Last month Esther completed the Enve Stone Circle (monumental route), a 220km epic gravel adventure through history and some of the most stunning gravel tracks in southern England.

Its not a race

I feel that women always stand out in events such as these – particularly those of us brave enough to embark on the longest route option. I can’t deny noticing that when I was talking to people before the event and said which route I was planning on doing, I was sometimes met with comments of ‘Really? Wow! Are you sure?’ If anything, that made me more determined to prove wrong those who may have had doubts.

The feeling of being a minority female becomes more apparent when bike issues occur, and my first issue was within the first 10 minutes when I got a puncture. Despite my attempts to let the tubeless fluid work its magic, the puncture wouldn’t seal and I was left with no choice but to plug the hole. I was apprehensive and wanted to pass it to a male who I deemed more competent, but no, I needed to do this myself. And I did. The plug worked and I had no further tyre issues.

At about 40km I was starting to get comfortable and confident when the most bizarre thing happened. I was halfway up a climb with a good group of riders when I felt my balance shift and my left foot dropped to the ground. I looked down and realised my pedal had come off the crank arm. I shouted to others around me what had happened and moved my bike to the side of the track. I hoped it would be a quick fix and did what I always do when fitting the pedals – but it wouldn’t catch onto the thread of the crank arm. After a few attempts, I passed it to my teammate who also had a go. I will never forget the look on his face when he stopped what he was doing, looked up at me and said, ‘I think your ride is over’. Deep down I also felt it was over, but determined to prove myself and him wrong, I asked to have one more go. I somehow managed to thread the first few turns of the pedal, and with a multitool and all my arm strength, I slowly but surely threaded the pedal back on. I don’t think either of us could believe I had done it, but I did and that was the last of the bike issues for me. I was beyond happy to finish the 220km monumental route, proving to myself and others that these things are less about gender and more about perseverance, grit and determination!

My Bike

• Vielo V+1 Alto Gravel Bike
• Vielo 40cm width, 100mm stem combo bar
• SRAM Force AXS D1 XPLR 1x groupset, 42T front and 10-44 cassette, KMC 12 speed chain
• Fizik black bar tape
• Selle Italia SLR Novus Boost Evo X-Cross saddle - the most comfortable saddle I own, perfect for the female build and the ideal choice for long, bumpy events

What would I change?

The Fizik bar tape provided enough comfort for the first half of the ride, but my hands needed more for the second half. Next time I would consider changing to something thicker for more cushioning.

My Wheels

• DT Swizz GR1600 Alloy wheels
• 40mm Pirelli Cinturato Gravel H tubeless tyres

What would I change?

Whilst the tyres were my go-to for the Dirty Reiver and I had no reason to change them for this event, I would consider switching to 45mm for extra comfort and something with more puncture protection (although it’s impossible to rule out punctures during events like this).

My Extras

• Garmin Edge 530 – no battery issues and I was easily able to navigate the route
• Supacaz bottle cages x2 – kept my bottles firmly in place over the bumpiest tracks
• Apidura expedition bolt on top tube bag
• Camelbak Classic Light Hydration pack with 2-litre reservoir
• Dakine Gripper saddle bag
• Muc Off essentials case – containing roadside repair kit
• Shokz OpenRun Bone Conduction headphones – being able to listen to music at the touch of a button got me through some of the most difficult sections!

What would I change?

I would opt for a different saddle bag that can hold all my roadside repair kit. The one I used could only hold two spare inner tubes as the gaps at the side meant that smaller items could slip out.

My Nutrition

• Precision Hydration 30g chews
• Precision Hydration 90g gel pouches
• Veloforte 22g Energy Gels with Caffeine – Tart Cherry & Guarana
• Torq Hydration drink sachets – red berries
• Torq Energy drink powder – natural vanilla pod
• Styrkr SLT07 Hydration Tablets – Mild Berry 500mg
• Styrkr Rice Bar 50 – Date, Almond & Sea Salt
• Salty new potatoes

I trusted my calculations this time and aimed for 75g carbs per hour. This was easy enough during the first half of the event but during the second half, consuming anything was a struggle. I ended up filling my top tube bag with Mini Cheddars to get me through the last few kilometres.

What would I change?

I would consider ditching the carb powder entirely and have just electrolytes in all my water. I switched to this for the second half when the temperature increased and found this easier to drink than the previous bottles containing carb powder. As I hadn’t trained this way, I was cautious about making the full switch from the start. I would also consider utilising the feed stops more – whilst I made the most of orange segments, watermelon, salted crisps and mini cheddars at the feed stops, I hadn’t planned for this as the information about what would be at the feed stops was limited. However, the organisers of the event know what cyclists need to get them through an epic ride such as this one and I should trust them more.

My Kit

• Nopinz Pro-1 Jersey (Rebellion Racing)
• ASSOS UMA GTC C2 Women’s Bib Shorts – these are a must for any female on a long endurance ride as the quick-release strap system makes toilet stops much easier!
• POC Ventral Air Mips helmet
• Melon Optics sunglasses
• QUOC Gran Tourer II gravel shoes
• QUOC All Road socks
• Specialized Grail short-finger gloves

What would I change?

Nothing – but I would like to emphasise again how awesome the bib shorts were!

Back to News page

When

June 29th 2024

More info

For more information about the event, please go to hotchillee.com

Huge thanks to our sponsors: