56

British XC Rd2

The week following on from Enduro 6 was a bit disappointing for me. I set aside a few days for recovery, but those few turned into 4 days as things cropped up that prevented me from training properly for a few days. I finally managed to turn the pedals in anger on the Friday, just in time to see if the legs were good for the weekend. Although they were feeling a little dead from the lack of riding the numbers coming back from the Powertap were looking quite positive, so I was sure that I had recovered well from the tough race at Enduro 6.

We travelled to Wasing Park on Saturday afternoon, we arrived and met up with Lee Williams and his family and Ben who was on site to help with mechanics for us both. I managed to get 3 practice laps in and a few things became very clear. This was not going to be a great course for me, the lap was short with no real technical sections and no long climbs, just a few short sharp blasts. After finishing the laps I was roped into doing the Short track team relay race which promised to be good fun. The idea was simple, a team of 4 each person doing 2 laps of a short (1-2 minute) course. Our team (Joolze Dymond’s All Stars) had a great start, leading as it came to me but I was overtaken on my lap and we went on to finish 2nd behind the XCRacer 29ers, with Lee Williams riding as a guest.

After a pretty good night sleep we arrived back on site in plenty of time. One last final check over the Focus Raven before the start, everything was looking good. Unlike the last race at Sherwood Forest I was on the front row of the grid, so I was hopeful of a good start and good finish. Things didn’t quite go to plan however as my start was terrible. Lots of people were coming past, but I was still within the top 15 or so. It took me at least half a lap to start moving forward through the field and I was gradually pulling back the group at the front. Going into lap 2 I was feeling far better and started closing the gap fairly quickly. Once I caught up it was evident that the pace was quite slow, too slow! There were long sections of singletrack where passing was impossible, but as soon as I was able to I pushed past most of the group and started to push the pace again. Lap 3 was quicker, and people were soon dropping off the back of the group. Into lap 3 there was now 3 of us with a small gap over the rest. Giles Drake, winner of Rd1 and Niall Frost who was racing against me at Enduro 6. Giles attacked on one of the short uphill sections and Niall was able to follow, but I didn’t have the extra burst of speed needed to go with them. I kept going at my own pace and managed to pull them back in.

I moved to the front on a short section of fireroad and managed to get a small gap on the twisty sections that followed, but we were back together for the start of the final lap. On the road leaving the arena Giles put in another attack, but I was again unable to follow and Niall stayed on my back wheel – deja vouz? I pushed hard to close the gap and on certain sections I managed to close the gap to 10 seconds or so, but it was going to be impossible to catch Giles. On the final fireroad I looked back and saw Niall still hanging onto my wheel, I knew right away that he would pass me as he is a far stronger rider than I am on the flat. Sure enough he came past me and I settled for 3rd place. Niall was just 3 seconds in front and Giles won with a 7 seconds gap to Niall.

The result was slightly frustrating as I had really hoped to better my previous result but on this course it was always going to be difficult. I don’t do any XC specific training such as anaerobic efforts, so I will always struggle in fast starts and I find it really hard to put in big efforts to close a gap or for a sprint. I could quite honestly have done another 3 similar laps, but once I am in a set rhythm I am unable to lift the pace. So that is probably the end of my XC racing season, the focus of my season from now on will be the endurance events. I initially entered the XC races for training but have really started to enjoy them so it is a shame that I am unable to finish the series.

Now I have less than 2 weeks to my biggest domestic race of the year, the UK 24hr Solo Championships. The entry list is a who’s who of endurance racing and there are at least 10 people who could walk away with the title. Obviously I hope that I will be one to take the title home and I have prepared for the event as best as possible. It would be nice to have another month or so to prepare, but I know that I am a leaner, faster and stronger racer than I was this time last year so my training is obviously going well.

55

Wiggle Enduro 6

My season so far has been going really well, much better than any previous race season. I have improved my speed, whilst also keeping hold of the endurance I have had in previous years. The difference in pace I put down to two major factors, loosing 5kg bodyweight and improving my power, which has been made possible thanks to using a Cyclops Powertap. After a few promising results in shorter events this weekend we headed to the Wiggle Enduro 6, my first targeted event of the year. First and foremost the race was going to be the final test event for the UK 24hr solo champs, now less than 3 weeks away. One final chance to test new bikes, kit and energy products. It was the first race where I was able to ride my new Focus First Extreme in full race mode, a massive chunk lighter than last years race winning bikes.

