Exmoor Coastal Trail Series 2017 - Event Review

"I'm not quite the sadistic person to organise that journey, but you have a very twisted sense of humour!"


I can confirm that the classification by EnduranceLife of the Exmoor Coastal Trail Series run as 'Extreme' is an accurate representation of the terrain that we ran over last weekend! 1,300ft of elevation gain on the 10km route (that was actually 11.4km!) certainly tested the legs in more ways that they have been tested in recent months, but the main concern for the day (the weather - after hearing how good it had been for the last couple of years) was definitely not something to spoil the day, the glorious sunshine certainly showed off the best of the stunning landscape that we ran through…

The first challenge of the day was to navigate our way from where we stayed in Combe Martin, over to Hunters Inn where the start was - narrow country roads with runners crossing at several points made it interesting to get there, and that was before we had to get to the car park, but I'll leave the car park details until the end of the race! Once at the start/registration it was a nice simple case of getting your race number, and t-shirt before making sure everything was sorted and listening to all the dogs at the start having a bit of a chat - most of them had the right idea and wouldn't be joining us on the run, but there were still a couple more apart from our two who were coming on the climb up and down the coastal trails.

One disadvantage of running with the dogs is the fact that you end up having to start at the back of the bunch at the start, and as the first mile included a couple of pinch points where nearly everyone slowed to a walk or complete stop this meant that you couldn't always get into a rhythm of running (or if you had tried you'd have probably taken out half the other people around you with the lead!) and so when the route ramped up on a number of switchbacks we were well and truly in-amongst the largest group of the 10km race. At this point I would like to say that I lightly jogged my way consistently up the footpath without needing to walk, however the punishing 10% average gradient meant that I was also slowed to a walk from around halfway up just like nearly everyone else - save the real fast individuals!

Once you got to the top of the first climb (which must have accounted for at least half the total elevation gain) the views definitely made it worth it - deep blue sea and clear blue sky, and gorse all along the coastal path did make me want to stop to take a quick snap more than once but I was there to run wasn't it?! The next few miles were along the edge of the cliffs (luckily for me concentrating on was going on ahead rather than how far down it was) and the pace always following a similar pattern of getting to a decent jog when on the flat and then having to slow to a walk up any inclines where those at the front of the group did and there being no space to pass.

One problem with the 10km not starting until 11am was that the heat was already starting to take its toll within the first few miles, Leia was running along in any shade she could with her tongue out trying to capture any dew that was still lingering and any puddles or small streams we came across I was stopping to let her dunk her paws and get a bit of a drink, and Ali was having the same with Chewy. I'd like to say thanks to the lady who was running with her dog Sammy who was kind enough to let both our dogs drain her water bowl when she'd stopped running to let her dog drink from - although both the dogs were getting some water on the run they were definitely exceedingly grateful for the bowlful of clean water!

As we ran further along the coast the path widened out, meaning that Ali was able to join back up with me after getting stuck back in the chain of people winding their way up the paths, it also meant that other runners were able to get past us every time we stopped at a bit of water for the dogs! Several muddy puddles later after the dogs had taken on more liquid we turned left to a narrow track through the heather up to the highest point of the course - this wasn't anywhere near as steep as the initial climb but you can be sure that it still sapped a large amount of energy from the legs and there were a number of people who ended up walking this bit. The cruellest thing was that the event photographer was happily stood at the top of the climb (where great photos were being taken) so you then had to put on a jog to ensure that the one of you round the course didn't make it look like you walked the whole way!

After a short, not overly steep but very uneven decent we were at the one drink station for our route, a quick drink of water and the offer of drenching the dog with a watering can (I don't think the stewards expected me to take them up on it!) and we were back off on the last part of the course and it was downhill pretty much all the way. This, however, was probably harder work than the uphill part of the route as the dogs were refreshed and up to pace again which is really very tricky to control down gradients over 10% with tree roots and alike sticking out all over the place!

Any of the places we had made up on the last few bits of climbing were quite quickly taken back by other runners as we were forced to take it a bit easier making sure we had control, and Chewy deciding that she was going to take a toilet break halfway down (therefore meaning that we needed to stop to clear up after her!) One of the guys who I passed up to the final high point on the course had actually asked "when does it get a pain in the arse running with the dogs?" so when he passed us as Ali was clearing up after Chewy I made sure to point out that this was one of those points when it's that pain in the arse!!

The trail continued down through the forest which was very welcome after the continuous sun and heat of the moorland, and we were very quickly back down to the river level where we had started and on the final section that was along one of the lanes we had driven in on. One dodged post can later and we were rounding the final couple of corners to the finish... At this point Ali decided to announce that she still had the energy to sprint for the line, i was pretty dead on my feet, so luckily for me Leia decided to cross over into Ali's path and muck up her sprint to the line and help me finish at the same time! (She can be such a good dog at times!!)

As with all the EnduranceLife events we were quickly through the finish area with post run snack in hand and times printed out - initially we were given exact finishing places to our race numbers, but actually ended up losing a place somewhere between here and when the final results were published (not quite sure how that happens with a mass start all at the same time though?...) Our final times were 1hr 37mins and 20secs for the record, although Strava gives me a moving time of 1:31:50...

My sister and brother in law were there with their daughter to support us, so thanks to them for some of the photos and going with Ali to fetch the ice creams after the race! My initial review of the event was "too bloody hot!" when asked - Ali's was that it was awesome - and I had to agree that it was probably the best scenery to have run through this year (apart from maybe our run up the snowy mountain whilst on honeymoon) and it was a properly challenging route! Such was the heat that my usually perfect features were working all funny (maybe) - this being the obvious reason why the stupid face being pulled in the photo of us with our medals!

Overall I have to say that it was a great event - a challenging route, well organised and superb weather! We're already signed up for three more Coastal Trail Series events this year, and if they are as good as this one it's going to be a treat! Judging by the previous ones that Ali has done I have no doubt they will be - keep your eyes peeled for them and my posts on here!

One thing I have to mention before finishing this post that I briefly mentioned earlier - the car park..... I'm not quite sure who was the sadistic person to organise that journey from the finish line back to the car park, but you have a very twisted sense of humour! It was around quarter of a mile long, up a road that just climbed the whole way from the valley floor to the top ridge where the parking field was, with gradients of up to 25%!!! The wall down there to the start line was bad enough because of the impending dread that not only was the route going to be going up stuff like this, but once you'd completed that you had to come back up this road!

Hope you've enjoyed the review, we'll be back for more, hopefully you'll be back to read about them!

One Life - Liv 4 It, Love It

Training partners

Now if you're anything like me then you'll need a load of motivation to go for a run, which is why I very rarely go out for one by myself. Either it'll be running with my partner Ali, our dog Chewy, or other friends who like to run.

The great thing about running with someone is that there is always motivation to keep on going - it's that instinct that you can't let the other person down by quitting halfway through, and you want to help them make sure that they don't quit either especially if they are training for a specific event (as is often the case with Ali).

There's also the competitive nature of training with someone, although that doesn't always go down well when you are running with them... All the apps that are available such as Strava, Nike Plus and Map My Run do allow you to see where you have come in various leaderboards on the route, but it's still not the same as seeing someone going up a climb faster than you or losing the final sprint of the session. I have had a couple of times when I've decided to sprint the final part of the run without warning, which hasn't amused Ali, especially when I have the house key!! Haha.

Last night was a prime example of getting motivation from others. We had a friend over who attends a lot of events with Ali, and they had both had a bit of a rubbish day at work and then we had the check up at the vets for her dogs... All in all, not much motivation to go out for exercise afterwards! They still got me out, and we all managed a pretty good paced run (see the Strava link below).

Evening Run 25/01/2016

With my annual targets it's also the motivation of how much others have run in a year - Ali and Emma are training for a marathon in April, and so have done a lot more than me so far, but it's still having to admit to them and myself that I'm behind on monthly target that's getting me going!!

Oh, and I've also got this sweet little one to motivate me to run a bit more, although I do have the excuse of not running as far for a while with her!!

One Life - Live It, Love It

2016 - What I want to do...

It's a new year (in case you hadn't seen from the training posts I've been putting up!), so it's now time that everyone is setting targets for the coming twelve months.

Interval Training

Threshold Training

Recovery Training

Endurance Training

Hill Training

I'm no different, but it's always difficult to set things that I'm going to have a chance of achieving, but still difficult enough to give me a proper challenge...

