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A Cycling Weekly writer raced East London Vélo’s Mott Street hill climb on a £200 Decathlon single-speed after a glass shard punctured the road bike he planned to borrow. The account describes finishing the climb, but the supplied report does not give a finishing time or exact placing.
A Cycling Weekly writer completed East London Vélo’s climb up Mott Street in Epping Forest on a £200 Decathlon single-speed city bike after a glass shard punctured the road bike he had planned to borrow. The first-person report describes the effort as a struggle to reach the finish, but gives no time or exact finishing place.
The rider had intended to use his brother’s road bike, but punctured its rear tyre during a test ride near sign-on. The report says he cut the tyre on a shard of glass, spraying sealant over his calves. The brothers improvised a repair, but the start order meant they could not swap bikes during the event: they were scheduled to start six minutes apart.
Rather than withdraw, the writer decided to race on his own Decathlon ELOPS 500, a steel-framed city bike with aluminium rims that he estimates weighed about 12kg. It had one gear and clipless pedals. He says he had bought it as a runaround and generally avoided steep inclines on it.
The report describes Mott Street as an almost one-kilometre climb, gaining 67 metres, with an average gradient of 6.7% and a maximum approaching 15%. The writer was passed by another rider around the halfway point, continued over a later ramp and crossed the finish. He says spectators cheered as he approached, but the supplied account does not state his finishing time, rank or the number of competitors who completed the event.
A One-Gear Bike Meets a Steep Climb
The account offers a firsthand example of how a mechanical setback can change a rider’s plans at a mass-participation event. With his intended bike unavailable and the start schedule preventing a swap, the writer faced a choice between withdrawing or starting on a single-speed. He chose to ride, despite expecting the gearing and bike weight to make the climb difficult.
For readers interested in amateur racing, the story also shows that a hill-climb is not limited to riders on lightweight, geared road bikes. That does not make the equipment equivalent: the writer’s bike was a heavy city model with one gear, and his account emphasizes the physical disadvantage rather than claiming it was competitive with specialist equipment.
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The rider says his own road bike had been destroyed in July when it was strapped to a car roof rack and struck a car park height-restriction bar. He planned to borrow his brother’s bike for the event instead. The puncture during the test ride left him without that option just before the race.
East London Vélo’s event took place on Mott Street in Epping Forest. The writer had ridden hill climbs before, but describes himself as a recreational participant rather than a regular competitor. His previous best result, according to his account, was 28th out of 40. He says the entry fee was £5, a factor in his decision to start rather than head home.
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The Result Beyond Reaching the Finish
The supplied report establishes that the writer rode the course and crossed the finish, but it does not provide his time, final placing or gap to other riders. The headline says he “just about didn’t come last,” yet the source excerpt provided here does not include a result sheet or a precise ranking to verify that wording. The race date is also not specified beyond the writer’s reference to a Sunday.
The account does not report whether the improvised repair to the brother’s tyre held for the remainder of the event, or give the bike’s measured weight, gear ratio or exact model year. Its descriptions of the ride are personal observations, not a controlled comparison between bikes.
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No Further Race Result Given
The supplied article is a retrospective account of the climb, and it does not identify a follow-up race, a planned equipment change or a further event announcement. No next milestone is stated. Readers seeking a precise placing or time would need an event results list or additional information from East London Vélo; neither appears in the supplied material.
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Key Questions
What bike did the writer use?
He rode a Decathlon ELOPS 500, described in the report as a steel-framed single-speed city bike with aluminium rims weighing about 12kg.
Why didn’t he use his brother’s road bike?
A glass shard punctured the rear tyre during a test ride near sign-on. The report says the brothers could not swap bikes because their starts were six minutes apart.
How steep was Mott Street?
The writer describes the climb as almost one kilometre long, with 67 metres of elevation gain, a 6.7% average gradient and a maximum approaching 15%.
Did the writer finish last?
The report’s headline says he “just about didn’t come last,” and the account says he crossed the finish. The supplied excerpt gives no exact placing or time, so the result cannot be confirmed from those details alone.
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