The big difference between Enduro 6 and other race is the Parc Ferme closed pit, which means that you have to pit to take on extra food, drink and deal with any problems that arrise. Taking a pit stop would cost roughly 1 minute, because of the distance you had to run with your bike. My original plan was to pit twice, roughly 2 and 4 hours.

The bad weather which was forecast held off and the race started on a dry track, much to my relief as I have ridden at Catton Park in the wet and it isn’t pleasant. I was anxious about the Le Mans style start as I have not been able to run for a few months due to an achilles injury which is still healing, thankfully it doesn’t affect my cycling at all but I didn’t want to provoke it during the run. When the race started my lack of running was very obvious and I came back into the arena well down the field, already over a minute down on the top few soloists. I pushed hard on the first lap, keen to minimise the time losses, but even so I was loosing time on Phil Morris and James Lister who were 1st and 2nd. I was settled in 3rd place with Niall Frost riding as my shadow in 4th. I know Niall pretty well, so we lapped together for a few laps, getting into a nice rhythm and even managed to chat as we went around.

Roughly 2 hours in, starting what must have been lap 5 the gap was 3 minutes to first and 1 minute 30 seconds to James Lister in 2nd. I decided to up the pace and try and close the gap, expecting it to take a few laps. To my amazement I had closed the gap to 20 seconds in just the first 10 minutes and then caught a glimpse of him in front. This spurred me on and I was on his back wheel within a few minutes, Niall was still with me so we briefly lapped as a group of 3 before Niall had a little spill on a loose corner. I was happy to settle onto James’ wheel, although a little slower than the pace I was going previously I used the time to recover from the big effort at the start of the lap. Coming into lap 6 Nia let me know that Phil Morris had taken his first pit stop and was now only 50 seconds ahead! No chance to ease up any more, I put the hammer down again determined to catch Phil as soon as possible, although I knew that I would need to pit myself soon. I managed to catch him half way into the lap, but as soon as I did Phil raised the pace so I had no chance to rest. We lapped together for the following lap and I made sure to take the lead, as I would have to pit at the end of the lap and didn’t want Phil to gain anything. I also decided to change from my orignal 2 pit stop plan and try and get by with just 1 stop. After my pit stop to take on much needed fluids, High5 Extreme and Torq Banoffee gels I was again 50 seconds behind. Another hard effort was needed to get back in touch, but that came soon enough as I caught up in less than half a lap. I guess that Phil was started to suffer, so I just settled into a quick, but sustainable pace as I still had 2.5 hrs to go.

Lap by lap I kept it going and I was slowly pulling out a good lead, going into the last lap the lead was comfortable, but I was feeling fine so just kept pushing to the finish and went on to win by over 20 minutes. Phil held on to 2nd place and Niall recovered from his spill to finish 3rd.

I used my new Garmin Edge 500 to capture all the details from the ride, I have uploaded the file to my Garmin Connect account for anyone to see here.

My result rounded off a top weekend for Wiggle riders with Lee Williams and Ben Simmons winning the Male Pairs and Lee also took the win night time trial. With several Wiggle staff also at the event, taking part in their own challenge it made for a fantastic event and the constant cheers as I was going around really spurred me on. Now the most important thing for me to do is recover, as I have a National XC series race next weekend, which will be my final race before beginning my taper for the UK 24hr Championships, being held in Newcastleton on May 22/23rd.

54

Racing Success

The past few weeks have been extremely busy with several hard weeks of training and racing. At times I really started to wonder if I was doing too much and struggled to find a balance with work, training and life in general. I am very lucky that Nia is very supportive and understanding of my training and racing. Without her I simply wouldn’t be able to do the volume of training needed to succeed.

A few weekends ago I entered both events at the Builth Spring Marathon on board my brand new Focus First Extreme.

First up was the Exposure Lights Big Night Out, a 40km enduro over the moorlands around Builth. Several very quick riders were riding including Nick Craig and Jonathan Pugh. While they battled it out for first place I decided to take it steady and not go crazy because I wanted to give it everything in the longer event the next day. I finished in 7th place in a time of 1hr 50min which I was quite happy with. The following morning I did the 70km marathon, held on similar terrain and with much the same competition with a few extra quick riders thrown into the mix. I kept my pace steady all the way and felt good to the finish where I came back in 5th place. Only a few minutes separated places 2-5, with Nick Craig the winner 9 minutes in front of me. Doing the both events in a short space of time was great training and I was really pleased with how both days went.

During the following week I had a really tough training week planned with a couple of longer rides with very hard intervals included. The next few weeks are really crucial as they are the final few weeks where I can gain fitness before starting to taper for UK24hr which is approaching with alarming speed!