As a base mark I'm setting three distance goals to complete for the end of 2016:

Cycle 2,000km

Run 1,000km

Swim 50km

Now for a lot of people this might not really sound like a proper challenge, but if you have a look at my Strava activities over the past couple of years then you'll see that the amount of exercise I've been doing has been heading in the wrong direction as work and home life seem to get in the way!

Creative Commons

The swimming aspect of this will be even more of a challenge as I have done very very little of this since I even left junior school, and when I say very little in mean only two proper swimming sessions (of around 400m) and a couple of splashing sessions when on holiday in the past six years!!!

So for those who were paying attention will have probably worked out that I need to roughly swim 1 km, run 20 km and cycle 40 km a week to hit these targets - good luck to me with this as well!!

I have a few events that I'm already signed up to during the year that'll help with the distance and motivation during the year so I'll be sure to mention them as they are coming up.

Another thing that'll really help with the motivation is if you guys can join in with me on this - in order to compete the weekly distance on the bike I'm going to have to swap the drive one day a week for a cycle, and whilst there are the obvious things like going for my target and getting fit again there is also the benefits of less environmental impact. I'm tracking this on my DoNation campaign and would really like it if others could pledge alongside - each one only lasts a couple of months, but do it for a few months in a row then you could make it a habit of a lifetime!

Click here to view the campaign page, and comment below or on the social media pages to let me know that you've joined in!

One Life - Live It, Love It

Cycling Sportive Review : Tour of Wessex - Day 3

"How you feeling mate?"... "Still recovering from day one, knees are f***** and I'm knackered already...!"

Usually saying this sort of thing wouldn't be quite so bad, especially on the final day of my first three day cycle event - but the problem with this was that I was only 6.5km into the 95km route, and this was supposedly the hilliest of the three! Even though I was 'only doing the short route' it still had a rather testing climb in the middle of my day and as you can see from the elevation mapping on my Strava route it wasn't completely flat all the way to the bottom of that climb either!

From what I can remember of the day (and this can't be too bad considering I'm typing this up nearly FIVE months down the line) it was one of those "normal" British days - not too hot and not too cold, even so I was still in my hi-vis waterproof for the start of the day just to make sure that my body temperature didn't drop too much quickly when I pottered over the start line. We'd managed to get ourselves into the first group to leave that day, which may have felt like a blessing as we set off with people still cheering - that bit of added enthusiasm - but once I'd been swept up by the third group within the first 5km I was beginning to think that maybe it wasn't such a great idea!!

After I'd managed to warm up my legs and had the chat the the motorcycle outrider (see above) I did find myself being caught by a group that I was more able to keep pace with, and whilst I was in no fit condition to contribute on the front of the group (bad form I know) I'm not entirely sure whether they would have wanted me slowing them down anyway! The route was a lot more open that the previous two days and meant that we did keep on getting split up as crosswinds broke through the mini-peletons.

Talking to peletons, I got a good feeling of what it must be like to be in the middle of a pro field going through some twisty town streets after I got caught by another group who all seemed to be competing together just as I got to Bridgwater. Ladies and Gents - it's a frightening experience when you have no idea where you're going, the other group is going a lot faster than you, and all you want to do is potter along and get to the end whereas they are hell-bent on getting to the finish as fast as they can! The shouting and gesticulating went on for what seemed like an eternity until I got spat out the back of the group and into peace and quiet again.

Once we'd left the town the road started to climb as we headed more towards Exmoor and to the before-mentioned climb of the day. With the experience of the day one evening (read more here) still fresh in my mind I was very keen to make sure that I was topping up my fuel reserves on-route, but also due to my knackered knees and general tiredness I didn't seem able to eat on the move and so spent quite a bit of time at the side of the road like a monkey with a banana in hand. Thanks to all those who asked whether I was ok as they wizzed past! I was fine, just a bit incompetent at the time!!

The hill started in ernest just before I hit the 40km mark and as seems to be the way when you're in a national park or around farming land the obligatory cattle grid was sat just as the slope ramped up - luckily the group I was in at the time managed to get to here just as a kindly passer-by decided to hold open the vehicle gate to the right of the grid to allow us all to flow through on the loose gravel instead! Some people did still decide that the cattle grid was the way to go but I'm pretty sure that I heard a great deal of swearing in the preceeding seconds as they wheelspan, lost all momentum and toppled off their bikes!

