Chasing wheels

Due to the frustrating nature of my shifts I couldn't race this Tuesday, nor are there any weekend races to be had nearby this weekend or last. Which means I've been limited to a bit of training to keep my fitness up.

I hate training rides. I find it mentally boring and get annoyed at how much time it consumes. So I've taken to doing 30 to 60 minute rides in and around Central London to liven it up and give me the bonus of fast moving traffic (where available) to keep me on my toes. Mostly this consists of riding from Acton over to Islington to my girlfriend's place. On a good day it's 35 minutes, on a bad one more like 50. This consists of a couple of uphill lumps and plenty of fast flat and false flats.

The first lump is up Holland Park Avenue, which is nothing to write about in your guide to the great climbs of Europe but it's long enough to charge up hard when the lights are in your favour. Call it a long interval if you will. On a good day I can crest the top breathing hard but with my legs still not quite at their limit, on an average one I run out of puff just as I can see the end in sight.

From there's it's fast, fast, fast from Notting Hill through to Kings Cross via Marylebone Road and Euston Road. I like to treat this stretch as a bit of a burn up and a mini time trial and confidence builder for riding in among fast-moving traffic and in close proximity to things.

Then there's the one I can't crack: Pentonville Road. So far I've tried going steady, I've tried hammering it, I've tried going slow. None of them gets me to the top without tying up. Consistently I get as far as the lights at Rodney Street before the burning sensation kicks in and I start to tie up. Halfway to the lights at Amwell/Penton Street the lights start to dim and I'm struggling. By the time I reach the lights I'm clinging on and just trying to roll over the top.

Is it just the case that I'm never going to get over there without hurting like hell? I wish it wasn't but things haven't improved in the last month, so I'm starting to lose faith that they will. Man, I wish I could climb, or at least ride hills with the belief and ability to get over them ratehr than fade halfway up.

Posted by Alex on 23 April 2008, 17:04 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks ()

Since reading January's Procycling magazine, which was guest edited by Greg Lemond, I have become fascinated by the argument in favour of training less. Less purely in terms of time spent out on the bike but more in terms of the intensity required.

So more intervals and few slow slogs around the countryside. According to Lemond's methodology those long rides just result in the sort of chemical build up that inhibits proper improvement and which leads to depressive episodes. Obviously I should be quoting properly here but it's a Sunday evening, I've been working all weekend and I've no idea where I put my copy of the mag.

As a training method it suits me fine as I've never really enjoyed the Sunday rides with the battle to not be last up the hill and the having to write down the whole of the day for recovering, napping and cleaning after the ride. I've always enjoyed going out for an hour or two at most and blasting round in spurts of effort, in effect ad hoc intervals. Perhaps if I'm more disciplined about it I might show some improvement, perhaps I might even get a turbo trainer (Tacx Flow I think).

Next weekend I'm looking forward to a double-header of racing: Saturday's 4th Cat circuit race down at Hillingdon, my first of the year; and Sunday's final cyclocross race of the season at Hainault Forest Country Park. I may be a little tired and sore by Monday but I do enjoy my racing.

I got my new 2008 licence through the post this week so I am intent on making best use of it and getting it upgraded to a 3rd Cat one before the Spring Classics come round. that gives me about 2 months to either get in a break or to nail a couple of finishes in the bunch sprint.

Best start training seriously again then and getting down to a race weight. I'm currently hovering around 75kg, which is a good place to be starting from, certainly better than the 79kg or so I started at last year.

Posted by Alex on 3 February 2008, 22:02 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

Day off today so once the rain cleared I went out for a well-established ritual training ride in Richmond Park: the three lapper. I've not been on the bike much recently so felt like I needed to get out and clear myself out a bit ahead of this weekend's racing as well as attempt to put some effort into keeping my weight down.

I'm currently tipping in at just over 75kg but with the hard bit of winter coming up I need to keep it in check. I've also not ridden properly in a fortnight, bar a few hour-long rides across town so my fitness is coming off a bit. At my last 'cross race I felt good and strong and now I feel like that hard-won fitness is fading.

The three laps work out at around 33km and when I add in the distance there and back it works out around 50km in total, which is a good ride for a man with a couple of hours on his hands. I aim to get the three laps done in a touch over an hour usually, although I'm sure I should be able to do them in under the hour if I really push it. Today it was more a case of just riding and blowing away the cobwebs than setting a time.

