The long weekend.

The long weekend provided the perfect opportunity to test the legs. The weather in Jersey was perfect, but isn't it always? It all started on Thursday with my usual cycle to work followed by a spinning class during the lunch hour. I was cycling home and would have finished with only 10 miles on the clock but caught up with a friend who was heading out for the 5 mile road. It's not quite 5 miles but it's the longest flat, straight road we have. The Jersey Cycling Association were grouped half way along, holding the first event of their four day race festival using part of the 'long' road, before climbing out of the bay to make a large circuit. It all looked very serious, with turbo trainers for warming up and custom race bikes. As we cycled past we were caught up and overtaken several times. I glanced at my Garmin to make sure we were still cycling at 16mph but it didn't feel like it! Plenty to do to improve my speed I thought! 15 miles later I was home thinking how much those club cyclists would be covering over the weekend. Friday joined the wife for her usual circuit of 30 miles. Saturday was club day and I was feeling good. I had just loaded up on my SiS PSP22 Fuel, had a full bottle of Go and an energy bar (that should be worth a couple of freebies)! The group today was small, just 11 of us as the others (probably the more serious, but i was not about to ask) were competing at the race festival. The pace whilst not up to the previous week, was good and I had the opportunity to go to the front. The only serious hill was definitely getting easier! Having finished at the Watersplash and refuelled I carried on and joined my wife to add another 20 miles. 60 miles done. Arriving home the post had just been, and yes my new cycling Jersey had finally arrived. No more jokes about my attire ( Peter you have my sympathy). Anyone thinking of buying one just remember they have a racing cut 'tight' fit! I purchased a medium but would have opted for a large if given the choice again. They may be made by Adidas but they are made in Italy! The evening was spent at a BBQ arranged by my friend David hence the updated photo. Sunday was another trip with the wife but following a puncture on her bike and several ******* later ( I forgot the puncture repair kit) I was off to continue my journey alone. 30 miles mostly going round in circles is no fun - I can't wait for the Pearson 150. Finally Monday came and I missed the early morning cycle but decided to try in the evening when it was cooler. The first climb out of the bay was no fun and I was beginning to feel that perhaps I should have stayed at home. I was tired! Not willing to throw in the towel I decided on a very small circuit ( even smaller loops) but involving a good climb each time. The first was a struggle but it seemed wrong to give up knowing that my fellow cyclists would probably be doing their bit so round I went, again and again. Good for the legs, this was interval training! Eight loops later and 18 miles done, home. Not many aches but tired, and no need for the cream just yet. Grand total 163 miles - phew! Only need to do that in a day and half now!!

Garmin

I have a brand new Garmin Cadence monitor which is suplus to requirements if anyone is interested?

One small blog for man....

I have finally got around to writing my introductory blog which, like the looming L2P endurance event is a first for me. My adult sporting life has revolved around rugby, not reaching full international status like Andrew but still playing at a fairly serious level where diet and training were taken seriously. I still play but on a purely “fun” basis for my local 3rd/vets xv. I, unlike many rugby players, have always enjoyed training (the diet is another matter) so when the opportunity to take part in the L2P came about I was very enthusiastic. However rugby training is about power and speed endurance within a confined space, everything being on hand with a big support team and training for a cycling endurance event is not.

I met Geoff Thomas in Birmingham with Stephen Jones and was inspired by his dedication and immediately hooked with the physical challenge but with 2 children under 4 years old, knew I would require the pink ticket from my wife. I knew Meena’s Dad had died with cancer when she was 15, an event in her life she still struggles to talk about but when I told her (asked permission) about L2P she told me her Dad had contracted non Hodgkin’s lymphoma and she was fully supportive. I have been fortunate not to have known anyone close who has suffered cancer of any form but I am aware through Meena and her family just how devastating an effect it has. I feel genuinely privileged to be given an opportunity to be part of a team that will raise a lot of money.

My cycling to this point had been limited to 45 mins each way along the towpath into the office on a fairly sturdy mountain bike. I knew I would have to fork out on a road bike and new kit as apparently rugby kit would chaff all the areas you would never want chaffed. I have passed through a pretty similar learning and expenditure curve to Peter. Putting things in perspective my bike cost more than my first 2 cars combined although in honesty this says more about my taste in cars than my bike.

Training was progressing nicely until a month ago when the wheels fell off, or at least disappeared. I had just acquired my new road bike and had not even sat on it in anger when I was talked into playing rugby in a local derby league decider which was an enjoyably “tasty” affair compared to our usual timid affairs. Unfortunately I dented my knee quite badly which is still quite swollen. I decided to battle through it and ride into work the following week until Thursday when my mountain bike was stolen from our office car park. I acquired another mountain bike which I assembled Saturday week ago and rode to work on Monday morning. The pedal dropped off on the way home and I was subsequently informed I needed a new crank thingy bobby which was not covered under warranty as I had assembled it incorrectly. In a pathetic moral victory I was informed by the mechanic at Cycle Surgery (we are now on first name terms) I had installed it correctly and the part had failed. However that does not help much and the bike is being fixed to be used next week.