For the first time on the ride by legs actually felt ok as we climbed, and I came to realise that it was probably the height of the seatpost that was doing the damage to my legs rather than just the riding since when I stood up I was ok - now sensible people would have then stopped the bike when they reached the top and then adjusted the seatpost wouldn't they?... I'll still keep with blaming in on the tiredness!

Now, the decent from top of the moor?..... OMG!

I have never been quite so frightened of a decent in all my life I don't think, I'd been warned on the climb up not to go too crazy as it was a steep decent but wasn't quite sure how bad until I saw the 20% signs...

Creative Commons Attributes: 20% Sign

Brakes on. Hold on.

Well that method is all good and fine, until the brakes heat up so much that they stop working, and instead of slowing down when you squeeze the levers harder you start speeding up again!

The part of the decent that was even more frightening than this (yes, it got worse!) was watching one bike sail past me, then a loud bang ("change of cycling shorts please!!") and watching said bike skid to a halt in front of the rockface at the 90° bend at the bottom as his tyre had blown from the heat of the brakes...

Thankfully for me and the other riders who had done the decent doing our level best to pull the brake levers through the back side of the drops, the feed station was just around the corner and I joined in the scrum to bag some savoury treats before heading back onto the road again.

The next 10km were glorious - a bumpy 2.5km gave way to a supremely steady decent of around 7km where I was able to let my legs flow and make up for the agony of the morning - from somewhere they'd managed to lose the pain of earlier, although in hindsight I have a feeling it was more to do with the fact I was enjoying the ride so much I just couldn't feel the pain at that point. A sudden left hand turn in Bishop's Lydeard put me back on the flat and lumps - and much to my annoyance the knees where hurting again...

The rest of the route passed without much incident, apart from a very minor detour after missing a turning, and then being made 'leader of the pack' once I'd been shouted at by the Garmin to get back on route, and finding a load of other riders who had also lost the route but hadn't got it loaded onto their bike computers! You talk about the blind leading the blind eh?! I was just trying to have a quiet ride back to save my knees and suddenly there is a load of people relying on me to return them to base!

Creative Commons Attributes: Long Sutton, Langport

Due to my knees playing around again I ended up dropping out of the back of the group (once they'd established I wasn't leading them on a wild goose chase!) and we'd found the route signage again. I'd assumed the next time I saw them would be a chance encounter as we all wandered around looking for cake and medals but as I rounded a bend on the high street in Langport there was a flouro group with wheels waiting for me on the pavement - they'd missed the signs again and so had to put up with another 2km of snail pace before all disappearing off again as I stopped to stretch my knees out.

Now this is where I'd like to apologise to Ade (sorry mate, again!). He is friends with one of the guys I ride with from back at my parents and happened to be part of the group that kept on relying on me for navigation. He'd also had to put up with my moaning for a good part of that distance about my knees and how I was only just going to manage to get back to Somerton (if indeed I was ever going to make it back!) He was also part of the group who kept on waiting for my navigational skills on the way back and after my final stop and stretch I'm pretty sure he was expecting to just see me once he'd crossed the finish line and collected his tea and medal!

I know I am a stubborn git sometimes (some people call it stupid..) but once up the final drag and with only a kilometre or so to go I have the rather genius plan to leave the final remnants of my legs on the road and went for a balls - out TT effort and sprint to finish. With only 500m to go I hammered it past Ade, and didn't even slow to help tow him along... He was a damn good sport about it but I am sorry!!

Creative Commons Attributes : WessexSportive-5240152

After crossing the line with a stupid grin on my face I have to admit I was so glad to get off the bike - even though I hadn't pushed as hard as some of the other participants my legs certainly let me know that I'd done enough for the time being...

Thanks to the organisers of the Tour - it was a cracking event (even if you couldn't quite get the weather on the first day!), well signposted and marshaled (thanks to the motorcycle outriders as well). I'll be back at some point, even if it's just to do the full 2nd and 3rd days to start with - there is some unfinished business now! 

A special thanks as well to Robin, he was the guy who helped to push me all the way on day one and then give me the motivation to get on the bike days two and three! Between us we managed to raise over £1,800 which is amazing! Thank you to everyone who sponsored us!

Cycling Sportive Review : Tour of Wessex - Day 2

"One. more. push... Just. one. more. push... Got... to... be... nearly... there..."

It's 45km into day two of the Tour of Wessex, my Garmin 500 has decided it's had enough, I'm on the hardest climb of the day with no idea how much further up the hill to go, and I'm nearly at the same point as the Garmin.