I've discovered that I get in an increasingly poor mood the less time I get to spend on my bike. Perhaps it's a form of replacement therapy and gives me the same sensations that I used to get from drinking. I love the feeling of just getting out there and being able to push everything else out of my mind as I turn the pedals.

Unfortunately today it was rather difficult to clear my mind as my chain kept skipping in the middle of the cassette and I dropped the chain off the front a couple of times as well. It might be because I put my training wheels and 25mm tyres on the 'cross bike rather than taking my race bike out. Or because I haven't cleaned the 'cross bike properly since the last time I rode it so the chain is a bit sticky.

By the end of the third lap I was just starting to settle into something approaching a groove but I was running out of patience with the chain skip. Plus my slightly lumpy riding was causing even the deer to look at me with bafflement in their eyes. Frankly when you get to that stage of riding, you should call it a day. So I did.

Posted by Alex on 10 December 2007, 21:12 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

Some time back in July I went up a lot of big hills in the Pyrenees. You may remember me writing about it. It now seems distinctly possible that I haven't actually been up hills in earnest since then.

On Sunday I decided to take advantage of some nice autumnal weather and head out on the Surrey Hills ride with the club. Not a big group as it's late season, a time when people are either winding down and avoiding longer rides or desperately chasing those last points.

It looked warmer than it actually was so it was probably not a good thing to forego the baselayer, arm and knee warmers. It was that annoying temperature when it's not quite cold enough to merit a gilet on the flat but anything above training pace is a bit nippy - it's that time of year, when the gilet becomes your favourite bit of kit.

Paul H took us on a route through the hills that I've not been along before which included two brutish climbs, one of which bordered on being more suited to a cyclocross course or insane Belgians. Rough, wet and steep, it was the sort of experience which puts paid to the myth that there's no climbing to be had in Britain.

Stick a strange dutch name on it and they'd be screaming Spring Classic in no time. Don't ask me to find it on a map though, I'm trying to forget I ever saw it and tried to ride up it. At least it meant we had an excuse to skip the ritual purgatory of the climb up to Ranmore Common.

It probably didn't help that my legs weren't as fresh as they could be from racing on Saturday. I could feel the race in my legs when climbing - that touch of tightness mixed with a burning sensation and lack of top end power - as ever at my own pace at the back of the group and trying not to push myself too hard.

I felt better for getting out and for the nap I had later on that afternoon. I wasn't considerably off my pace and it got me a bit more motivated for keeping riding through the winter. I may shuttle back down a bit to Saturday rides to keep things itcking over and to avoid that sense of dread about getting out into the Surrey Hills in the depth of winter.

I might still invest in a turbo trainer, or I might give cyclocross a whirl. Something to keep me interested and active is all I really need and the latter is currently seeming like the more likely option - I've set myself a 200 quid ceiling (the same price as the turbo) for a cyclocross setup from existing bits and Ebay bargains etc and, fingers crossed, I might just achieve it.

Posted by Alex on 18 September 2007, 19:09 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

The last seven days have been lousy for training. The edge might have gone off my fitness a bit and I've been suffering from extreme tiredness as well, making it doubly hard to get out on the bike.

I was working last weekend so couldn't get out much, or rather at all, for a long ride. Went racing on Tuesday and hung in there, feeling not too bad but with nothing left when it came to the final bunch sprint. Didn't go training on Saturday as I was exhausted from two days away on work business which involved long days and felt I could use the rest.

Come Sunday I was up and out for training in dismal conditions. Heavy, incessant rain was pouring down as I rode down to Hampton Court for the 9am ride. Only three, including myself, braved the conditions so we headed to Richmond Park for a few laps. After a lap and a half my bike was handling like a drunk on ice and I was starting to stiffen up with damp so I headed home. In the end I was out for two hours and not much more than 46km on the road.

The handling I'll put down to me taking out the old Giant which is now my training/wet weather bike. I think that putting the original tyres back on may have been a mistake. They are bearable in the dry but absolutely pony in the wet. Having not used them in over a year I had somehow forgotten this. Which I shall remedy shortly by swapping them for the Bontrager ones on the Trek.

