RideLondon Photos

I took a few photos over the weekend, and have now got a few shots from photographers around the route. I'm really pleased with how they capture the day.

If you'd like to see more, I've created an album here.

What a day. Long Live Legacy

Being wished luck by a cycling star

What a day. What a simply amazing day.

First things first, though, I had to register on Saturday at ExCel. I met Becca and Chris there, and also met Olympic gold medal winning cyclist Joanna Rowsell, which was a real treat. It was my first time back at ExCel since the Olympics, so the feeling of anniversary celebrations was strong. We also said hello to the guys at the Cancer Research and BHF stands, who we were doing this in aid of.

With an early start yesterday from the Olympic Park I decided to stay over in Stratford - waking up to a view across the park with the first riders already starting to arrive was really inspiring.

Becca, Chris and I rolled into the park not long after 6am. The weather couldn't have been kinder; dry, not too hot and not yet too breezy. By 7am we were in our 'holding pen' with 500 or so other riders, then it was our turn. A count down, a hooter and we were off.

From the Olympic Park to the first hub point at Hampton Court Palace was 25 miles, and without doubt the best 25 miles I've ever ridden. On fully closed roads we crossed the very centre of London; Canary Wharf, the Tower of London, the City, Embankment, Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly and Knightsbridge before crossing Chiswick Bridge, doing a beautiful circuit of Richmond Park and onto Hampton Court Palace (and more Olympic reminiscing).

The team at Hampton Court Palace

It was a simply stunning ride, through town on a quiet Sunday morning. While some riders put their foot down, I took it easy, soaking up the views and the unique atmosphere. Amazing.

At Hampton Court we regrouped as a team, refueled and all too soon it was time to leave the sights of London behind. The next 23 miles to the next hub point were the least interesting of the ride, heading through SW London suburbs and into the Surrey countryside, but we rode together chatting.

Riders at the Newlands Corner hub

The second hub was at the top of Newlands Corner, which also marked the first climb of the day. Nothing too hard, just enough to stretch the legs for the first time on the ride. It did, though, mark the start of the section I'd been really looking forward to. The Surrey Hills.

From Newlands at mile 47 to the third and final hub point at Leatherhead at mile 73 the route undulated through some fantastic English countryside, and made two now famous climbs.

The is the leg I'd been really training for, doing extra Chiltern climbing to be as prepared as I could be. I rode ahead alone and indulged myself on the steep climbs and fast descents on closed roads. Leith Hill came first, relatively steep but not too exciting or scenic. Unlike Box Hill, which although the easier climb was stunning. Beautiful scenery, billiard-table flat tarmac, and a great atmosphere, I loved it.

Leatherhead was a chance to take a break, relax and reflect whilst waiting for Becca and Chris to join me after my break away. We wanted to finish together and support each other through the last quarter of the distance, which was made easier with the breeze starting to pick up from the south west, pushing us home towards London.

By now there were crowds starting to build, cheering and clapping the riders on. The support and atmosphere was amazing, and I loved seeing so many people wearing London 2012 t-shirts and waving Union flags. Thanks to everyone who turned out.

Seeing the girls at Whitehall

We came back into London through Wimbledon, over Putney Bridge, a really fast sweep through Fulham, and then we were onto Chelsea Embankment before we knew it. The last mile or so was amazing with huge crowds as we headed up Millbank and past the Houses of Parliament. The family were waiting at the top of Whitehall and I saw them all waving and smiling as we made the sweep round, under Admiralty Arch and down The Mall towards Buckingham Palace.

Becca and I both started cheering and celebrating with 500 meters to go, at which point Chris opened up a sprint and there was nothing left to do but join in. We sprinted down The Mall!

We did it!

What an experience. What a day. I'm immensely proud of what we've all achieved. We did it! And what's more, we did it much quicker than I thought possible. I rode the 100 miles in 6 hours 18 mins, an average of 16.5mph. Here's the full ride on Strava.

Our journey isn't quite over yet as there's a last bit of fundraising to be done, however our sponsorship pages for the British Heart Foundation (here) and Cancer Research (here) and looking very healthy.

I'm only just coming down from a real high. It was an amazing, incredible experience, right up there with the best things I've had the opportunity to do. The whole event was extremely well organised, so thanks to the whole Prudential RideLondon team, and to the Chiseled Whippet for making this happen. If you get the chance to do it next year, then do.

