Whether you think you can or think you can't - you're right (Henry Ford)

Dream. Believe. Achieve.

So, you might be forgiven for thinking  that this blog is a recital of what I've been up to on the bike. Perhaps, logically that's what you might expect from something that 'purports' to give you cycling related insight, or just random musings.

You can do anything if you put your mind to it. Well ok, there are some limits there - singing and dancing are definitely out of bounds for me! I'm sure you get the gist though - if you have a burning desire to do something, you can generally figure out a way to do it.

I'm sure I'm not the only person who 'dreams big' - am I?! However, we've already established through previous posts, that I spend quite a lot of time on the bike (see the bike theme didn't stay away for long did it!) and that definitely feeds a wandering mind. For me the bike has given me the confidence to chase those dreams.

I doubt I'm alone in the 'start a new diet', 'become a better person', 'break some annoying habits', 'change your life around' stakes. Given a lot of the same bad habits and insecurities keep re-surfacing there's probably a lot of failed fresh starts every Monday and a few less failed epic fresh starts every new year. Next year will be the mega breakthrough, and given I really believe in this, there's every chance that 2016 will start with a bang!

 

Anyway, without further deviation, if you take one thing away from my ramblings - you are in charge of you... You are in charge of your performance - whether that is on your bike, at work or life in general. It's reasonable to  expect that you'll get faster, stronger, fitter year on year, so don't be afraid to focus on the process rather than the end results. Go and ride your bike, feel the wind in your hair (or your wheels), let your mind wander and believe...

 

Be passionate about your pursuit of micro-goals, dedicate your efforts not just with the following months in mind but the hours, days and weeks that will get you there. Dreaming big is great but focus too far in front and you won't see what's already around you. Try not to dream so big that it's a lifetime mission to achieve it and by the time you get there you've forgotten what you were actually chasing!

 

Until next time...

 

 



It's a wrap!

End of season round up

Now that the dust has settled on the 2015 season and I've had time to reflect, I thought I'd write a few words on the best moments and the learning points I'm taking forward into winter training.

It all started with round one of the Midland's Women's TT Series (MWTTS) back in April - my first experience of the K41/10 'Wolvey' course that has since become infamous given the majority of the events were held there. In need of some up to date power data, I rode my hefty winter steed affectionately known as 'Victoria' and used this as a 20 minute FTP test. The reasoning behind this - nothing more scientific than the fact you're always more likely to push yourself harder in a competition than you are in training! Five events later and with just four points separating first, second and third in the 'green jersey' competition it's fair to say it was a great series.

MWTTS Awards Dinner Nov 14th 2015 (second from left)
 

Although this season might not have delivered much in the way of silverware, it has provided some big changes and benefits - firstly, I swapped random training rides for structured training at the turn of the year. This has potentially brought the biggest benefits but taken the most adapting to. No matter what the weather or your friends are doing there is a specific session to be done - and some of the sessions hold more appeal than others!! Where previously on a sunny day I might have ridden an easy 3 - 4 hours, sometimes this had to be short, sharp intervals instead. Likewise, if it was wet and windy on a 'long ride day' then it was a case of go and get wet!



A win at the locally hosted Corporate Games 10TT

The other, equally significant change for me was the addition of my TT bike 'Lucy the Look' to the racing stable. It proved quite an art to get the correct position dialled in, in fact we were still tweaking this in the run up to Thruxton just last month. In comparison to a road bike position, the reduced hip angle and forward flexion required to ride a truly aero position take plenty of adapting to. However, if you can ride a good aero position the gains speak for themselves. Ironically my first competitive outing with Lucy was the ToC Chrono (qualifier for the World Amateur Championships) in June. If I'm honest this was more a case of desperation than meticulous planning!

The best moments of 2015

 

There are a few events and 'moments' that stand out for me: warming up on the bank of turbo trainers with 15 others at the ToC Chrono and then sitting at the top of the start ramp in Peterborough Arena ready to roll out back in June. This is closely followed by the Bicester Millennium Closed Circuit Championships in August which for me represents the one day this year when I was in tune with the bike. It was one of those rare evenings when everything came together - I relaxed and had 'fun' - and although I finished a close second, I did chip another 4 seconds off my pb. Of course it goes without saying that it was a proud moment to be able to pull on a GB skinsuit in Denmark even though my performance on the day was pretty unremarkable (6th).

The result that perhaps sums up what has been a year of improvement best is my closing position in the Midland Women's TT rankings. I entered the rankings after my first counting (open) event in May in a distant 85th and finished the season in 10th. I can hear the top 5 calling me already!! We have some of the top time triallists in the county based in the Midlands, so there's never a shortage of strong competition. Even so, I had too many 4th and 5th place finishes this year, so it would be great to translate those into podium places in 2016!

In the zone at the Closed-circuit TT Champs

Perhaps more than anything, this year has made me realise that even the best laid plans have to be fluid. I missed a large chunk of winter training due to illness and surgery and tried to play catch-up for the most part of the season. This, however, taught me some valuable lessons, so come the autumn when I made the decision to ride the National closed circuit championships, all my attention turned to training for this instead of the planned hill climbs.

I've learnt a lot from this year, both on and off the bike, but there is so much more to learn. I will be choosing my races more carefully and keeping those really important ones that I need to be in tip top shape for as the key goals. Next season I will once again be using the UK designed and made Revolver wheels (www.revolverwheels.co.uk) and Torq products (www.torqfitness.co.uk). If you have yet to try their black cherry yoghurt gel, I can highly recommend it! It goes without saying that  I am eternally grateful for the expertise ably provided (often at the last minute) by Paul and his team at Swinnerton Cycles (www.swinnertoncycles.co.uk). Not forgetting the guidance, chauffeuring, home cooking and endless bike cleaning provided by 'my own' Paul...!

Successes of 2015

National Closed Circuit Championships

Full throttle at Thruxton!

After much debate about how long a season I was going to ride this year, I eventually decided that my last race of 2015 would be the National Closed Circuit Championships at Thruxton Motor Racing Circuit, Hampshire.

It's generally accepted that the air quality (and in this country often the weather in general) deteriorates as the season goes on, so fast times are not often seen outside of late August/early September. We were greeted by dry conditions with a chilly breeze blowing across the circuit so I was quite happy with this.

Impressive entrance to the Circuit

I've not ridden at Thruxton before so I was keen to make use of the opportunity to recce the track before racing got underway. I thought it was chilly in the car park until I got on to the back straight of the circuit where it felt like the temperature had dropped at least 5 degrees! After a couple of steady laps I had a feel for the track - an exposed section where there was a headwind, a nice sweeping bend into a faster section and a drag before the chicane which led to the start/finish straight. There wasn't anything too technical but a definite need to pick a good racing line.

I was once again kitted out with the Revolver disc, courtesy of Harry Walker, which has yet to be fazed by any weather conditions. With a performance that exceeds that of more well known brands (ok, we're thinking Zipp here) it really hasn't been an issue when the wind has been blowing this year - and trust me it certainly did in Denmark! Both Dame Sarah Storey and myself rode Revolver discs on this circuit, so it must be a good choice!! It was a first outing for my recently purchased Nopinz Speedbands which are one of Blake's latest additions to his ever growing aero range. They were great - if you've ever had to faff with trying to pin arm numbers on you'll see the benefit of the investment immediately and clearly they're more aero than dragging around some mini sails and half your sewing kit!

My start time was 09:30 which was ideal as I like to get going once an event is underway. Despite waking up with a cold the day before, I was feeling pretty good and ready to execute the race plan - start relatively steady and gradually build up to what would be race pace within the first lap. My heart rate was slow to increase, cue mild panic... pedal harder!


Motoring along... top speed in excess of 35mph.

As the laps clocked up so did my speed, I was seeing a better line through the chicanes and really pushing into the wind on the back straight. I overtook a couple of people who had started before me - always a great feeling. The exhilaration and technical aspects of a closed circuit and ability to absorb yourself totally in your race without having to worry about (vehicular) traffic are the main reasons that I love this type of time trialling. However, being a National Championship it had attracted a strong field of 200 riders which were set off at 30 second intervals, rather than the more traditional minute on the open road. A couple of times I was very quickly catching the rider ahead of me, so a quick shout of "on your left" or "keep right" was necessary to alert them to my approach (I certainly didn't want to upset the moto Commissaire)!

Unfortunately I had a bit of a mechanical. I'd had my saddle position altered ever so slightly the week before and my seat bolts worked loose enough for the saddle to slip back the entire length of the rails (approximately 2 inches). Whilst this didn't stop my race it was enough to affect my power transmission through the bike and potentially provide me with the answer of why I didn't feel I'd gone as well as I'd hoped and my stats suggested I should.

I missed my goal of a top 10 finish by just 6 seconds to finish 11th. It would undoubtedly have been nice to finish the season on a high but you have to take what happens on the day. Dame Sarah Storey retained her crown of women's national champion for 2015 with a superb performance. Indeed five of the first nine female riders were from either semi-professional or professional teams so perhaps 11th doesn't sound so bad in the context of someone with a very full time job/vocation!



Unfortunately it wasn't quite a head to head!
 

So, Thruxton might have brought the 2015 season to a close but when the racing stops the planning starts. It's an unwritten rule that us lycra-clad folk put our feet up for a week or two - not literally of course or the restless genes would have a field day!

I feel there is a lot of unfinished business both on the road and the circuit and I'm really looking forward to 2016. It may not be the road to Rio, but hopefully the path to Perth!



 

 

UCI UWCT Amateur World Championships Road Race

A Belgian Classic - in Denmark!

After a few days of very mixed weather, including monsoon rain for an entire 24 hours, interspersed with thunder and lightning just to keep us on our toes, spirits were somewhat dampened. However, the long range weather forecast had been promising us a dry and sunny race day all week, so we remained hopeful (bearing in mind it was relatively impossible to predict the weather from one minute to the next)!

After the usual pre-race breakfast routine Paul and I rode the short distance to the start - we had chosen to use the City Campsite in Aalborg for race day convenience so were there in 10 minutes. Even at 08:00 the start area and race HQ were a hive of activity, mostly with fellow competitors trying to identify their respective start pens and then congregate in the dappled areas of sunshine that were beginning to appear.



The start area the day before race day...

The next hour or so was mostly spent cycling up and down the pavement in an attempt to keep warm, whilst the other age group starts rolled out. We could see from the big screen that it wasn't taking long for the action to get going, with a couple of early and very swift moving breakaway groups already forming out on the road.

Paul's race was the biggest of the day, with 247 starters - to put that into perspective 'only' 198 riders started this year's Tour de France! He was up at the front of the race pen to stand the best chance of being at the sharp end of the action - with that many riders it would be almost impossible to clock a breakaway if you're not there to see it form. Once they have rolled off the start line I just had to hope that he would have the best race he could but more importantly that he stayed upright!

The women's field rolled off last, 142 of us so not exactly a small bunch. It was frantic from the outset with everyone trying to make their way to the front as we left the city centre and the cobbles behind. Any thoughts of using the first neutralised 2km as an opportunity to gradually move up through the field rapidly started to disappear as I found myself doing over 45kph just to make headway! I managed to get myself in the first 20 riders before the flag was dropped and the race was on - and the speed went up even more! I knew that for at least the first twenty minutes I would be well and truly 'in the red' not just because of the sheer pace but because it takes me a while to get warmed up.



Rolling off the start in neutral - a little too far back

The crazy pace ensued until we hit another cobbled section and then it was disarray as everyone aimed for the narrow tarmac strip on either side. Amidst the bottleneck that I found myself in the middle of, a substantive break was moving off the front. The following section of left and right bends led us on to narrow roads with little opportunity to make up much ground and I knew that the group at the front must be making significant headway by now. As the road went up this created an opportunity for me to move through. I caught sight of one of the NZ riders that we'd met at the TT earlier in the week and tried to encourage her to work with me - by sharing the effort we were more likely to bridge the gap. Alas, she had already 'blown up' and didn't have the power to leave the bunch behind so I went alone. I could see the breakaway in front but they were a good 30 strong and, unsurprisingly, were pulling away.

Just as I thought my legs were going to desert me and my lungs about to leave my body I caught another lone rider, a German lady from the age group above. I sat on her wheel in an attempt to save my legs before we started what was to become a 2-up time trial. We weren't gaining on the lead riders, in fact it was obvious to both of us that we were in this together for the long haul but thankfully we were quite evenly matched which helped a little. Eventually around a bend we picked up a Belgian rider who had been dropped from the leading group, she was as pleased to see us as we were at the thought of an extra person to share the workload with! Unfortunately she turned out to be a Laura Trott on the flat but couldn't climb at all! We started to lose ground on the hills while we slowed to her pace and were eventually caught by a small group of three. This made for more effective riding as an echelon to try and shelter from the relentless crosswinds.

Crib notes: feed zone @ 65/115/145km
Climbs: @34km, 7.6% for 275m etc.

By now we had been in the saddle for over three hours at an average pace of still in excess of 33kph. I'd got through my first drinks bottle and successfully negotiated the dispatching of it in the feed zone area and switched it for the spare I'd crammed into my back pocket! The rider briefing the day before had informed us that there would only be water bottles available from the marshals in the feed zones. Knowing I'd need all the energy I could get I'd opted to carry an extra bottle on me with the nutrition I'm used to having. This also meant that I could give the feeding areas a wide berth - with rider focus on taking bottles it would be an easy place to crash.

 

The pace of the group had started to slow and although my legs were partially glad of this, I quite like to climb and I was starting to wonder whether I should brave the wind and ride off on my own. Having driven race route in the week and followed Paul in the motorhome, while he rode some of it, I knew that the next climb was one of the steepest and had a false summit. Riding up at my pace I realised that I'd left the others behind - looks like that has made the decision then, into the wind it is! I rounded the right turn to finish the climb, started to go up through the gears ready to maximise the descent and... clunk... whirr... jam... the sounds that you don't want to hear as your chain comes flying off. My heart sinks as I see that it has jammed itself against the frame and whilst I wrestle to release it the rest of the group roll past me to descend into the distance!

Eventually it's fixed and now I'm trying to chase the group that I had dropped. After all the climbing we'd done, this was a welcome downhill/flat section (albeit into the wind) and they had clearly covered some distance as I couldn't see them. I see one rider in the distance and as I get closer I recognise her as being part of our group. I go past her, she doesn't follow so must have had enough - I can't say I blame her! The group had evidently splintered after the climb but finally I catch the two left at what was the front. Clearly they're tiring too, ironically my legs, perhaps invigorated from the mechanical stop, were feeling good - I sit on the front in the wind - hmmm not so strong now! Despite the pace being slower than I would have liked, the medals were clearly accounted for up the road in Aalborg and the wind was pretty relentless so I decided against another solo effort, plus for some inexplicable reason my left shin was exceedingly painful - and getting worse.

Over five hours later, we eventually finish back in Aalborg, my shin is so sore by now that I can't even sprint to finish ahead of the other two that I've been towing along. Utter relief - to see Paul waiting for me at the finish, that neither of us crashed and that the last five hours in the saddle is over! Disappointingly, not the result I would have liked but not unlike the TT, it could have gone a whole lot worse.

Safely back at the motorhome!

UCI UWCT World Amateur Championships - Time Trial in Hobro

 

In pursuit of rainbow stripes...

The much anticipated 'adventure' to deepest Denmark was finally upon us. Courtesy of Priory Rentals, Northwich, who responded to our last minute plight and juggled their fleet to provide our home and mode of transport for the Championships - a lovely motorhome - complete with massive 'garage' for the bikes. Some 1,200 miles later, having travelled over the water at Dover and up through France, Belgium, Germany and finally into Denmark, camp was set up at Hobro - the location for the Time Trial.

Having left beautiful sunshine in Germany, we had a more traditional Danish greeting on arrival at the campsite - heavy rain and strong winds! It was almost like the unofficial race HQ as within an hour we'd met the NZ National TT Champ in the laundry, the Norwegian National TT Champ had pitched his caravan next to us and countless other cyclists of all nationalities had started to arrive. Unsurprisingly, conversations in broken English focussed around the weather (how windy??!) and the course (how technical??!!)