Having re-read the last few paragraphs I sound like a right misery guts which is not quite true. I am enjoying my time on my new road bike and am up to riding just over 3 hours and bar my back, which gets very stiff, my body is holding up quite well. Rear end is coping admirably which may finally be a benefit of what God blessed me with and legs and lungs are fine. In 4 weeks I need to be able to cycle 100miles and if I can get through that in a sensible time I will feel relatively confident.

The questions on my mind are;

What can I do about my back?
Does anyone else get a cold foot?
Which group?
Where do I put my bananas Andrew Burns?
How does one dress?

ps still not comfortable with lycra so photo to follow!

Ooops

A. Should have known. With BBQ's comes a strange golden fizzy liquid that is definitely not compatible with training. Never mind, I will make up for it this week.

Oh what to do

Q. A friend has invited the family over for an Easter Monday BBQ lunch. They live about 40m away, with a fair few big humps en route. Do I cycle there and enjoy the lunch as reward or do I cycle back as punishment for over indulging - again? Or both (Mrs B won't like that one)? Later....

Bank Holiday Riding

Like many others so far this weekend, i've used the extra day(s) holiday to get some more miles into my legs. I started off with a 60 miler on Friday, which I found surprisingly hard. Unfortunately at around the 45 mile mark I well and truly blew up, which was far from fun - the subsequent 15 miles back home was incredibly tough and I had to work hard for each pedal stroke. I'm not sure if it's a lack of miles in my legs, insufficient fluid/calorie intake on the ride or just a bad day in the saddle but it is certainly something I need to nail down pretty quickly. In the past I have had an almost over-active metabolism, so I'm hoping that if I increase the amount I am eating whilst riding, I may be able to survive for longer periods in the saddle. Again, I feel this could be yet another lesson learnt the hard way (despite Andrew's earlier tips)!

On Saturday I decided that a bit of confidence building was in order and rode a shorter 28 mile course. The route was quite an undulating one and it never really allowed me to get into any sort of rhythm. I find these sorts of rides quite useful for building my recovery rate whilst not completely killing my legs and the slightly shorter distance was welcomed. Finally, due to a lack of time, I only managed to get in a short 22 mile ride this morning, although I did get in a relatively long climb on the way. Regardless of Friday, a fun time was had by all this weekend and it's the first time i've ridden 3 days on the trot for a long time. Although I'm definitely feeling it this evening, I'm starting to feel like I'm getting some rhythm and fitness back into my riding. Having said this, I have a sneaking suspicion that taking things to the next level is going to be a bit of a 'sufferfest'!

A nice steady ride in the Surrey Hills followed by too much food

I started Sunday morning on the right track with a steady 80km cycle ride including a few climbs in the Surrey Hills (map and stats below - including HRM data). Then it all went wrong when it came to Sunday lunch - lamb, beef, roast potatoes, parsnips, etc. - the whole works. Finished off with some 'Eton Mess' (picture opposite). Now feeling rather guilty and need another bike ride to burn off the excess calories - oh well, there is always tomorrow!

Untitled by dbpegler at Garmin Connect - Details

Blimey. I had set this weekend out for hard training and so it is. On Friday I decided an undulating 65miler around the County Down coast would do. Thank god for creating beautiful countryside. After about 3 hrs I started to get seriously bored; there's only so much talking to ones self or for that matter the cows over the hedge that can be done before you begin to question your own sanity. But I was saved in two ways. Firstly the 5 miles of road between Castle Ward and Downpatrick - stunning and pretty much all down hill with a tail wind. Thank you very much! Then on the final stretch home a passing tractor did the trick. I managed to get into his slip stream and sailed all but the last mile home in the big ring, fast but worth it!

Today was a different affair altogether. The dreaded Northern Irish weather is doing its best to taunt me. Stiff SW and pretty much all cloud, so on go the leggings and thermal jersey again. Not to be preturbed, a stiff 2hours of hard hill/strength type training ensued, and boy can I feel it. Still concerned that this little jaunt of ours is going to prove more challenging than I expect but in the meantime its the Easter roast that I better worry about. Allez Allez

The cycling is improving, just need to sort the running now!

At the moment I am only managing to get out on my bike at the weekend generally for a long run on Sunday morning. Despite this rather tardy approach to training I am pleased to report that my strength and stamina is improving and I am slowly edging towards my target of riding in the Wheel Hero's 100 in Stratford Upon Avon on 22nd May. Both Gordie and I will be doing this ride with Geoff and if any of the other guys wish to join us let me know and I will arrange. Geoff mentioned that he may get a friend of his, Jessica Varnish (track world champion) to ride with us - goodness knows what she will make of us!

