SWRC May Flyer Review

Last year, I took part in my first sportive – the SWRC May Flyer. It was the first time that I had attempted a 50 mile ride and although I found it difficult and walked up several of the hills, I found it enjoyable.

This year, I was keen to have another go and see how much I had improved.

Grey filled the skies above Cobham as we signed on in the morning. I’d opted again for the shorter route as I was riding with a couple of friends. The registration was well organised and only took a few minutes. I was a little disappointed that there were no free gels like last year.

The route starts nicely and soon we were into a steady rhythm. We were all looking for the photographer on the first climb to style out the shots for the camera but he wasn’t there and caught us by surprise on the first hairpin of the descent.

Potholes were a frequent problem to avoid but that seems to be the norm for most UK roads at the moment. The ride was mainly traffic free and I’m pleased to say that the hills proved little of a challenge this year and were quite enjoyable!

Unfortunately, some of the route markings disappeared around the halfway mark which meant that we lost some time checking the maps and confirming the route at some junctions. The organisers have stated that this was only a problem on the short circuit.

Overall, I found it a pleasant day and one I shall be repeating next year, although I’ll probably go for the longer route. I think the organisation wasn’t as slick as last year and hope that SWRC make more of an effort next year to make things run without a hitch.