It was that windy that the banners were literally taking off!

It goes without saying that preparation was a key priority, so off I went to recce the course (numerous times) - it was certainly challenging and definitely made all the more interesting by the heavy rain and 30mph winds. It was an 18.6km out and back course up a steep incline with a technical loop with a few short sharp climbs and a left and right turn to be negotiated when travelling at over 60kph. Add onto this a strong headwind on the way out, a crosswind on the only flat section and a tailwind on the final fast descent where you somehow needed to make a 90 degree turn towards the finish and you have a Championship course!

The plan? Play the weather at its own game and ride like the wind up the hill and into the headwind sections and try to remain aero on the downhill... not forgetting braking in time to make the final bend! As Paul is often reminding me, 'in order to finish first, first you have to finish'. Never has this phrase seemed more appropriate than it did for this course.

Having taken the opportunity of attending the pre-bike check the day before racing started, I was safely in the knowledge that 'Lucy' as my TT bike is affectionately known was UCI legal. I was surprised by the number of people who were having to make alterations - some looked rather more terminal than others (think hacksaw!)


'Lucy' in the UCI jig, weighing in at 9.2kg

My start time was 12:21, so after my usual warm-up, which had the unwelcome addition of fighting off the local wasp population, I was headed for the final bike check, before taking my place on the start ramp.

1 minute to go...

The digital clock was counting us down at 30 second intervals, with the Start Commissaire giving us the final 5 second finger countdown. A quick press of the start button on the Garmin (I like constant in-ride feedback) and we're off!




The final countdown!

Panic set in after the first 800m - where have my race legs gone?! I didn't have an answer to this, so just had to dig in and try my best. Having safely (and perhaps rather too pedestrian) made the turn to climb the first incline, I spotted my parents half way up the hill - cue dig in a bit more. I was rapidly going into the red but the summit was in sight, just a few more pedal turns... then it was onto the flat and straight into the full force of the cross headwinds. My legs were screaming at me but I knew I just had to dig in, thankfully being closed roads, it was far easier to hold a line than it had been when riding the course on open roads earlier in the week. The rain had started again and my visor was starting to get covered with raindrops - at least they masked the next looming incline!


The left hand turn which marked the start of the loop - my favourite part of the course - was soon upon me, this also meant that I was a third of the way around already. Approaching the rolling section I could see my 'minute man' in the distance - a target! I was gaining but only slowly until we came to the descent which saw us come off the loop with a couple of technical bends - she hesitated, I reached a crazy speed of 65kph, swept around the bend and overtook. I just had to keep my head down now in case my manoeuvre spurred her into a counter attack. Thankfully there was no sign of this and I powered on up the last climb with what little I had left in my legs.

In a whole world of pain!

 

The crossing over the motorway marked the point at which the road started to flatten out, time to dig in once more. I could see a French rider in front of me - another target. I passed her and sunk into my best aero position to enhance my speed at the start of the descent, knowing full well that I had to start braking early enough to make the final turn. The marshal was frantically waving his arms at me to slow down. Was I really still carrying too much speed? Perhaps I was, so more feathering of the brakes... speed reducing and reducing! I knew that I had to maximise my power out of the corner and into the final kilometre to the finish to regain some of it. It was quite technical to sweep around the barriers and into the finish straight but I was determined to finish in style and stop the clock as soon as possible!

Eager to stop the Garmin as soon as possible!

In a strong field of experienced riders I finished sixth and third fastest Brit in a time of 30:03. Despite initial disappointment on missing out on a medal by less than 30 seconds I guess it marks a solid performance in my first year of racing at this level. I outperformed a couple of Brits who I had finished behind at the qualifiers and put just shy of three minutes into the Kiwi National age-group TT Champion. Although it wasn't one of those magical days on the bike for me, I could have done a lot worse!

Thank you to Paul who looked after my every need in the run up to the race (and was probably more nervous than I was!), Harry Walker for the revolver disc wheel, Paul Swinnerton of Swinnerton Cycles for the countless bike fits and last but not least my parents for sitting on a train for 8 hours to catch a glimpse of me out on the road.