Last Saturday I entered the European Single Speed Championships, held in the Forest of Dean. I’ve always enjoyed riding a single speed so I was keen to enter when it was so close to home. I had no real aspirations, I was there more to enjoy the atmosphere and catch up with friends, but obviously would give it my best shot. I wasn’t quite prepared for the length of the race though, as we were informed that the course would be 4 laps of an 8 mile course. Normally I’d be fine with that, but I only had a single Torq gel and 500ml of High5 Extreme as I was expecting a 90 minute blast! I had converted my 2009 Focus Raven to single speed, although it hasn’t had much use recently I knew it would be the perfect bike for the job.

The start itself was typical of single speed races, a mad dash run to grab your bike – which is usually moved from where you left it, before spinning away as fast as your legs can pedal. I didn’t get a great start, by the time I got my bike I was about 30 seconds down on the lead group of 5-6 riders who had immediately formed a pack. I spent the first half of the lap slowly closing the gap on the lead group, but somehow they all missed a turn which put me straight into the lead. The lead riders were already back on track and chasing me down so I pushed on as hard as possible to try and keep the lead. I looked back every now and again and seemed to be gaining on the riders behind so considering the length of the race I eased up slightly and found a nice tempo that I felt I could sustain. The lap was really tough with punishing climbs which were a challenge on my 32:16 gear and with rooted, bumpy descents which gave the upper body a real battering. At no point during the race did I know what the time gap was to the riders behind so I just kept pushing on. Luckily at the start of lap 4 someone was able to pass me a bottle of water which I really needed as I felt like I was starting to dehydrate. It wasn’t until the final lap that I started to think that I could win, as I was convinced that some of the quick riders behind would catch me but I managed to keep going to the end and win the race by a very comfortable margin. European Champion!

No rest for me though! I didn’t feel too tired afterwards so decided that I would continue with my plan to enter the Midlands XC the following day. After a night in my 2XU recovery tights I woke up on Sunday feeling OK, but after the 3 hour drive to the venue my legs were feeling quite stiff. After a practice lap on the Focus Raven (with gears today!) I still didn’t feel 100% so I was just going to see what they had left. I was in the Expert category race, but we started at the same time as the Elites. When the whistle went I immediately jumped off the front row of experts and tagged onto the back of the Elites. I was happy to stay there, but several Expert riders decided to push past and try and get into a better position, this pushed me right down the field come the start of the first uphill section.

My legs didn’t respond immediately, but towards the top of the climb I started passing riders and very slowly picked off riders as I attempted to get back in touch with the leaders. By the end of lap 2 I managed to get onto the back of a train of 7-8 riders, which I assumed included the race lead. Going up the climb at the start of lap 3 my legs felt good so I jumped from the back to the front and pushed on. Some riders stayed close, but I manage to drop several others. Towards the end of the lap a rider came past on a twisty singletrack section and really pushed hard. I struggled to stick with him and had to put a big effort in, but stuck with him until the start of lap 4 when I found out he was an Elite rider and I was leading the Expert field. I soon past the elite rider but then decided to ease up slightly to save something for the final lap. This proved to a bit of a mistake as Giles Drake passed me halfway into the lap and I didn’t have the punch of speed needed to stay with him. Going into the final lap I was 20-30 seconds down and hopeful that I could make it up on the climb, but it didn’t happen. A made a silly mistake on a loose corner and came off the bike. I panicked and started riding really badly.

I didn’t expect to see Giles again but with a few km’s to go I caught glimpse and gave chase. I caught up fairly quickly, but then as I was about to pass a lapped rider I caught my pedal on a tree stump and went over the bars. I got back on a quickly as possible and started chasing, but there wasn’t enough distance left and I finished in 2nd place just 15 seconds down, still a very good result considering that XC racing is not something I train for, but I am really enjoying it and love riding the new Focus Raven.

The weekend was extremely successful in terms of results but also it gave me two very hard training sessions from which I can build. Next up for me is Enduro 6 where I will be racing in the solo 6hr category. The UK24hr solo champs is also fast approaching which is my major domestic race this year, it looks set to be a classic with an extremely talented field of riders.

53

Epic Road Rides & XC Racing

On March 21st I did something I had been wanting to do for a long time; ride the length of Wales non-stop. I decided that I would undertake the challenge in aid of Sport Relief. I didn’t have the luxury of a time window; I would have to complete the ride whatever the weather conditions. During the build up in the week before the forecasts were changeable apart from one aspect which looked certain, I would be battling against a headwind.

