@MiddleRinger ‘s blog!!! Pimp my winter ride!

Hmm. Same size bike that I could do with! May have to borrow it 😉

Tempo Cyclist - Tasmania

After my fair share of commute miles back and forth on the Ribble, I thought it was about time I pimped out my commute bike. There’s always room for one more horse in the stable, right? I’d been eyeing off one of these babies for a month or two since seeing our expert mechanic build a few for customers. Staff pricing made it a bit of a steal so I just HAD to have one!

It’s technically a cyclocross bike, but don’t worry I won’t be riding any of that dirty muddy cross stuff! I’ve dialled it similar to my summer road bike and switched out that chunky CX wheelset for my svelte Fulcrum Racing 3’s shod with Conti GP 4 Season tyres. The Ultegra Di2 shifting (although only 10-speed) is totally lush!

So now my “summer” bike has Shimano 105 and my “winter/commute” bike rocks super sexy Ultegra Di2. Haha! #pimpmyride

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CX skills session 2 with Caroline Stewart

Drills, skills and technical riding were order of the day, and I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. I’d done roughly 50 miles on Saturday (the day after our Xmas party – not bad considering I’d told everyone I wasn’t going out!) helping Toria out leading and dropping back to keep Sarah company – it’s great to be a stronger rider and I know exactly how she felt out the back.

A very short ride to the park with Caroline on a lovely out of season warm day. Luckily it’s perfect for drills and skills, nice grassy area with two short steep stepped banks. And with an excellent teacher who’s very patient, but superbly good at explaining the how’s and whys of what we’re doing. And what works and doesn’t work.

I started off following Caroline. Trying to ride the same lines as her. It’s a bit daunting purely because I don’t want to fall off and my turning skills certainly needed working on. Then she stood on the flat bit between the two banks giving me the following drills to have a go at:

Riding off camber straight along a bank, 

Turning off camber, up and down the banks,

Figure of 8 up and down the two banks, with sharp turns (more acute turns and coming back on myself)

Tight turns around a bench and a tree, then onto the steeper section of the off camber at an angle to ride in a straight line along it (with Caroline as a human fence post after I *drifted* onto the easy part the first time).

Riding on the steeper part of the off camber kick pushing.

The drills are repeated and repeated. Sometimes I find doing a drill uncomfortable purely because I’m not used to it and again I don’t like to feel like I’m losing control of the bike at the point of no return, but it gets easier a lot quicker. A couple of times Caroline uses herself as a human fence to stop me riding onto the easier part of the bank.
It’s never boring because the more I repeat doing stuff the more I’m learning. I’ve watched a lot of cx, but only when it’s mentioned now do I see how it all comes into play. How shifting your weight on the camber can help you keep going. How and why to power up a bank and bring yourself out of the saddle at the right place just before the top – to power yourself over without spinning out behind.

I absolutely love it. And it’s easy to talk to Caroline who seems happy with my progress  (well I hope it’s progress!).

Then it’s onto how to dismounting and remounting. I’m confident enough getting off the bike – but remounting not at all. I’ve got to remember not to do that stupid hop and since letting my seat down – I’ve found its got easier. More than a couple of times I completely fudge it all up. Unclipping the wrong foot first. Looking down at trying to clip back in. Completely stopping the bike…
Then how to carry the bike and the reasons for doing it different ways. There is no barriers, so a handily placed stick does. Ride up. Dismount. Lift bike – not by the top tube! – shoulder it. Put it down correctly. Get on. Easier said than done. And my clipping in skills were next to non existant today. Especially doing this! #ForReasonsUnknown.

A quick ‘game’ of off camber pursuit (Caroline’s best invention!) which I lost funnily enough! And off through the woods to play on different surfaces. Leaf litter, pine needles (and pine cones!), scree, gravel, roots, hillocks, deepish muddy sections and tree roots everywhere.
I’m struggling to keep up this time. A combination of not much sleep and a long day on the bike yesterday has taken its toll and when I hit a really deep muddy section I don’t have the power to get through it. And have to get off and carry it, jumping over a ditch in the process! But I laugh. It’s all good fun!

Today was a lot harder in some ways – really having to concentrate on the how’s and whys, as well as the surface I’m riding over. I’m used to not thinking too much and just doing it – this has definitely given me more knowledge of what to try!

But it’s great, it’s awesome to have a friend that can coach me and can help me out with what I’m not so brave doing.

