Training

My name is Adrian. I am the one responsible for this website. What follows is a general discussion on my training regime leading up to the actual ride.

The weather last winter was not conducive to cycling. Especially for a fair weather cyclist like me. This being so, it was the end of March before I started cycle training in earnest. Although I had been working out in the gym.

I suppose I'm lucky, to a certain extent, in that I have some good countryside to train in. I started by doing around 20+ miles, although these distances were ridden on an off-road bike. The maximum distance I achieved in training was 70 miles - less than I will have to do when it comes to riding for real.

Just outside Sandwich, situated off the National Cycle Route 1, are the remains of the Roman fort at Richborough Castle. Historic Sandwich is a very nice place to cycle through. I usually make a point of stopping for a drink and a banana in the park next to the quay. Lots of people use the park for walking, running, etc.

I know, it seems strange for a landlocked town to have a quay, but being a Cinque Port, it was at one time on the coast. It now stands on the River Stour. Sandwich lies on the National Cycle Route 1 from Dover, carrying on to Canterbury, Whitstable and then on to London. This part of my training area is fairly flat, so not altogether useful for the actual ride, but I convince myself that every little helps.

Part of the route from Sandwich to Dover is on special cycle paths (Regional Cycle Route 15). These paths are not particularly wide, so care is needed when another cyclist approaches in the opposite direction. Look out for pedestrians also. The other roads are generally fairly quiet. As you approach Dover the terrain becomes more hilly, and therefore more challenging. It's important to include these hilly stretches in your training schedule.

If you don't like cycling up hills, then avoid Dover, because the only way out is up, and steep. The cycle route through Dover actually takes you through the main pedestrianised shopping area. There are two routes from Dover to Canterbury - Regional Route 16 and Regional Cycle Route 17 which heads out west.

The Sustrans web site describes both of these routes as passing through scenic countryside, which is certainly the case, but it does not mention the fact that there are some quite steep climbs to tackle. Route 17 is the most arduous, but Route 16 includes the climb out of Dover passed the Castle. As you leave Adisham on the way to Canterbury there is a Tea Room - only seems to open at week-ends - which has a lovely garden for enjoying an equally lovely cup of tea. By the time I arrive here I'm ready for some sustainance. They also sell, and I recommend it, Solley's dairy ice cream - produced locally in Deal. A surprise lies in store in a pen next to the tea room where besides a Shetland Pony and a herd of goats can be spotted an emu - can't be many of these in Kent!

Patrixbourne, which is about 4 miles from Canterbury, is where Routes 16 and 17 diverge. It is a very picturesque village.

Taking Route 17 to Dover takes you through the ford at Bridge along Pett Bottom. A left turn takes you up the first of a number of steep climbs. This climb takes you through woodland over the ridge, eventually arriving in Elham. Leaving Elham is another steep climb, which eventually levels off somewhat as you approach Hawkinge. Most of the rest of the route is straightforward culminating in a long fast descent into Dover.

Most of my training has been carried out on these various cycle routes, which are generally on quiet country roads.