On Saturday evening I headed up to Holyhead with Nia and her father who would be my back-up and also drive the car home. The plan was pretty simple, starting at 5am I’d leave Holyhead along a route I picked myself with 3 checkpoints along the way to refuel. I used Memory Map to plan the route, which I then put onto my Garmin Edge 705 to keep me on track, the total distance came out at 205 miles.

I was feeling very nervous before starting, just like I get before big races. I think it was partly because I didn’t know what to expect, but also partly because I didn’t want to let anyone down who had supported by donating money. When planning the ride I thought a 12hr time would be possible, but only with a tailwind. With the headwind forecast I was hoping for somewhere around 13-14 hours.

Right on time, 5am Sunday morning I left Holyhead, starting from the port gates. The first hour and a bit were in darkness, so I used my Exposure Strata light to keep the way ahead well lit. Time flew by pretty quickly and as dawn was breaking I was on main land Wales heading to Caernarfon. From here I took the scenic route through Snowdonia to the first checkpoint just under 50 miles in. I was feeling fine by this point so just grabbed some Torq bars and gels quickly and kept plodding on.

The route was very hilly to the 100 mile mark, but even so I came in feeling fresh and then hit a strong wind which seemed to last forever as I slowly climbed up to Llangurig. From here on the going was slightly easier and I was making good time. The worst part came 160 miles into the ride as I climbed to Storey Arms in the Brecon Beacons, a 6 mile climb taking me to the highest point of the route. From here on it seemed like it was downhill all the way I was flying and feeling great. I rolled into Cardiff Bay to finish my epic ride in a total time of 11 hours 44 minutes. Much faster than I had hoped for and equated to an average speed of 17.4 mph.

I’d like to say a really massive thank you to everyone who has supported my ride by donating money to Sport Relief. So far I have raised over £750 for the good causes they support both in the UK and abroad. People can still donate if they would like, just visit my Sport Relief web page.

The following week I was unsurprising fatigued. I was both mentally and physically drained and wasn’t able to ride on the Monday or Tuesday after. I did a 2hr recovery ride on the Wednesday, but even that left me shattered. I was starting to wonder if the National XC race at Sherwood on the weekend was going to be a waste of time. On Thursday I was very exited to receive my new Focus Raven MTB which will be my XC racing bike and also used for training. I spent all of Thursday building it up so was unable to ride again. I was starting to feel a little better on Friday and managed a couple of easy hours with 20 minutes at a good pace to test the legs.

On Saturday we travelled up to Sherwood Forest to the venue for the first round of the National XC series, which I was quite exited about but also very unsure about how the legs would be. I have not had a racing licence for 3 years so it was good to be back racing in Expert category, even if I would have to start from the back of the grid! In my mind I was hopeful of a top 10 as this would mean I’ll get a better grid position for round 2. Ben had come up from Wiggle to support myself and Lee Williams and he gave the bikes a final check and a few little mechanic tricks to make the bikes super fast.

Race time on Sunday soon came and I was number 38th on the grid with a total field of 46 this meant I was on the 4th row – a long way back! From previous races I have done here and my practice laps on Saturday I knew the start of the race was crucial as there are very few overtaking opportunities once riders hit the first singletrack. The gun sounded at 12.30 and we were off! The start was manic but I kept my head on the first few corners, a crash here and it would be race over. The first long fireroad drag was going to be the only chance to overtake and try and get into a good position. I stayed below threshold towards the bottom and then put a big effort as we crested the hill, but I was still a very long way down. Queues were already forming and I had to stop a few times as everyone ground to a halt. I past Nia in the pit area after 2km and she told me I was in 16th position – not too bad. I kept the power down and was picking riders off wherever possible but getting held up badly on the long singletrack sections.