Anyway back to today's run. The last time I rode 75 miles in a day was the 2010 Birmingham to Oxford. That ride is etched in my memory for all the wrong reasons. I didn't crash or do anything serious but just felt wretched, had little energy and struggled all the way to Oxford. Today's B group ride was out into the Staffordshire countryside and we reached our destination in a little over 2 hours averaging 16.9mph. Like last week I didn't stop and turned around and used my Garmin to direct me home for what I thought would be a shorter route - how wrong I was. Two and a half hours later I arrived home having covered a total distance of just under 75 miles.

The big positive of today's run was that I covered a lot of miles with no stops and by eating and drinking at regular intervals my energy levels were good and the only thing to cause me some discomfort were a few aches and pains in the legs. So the training is making a difference and I am now enjoying the longer rides.

Next on the sporting agenda is the Shakespeare half marathon in a fortnight. Whist my cycling training has been a bit patchy my running over the last 2 months has been non-existent so if I am not able to get out for some longer runs over the next week it may be best if I kissed that idea goodbye. Watch this space for further updates.

Easter Friday morning ride - bit of hill work

A nice easy morning 40km+ ride over the top of the South Downs down to the coast (quick photo moment - beach huts in Goring) and then back home before I start the decorating!

The link below provides some stats on the ride - in future I must use my HRM for additional data. Quite a lot of hills which meant for some slow speeds up hill and fast the other side (max: above 60km per hour).

Hope to get out again later today or alternatively may go for a sea swim with the club - first of the season - it is going to be cold!

Happy Easter to all.

Untitled by dbpegler at Garmin Connect - Details

The secret diary of Peter Land, part two...

Wed 6^th April

I’ve just spent an hour setting up my JustGiving, Linked in and footers on my letters and emails. So now I’m ‘coming out’ and everyone will know! Hopefully that £0.00 figure on all my charity pages will change, too.

Fri 8^th April

Received my first sponsorship today, from a city contact and friend, so now I must concentrate on the work to do. Got back on yesterday afternoon, at last. Ankle is fine, no reaction at all. Did a route that I know is 16.645 miles, thanks to a programme I found called gmap, it’s brilliant. Will tell the rest of the team. The problem is that I took 1 hr 25 mins, so 11 3/4mph,  way too slow. Okay I did have to get off and walk a couple of times in the centre of Hertford – I’m not about to tangle with buses and cars on roundabouts and dual carriageways whilst my feet are clipped to the pedals in a way that takes some seconds to disentangle– as well as stopping for a couple of minutes at a level crossing, but the speed is still lacking. I’ll find out more when I have a run with my keen cyclist friend Andrew tomorrow.

Sat 9^th April

Andrew was impressed! He tells me that I look more experienced than I am, which is pleasing. He showed me how to change a tyre tube and adjust the brakes, advised me on the position of the handlebars (twist them up a bit) and we chatted over a cup of tea about cadence (apparently that’s the proper word for pedalling speed), feet positioning, routes, saddles, washing lycra and all sorts of other important and helpful things and finally he gave me a shopping list of other things I need to buy, such as gloves, oil, folding tools and tyre levers. Finally we took some photos for the justgiving page and I went home happy about what I’m doing. The total run was only 12 miles, but flew by – maybe I’m getting used to this.

Mon 11^th April

My secretary Leanne saw the photos. Now I’d carefully edited and selected them to choose the one that was taken at the right angle, which of course is the angle that doesn’t show my beer gut in profile. I thought I’d done quite well, I looked a bit geeky but reasonably comfortable, but she immediately fell into fits of giggles so I knew something was up. There are no flies in cycling shorts, so I knew it couldn’t be that, so I had to ask. “It’s the socks” she managed to get out whilst having her fit, “whatever made you wear long socks, like an Englishman wearing socks with sandals?”

Now wearing socks with sandals is the ultimate euphamism for naffness - and suddenly I can see it: those white ones that look the part on the badminton court look absolutely all wrong on a bike. I am horror struck – this picture is now on my JustGiving page and I can imagine it being passed around my friends, colleagues and acquaintances like the famous “Yummy” email of a few years ago. So I’m off straight down to the sports shop again, buying a jumbo pack of trainer socks and I’ll have to quickly retake and load a photo that doesn’t make me look like a throwback to the 1960s.

Now back to the training!