It struck me on the way round that not only did London 2012 give us an amazing month of sport, it continues to give great sporting experiences through events like this. Long Live Legacy!
 

The finishing touches

I had a great weekend putting the finishing touches to my preparation for the Ride100.

On Sunday I did my last ‘endurance’ ride of my training programme, covering 50 miles at 16 mph (this ride on Strava). The wind blew, and the heavens opened at one point, but all went fine.

Chiltern back roads. And rain

The chance even arose to stop at Chorleywood Cricket Club on my way round and see Fraser bowl a couple of overs for the Cavaliers.

Cavs amongst the wickets

I went out for 15 miles as well tonight, and this largely brings my training to and end, maybe just one last spin later this week to complete the effort. My Strava logs all the time I’ve spent on my bike this year, training for the ride. And whilst it doesn’t include the gym and spinning work I did over the winter, it does shows this year on my road bike I have:

• Completed 51 training rides, spending over 85 hours (three and a half solid days) in the saddle
• Ridden over 1,250 miles, the equivalent of riding from London to Casablanca
• Climbed nearly 52,000 ft, the same as riding from sea level to the top of Everest and Kilimanjaro!
  

None of which would have been possible without the support of my family, to whom I'm very grateful.

I’ll keep remembering all the training I've done, and the sacrifices made, come Sunday as I work my way around the 102 miles. I’ll also get inspiration from starting at the (Queen Elizabeth) Olympic Park, which is where I spent Friday night and Saturday for the Anniversary Games. It was great being back, and whilst much of the park is still a building site I could see across to the Copper Box, where ride starts on Sunday, and the Velodrome, scene of such cycling drama this time last year.

Back at the park last weekend. Where it will all start next weekend

 Roll on Sunday!!

Power to weight ratio

In his now infamous book The Secret Race, Tyler Hamilton describes a conversation he had with a doctor who told him “to win the Tour de France you need to be very, very fit, and very skinny”.

I’m not, clearly, trying to follow in Froome and Wiggo's footsteps and win the Tour, however this quote does succinctly encapsulate that cycling performance is entirely relative to one’s power to weight ratio; the fitter and lighter you (and your bike) are, the faster you will go.

Improving my fitness and losing some weight were my original aims for dusting off my bike last Spring, and cycling really has made a huge difference to my well-being. It has become a truly virtuous circle; the more weight I’ve lost the quicker I’ve got on my bike, and the more cycling I’ve done the more weight I’ve lost.

With apologies for the toe nails

And now (coupled with a rather dramatic improvement to my diet) I’ve reached my target weight. At 11st 7lbs (73kg), I’ve lost a full four stones, 25kg. With weight making such a difference to cycling performance, cyclists are obsessed with trimming a few grams here or a few grams there from their equipment, yet my whole bike weights less than 10kg, so I’ve lost the equivalent of two and a half bikes from my body weight!

I don’t plan to lose any more. In fact I’ll probably end up around the 12 stone mark after the Ride100 is finished. Either way, the very crude body mass index (BMI) suggests that I’m now a healthy weight for my age and height.



The key thing for me is healthy weight. My weight loss has been relaviely dramatic (and very expensive, as I’ve had to buy an entire new wardrobe!), yet I’ve been suprised by the number of worried comments I’ve attracted, from family members to well-meaning colleagues. I’m far from underweight, with no intention to lose any more, yet it feels like almost like a reflection of how generally overwight the country has become that by just being a healthy weight I’m starting to appear worryingly thin to some. It’s all very novel for me.

One long-term positive for my family and I from me losing this weight is that I’ve improved my chances of avoiding a range of illnesses, including heart disease. Exercise and good diet are championed by the British Heart Foundation (BHF), and the money we’re raising will help fund both their research and their communication and education activities. You can sponsor us for our efforts in the Ride100, to benefit the BHF, here.

And next Sunday, I hope all this work will enable me to set a reasonable pace through the Surrey Hills. Not that it will be easy, of course. Three time Tour de France winner Greg LeMond captured this perfectly in his famous truism about cycling; “It never gets easier. You just go faster”.

Training update

My training over the last couple of weeks has been going largely to plan. I’ve been doing a lot of riding; according to my Strava been out nearly every other day during the last four weeks, spending over 21 hours in the saddle, climbing 15,000 ft and covering 335 miles at an average speed of 15.7mph.

For one reason or another, the one thing I’ve not managed in the last fortnight is a long, endurance ride. I’ve done 30 odd miles a few of times, but life has just got in the way to prevent a longer ride. Not ideal, but I’m not too worried. There are still nearly three weeks until the Ride100, and I hope to ride 50 miles this Friday, and again next Sunday.

Sunday was good fun, as Becca and Chris came over and we rode together. The only problem, other than the 30 degree heat, was the party I’d enjoyed rather too well on Saturday night. It turns out, though, a decent stretch of legs on a bike is quite a good hangover cure. This was our last ride together before the 4th of August, and was really helpful to practice our slipstreaming. What a difference it makes!

All the joining instructions for the Ride100 have now come through, plus more information from Cancer Research. I’ve worked out a schedule for the day to ride to, and am basically ready to go. Just got to hold my form and keep my weight where it is for two more weeks and I’ll be off. I really can’t wait.

Up and down, up and down

Do a 50-60 mile endurance ride, "as hilly as possible", the training guide read. Now, living in the Chilterns, that was a challenge!

Luckily, I'm not the first person to try work out what this might look like. The annual Chiltern 100 sportive does just that, offering three different routes. I decided to 'borrow' their Corto Fondo route, modified to start and finish in Berkhamsted.

This provided 54 miles of cycling, with hardly any flat; three and a half hours of going up or down. I took it rather leisurely, but job done - my ride on Strava.

Just four more 50 miles endurance practice rides left now before the big day. A month tomorrow...

The longest ride; to Henley and back

I had a big circle drawn around Sunday, 23rd June in my training plan for many months. I've been trying to follow a training plan for the last couple of months to build towards the Ride100, and on this date it simply read "Endurance: 65-70% of event distance on a hilly course".

Why the big red circle? 70% of event distance (70 miles) is the longest single ride I needed to complete during my training. In itself, it stood out as a pretty unthinkable achievement just a year ago. For these reasons, I decided to try to do something special for this milestone.

I had an idea; why not ride to Henley and back? It was at Henley last March where I had the fitness test that suggested I really needed to change my lifestyle, an event that marked the first step on the journey that will culminate on The Mall in just five weeks time. And, as luck had it, Henley is 35 miles from Berkhamsted.

I made it - At Henley Business School

I planned a route, not going the easy way, rather cycling up to Stokenchurch and then down through the wonderful Hambleden Valley, a special place for my family and I. In my mind I pictured a glorious, sunny midsummer day to it in...

... yet the forecast leading up to the 23rd was far from promising. A high pressure system had just broken down, and a summer storm system had pushed in from the west. I was to be very lucky that the predicted rain held off, yet as I headed out on my ride into a really strong headwind I knew it was going to be hard work.

I push into the wind, though, riding the oh-so-familiar road to Tring before crossing to Wendover. From here it was out towards Chinnor, a dull road at the best of times, before hitting the long climb into the Chilterns and up to Stokenchurch. From there to Henley it was downhill all the way, through some of the very best scenery in the south of England.


I am, though, pretty biased, as one reason the Hambleden valley is so special for me is that my wife and I were married here. Another reason to take this route to Henley.

Leaving the valley behind it was a short but blustery cycle along the Thames valley before I turned into Henley Business School for a well earned bit of flapjack and a sit down. And then, it was largely the same route home.

5 hours 20mins after setting off, I made it home again. Removing the time taken for stops it took me 4 hours 40mins of cycling, an average of 15.1mph. Averaging 15mph, over 70 miles, with a headwind and 3,400ft of climbing, is something I'm still really proud of. It's probably my greatest sporting achievement since winning my primary school cross country, aged 10 (although I don't remember being quite so shattered following that). Here's my ride on Strava.

It was a huge day. A ride with real meaning, and one that gives me huge confidence as I look ahead to August 4th and the 102 miles that await. It gives me the confidence to think that I will be able to complete the challenge I set myself, and I will be able to collect the sponsorship from everyone who has so kindly support my efforts so far. Raising money for Cancer Research and the British Heart Foundation is why I'm doing this, and writing this blog, and all contributions are hugely appreciated. Our donation page for BHF is here, and Cancer Research is here.

A suitable reason for a traffic jam in my mind

Say cheese

Throughout the London to Brighton route the organisers had arranged professional photographers to sit in position and capture riders as they passed.

It took a few days before any of me appeared, but I think it was worth the wait - I quite like this photo of Chris and I, taken on the ridge above Brighton about 1km after the Ditchling Beacon climb.

Say cheese

BHF London to Brighton 2013

Becca and I lost our Grandfather to heart disease when we were both far too young. I was 15, Becca just four. The British Heart Foundation was there a cause we were very keen to support this year, and as they organise the annual London to Brighton bike ride it didn't take us long to agree we would tackle it.

It's a huge event. Over 30,000 people ride the 54 miles during the day, and we saw riders with numbers above 40,000, so on  Sunday we found ourselves sharing the roads with lots of fellow fund raisers.

Becca, Chris and I at the start in Clapham

The route starts in Clapham, before heading south through the delights of south London then onto country lanes in Surrey and round Reigate. The route undulates more as you press on into East Sussex, and this was probably my favorite part of the ride, passing through classic Sussex villages with people out on the green cheering the riders on. One village even had a brass band playing.

 

Queuing for Ditchling Beacon

After 44 miles you hit the village of Ditchling, and towering above you is a sight that puts fear into many L2B riders: Ditchling Beacon. Out of the village the road climbs for just under a mile at nearly 10% average, climbing over 400ft. It's an amazing view from the top, and then you're downhill all the way to a fantastic finish along Brighton seafront. Not only that, but for us the overcast morning and spits of rain in Surrey had given way to glorious blue sky and sunshine by the time we hit the beach. 


Chris, Becca and I crossed the finish line together, which was quite an achievement considering how difficult it was to stay together with so many other cyclists. This volume of other people also led to many bottlenecks along the way, making progress slow. It's such a popular event these days that the roads simply can't cope with the volume of people, and queuing for up to 45mins became a regular part of the day. In the end it took us eight hours to make it to the Brighton seafront (for comparison, I rode nearly half the distance last night round the Chilterns in an hour and a half...).

Becca nears the top of the Beacon

One time I didn't mind queuing, though, was at the foot of Ditchling Beacon. The marshals were sending people up in batches to ensure it wasn't too congested on the ascent, which did mean that for anyone who wanted to ride up rather than push (as most people were), there was enough space on the road to do this. Becca and I did just that, as Chris would have also managed it were it not for an unfortunately timed mechanical.



We're really proud to have been able to do this in memory of our Gramps, and to have been able to join so many other people undertaking their own personal charity challenges. Our fundraising page in support of the British Heart Foundation is here.

In Brighton. For our Gramps

Back on the bike

Last week I spent some time off the bike as we headed to Asturias, northern Spain, for a family holiday. I'd been keen to visit the Picos de Europa mountains for a while, yet it was pro-cycling that helped seal the deal. Mrs M saw the spectacular scenery during the coverage of the Vuelta last year and was sold on the idea.

Our travels took us to two spots in the mountains that were stage finishes in 2012; the stunning Funete De and the long climb up to Lagos de Covadonga. We passed a number of cyclists out tackling that climb last weekend - maybe that'll be me one day? In the meantime some pro-rider names remain painted on the road up to the lakes, with local boy Cobo being popular...

Lagos de Covadonga. Great for walking, great for a Vuelta stage finish

While I was away by bike had a holiday too. It went into the newly opened Lovelo Cycle Works in Berkhamsted for a service. A good independent cycle shop will be a great addition to Berko, so I was keen to support them. It's a venture with a lot of potential, and I'm really pleased with the job they've done. The bikes felt good this week.

A glorious evening for cycling. Open roads just south of Wing, Bucks

It's been a pleasure to be back on my bike, and back in glorious early British summer weather. I've managed three rides since collecting my bike: a 15 mile warm up on Wednesday, 16 hilly miles on Thursday and then 40 miles up to Bletchley and back last night. All felt really good (which is a relief after nearly two weeks off training), and only a few Spanish meals and beers left to burn off!

