Over 10 hours in the chair on closed roads with 8000 other riders. Blistering heat, cramp and a wrong turn is what it takes to complete the 312. My first time riding the event and a day to remember; finishing in 172nd place out of 1552 riders that completed the 312km route.
A very early start with breakfast put on by the hotel at 5am! However, it was so busy I only managed a coffee as I needed to get to the start as early as possible in order to be in with a chance of getting round before the cutoffs. This was mainly due to rider safety as the organisers didn’t want riders out in the dark. A good job Sheraz and I had ventured out the night before to get some breakfast items. The kitchenette in the room was a god send as it had a microwave, toaster and kettle – all made use of for the breakfast!
Shortly after breakfast a visit to the gents, Sheraz Rashid and I headed to the start line. It was dark and cold with flashing lights as others were also heading for the start line. It was important to head out early as the cutoff times was from 06:30, not the time one crossed the start line. Our hotel was very close to the start/finish and after a few minutes we got to the back of the queue where we chatted to other riders. We waited for over an hour before the front riders crossed the start line. It was now 06:45 and we had rolled over the start line. A very frantic start mainly due to the sheer number of riders. It was flat for about 20 miles before the first climb of the day – col de femenia. Sheraz was pacing from the start keeping us safe as we moved up the pack. I did a few turns and could now see a decent sized peloton. We kept it smooth and was making good progress passing cyclists safely. Unfortunately, Sheraz had a mechanical as we started climbing Col de Femenia, resulting in no rear gears. He tried resetting his Shimano di2 and seeking support from a support car to no avail. Unfortunately Sheraz had to abandon and made his way back to the hotel.
I was now on my own but soon bumped into two others riders staying at the same hotel. We rode together for a short while but it soon split as I needed to stop for a comfort break. It didn’t take long for me to get back on as climbing is my strength. We reached the top of Puig Major and it was now time to descend. This is one of the best downhills on the island. Smooth roads, long sweeping bends, clear visibility and with it being closed roads not a car in sight. I got to the bottom and I found myself on my own
I passed the first feed station which looked mega busy but because I had food and water I decided to carry on to the second feed station. As I approached the second feed station I had food but only one bottle of water and decided to stop. A quick coke, salt tablets and gel would have got me going but wanted water. However, there was carnage at the single water station so decided to carry one. The next feed station was 30 miles away and with a full water bottle I was confident I would make it. It was warmer than normal with temperatures hitting 30 degrees
I was now in the zone passing riders and chatting. I found groups to conserve energy and was feeling good. The next feed station was after a few climbs. I kept a lid on the effort up the climbs and got to the next feed station. Again, the usual nutrition of coke, salt tablet and banana worked wonders. I also grabbed a few gels that I kept in my jersey pocket. After visiting the feed station I found myself alone and waited until a group past where I would then latch on. Working together with other riders helped conserve energy and provided motivation despite feeling tired. It seemed I wasn’t the only one suffering from looking at other riders.
I approached the final feed station and found myself in a select group of 8 riders. We had been together for a good few hours and had worked well together to get to this point. I spoke to a few in the group and was keen to finish together. There was around 15 miles left when I noticed slight cramp on my right thigh. I didn’t want to lose the group but also didn’t want the cramp to get worse by having to go harder than needed. I missed a turn to try and recover but soon realised I couldn’t hold the pace without aggravating the pain. I let the group go but found another rider who had missed a turn and was clearly suffering. A few words of encouragement were exchanged and we worked together to the finish. No sprint finish, no arms in the air but a steady roll across the line and I was done!
I had to dig deep at times and went into a dark place on occasion but allhamdullillaah managed to get round in one piece. I was over the moon when I saw the results as I couldn’t quite believe how well I’d done. I had no set time but just wanted to get round.
Having completed a few Audax events – Delightful Dales (200km) (Delightful Dales 200km Audax | Ride | Strava) and Knock Ventoux (300km) (Knock Ventoux 300km Audax | Ride | Strava) leading up to the Mallorca 312 definitely helped and put me in the best shape possible. I was worried I had overdone it with a 300km the weekend before but I recovered well!
I also believe observing the fasts of Ramadan for 30 consecutive days just prior to the event had a profound impact to the success of the ride. Weekend rides during Ramadan were at endurance pace and around 50 miles in distance. I was at my lowest weight and had trained my mind to improve mental toughness/resilience as well as having full tawakal (trust in gods plan)
Recent Posts
Contact Me
Do you have any comments on what you’ve read if so id love to hear from you
Altaf Hussain 
Leave a comment