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A good long ride out into the Surrey Hills with Michael. We were due to meet at 8am at Richmond Park’s Roehampton Gate but Michael was around 20 minutes late so I had time to take a handful of photos of the thinning early morning mist in the park as the sun began to warm things up and the deer began to stir.

Michael knew the route down to the Surrey Hills so we headed out of the Park via Ham Gate. We crossed the Thames at Hampton Court and then again at Walton on Thames. At that point I figured something was wrong as we shouldn’t be heading north. The Surrey Hills are around 20km south west of Richmond Park and we had now been riding for nearly an hour and were still going through quite built up parts of London. Finally as we reached Feltham Michael admitted he was lost and we tried to figure out where we were.

Last night I loaded a handful of Surrey Hills routes on to my GPS so I picked one, zoomed out on the map and we bumbled our way across south west London towards it. An hour later we had crossed the M25 and were close to Westhumble, ready to start our ride. Michael couldn’t remember the route he’d done previously and was planning to do today so we picked the Cheam and Morden CTC Hilly 50 from my GPS and set out for a short spin. The route is described as a “tour of the Surrey Hills without the boring flat bits”. It includes Ranmore, Leith Hill, Friday Street, White Down and ends at the top of Box Hill. We cut out the climb up Pitch Hill from Ewhurst and opted for a coffee in Peaslake instead.

The weather was sunny, not too breezy and perfect for cycling as we enjoyed spinning through the woods and past some stunning houses.

Overall, a very satisfying day after a less than ideal start.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 10/18/2008
• Time: 07:30:00
• Total Time: 5:30:00.00
• Distance: 125 km
• Average Speed: 22.73 kmph
• Ascent: 1,552 m

Nine of us out on the DPNC Saturday ride. Hassan lead us on a wonderful route along Pilgrims Way out past Kemsing and back via Eynsford. Quite misty at the top of Clarkes Hill but that burned off quickly and the weather was warm and sunny. Michael joined us for the first time.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 10/11/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 4:11:00.00
• Distance: 98 km
• Average Speed: 23.43 kmph
• Ascent: 1,360 m

Very wet and windy tenth edition of the Ride of the Falling Leaves. Counted thirteen punctures, none mine or Michael’s. Took a slightly longer route and avoided Slurry Lane (Force Green Lane). We were on target for 4:15 until Toys when Michael’s legs gave up. Took it easier from then. Official time 4:43, two minutes slower than last year.

Wore wind proof 3/4’s and jacket over a base layer and short sleeved jersey with full finger gloves and neoprene booties. Got very wet but was mostly warm and comfortable throughout. Put mudguards on last night so together with the booties they kept my feet dry for about 90 minutes. For the remaining three hours it felt like my thick sodden socks were adding a lot of weight. My feet were warm however so perhaps I should try some windproof booties instead and stick to thin socks.

Elevation gain of 1,573 metres taken from TrackLogs as the cloud cover caused havoc with that part of my GPS. Navigation was fine but it registered only 596 metres of climbing.

Results on the Dulwich Paragon site here.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 10/05/2008
• Time: 08:45:00
• Total Time: 4:29:00.00
• Distance: 105 km
• Average Speed: 23.42 kmph
• Ascent: 1,500 m

Thirteen of us started this weekend’s DPNC ride from Crystal Palace and one joined at Elmers End roundabout. Ken and Hassan needed to get back early and Sam wasn’t feeling 100% after her mid week half marathon so they broke off for a shorter ride. The rest of us headed out into the North Downs over Brasted Chart (back of Toys Hill) and back via Ide and Brasted Hills. Two punctures, neither mine although my rear mech cable broke just as arrived home — lasted 5,300 km.

Only one week until Falling Leaves and everybody was already talking about next year’s goals. Perhaps I’ll be able to find a nice European sportive that fits my schedule. The Amstel Gold on April 18 is my pick at the moment.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 09/27/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 3:46:00.00
• Average Heart rate: 121
• Distance: 86 km
• Average Speed: 22.83 kmph
• Ascent: 1,200 m
• Average Cadence: 70

Last bit of mid-week training before next weekend’s Ride of the Falling Leaves. Pushed it a bit on the two hills in Wimbledon (peaking at 89% and 92%) and then tried to hold a steady 80% along the King’s Road from Putney Bridge to Buckingham Palace. Sunrise will soon be too late for a Richmond Park circuit before work. There is probably only one window left this year (when the clocks go back at the end of the month) and that will be it until late February.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 09/25/2008
• Time: 06:30:00
• Total Time: 00:50:46.00
• Average Heart rate: 133
• Calories: 1010
• Distance: 21.3 km
• Average Speed: 25.17 kmph
• Ascent: 213 m
• Average Cadence: 81

Eight of us out on the DPNC ride. Two more joined at Elmers End roundabout but the group split at Woldingham with half doing the Falling Leaves route and the rest of us doing the the regular Edenbridge Loop at a slightly more relaxed pace. The four with me were Greig, Tim, Joe (who also did the Southern Sportive last weekend) and one other (on a nice looking Lemond Etape).