It's only about a month to the UK Etape and that reminder has made me fret that maybe I should step up proceedings with an additional session in the week. I've got the Highclere Sportif in a couple of weeks to target and work towards which is a good thing, but I need to get out at least one more evening of the week. I think I'll take the singlespeed to make sure I work hard in those sessions or the Merckx to get even happier with it.

Posted by Alex on 29 May 2007, 20:05 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

They say that rest is as important to good performance as putting in the "hard yards" or whatever you fancy calling it. If you train regularly then sometimes I think it's good to reward yourself with a bit of time off.

So I didn't get on the bike this weekend, nor did I do any bike maintenance or cleaning. Instead, on Saturday, I went for a long walk around the shops of Chiswick to pick up my new contact lenses, try some sunglasses and have an ice cream. A case of having the fish when you usually have the steak. Then on Sunday I went and did some music stuff with my mate Adam.

Why am I telling you this? Because I didn't miss the bike routine that much and now I'm itching to get back on and go - tomorrow is second race of the Hillingdon Tuesday night series and I'm feeling fresh and up for it. I've got my series number (46) and I'm going to try and do as many as I can as part of my season of racing and training for the sportives.

Unfortunately my shift patterns look likely to limit how many I can do but I'm going to be seeing who I can persuade to swap shifts with me so I can go every week. Last week was another DNF and another part of the learning curve - stop panicking and hanging out in the wind was the lesson.

But I'm not going to forego my customary optimism that I could still win this week's race. Yeah, I know, perhaps I should try and finish one first.

Posted by Alex on 23 April 2007, 20:04 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

Firstly, apologies for my absence over the last week or two. I've been moving house which means a lack of internet access and sleep. It has also meant a lack of hours on the bike which has been rather frustrating.

I was a bit daunted before the 2/3/4 race at Hillingdon on Saturday and after being lapped twice inside 15km I was feeling even worse. I could taste blood in my throat and had that horrible burning sensation that comes from over-exertion. I decided there was no point in killing myself out for three laps down and another DNF (they pull out the lapped riders with 5 to go).

In the end there was a little huddle of us Dynamo fourth cats by the start line as we discussed the relative kickings we had each received. Mine involved going well to start with until I was trying to move up and found myself being squeezed on the corner, leaving me no real option but to go "cross-country" and take to the grass verge. I tried to chase back on but the loss of momentum was all too much for me and I drifted until there was no point continuing the chase.

Cliff also found the grass while Jason, Matt and Mark also gamely hung on until they got lapped. It's all part of the learning experience but it was a painful one. Perhaps I'll stick to the straightforward 3/4 races until I start scoring some points (chance would be a fine thing).

Still Sunday was a better experience, despite the gusting winds trying to blow us all over the road in the Surrey Hills. Best bit: not struggling up hills as much as I usually do. Worst bit: the frankly unhelpful hail storm as we went up Box Hill.

I'll have to cut this short as I need to do some work. Once I have home access again life should be easier.

Posted by Alex on 19 March 2007, 15:03 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

Unless you are lucky enough to ride your bike professionally or can afford not to have to go to work, fitting in training can prove a real challenge. The more responsibilities you acquire, the harder it becomes to find the time. So, on a sliding scale, it's not as tough for a single chap like myself to find the time as it is for someone who is married with young children.

But, as I occasionally have to work weekends, there are times when I risk missing out on those vital pre-season hours on the bike. So yesterday I hauled myself out of bed and down to training before starting my shift. Turns out I'm starting to feel a bit stronger than last year thanks to the two months I've got under my belt so far. Heck, I can even contemplate making an atempt at sprinting.

I ended up leading a group for the first time, mostly made up of newer riders and those trying to get back to form, apart from Brendan who always seems to be in annoyingly good shape. I'm not sure it serves anyone well to have me trying to lead a through-and-off training drill but it turns out I had plenty enough lung for shouting instructions and pedalling at something between steady and medium.

It would have helped if Brendan hadn't decided we should chase down the mountain biker who came past us, squeaking away. Once we had let him go off and chase we regrouped and managed an fairly disciplined session, although I'm a bit worried that a couple dropped off before the end. We even caught Brendan on the final lap, although he was just pootling and waiting for us.

