Turf zone – BilstonGlen
Conditions were ideal for another attempt at the Loanhead Ferret Run, otherwise known as taking 10 zones in under 10 minutes. The weather was warm with temperatures around 19 degrees and only a little chance of rain. And it gets better. A moderate wind from the south-south-west would serve as a welcome tail wind providing a little bit of a push from behind. The time was around midnight, so the route should be clear of anything that would delay the run. No ear-bud-deaf walkers or runners, no gran’s with prams, no ankle-biting mutts, no flighty horses or snooty horse riders. Perfect.
For this run I chose the Sonder Broken Road trail bike, one with gears this time, which, I’m hoping will make all the difference to my current best time of 7:45 achieved on my Brompton single speed. I should say, this time I’m making use of the slightly shorter set of 10 zones, starting at zone BilstonGlen and finishing at zone GraffitiZone, also making the most of the slight fall in elevation, and that nice tail wind at my back. The overall distance is around 2.37 km or 2.29 miles.
So, off we go, starting off in a medium gear, then pedalling like a mad thing and up two gears, then skidding to a stop at the first zone, at the same time changing back down through the gears ready to take off again for the next zone. And that was the format for all the zones. Overshot a few meters at zone FountainBike, for some reason, I know not why, so lost a few seconds reversing back into the zone. Only hazards along the route were the root ridges where tree roots have cracked the tarmac surface and some suicidal rabbits that almost ran under my wheels.
From the way I was puffing for breath at each zone, it certainly seemed I was putting more effort into pedalling, going faster. Braking at each zone also took more effort and I did feel the overall run was going to be quicker than before. Soon, I was in zone GraffitiZone, where I collapsed onto the ground as the take counted down. Zone taken. Finished. Eventually, my breathing returned to normal, heaven knows what my heart rate would have been at its peak. Probably better not to know! Then, a leisurely cool-down cycle back to the car and back to bed.
So, what was my final time for the Loanhead Ferret Run? As I said above, my best time to date was 7:45 and for this run I was hoping for something between 7:30 and 7:15, anything less than that seems unachievable. However, I was more than pleased when I saw my overall time was 7:05, placing me into second place in the Scottish section on the Turfa.nu 10z page. Even more pleased to see I was a few seconds ahead of Sir Hodge of Penicuik, though, I suspect, not for very long as I’m sure he will be up for the challenge.
I didn’t expect to be anywhere close to the 6:09 achieved by turfer sjami44 but that was with the help of the Region Lord 9 zones at 5-second time bonus for each. Without that 45-second time bonus, the time for sjami44 would be 6:56, the difference between us being only 9-seconds. Good to know this almost 65-year-old pensioner can compete up with the youngsters. Should I have held the Time Lord bonus my time would have been 6:20.
Now, what next? I reckon, with some practice, I could still knock that 7:05 down a few seconds, aiming for something below 7:00, ideally. Not over-shooting a zone might make all the difference. I’d still like to try with my 6-speed Brompton C Line, just to see what can be achieved and also with my lightweight Ribble single speed, though I suspect even getting close to 7:05 will be a challenge indeed.
I think there are a few things I can do to help achieve better times. One is simply practice, getting out there in the wee small hours and making further attempts, perfecting techniques and ironing out those small errors that cost seconds, like over-shooting zones. Reducing overall weight will help as will streamlining both the bike and myself. Not sure shaving my legs will make much of a difference. I was wondering if placing reflective markers at the zones might be of benefit?
Another is the tyres on the bikes. I’m running 55mm or 2.15-inch-wide tyres on the Sonder which are both very heavy (1395g) and have quite a high rolling resistance. The Ribble isn’t so bad with 40mm or 1.50-inch-wide tyres (960g). However, I do have a set of Schwalbe Marathon Racer 40mm or 1.50-inch tyres (495g) in the attic, so may try those as saving twice 900g off the weight of the Sonder might be significant, especially regarding rotational weight on the wheels. Back soon.
Copyright ©2026 Gary Buckham. All rights reserved.
