24/1- Audax Hills And Mills Does Not End Well For Lee

Despite a chilly forecast of just above freezing temperatures and cold winds we had a decent turnout again for the annual 'Hills And Mills' audax, There were 6 HSLCC riders plus two of Derek's tri athlete pals This is a tough 63 mile audax that winds its way through Ashdown forest and takes in the legendary  Kidds hill (the wall).

I was riding my trusty Cannondale CAAD 8 but unfortunately the rim on  my rear mavic open pro had got dangerously thin, so was riding the original and much heavier rear wheel the bike came with. I could feel the difference straight away, the ride definitely felt more sluggish, I was worried that I was going to suffer even more than last year!

For the first five miles while our muscles warmed up , we all rode together. Despite the low air temperature, the lovely sunshine lifted our spirits, maybe this wouldn't be so hard after all?  Gradually we pulled away from Derek's triathlete group and settled into a steady rhythm with myself and John S happy to stay in the others slip stream.

Part of the requirement of audax rides is that to prove you have done the complete route you have to answer certain questions along the way. One of these questions was, 'what material is the door made of'  (not surprisingly it turned out to be wood)?. While the others were pondering this important question I slipped away from them assuming they would soon catch me up. Before long Malc and Tom has set off after me in pursuit and being more daring on a steep decent soon managed to get past me . I managed to stay with them for a few miles as the terrain became increasingly lumpy , but it wasn't long before I was on my own . I didn't mind as I knew JV, Lee and Jon couldn't be far behind. Sure enough JV's group soon reeled me back in but we were not to see Malc or Tom again until the ride was over.

At roughly the half way point we entered the western slope of Kidds hill (the wall). Just like last year we rode half way up its western flank only to be led down a cut through to the bottom of the eastern and steeper side where we had to begin all the climbing again. Having stepped up my training the previous two weeks and having rested my legs all week, I was feeling good and the climb seemed easier to me than ever before although Strava informed me it was only my second best time.

Steve was Well prepared For Kidd's Hill this Time!

From the top of Kidd's hill its mainly downhill riding for the next ten miles and feeling good and being a good stone heavier than any of the others, gravity was on my side and just riding at my own pace I kept dropping the guys, waiting for them to catch me up before riding off again.Despite my replacement wheel being heavy it was giving me a lovely comfortable ride and was bearing up to the potholes admirably , so I made a mental note to stop bidding for any more second-hand wheel bargains on Ebay!

This came to an end when for some reason my gps directed me down a  steep hill on the left while the others kept to the main road and shouted out to me that I was going the wrong way. By the time I got back to the main road they were no where in sight, but I assumed they must have taken the next turn on the left. This lead down a narrow twisty road. As I came round one of the blind bends a shocking sight awaited me . There was lee stood upright holding his arm while Jon was in a deep ditch with JV trying to pull him out. In front of all this was a gleaming red Rolls Royce with a perplexed very elderly gentleman who seemed in shock.

This is what happened!!

Jon And JV felt Lucky To Emerge Unscathed.......

 The guys had come round the blind bend to be confronted by the Rolls Royce in the middle of the road (unavoidable as the road was only wide enough for one vehicle). To avoid hitting the car, lee had no choice but to slam on the anchors. He did manage to avoid striking the car but the subsequent skid caused him to come off and hit the road hard on one side. Meanwhile JV with the benefit of disc brakes (who was behind lee) had managed to get around the Rolls completely unscathed. Jon however was on a direct collision course with Lee and had no choice but to veer right onto a muddy verge. As soon as his front wheel hit the deep mud the whole bike tipped forward and dumped him unceremoniously into a two foot deep ditch with his  feet still attached to the bike.
Miraculously Jon had escaped with nothing more than a few bruises and a damaged mud guard. Lee however was not so lucky and the way he was holding his arm it looked like his wrist had broken.

...but Lee was Not So Fortunate!

A local couple who lived in the house that the rolls owner had been visiting (Conservative party fund raiser event) kindly took us into his home and phoned an ambulance for Lee. While we waited for the ambulance they kept us fed and watered with pate and salmon wafers and cups of tea. The ambulance man confirmed Lee had broken his wrist and that they were taking him to the nearest hospital for an xray.

After wishing lee all the best, thanking the locals for their kindness and arranging to pick up lee's bike later, we set off again. Jon was a bit sore but not too bad, although by now it had got considerably colder and none of us were in the mood for any more chances around the twisty country lanes. The last 15 miles seemed to take as long as the first 45 and it was a relief to reach the end with both my front light and gps flashing warnings about imminent battery death.

Sadly , we heard from Lee the bad news that his wrist was badly broken and would require plates to be fitted in an operation mid week. We all wish Lee a speedy recovery and hope this hasn't put him off the 'joys' of audaxing.

Steve C

Tough Profile!