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 09/20/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 3:51:00.00
• Average Heart rate: 133
• Calories: 4374
• Distance: 96 km
• Average Speed: 24.94 kmph
• Max Speed: 59.3 kmph
• Ascent: 1,300 m
• Average Cadence: 79

This year’s Southern Sportive was just as much fun as last year’s but also had the same problem. Signing on was a breeze and the course was fantastically signed. The route was fast and challenging with many short climbs sprinkled across a sweeping roller coaster ride around the lanes of the West Sussex and Hampshire border. Only the long queue at the finish to hand back the timing chips and get our t-shirts and results marred an otherwise perfect day out.

Not everything went exactly to plan across the day but Michael and I just got on with it and put in a stunning time (for us). Our official time was 6:01, taking nearly 15 minutes off last year’s time. It put us solidly amongst the Silver finishers, almost 20 minutes ahead of Bronze and around 20 minutes away from Gold. It will be interesting to see our overall finishing position once the results are posted tomorrow and see how our rankings changed at each feed stop.

[Update 16 September]

Photos now up on takeyourpics.co.uk.

Results from southernsportive.com for Full, Mid and Short Routes.

The results are bit screwed up at the moment with the fastest rider appearing to complete the 155 km (96 miles) Full Route at an average speed of 101 kph (63 mph). Looking at our results, we overtook around 170 riders with only 30 starting in the group after us but nearly 200 finishing after we did.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 09/14/2008
• Time: 08:50:00
• Total Time: 5:39:00.00
• Average Heart rate: 147
• Distance: 154 km
• Average Speed: 27.26 kmph
• Ascent: 1,836 m
• Average Cadence: 76

Michael and I set out from the cafe at Crystal Palace for a very wet and windy ride around the Falling Leaves route ahead of the October 5 event. Several rain showers blew through across the morning so we took it very easy on the descents. Traffic was quite light but you had to be vigilant when leading. Loose gravel covered a number of narrow lanes and junctions. Road surfaces were rather broken up at some points plus many of the hedges were a bit ragged due to the weather so a few errant branches were conveniently jutting out at eye level.

Force Green Lane just north of Westerham was the worst. It is signed as not suitable for motor vehicles and it was a quagmire of mud and slurry. It became obvious along that lane that fitting Race Blades before coming out would have been a good idea. My shoes, legs, bike, back and face were now coated in a rather stylish and attractive dark brown layer of gritty sludge. The joke at the lights about a quick stop at the car wash on the way home didn’t seem like such a bad idea at that point.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 09/06/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 4:18:00.00
• Average Heart rate: 140
• Distance: 106 km
• Average Speed: 24.65 kmph
• Ascent: 1,447 m
• Average Cadence: 76

Last Richmond Park circuit for a couple of weeks as I begin my taper for the Southern Sportive. It was very windy in the park so I just put my head down and tried to maintain a steady work rate. I was aiming for an average heart rate of 80% and managed 77% over the 22 minute circuit.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 09/02/2008
• Time: 18:00:00
• Total Time: 1:28:25.00
• Average Heart rate: 139
• Calories: 2151
• Distance: 39.03 km
• Average Speed: 26.49 kmph
• Max Speed: 60.3 kmph
• Ascent: 262 m
• Average Cadence: 83

Eleven of us out for the DPNC ride. Regular Edenbridge loop past the reservoir and back via Ide and Brasted hills. One puncture and one broken spoke - fortunately neither were mine. Very hot day. Some good sustained speed work up to Markbeech but I still need to concentrate on my hill climbing. Far too often I’m rushing in and burning out too quickly.

