Upper Tea 200km

It was a very blustery day on Sunday 8th March as I drove over to Hailsham for the start of Dave Hudsons' Upper Tea 200km ride. It was just breaking daylight as a few early riders were putting their bikes together while one or two others were having a last cuppa from Dave's new tuck wagon before setting off on the long ride circumnavigating the whole of Sussex.

A quick check to make sure that I had everything and then I was off. The first section was along the lanes through Wilmington and Litlington to the the A259 at Exceat where the long slog west along the coast began. Tucking down as low as I could get, I struggled onwards on the roller-coaster of a road through Seaford, Newhaven and Peacehaven until I decided to take to the undercliff path at Telscombe Cliffs. There was just no shelter from the strong wind and timing was important to dodge the occasional wave which would crash over the top of the sea wall!
Being an early morning in March, there were very few pedestrians about in Brighton so I made good progress along the seafront cyclepath and I was soon turning left by the boating lakes in Portslade. Apparently, there were only around 35 starters out of the 46 entries so Dave had dashed over to Portslade in time to serve more refeshments.

The three 'Spesh' guys who I saw more of later. The dog, by the way, was not on the ride - it was with its owner who was just passing!

The next leg took us from Shoreham to Storrington but even though the route went inland, the wind continued to be funnelled between the hedgerows and directly into your face. I spotted a large group of Worthing Exclesior riders assembled at Washington for one of their time-trials and shouted a welcome as I rode past - hope they enjoyed the conditions.
Leaving the A283 at Wiggonholt Common, I was now on very familiar lanes through Greatham and Coldwaltham where I caught up with three other riders. Unfortunately, they were riding stripped-down racers with no mudguards and after a couple of showers from their back wheels, I let them go - they weren't on the Audax ride anyway!
On across Coates Common, past Burton Mill pond, across the A285 and Duncton Common to Selham where the route joined the A272 briefly before heading north through Lodsworth. I decided to down an energy gel to give me a boost for the serious climbing that was about to begin. I find these gels are so concentrated that they burn the back of my throat despite washing them down with plenty of fluid - they are so sticky! Having got some of it on my hand, I couldn't get my glove back on and as the next tea stop was only a few miles away at Upperton, I rode on without it.
After noting the 'info' just after Lodsworth, I started on the long narrow winding lane through River which was covered in mud and gravel. On one of the steep climbs, a group of six deer skipped across the lane just ahead of me and I was glad it wasn't on one of the descents! I finally reached the T-junction at the end of lane and turned north up the last long climb before the tea stop and was confronted by a bevy of photographers. I recognised one as Tim Wainwright and we exchanged greetings as I rode past him. One last junction and it was a fast downhill blast to Dave's tea wagon just north of Tillington where I once again met up with the leading two riders. Minutes later, the same three young chasers on their Specialized Tarmacs arrived too.

That yellow thing on Dave's head looked like a sailors hat but in a very 'gay' looking bright yellow!

Halfway, suitably refreshed and just before midday, I left on the next leg minutes behind the two leaders and caught them as we cycled through Lurgashall. Stopping at the next 'info', confusion reigned as it was not on the brevet card so I added it under the last stamp and set off again. Thinking it might be easier in a group, I took it easy for the next mile or two but as there was no sign of the others, I decided to press on.
It was a long drag over Shopp Hill to Gospel Green but finally the route turned east and I could take advantage of a tailwind. After crossing the A283, I was overtaken by a lady driving a Renault Megane Scenic who then proceeded to drive at 25mph and being wind-assisted, I still had her in view some 5kms later! On reaching Plaistow, I pressed on through Ifold, Loxwood, Bucks Green, Cox Green and Ellens Green to the next 'info' at the West Sussex county border at Rowhook.
The morning sunshine had given way to dark clouds and the rain appeared as I cycled around Warnham to Horsham where I stopped to put on my rain jacket. Unfortunately, I stopped before the level crossing and by the time I was ready to go again, the barriers came down - must remember to stop after level crossings! As I set off, I was caught by the three Specialized chasers and we rode on to Pease Pottage Services together where I dived into the petrol station shop while they went to the main services.
The rain stopped and blue sky reappeared so I removed my rain jacket and set off again south for Handcross back into the south-westerly headwind but I was soon heading east once more on route to Balcombe. Thankfully, there were no tourists or ramblers around at the Ardingly Reservoir so I could take the descents without worrying about wandering pedestrians. From Ardingly, the route zigzagged in a south-easterly direction through a series of muddy country lanes made worse by the return of the rain again. I was only a couple of miles from the last tea stop so I wasn't stopping to put on my rain jacket and then I spotted the three 'Spesh' guys mending a puncture.
Minutes later, six of us squeezed under the gazebo along with Dave and Sabine near Fletching while rain lashed down outside. Two of the Spesh guys had race-blades but the one without had an enormous muddy stripe all up his back. We all opted to sit out the rainstorm, all that is except for the muddy one who was made to stand, until the strong wind had blown it away. About fifteen minutes later, we left the shelter and set off down to the A272 and Maresfield where the others, a bit unsure of the route, decided to follow me. Once out on the other side, the three 'Spesh' guys left me behind on the climb up to Buxted but they forgot to spot the 'info' at the railway bridge. The other guy who had caught up with us, joined me as we negotiated the twisty lanes around Blackboys but then, on the long climb up to Waldron, I was pretty much exhausted and he slowly pulled away. However, on the fast descent towards Horam, I powered back up to him with the aid of my big gears.
The two of us rode together through Horam and on the descent of Horebeech Lane, we were clocking over 20mph but then the climbs up to Hellingly brought me back to a crawl and he pulled away again only to be seen again at the finish at the Leisure Centre in Hailsham.
My computer was showing 208kms in a time of 9hrs 18mins while Richard Phipps clocked me back at 5.30pm, exactly 10hrs after setting off. I was shattered and was glad to sit down in a nice comfy easy chair - my left leg ached for a quite a few hours afterwards! By the next day, I felt great and was looking forward to the Man of Kent 200 in three weeks time.
David