Huge thanks Caroline, it’s great to have someone like you who’s so good at coaching, let alone a good friend. So please check out her coaching page or follow her on twitter @swordpanda!

https://m.facebook.com/CSCycleCoach/

#keepsmiling

Just a tad muddy!

CX at Hillingdon

Kit in the wash. Shoes on the radiator. Showered. Changed. Bike put away…. oops… (5 minutes later it was!!)

I’ve never given racing cx a proper thought, kinda thinking I might have a go next year. Knowing I’ve only ever had one real coaching session, and that I still haven’t gone for any sessions with Twickenham CC on a Thursday, I never thought even last week I’d be racing my Kinesis in an actual race.

Lining up for the Novice race this morning, I’d forgotten all about being nervous and worried that I hadn’t ridden any of the course, or got my tyre pressure right, or warmed up enough. Some of the men had and most of them had come off at some point. But once I was on the line, nothing really mattered. I could give it a go. See how I got on. Hopefully not make a fool of myself. Luckily Toria had pinned my number on the right way for me earlier!

We watch the Under 16s go. Boys. Then girls. Then it’s our turn. Men and Ladies together. The whistle blows and I get a fairly ok start – soon being overtaken by all but a couple on the grass. It’s obvious fairly quickly that I’m getting left behind. But I keep going. Look for the line around that corner. Try and avoid the worst of the mud. Watch the bumps. Control the bike. Try not to spin out too much. Fast downhill. Overtake someone that had gone off to hard. Watch the off camber.

At not one point do I think of anything but how to approach the next section. Take a tighter line. Get off. Run up, down, over the barrier. Back on. Get away from the two behind me. Heaving for breath because it’s harder than ever I thought it might be. Spinning out behind again. Get off. Jog. Come on. I can do this. Back on. Smile at Toria shouting support. Round the corner. Foot out. Ride. No. Run. Top of the off camber hill. Oh. How do I do this? Get on with it FFS. Relax, dont tense. Can’t ride? Run. Back on the bike.

Tarmac. A few cheers and the bell. Words of support. Bounce the back end of the bike to knock sone mud off. Catch up the guy in front. Get up that hill. Flat. Faster. Bumps. More lumps. Go go go. Need a drink. No water. Can’t stop. Won’t stop. Find that good line. Go. Run. Let the bike drift wide to avoid the mud. Overtake and get away from the next guy. Off camber. Run. Back on. Faster. Catch breath. Need a drink. Really am gasping. No stopping. Where is everyone? A couple of under 16s have passed me. Muddy mud mud. Run. Crap section. On bike quickly. Jump off. Run. Off camber. Spinning out badly. Should’ve gone higher. Cheers. Checkered flag? Oh. Finish.

So tired. Need water. Lots of well dones. Toria. Need water….

I’ve loved every second of that. So ridiculously unfit. But powerful. Maybe a little too much. Need to sit back a bit going uphill with my weight forward. Maybe a little less air in the tyres. Running has helped. I drink most of one bottle of water.

Wondering where Toria has disappeared to – I find her in the pits (I barely noticed them on the way round) with the Kingston Wheelers. I get some of the mud hosed off (thanks Barry!) and we watch as some of the Vets go around.
Dave Spragg (KW) snaps his rear mech,  but luckily has a spare bike in the pits.
We go to leave, and I see a familiar person. Bruce Dalton is carrying two bikes over. I offer myself and Toria to pit for him after we grab some food.

A wander down to the start, where I see Harriet Owen, and take both jackets for Bruce and Barry.

Then back to the pits. The KW lot are great and we have a right banter. Bruce is miles ahead and shouts for his bike as he approachs. Toria catches the muddy one and we set to work.
Matt helps us scrape and pull the worst off, and the three of us get as much as we can off – borrowing the KW jet wash to try and get the last few bits out of the jockey wheels and rear mech.
And repeat. And repeat. And repeat… Every lap Bruce is a bit further ahead. And we’re having a great banter in the pits.
Suddenly it’s quieter and the race has finished….

I get my bike blasted clean by Bruce – who nearly forgets to go to the podium. It’s his first Senior win and I’m really chuffed for my mate!

Oh. Did I mention. I won the women’s Novice race (no podium etc though!)

It was mad. But I absolutely loved every single second of it. And I wonder where the next one is?!

Thanks to Toria especially. And the Wheelers. And Bruce for talking me into getting a cx bike in the first place. Guys/Girls – you are all brilliant, thank you!!!

#keepsmiling