Next weekend I’m aiming to ride the Falling Leaves route instead of the regular DPNC ride. For one, it will be nice to spin around the route ahead of the October 5 event, and two, it will be good to do some focused preparation ahead of the following weekend’s Southern Sportive — 155 km (96 miles) with just over two thousand metres (6,600 ft) of elevation gain.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 08/30/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 4:02:14.00
• Average Heart rate: 131
• Calories: 3089
• Distance: 96.2 km
• Average Speed: 23.83 kmph
• Ascent: 1,292 m
• Average Cadence: 70

Averaged 77% in a 22 minute circuit of the park. Difficult to maintain a steady work rate due to lots of slow moving traffic. Probably left work too early although Kings Road was fairly quiet.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 08/28/2008
• Time: 17:30:00
• Total Time: 1:29:34.00
• Average Heart rate: 134
• Calories: 1941
• Distance: 38.93 km
• Average Speed: 26.08 kmph
• Ascent: 265 m
• Average Cadence: 80

Good ride home via Wimbledon. Kings Road provided lots of opportunities to power away from lights so got warmed up quite quickly. Kept an 85% average over the 21 minute circuit of Richmond Park. Not many evening rides left this year. Sunset is already around 8pm and by the end of September it will be too dark to get a circuit in before the gates close.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 08/26/2008
• Time: 18:30:00
• Total Time: 1:25:47.00
• Average Heart rate: 150
• Calories: 2021
• Distance: 39.02 km
• Average Speed: 27.29 kmph
• Ascent: 280 m
• Average Cadence: 84

My second relatively hard ride in to work this week and I’m still not feeling 100%.

My legs feel sluggish and I’m finding it hard to get my heart rate above 90% and hold there on the hills.

It’s probably just a lack of adequate sleep as I’ve been eating well and riding really easy on my regular commuting days.

My resting heart rate is back to normal (44 bpm) and I don’t feel like I’m coming down with anything so it looks like I just need to be stricter with getting a decent eight hours every night.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 08/21/2008
• Time: 06:30:00
• Total Time: 1:25:12.00
• Average Heart rate: 134
• Calories: 1666
• Distance: 37.61 km
• Average Speed: 26.49 kmph
• Ascent: 249 m
• Average Cadence: 79

My first ride in via Wimbledon and Richmond Park for about five weeks.

I wasn’t really in the mood for the ride but I need to get some good power building work in ahead of next month’s Southern Sportive.

Perhaps it was the lingering effects of Saturday night’s excesses but I just couldn’t summon the energy to go all out.

I was ok on flat ground and could sprint away from lights quite well but the hills just killed me.

It was impossible to get up to and hold 90% heart rate for any length of time so it looks like I need to get some good rest and make sure I eat and drink well over the next few days.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 08/19/2008
• Time: 06:30:00
• Total Time: 1:20:56.00
• Average Heart rate: 135
• Calories: 1728
• Distance: 37.49 km
• Average Speed: 27.79 kmph
• Ascent: 244 m
• Average Cadence: 82

Nine of us met at the cafe for the DPNC Saturday ride.

We knew the weather forecast, we had even looked outside, yet still we came.

The drizzle started almost immediately and barely let off for the entire ride.

I resisted putting on my rain jacket at the start and found my base layer and arm warmers did enough to keep me comfortably warm and fairly dry.

It was quite a haphazard ride with the rain causing lots of stops to fix punctures.

We never really got into a groove but did discover a nice coffee shop in Brasted called 96º when Ken had to change his second puncture.

Ken led the ride down to Edenbridge and back via Toys Hill and Brasted. Greig, Omar, Hassan (not on his BH), Darren, Neil and Ronnie were there plus Matt was out on his first ride with us.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 08/02/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 3:58:51.00
• Average Heart rate: 117
• Calories: 4150
• Distance: 91.77 km
• Average Speed: 23.05 kmph
• Ascent: 1,160 m
• Average Cadence: 72

Twelve of us started the regular DPNC Saturday Ride from Crystal Palace out to Edenbridge and back via Ide Hill.

Led by Ken with the familiar faces of Greig, Omar, Hassan, Pete, Adam who I hadn’t seen for a while, Harvey and Alex who broke off at the turn to Gangers Hill but not before telling us a little about his experience during the Tour of Ireland. There was also Darren who I’ve ridden with once or twice before and Yaris and Tim who I was out with for the first time.

Hassan, Harvey and Adam were all on new bikes. Hassan’s BH almost needed to be tied down to stop it floating away at the Ide Hill Post Office picnic stop.

Eight of us were in club kit - first time I think we’ve had so many, at least when I’ve been out.