My biggest week yet

I'm now in full training mode, squeezing as much time on the bike as I can around work, family and general life. And it's going well, I've managed to ride over 140 miles in the last seven days, including:

• 40 miles after work last Friday, pretty flat and pretty comfortable
  
  
• 30 miles in the pouring rain last Sunday afternoon. After the Giro ITT on Saturday it felt only right to include the 20 mile circuit I ride versus the clock. I flew through the first two thirds and felt really strong, only to then hit a strong headwind for most of the last five miles that really sapped my legs. And it poured down with rain! I still clocked 1hr 08mins, though, taking 5mins of my previous best
  
  
• On Wednesday I took my bike into work for the first time. Quite a logistical challenge to ensure the correct clothes/food/car/bike etc. were all in the right places, but come 5pm I was out the door and set off in glorious evening sunshine for 50 miles home. Here's my ride on Strava, and keeping a 15mph average over that distance riding along is something I'm pretty chuffed about. Around the 40 mile mark, though, I hit pouring rain again... Good practice if nothing else
  
  

Yesterday, the postman delivered my full race pack from the British Heart Foundation for the London to Brighton ride, less than a month away now. As ever, all sponsorship support for the BHF is hugely appreciated.

Thanks!

How early?

The logic is sound. I'm in the 12 week count down until the Ride100, and the training plan recommends one early morning ride a week. Why? The logic is doing a one hour ride a week pre-breakfast when fasted helps train the body to be more efficient at processing fat reserves when riding. So, if the carbs run low on the big day and I've got to rely on some of that difficult-to-process fat for energy, it won't be such a shock to the system.

Yep, sounds logical to me. The downside, clearly, is that this involves going out really early in the morning. Luckily it was a glorious morning today, and I was out on the road before 6:30am, to get an hour in pre-work.

All went well, though the headwind on the return loop wasn't helpful. I did a 16 mile loop with one decent climb in 1hr 02min, compared to 59mins when I last rode it with fuel in my belly. I definitely felt a little harder, but not too bad

And the best news? I set the fourth best time on a Strava segment. Fourth of no less than 799. Pleased with that.

Oakman Shires Sportive - Done!

This morning was the second organised cycle ride of my challenge year, the Oakman Shires Sportive. I'm starting to realise that cycling and early starts go hand in hand, and at 7:15am on a Bank Holiday Sunday we rode down the road to the Kings Arms in Berko for the start.

We being Becca, Chris and I, so great to do a long ride with the Ride100 team, plus Berko Dad's Bike Club members Wilf, Graham and Tim.

The route was 70km, with barely a mile of flat as crisscrossed our local Chiltern Hills. See the route here, and how we got on, from my Strava.

The Oakman sportive is very sociable, as we basically ride between three of their pubs, from the Kings Arms in Berko to the Red Lion at Water End, on to The Akeman in Tring before heading back to the Kings Arms again. And we got looked after well, ending with Bacon Rolls (and a pint...) when we were done.

After feeling wiped out after the Tring Velo Club ride a couple of weeks back I changed my nutrition today and was really pleased with how I went. I felt really strong throughout, with more confidence for what lies ahead. I've now got 12 weeks of training before the Ride100, and my training plan is about to ramp up.

Finally, huge thanks again to the Oakman group for their donation to our fundraising for Cancer Research.

Teamwork

Becca and Chris came over on Sunday, and as proud owners of a new cycle rack they were able to bring their bikes with them. So, for the first time since we all signed up for the Ride100, the full team was able to get out together for a ride together. I plotted a nice, short scenic route through the Chilterns, via the pub in Aldbury to be able to meet up with the rest of the family.

Chris is still getting back up to speed after the disaster of getting shingles earlier in the year. Lots of slipstreaming the priority for him, we let him off a turn on the frount for the time being.

I went out again last night and rode the same route, a nice post-work circuit (here in Strava). These light nights really are great. 

Becca and Chris are over again on the Bank Holiday for the Oakman Sportive, 70km of constant climbing and descending. One for Chris to look forward to...

Finally, on the subject of Oakman Inns, a huge thank you to them for kindly donating half my entry fee for the Sportive to Cancer Research. Really kind and hugely appreciated, thanks!

