The National
Cyclo-Sportive took place in Lancashire on Saturday 26 June and shared some of the same challenging route that Britain’s best riders covered one day later.
It replaced the existing Pendle Pedal event and started and finished in
Barley village beside Pendle Hill – the same place as the National
Championships. Riders got to ride under the same start/finish gantry
before heading out onto some of the most beautiful and traffic-free roads in
England.
The National Cyclo-Sportive featured many of the famous climbs
previously tackled by pro riders on the Tour of Britain, Kellogg's Tour and
Tour of Lancashire races, over Waddington Fell, Tatham Fell, Bowland Knotts,
The Trough of Bowland and the Nick of Pendle. The main route was 150km long,
with a 85km option also available.
It was a fully supported ride, with four free feed stations, extensive
route marshalling and signage, bike mechanics and sweep vehicles and chip
timing.
The Sportive climbed up from Barley beside the imposing figure of Pendle Hill
before speeding down through Downham, a setting for many period TV dramas.
This picturesque village with no overhead cables is a throwback to a bygone
era. Areas of the Ribble Valley hidden off the main roads are often likened
to parts of Tuscany, perhaps without the vineyards, with their beautiful
isolated farms and houses, wooded glades, and rolling countryside.
There are also big climbs and the National Cyclo-Sportive took them all
in: first Waddington Fell, then Tatham Fell are tackled. Nowhere else in
England can you ascend for several miles with nothing much around you except
stunning views, and the silence broken only by your exertions.
After a loop around the Lune Valley, the cyclists then take on the real big ones: the
Trough of Bowland, where riders might think that they were in the Scottish
Highlands; and the Nick O’Pendle, the big daddy of cycling climbs.
By
the time of the finish, they had climbed over 3,500 metres.
Congratulations to all who completed the circuit!
Timings
for the 80km route
Timings
for the 150km route
2010 Participant Photographs
These are now
available to view online and purchase.
2010 Gallery of Pendle Cycle Fest
2009 Gallery