We carelessly lost Yaris and Darren on the way back from Ide Hill. Not good form.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 07/26/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 3:58:55.00
• Average Heart rate: 126
• Calories: 4463
• Distance: 96.28 km
• Average Speed: 24.18 kmph
• Ascent: 1,247 m
• Average Cadence: 73

The legend continues…

This was the sixteenth running of the iconic overnight ride from London Fields in Hackney to the lost city on Dunwich on the Suffolk Coast.

We set off from the Pub in the Park at sunset and maintained a steady pace out through Epping Forest, the North Weald and across Essex.

Some light rain was forecast but never eventuated and the sky was fairly clear for most of the night so we got to enjoy the glow of the full moon as we silently breezed along the country lanes.

Shortly after crossing into Suffolk we reached the feed stop at Lavenham Village Hall and it took us just under four hours to cover the first 110 km (68 miles).

We stuck around for around an hour eating, drinking, replacing batteries and chatting to the other riders.

The queue for food reached the door when we arrived but by the time we were ready to leave it snaked out the building and into the cold early morning air.

It was very cold when we got going again and I was so glad I had put on my 2XU windproof softshell at the hall.

The last 80 km (51 miles) took us three hours and we arrived at the cafe on Dunwich Beach just as the sun was rising shortly after 5am.

We quickly devoured a fry up and made space for the growing queue of cold and hungry cyclists.

We wanted to hang around and chat but it was just too cold outside so we started back towards the train station at Darsham at a gentle pace.

We arrived with around 90 minutes to wait until the first train and there were already three others ahead of us.

We had heard how twitchy the train people can be when presented with a platform full of cyclists all trying to get on to the three carriage train so as the platform began to fill up we took the fortunate decision to ride 25 minutes up the the road to the preceding station in Halesworth.

Around ten others had the same idea and we all managed to get on the train after a little drama.

The conductor wasn’t happy with our bikes in all the vestibules so we pacified him by removing wheels and stashing everything away from the doors and out of the passage ways.

When we got to Darsham he wouldn’t let any of the fifty-odd cyclists on to the train and they now had to either cycle the extra 50 km to Ipswich or wait another two hours for the next train.

Next year I think I’ll factor in the extra ride to Ipswich and avoid all the train drama.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 07/19/2008
• Time: 21:00:00
• Total Time: 7:55:59.00
• Average Heart rate: 132
• Calories: 8882
• Distance: 206.38 km
• Average Speed: 26.02 kmph
• Max Speed: 51.1 kmph
• Ascent: 1,475 m
• Average Cadence: 82

Fantastic spin through Richmond Park this morning on the way to work.

This was a “Fast Steady” session where I work to keep my heart rate around 80% of max throughout.

I put in hard efforts on the hills (up to 92%) while maintaining good cadence (~80 rpm).

I can only manage this session once per week as any more and I don’t have enough recovery time and feel myself beginning to get stale.

The route took me past Wimbledon for the first time since the tournament started and it looks like they’ve got the same level of security as a G8 summit.

There were concrete blocks everywhere, razor wire coiled along every fence and an army of security people, even at 7am.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 07/01/2008
• Time: 06:30:00
• Total Time: 1:20:20.00
• Average Heart rate: 145
• Calories: 1602
• Distance: 37.52 km
• Average Speed: 28.02 kmph
• Ascent: 252 m
• Average Cadence: 87

Eleven of us out for this morning’s DPNC ride into the North Downs but we were shortly down to nine when Beverley and one other dropped off to do a shorter route.

I wasn’t feeling too motivated this morning and probably would have skipped the ride if I hadn’t promised Pete that I’d be there so we could talk about the logistics for August’s Devil Ride in Wales.

Fortunately after around two hours of hard cycling, two gels and one bottle of energy drink I felt a ton better and forgot how sluggish and tired I felt.

My legs even woke up at that point and no longer felt like jelly.

I don’t think I’m fully recovered from last weekend’s 165 km Circuit of the Cotswolds sportive and probably should have taken at least Monday off the bike.

We live and learn.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 06/28/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 4:10:31.00
• Average Heart rate: 124
• Calories: 4466
• Distance: 101.15 km
• Average Speed: 24.23 kmph
• Ascent: 1,313 m
• Average Cadence: 75

An event that ran perfectly according to plan from start to finish.

I kept a close watch on my computer throughout the ride and made sure I kept my heart rate around 75% of max on the flats and not too much above 85% on the hills.

My current position is the black dot, my planned pace (Garmin’s Virtual Partner) is the white dot and Lark Stoke, our first decent hill, is the line climbing up to the right.

