| RIDE DIARIES |
Wessex Round 8 - Just Add WafflesUp until now we’ve definitely been on the lucky side with course conditions down south. Despite the wettest November since ‘64 (don’t quote me, I made that part up, but I’m probably not far wrong) by the time race day came around the ground had drai ... |
Wessex Round 7 - The Prize Is RightAlthough this season was all about enjoying being back on the cyclocross scene after a few years out of winter skullduggery, I can sense that things are starting to get a little more serious when a mid week night ride on my fixed gear didn’t quite go ... |
Wessex Round 6 - 50 Miles & RunningOne of the things I find most fulfilling about bike riding is what it teaches you. I’ve had countless experiences off the bike that have been made all the easier to handle from experiences that I’ve had on it. Through the course of time it has taug ... |
Wessex Round 5 - It's All About The CurryLife is full of unknown obstacles and since bike riding is part of life, it’s only natural that the randomness continues in this vain. I wasn’t really thinking too much about the race this week. The focus was to nail a week of work in just under 3 ... |
Wessex Round 4 - Prospects Are Going DownDespite the incessant rain fall yesterday, almost to the point where I nearly had to hit the speed dial button to my main man Noah informing him to bring his magic ark back out to play, Reading’s Prospect Park had drained far better than expected lea ... |
Wessex Round 3 - As The Crow FliesAfter missing Round 2 of the Wessex League last week due to a pesky cycle show in London it was all eyes on the rough stuff once again, this time at the infamous tech fest that is Crow Hill, Ringwood. In truth, it was questionable if I should have r ... |
Wessex Round 1 - Cross Dressing In Swindon11.30pm, Saturday 26th September. Finally both bikes are together. It was touch and go in the week with a few, how shall I put it, surprises that looked like it could scupper my plans for a cyclocross debut after a full decade away from the ... |
Life in a BikeA bicycle is so much more than simply a means of getting from A to B. Cycling is a lifestyle, a way of strengthening the body, cleansing the mind or simply a way to escape the world for a time. It means different things to different people. No two ... |
Cotti on CreationNow as far as workloads go, creating the world in seven days is an ambitious schedule for anyone. As with all 1st generation creations, despite showing areas of genius, flaws are inevitable which makes way for a refined 2nd, 3rd, 4th generation prod ... |
Cotti on the F WordIn an era when reducing your carbon footprint was never in mind, the Wright brothers were clearly pioneers in their single minded quest. Da Vinci’s designs where mathematics and science were meticulously sculpted to form concepts far in advance of h ... |
Cent Cols Challenge Day 1: A Touch From HeavenBreakfast was quiet as forty like minded cyclists (read masochists) prepared themselves for the very first stage of the inaugural Cent Cols Challenge, 194km from Thônon les Bains to Albertville, 4,700m of climbing and 8 Cols (the main protagonists be ... |
Cent Cols Challenge Day 2: Mother NatureHaving a bit of luck on your side is never a bad thing when taking on the mountains. Unpredictability is ever present, it’s just a matter of when it may strike and of course how hard it will hit you. Today’s second stage was to be a ten mountain mo ... |
Cent Cols Challenge Day 3: The Sisteron ExpressAfter yesterday’s white out and more heavy snow during the night the Cent Cols team had to do some serious ‘on the fly’ route planning as it was evident that trying to get over the 2,360m pass of the Izoard was not going to happen today, and p ... |
Cent Cols Challenge Day 4: Riding For MoneyLife is all about doing what makes you happy. It’s a cliché I know, but it’s too short. If the truth be known it may only be as long as a winding alpine descent. The question is, how far down the descent are you already and are you happy? Somet ... |
Cent Cols Challenge Day 5: Character BuildingBeing the first point to point style event that I’ve done like this I have to say I was not only eager with anticipation beforehand at how it will all work out, but also somewhat nervous as to the unknown format of doing things. It was quickly evide ... |
'The Race Across the Alps' - Certified 18Warning! This is a public service announcement. If you have a nervous disposition, have no interest of suffering in adverse weather conditions, are offended by nudity or words such as Stelvio, Gavia, Aprica, Mortirolo, Bernina, Albula, Flüela, Fuor ... |
Prelude to 'The Race Across the Alps'Now, there’s normally at least one time per year when reasoning and sanity are banished to the bottom of the kit bag. What starts as “hmm…maybe” quickly takes hold of body and mind, unrelenting its vice like grip. Established at the turn of the ... |
'The Race Across The Alps' - TechnologyThe rules for 'The Race Across the Alps' are pretty simple. You get given a road book the day before (in German) you’re allowed one support vehicle and you, or your support team, have to send a text message to race officials at certain points to pro ... |
