First road race of 2011...

Its been two weeks without racing and today i competed in my first road race of 2011.

Road is not a strong point of mine, especially at hog hill. But i do them for training and to try and build up stamina. Over 2011 i am aiming to spread 5 road race out over march-june so i hope to improve as i go.

Ive gone into the U16 for road as well now so i am in with some pretty big lads, and as the start whistle went i was tucked in around the middle of the bunch trying to keep in that position. I highly doubted that i would stay with them for the race but i was not going to settle for being dropped after a lap. 

A couple of attacks went off the front with nobody chasing as the wind would catch them before we did but it was like all of a sudden everyone attacked and i simply didnt have the speed to keep with them. I found myself in a group of four with the others all in my category. We kept a consistent pace and the gap of around ten seconds to the main bunch neither grew nor shrunk but what held us back was a rider in the group refusing to take a turn. 

Normally, this wouldnt bother me so much as we are only youth and its not that serious, but he was shouting at us "Come on lets work together and catch them". Please, correct me if i am wrong but normally when some says 'let's' that means that they are involving themselves in the activity no? This kid was determined to sit in so me and another rider decided between us to attack and catch the group of U14's that we were about to lap. We sat in with them until the two from the original 4 caught up again and then we attacked again, just to annoy them (Bit cheeky).

 The rider i attacked with was really strong and i was going nearly 100% to stay with him and then i had a stitch, which was exactly the wrong time to get one. I was then alone in the wind, struggling with a stitch and decided to wait for the U14's group to recover before going again. 

Im not sure where i finished, and im not really bothered as road is training for me, although i would like to stay with the front group next time! 

Im doing a local MTB race tomorrow as training for the first national race coming up at the end of the month and then will be doing a few months of base training!

Thanks for reading!

Ciao

Season starts here!

So i have had my two week 'Rest period' and have started preparing for my 2011/2012 cross season!

From the season gone, i have learnt so much that i can use to help me train, race, and prepare better. The 4 races i did in Belgium have given an unbelievable amount of confidence and also something to aspire to. Not being lapped by Mathieu Van Der Poel, Dutch second year champion, and son of the legend Adrie has to be a highlight. I know exactly where i want to be next season and that place is the top! Hopefully i will use what i have learnt successfully!

Most Exciting Race


In my opinion, it would have to be the CC Ashwell Eastern league race where i was leading with Josh Parkin and long time rival, and friend Alan Trolove. We were zooming around the fast course unable to shake each other off until the last lap where i finished second to Josh. It reminded me of a early season world cup, with Pauwels, Nys, Stybar and Albert battling it out for the win!

Worst Race


If I'm honest... All of the national races were disastrous for me. I dont know why i went so badly in them at all. It could have been preparation, it could have been the legs etc. I just hope to change that next year. 

Most annoying


The final race of the season; The 'Nordzee cross' Superpresteige in Middelkerke. I was so excited but came down with a cold on friday when we arrived at the venue. From the start i went backwards.

Best bit of Kit 1


The best bit of kit i have would no douby be my Lazer Gensis helmets supplied by www.ciclosuno.com . The Roll-sys retention system is amazing and provides a really snug and secure fit whilst looking great at the same time!


Best bit of Kit 2


Of course my Shimano M310 shoes. These were given to me by a good friend at the national championships and they took my liking immediately. They are offered as custom fit but are fine to use without. The reason i like them is the protection offered like no other manufacturers footwear. The reinforced heels and side help protect you from any bashing about and the grip on the bottom is superb!


Favourite Picture


My favourite picture is no doubt this one from the snowy cross at Broome Heath, Norfolk. 

Favourite moment


This is a hard one but i would have to say finishing 12th in a high prestige Belgian race in Bredene, or in the bar the night before the race at Middelkerke. That was a great night with great company!


Worst 


When i was laying on the icy floor at Koksijde not 10 minutes before my race, in so much pain from what was a suspected dislocated elbow after crashing in the warm up. It was so hard to have to admit to the possibility of missing the race you had built your season around. 

Looking foward to next season


The Koksijde Nieuwelingen race for sure! I want to improve here as it was an amazing experience. This will be my main race of the 2011/2012 season.

Please do contact me via my 'Contact me' page if you wish, thanks for reading.

The Season's Grand Finale in Belgium!

After riding in the Eastern regions end of season team race the weekend before and winning i was confident for my race in Belgium. We travelled to Middelkerke for the Superpresteige Nordzee Cross, where I raced in the Nieuwelingen category. We got there on Friday, and as we pulled up to the course we spotted Zdenek Stybar the World Champ riding the course with Czech team mate Petr Dlask so i quickly jumped on the course behind them. My dad, Kev, and Ivan were at the side of the course and asked Styby to come and sign a few pictures and have a photo. We had a little chat with him which was great and it is amazing to see how normal the World Champion is.

So i carried on riding the course and i really liked it, but i knew it would be hard the next day as it was forecast to rain. The course had 3 sand pits, all of which i was able to ride and a bridge and hurdles in the same straight of the course. Once i had finished riding the course, Kev, Dad, and Ivan washed my bike and i rode back to our accommodation for the night. I got in, showered and put my clothes out to dry before eating a rather large bowl of pasta.

I woke up the next morning feeling a bit rough. I had a sore throat and bit of a cough but nothing too serious. I got my kit on, had brekkie and rode to the course behind our car and went to sign on. The entry was free, and i got a pack which contained passes for 2 mechanics and a soigneur and that really shows how professional even the youth races are there. I did a lap of the course and started warming up on the turbo. 

I rode up and down the road a few times to keep my legs spinning before the whistle for gridding was blown. When we were called up, i was 3rd from last as usual. The traffic lights indicated the start of the race and as we hurtled down the road at about 30mph the rider next to me slipped, and veered off across the road nearly taking me and a few others out. I felt great and throughout the first lap i was racing in about 19th place, but then as i got to half way through the second lap it was like somebody let down my tires and i felt completely wrecked. i don't know what it was, but now i feel quite ill so maybe that was it, but it was terrible.

After finishing my race, i got changed and we wandered round the course for the elites race, enjoying bratwurst and frites. But i still felt wrecked and wanted to get back to the car. 

Overall it was a brilliant weekend, and i learnt a lot even if it was hard. I've still got another year as an under 16 so hopefully i will come back with a bang and be able to show my potential. Over the summer, i will be competing in a few road races, and primarily the national MTB Series as training for the cross season. I'm aiming to make the squad for the UK School Games in Sheffield this year to represent the Eastern MTB team. 

Thank you to everyone who has helped in any way or form for making this season successful, but more importantly fun!  Especially Ciclos Uno (www.ciclosuno.com) for providing me with kit, and equipment.

Ciao for now.