More importantly I felt like I was riding within myself at a pace I used to struggle with and that I could shift it up a gear when needed without being immediately on my limit. Which is good news for next weekend when there's the beginners' races on Sunday morning (see my previous post on it). Come and have a crack at it. Who knows, we might find ourselves going wheel-to-wheel in a sprint.

Posted by Alex on 18 February 2007, 15:02 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks ()

One of the things I've been really focusing on so far this year is my position on the bike. Not just the whole cyclefit experience of dimensions and angles but also the whole area of how I position myself when moving. Yes, a professional fitter can get you right relative to flexibility and various lengths but that is only the starting point. There's a whole bunch of other alignments to think about once you get in motion and it's these I've been working on getting right. This is my deeply unscientific approach which is based on my own experience rather than any coaching manual.

Shoulders
This is the one that I'm finding makes a real difference to how well I go up hills. I've been contrating on keeping them "low", which is to say relaxed and not pulled up and in towards the neck or towards the middle of the chest. Imagine drawing a line across your shoulders along the collarbone and another down your spine. It should form a T rather than a Y shape if you are riding relaxed.

Spine
As I've just mentioned this should form part of a T shape with your shoulders from head on. I think it's important to remember to extend the bottom of the T right down to the base of the spine where it meets the pelvis where you want an equally stable platform to drive the legs from.

That's from head on but with the spine I think it's also important to remember to keep it flat and neutral. If you get the chance to cycle past a mirrored surface it's a good opportunity to check that you aren't hunched over and that there is a nice clean line down the back rather than a curve.

I've been looking for a Youtube clip to illustrate it but I can't seem to find one that really does it. That said I've just wasted an hour or two watching the likes of Robert Millar, Lance Armstrong and so on belting up mountains so not a bad use of my time.

Posted by Alex on 12 February 2007, 11:02 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

Didn't enjoy today's training ride as much as I had hope. The pace was a bit on the quick side of steady for my liking and I found myself struggling a bit. Actually, I was struggling a lot, as much with frustration as with my lousy ability up hills. I guess I must have been lazier than I thought in October and November as there's no way I was this out of shape this time last year. Then again I did have probably a few more 50km rides under my belt from doing sessions in Richmond Park on my Tuesday day off.

Today was a nice late-January day: quite mild, a bit of a chill wind but nice enough in the sun. The group was about 16 and there were a fair number who were obviously used to a faster pace than we usually take. Certainly there were a few of us who found ourselves struggling in places to keep up, but mainly just me.

I've been trying to spin at a higher cadence recently, attempting to put out a cadence constanly above 80 and ideally between 90 and 100 revolutions per minute. The downside of this has been that my legs haven't quite adapted yet and I'm getting regular bouts of cramp after three hours or so. It also means I seem to be sweating like a leaky tap and getting through more fluid than usual which means that if the rate doesn't get me, the dehydration does.

Today the dehydration really took it's toll on me, to the extent I had to soft-pedal it all the way back from Esher to home with a stop in Hampton Court for a plum and two bottles of Lucozade from the shop.

By the time I got home I was fit for doing my stretches, ordering a pizza and slumping on the sofa for the rest of the day. which is exactly what I did. Oh well, I suppose it does get easier.

Posted by Alex on 28 January 2007, 22:01 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

As I've said before, I don't mind the rain and I can just about cope with the cold, but wind; well that's another matter entirely. I utterly detest it; much, much more than I hate hills, punctures and even forcing energy gels down my throat while trying not to gag.

So, having successfully avoided cycling in last week's gale-force winds, Sunday's continued blustery conditions were the sort of thing I don't usually look forward to. When you're riding in a gorup it's usually OK. You tuck in on someone's wheel, take your turn on the front when you can and generally get round with a bit of banter about the conditions. Everyone looks out for each other and it becomes a bearable experience.

Which is why it was realy blasted stupid of me to miss the meet for the 9am ride by getting out of bed late. I was only a bit late and thought I'd catch them before the possible route split, just past Ockham. As I turned off the road out of Cobham and down Ockham Lane I was certain I could see the blue, black and orange London Dynamo jerseys through the hedges. So I put my head down, got on the drops and put a bit of effort in to see if I could catch them.