Well travelled parents!

Championships part II (road race) to follow...

A day out in the Cotswolds & a polka dot jersey

Sometimes it's just nice to have a pedal somewhere completely different. As attractive as the surrounding Staffordshire/Shropshire/Cheshire countryside on our doorstep is, there is the odd occasion when a total change of scene is required.

By pure chance, I happened to notice a post on one of the Midland Women's Cycling forums on Facebook - a charity sportive with a difference - 150km with a timed hill climb! I didn't need to read on, I was already convinced that this would be an ideal 'Sunday long ride'. Having talked my, equally cycling obsessed, partner Paul into getting up at a time usually reserved only for weekdays (Paul commutes to Coventry for work, so we are all too familiar with 5am!) we were Warwick bound.

A warm welcome from Vicky and her team of merry volunteers and the promise of a BBQ on our return and I was almost forgiven for parting Paul with his only lay in of the week... almost! It wasn't long before we were out in the country lanes, a small group of us having set off at a nice training pace and the miles were rolling along. Then they started to go up, a pattern which was to feature heavily for the most part of the ride! At 40km we managed to miss a direction arrow and head straight up Foxcote Hill, a steep 12% incline, by accident. Thankfully, one of the group had downloaded the GPX file so after enjoying the downhill the other side and rolling along for a few more kilometres we realised the error of our ways and headed back up (and down) the hill!

Steady climbing interspersed with some nice rolling stretches continued to be the order of the day. We eventually came upon the timed climb, where I parted company with Paul, who sensibly decided that he fancied a more sedate approach to proceedings. He didn't have much choice given his smallest gear was an 42x21 (kudos)! Having paced myself up the first section, I steadily increased the power whilst heading for what appeared to be the summit... a false one at that! Around the corner and up again...!! I wouldn't say it was my best hill climb effort but with a good few kilometres and metres climbed already in my legs it was a balanced effort.

There was no need to wait for Paul at the top as he has unbelievable descending skills - we'd make a great team with me climbing and him in charge of all things downhill! Having come into cycling in my 30's I feel that I've missed out on the 'fearless' skills that you acquire as a youngster and I've always had questionable balance, so I'm generally better at plugging away slowly uphill!

Anyway, the remainder of the ride rolled on, until eventually, some 6 hours and 3,000m of climbing later, with almost 170km covered, we rolled back into The Mytons. The promised BBQ was lit and some welcome food awaited us, as did the chip timing system which was to decide the inaugural King and Queen of the Mytons...

Yep, a lovely polka dot jersey made its way back to Staffordshire :)

Thank you to Andy at Custard Photography for the photo.

 

 

 

In the front seat with the 'Guardian Angels' of the peloton...

Vittoria Servizio Corse

Well known for their quality tyres, the distinctive white liveried vehicles of Vittoria also provide world class neutral service, most notably to Italy's most celebrated road races, including the Giro d'Italia.

Courtesy of Michael Elson, UK Sales Manager, I was lucky enough to experience a day with 'Vittoria's angels' on Stage II of the Aviva Women's Tour.

Car 1 ready to roll

Of the three car, six person team of drivers and mechanics, we are car one - positioned to roll out ahead of the start. Our job will be to stay ahead of the action until we are called to follow the day's break (providing there is one!!). We roll out of Braintree ahead of the action, effectively at the head of the race convoy, once again the crowds are superb and many wave frantically at us - it feels almost like celebrity status!

Being so far in front of the peloton we are entirely reliant on race radio for what is happening behind us... for kilometre after kilometre this isn't much. A few team cars are called to the peloton for various reasons - clothing, punctures, a minor crash. I begin to think that there won't be a break today! As the longest stage at 138km the initial hesitancy doesn't surprise me.

Eventually, after 31km we hear that there is a breakaway, Vera Koedooder (Bigla) has slipped the bunch and appears to be staying away, she's eventually joined by Sarah Roy (Orica-AIS) and with Vera on the front the two-up break looks like it is the decisive move of the day. We are called forward at last!