Girona - Can You Feel It?Girona Diaries Day 1: With the luxury of spring upon us, meaning guaranteed longer days and warmer temperatures, it was time to make the most of the long Easter weekend and experience some new roads and culture. Girona, Spain, was the ... |
The Sweepstake Is OnGirona Diaries Day 2: With the forecast showing heavy rain for the next 48 hours, it was no surprise to be woken by rain bouncing against the bedroom window. What was a (pleasant) surprise is that by mid morning there was a glimpse of blue sk ... |
Home & DryThere is one advantage to having twenty-four hours of constant rain whilst trying to enjoy a few days in the mountains surrounding Girona. It gives you a chance to check out exactly what the city has to offer, right? The abundance of cafés and tour ... |
Morning Has BrokenGirona Diaries Day 3: After the monotone grey that filled the sky yesterday it was pleasing to awake to the calmness of wispy white clouds and blue sky. Admittedly, their arrival was well past what's known to be 'fashionably late', but since ... |
Spanish Flyer with Garmin's Dave Z!Girona Diaries Day 4: Although the Spanish weather forecast has been somewhat questionable over the last few days, on every site I looked at it said that today was going to be a good one (and by that I mean no rain!) Knowing that we were on f ... |
So, You Riding or Sliding?California Diaries Day 1: December 20th After a long day of travelling yesterday it felt so good to get a proper night's sleep in preparation for the first ride of the trip. The idea was to start from Plymouth and trace our way thro ... |
Own Up, Who Stole My Blue Jersey?California Diaries Day 2: December 21st All eyes on the forecast and temperatures looked to be on the rise. Suntan cream on Christmas day…er, I think not. Good news in one respect but what’s better, cold and clear or cold and wet? ... |
The Taming of Mt TamCalifornia Diaries Day 3: December 22nd Well I’m more than happy to say that this morning my blue jersey (AKA the sky. Don’t worry I frequently have trouble following my warped way of thinking as well) had been returned to wh ... |
Lava Red Roads of Napa ValleyCalifornia Diaries Day 4: December 23rd Having formerly hosted rounds of the Mountain Bike World Cup it was obvious as to the off-road potential that Napa Valley has, and with vineyards, rolling hills and many a glowing report for th ... |
Serenity DefinedCalifornia Diaries Day 5: December 24th Now it has to be said, my carefully sculpted list of “if I could live anywhere in the world” places is being blown out of all proportion by the day (well, actually by the minute). Moving on fr ... |
White HeatCalifornia Diaries Day 6: December 25th As a child a white Christmas is something to dream about. As a bike rider it doesn’t even make the top one hundred on the wish list to Santa. I’ll let you into a little secret though, firmly ... |
On the Crest of a WaveCalifornia Diaries Day 7: December 26th With the relative disappointment, suffering and lack of consideration that the weather showed towards two fervent bicycle riders yesterday it was time to seek revenge with a hundred plus mile r ... |
Pacífico Los Trancos Mi AmigoCalifornia Diaries Day 8: December 27th Insomnia is not something that I normally suffer with, but it was tough to sleep last night. Knowing what was “out there”, poised and ready to be ridden, kept my mind from fully switching off. ... |
Monte Bello DreamerCalifornia Diaries Day 9: December 28th You always find out pretty quickly from the first ascent of the day if the legs are with you or not and there’s no hiding when you have a 29% driveway to scramble up before you even make it to ... |
A Century of Mellow MilesCalifornia Diaries Day 10: December 29th I don't want to think about it, but the inevitable ‘end of holiday’ is now fast approaching so the urgency to make the most of the days is higher than ever. A quick drive back towards San Fra ... |
Sky ArtCalifornia Diaries Day 11: December 30th Having spent half the night mapping out a final ‘feel good’ ride of the trip I knew the day would begin well with the crossing of the Golden Gate Bridge. I’d seen it from a distance and the a ... |
It's All Relative - Prelude to the Gran Canaria DiariesAccording to the locals the weather wasn't too good in Gran Canaria today. Well, having spent the last few weeks putting every piece of cycling kit on to prepare for a ride back home (and still coming back colder than frosty the snowman) 20 degrees ... |
You Gotta Believe MeGran Canaria Diaries Day 1: December 3rd My alarm kicked in at 5am, but in all fairness I’d got to bed pretty late so luckily I wasn’t in a deep sleep. 21 minutes to Bournemouth airport and a 5 minute check in procedure reinstal ... |
Start With CautionGran Canaria Diaries Day 2: December 4th Now over the past decade I’ve been on many an organised training camp, normally to rid the typical winter weather in an attempt to kick start the season in the best possible fashion. I rememb ... |