By this point I was ahead of my planned pace and hadn’t been pushing myself at all.

My small lead was soon wiped out by a 24 km/h headwind and I could only begin to make it back up when the course turned east for the last 50 km section of rolling hills and the wind was then behind me.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 06/22/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 6:47:02.00
• Average Heart rate: 145
• Max Heart rate: 184
• Calories: 7468
• Distance: 165.51 km
• Average Speed: 24.4 kmph
• Max Speed: 70.5 kmph
• Ascent: 2,453 m
• Average Cadence: 79

We only got 30 kilometres into our three day, 180 km ride from Brighton to Sandwich when we had to pull out.

The National Cycle Route we were following took us along everything from a glorious segregated bike path along the cliffs out of Brighton to a couple of very busy A road sections and along muddy, potholed tracks strewn with gravel and rocks.

All of this was a little too much for Mandy who isn’t the most experienced cyclist so we cut our losses and headed for the closest train station and home.

Sunday was my last opportunity to get a long ride in before next weekend’s Circuit of the Cotswolds but the big London to Brighton charity ride was on so my regular route through the Surrey Hills would be a little too congested.

Instead I worked out a fairly hilly 120 km route starting from Crystal Palace and heading out into the North Downs between East Grinstead and Sevenoaks.

In my enthusiasm I started the ride a little too hard and payed for it later.

I was deliberately pushing the pace to see what happens when I maintain a heart rate around 80% of max instead of last weekend’s 75%.

The first long drag up from Elmers End to Woldingham (20 km) was fabulous but I could feel that my legs weren’t happy.

They weren’t warmed up properly and didn’t feel comfortable working at that rate so early.

The descent down Gangers Hill over the M25 and on towards Lingfield offered a few opportunities to rest before a fairly lumpy 10 km section as I looped down towards Edenbridge and back up towards Westerham past Churchill’s Chartwell.

Westerham is the ride’s mid-point so I stopped to fill my water bottle and grab a Red Bull.

That perked me up and despite the stop I was still slightly ahead of my Garmin’s Virtual Partner.

I then looped back over the M25 briefly before turning south and starting the climb up Brasted.

The descent of Toy’s Hill was spoiled a little by a car going far to slowly but it forced me to take it a little easy before the loop around Bough Beech Reservoir and on to Ide and Star Hills.

These last two hills weren’t particularly tough, they just went on forever.

By the top of Star I had very little left in my legs so the few short sharp inclines on the route back to Crystal Palace through Downe were unusually debilitating.

This weekend I’m not going to be able to ride so hard and I’m going to have to force myself to hold back for the first third of the course.

After the first feed stop I’ll step it up a bit if I need to.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 06/15/2008
• Time: 09:00:00
• Total Time: 4:51:42.00
• Average Heart rate: 143
• Calories: 5650
• Distance: 120.77 km
• Average Speed: 24.84 kmph
• Ascent: 1,654 m

Great spin through the Surrey Hills this morning.

I missed both my longer sessions this week so wanted to make up some kilometres.

Normally I would head out on a club ride on Saturday morning but yesterday’s forecast was miserable so I planned to skip it and work out a longer route with the same climb rate as this month’s Circuit of the Cotswolds.

This was to be my last endurance ride before the event so I wanted to see how I would fair over a course 75% of the length.

I managed to keep the power on and to pedal smoothly with controlled breathing on gradients up to 10%.

After that everything began to fall apart and by 20% I was pushing the pedals over one at a time.

Next weekend Mandy and I are planning a three-day trip along the coast from Brighton to Sandwich in Kent.

We will average around 60 km per day and the forecast looks promising (at this stage) but we’ve opted for B&Bs over camping.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 06/08/2008
• Time: 07:45:00
• Total Time: 5:05:11.00
• Average Heart rate: 138
• Calories: 5923
• Distance: 126.44 km
• Average Speed: 24.86 kmph
• Ascent: 1,792 m
• Average Cadence: 82

Nine of us out in the early morning sunshine for the DPNC Saturday ride in the North Downs.

Ken led us on a slightly modified Edenbridge loop with Star Hill added after Ide.

I climbed well by pushing my heart rate up to my Zone 5 threshold (92% of max) and holding it there for the duration.

Fortunately none of the hills were too long and I made it up them all towards the middle of the group.

This ride brought up my 5,000th km of this year which is half my 2008 goal.

No holiday is planned for this month so I’m looking forward to a few weeks of routine riding.

