NYD ride

Nothing like starting the New Year as you mean to go on
Weather meant I kept the ride to 30km but still ended up like a drowned rat! Managed to fit in 600m of climbing though, hitting 25% on Rawsons Rake

Walking the talk

Got the shakes now!

Tempo row
Zercher squats
Plyo pushups on med ball
Deadlift
Hanging windscreen wipers
Cable sword draws
Bicep matrix
…perform as supersets…and repeat!

Quitter’s mentality?

Not a rant, just a public consideration of a real bugbear of mine…why don’t people return gym equipment to its rightful place when they have finished with it?

Dumbbells lying around after sets, Swiss balls rolling around on the gym floor and bars left fully loaded on the rack are common sights.
Is it down to laziness? – “I can’t be bothered” or “I’m too tired after my sets”
Arrogance maybe? – “Somebody else will do it for me, that’s what gym staff get paid for”
Ignorance of gym etiquette? – “I didn’t know I had to put them back(!)”

Personally I think it’s indicative of something deeper – a quitter’s mentality. A combination of all of the above. Walking away before the session is truly complete. Failure to draw a line under your efforts and retire for the day knowing that you have finished the task in hand.
You’re not taking your training seriously or appreciating that those around you may wish to do so.
It makes the gym a disordered and dangerous place and inconveniences others

Sometimes pulling order from the chaos can benefit your training – taking on multiple opponents in the dojo, for example. That should be a deliberate approach and take place within your own, defined, space. It shouldn’t be detrimental to the training of those around you

What do you think? Your comments and opinions appreciated

Back in the saddle

Got the bike back last Friday and, bar a few minor battle scars, it’s as good as new (thanks Surosa)
Had a couple of days commuting on it again and starting to feel like I’m getting my legs back but now I have to forgo the weekend rides for long trail runs. Clocking up a few hundred miles on two wheels has been a joy but hasn’t helped my running! With the Lakeland Trails Keswick event on 6th September, I need a few more miles under the belt (especially off-road)
Going forward I’m going to start combining the training more. Dave Kirkwood and myself are undertaking a new project that will require some serious fitness and endurance. No details yet but keep watching this space. It’s gonna be a good ‘un!

Back on foot patrol

So I took part in the first Rapha Condor Blackpool Sportive last week….and crashed!
Rainy start to the day but we managed to keep a decent pace going away from Blackpool and into the Trough of Bowland. Beautiful undulating landscape on nice quiet country roads (mainly around Lancs cycle route 90 and national route 6)
Made it up the climb on to Calder Fell without too much trouble but ran out of luck on the way down. Damp roads from the morning’s rain and (ironically) a touch of over-caution contributed to a tumble. I went in to a tightening right-hander but, as I couldn’t see all the way through the corner and had encountered oncoming traffic, I tucked a little too far over to the left. That put me on the loose stuff at the edge of the road which put me on my ass, cracked my helmet and folded my front rim. Could have been worse, I got up with minor gravel rash but no broken bones
Sulked while I watched rider after rider come past me (all of whom offered to help but couldn’t have done anything) and eventually got picked up by the broom wagon
The lads from St John’s cleaned me up and put a dressing on a couple of grazes – which led to the final indignity. I’m 37 years old and never again thought I’d see someone fill out an accident report on my behalf which began with the words “Fell off bike”. Not “racing accident” or “high speed cycle crash”. No, “fell off bike”. Thank you
After the event I went home to get cleaned up and then headed back into Blackpool for the final race in the Nocturne criterium series. A brilliant evening of bike racing was topped off by a hard fought win for Ed Clancy. And thanks to Dave for the VIP passes – took the sting out of my wounds!
The bike’s still in hospital (Surosa in Oldham) waiting for bits so I’m taking the opportunity to get some running miles in before the next round of the Puma Lakeland Trails series in Keswick on Sept 6th. Can’t wait, the routes are beautiful and the organisation invariably brilliant. I’ll try and post some pictures from this one!

Going green…

The price of diesel is going up and a service on my car has just cost me £1000 (and, no, it isn’t a Porsche, it’s a Mondeo)
Time to bite the bullet and start commuting on two wheels. I’m hanging up the car keys. Of course, it helps that summer is coming and the mornings and evenings are getting lighter – I’m strictly a big, soft fair weather rider!
I’ve picked my weapon of choice with the help of the very nice people at Surosa in Oldham (http://www.surosa.co.uk/)

I won’t be hanging about but kindly give me a wide berth if you’re anywhere between Rochdale and Saddleworth of a morning!

On an entirely unrelated matter, I’m loving the idea behind Dave Kirkwood’s new Swimming Through Leaves project. He’s looking to create low volume publications to explore the aesthetic and informative potential of printed media
Ideas, thoughts, contributions and input are all welcome as Dave sees this as a real collaborative concept. Get involved and help create something special
Links are on the right

Good luck to everyone running the London Marathon tomorrow (especially Helen and Gary – wave to the cameras!)
I’m sticking to the rough stuff for the time being. Having run the Lakeland Trails Hawkshead Challenge last week, I’ve entered the 24km Garburn race in June. You really are running on top of the world up there
That relegates the Manchester 10k to a training run but I’m still very much looking forward to it. Maybe see you there?