What a difference a year makes

Anniversary has become a theme for today. The morning started off well be securing a pair of tickets for the Anniversary Games at the London Olympic Stadium in July. Really looking forward to going back, so many happy memories, and the place I really got inspired...

Meanwhile, tomorrow is the one year anniversary of the very first cycle ride I recorded on Strava. It was probably only the second or third ride I did following my decision to get fit, and to do it through cycling.

Just one year ago it took me over 47mins to crawl around a seven mile loop, and no less that 12mins to make it up the Little Heath Lane Climb. It's a mile long and averages 5.2%, and I'm pretty sure I had to stop at least once as I wheezed and puffed my way up. A couple of weeks later on this hill I suffered the indignity of being overtake by a runner...

But all that really has changed. It was a glorious evening tonight, my first shorts only ride of the year, so I decided to undertake an Anniversary Challenge, to ride exactly the same route and see how what time I could manage.  

Same route, very different times. 2012 on the left, 2013 on the right

It went really well. I managed to average 17mph around the loop, arriving back in just 26mins 50seconds, more than 20mins quicker than I managed a year ago. And the climb? Nailed in five and a half minutes.

I don't think I've ever been fitter in my adult life than I am now. Unfortunately, though, this still isn't fit enough to succeed in the Ride100. With light and warm evenings finally here I'm looking forward to a lot more training again, and seeing even more improvement.

First time for everything

Yesterday I managed to get out for a Sunday early morning ride with my local cycling club, Tring Velo Club, for the first time. It's a small, friendly, informal group of Dads who made an enthusiastic beginner feel very welcome. Thanks Gents!

I did 50 miles in total, taking just 3hrs 20min, so 15mph average. I'm quite proud of that! Here's my ride on Strava.

Getting experience of riding in groups is an important part of my preparation for being one of 20,000 doing the Ride100. Here's what I learnt:

• Riding in a group does help you go faster. It's true. Not sure if it's just peer pressure or less wind resistance yet, though. Need to practice slip streaming more

• It's much easier riding in the group than Yo-Yoing out the back... I found it harder keeping up as the ride went on, my lack of stamina showing. And with the extra effort needed to get back in the pack, it was all too easy to fall straight out the back again. I really do need to keep building my endurance

• Head winds hurt. I managed to slip off the back of the group just as we went through a very exposed area with 20+mph gusting headwinds. I felt like I was putting in power that should have had me going at 17mph or more, and I was only managing 11mph

• 50 miles at 15mph average is pretty much my limit now. I was pretty knackered when I finished, and don't think I'd fueled myself properly, dehydration making me feel a little sub-par for the rest of the day. Must sort that out

A really good ride, but also slightly frightening to think in four months times I'll need to ride twice this distance. Many, many training miles to go between now and then.   

Ronde Van Chilterns

The Dagnall Climb, Tom’s Hill, the Wigginton Climb, and the devilish Crong. They may not be quite as world famous as the Koppenberg or Pattenberg that the world’s finest road cyclists will be tackling tomorrow, yet in this corner of the Chilterns they are some of the very best we’ve got.

It’s been a hugely frustrating three weeks as family, fate and mostly weather have conspired against me getting out on the road. I’m just grateful that it is not until August that I'll tackle the RideLondon, this hasn’t really impacted my main training schedule.

At long last, though, I got out today. Determined not to be beaten by the cold, or the remnants of a cold I’ve enjoyed this week, I decided to make up for some lost time by pushing myself.

I blogged about the Oakman Sportive last week, and looking through the route they’ve done a great job designing a 70km course that includes many of the landmark climbs in our area. We’ll be doing about 2,500ft of climbing in those 70km. And today, I decided to go out and ride the route

Well, I rode most of it... 15 miles in, riding through an area I don’t really know, I managed to take a wrong turn that cut about 4km off the route. I had to find a new way back up onto Ashridge too, but that provided a good excuse to ride the long Dagnall Climb for the first time this year.

Bracing

There may not have been any cobbles on my route today, however the number of potholes along the roads made a suitable substitute. Throw in plenty of loose gravel, melting snow patches and plenty of debris, I think my main achievement today was not puncturing.