Tue 12th April

Remembered that I need to get all the other things Andrew told me about – another £85 worth. This cycling lark seems to involve a lot of time running down to various shops and not much time actually on the bike. Won’t mention this to Mrs Land, I’ve already had to downgrade the cost of the bike to “about £300” and on the £150 shorts I’ve managed to get away with “cycling shorts are a rip off, lots of them are over £50 a pair”. Still, new shoes always seem to be appearing in her wardrobe and I’ve not heard that she’s being sponsored to buy them for charity.

Wed 13^th April

There was an article in last night’s Evening Standard by a journalist who was allowed to cycle the part of our route that goes over French cobbles. It was not encouraging, the headline was ‘Sky falls in on painful bid to survive hell on wheels’. All the team ended up falling off and a couple had wounds needing stitches, including a certain Bradley Wiggins, who I thought knew how to do this cycling lark. Great; perhaps Mrs Land was right, I am mad and I will be cobbled to death.

Sun 17^th April

Up at 7am and met my friend Rob, a super fit man who trains twice a day and runs marathons for fun. Now cycling with Rob is designed to make me feel good: as I say he is superfit and therefore could leave me miles behind, but he’s on a mountain bike, which is heavy, slow and not well geared for road cycling. So I zoom ahead, overtake him up hills, freewheel at the speed that he can pedal and generally feel good about myself. Even made Mrs Land happy as I was home by 10.30, fit, happy and not tired, in time for an afternoon of spring cleaning the garden.

Mon 18^th April

Sore, tired and unhappy. I hope this is down to the gardening, but in my heart I know it’s not, I am not nearly as fit as I had hoped and have to work hard to get myself up for work. I will have to work even harder to get myself up for this ride in about nine weeks.

Sunday Sportive

Like Bradley, yesterday was my first sportive of the season – an Evans Cycles organised event in Leeds. I went for the medium route, which was a 100km foray into the Yorkshire Dales. The weather couldn’t have been any better for cycling – low winds, sun and no rain – and I’ve started to develop my ‘cyclists tan’ (the one that looks ridiculous outside of anything other than cycling clothes). I must say the course was excellent and we managed not to suffer from any rogue signage on the route, something I’ve been warned about in the past but am yet to experience.

I did manage to suffer from a slight over exuberance over the first 20 miles or so and did start to suffer a bit on the last couple of climbs – I think there is probably a lesson in there somewhere – but overall I’m reasonably happy with how the ride went. I’ve signed up to my next sportive in a couple of weeks which starts slightly further away from home in Pocklington (again I’ve wimped out and gone for the 100km route rather than the longer ride). I hope we all get some fine weather this coming bank holiday weekend and all those heading out the best - hope you have more luck this time Bradley!

Rider biog: Andrew Burns

I started cycling properly at the age of ten (by proper I mean going for longer spins with no objective other than getting fitter as opposed to tearing up the gently swaying blades of lawn at home). 

By the age of 14 I was riding competitively for the local club in mid week and open races.  I raced for about six or seven years, all over Ireland and although major successes were fairly rare, I prided myself that I was there as the sometimes dependable Stagiaire for my more aggressive club-mates. 

One of my mentors once told me that cycling is not just a sport, it’s a way of life. He was right. It’s the type of sport that is all consuming. You only truly know yourself when you are 70kms from home having already done 100km, with no food or water left and with barely the will to lift your head. And no mobile. It’s amazing how far you can get on camaraderie alone. 

Another lesson I learnt fairly early on: the cyclists with the most ability don’t always win. Motto for a cycling life - those that want to suffer the most win. Evidently I am not a big fan of too much sufferance.  And then you get up and do it all the next day again - for fun. Its seems like lunacy so why on earth am I doing this event?

Well, as time passed and having graduated in 2002 and started working life in the investment world, time constraints enforced a somewhat reluctant down turn in my cycling activities.  The last major cycling event I took part in was the Wicklow 200 about five years ago (typical Irish – it should actually be called the Wicklow 250! –but that’s a different story of pain).  Since then I have settled into a nice routine of exercising less and eating more… 

With Burns junior number three due in July I was determined to do some kind of epic adventure when this event dropped on my lap like a sign from the Gods.  What’s more, it has afforded all of us taking part the opportunity to raise some money for the Geoff Thomas Foundation and the fight against blood cancers.  Let there be no jokes, Cancer of any type is awful and most of us will or have been touched by its wickedness at some point in our lives.  This is a great challenge for all of us taking part in this cycle ride and an opportunity to show some support for all those who suffer and are engaged in fighting these harrowing diseases.  So empty your pockets and please make it all worth while.

Andrew's JustGiving page

F3 Events - Big Dipper Sportive

Yesterday saw my first entry into a 100mile sportive and this well and truly lived up to the name Big Dipper - I seemed to always be travelling at either 40 or 4mph. I also, as the image may suggest, got very very lost. In the end, I crossed the line having done just over 80 miles and only having one re-fuelling stop.