If you've read the review of day 1 of the tour (if not, then why not?!) then you'll know that I was in a really sorry state at the end of the day, and only just managed to roll over the line - mainly due to the weather but in part due to the severe lack of training... Come 6am on the morning of day 2, just as my alarm was going off I was very much as the picture below suggests - dead to the world and not in a mood to leave the warmth of the duvet!

Creative Commons licence : Hibernation

It is amazing what a bite of food and a glass of fruit juice can do, especially when served as an appetizer to the fresh feeling of being out in the English countryside on a late spring morning. By the time the bike was loaded on top of the car I was starting to feel a slight bit better and three bananas later I was even (very slightly) looking forward to the start of the day!

Spirits were slightly knocked when we got to HQ to find that the car parking had been moved a mile round the corner - a sensible decision due to the usual car parking being torn up by cars on day one in the rain, but due to my still slight fragile feeling an extra distance on the event wasn't something I was looking forward to!!

Day one war stories were already being shared by people when we started unloading from the car, and from the chatter that we could here most people were sensible and stuck to the shorter route in the terrible weather. My bike was definitely the muckiest that morning, due to the fact that I hadn't even thought about cleaning it the night before, and really stood out as I wheeled it very quickly past all the other gleaming machines in the hope that I would be going past so quickly that it wouldn't be noticed...

If you've read some of my other blog entries then you might have seen the one about bananas, and I'm pretty sure it was me looking like the monkey this time around! I had the best part of a punch stuffed into my pockets and up the inside of my jersey along with all the other energy bars, gels and free pieces of flapjack that were being handed out by the sponsors on the way to the line. I was determined not to fall foul of what happened the day before again and with scattered sunshine at the start line I was hopeful that the weather was going to allow it as well!!

From the start we managed to slip into a larger group of riders, something that we failed to do on the morning of day one, and for anyone who hasn't felt the difference it makes of being in a larger group - the facts you hear about saving at least 10% energy when travelling at speed are very much true. We managed to keep latched onto the back of this group for the first 20km or so, just until we swept into Yeovil before I was spat out the back and didn't want to expend the little amounts of energy I was still recovering from the day before.

Creative Commons Licence : Leading the Peleton

Once out of Yeovil we carried on heading further South East in the direction of Wareham and Corfe Castle, but before we get to the first feed station I'm starting to struggle - Black Hill is the toughest climb of the day (for the "short" 80 mile course at least) and I'm starting to go the way of my Garmin which gave up the ghost about 2.5km ago after being treated the same as the bike the previous evening and not getting charged. Although the climb is only officially 1.27km in length I was at the muttering stage long before the steepest gradients of 18% and only the crazy pace of the drums beating near the top were keeping me going at all. All too soon though, the gradient and my condition got the better of me, along with someone else also giving in to the climb, as soon as I had to give up the tiny amount of momentum I had the game was up and I was then leaning on the handlebars trudging up the final part of the ascent in cleats (no easy task in itself!)

I'm not sure that a decent had ever been quite so welcomed, but it sure was for glorious to sweep down the other side towards Cerne Abbas and feed station number one! Once reloaded with the other half of the banana tree I ate that morning, and fully stocked with fig rolls and electrolyte drinks it was back on the road again, not long after the feed station the routes split and I was joining with riders I didn't know to take the quick way home. The great thing about cycling events like Tour of Wessex are that you don't need to know anyone to have a great time, I spent the best part of the next 40-odd km chatting to random people as we kept similar pace before either one moved off or stopped for a rest as there was no need for competition!

Creative Commons Licence : Milton Abbas Village, Dorset

The next climb of the day was through the picturesque village of Milton Abbas, which (so was mentioned as we rode through) where they film some parts of the TV series Downton Abbey. This was the longest climb of the day at just over 6km in length, but when you can ride through parts of the British countryside with views as wonderful as the above then you can't really complain can you?! Once we'd reach the top it was then a ride through the woodlands that surround the area and as you can see from the picture below they look superb when covered in bluebells!