A really thoroughly enjoyable ride, but I’m not going to pretend it wasn’t hard work, and I do ache a little now. The great news, though, is that in length and volume of climbing my ride today is very comparable to miles 35 to 75 of the RideLondon, the Surrey Hills section, so clearing that in 3hrs 10mins is really encouraging. The miles either side of this section are pretty flat, so there is nothing I should be too scared of. Just need to keep working on my endurance.

But I won't be doing that tomorrow, as I have a date with the TV and a little corner of Belgium. Here’s Inring’s brilliant as always preview: http://inrng.com/2013/03/preview-tour-of-flanders/

Thinking ahead

I'm trying not to let this weather get me down. It is so frustrating, though, not being able to get out on the road. I missed my ride last weekend, but never-mind as Becca and Chris were due to come over this weekend so we could ride on Sunday. However, the forecast of -6 and 15cm on snow tomorrow looks set to put pay to that. Surely I'll be able to get out for a long ride at some point over the long Easter weekend? It will be April...

In better news, though, I got an email yesterday launching the 2013 Oakman Inns Sportive. Oakman are a great local pub and restaurant group and Mrs M and I have enjoyed eating in their restaurants for many years, especially when I was living in Tring 10 years or so ago and the original Forno Vivo became a second home! They've long supported local sports, mainly Tring Rugby Club, and in 2011 started their own Cycle Sportive.

You've got mail

The 2012 edition was run in September and I rode the shorter 55km route with the rest of the Berko Dads' Bike Club. A very social ride, the route linked three Oakman pubs, all open for coffee and cakes.

Enjoying the 2012 Oakman Inns Cycle Sportive

From the look of it the 2013 event will be a more organised affair, even offering T-shirts when you finish. There's a 70km route which will be just right for my training for the RideLondon 100, as the 2013 date has been moved to early May. I'll be there, hopefully with Becca and Chris plus the rest of the Bike Club. And you never know, it may have finished snowing by then.

A Rapid 20

My closest road cycling club is Tring Velo Club. While I've not had chance to join them for one of their Sunday morning rides yet (maybe next week?), I have been following them on Facebook.

A couple of months back one of the club members posted a challenge. To complete a "Rapid 20". He posted a 20 mile round route from Tring, with the challenge of completing the circuit in under an hour, averaging north of 20mph.

"A Rapid 20" circuit from Tring

 At this stage in my cycling I knew I was nowhere close to a consistent 20mph rider, however I've had in mind for a while then when the opportunity arose I'd like to ride it, just to benchmark myself and my progress.

I got such an opportunity today, and did my own individual time trial. For this part of the world it was pretty flat, other than a nasty little ramp into Wingrave after six miles. And for a first go with relatively few road miles in my legs I was pretty satisfied with a time of 1hr 13mins, an average of 16.5mph.

Here's my ride on Strava. I look forward to trying to improve this as the training builds to August, and hopefully riding the route as a team TT with Becca and Chris in a fortnight....

A landmark achievement

This morning I rode my first organised cycle ride of 2013, the 60th annual Harp Hilly Hundred. Wilf and I chose the 36 mile, 55km route, and completed the course in 2hrs 49mins. I'm sure we could have gone quicker, though had less fun, if we'd spent less time chatting.

As the name suggest, it was rather hilly (2,000ft of climbing), up and down the Chilterns, with a couple of wicked short, steep climbs (the route can be seen here). The sun even shone at times, with suggestions that Spring is on its way. All really pleasant.

Harp Hilly Hundred. Done.

I decided to ride the seven miles down the valley to the start point, and then ended up riding back after as well. These additional 14 miles gave me my landmark achievement of the day, a total distance of 50 miles. This is the first time I've ridden that far in one go. The total ride time of 3hrs 40mins, at 13.5 average mph, sets the benchmark for my summer of training (here's my full ride on Strava).

The goods news is that London to Brighton is only 52 miles so I'll be more than ready for that, and I was delighted yesterday morning to be able to secure places for Becca, Chris and I. 100 miles in eight hours, though... that really is going to take some serious training.

Exciting post

I received an exciting and motivating letter through the post today - my sponsorship pack from Cancer Research.

It was great to read the sponsor stories and training suggestions, however the details of the work Cancer Research does and just what can be achieved through sponsors' donations was the most important read, and motivating for the many miles ahead.

Have a read yourself about some of Cancer Research's work here, and find out why I personally chose to supporting them this year here.

