Sunday, 22 May 2011

Lands End to London - Planning

The dates have been chosen and the majority of planning taken care of.  Now its time to blog this 350 mile trip and hope things go to plan in 5 days time.

Annually me and a few friends organise a cycling trip. Unfortunately for these guys, whether its my influence or not, I try to encourage cycling in anyone I know. Previously we've done the Coast 2 Coast (C2C) and a few trips to Wales for some mountain biking.  This time the others suggested we up the anti, which was a surprise to me as being the only racer I sometimes feel I try and push this lot to achieve too much.. After much discussion we chose Lands End to London (LEL), a 350 mile trip which will take in some of the best countryside southern England has to offer. The dates planned are Thursday 26th may - Monday 30th May, five days. This party consists of 4 riders including myself. 

Keith battles his way to the top of Hartside
The Riders
Keith, who on our last trip (his first) showed grit and determination by managing to get a cheap full suspension mountain bike over the spine of the country. His bike tried its best not to make it by shedding parts and puncturing at every opportunity, finally shedding the left crank arm on the last day. I think its fair to say that on our last trip Keith wasn't the fittest and was not as prepared as he could have been, limited time on the bike prior to the ride being the main issue. Since then Keith has been in touch with a friend of mine who owns a bike shop (Ride) in Coventry, has bought a fantastic new bike and been riding almost relentlessly.  I'm really looking forward to seeing how well the big man goes this time.

Off camber corner caught Aaron out
Aaron, who on our last trip showed true mountain bike skills, now faces a huge amount of mileage.  There have been several messages from him worrying about the amount of mileage he's been able to cover in training. However this should be easily offset by the micro planning he places on every decision, should anything happen (and I mean ANYTHING) he'll have it covered and the group will benefit as a result. The others would not forgive me if I didn't mention his last C2C which saw his insane descending confidence bite him.

Rocky descents at Afan
Last but not least is Mark, I rode Afan with him last year. He showed he was the fastest from our group on the descents, which is odd as he's from Norfork so I'm guessing he doesn't get too much practice, but fast he was. I'm guessing he'll be plenty fit enough for the ride and he has helped with some of the route planning which is terrific.






The Route
The route is by road, we'll be on road bikes with no support vehicle.  This means we have to carry everything and be as conservative as possible.

Day 1: Ride to Lands end then back up to Truro - 41miles est. 3-4hrs

On Thursday morning we are catching the 07:30 Train from Paddington to Penzance. That will give us a ~10 mile ride to Lands end before we can start.

LEL - Day 1

Day 2: Ride from Truro to Moretonhampstead - 81miles est. 7-9hrs

LEL - Day 2

Day 3: Ride from Morehamption to Sherborne - 75miles est. 6-9hrs

LEL - Day 3

Day 4: Ride from Sherborne to Alton - 82.9 miles est. 9-10hrs

LEL - Day 4

Day 5: Ride from Alton to London Bridge The Thames / opposite HMS Belfast. - 55miles est. 4-5 hrs
Accomodation: Home sweat home

LEL - Day 5

The Equipment
First of all let me say a huge thank you to one of Team Jewson MI Racings main sponsors - CNP. They have been in touch and helped us plan our food intake for the trip giving us all the nutrition we will need. Thanks guys, your help is appreciated. Without trying to sound like a salesman I suggest anyone reading this in the future, athlete or not, get hold of a few samples from the CNP site. If you don't like it you've lost nothing, however I am 100% sure you will and you'll gain great tasting products that in my opinion are better than anything else out there.  Team Sky agree with me.

And so onto the equipment list:

The Cycling Kit
2 x Short sleeve jersey
1x Long sleeve jersey
2x Bibshorts
2x Base layer
1x Arm warmers
1x Leg warmers
1x Waterproof jacket
3x Socks
1x Track Mitts
1x Shoes
1x Helmet
1x Oakleys
1x HRM strap

Evening Wear
1x T-shirt
1x Combats
2x Underwear
1x Light trainers

Toiletries
1x travel-sized toothbrush and toothpaste
1x travel-sized shower gel
1x travel-sized shampoo
1x travel-sized deodorant
1x tub of chamois cream

Medical
1x First Aid Kit
1x packs of Ibuprofen Tablets
1x pack of Paracetamol

Gadgets and Technology
1x Phone
1x Mini USB cable and Charging point
1x Micro USB cable
1x Camera + charger
1x Garmin 705

Spares and Repairs
4x Inner tubes
1x Folding tyre
1x Pump
1x Multi-Tool
1x 1/8th chain link
1x Chain Tool
20x Cable Ties
2x Brake cable
1x spare cleat and screws

Miscellaneous
2x CNP Water Bottles
1x CNP Cap/ T-shirt
1x Coiled Bike Lock
1x Note with all important contact details for my wife
1x Washing powder
Cash and Debit Card and one cheque (IMPORTANT)
Train Tickets
20x Energy Gels - CNP
10x Energy Drink / isotonic powders CNP
5x Pro Recovery powders CNP

The Trip
I'll update the blog on the way so stay tuned. Giving the history of our rides something is bound to go wrong :)
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Friday, 29 April 2011

Returning to Racing

On the 14th October 2010 I underwent knee surgery to fix a torn ACL that I received when I daftly agreed to play football for the Department of Economics, University of Warwick. Its been one of the most unpleasant experiences of my life.  Even now 6 months on my rehabilitation is not complete, the normal full recovery being between 9-12 months.

Having said that my bike training has been intensive since February, fortunately the ACL is not used while cycling. The last 10 or so days have seen me do my first road race since a huge crash in April 2010 and first time trial since the ACL operation.  How did it go? Better than I thought! My main fear has been the unknown condition and power of my injured legs hamstring. During the ACL operation a hamstring graft is taken and inserted into the knee.  This involves an implement that looks similar to a apple corer, that once inserted into the hamstring produces a nice portion of tissue that can be used.  As a cyclist this is a huge matter of concern, I weighed up all my options before the operation including that of having a patella tendon graft instead.  However my consultant, one of the top in this area, made it clear he still preferred using the hamstring graft.

The road race was at Mallory Park, I've raced here dozens of times and have enjoyed being in breakaways on many occasions.  I decided to get some solid training in and rode the 32miles there and back.  Having the miles in my legs made the race tough, with a nervous bunch and tired legs I decided to stay safe and finished with the bunch. Big confidence boost and looking forward to the next race.

The time trial was an evening 10, a course I've not ridden before, the K12/10.  Not the best way to compare previous performances, especially given the horrid northerly wind. On completing the course and being utterly exhausted I was very disappointed to see 24 minutes.  However when seeing the complete list of results everyone was 1 minute slower than normal, comparing myself to previous rivals shows I'm actually about 50 seconds down on where I should be. This gives me a good base and something to work on.

Am I happy with how my return went. I'm never happy with my performances so not really.  But its positive and I feel great for it and can't wait to get back to full speed.

For anyone else about to undergo ACL surgery, good luck. Its not fun but is worth doing.  Will you come back as strong as before? I don't know yet. I'll be sure to let you know :)
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