"Back from Boro"

After last Aprils ride from Crewe to Yeovil, next April sees another challenge - Middlesbrough to Yeovil. So just 334 miles of cycling over 4 1/2 days - only this time my wife Sarah and son George are joining me!

For the last few weeks we have been adding to our resouces of cycling kit in preparation for the winter months of training, including new lights, jackets, tops, shoes and shorts together with the investment in two new bikes.

Scott CR1

For me a Scott CR1 carbon road bike and for Sarah a Giant Avail ladies road bike, Goerge however needs to buy his own and replace my10 year old Halfords 'special'. These purchases I see as investments - investments into a sport we have grown to love and one which at least Sarah and I can do together.

Initailly my concerns were that Sarah may be able to ride for a few miles but long distances are clearly something else - these concerns were soon eleviated last weekend when our first serious training ride took us to Chepstow and back- a total of nearly 44 miles - a great start even if it did hammer down with rain all the way back - Sarah cycled well with lots of leg strength maintaining over 20mph for several miles on the flat. Her initial nervousness on the road was soon overcome as confidence grew.

What is pleasing is that we both put a lot of effort into our gym work at The Fitness Hub in Portishead, and that clearly pays off when you need to dig deep into your energy resouces and power your way through the wind and rain! - Our weekly regime includes Bootcamps, Circuits, HIIT, Sculpt &Tone, PT sessions and of course 3 Spin sessions per week - all of this will help us meet our challenge and prepare well for the miles ahead.

The Fitness hub - everybodys Gym

But not everything goes to plan - for the last week I have been struck down by some mysterious digestive related issue, coupled with a bit of light headedness, tiredness and lack of motivation. May be the operative word here is 'tiredness' - perhaps over training and lack of appropriate rest for a 52 year old!

Still, hopefully on the mend soon and able to get back on the bike, back in the Spin studio and back to Bootcamps - I miss the buzz of it all.

Spin Studio - The Fitness Hub

So, our planning is well under way, the first few training miles have been done and we now need to focus on the next five months of hitting the tarmac - I guess 2,000 miles of training should be enough! - will keep you up to date with progress.

Whatever your challenge - good luck and go for it.