The National 25

There was a young man from Surrey,

Who cycled about in a hurry,

He went to the race but was minutes off the pace,

So he treated himself to a curry!

Shamelessly robbed off Cycling Weekly's website.

I had an absolute mare on Sunday and was weak like baby. It was disappointing and I couldn't work out what went wrong for a long time - until today. I woke up bleary eyed and with a sore throat, so at least I can stop racking my brains. Priority one is getting well again and from there I've got to plan where my season is going to go.

With every setback I learn more about my body, and how fragile I seem to be. I'm looking to the future now,  the bigger picture and not putting pressure on myself for the time being. I'll probably steer clear of the knee-high socks for a while! Peace out for now troops.

FTW - 'Functional' Threshold Work

I'm teetering on the edge of full blown cycling geekery. I just got back from a ride with Sammoth and realised that I spent a fair bit of time 'talking numbers'. What's happened to me??! I can only blame training for three weeks straight on a time trial bike and a weak mental state.

Couldn't find any relevant pictures so here's one of me on a time trial bike from the start of the year.

Last week's bout of training is best described using the word 'functional'. It was a period of back-to-the-grindstone-esque  work mid season and worked as a suitably shocking experience to get me back on track legs-wise. Ploughing up and down a dual carriageway for two hours in the aero tuck position, like a tractor with a broken sat-nav is hardly inspiring work. Still, it's sowing the seeds for future form (sorry world, I went there). Awful similes aside it's got to be done sometimes. 

Phwoar! Look at the lanes on that.

Getting back onto the road bike felt like sitting down in my old favourite armchair and was a treat for my undercarriage as well as my mind. Let me tell you, time trial bikes are not meant to be ridden for five hours. I did a Thruxton circuit race last night and came in second which was alright. I got in a break with two teammates from PedalHeaven, identified the sprinter of the two and then waited for the sprint, where he beat me. Pretty much foolproof tactical nous shown by yours truly there. Still, it was a laugh and after doing my training in the morning it was better than getting on the turbo in my shed for another session!

This Sunday is the National 25 mile time trial so I'll stick another post up after that, hopefully rife with more witty banter and good news. I hope everyone's enjoying the summer. Cheers for reading!