Back to the hills

Back among the stick insects. Hill climb racing. Competitors so thin they almost disappear when viewed in profile. Sleek and minimal, it’s hard to believe a human is crammed inside. Widths and waists measured in millimetres in the pursuit of milliseconds.

One star cycling reviews ⭐☆☆☆☆

Scorn. Vitriol. Bleak humour. This is a celebration of the one star review, an ode to keyboard revenge. Real reviews from angry people. Ignore them at your peril!

Another world – Cycling in Asturias, Spain

Welcome to a world of steep climbs, impossible gorge roads and wild bears. Welcome to Asturias and the Cantabrian Mountains in northern Spain. Steep and scenic summits, short and sharp, the climbs breathtaking in more ways than one.

The virgin road

New. Never travelled. Perhaps your eyes traced a pixellated line on a screen the night before or perhaps you simply turned left instead of right. Ahead only virgin road unridden. The unknown.

Unstructured structure – Agile training plans

Cycling imitates life. Structured cycle training plans provide a framework, a tiered progression. Base miles, strength training, VO2 max intervals, rest days. Agile training is a flexible alternative. A loose, free form plan. Adapt as you go. Be free.

The inevitable guilt complex

Life, I decided, is more important than cycling. Blasphemy. Treason! Hang him! Lovers who’ve come to terms with their love for one another and other people. We’re not exactly on a break, no. We’re just open to seeing other people. And you know what, I’m enjoying it.

Getting older and cycling, still

Age creeps up on us, say some. Not the cyclist. For every day we’re fighting it, raging against the dying light. Life passes quickly. Like a mountain descent, we cling on, releasing the brakes for as long we dare, bracing ourselves for the next bend, for the end.

What am I training for? [The meaning of life]

I don’t race, I ride. Yet I’m training. For what I’m training for, I cannot say. There’s no medals to point to. There’s the small number of hill climb races I enter. Or the bravado of leading out the peloton or the fear of being dropped on a club ride. There’s local hills and personal bests. Yet I’m not really training for any of these.

Obsessions only cyclists have

Yeah, I’m niche. Not really something to boast about yet we humans like to feel as if we’re forging our own paths, that we are remarkable in some small way, atypical, one of a few. We follow not crowds, only our own will, for yes I’m smart, in control, not one of them, all those […]

Hello winter bike. Please forgive me.

Hello old friend. It’s been a while. What? Yes, it’s that time of year again. I know, I know. Brrr. Her? The mistress? That was a mere summer fling, showing off in front of others, a lightweight frolic beneath the sun. Nothing compares to you, ever dependable winter bike, bike number 1 once and forever. […]