Creative Commons Licence : Bluebells in Delcombe Wood, near Milton Abbas, Dorset

After rolling down to the second (and final for the shorter route) feed station of the day, and stocking up of more food and drink the remainder of the day was just wonderful rolling along in isolation apart from the increasing number of groups of faster riders doing the full 187km route that we flying past me the nearer I got back to HQ in Somerton. The energy was starting to really sap in the final 30km and my knees were in agony (more on that in the day three review) but somehow I got back, and in another show of the support that you get in events like this one of the individual riders who flew past me just before the last climb up to Somerton gave me some encouragement and therefore moral support that was greatly needed at that point (so a MASSIVE thank you to that person!)

So I'd managed to get over halfway through the event, (even if the Garmin hadn't) and for a look at the first part of my ride just click here and have a look on Strava.

For more details on the charity that we rode the event for click on this link.

And for my review of the final, and fantastic (if a little painful) day of cycling on the Tour of Wessex, make sure you keep your eyes peeled!

Keep 'em Spinning.

Robo

Cycling Sportive Review : Tour of Wessex - Day 1

So, the Tour of Wessex - This was sold to me to be quite a hard sportive but nothing that wouldn't be that bad, but I have to say whoever it was who told me that was telling a couple of fibs!

As you might be able to guess the majority of the cycle event starts off in the South West of the UK and takes in some of the lumps and bumps that the Somerset, Dorset and Devon countryside have to offer. According to the website it is "one of the biggest multistage cyclosportives in the UK" and it is certainly the biggest cycling event that I have ever taken part in with over 1,400 people taking to their bikes this year.

The 2014 event took place on the 24th - 26th May and there was certainly some mixed weather over the late Bank Holiday weekend, for those who weren't lucky enough to be in the area during the time, it rained all day Saturday!!

Creative Commons Attributes : Rain View

This is basically all I could see through my glasses the whole of the day, which is some ways was a good thing, at least I wasn't able to see all of the hills that were coming my way although on the downside I wasn't able to see when the top of the hill was coming up and therefore when the pain was about to end!

Day one, as with all the days, started off in Somerton in Somerset and headed out North West towards Bristol and Cheddar Gorge, anyone who hasn't visited the gorge really is missing out as it is a lovely place and even the climb on the bike makes you really appreciate the scenery and makes it feel like a weird and special place to ride in. This day though, it was less of the pain in the legs due to the climbing and more of the riding as hard as possible in order to ignore the damp and chill from the rain!

Creative Commons Attributes : Cheddar Gorge

A big-up to the chap also on the event who had obviously used washing up liquid or some sort of soap to soften the chamois in his shorts - whilst this might be a brilliant idea for most rides, when it's raining cats and dogs and you know you're going to be out on the road for at least four hours a foaming arse due to soap suds probably isn't the best of ways (but it certainly cheered me up at that moment and made me chuckle for the rest of the day!)

Once over the top of the gorge, the route then took us to the first feed station of the day and then past Wells and towards Shepton Mallet before tackling the next couple of climbs of the day. It was one one of these that we were all reminded of the limits that we cyclists push our bodies to - we were passed by an ambulance and then passed the scene of a participant receiving CPR. I never knew what happened for this or after they were taken away by Air Ambulance but I do hope that they were OK and are making a full recovery.

Not long after this the route split, with the riders on the shorter (sensibler) route starting to head back towards Somerton, and the mad-(wo)men set off up the steepest climb of the day - King Alfred's hill which takes you up to King Alfred's Tower on the Stourhead Estate which is owned by the National Trust.

Creative Commons Attributes : King Alfred's Tower

After a nice decent off of the hill it was time for the second of the three feed stations - a savoury bite to eat was very welcome at this point as I was really starting to struggle with the weather...

If I'm honest, I am struggling to remember the majority of the rest of the ride, which is a little scary as it is nearly 100km that I don't remember! I will admit that was nearly being pushed along for the final 32km (from the last feed station) and was a real miserable bloke to be with at that point - but as any good person will, I blame the weather!! Whilst the picture below may be a (slight) exaggeration, this is how I remember the conditions, so please feel free to leave your sympathy in the comments below! :)

CC BY ND : CX Nationals 40-44

This really was one of the worst days I have ever experienced on a bike, and I very nearly didn't take part in the next couple of days! I was so exhausted that evening that I couldn't eat, and anyone who knows me will confirm that's a sign that you really need to start to worry...!

However, I did get back on the bike the next day, so keep your eyes peeled for my review of the following days!

For more details of the route, have a look at my Strava data here

We did this ride in support of Shine Together, a charity that supports the Frenchay and Southmead hospitals in Bristol. If you'd like to read more about the charity, or would like to donate then please click on the link below.