About ten minutes later, and with them still not in sight, I noticed the sweat dripping off the peak of my cap as I powered weakly on into the constantly-changing headwind in an ever-changing gear. I kept on going past the possible split, guessing at what was probably the wrong way. When I finally sat up for a drink and some food I didn't feel so good.

I'd gone flat out for an hour and a half out trying to get to the meet and then catch the group. I was gasping for water, low on energy and a long way from home. So I made the decision to turn around and head back towards Richmond Park to put a few laps in. At which point the headwind turned against me again...

One of those days. Next week I'll probably remember to get out of bed on time, and I might have the new Merckx to take for a spin.

Posted by Alex on 22 January 2007, 23:01 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

The only way I'm going to pass people on hills is if they are walking, and even then it'll be a long, drawn-out affair. I'm stuck at the back on the January training rides and it's starting to annoy me. Actually, it's not even "the back" it's more "off the back and then a couple of hundred metres past the broom wagon".

Sunday was spent some way back, but not as far back as the week before, with Craig shepherding me round the Surrey Hills. Apparently I talk too much for someone who is struggling. While this is probably true, it does mean I'm not so cooked as to be in that horrible silent world of suffering that every cyclist discovers from time to time.

It's the one where all you can see is a small hazy spot of ashpalt creeping towards your front wheel, your ears feel like the whole world is trying to get through them and into your mushy brains and every other bodily function comes in uneven gasps of effort. That was the Sunday before that as Rusty and Paul humoured me as I suffered in the grim damp of the first long ride of the year.

Why is it so frustrating at the moment? Because I know that last summer I had got near to being able to stick with at least the back of the bunch up the hills and, in my mind at least, I can physically do it. The frustration springs from this disparity between my own expectations of how I should be going and the reality of what my body will allow.

When the former gets the better of me, which it frequently does, I stubbornly try to push on rather than sitting in and staying within my limits. See, I've still not learnt to obey the golden rule of the hills which is to ride within your limits, not everyone else's. And then I blow up again and spend the next couple of hours in misery...

Posted by Alex on 15 January 2007, 16:01 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

New year means new resolutions to train more and get in shape. So it was no massive surprise to find about 25 Londond Dynamo riders huddled on one side of Hampton Court Bridge for the Sunday club ride, the first one proper of the new year.

Grey skies, gusting winds and the knowledge that it had rained pretty much ceaselessly on Saturday were mixed in with the dread sense that it was time to confront "the winter spread" resulting from the off-season and Christmas. Those the were the things weighing on my mind, in particular the 7kg I want to shift as soon as possible, as we set off towards Esher. No sooner were we under way than we were stopped by the first of many punctures that would pepper the ride and gradually erode the group down to several smaller grupetto.

The first hill wasn't too bad (I think it was Whitedown Vale) and I managed to get up there in reasonable pace and shape after the group had been split into a steadier group and those who wanted to test their pace a bit. Guess which one I was at the back of?

By the time we got to the top we had been rejoined by the group who had stopped for the first puncture. And not just a puncture but also a broken saddle. I'll try and find a prize to give away to the first person who can reasonably explain how a 50kg rider can snap the rails on a saddle. It doesn't leave much hope for stouter cyclists if fetherweights can snap the blasted things.

From there on in things get confusing as the group got split at a couple of points and I got lost in my head due to lack of food. Then my hip seized up leaving me struggling round the rest of the ride. I did mean to write more about it and I shall do so at some other point. I've been rather knackered this week so it'll have to wait.

Posted by Alex on 10 January 2007, 00:01 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

I couldn't let myself reach Christmas without getting out into the Surrey Hills for the Sunday club ride so, on Christmas Eve, I dragged myself out of bed and down to Hampton Court Bridge to take a measure of my winter fitness with a bunch of the regulars. There's no need to guess how well it went...

My head was a little foggy from too little sleep but otherwise I didn't feel at all bad as I cruised down through the outskirts of Richmond and the centre of Kingston. I'd put on my trusty Ron Hill Bikesters against the cold and four layers (LS baselayer, Rapha jersey, LS winter jersey, gilet) on the top as well as knee warmers and overshoes and had plenty of food and water with me, knowing full well how much I suffer in winter with energy levels.