Diamonds Are ForeverGran Canaria Diaries Day 3: December 5th Dia-mond: Pronounced - dahy-muhnd Definition: 1) A pure or nearly pure, extremely hard form of carbon, naturally crystallised in the isometric system. 2) With respect to a ... |
Pines & NeedlesGran Canaria Diaries Day 4: December 6th Now with views like this on awaking this morning it was always going to be a good day. Since my original route changed ‘on the fly’ yesterday, to tame the beast that is the GC210, I thought i ... |
In Search Of LanceGran Canaria Diaries Day 5: December 7th Having skirted around the coast before heading inland for the last couple of days, today was a case of going straight down the middle. Weather predictions looked to be the best of the week an ... |
Riding With AngelsGran Canaria Diaries Day 6: December 8th With my original route plan changing on day two, avoiding dark skies, the voice inside was telling me to finish what I’d started, so today I headed east towards Agüimes and then on the GC100 t ... |
Last Man RidingGran Canaria Diaries Day 7: December 9th After all of the amazing rides this week I knew that whatever happened today could not put a dampener on my spirits, even if the forecast was predicting an 85% chance of rain. When I awoke, t ... |
South Downs Double: It Started with a KissOk, I’m going to come clean right now. It didn’t start with a kiss at all, but I needed an attention grabbing headline and figured we’re all suckers for a little romance in our own special way. And besides, who knows, maybe this will turn into a st ... |
South Downs Double TechSo what's the behind the scenes low down when it comes to technology, bike set-up and route stats for the South Downs Double? Over 200 miles off road is a pretty extreme testing ground for any components and when things work well it's only fair ... |
Prelude to 'The Mountain Diaries'It’s only right that a couple of times per year you get the chance to sit back, relax, switch off and just unwind from the day to day rigours known as life. I think this time is known as a holiday. holi•day (häl′ə dā′) |
Stelvio CallingThe Mountain Diaries Day 1: August 16th With a 2.30am start, and a day of travelling, it was always going to be an easy day of riding to stretch the legs and familiarise ourselves with Bormio, in the Lombardy region of Italy, and ho ... |
Never Under Estimate the GaviaThe Mountain Diaries Day 2: August 17th We were expecting light rain for much of the day so, although overcast, it was definitely a bonus that it was at least dry, and a double bonus since we had two of the hardest climbs on the rou ... |
The Drei Laender GiroThe Mountain Diaries Day 3: August 18th I was really looking forward to today. Not only did we have a full day in the saddle planned but we were meeting up with the dream team that is Markus Neuert from Cyclefilm & his ace driver c ... |
Panini PowerThe Mountain Diaries Day 4: August 19th Our last day in Bormio and one that we had termed with affection as a ‘transition’ day before heading to Selva di val Gardena in the Sud-Tirol that evening. The great thing about mountains is ... |
Nove CottiThe Mountain Diaries Day 5: August 20th In theory it should have been an early night yesterday, plenty of recovery and a dawn patrol start ready for the big ride that we had planned. The reality was a late night getting the bikes p ... |
Mental FatigueThe Mountain Diaries Day 6: August 21st After what turned out to be a rather unexpected epic in the Dolomites yesterday, the ride today was never going to be of the same proportion. Another one of those “transition” days as we need ... |
Watch Out Super GThe Mountain Diaries Day 7: August 22nd The drive from Selva di val Gardena to Zell am See in Austria for our final challenge should have been an easy one. Leaving Italy yesterday in the middle of the afternoon gave plenty of time ... |
Adrenalin News: The Sparrow has LandedJuly 23rd: After a delayed flight, over 22 hours of travelling, and late arrival yesterday I was relieved when I'd finally got the bikes built and was ready to take a spin out to the Canmore Nordic Centre. I wasn't expecting to be able t ... |
Adrenalin News: First Wild Animal SightingJuly 24th: After some heavy rain through the night, the skies this morning looked all the more favourable. I was especially keen to find out how the course had faired from the downpours so headed out early to make the most of the soft conditi ... |
Adrenalin News: ShowtimeJuly 25th: A beautiful day in Canmore with clear skies and summer temperatures were prefect for the final pit build up. The Monavie-Cannondale team rolled in to town with 2007 defending champ Tinker Juarez looking ready to rock the trails and ... |
Adrenalin News: The RaceJuly 26-27th: Question, what's the best thing to get the adrenalin of an endurance racer going before a big event? Let's make it easy with a multiple choice selection, fingers on the buzzers, is it... A) a potent mix of carbs and caffeine ... |
Follow the 24hrs of Adrenalin LIVETomorrow evening the 24hrs of Adrenalin blog spot will be brought into action with live coverage from the event! Remember, the time in Canmore is 7 hours behind the UK and 8 hours behind mainland Europe so when I say tomorrow night it goes live I ... |
