No Dunkery Beacon! That was the big news prior to this year's Exmoor Beauty sportive held on Sunday 19 April. The "Giant of Exmoor" tops out at over 1700 feet according to the organisers, and had been a standing dish at the event in previous years.
In fact, the Beauty was my first sportive in 2013, and I had returned last year despite the Beacon. I've only ever seen about 1 in 10 riders cycle all the way up Dunkery Beacon, primarily due to its punishing gradients over a sustained distance. For most it appears to be an insurmountable obstacle with the cattle grid towards the bottom of the Beacon the signal to get off and push. Credit to the organisers who stated in a pre-event email newsletter, three weeks before the event, that they had listened to feedback and were removing it from this year's course. Some punters had stated that the inclusion of the Beacon made the route too demanding for a Spring event and I am surmising that this may have had a knock on effect in terms of participants. Personally, in previous years I found it was like a black cloud hanging over the first part of the event as I knew I had little chance of cycling up the Beacon so it became an obstacle rather than a challenge. However, 5717 feet of climbing was still promised so there was a touch of intrigue to see how the route would unfold.
Event HQ was once again located at Tiverton High School with easy access a short distance off the M5. An emailed pre-event briefing was delivered three days before the Beauty including links to GPS maps. Registration was open on Saturday afternoon for four hours and then reopened from 6:30am on the day. There were plenty of marshals around to make parking easy, although there did seem to be fewer vehicles and people than previous years. I arrived around 7:45am and there were already some riders in the start pen waiting for the off at 8:00 am.
Sign on was in the cavernous gym, quick and easy with a helmet sticker chip timer and a number to cable tie to the handlebars. There was also a big map of the route, one caterer selling "posh" coffees and another selling food. There were plenty of chairs and tables, along with a couple of bicycle retailers and four massage tables laid out for pre- and post-event treatment. Changing rooms and toilets completed the welcoming picture.
There was one route of 64 miles and the organisers aimed to get everyone on the road between 8:00 and 9:00am. However, I started at 8:30am and there didn't appear to be many left to go after me. After a short and to-the-point briefing at the start line we were off. The first part of the course was very familiar as, after a couple of miles warm-up, a long but manageable climb prior to a descent into the village of Bampton had been retained from the previous years' route. I contrived to get myself into a "death wobble" on the descent where the front wheel of the bike oscillated uncontrollably. I stopped without falling off, but the lady behind me later confided that she was freaked out by witnessing it and it put her off descending on the event. There were two quite steep and technical descents later on that had been highlighted at the start, but I managed to negotiate both, slowly and without further mishap.
Out of Bampton and then the first sign of the revised route. No left turn around picturesque Wimbleball Lake (that came later) but instead the arrows pointed straight on up a narrow but well-surfaced country lane. Again a challenging but manageable climb over a significant distance. This was to be the pattern of the first half of the event, and I think it was a big improvement. The climbs were generally long but I dropped to the lowest gear, got into a rhythm and made every one. There were also opportunities to recover on the flat in between. Weather was sunny all day, although with gusts of wind. There was precious little traffic and it all made for a great sportive.
After all the early climbing and descending we were treated to several miles of mainly flat and empty B roads, with great scenery, where I increased the pace. This was in anticipation of the only feed station coming up at Exford. I think the briefing pack hadn't been updated because it claimed the food stop would be at 29 miles, but it was 33 miles before a short, sharp descent into Exford. The feed station was opposite a couple of pubs but had its own portable toilets, water and two different flavours of energy drink. There was a baguette (possibly ham and cheese), a banana, a slice of soreen and a flapjack for every rider.
The feeding station also marked a change in the terrain. There was a short climb out of Exford, a bit more B road and then a long, but achievable ascent up onto Exmoor itself. The views were magnificent and the road was frequently lined with avenues of gorse bushes covered in bright yellow flowers. Again there was not much traffic around apart from a fleet of classic Jaguar car owners coming in the opposite direction. The wind was an occasional minor factor due to the exposed nature of the moor, but the miles seemed to tick by due to the distraction of the scenery.
After the descent from the moor the last eight miles were flat and fairly fast back through more wonderful scenery by the river to Tiverton. On arrival the prize of an Exmoor Beauty glass tankard was immediately distributed and I joined the queue for some hot food. It was mainly burgers, although I plumped for the Mexican spicy bean chowder at £4.
380 people finished this sportive and those who didn't make it to the start line missed a treat. The course was so much better in its revised format. The event was well organised as usual, with good signage and four vans circulating to assist with mechanicals.
Areas for improvement? Not much, although the variety of sustenance on offer at the food stop could be expanded to include items like Jaffa cakes, nuts and sweets. For the minority like me on wheat/gluten-free diets the menu of bread, cake and flapjacks meant there was little to eat at all. At £32 it may be that the price put some off, as I have participated in similar events for marginally less money. However, the Exmoor Beauty is definitely worth a go for the magnificent route over Exmoor alone.
The sister event, the Exmoor Beast Challenge will take place on 18 October 2015 over routes of 100km or 100 miles. To sign up, visit the event website at www.exmoorbeast.org.
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