The Circuit of the Cotswolds sportive is on the 22nd and I’m planning a weekend tour along the East Sussex and Kent coast if we get some good weather.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 05/31/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 4:13:19.00
• Average Heart rate: 125
• Calories: 4583
• Distance: 103.15 km
• Average Speed: 24.43 kmph
• Ascent: 1,303 m
• Average Cadence: 75

Only manged to complete the medium route in an official time of 6:24:41 (bronze).

We met Kiwis Hamish and Richard at dinner in Bala the night before. They were up from London together with the Reid and MacGregor families and were also making a weekend of it. We started together but they were last seen heading back towards Betwys-y-coed with a support motorbike when Hamish broke a spoke. We never exchanged numbers but they have also entered the Circuit of the Cotswolds so hopefully we’ll catch up again there.

My GPS says I rode 143 km with 2,200 m elevation.

The event’s site says the route was 146 km with 2,760 m while the route plotted on an Ordnance Survey map in TrackLogs says it was 142 km with 2,970 m.

By the time I hit the bail out point I thought I had only completed 2,100 m of the full route’s advertised 3,900 m of climbing and had the rest to cram into the remaining 70 km.

It wasn’t a hard choice to then cut my losses and head straight on to Bala.

If I had known that I had in fact only around 1,000 m left I might just have convinced myself to tough out the rain and gale force headwind and complete the full 200 km course.

There’s always next year.

The scenery in North Wales was stunning and the highlight of the ride was the fast 8 km descent from Nebo to Llanwrst. The toughest part was the gale force headwind during the 19 km climb up the Ranges from Maentwrog.

The scariest part was the wet and slippery 10 km decent from the Ranges into Llanuwchylln. The freezing rain that felt like pins being driven into my face did its best to distract me as I was trying to keep my bike under control on the narrow track.

The feed stations were well stocked but I stuck to water and bananas. There was lots of Red Bull plus one even had a barbecue. I was a little early for lunch but was almost tempted to stick around for a cup of tea or coffee.

My plan to not hang around in feed stations worked as faster groups would often overtake me twice, once before the feed station and then again after because they had hung around chatting.

Four weeks to now prepare for the Circuit of the Cotswolds.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 05/25/2008
• Time: 07:00:00
• Total Time: 6:09:57.00
• Average Heart rate: 148
• Calories: 6561
• Distance: 142.46 km
• Average Speed: 23.1 kmph
• Ascent: 2,197 m
• Average Cadence: 78

Ten of us out for the DPNC Saturday ride.

Ken started leading us on the classic Edenbridge loop but had to pull out early when his back starting giving him trouble.

Mark took over the pace setting and the nine of us pushed on with me having the dubious honour of being slowest up the hills.

No photo from me today as it started raining shortly after we left the cafe and kept on until just before I got home.

I had my first puncture on a club ride but dealt with it quickly thanks to Mavic Open Pro rims and Continental GP tyres fitting together so perfectly and of course, my new best friend, my CO2 cartridge.

Last thing I wanted was to hold everybody up any more than I had to in the rain.

This was my last training ride before this weekend’s Gran Fondo Cymru sportive in the Snowdonia National Park.

Check out this preview from Cyclosport.org.

I feel thoroughly unprepared for the massive amount of climbing that awaits me (4,100 metres or 13,450 feet) but at least the forecast is good so it will be a nice day out, even if I don’t make the silver cut off.

My plan is to start the ride slowly, warm up properly, maintain a steady pace at 75-80% of max heart rate and to not go too much above 85% on the hills.

My goal is to complete the 200 km (125 mile) course in under eight hours but in other sportives I’ve lost a lot of time at feed stations.

Five minutes can easily fly by chatting to the other riders while having a quick rest and after two or three stops I suddenly find myself ten or 15 minutes behind schedule.

This time I’m going to try stopping only long enough to fill my bottles, have a quick stretch, grab some food and then get going again, eating when I’m back on the road.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 05/17/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 4:04:09.00
• Average Heart rate: 127
• Calories: 4566
• Distance: 98.02 km
• Average Speed: 24.09 kmph
• Max Speed: 55.3 kmph
• Ascent: 1,294 m
• Average Cadence: 72

Gentle spin around Richmond Park on the way home.

Hit my Jan-May goal during the ride — 4,350 km (2,700 miles) so everything else this month is a bonus.

Also, caught public transport to work this morning for the first time this year.