More than just tyres and bikes, the first job is to replenish the drinks bottles, which are passed from the mechanic in the back to the driver and to the riders from the left hand side of the car. It is only moments after this that Vera puts her hand up to indicate that she has a problem - a flat rear tyre....

She drops back to the car at the same time as we accelerate to get to her without delay - with the slick efficiency of an F1 team she has a new wheel and is on her way again. Within moment she slips back to the car indicating that her brakes need adjusting... not the easiest job with the car in motion!

Perhaps this chain of events gives the peloton the advantage that it appeared to need as with only 4km to go it became clear that the winner was, yet again, going to come from a bunch sprint. The commissaire had pulled us clear way before this point, so it was under the flamme rouge, into the final kilometre and into the car park by the seafront in Clacton for us. Just in time to see the peloton fly past us and up the finish straight in the Essex sunshine. First over the line - sprinter Jolien d'Hoore of Wiggle Honda. Not going unrecognised for driving a substantial breakaway that may well have stayed away had it not been for the mechanical misfortunes, Vera was rewarded with the YodelDirect Combativity award.

Vittoria's guardian angels have completed another day of professional support. We part company as they are transferring up to Oundle for the start of stage 3 and I am, unfortunately, going back to Ipswich to collect my car and head home, albeit inspired and motivated to get back into my own training.

 

 

Behind the scenes at The Aviva Women's Tour 2015 (Part I)

Bury St Edmunds - the finale of the inaugural tour of 2014 and the start of Stage One of what can only be described as the biggest women's cycling event on the planet - the Aviva Women's Tour 2015.

Race HQ had been a hive of activity for several days before the tour got underway on Wednesday (17th June), with Sweetspot staff putting the finishing touches to many months of solid and meticulous planning. The atmosphere was that of quiet excitement and anticipation, okay overt excitement in my case as it has become my favourite week of the year! Once all the Sweetspot race staff are kitted out, courtesy of Steve Joughin's company ProVision Clothing, my job is essentially done. Time to soak up the atmosphere and catch up with friends from far and wide who can be found working behind the scenes at pretty much every major cycling event across the country.

From the immaculate fleet of Skoda cars lined up ready to have their race accreditation applied, to the arrival of the race staff and Race HQ slowly turning into the ultimate hub of all things cycling, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly what makes the build up so exciting. After all, it is not every day of the week that you are stood in the breakfast queue behind Joanna Rowsell and Katie Archibald and discussing time trialling tactics with Dame Sarah Storey! Perhaps that is what sets the women's pro cycling scene apart from the men's - approachability and accessibility.

I was lucky enough to be able to spend Stage One on the road with the (American) UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team. The drive from Ipswich to Bury St Edmunds was spent chatting to mechanic Geert, discussing road racing in Belgium, life on tour etc., whilst following the 'big blue' team bus driven by Luc. The team parking area was already busy with expectant fans, young and old, male and female, some with bikes some without. The UHC bus, by far the biggest team vehicle, unsurprisingly, attracted a fair bit of attention, especially with local rider Hannah Barnes on the team.

It was soon time to roll out of Bury and in the privileged front seat of the UHC race car! The crowds were massive and the support on every corner, QoM, Chain Reaction Sprint, village and town was simply superb. Sitting in our place in the convoy, we were receiving regular updates on race radio; two of 'our' riders were in the break - Katie Hall and Coryn Rivera. All of a sudden it was 'stop, stop, stop... enforced level crossing!' This provided an impromptu opportunity to get fluids to the rest of the team while they were held. The break had crossed just in the nick of time, so were now far enough up the road to enable us to move through the peloton to replace bottles and for Rachel (Directeur Sportif [DS]) to let the girls know what was happening behind.

Despite working well together - as was to become customary throughout the tour - the break was caught in the closing stages and formed a bunch sprint, won by Lizzie Arnitstead of Boels-Dolmans. A result which rapidly ended her Tour as she went flying head-on into an event photographer, taking several riders down with her, including both Katie and Coryn. Despite struggling on through Stage two, Coryn later discovered that she had broken her wrist, which also forced her to withdraw, not before she had secured her (Pro Vision Clothing) Best Young Rider's jersey for the second day though!