I got to the 40 mile marker, rang the organisers to see where the first stop was only to be told it was at mile 27 so I was obviously at least 13 miles off course somewhere. They managed to navigate me back onto the course but I had missed out some of the ride(including the much-needed water stop). It seems from talking to other riders that a Garmin is a vital component of these longer sportives but at £300+ they aren't cheap.

I bumped into lots of other people on my travels that were similarly lost and it seems that people had been tampering with the signs. I also read on the webiste this morning that one cyclist even caught a driver turning one of the arrows the opposite way. For the slower(est) cyclists like me, I tend to be at the back so any tampering occurs long before I drag myself around the course. Not much fun!

It was refreshing though to know that I did over 80 miles of very hilly riding and felt fine, I would not have been daunted at doing another 20 miles and the only problem I suffered on the day was cramp, brought on by dehydration due to the lack of a water stop.

I like cycling but you can't beat winning at Wembley

The most important sporting matter on my mind this weekend was whether Manchester City would beat United in the FA Cup semi final on Saturday. I and my two children trundled off to Wembley and, as it turned out, had a most enjoyable evening. I was too worried about the match to contemplate my usual Saturday morning 25m ride with friends and put everything on the Sunday morning ride with Solihull C.C.

Those of you who have been reading my earlier posts will be aware of my dilemma whether to step up to the B group. Well I bit the bullet this morning and it was okay, if anything a more enjoyable ride without any waiting around for laggards. The tea stop was at 40 miles and we averaged 16.4 mph which was quite comfortable. Knowing that I have to put some distance in my legs I didn't stop and took a direct route home and with another rider covered a further 25 miles at a speed of 15.8 mph.

When I had lunch with Geoff last week he said that day one is by far the worst of the three so it's good to get that out of the way first. He would advise anyone who has done a bit of cycling to ride with group three. Group five is very stop/start and consequently quite frustrating if you have done a bit of training whereas the pace in group four can be erratic. Group three seems to attract the regular club riders who ride at a steady pace whereas the racers go for groups one and two. Interestingly group three riding at a steady pace was quicker than group two over the three days last year.

Sunday ride - Garmin download

Untitled by dbpegler at Garmin Connect - Details

Sunday Club Ride (80km) - route downloaded from my Garmin

Switch to carbon - my new toy!

Finally took the plunge and decided to upgrade my old aluminium frame with a nice smart looking carbon beauty. Ribble Cycles do some reasonably priced carbon frames - I ordered the Gran Fondo, which is more of a sportive-type geometry than my current model. If all goes to plan it should come over the Easter holidays giving me a few days to build it up ready for my first 100m sportive of the season on Sunday 1st May in the Surrey hills. Here is a picture of how the bike should look once I have completed the build - unfortunately my wheels are not so high spec as those in the picture.

Anyone got a spanner?

One of those evenings

Had one of those horrible rides this evening. Having only moved to Leeds 6 months ago, I haven't yet figured out where all of the roads around my house take me (i live just off a ring road which does make for a hairy ride out!). Tonight was the first time i had, had the opportunity to get some mid week miles in my legs and i spent some time yesterday evening planning a route that looked reasonably easy to follow given my complete lack of a sense of direction. I also used some of my lunch hour today, plotting and memorising the different roads and junctions i needed to take and/or watch out for, just to make sure i didn't get lost. Anyway, tonight finally came (the novelty of training is yet to wear off) and i headed off on my new ride. It was all going rather swimmingly (bar a couple of stops to check the map on my iphone) until i got to the part of the ride where i was to enter a main road and then swing back on myself for the home leg. On the map, the amount of time i was to spend on this main road looked minimal however once i was actually on the road the left hand turning i was so desperately looking out for failed to materialize. I kept riding, perhaps for 10 or 15 minutes and there was still no road junction appearing in the distance. By this time the sky was getting increasingly dark so i decided that it was time to concede that my miserable sense of direction had struck once again and i pulled into the next layby to swing my bike around and go back home the way i came. It wasn't until i had stopped and looked over my shoulder that i realised i had spent the last 10 to 15 minutes free wheeling at a steady 20mph downhill. I suppose it all makes for good training!

Important Kit information

A few of you have emailed me requesting details of the GTF kit. There is some concern that kit designed for Italian Tour riders might not do the job for a team of well lunched stockbrokers. Gavin Spencer at LLR has emailed me the following this morning. Hi Stephen, I hope you are well. The company are called Schlamm clothing and this is their website http://www.schlamm.uk.com/ . The kit should be very comfortable as it's designed for cycling so i wouldn't worry about the sizing. You also have a new kit for each day. Let me know if the team have any concerns. Cheers Gav

The secret diary of Peter Land

Peter shares part one his training diary with us...