Quite proud that I made four and half months of cycling every day.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 05/15/2008
• Time: 19:00:00
• Total Time: 1:34:55.00
• Average Heart rate: 126
• Calories: 1792
• Distance: 38.95 km
• Average Speed: 24.62 kmph
• Ascent: 261 m
• Average Cadence: 81

Quick lap around Richmond Park on the way in to work.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 05/13/2008
• Time: 06:30:00
• Total Time: 1:23:35.00
• Average Heart rate: 142
• Calories: 1716
• Distance: 37.45 km
• Average Speed: 26.88 kmph
• Ascent: 274 m
• Average Cadence: 83

Five of us out for a fantastic spin into the North Downs.

Ken lead us out through Woldingham to Edenbridge and back via Ide and Brasted Hills.

First sunny ride of the year and it was glorious!

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 05/10/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 3:53:04.00
• Average Heart rate: 126
• Calories: 4302
• Distance: 94.78 km
• Average Speed: 24.4 kmph
• Ascent: 1,258 m
• Average Cadence: 71

I had a late night after our official audience results were released yesterday afternoon so I couldn’t summon the energy or motivation for a set of intervals this morning.

Instead, I followed my usual long route in to work via Wimbledon, Richmond Park and Chelsea and just rode it quite hard.

The sun came out while I was in the park which lifted my mood terrifically and the traffic was quite light on The King’s Road so I could keep the pressure on.

Just before Sloane Square I got a puncture and finally used the CO2 canister I had been carrying for around a month.

How has it taken me so long to discover them?

Within five minutes I had a fresh, fully inflated tube installed and I was on my way.

The picture above is of the The King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery who I ran into on Pall Mall.

I’m used to being held up by motorcades with outriders around Buckingham Palace and Downing Street but this was the first time I had seen a cavalry troop with motorcycle outriders.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 05/01/2008
• Time: 06:30:00
• Total Time: 1:31:22.00
• Average Heart rate: 139
• Calories: 1775
• Distance: 37.52 km
• Average Speed: 24.64 kmph
• Ascent: 252 m
• Average Cadence: 76

First time training with my new Garmin Edge 305.

What a dream!

Last night I set up a basic workout that I would trigger when I got into Richmond Park.

I would ride hard until my heart rate got over 90% of max and it would then chirp, prompting me to go easy until I got below 65%.

No more having to keep one eye on my heart rate monitor as I power up the road.

Five sets of these saw me get only two-thirds of the way around the park so I’m going to build in some Zone 4 (85-92%) holding time for Thursday’s ride.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 04/29/2008
• Time: 06:30:00
• Total Time: 1:46:48.00
• Average Heart rate: 125
• Calories: 1870
• Distance: 36.88 km
• Average Speed: 20.72 kmph
• Ascent: 227 m
• Average Cadence: 72

Another fabulous edition of an event in only its second year.

The weather forecast had showers expected in the morning and a high of only 13ºC (55ºF) so I opted for a typical Spring kit:

• Windproof bib knickers
• Sleeveless base layer
• Short sleeve jersey and arm warmers
• Overshoes and thick socks
• Gilet and windproof gloves
• Cycling cap under helmet
• Lightweight clear rain jacket in a jersey pocket

I also had my cycling mitts in a jersey pocket just in case the weather improved and I’m glad I did.

We didn’t get a spot of rain and around four hours in the sun came out and it turned into a glorious day.

Throughout the ride I worked at keeping my heart rate around 80% of max on the flats and only letting it get up to around 85% on the hills.

This worked fabulously and at no time did I feel wrung out or over-extended.

The steepest hill hit 15% and I managed to stay seated, working comfortably and in control.

Not setting a cracking pace from the start meant Michael and I were overtaken by a handful of riders before the first feed stop but some had obviously gone out far too hard and were walking up the first hill.

By the last leg we were overtaking a lot of people and I did manage a wry grin on the last hill when I cruised past someone in full Assos kit with shaved legs on a Specialized S-Works Tarmac with Zipp wheels.

As someone who knew a thing or two about cycling once said, “It’s not about the bike.”

My official time was 5:50 which was good enough for a silver classification but was six minutes slower than last year.

To be honest, that wasn’t a great time and while I could have pushed it harder, I wanted to test my pacing strategy and it worked perfectly.

After a year of training I am certainly faster, fitter and lighter but this was more of a training event for next month’s Gran Fondo Cymru in Snowdonia which will be much tougher with much longer climbs.

