Gran fondo Campagnolo 2008   - A Tale of Hypothermia and a Podium Finish!

By Graham Heath

The traditional visit to the Marmotte was placed on hold for 2008, this was down to several issues; Mark Hunter and Dave Meakin’s pasting last year, Russ avoiding the inevitable race with Mr Lloyd, Dicko wanting to go back to his genetic roots and the chance to give a couple of lightweights the chance to show their metal (Steve Smith and Pete McGowen!) I mean, after the mighty Marmotte, how hard could anything else be! Pete and Steve had suffered in the Grand Fondo the year before, and after the constant barrage of ridicule that they received at this years ‘ride out dinner’ the gauntlet was thrown down for the real racing team to show those Italians a thing or two.

Me and Mike Kershaw (the powerhouse of the team) had suffered trying to make the weight for this year’s event. The fact that the event is one month earlier than the Marmotte played havoc with our preparation. The winter diet of beer and curries just wouldn’t come off in time leaving us slightly more rounded than we had planned. Russ, as usual just couldn’t get the necessary miles in, he was only managing 300 a week (that he was declaring!)  Jack Macklam’s 400 a week had taken its toll, leaving him with the appearance of an old pensioner! – Which of course is what he is (Yeah yeah Jack, I know you beat me! But I let you so that you would feel good, and so did Kersh, Nigel Dicko, Dave etc) This year, the Bob Jackson team had pulled in a couple of proper cyclists to prevent them occupying the bottom positions again. Keith and Marc must have been amazed at the strength in depth of the Yorkies!  Denise Shackleton made up our first Lady member and added a much needed touch of glamour to our team of 2008.

Yeadon airport at 4.30am was the meeting venue and after a quick check in we went straight to the café. The coffee and tea soon became boring so it was time for a couple of Stella’s to calm the nerves. Dave Dixon let us know his disgust at such behaviour and sulked off for a sparkling mineral water! - Who’d have thought! Mark Hunter was looking a bit pensive about the event, mainly because his brand new bike had let him down in the White Rose, for some reason wouldn’t go down hill very quickly (just like the one it replaced! Ha ha). After a good flight and the usual melee of loading the cars, we arrived at the foot of the Dolomites in the town of Feltre. An unusual feature of the town was the amount of men carrying handbags and smiling nicely at us! We assumed it’s just the way they are in the Dolomites. Steve Smith must have looked the friendliest of us all because he seemed to be the one that they were keen to talk to. One friendly gentleman even asked him back to the next village for tea at his home. It’s not too often that you get hospitality like that.

Dicko was convinced he would stuff the Jacko team and put his money where his mouth was (the same mouth that had consumed 2 litre of red wine.) ‘10 Euros each to those from the Jacko team who can beat me’ was the boastful wager before he slid slowly off his chair. Luckily the lads were all gentlemen and ignored his ramblings leaving him enough money for the rest of the trip.

The beer was quite strong and mixed with the clean mountain air this seemed to affect the mind and body in strange ways. For example at a trade stand selling the Grand Fondo jerseys, two 20 year old models seemed keen for me to remove my shirt in the crowded registration arena to try on a jersey. Without hesitation off came the shirt to reveal my ripped (or do I mean rippled) torso complete with moobs, Did I care, no not one bit as the others screamed in laughter and the young ladies realised their mistake in encouraging such behaviour from a man of my age. Anyway, I bought a jersey too small, rather than suffer the indignity of asking for a XXL and later sold it to Dicko, who is just as fat but a lot shorter than me!

The weather for the event was forecast to rain. In past years snow had affected the course so it seemed anything may be possible. What to wear was the main debating point, an issue that was further complicated by the perfect blue skies that greeted us on the morning of the event. The event was being run on a new course this year, covering 135 miles and 5200m of climbing. It was never going to be easy. The event started with about 3500 riders crowded in to the single massed start and after a steady beginning we arrived at the first major climb in perfect conditions, but this was not to last. The rain started after about 4 hours and the temperatures dropped. Sleet had begun to fall at the top of the Passo Di Valles and the descent became extremely cold. Hypothermia was a real problem and the medical teams reportedly pulled out 450 riders as well as treating hundreds more at the side of the road. Kersh and Denise both received medical attention which resulted in Denise being withdrawn by the medics after completing the hardest part of the course and covering about 95 miles in an excellent time. I personally have never been so cold on a bike. It was no surprise to see the amount of numbers compulsory withdrawn. Maybe that layer of puppy fat that I have been known to carry occasionally had come in handy! Both Nigel and Keith had taken refuge in a bar to try and warm up which they claimed had cost them both an hour on the road (Oh Yeah!). As we descended the temperatures started to lift and we managed to finish in some decent weather.

As I came up the finishing straight I could hear the British National Anthem being played at full belt and I was a bit shocked to see Nigel (AKA Marathon Man) on the podium receiving an award. Various suggestions as to why he received a prize were speculated on with the most common being;

1- That they had confused him with someone from a real racing team
2- He had won the prize for the best Jack Daniels drinker in the Dolomites!

The event was really well organised and the medical cover was especially impressive which considering the conditions was a good job! The Police were on every junction stopping the traffic and as usual in these parts, the local villagers were out, young and old, giving support to the riders. Russ Hepton came in 3rd Brit behind a pro (Jamie Burrow) and 82nd overall with Pete and Steve achieving the excellent results of 224th and 225th overall. Whether we will return next year is debateable. The general consensus seems to be that we will return to the Marmotte just to let Steve and Pete see some real hills! Anyway, I am sure it will be discussed at length at this years other premier event - the Ride Out Dinner.