Hello all and welcome once again,
This time, to my attempt at TCR No.10. I did not finish, very gutted. That said, I wanted to show the race from inside as a rider, so I got to cover the mass start and the first 1000 or so km. You will see how this was a losing battle from the start. Hard going, but a lot to learn and I will be back next year if they let me…
There will be a couple more videos to come from this experience, so thanks for all being out there. And if you sent messages when it came cashing down, then thanks a lot to you.
Andy
This Ride – https://www.strava.com/activities/11955647153
The Full Route – https://www.komoot.com/collection/2871443/-tcrno-10
Insta – https://www.instagram.com/andyc_ultracycling?igsh=dTg4eWFzODZybWQ0&utm_source=qr
Why Veloforte – https://youtu.be/OcOS6d9OhuY
Veloforte.com – ANDYC20
0:00 Intro
0:50 Start Parcours
2:34 Belgium
7:13 The Knee Problem
12:27 Luxembourg
20:27 Germany
32:47 DNF
34:41 The Aftermath
23 Comments
Enjoyed your video, sorry about the injury but a wise call to scratch to prevent major physical damage. As an aside I always use the practice of marking all bolts/ joint lines with a paint pen so I can check very quickly whether anything has migrated or moved. Looking forwards to your next as I always learn something.
Really enjoyed watching this sorry about you knee hope it heals quickly for you.
hey Andy sorry to see the TCR didn't go to plan, i hope you're next goals will go well.
but anyway you're video's inspire me to try to do some bikepacking next year, so i have some questions like how do you secure you're bike when you sleep outside? and how do you get home when you finish or dnf when you are that far away from home?
wish you all the best greetings from belgium
Followed your journey through this and was gutted for you when you had to DNF but surely the right decision. Knee problems seemed to be a common issue this year for many riders. Good luck for your next race.
Sorry to hear you couldn’t continue on your epic journey Andy; you made the right call in pulling out you have done yourself proud a fantastic story to tell. Good luck with the recovery we’ll be following you no your next journey.
You know your knees best Andy. Thanks again for the detail in these videos. Did you re-lube your chain during the ride? Heal quickly quickly mate👍🏽🚴🏽
Good luck with your recovery!
Sorry Andy, it's was the right choice, maybe some gym work and weights when your fit enough might help move forward to next year 😢
Well done Andy it’s such a tough decision to pull out when your heart really wants to continue but your head is telling you it’s not a good idea. I think you made the right call and you will be back with stronger knees 💪
You did all the best training for this event. Its not like you weren't fit or conditioned for it. But we don't have cobbles over here and my friend who rode the Tour of Flanders sportive told me it was unbelievably hard on every bit of the body! There was no way you could give your knee the time it needed, and you did the right thing scratching.
Could you have got a flight from Munich back to UK? I don't like these one way bikepacking trips as the logistics become even more time consuming, expensive, and stressful (though in my case ,thanks to Arnold Clark car hire which seems to be everywhere in Scotland) I had a nice trip back to Inverness. Hope you put your travel video up, will be fun (for us) to watch🤣
Sorry to hear of your scratch Andy and better luck next time. Sounds like you made the right decision bud. Active recovery during a ride when time isn't on your side is a very big ask. Nonetheless I hope you enjoyed the journey! If you want to do a collab on YouTube like a zoom call or anything do reach out. All the best.
Dear Andy don't feel bad – I had to scratch last year at NC4k in Belgium after 1000km on the 3rd day because of Achilles pain – it was so hard accept this…. to scratch is not an easy decision but an adult. It was a pleasure to watch you having breakfast in Germany – the bakeries with the fresh bread rolls here are the best 😉 hope we see us – the LEL is coming up next year…maybe I'll come back to the island – greetings Aleksander
Great to watch as ever really enjoyed it. Should be very interested to see your journey home too.
Well done Andy. You weren't the only one to scratch due to knee problems, as you probably know Josh Ibbett also had the identical issue. Shame, and really frustrating. It happens, not your fault. You gave it your best. Better luck next time. Thanks for your videos. Always a good watch. Again, well done on what you managed.
I wish you swift recovery.
The TCR is one of the hardest things one can attempt to do on a bicycle. I wish you to finish it next time you try it!
Andy, you rode 950k with a buggered knee, that’s a blooming big achievement, cobbles and gravel looked brutal !!
That was a great watch as well, really enjoyed seeing the journey, chapeau for that again 😊👍 and look forward to the next one.
Question if I may ask, Bib shorts for your long endurance types rides what are your go to option ? I know the same bibs don’t suit everyone but I’d be interested to hear what you find keeps you relatively comfy.
I've seen somebody get knee pain when they used to be fine because their cleat moved. Always something to check if you get knee pain when you didn't used to.
Is it me or do so many people start this race way too fast ? I'm not sure what your experience is/was but it's a bloody long way and a bit silly to burn any matches frivolously. Anyway congrats, don't lose the faith and good luck preparing for next year 🙂
The right decision to scratch and still a massive achievement. Been great to follow your journey.
You road to Munich for free beer. WORTH IT.
Gutted for you,
All the time and effort in the build up, the disappointment at APN with the Garmin truly devastating. It’s much harder to scratch when you’ve invested so much time and effort into something and especially when your making it so public.
You did the right thing there with your injury, as hard as it would’ve been at the time.
But do you know what mate, lessons learned in failure are more valuable than lessons learned in success.
You will succeed and thank you for being honest and genuine. Chapeau Chapeau Salisbury rider 🚴♂️
Hi Andy, really enjoyed watching your dot and the videos since. I think it's important to remember the huge effort you put in, you gave it a solid dig even with an injury! Im sure some of the lessons learned form this and APN will stand you in good stead for the 2025 season. It would be interesting to know how this effects the rest of the year and what that likely holds for you training/even wise. Keep your chin up mate!
tough decision but the right one Andy, still really strong riding, well done, especially riding back to Pompey after beers in Munich – epic stuff – hope the knee heals up quick, cheers