Part II: On the road with neutral service by Vittoria to follow...

 

UCI UWCT Tour of Cambridgeshire

The inaugural UK qualifier for The World Tour Final

Back in the depths of winter, with the wind rattling around the house, a weekend cycling around Cambridgeshire in June sounded like a great idea... Somewhere different to explore, a goal far enough away to keep motivation high and the opportunity to be a part of the first ever UK qualifying round of the UCI sanctioned UCWT World Cycling Tour dubbed 'The Tour of Cambridgeshire'.

With entries confirmed, the hard work was to begin - a 28km time trial (TT) on the Saturday followed by a 130km racing Gran Fondo on the Sunday - no small task! The fens are well known for making up what they lack in hills with 'wind', generally of the head- and cross- variety, so perhaps the winter preparation was ideal!

Having taken advantage of an early sign-on on Friday evening, recced the course and checked into our hotel, which was slowly being taken over by a strange combination of cyclists and wedding guests, it was time to relax. With the luxury of a late start time on Saturday, there was chance to watch some of the early riders go and listen to some early feedback from the course. Unsurprisingly, this seemed to consist mostly of the fact that it was really windy out there! Out of the arena and straight into a headwind for the first 3 miles or so... at least that meant a tailwind back though!!

The atmosphere in the arena was one of nervous excitement. With 700 starters, the precision of reporting for your timing chip, spinning your legs on the bank of turbos whilst waiting to be called to the start ramp all added to the sense of occasion. A safe exit from the arena without doing anything stupid was the first box to tick! I can certainly vouch for the headwind on the way out, but the focus was definitely on doing the best job I could, making the most of the closed roads and riding the shortest lines possible. Flying down the last hill at 60kph with the wind behind set me up nicely for the final run in to the arena and the finish line. Had I done enough...? I'd certainly done my best!

With the excitement of Saturday behind me, it was time to re-focus on Sunday morning's racing Gran Fondo. In true continental format, this saw a mass start of no less than 1,000 of us in the race pen, with a further 5,000 sportive riders in the pen behind. The wind of the day before had been replaced by glorious sunshine so keeping hydrated was my main concern. Not unlike the day before, the initial worry was rolling off the start line, around the roundabouts and onto the main road in the neutralised section unscathed! "Brutal" is perhaps the most appropriate word to describe the race that unfolded. The neutralised section was frantic, with the top riders setting out their stalls early for a place immediately behind the lead car. I was going into the red and we'd only been moving a few minutes!! The first climb helped to steady the pace; catching a few off guard and splitting the bunch. I find myself amongst a small group and the pace settled a little. Forty minutes later I found myself dropping off the back and shortly after in 'no man's land' - for the next thirty minutes a repeat of Saturday's TT ensued! Head down, pedalling hard with no shelter from the wind as I crossed the old airfield I was questioning my sanity. How on earth could anyone end up on their own in a field of 1,000 riders?! Eventually the 'swoosh' of race wheels could be heard in the distance... a chance to benefit from the shelter of other riders. I found another gear, jumped on the back of the pair of riders as they came past but with fatigued legs from a massive solo effort, just couldn't stay with them. Back to time trialling again...

Finally I was caught by a larger group and the relief was almost immediate! My heart rate plummeted from 180bpm to 140bpm - much more sustainable! We worked well to keep a good pace going and as time went by, my thoughts eventually started to move towards end of race tactics. I'd noted that there were very few females up at the front of the field and the majority appeared to be in my group. I reacted to every move from any of my fellow competitors and eventually the main group had slimmed down to just two of us ladies amongst the men. Familiarity from the TT course the day before meant that I knew the final 5 mile run in to the finish well. With 1.5 miles to go, I upped the pace a little and noted that she didn't respond, with a mile to go I laid my cards on the table and went for it - what little I had left in my legs got wound up for one final effort.

 

Was it enough? It was! The invitation to go to Denmark for the World Tour Final, as part of Team GB, subsequently arrived. Thank you Tour of Cambridgeshire for a fabulous weekend of cycling and the opportunity to make a dream come true. Now the hard work really begins!!