On my back

I've had a week off since my win and it’s not been spent getting boozed and taking champagne showers; it’s mostly been in bed. And before any of you naughty people turn that into something good, I was mostly just lying on my back sweating a lot… Okay this is coming out all wrong! Basically I got some kind of stomach virus which completely knocked me out. To say it was horrendous would be exaggerating. Let’s just say it was really really awful.

Spent a fair amount of time watching this boil.

I've clearly been going pretty well on the bike over the last month and that’s what makes it even more of a ball-ache. I went from feeling like a bulletproof thoroughbred stallion to a limp overworked mule in the space of less than 24 hours. It’s a long way to fall when you’re at the top of your game, and I performed a pretty good double-pike back flip to face plant.

This was my week.

It feels like I've been holding my breath for the entire week, waiting and wishing, and today was the first time I've been able to open my mouth and breathe in the sweet taste of oxygen again. Hopefully that’s the end of the illness and I can crack on again. A huge shout out must go to Jon at TrainSharp for massaging my ego on Skype when I needed it the most; what a top bloke!

A pre-season update

I know I have been rubbish recently with posting anything; I’m sorry! My excuses are that I’ve been training pretty hard, playing in the snow and getting distracted by this little chap (Alfie).

Yeah that's right, snow dog!

Snow dog with a tasty head (Alf is a cannibal apparently).

The good news is that I’ve finally finished Sheddy! I put the final few slats on the other day so other than paint, of which she definitely needs a lick, she’s good to go. She’s already functioning pretty well as a turbo training dungeon (and has been for a while now!) as well as a tool and bike store. I’m a seriously proud Daddy, so below are some snaps of her growing up (so fast, sob).

The path is the next job on the list, as a muddy track isn't a garden design choice! The snow did get in the way a bit though...

In other news, I went down to see the big boss man JB at TrainSharp for a catch up, to set season targets and to discuss some ideas. It was a good day out with Paul and Sean there too. I got out on the bike for a little ride to do a hill test for Sean and he seemed pretty pleased with how it went. Nothing like having Sean Yates following in a team car to make you go deep in a max test!

Once the torture was over we headed back and checked over my TT position, before my first test on Sunday in the Southdowns 34k TT. We discussed what we did right last year, what we can learn and what my goals are for this year. It was a very busy and constructive day all round. Now I can't wait to get stuck into my targets!

I've booked my Ferry to St Malo for Monday the 11th so that's when I'm off to race again: very exciting times! I will definitely do another post before I leave to share a few of my targets for the year and what I'm really looking forward to. 

Until then...

O Symetric

I started riding with O Symetric chain rings five weeks ago, on the advice of my coach Jon Sharples. After fitting them and spending a good ten minutes spinning the cranks and watching them go round (because they look awesome in my opinion!) I went out for my test ride.

Now I know with some bike parts you can change them and not really tell the difference, although people like to pretend they can. For example new stems; “mmm yes feels much stiffer”, tyres; “wow so much more grip!”, wheel bearings; “SO much smoother!”. But with O Symetric Rings this is not the case. First pedal stroke and you instantly know something’s changed.

"What. Is. Going. On. Here?"

O Symetric chain rings - funny to look at

For me, my first test ride felt like a combination of riding along whilst putting the brakes on and off twice every pedal revolution, and riding over a million hump back bridges in a row, like a fairground waltzer. I started to get a bit seasick at one point.

If I’m honest, I didn’t really know how to feel. I’d read a lot on the theory and being a university graduate (or closet nerd) I liked what I’d read. Claims of big power increases and better muscle development is not to be sniffed at!

The basic principles are that the rings reduce the amount of force required to rotate the cranks past the top dead centre and bottom dead centre of the pedal stroke, when it is hardest to produce power. The rings then allow more force to be applied during the ‘power phase’ of the pedal stroke when you’re using the bigger quadriceps muscles to push the pedals forwards and down. It takes advantage of the bigger quadriceps muscles and makes allowances, as it were, for the smaller and less powerful muscles. At least that’s how I understand it.

Fast forward to the present and I’m now convinced. Big transformation from my first ride confusion I know, but the way I’ve felt on the bike is enough proof for me. The first few weeks were admittedly strange and sometimes uncomfortable, but I’ve stuck it out and now feel totally smooth and natural on them. I’m finding I can average higher power for my long training rides and I did my best ever five second power output on them a week ago, mucking about and sprinting for a 30. That’s got to be a good sign. (Sorry!)