Wed 2^nd Feb

Email from Sasha. Brewin Dolphin is sponsoring a cycle ride for LLR. Good news is that it’s apparently a once in a lifetime opportunity to join in something like that – sounds a good challenge. Maybe I need one, at my age? Bad news is that’s it’s on a bike and I haven’t ever fancied cycling, but worth thinking about now my knees won’t let me run long distances. The bike I own is gathering dust at the back of the garage and is some mountain type thing that cost £50, new, so it’s not exactly great. Maybe not then.

Fri 4^th Feb

It’s London to Paris, apparently. Sounds a long way. Looked at websites – it seems quite a popular route. There are several trips that do it, they all seem to take 4 days.

Ours is to be done in 3 days. Decided it may be worth putting my name down just in case.

Tuesday 15^th Feb

Saw my golf mate Mike on the train. He cycles so I asked him about what I’d need. His bike cost £3500 apparently – can’t afford that. He also has been knocked off twice recently so is having a rest from cycling. Not encouraging.

I took a lunch hour and wandered round to Evans Cycles to find out what we’d need. The answer is simple – a bike. And some special shorts. And gloves. And shoes. And sunglasses, CO2 pump, etc etc. The bike will be north of £500, needs to have carbon forks apparently. The rest of the gear is about the same again. Ouch. Still I’d look like a right wimp if I backed out now. Maybe I should get advice from my friend Andrew, I think he cycles.

Wed 16^th Feb

Andrew is in Australia, cycling. He tells me he’s ‘done’ the Outer Hebrides, Corsica and the length of the Pyrenees from Biaritz to Perpignan. He also, encouragingly, mostly confirmed what the bike shop told me. It looks like I’ve drifted into actually doing this, so better tell Mrs Land.

Thurs 17^th Feb

Mrs Land wasn’t happy. Apparently I’m mad, will die and never see my children grow up and I haven’t got time anyway. Signed up for the spinning class at the gym in an effort to try and make sure I do survive.

Spinning was surprising fun. Got very hot but the legs were okay. Admittedly the only other person there is a lady almost my age, declaring that she’s horribly unfit, but I did manage to stay ahead of her.

Sat 19^th Feb

15 minutes hard cycling on the bike machine before golf. Felt okay but I played rubbish golf – I assume there’s a connection. Went to local bike shop. He said the same things as I’d heard in the London shop - £600 will get me the bike, about the same again for all the equipment and don’t forget the cream. Apparently you put it on instead of underwear. Sounds disgusting.

Fri 25^th Feb

Talk by email around the office on setting up JustGiving pages to help get the sponsorship going for all of us. £3000 is a lot of money and that’s what we’re each committed to raise.

Tue 1^st March

Spinning was a different instructor, felt harder and my legs are more or less fine – promising. Test rode the bike at Evans Cycles – really encouraging. Went round the back of Holborn and it’s so fast and easy, zipped around and now feel that this can be done. Returned and bought the bike!

Wed 2^nd March

Took bike home on train. Attempted to ride it from the station to home at 8pm, my hands practically froze to the handlebars they were so cold. Must get gloves.

Tue 8^th March

Went spinning (spun?) again last night and I have to say, apart from getting v v hot and sweaty, it actually felt better. I may be getting accustomed to this?

Wed 16^th March

The first big training day. Took day off and went out on a major (for me) ride. Plotted a good run around Hertfordshire, 28 ½ miles, it’s on a cycling website and described as ‘tough and hilly’. Set off just after 9 am, had a delay as I had to adjust the tension on the pedals. Fell off once when I couldn’t get my foot out at a T junction, nearly fell off about another 3 times as well. Embarrassed rather than hurt, but not sure about the bike, I think I pulled the brake caliper away from the wheel okay but I’m glad it’s getting a free 6 week service. Allowing for the delay at the beginning, I reckon it took 2 ½ hours, so that’s 11.4 mph which is still way too slow. Also, most worryingly I did feel tired, but the worst thing was the pain in my knees. I wonder if I can get a cartilage op before June?  

Sat 19^th March

Frost delay before golf, so was able to do a hard session on the exercise bike. Quite pleasing, but disaster after as I badly twisted my ankle. Perhaps all this exercise is weakening me? It’s very sore, can’t see me cycling for a bit.

Monday 21^st March

My ankle has got a red lump the size of a golf ball on the inside bone and is very sore.

Sun 27^th March

Couldn’t put foot to the ground, ankle killing me, obviously needs a proper rest.

Sat 2^nd April

I think the ankle will take it now so I’ve set up a 32 mile route for tomorrow afternoon, quite excited.

Sun 3^rd April

The frustration! Rugby overran badly, had to dash straight to Mothering Sunday lunch, ride cancelled.