Surprise of the day was picking up Graeme on our way out through Esher, who had decided to bring his mountain bike along for something a little different. He was still quicker than almost all of us, much to our collective chagrin.

First stop of the day was for me getting a puncture just down the road from the Hautboy pub. When I checked the tube, on getting home, it turned out I'd managed to get two punctures in the one incident, possibly from rolling on the flat tyre. I've also got a nasty gouge from a flint which may warrant a replacement tyre.

Toby and I discussed who is going to bag which frame from Cyclefit's sale as I fixed the puncture. I think I may well grab the silver and black non-sloping Merckx, if it is still there and fits me. My plan is to build it up with a set of SRAM Rival, a reasonable spec of finishing kit and the Mavic Kysrium Equipe wheels I bought in the summer. And then to take it to the Tour Of Flanders sportif. After all, it would be fitting to ride a Belgian bike in the biggest event in the Belgian calendar.

I was feeling confident that I wouldn't struggle too much up the hills. Unfortunately I'd forgotten I've put on five kilos since the summer and promptly dropped off the back up Whitedown Vale before putting the weight to good use on the descent. I struggled a lot less on the bit out of the quaint village with a duckpond, the name of which I can never remember (it might be Shere) and stayed with it, just about.

Then I started to get a bit confused on our route round Leith Hill (not the tough side but still awkward) and fell behind. Further ignominy was to follow up Ranmoor Hill where I managed to fall over at slow speed. One of those ones where you lose concentration and drift with the camber until you are in the leaves and run-off. In dry weather I would have just given it a bit of power and got back onto the dcent surface but, with the wet leaf mulch, doing so just resulted in the back wheel sliding out and me toppling, like a falling tree, into the middle of the road.

At this point I really did think about packing it in but managed to struggle on to the top and then down to Box Hill. Going up seemed to take forever and my speedo check told me I was going considerably slower than usual. Luckily I made it as far as coffee and cake before I caved in.

Starting from cold after a cafe stop is always difficult, more so when it is cold and you are tired and sweaty. The run back was just a slog for me that passed in a blur of pain and gritted teeth. The top of my quad seized up again making the ride home agony.

Slumped in the bath for an hour, did some stretches and then decided "In the New Year, things will get back on track." As everyone does at this time of year.

Posted by Alex on 29 December 2006, 00:12 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

Yes, I enjoy riding in the rain usually but this weekend's torrential downpours were just a little beyond my abilities. When I looked out on Saturday the rain was clattering against my window and I headed back to the duvet without a second glance. Cowardly I know but sensible in other ways.

My hip and back are still giving me grief so I'm trying not to overdo it until I can get them looked at. On the plus side, I've managed to stop smoking again so the edge isn't going off my fitness as quickly. The commute in to work is seeming easier again too, if somewhat frustrating as I now do a rough figure of eight: I go in via Holland Park Drive and out via High Street Kensington.

The good news is that, thanks to some good dialogue with the Met on the part of Paul from London Dynamo, the whole brouhaha over speeding cyclists seem to have blown over for the moment. So next weekend I might be out again, or I might go racing at Hillingdon as the winter series begins and I quite fancy taking a tilt at it.

Posted by Alex on 27 November 2006, 00:11 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

"One more rider in the second group, it's not going to go too fast."

"OK, I'll go." I pipe up and set off for the toughest session in quite some time. I got hauled round on the first lap until I popped at the start of the second and dropped off the back. Now when I sit up it usually takes a few minutes for the next group to collect me, unfortunately not this time.

My brain is feeling like it's in a tumble dryer; the fact I'm not wearing my contact lenses is irrelevant as my vision has gone hazy; and my legs feel like they've been punched repeatedly. Now someone is shouting at me to get in amongst the wheels and I'm making all sorts of involuntary grunts and groans as I labour not to drop two groups in one sweep.

The person shouting at me is Guy Andrews, a familiar name to London cyclists as both a racer and a journalist. He's a very knowledgeable rider and if you ever have the pleasure to ride with him, listen to what he says. Several of the pieces of advice he gave me this morning have improved my riding immediately:

For the first time in an eternity I managed to make it round the traditional four laps of richmond Park without dropping back a group. Admittedly, I trundled into the car park a fair way back from the group after hitting my limit up the final uphill bump of the session but it still counts as an improvement.

