Next Sunday I have my first time trial of the season and I would be stupid not to use the super fast bike given to me by Orbit Software. Over the past year I have grown more flexible with the help of regular stretching exercises and I have also noticed that my time trial position needs refining.
So, today in preparation for next weekend’s North Road CC Hardriders event I have narrowed the extensions and repositioned the spacers on the headset.
This day was a bit more competitive; the morning would be taken up by route reconnaisance followed by a short 7.2 mile time trial. Then in the afternoon we would practice our break chasing skills in a fast two-hour workout.
We did 3 laps of the time trial circuit before everyone was sure that they had the route and the important feature (such as wind direction and road surfaces) clear in their minds. The warm up was important for such as short race and as I set off I knew I had done mine well. Unfortunately my tired legs from the day before and the heavy winter bike meant that I came in second last with a time of 19:03. It just goes to show how much faster the Orbit Software bike makes me.
The afternoon session started off well but by halfway round the ride everyone was knackered and the pace went down from 26 mph to 21 mph. The ride completed with a quick de-brief and then home. It was a good weekend away getting in some fast miles.
The pictures and film that I mentioned might not make it onto the blog as they may be the property of British cycling
The Eastern region is a developing region in cycling and this is why me and 7 other juniors were invited to take part in a selection/training camp in Suffolk.
Arriving in the evening we ate dinner together and got some sleep before the real business started. In the morning we were out by 9:30, cruising along the countryside lanes at 21 mph. We were not hanging about so when I had to hang back and wait for my partner who had punctured I was not sure how I was going to make it back to the group. Fortunately I had the strength to be motor paced at 30 mph back to the bunch. It took a lot out of me as I was on my winter training bike, mudguards and everything, whereas everyone else was on their race bikes.
The afternoon was spent at the university in Ipswich learning about nutrition, strength and conditioning. All of this helps to make you the complete racing cyclist. Then it was back to the youth hostel for dinner, a long game of monopoly and bed. Another days hard riding awaited us.
As of yet I am struggling to access the pictures of the camp but I know some were taken.
The last race in the winter series and I felt ill. Sore throat, headache, cough. You name it I was suffering it. As I watched new team mate Ryan ride his way to a solid 20th in his first ever race, I wondered whether competing was a good idea. Weirdly as I swung myself into the saddle and began to warm up, all of my problems melted away.
The race was fairly fast with hard accelerations and long period of tense slowing off. Many times a break went ahead only to be chased down by another of the favourites for the race. Left to my own devices and under no pressure to work for a team mate, I was able to pick and choose the breaks that I thought were dangerous. Dodging in and out of the pack I was straight on anything that looked like it might get away.
Alas, all our efforts were wasted as the race came down to a bunch sprint. My legs performed but my head did not. As I was coming into the final corner I was squeezed from both sides and at 30mph my head said no. Breaking, I lost valuable speed and ground that I just could not make up. A steady 12th was the result.
As I am sure everybody knows it snowed last night. I woke up to two inches of snow, got out of bed and met my brother on the landing. Full of early morning blearyness the conversation was very short.
“Mountainbike?”
“Hell yeah.”
An hour later we were primed and ready. The snow around here was about 10cm deep on average with it getting much deeper in the drifts. Pedalling was many times harder and as a result we covered a short distance in 3 hours. It was a great ride with lots of fantastic views and many falls.
My name is Josh and I am proudly cycling in the Second Catergory of National Rankings in the UK. The interest for cycling started about four years ago, when I was searching for a way to stay fit in the rugby off-season.
Thanks to Orbit Software’s sponsorship, I am able to evolve fully in the cycling sport. Without Orbit Software’s support I would not have been able to achieve the Second Category in the National Rankings by the age of 17 years.
I hope my passion for cycling will be transformed throughout my ORBiTeer Cycling Blog.
And after