By the time I came round to Nia on the 2nd lap I was up into 8th position! I was really happy as top 10 was the aim and seemed achievable. The legs were feeling OK as well which made things even better, although I was having to put in massive efforts at times to get past riders. Lap 3 and I was up to 7th and able to see some riders ahead that I knew were very quick. Somehow come the 4th lap I was up into 4th position; I have no idea how! This really spurred me on as I knew that a podium position was only 1 rider away. By this time I didn’t have a clue what category riders ahead were in as I was passing slower Elite riders and also lapping Sport riders. All I could do was keep the power down and hope that I’d be able to chase down some Expert category riders. Coming into the 5th and final lap I could feel my legs were starting to go and my quads were showing signs of cramp on big efforts. I also found out that I was in 3rd position and I was able to see 2nd position just ahead of me. For the first half I was pushing really hard and seemed to be slowly closing the gap. I was also constantly checking behind to see where the 4th place rider was behind. In the second half of the lap my legs were starting to scream! To make it even worse 4th place was closing down very quickly and I wasn’t sure if I would be able to hold him off. With 1km to go I knew I wouldn’t be able to catch 2nd and with only 10-15 seconds to 4th behind it was going to be a tight finish. Second by second I kept hammering down on the pedals, just about holding the gap. Coming into the finishing straight I put everything into it and crossed the line to take 3rd place.

I exceeded all of my wildest expectations and this is my best ever XC race and my first ever XC podium. This is after a massive ride the week before, without any XC specific training and a back row grid slot. I wonder what would have been possible with a front row position as I know I lost over 30 seconds to the winner on lap 1 and the big power efforts when overtaking really take their toll. Obviously I am over the moon and it is proof that training is working. I can honestly say that I the biggest difference is using a Powertap when training and having a coach that really understands how to train with one. I also can’t say enough good things about the new Focus Raven either, it was simply awesome! The perfect XC race bike in every way; stiff when you put the power down but also very comfortable. When riding the bumpy singletrack I was able to stay in the saddle when other hardtail riders around me were getting bounced around. The race was only my second ride on it, but right from the first second I felt comfortable riding it.

I have a break from events over Easter, but have a double whammy the following week with the Exposure Lights Big Night Out and then a 70km enduro the following day. The next big race for me comes in May at Enduro 6 which is my big test ride for the UK 24hr Champs.

52

The Season Begins!

Over the past few weeks my racing season has finally kicked off and it has been a very busy start with 3 events in 3 weeks. It’s also the time of year when I start putting more intensity into my training and for me there is no better training session than a flat out race!

First up was a Sportif ride called the Dafodil classic, a nice 46 mile route around the South West Wales hills. Starting from Pendine right at the bottom of a long, steep climb it really set the scene for the route which had plenty of tough climbs packed in. I started off steady, but after about 10 miles I put a big effort in and bridged a gap to the leading 5 riders which included some quick local road racers. We rode as a group to the finish despite a few digs from a couple of riders and finished in 2hrs 12min. I felt strong at the finish and I was climbing far better than last year.

Then the following weekend I entered the Mawddach Goldrush MTB enduro, held at Coed Y Brenin with a course based on the Tarw trail. I entered this event last year and it proved to be a great event for the start of the season. Last years winner Jonathan Pugh was back to defend his title along with several other very quick XC riders. I had high hopes of a good result and was really looking forward to the event, but the event didn’t exactly go smoothly. I started well and was just off the front group of 3, but the course markings and marshaling was extremely poor. What should have been an 8 mile loop turned out to be 16 miles because of the wrong turns we all made. Because of the mess up with the route the results have been split into 2 sections, so its almost impossible to compare against everyone. Officially I finished 2nd, behind the winner Jonathan Pugh in the 3 lap results, but in reality I probably would have finished 4th overall as I was battling with another 2 riders who were both really quick and just had the edge over me.

After the disappointment of the Goldrush I decided to enter another race the following weekend, with two XC races to choose from, both miles away from home I decided to travel to Slough to race in the Black Park XC race. My main reason for entering was the competition in the Expert/Elite cat, George Budd & Ian Leitch. I raced George a few times last year so I could hopefully gauge myself him and Ian is without doubt going to be a real contender at the UK 24hr champs. I really wanted to know first hand how quick he was. We reached the venue with just enough time for a practice lap and thank goodness I got that lap in! The course was the total opposite to what I am used to, but a hoot to race on. Flat, fast, narrow, rooty and twisty! With 4 elite category racers in the field, among them Jody Crawford I knew that I was up against some real talent.

The start was really fast and after short fireroad we were into the singletrack where I was in about 7th position. I pushed as hard as I could, but it was evident that I was lacking some top end power compared to the other riders. The course was very stop-start and I wasn’t able to match the turn of pace. I was also really struggling over the rooty singletrack, not a terrain I get to ride much around here. I managed to hold a fair gap on the first lap, but I was loosing ground all the time to the top guys. On the second lap I moved into 6th position and that is where I stayed throughout the race. It was a shame that I wasn’t able to keep up with Ian, as I really wanted to be able to race with him but I was happy with everything else about the race, especially my pacing. I was flat out from start to finish, but over the 8 laps there was only 13 seconds between my fastest and slowest lap times! There are certainly things I need to improve on if I want to do well at XC races, but its not my main priority this year.