Everything is now on track for a good day in the Welsh mountains, I just need to get the good weather booked.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 04/27/2008
• Time: 08:45:00
• Total Time: 5:25:29.00
• Average Heart rate: 142
• Calories: 6324
• Distance: 143.57 km
• Average Speed: 26.47 kmph
• Ascent: 1,470 m
• Average Cadence: 76

Fantastic lunchtime spin around Regent’s Park on my new wheels.

They are a set of Mavic Open Pro CD rims hand built with Shimano 105 hubs and feel so light and responsive.

Hopefully they will last longer than the 7,700 km (4,785 miles) the bike’s original Bontrager Select wheels did.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 04/22/2008
• Time: 13:00:00
• Total Time: 00:43:28.00
• Average Heart rate: 139
• Max Heart rate: 170
• Calories: 638
• Distance: 18.45 km
• Average Speed: 25.47 kmph
• Max Speed: 45.4 kmph
• Ascent: 90 m

A quick couple of laps around Richmond Park in the afternoon sunshine.

Focused on maintaining 70-80% and trying to not go over 85% on the hills.

This route is exactly 50 km (31 miles) and involves 500 m (1,640 feet) of hills so perfect for a weekend blast when I can’t get out with the club.

I tried to join yesterday’s DPNC ride but had to pull out very early.

I had replaced my rear mech after it was damaged in a fall on Thursday night and the new chain I bought at the same time was constantly slipping and not staying in the selected gear.

There was no way I going to put up with that for four hours.

At first I thought it was a problem with indexing so on the way home I kept stopping to adjust the cable tension but that didn’t help.

I then thought it could be due to the new KMC chain not liking the old cassette — it had done 3,350 km (2,082 mile) but wasn’t due for a change for at least a few more months.

Last thing was perhaps the overly large connecting link that came with my chain was at fault.

The chain’s box was open and the link was loose when I bought it but I didn’t think that was an issue (plus I got a 10% discount).

Frustrated I stopped by my local bike shop and bought a new cassette, chain whip and couple of new 10-speed joining links before going home to get it sorted.

Turns out it was the chain link.

In ten minutes I was back out on the bike and everything felt perfectly aligned and shifting cleanly.

The very *helpful* and *friendly* person who served me at Evans Clapham must have just grabbed a random joining link and rightly figured he could fob me off with the discount.

We live and learn.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 04/20/2008
• Time: 17:00:00
• Total Time: 1:54:46.00
• Average Heart rate: 141
• Max Heart rate: 165
• Calories: 1555
• Distance: 50.11 km
• Average Speed: 26.2 kmph
• Max Speed: 55.1 kmph
• Ascent: 500 m

Quite misty in Richmond Park this morning.

Worked at maintaining 80-85% as much as possible and not going over 90% on the hills.

Got a new pair of bike shoes (Specialized BG Sport seeing as you asked) which were great but my toes froze without shoe covers.

Looks like their mesh upper means I’m now going to have to cover up until the temperature gets a little higher.

This was my last session in the park before the White Horse Challenge on April 27.

I’m trying a two week taper where I cut back the length of my mid-week training sessions by 25% this week and a further 50% next week.

Let’s see if this strategy means I’m fresh and rested when I roll up to the start line in Shrivenham next Sunday.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 04/15/2008
• Time: 06:30:00
• Total Time: 1:25:12.00
• Average Heart rate: 144
• Max Heart rate: 170
• Calories: 1314
• Distance: 37.42 km
• Average Speed: 26.35 kmph
• Max Speed: 56.6 kmph
• Ascent: 326 m

Four of us headed out from Crystal Palace for this morning’s DPNC ride.

It wasn’t a particularly hilly route today but a strong headwind meant Ken and Jarrod had to drop back and finish it at an easier pace.

Hassan and and I pushed on and made our way back via the 20% Chalk Pit Lane near Oxted.

It proved to be too much for me and I had to stop for breath around three quarters of the way up.

During the ride I had been trying to keep my heart rate around 80-85% on the flat but that was either too high or I wasn’t fully recovered from Thursday’s hard rides.

Regardless, I’m going to try dropping to around 75% on the flats to see if that leaves me more for the hills.

Workout:

• Type: Cycle
• Date: 04/12/2008
• Time: 08:30:00
• Total Time: 3:41:33.00
• Average Heart rate: 133
• Max Heart rate: 179
• Calories: 5266
• Distance: 88.07 km
• Average Speed: 23.85 kmph
• Max Speed: 59.6 kmph
• Ascent: 1,197 m