge cafe into a fierce Westerly wind we were only averaging about nine miles an hour.We had allowed  half an hour to meet up with Pete and Tom at Normans bay but with the wind we ended up taking fifty minutes. Derek was finding it particularly hard  but was determined to carry on. At this rate of progress I calculated it would take about four hours to get to Lewes and I was seriously worried we would never make it!

Fortunately once we got past Pevensey we had a little more shelter from the wind and our pace picked up to an awe inspiring 14 mph, lol

This route (provided by Nigel) was excellent, criss crossing very quiet well maintained country roads and we all enjoyed the stretch to Laughton.

The B road from laughton to Ringmer would normally have been an enjoyable stretch but we were now heading fully into the south westerly wind and it was becoming increasingly wet. We tried to work as a peloton but Derek couldn't hang on and it soon became each man for himself.

After what seemed an age we finally arrived at lewes, cold , wet and wind beaten. This was our lowest ebb, even the thought that we would soon have the wind behind us did little to cheer us. What we needed was hot coffee and food.

Tescos Was Our only Option!

All the obvious eateries were too busy to sit down so we had to settle for a costa coffe in the local Tesco. The food there was at typical rip off prices so myself and Tom purchased some half price sandwiches (68p) from the main store and sneaked them under the table.

We All Had A 'Swell' Time!

While we were resting the weather changed dramatically. The rain stopped and the sun came out. unfortunately the wind dropped to about half its previous strength. We were going to be denied the mega tail wind we had been promised.

The section of road down to Newhaven was to be the last section into the wind, from there we were heading east along the coast. Riding through Seaford we  stopped for a quick break and enjoyed the sight of the spectacular swell crashing into the prom . Derek was now completely knackered and said he would press on at his own pace, leaving myself Tom, Pete  and Diego to  cycle through Seaford and down to the seven sisters country park. We now had a choice, we could either carry on home via Beachy Head (quite easy with the tail wind) or stick to the route which would head inland where the wind assistance would be less. Tom was already going to be late home so he headed for Beachy leaving the rest us on the official route.

Diego Crosses The Flood!

All day we had noticed just how swollen the rivers were and how many fields were flooded. The river cuckmere had burst its banks and there was some quite deep flooding on the road. It was amusing watching the cars ploughing through the water which was almost high enough to enter their exhausts pipes. For us it was no problem but with massive amounts of rain forecast in the next 48 hours, this would not be a road I would want to ride on next weekend .

Myself and Peter were now getting increasingly tired but Diego seemed as fresh as a daisy . Pete was grateful to finish at Pevenesey but Diego and I still had another ten miles to go. Fortunately with the tailey I was able to spin my tired legs and arrived home with a satisfying 78 miles on the garmin

This was a fun ride despite the weather and is one I will look forward to doing again next year! thanks to Pete for organising and to Nigel for mapping out the route.