I have no break for another few weeks as this weekend I am doing my Wales Coast to Coast ride for Sport Relief. I’ve mapped the route at 205 miles, which is much more than I’ve ridden on the road bike in one go before. Anyone wanting to sponsor me can do so by visiting my Sport Relief page

Nia will be updating my Twitter during the ride, so people can keep track of how well I’m going on the day. The following weekend I have entered the first round of the British XC series at Sherwood Pines. It should prove to be another tough race, although I will be gridded at the back of the Expert category race. I know from last years race that I will struggle to get through the pack to get a top result, but the whole point of doing the XC races is to give myself a workout and I am sure it will be perfect for that.

51

Training Improvements

Things seem to be ticking along quite nicely at the moment. The improvement in weather and noticeably longer days are really making a difference. My motivation is high as I have my eyes on the UK 24hr Solo Championships, being held in May. It is a really big race for me as not only is it a chance to prove myself against the very best in the country it is also the best means of getting a ranking spot for the World Championships in Australia later in the year.

This year I have given myself several training goals, such as improving power and efficiency but also to reduce my body weight. I can’t say that I have been particularly heavy over the last few years, but there is some excess weight that could be shifted. This showed up on a DEXA body fat scan I had done last September at Aberystwyth University, who have state of the art Sports Science facilities. Back then I was at a peak weight and from then up until Christmas I just tried to maintain my weight and not gain too much over the holiday season.

Since the New Year I have made a real effort to bring my weight down and it is working well. I have done simple things like cutting a few foods out of my diet; alcohol, ice cream and little things like not adding sugar to hot drinks. I have also starting taking Torq raw L-Carnitine which is supposed to help burn extra fat when exercising. Everything is working well as I returned to Aberystwyth University this week to get another DEXA scan and retest my power output. The major news is that I have dropped 3.8kg and 4% body fat. The DEXA scan is really the ultimate when it comes to body analysis; a series of very low dose x-rays to measure bone, muscle and fat densities on the body.

The benefit is that you can see exactly where the weight is on the body and also make sure that no muscle loss is happening. I also had a ramp test with full breathe analysis and I have also seen an increase in my relative VO2 max, so its all good news. I’m now lighter and powerful than I was at Mountain Mayhem last year – a good sign of what is to come I hope.

This time of year is also very exiting as the new season products start coming through. This year I am extremely lucky as I have a number of companies who are supporting me. To help my training I have been provided with a Cyclops Powertap SL wheel system and PT300 indoor bike. Moving to train by power was a big learning curve but it has had a very positive impact and I really would not want to train any other way. Time will tell if it is making me quicker, but I think I know what the answer will be!

I have been using Crank Brothers eggbeater pedals for a number of years and really love the way they work predictably in all conditions. During 2010 I will be using Crank Brothers Eggbeater 4ti pedals on my Focus First Extreme race bike, Eggbeater SL on my Focus Raven training bike and Candy SL on my Verenti road bike.

Nutritional products are very important to me, especially at this time of year when the training loads are at their highest. I am very lucky to have support from both High5 and Torq. Certain products such as energy drink are very personal, so I am pleased that I can stick with something that really works well for me; High5 Energy Source 4:1.

Over the next few weeks the events season starts for me, although the early races will be used as training for the UK 24hr Champs. First up is a road sportive called the Daffodil Classic and the following weekend I will be entering the Mawddach Gold Rush, which is the first MTB race. Later in March I will be undertaking a charity ride for Sport relief, riding from Holyhead to Cardiff.

Anyone wanting to keep up to date on my day to day training and racing can follow me on Twitter.

50

Wales Cycle Challenge

Wales Cycle Challenge

On March 21st I will cycle solo and non-stop from Holyhead to Cardiff for Sport Relief. Riding the full length of Wales, a total of over 200 miles over hilly terrain. I have never cycled that far on the road before, so it will be a new experience for me.

Setting off very early on the Sunday morning from Holyhead I will head across the Menai Bridge before riding through Snowdonia and going on to cycle through the heart of the country, hopefully finishing in Cardiff while it is still daylight.

I have chosen to ride for Sport Relief because of the incredible work they do at both a local, national and international level.

If anyone would like to donate and support my ride, please visit my Sport Relief page.

Someone will also be updating my Twitter page through the ride, so to keep up to date, visit my Twitter.

49

A Busy Few Weeks

The last few weeks have been fairly busy, although I’ve not had any races my training has been improving and various other events have kept me occupied. The majority of the snow dumped around Christmas finally thawed out mid-January which meant I could finally get back on the road bike and start getting some serious training done. Up until the thaw all I was able to do was get on the Raven MTB with Schwalbe snow stud tyres and ride around the back roads. I wasn’t able to add any structure to the training which was very frustrating.

After such a long spell off the road bike I was seriously motivated and have put in a couple of big training weeks. One of the major benefits of the Powertap hub I am using is that you can keep a very close check on effort and the intensity of rides, which helps with future training plans and also should help prevent any possible over-training which is very possible as such an early point in the year.

We moved house (again!) and the change has been very positive. We have moved to a great house in a superb location, although not that far from where we were before. The Mountain Biking is not quite as close as before, but just 2 miles along the road gets me to the best local riding and much more on offer to create longer rides. The road riding however is the real gem, with quiet rural roads heading out in every direction offering plenty of harder and easier routes.

To allow us to complete the house move and also to get a big training week in I took a week off work and kept my fingers firmly crossed that the weather would hold out. Thankfully the weather played ball, and although it was cold all week it stayed dry on all but one day. I’ve not ridden many rides further than 40-50 miles recently, so I was keen to prove to myself that I still have the endurance to stay in the saddle for long periods. I planned my week to include 3 separate 100+ mile rides, which would hopefully be a big boost for both my fitness and my confidence. With the week now complete I am really pleased to have completed all 3 rides, each with over 2000m of climbing. The final ride was on a really windy day and really took it out of me, but I am very pleased with how it all went.

On Wednesday I attended the Carmarthenshire Sports Awards, as I was one of 3 people who had been short-listed in the Sports Personality award. I was very honoured to be nominated, especially against such prolific athletes: David Greene, International 400m hurdler and Mike Phillips, Wales and British Lions Rugby player. I didn’t win the award, but had a great night and enjoyed the experience.

To end a very busy week I travelled to Cannock on the weekend to meet and ride with DH legend Steve Peat, as the final part of the prize for winning the Garmin Academy competition way back at BikeRadar Live last May. Steve himself was a true gent and every bit as nice as people have said. He spent all day with us, doing some riding and a bit of technical coaching. I had a great weekend riding and came away a better rider.

Moving into the next few weeks I am hoping to mix a few more longer rides while also starting some more intensive sessions done. But as I am writing this we have a fresh dump of the white stuff which may cause a few more problems!

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Winter Blues

After writing my last blog, mid-December things were all looking good. Training was going well and I had just won a round of the Welsh CX series, which was a surprise. But things never go smoothly do they!

The spell of cold weather we are having seems to have been going on for ages and living in rural Wales the temperature and conditions have been worse than many areas. Temperatures have been down to -8 and only the major roads are remotely safe to ride on. On a very cold early morning ride the week before Christmas I came off my road bike on the ice. Thankfully I didn’t hurt myself too much, but I did bruise my knee and hurt my thumb which is still sore! I took a few days off training to recover and also lost confidence in riding the smaller (and far more enjoyable!) roads around the area. Just as I was back training I had another slip on the ice when walking and strained the same knee I injured before. Another few days off the bike!

Christmas was really enjoyable, but the weather put a stop to any plans for festive road rides. I was really starting to get frustrated with the lack of training that was going on! To make things even worse I picked up a cold in the days after Christmas which made its way to my chest and again kept me from training!

I had pre-entered the Salisbury Winter Challenge, but after the rubbish weeks leading up to the event and still hanging onto a cough and bad chest I was undecided about entering. I finally decided to do it in the days before in the hope it would be a kick start to the new year and my training.
The journey to Erlestoke where the race starts meant an early morning start and with temperatures below zero I knew it was going to be a cold event. I had decided to race on my Focus Mares Cyclo-cross bike for a few different reasons. I had been riding it more than my MTBs recently, so I felt good riding it. I also knew that although there were technical sections on the whole it was an non-technical event with a fair amount of road, where I hoped the Mares would be an advantage. I wrapped up warm for the race, with dhb Merston tights, Earnley base layer and dhb Rogate top with the temperature just getting above freezing.

In the pre-race briefing we were warned of the icy conditions and this was immediately evident on the first climb after the start where the back roads were covered in a layer of frost and ice. I tried to ease myself into the pace at the start, but several quick riders were here and with a long climb I didn’t want to loose touch so had to push hard. I stayed within the top 10-15 on the first climb with a large group forming at the front. As soon as things turned off-road onto frozen grass and mud the advantages of a cyclo-cross bike were clear as I soon made up time and passed a few riders. It was a little different on the bumpy descents, but I didn’t loose too much time and managed to stick with the same group of riders. I had a small tumble on a section of frozen tank tracks and also stopped to take off my skull cap. The high intensity of the race meant I was overheating, both these lost me time and I had to work hard to try and get back in touch. On a very long section of road I was working well with another rider on a cyclo-cross bike and we managed to pass a few riders. Only one managed to stick our pace and that was Ant White, a rider who I am more than familiar with!

We stuck together as a group of 3 for a while, but on a short climb it was just down to myself and Ant. I was pushing hard on the front trying to catch 3 riders who were still ahead. After a while I caught a glimpse of a rider ahead and it didn’t take too long to catch him up and he tucked in behind. On another climb I put in an effort and managed to put a small gap onto the other 2, although this was wiped out as soon as we went off road where the MTBs had the advantage over the bumpy, ice strewn tracks. I managed to stay close and we push on together and soon glimpsed 2nd place rider ahead. Another climb, another big effort! I caught 2nd and gapped 3rd. It didn’t last too long as we came to a long downhill road where we were warned of the ice on the way down. I was still nervous of ice from my fall before Christmas and was taking it really easy. The rider in 4th was not easing up at all though and caught and passed us both – ballsy stuff!

Next came the final climb, which was a long one and the steepest climb of the course. The Mares was over-geared compared to the MTBs and although I got up OK I lost a heap of time and was caught and passed by Anthony White to put me in 5th. There was very little distance left to the finish and I knew a big part of it would be the final descent. It soon came and there was a gap of around 30 seconds to 2/3rd and 15 seconds to Ant. I pushed as hard as I dare, but in reality there was no chance as the descent was bumpy and steep in places making it a challenge to get down, let alone catch a skilled rider on a MTB. In the finish there was just over a minute separating 2nd to 6th and I kept hold of 5th position.

I’m pretty happy with that considering how bad the last few weeks have been. I certainly didn’t feel anywhere near my best, so hopefully I will be able to train well over the next weeks and months and really build upon my fitness. I’ve got no big races planned until March, so it will be a case of training hard and getting the miles in!

End of Season Lowdown with Team Wiggle

Our Team Wiggle athletes have had a cracking year, standing atop rostrums the world over in road racing, mountain biking and triathlon. Before they put their feet up for the festive break, we caught up with them all as they reflect on 2009 and look ahead to 2010. Pro mountain biker Matt Page had a dream year, winning his target race and proposing to his girlfriend on the finish line…

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Team Wiggle 2009 Highlights

Q. Looking back on your 2009 season, are you pleased with how it went?

A. My major goal was to win Mountain Mayhem, so having won that race I am really happy with the season as a whole. I had a few disappointing races where I had niggling injuries or illness, but equally I won events that I didn’t even plan to enter which was a nice bonus.

Q. What was the highlight of your year?

A. Without a doubt, crossing the finishing line at Mountain Mayhem to win the event and propose to Nia.

Q. What was the funniest moment of your season?
Perhaps beating Steve Peat (Downhill World Champion) in a downhill race (of sorts) at BikeRadar LIVE. It bagged me a nice prize, part of which is a weekend riding with the man himself, scheduled for January.

Q. What was the most important lesson you learnt?

A. Not to put everything into a single event. Having won Mayhem in June, I struggled at times afterwards as I had already hit my season goals.

Q. What are your plans for winter training? How’s it going so far?
I always struggle through the winter and this year has been no different with some big ups and downs, but the past few weeks have been excellent and I have started racing cyclo-cross and have even won a round of the Welsh CX series.

Q. What does 2010 have in store for you? What are your major races going to be?

A. Next year I take my racing overseas for the first time in an attempt to take on the best riders in the world. My major races will be the 24hr UK Solo Championships in May and the 24hr Solo World Championships to be held in Canberra, Australia, in October. I will also be doing a number of UK marathon events including the Enduro 6, British Marathon Championships and the Kielder 100 mile.

Matt says:

“Both of these photos are from Mayhem. One reminds me of the pain while going up the dreaded “Kenda Climb”. It was taken at some point during the Sunday morning so the pain on my face is very real, having completed 20+ laps. The second picture was taken as I crossed the finish line in tears, half pain/half elation about winning and the thought of proposing!”