Robin & Rob - Tour of Wessex : Just Giving page

Until next time!

Keep 'em Spinning!!

Robo

November....

Yet again, another week has passed and I've somehow failed to be on the bike more than once and therefore my weekly total is looking a tad light!

With exams and a hectic work life it's pretty tough to be fitting exercise in as well, but I did manage to go for a couple of runs at the weekend although I'm still questioning the sanity of that decision!! (Why is it that your legs ache for days and days after a run?!)

One thing that is really key, no matter what exercise you are doing is to make sure that you warm up - I came across these couple of videos on the Global Cycling Network YouTube channel, and they provide a brilliant few drills to do before you get on the bike to ensure that you decrease the chances of injury whilst also increasing strength and a bit of flexibility.

I've tried all the stretches and exercises in these videos - and whilst yes they do also provide great entertainment for most other people who see you doing the exercises, they have also been helping with getting me warmed up and stretched out before going for a ride/ run.

Keep 'em Spinning

Robo

Cycling Sportive Review : White Horse Challenge 2014

White Horse Challenge (April 2014)

This is the second year that I have cycled the White Horse Challenge (WHC), and is usually the first one that I'll ride each year as it is based around where I grew up in Oxfordshire/ Wiltshire.

The ride starts off in Shrivenham in Oxfordshire and then goes on a 144 km (90 mile) loop around Wiltshire whilst going up three of the white horses that there are to offer. The total elevation gain for the ride isn't one of the most gruelling that you'll ever encounter by a long way, but it is plenty enough to warm up the legs in April at 1,498m.

I was supposed to be riding with a number of guys who I ride with when I go back to visit my parents, along with a former colleague (Fraser) - however that soon when down the pan when he got stuck at the back of the queue of starters whilst everyone else shot off down the road without us! Going on the slight lack of training before the event, I have a feeling that this was a blessing in disguise as it meant that we were both able to set a sensible pace to potter around, and whilst I would get dropped on the climbs we would usually meet up either on the decent or at the feed station!

The plan was going perfectly until Fraser announced that a recent knee injury was playing up and any more stops to wait for me at the top of climbs would mean it was impossible to start moving again meant me doing the second half of the ride on my own - and I'm glad that it was my second year on the ride and knew what was still to come. Ramsbury hill isn't the longest of climbs, but it sure is a shock to those who aren't aware of it (which I found to my hilarity when a large group of club riders stormed past me at the 15% sign at the bottom of the hill to a flurry of comments like "Goodness me" and "Golly gosh" - at least, that's what I think I remember them saying!)

The biggest climb of the day is right at the end up the Uffington white horse, and is where the KOM competition takes place each year with a nice little prize for the fastest person between the timing mats. The climb starts on the B4507 and climbs up past Dragon hill, underneath the white horse and finishes just past the first of the visitor car parks.

Dragon Hill, for those that don't know, is supposed to be where St George slayed the dragon to become the patron Saint of England, although in my research there seems to be varying accounts of this so I'm going to stick with the local version (because I'm slightly biased!).

In those last 25km I have to say that I was suffering, and that I was really struggling to believe that I would get up the Uffington hill. However it's a miracle what an energy gel and a good-timed toilet break can do isn't it? I did nearly all my climbing on the day in the seat (Ramsbury was the only one that I couldn't), and annoying the photos don't do me justice! How is it that the pro cyclists like Froome, Wiggins and Quintana make it look like they are actually going up a hill fast and when it's me storming fast people who are struggling out the seat it looks like the passing in being reversed?!

The weather has to have a mention for that day as well, and for the second year in a row it couldn't have been more perfect! There was a little bit of cloud at times which helped to keep the temperature down, but for the vast majority of the day it was perfect and I'm still boasting the tan lines!

I've also had it pointed out to me that I need to thank my sister and her husband for their support at the end of the event - I heard a car slowly approach just as I came down from Dragon Hill, and whilst silently cursing them for slowly going round me I saw a familiar face hanging out the window! They gave me a nice bit of support and then headed off to the finish where they were waiting with a couple of bottles of isotonic! Thanks both!!

A big thanks to all the organisers of the event, it was a cracking day out again and all seemed to run smoothly from my point of view as a rider! See you next year on it!

