Just along the harbour from our hotel, Doubletree Hilton.
Got to tell Kath she’s charging us too much!!!
Try to get a perspective of how steep the Steep Hill is!
Sunny start to our sportive ride, really good day out on the Saturday – except the GPS stopped working on my Garmin – we piled on the carb’s the night before sharing a HUGE pasta dish in Prezzo’s on the harbour – then a short stagger back to hotel and cocktails in the noisy ‘Electric Bar’ at the top floor. Later (about 01.15) I complain to the hotel night porter about the noise from the a/c unit – incessant droning noise, I even walk over to the Holiday Inn to see if they’ve got spare rooms (they hadn’t) because the other rooms they offered me were just the same!
Me and Ev stuck together for the ride, we kept with the same group of about 12 for the first 20 miles – good (fast) pace
the first 20 miles was flattish, then the middle sections got hilly
Got chatting to the bearded guy, he was local and doing the 100 mile – his first!
Just past the steepest bit of Michaelgate, you had a steep downhill approach to it, then crunch through the gears to immediately start the famous cobbled ascent
Flattens out a bit here, not for long
Chips, beer, chips, beer, chips, beer
Don’t stop now, not with all these spectators!
Round the corner, lots of people cheering and shouting encouraging things like ‘Dig deep’!!!
Just caught site of the last kick up, the two Denise’s are there
They shout something that must have been funny
or it is relief that I know the ride and the climb is at an end in a few seconds!
Made it!
At the finish, both felt really good after a successful ride and of course getting up that last hill without stops!!! Later that night we ate in Chimichanga’s – a bit disappointing but then later we realised it was their last night being open – they put a ‘closed forever’ sign up in the door while we still eating in there!!!! Denise also complained about the a/c and managed to get the manager to change us to a room in the new wing – without any noise – an upgrade to King Room was much appreciated 🙂
Sunday morning and after a really much better night sleep we take a walk back into old Lincoln to watch the ladies race. It tickles me that this guy has two shops in a prime area selling aircraft memorabilia!
We stop at the top of Michaelgate to watch them finish their first lap.
I too a video of the complete start and end of the ladies race and cars and bikes etc..
We move up to the finish line to catch the second lap
The two Denise’s waiting at the finish – a bit cooler today
Here’s the leaders
and more …
Later on Sunday evening we made it back home and then on to the Fox & Goose for Sam’s 50th (surprise) birthday evening meal