I'd really appreciate any sponsorship you might be able to share. My fundraising webpage is here - http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/BCBC.

Thanks

Off the beaten track

Had a great long weekend away in North Norfolk with the family, for the end of half term. Rather cold, though still very good.

The place we stayed had bikes available to hire, and the opportunity was far too good to miss. A real change being out on a mountain bike rather than my road bike, but thoroughly good fun that the girls really enjoyed (even if Lucy doesn't look too impressed in the photo...).

A spinning class on Wednesday is now all the sits between me and my first organised ride of the year on Sunday. Looking forward to getting out there and doing some decent road miles at last, plus the long-range weather forecast looks really encouraging. Fingers crossed.

I'm Spinning Around

It's really not like being out on the open road. However, I've turned to Spinning to try to maintain a  keep a base level of fitness over the winter, and keep my weight in check.

It's bike riding Jim, just not as you know it

The aim for the winter has been to do one or two times a week in the gym, and then a ride out on the road at the weekend. Limited daylight and snow has rather impacted the latter ambition, though, so Spinning has been really important to keep me going.

It's a bit of an acquired taste, however I think it's done the job! Another 17 miles spun last night - every little helps.

My Olympic Legacy

I loved the London Olympics. The announcement on 6th July 2005 that the Olympics were coming to my city led to seven years of excited anticipation. It remains quite unbelievable to me that the games themselves were everything I’d hoped for, and more.

Fiona and I threw ourselves into the spirit of the Olympics, determined to take advantage of such a “once in a lifetime event”. We went just about every day to something, somewhere, and loved it all. And the opportunity to see the world’s best cyclists up close was too much to resist. Cycling framed our games.

London became the centre of the cycling world. Inside the Velodrome on the Olympic park; the streets of Twickenham await the arrival of the men's road race; the Brownlee brothers break away in Hyde Park on their way to making histroy

While the hangovers from the Opening Ceremony were still raging, we were out on the streets of Richmond and Twickenham cheering on the Men’s Road Race. While that didn’t work out quite as hoped, the same couldn’t be said four days later when we stood by the finish line at Hampton Court Palace to watch Wiggo and Froomy power to Gold and Bronze. The atmosphere by the Thames that day will live very long in the memory, it was truly one of the highlights of the whole games.

A few days later we spent a late afternoon in the Olympic Velodrome, cheering on British starts including Vicky Pendelton, Jason Kenny and Ed Clancy. And a few days after we watched the Brownlee brothers cycling round Hyde Park on their way to Olympic history in the triathlon.

Global stars of cycling. Current road World Champion fast Phil Gilbert during the men's time trial; Queen Victoria Pendleton; Jason Kenny warming up on his way to spring gold: paying homage to Wiggo; women's road race silver medalist Lizzie Armitstead

The Olympics created such a high it took a while to come back down again. Others have talked about POD, post-Olympic depression, and I know what they mean. So Fiona and I asked ourselves: what should we do in 2013? What should our legacy be? Which is when we decided that as a whole family we should do more sport this year, more cycling, and use it as a route to raise some money for charity. Hence this challenge and my sponsorship page for Cancer Research UK.

Raising money for charity as an Olympic legacy was demonstrated during the games themselves by an amazing group of people, the #2012Tweeps. Their selfless work helped many people, myself included, to get many tickets for the Olympics, and in the process raise thousands of pounds for Médecins Sans Frontières. I’m hoping to keep some of the #2012Tweep spirit alive during my cycling this year.

Which leads us to one final connection. On the early evening of Friday 3rd August 2012, as Vicky Pendleton was winning her Kirin Gold medal, #2012Tweep Conrad Readman (@conr62) suffered a fatal heart attack inside the Olympic Velodrome. I’d shared a pint with Conrad after collecting some Olympic tickets just two days before the opening ceremony the week before. Almost exactly a year to the day later, the northern part of the Olympic Park will be re-opening, focused on the new Velo Park for the RideLondon Olympic legacy cycling festival . It’s from here that the route of RideLondon 100 starts on August 4th 2013, losly following the route of the Olympic cycling road races. On the day before I plan to ride into the park to pay my respects to Conrad, pleased that we’re also supporting the British Heart Foundation this year.