3 Peaks 4 months to go......
While not strictly 3p training, I rode another edition of the Scotton 100 km challenge. This is a brilliant renamed 'sportive' to fit with the British Cycling categories, the other new name on the block is 'gravel racing'. This event pre-dates both nomenclatures and is an on/off road course which makes bike and tyre choice critical. CX racers normally pick out their best bike, sling on some faster rubber and set to. A puncture in the latter stages limited my performance to an equal personal best, so all good there. Plus I enjoyed riding it from the first to the last km, pretty much. A good group formed and I am very grateful to all those I rode round with on a very windy day. Most importantly money was raised for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance, and York Cycleworks made sure all riders got a new coffee mug as is the tradition.
So onwards and Southwards. Spring training this year has taken place in the new cycling training hub de jour of Mallorca. This place is fascinating (bike fans). You wanna see cycle training on a truly industrial scale, come to Mallorca's North Coast resorts around Alcudia. The nearest I've seen to this is the massive Ardechoise sportif in France with some 15,000 participants. But in Mallorca there's no sportive going on, just training by plane loads of giris. Some big names too, Wiggins spotted here and there but this eagle eyed rider picked out CX legend Nick Craig and co. Rumours also of Telenet Fidea team on the island. The sunshine, great roads, bikes and organised riding thanks to SunVelo meant that team mate Sarah and I really got the kms stuffed into our post season legs (I suppose that's pre-season legs for non CXers).
What next? I can't put this off much longer, at some point the running shoes will have to make an appearance, and if so I'll be back to report on progress.