For a look (and laugh) at my ride data from the day, click here!

Keep 'em Spinning

Robo

The long weight...

"Light is right..."

That's the motto that one of the guys I ride with goes by, and funnily enough he's only just over 50kg and rides a bike that would be barely legal in a UCI event... All in all, I'm slightly jealous of the chap (he's the monkey by the way (see below))...

As I mentioned last week I'm over 6', and I currently weigh around 86.5kg so along with the targets of certain events over the next 12 months I'm also aiming for a reduced strain on the bathroom scales!

Weight is a hot topic of debate with anyone, as some people take things to the real extreme which is just plain unhealthy, but I think that if managed correctly then it's fine to take an interest in one weight. There are also plenty of debates about whether being lighter is an advantage (Cyclist magazine had an interesting article on whether larger people have an advantage going downhill) but a lot of the time I think that it is almost as powerful as a psychological weapon as a physical one.

So, onto my main targets for the next 12/13 months (up until Dec 2014):

• Main ride target is the Tour of Wessex- I've signed up for this 3 day, 300+ mile event already so this'll be where the true training is aiming for!!
• Another ride that I am certain I'll be going for is the White Horse Challenge, I rode this last year and what a brute it was for a first sportive! This year I'll be testing myself out for the Tour of Wessex and trying to set as good-a-time as possible instead of acting as dominestique for a KOM challenge!

• Weight-wise I'm aiming to be down to around 80kg by the beginning of May, just in time for the main events of the season, and depending on how I get on to there I may even set another target for the end of the year!

As you can see, this week was a quiet one on the bike as I only managed to get out once. However I did make sure that this was a decent ride- popping over the 100km mark for a single ride for the first time in a couple of months!! I did try to get a couple of photos on the way round but never got any decent ones to pop on here. Don't ask about the bananas by the way (none of them were eaten by me by the way!) it was like riding with a monkey the amount that were being consumed/sticking out the back of the jersey! I'll be sure to get a good photo of that next time round!

Please share the blog around if you like it, and +1 the new Google+ page as well to be first to see the blogs as they go live between 7 & 8pm every Tuesday evening!

Keep 'em Spinning!

Robo.

New beginnings...

Here I go again....! I tried to write a cycling blog sometime in 2012, but somewhere along the way I got distracted and now that blog seems to have got lost out there in the expanse of the WWW!

I'm hoping that this blog will help to give me the extra motivation to keep on putting the kilometres in in all seasons and conditions, and hopefully it will inspire some of you guys to get out on your bikes as well and enjoy the beauty of being out in the great British countryside.

Before I continue, I'd just like to make it clear that I am not sponsored by anyone, nor in anyway am I being asked by anyone to endorse or promote their products or services. All opinions and reviews posted on here are my own and not those of the manufacturers/brands that I may use or write about.

Now, I'm 23, 6'2" and most definitely not the typical build of a road cyclist! My legs are more the size of those that you expected to see thundering around the pine boards of the velodrome in sprint matches rather than out on the asphalt of the open road.
I'm also an accountant, which means that I spend most of my working time sat at a desk on my computer or in meetings. I know that this is something that a lot of people suffer from (sitting at desks, not accounting!) so I'll be sure to add to the blog anything that I see of here that helps office prisoners such as ourselves to keep fit and flexible even when we are not out on the bike.

Food is another thing that I love, as most people I know will agree with- it's not often that you don't see me nibbling on something when I'm not working away (and to be fair even when I am working away!!). So of course I'm always on the lookout for little tips for the kitchen from the TV and magazines, and hope to share some great little recipes with you all whether pre-, post- or during your rides and training, or even just a tasty (and sometimes naughty) meal to enjoy at any time.

I also wouldn't be much of a cyclist if I didn't point out all the great cakes stops that I encounter when out and about on two wheels!

Finally, I'd just like to mention Strava if I may... I know that for some people Strava is now the bane of their lives - "Look how fast I just went on xyz segment" and "Oh no, abc just stole my KOM!!"
I have to admit that at times I can be one of those, but I also think that this website has certainly helped me keep me motivated over the past 12 months and contributed to my improvements on the bike! I'm planning on posting a quick summary on here every week to show what I've been up to on my bike, and if you want to see my activities on Strava as soon as I upload them then just click on the link below and 'follow' me!

Rob's Strava Profile

For now, keep 'em spinning!

Robo.