I'm trying to get determined about giving up smoking again seeing as I've become a dreadful "occasional" smoker who sneaks a couple a day and a few when I'm out with friends. Unfortunately, until I can focus on my cycling goals, it's proving far more challenging than the last time. In part the problem is that I feel stronger than I did last time I gave up and so the desire to stop is weaker. I'm sure once I tuck into the training mentality again I'll find it easier. I'm going to give it a crack this week and see how I go.

After the ride there was the usual banter over coffee about goals for next year. I've laid mine out now and I think this will be my plan: Tour of Flanders 140km in April, Beaume de Venise (featuring Ventoux) in June, Etape in July as my distance challenges. Then Tuesday night series at Hillingdon as my weekly racing and Sunday Surrey Hills for training. I think that's plenty to be going on with for the moment.

Posted by Alex on 5 November 2006, 23:11 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks ()

With a sigh and a wince it was out the back again for me as I re-acquainted myself with Saturday morning training sessions in Richmond Park with London Dynamo, the club I am a member of.

I joined the supposedly "steady" last group who had overtaken the group in front within two laps at which point I came a little unstuck and came off the back. So I sat up and waited for the next group round to hitch my wheel to, which I did and happily made it to the end of the third lap before coming unstuck again and gently making my way round the remainder of lap four.

There's only really two rises in Richmond Park (going round anti-clockwise) of any note and I almost always struggle with them after a couple of laps. It's not that they are particularly hard or that I'm gasping and panting for air when I get to them. It's simply that weird sensation that when I need to put the extra power down it's just not there.

Perhaps it's a cumulative effect of lactic acid building up or maybe I'm just not very good at hills in my current state. I'm currently weighing about 75kg which I need to shift about 5 of over the winter to be at a half-decent weight for climbing properly and to improve my power/weight ratio which is the real key to it all. If I can shift the weight and maintain the same power I'll get considerably more bang for my buck.

Posted by Alex on 30 October 2006, 23:10 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

And also home of some bloody big hills which I have just about recovered from slogging up. I took no pictures as I was too busy trying not to be sick or pass out.

It's a lovely place to take a bike and next time I'll definitely be taking mine. My friend Alex, who I was staying with, had managed to commandeer me a mountain bike for our excursions but it felt very odd riding someone else's bike. That at least is the excuse I am giving for my lousy climbing and general lack of ability on the couple of rides we did.

On both days we got passed by local club riders pelting up the climbs on their lightweight road bikes as we laboured on clunky mountain bikes. More annoying was that we got passed by a couple of young lads of no more than 15, who made a point of shifting up and belting past us - two gone 30 blokes wheezing their way up the hill.

Posted by Alex on 20 September 2006, 22:09 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()

Sometimes it seems that injuries heal quicker if you don't stop riding. Or at least that has been the case this week with my a minor quad injury.

I tweaked something in the left side on last Sunday's training ride pushing a bit hard up a hill out of frustration - I was having a rubbish day and struggling to keep up - and thought I might have to resort to time off the bike. But, as it turned out, the injury was one of those that was more painful if I tried walking places than if I shifted down a couple of gears on the commute and tried to spin with minimal pressure on the muscle.

By the middle of the week it had almost cleared up so I have been able to start pushing my effort a bit again. Not too much but just enough to feel like I am making an effort.

Hopefully, if the weather is suitable, I'll be making my first effort at criterium racing tomorrow at Eastway. I'm fully prepared for being shelled out the back and suffering repeatedly for an hour and five laps. I've been told the pace should be fairly brisk and that I should concentrate hard on avoiding finding myself on the front.

At the same time I'm also really looking forward to it as it's a new challenge to fill the space left in my season after the Etape. I need something to keep me motivated as otherwise I tihnk I'd be slacking off and getting fat for winter. Not that I haven't got fat as it is - I've already put on a few kilos since the Etape and last time I weighed myself I was pushing 75kg, which is possibly on the heavy side for my height of 167cm.

Posted by Alex on 12 August 2006, 14:08 Digg this | Add to del.icio.us | Reddit | Newsvine | Facebook | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks ()