Easter Sunday - The Hill from Hell

Woke up this morning and was almost tempted to leave cycling for the day since I would be riding solo anyway, and it was Easter and there were Easter Eggs....but that's not the Carbonaut way!

Decided to head for Drumnadrochit with an eye on 'that hill' between Drum and Beauly.

I left home and through Inverness Town Centre then South/West down the A82.

The A82 is not the greatest road to cycle on at the best of times as cars often travel a bit too fast for my liking but today was even more hectic as most people were out and about for Easter. I had one or two occasions where cars slipped past very close to me which made me a bit nervous - obviously hanging back and waiting until the other carriageway was clear was not a suitable option for them...!

Anyway, despite a headwind (do they just WAIT for Sunday cyclists!!??) I got to Drumnadrochit in good time. I then branched off west towards Milton..

So I decided to tackle the big hill with its 15% Gradient for 0.75 of a mile. Doesn't seem too far but it's ALL sheer climbing. I had to get off, about 600 yards into the climb and that really broke my rhythm and my spirit if I'm honest. I got off the bike a further two times before reaching the top of the climb. My bike was in it's lowest gear, I tried sitting and standing for sections but I just could not work through the climb. Once at the top though, it was a pleasant run down towards Beauly, Inchmore, Bunchrew then home...a route which is becoming very familiar to me!!

Distance covered today was around 41 miles - my average speed was 16.1 mph which I think is pretty good since the big climb held me back at 5 or 6mph for its duration. I also missed the other Carbonauts today. It's amazing what a difference it makes even having another 1 team member with you as opposed to cycling solo.

Reflecting on the run, I am really pretty disappointed about not making it all the way up the climb without getting off the bike. I had only cycled about 19miles before I tackled it so I felt I was reasonably fresh. Thankfully this small section is pretty exceptional and I shouldn't expect to face it every day - but there's still the lingering desire to complete it properly...maybe with the support of the rest of the carbonauts.....

John