Mon 4^th April

Up for the spinning class but called upon instead to do 3 hours editing of son’s RE project. This ride is doomed. The good news is my keen cyclist friend is back from Australia and wants to meet up on Saturday to talk about a ride together. In order to get to use the bike, I said I’d cycle over to him. This should enable me to see how far behind I really am and what I’ve got to do.

Will Peter make it to Paris or will his ankle fail him? Will Mrs Land ever forgive him if he doesn’t come home in one piece? Tune in next time to find out…

Race Report - Brighton Marathon 2011

It was a great day for the Brighton Marathon yesterday. Despite the warm conditions (the temperature reached 23 degrees celsius) and my general lack of training (last long run was the Brighton half-marathon in February) I managed a personal best of 3:45. The support was fantastic from family and friends. In all 100,000 people lined the streets of Brighton in support. I was just outside the first 1,000 runners but believe the total number starting the race was over 10,000. Places for 2012 are available from today if anyone is interested for next year - I would thoroughly recommend it - I enjoyed it much more than London.

Anyway, now that is out of the way, I can now focus on the main event - London 2 Paris. I am looking forward to increasing the mileage on the bike. Still hoping to upgrade my old aluminium frame to something a little sexier - hopefully carbon!

Have a great day - I will be avoiding the stairs!

Joined a cycling club!

Decided to mix some training last week by adding a 'body pump' class to my usual spinning on Thursday. Enjoyed the class but will use smaller weights next time. Could barely move my arms on Friday and only just getting full movement now! My rest day on Friday went horribly wrong. Started with a fast cycle to work, a hard spin at lunchtime and a 25mile cycle in the evening with Ian from 'Big Maggys' one of the L2P sponsors. The idea was to take it easy ahead of my first ride with a club on Saturday morning. An 8:30 cycle to 'Big Maggies' in the town centre for coffee to join Ian and two serious looking cyclists before meeting the Velo Cycling Club at 9am. Started in the first (slower group) as we are only allowed to go in groups of 6 for the first 5 miles before regrouping at Gorey on the east of the island. The group was now 30 strong and we were on our way to St Catherines. Weather was beautiful, not a cloud in the sky and no wind. I can only hope the weather will be just as kind in June. The ride finished at the Watersplash and covered just over 40 miles with a good average speed of 19.1mph and a top speed on my Garmin of 36.2mph. Only one hill of any significance this time for which I was grateful. I survived and managed to stay reasonably close to the front for most of the ride but dropped back a little with the final spint for coffee and bacon rolls. Feeling a little more confident with no aches (other than my arms) I have now booked for the Pearson 150 in May, but will have to ride twice around the island in preparation. Still having fun and really looking forward to June.

What an amazing weekend, I hope all of our riders were able to get some good miles under their belts.

I turned up for my Sunday morning group ride with Solihull C.C., saw all the young guns with their fancy carbon bikes and bottled my decision to move up to the B group whose run was over 70 miles. I settled for the the easier C run and had an enjoyable and very comfortable ride over 50 miles. Interestingly, my heart rate averaged only 111 bpm which confirms that I wasnt really trying and should be capable of pushing myself in the faster group. I am beginning to see some improvement in my performance so my struggles in Anglesey weren't totally in vain! Also Andrew's fuelling guidence was spot-on.

I am having lunch with Geoff tomorrow and will pass on any tips/guidence

Rider biog: Stuart Sangan

I'm riding as part of the Brewin Dolphin team to support a very close friend of mine that was diagnosed with Leukaemia shortly before Christmas.  

Although I consider myself reasonably fit for someone approaching 55, this was an opportunity to push myself and get back into my suits more comfortably!  Whilst I cycle to work throughout the year (yes Jersey does have bad weather) this only amounts to a round trip of about 10 miles per day.  I do go to spinning classes 3/4 times a week but other than that my sporting activities are limited due to a failing right knee.  

My main aim is to finish, enjoy the event and not to hold up the rest of the team.   Those that know me will be aware that I'm a bit of a perfectionist, so not giving my all is not an option! The Jersey office are very supportive but have insisted that I update my cycling attire!    

Photo: Stuart, left, and his friend David

It's a slog cycling around Anglesey!

I have just returned from a break on the beautiful Isle of Anglesey. I intended doing some quality training but as it turned out taking the bike was not a good idea. Prior to leaving home I downloaded to my Garmin what was described as 'A quick 20 mile loop from Beaumaris'. Well, I would like to meet the guy who published this route because quick is was not! In fact I don't recall ever riding such a challenging route. The massive hills were tough but nothing compared to the buffeting winds. These were gusting over 40 knots at times and for most of the ride was either in my face or hitting me side on. I didn't think it would be possible to be blown off your bike but believe me I very nearly was on a couple of occasions. This made it all rather hard work and whilst I am sure it will have done me some good the slow average mph didn't satisfy my expectations of a 'quick loop' and consequently was rather deflating. Back to the normal routine this weekend and the decision whether to join the B group over 70 miles on Sunday.

Why I am doing this - Stephen Jones

A good friend of mine is Chairman of The Geoff Thomas Foundation and when I heard about his experience on the 2010 L2P I decided that this was something that I would like to have a go at. I am not a keen cyclist but I do like a challenge and testing my fitness against other cyclists over the 330 miles to Paris is something I look forward too.

Over the last 15 or so years my main sporting interest has been running. I have run the London Marathon 7 times, always for charity and I have been fortunate to be able to raise substantial sums of money for 3 charities that are close to my heart - Parkinsons Disease Society, The British Brain and Spine Foundation and Tommy’s Campaign.

I last ran a Marathon 6 years ago and since than have kept myself ticking over with weekly gym sessions, the occasional run and a weekend bike ride with friends. L2P means I have to take the cycling a little more seriously so I have joined my local cycling club, Solihull, and ride with the ‘C’ group on Sunday mornings that so far have been fairly leisurely over distances of 50 – 60 miles. I am in two minds whether to step up a group but for the time being will err on the side of caution as I currently only get out on the road at the weekends and rely on a Turbo Trainer for mid-week sessions.

I see that there has been a lot of chat about kit, geometry etc. I rely on a fairly standard Trek road bike that I bought last year. I have upgraded the wheels and the chainset and for my level it serves me very well. I have recently bought a Garmin Edge 800. This is a fantastic piece of kit and makes my rides far more interesting, providing GPS mapping, route guidance and detailed post ride analysis – speed, cadence, heart rate etc.

When I committed myself to L2P I decided that if I was going to get myself fit for that I might as well do a few other events, so I am aiming to run a couple of half marathons either side of L2P in May and July and if they go well I may have a stab at another marathon at the end of the year. The half's and the cycling I am not too worried about but Marathons do require some serious training and right now I am not sure whether I have the motivation to go through all that again. Finally on the subject of motivation, apart from the event itself, my motivation is supporting a great charity and helping to raise a lot of money for a good cause.

When I met Geoff it was apparent to me that there was the potential for the wider Brewin Group to support his foundation and I was delighted that Philip & Sasha were so supportive of the initiative. It is also great to see so many keen riders across the Group and I am sure that collectively we will all do very well and exceed our charitable objectives.

My new toy!

My last distance cycle ride was about 16 years ago touring France on an old steel framed Peugeot (gear shifts on the crossbar) with my wife Ruth before we decided to have children! Since then our cycling trips have been more limited until our two sons were old enough to ride their own bikes. I have done a few sponsored cycle trips for the Anthony Nolan Bone Marrow Trust with Louis and Pierre but only the 25 mile course leaving Ruth to d0 the 60 miles! These were all done on Hybrids with the youngest on a tag-along. Although my current Trek Hybrid has reliably carried me to work and back for many years, signing up for the L2P was my opportunity to upgrade and compete with Ruth (the cyclist) on a level playing field. After both of us trying out several machines we agreed that the Trek Madone was the one to go for. The newest member of the family finally arrived on the 31st March, although I collected him on Friday 1st April. Being superstitious he was carefully carried on the car bike rack until Saturday morning when final adjustments were made. Wow! I have no excuse not to ride now, and look forward to many miles in the saddle with the rest of the team. My only trouble is long cycle rides as being on an Island the longest road is not even 5 miles long!

First ride of the year

Having not turned a peddle in anger on Britain's roads for nigh on 3 years, I had my first couple of rides around the Yorkshire countryside this weekend. To say that they were tough would be an understatement (not helped by strong winds yesterday and driving rain on the way back today!). Managed to ride around 65-75 miles in total with my old man, which is way off where I need to be but a half decent first effort. I didn't ride any routes that were too strenuous, using Saturday's ride to tweak my setup and make sure I was comfortable on my bike and todays to get some more miles into my legs. I've got a couple of Sportives coming up in late April so hopefully I can use those to get to L2P fitness.

On another (but related) note I thought I would share with people a couple of bits of kit i've been particularly happy with this weekend. The first is a pair of DHB bib shorts (http://www.wiggle.co.uk/dhb-knowle-bib-cycling-shorts/). Although i'm no cycling veteran, i've ridden enough miles in uncomfortable shorts to know how vital a good pair can be. They're not cheap by any means but are really, really comfortable and they also look pretty good too! The second thing are a pair of Descente over socks (http://www.wiggle.co.uk/descente-sock-shoe-covers/). I personally think these are a bit of a bargain at only £10. In April/early May weather, these will be really handy, especially on days where there is a cold snap to the wind. They are rubbish in the wet though, as i found out today.