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1st Category here I come!

Road cycling
by Phil S - BBC Sport (U8520575) 26 November 2007
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Phil Sheehan

Some of you will already know me from my Tour de France 606 diary this year, when I landed the gig every cycling nut dreams of, to go and follow the sport's most beautiful event. I'll be bringing you more cycling 606 from the professional ranks in 2008, including the Tour.

But before the new season starts I'll be hosting a weekly 606 on amateur racing, bringing you the gory details of my own racing experiences on our fine British roads as well as looking at training and bike tech.

Please feel free to chip in with your experiences, whether you're an Elite who's seen it all or a newbie with questions to ask.

So, a few quick words about myself as a racing cyclist. I'm a 2nd Category rider looking to break into the next category this season. I've been racing for four years now and I went from 4th to 3rd Cat in three races, then took a good pasting before learning the ropes a bit better and getting my Cat 2 licence in 2005.

I've had my fair share of 2nd and 3rd places but one thing has alluded me so far - a win. That's my big aim in 2008!

The fun starts on Saturday 1st December when I'll be taking part in the first race of the Hillingdon Winter Series in west London - an hour and a bit of fast criterium riding in the cold.

Many riders use this as winter training (or that's their excuse if they've not done too well!) but the pace isn't that slack as there are good cash prizes for the series, and the likes of Great Britain rider Alex Dowsett put in the odd cameo appearance.

Maybe I'll see some of you down there... my next entry will look at the training I've been doing, followed by the inevitable first race report.

Happy pedalling...

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comment by average3rdcat (U10528446)

posted Nov 28, 2007

Yikes! 1st cat? Good luck dude! I'll be sitting on wheels and watch from the security of the bunch as you go in search of gold

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comment by omgidbi (U8078647)

posted Nov 28, 2007

Doing that, maybe you'll find out that you will have to sit out this weekend due to a haemocrit >50%!! whistle (never sure about the correct usage of this smiley - haha)

Seriously though, given that you are athletic and can hopefully be trusted to keep your nose clean (apologies - media generalisation, much like cycling generalisations though, which is think has a degree of irony given your employers views of the sport), i think that it would be great if you got the BBC to pay for a weekly blood monitoring programme for you that you can publish.

Maybe this way, we can see what a mortal person can do on the bike, and have a decent set of reference data that we can all relate too.

On this blood subject - anyone else as inquisitive as myself over the fact we have a liar, yet likely TdF winner returning RBC counts <44%, yet another rider picking up medals post an illness that would keep us all in bed/near a bathroom returning >50%. It could even be that this later rider (ex T-Mob no less) release of data is in some way connected with yesterdays announcement (but i'm being wildly creative with my train of thought there...)

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comment by Alex Murray - BBC Radio 5 live (U516526)

posted Nov 28, 2007

Meanwhile at the other end of the scale, I'll be attempting to get over my fear of scoring points and trying to escape 4th cat and concentrate on racing.

Added to that some fool has talked me into doing the Etape again, for the third year running. I swear I said I was only doing it the once.

My winter has been largely spent getting slightly heavier and muddier than I was during the summer. I'm up to 75kg which is what Jan Ullrich would probably call a good winter. Stil l that beats the outrageous 87kg that my friends bathroom scales screamed at me a couple of years back, or the less outrageous but still relatively plump 80kg of last Christmas.

The former is down to my somewhat erratic eating and training plans which can be boiled down to "as and when I can be bothered" to do either properly. I haven't been out on the road bike in weeks properly. I have been tooling around town on my fixed-wheel Condor though, which has always been a staple of winter traininf for club riders.

The latter is down to cyclocross which I'm growing to love with each passing weekend. An hour every Sunday nailing myself to as near to my maximum heart rate as I can manage and going as hard as my chaffinch lungs will allow.

I even got a nod from the legend that is Sean Yates who was at Sunday's race to hand out prizes. Still, better than having to race against him, although I did get a corner embarrassingly wrong in front of him, to my eternal shame.

One benefit of Cyclocross is that it has kept me keen and on the bike for the winter whereas otherwise I would have been ducking out of training rides and feeding myself like a foie gras goose.

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comment by rickyboy82 (U2269643)

posted Nov 28, 2007

hi. good luck with getting 1st cat. i was wondering how easy is it to cycle (i.e. proper training) in london? do you have to get out into the countryside or are you able to use parks and quiet roads e.g. for interval training? i've heard there is a big road bike scene in london but surely it can't be as convenient for training as living out in the sticks?

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comment by Phil S - BBC Sport (U8520575)

posted Nov 29, 2007

Well it tends to be a bit of a hassle if you want to do let's say a 3hr+ ride and you spend 40 minutes riding to hit quiet lanes, but I've now worked out some decent ways of getting out of town on quietish roads. Once you're in the lanes in Essex or Surrey then you appreciate them even more.

For shorter rides I tend to hit Regents Park which is pretty much pan flat for 2.75 miles, with one drag. If I want to chuck in some hill reps then there are surprisingly evil, albeit short, climbs right near the park. Swains Lane near Highgate, Parkview, Highgate West Hill...

I'll be posting up a couple of rides and routes that might be of interest to London folk in future posts.

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comment by omgidbi (U8078647)

posted Nov 29, 2007

Personally, having lived in SW London for many years until i moved back to the sticks last year, i think it is good to mix it up as much as possible. i used to have a 7 mile spin to richmond park - after which i could either do my own thing, but more often that not i enjoyed using the many "hares" in the form of other riders or cars to pass the time. i also got a kick out of going there on Christmas morning - but i guess that is all part of the barking make-up of many cyclists!

However, i never once road into the centre of London. Too much of a lottery, with the biggest threat always posed by lobotomised bus drivers. Not a week goes by in the City without me seeing some incident where the cyclist comes off worse.

Country lane riding also has it's dangers so local knowledge is always the key to avoiding rat-runs - especially wider than average lanes that have hedgerows. Many a time have i had the pleasure of some teen in a max-power saxo at close quarters. But the roads of Essex i ride now make up for the aggrovation - you can make it surprisingly lumpy, depending on your mood of course.

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comment by redders73 (U2372984)

posted Nov 29, 2007

I have the pleasure of both - East Croydon into town for a commute, Sussex and the Downs for training rides. Dangers throughout - bendy buses or 4x4's overtaking on the brow of a hill!

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comment by redders73 (U2372984)

posted Dec 2, 2007

How'd you get on Phil? Saturday was definitely the day to race. Went out this morning straight into a gale. Wind and rain blowing me either to a halt or close to a ditch!

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comment by Phil S - BBC Sport (U8520575)

posted Dec 2, 2007

8th overall and 80 series points, 2nd within the 2nd/3rd cats on the BC points. Great ride by Alex, aka "average3rdcat". We'd spent a few laps together in a break earlier in the race which unfortunately didn't stay away. Alex then made a good solo move towards the end and bagged 4th place overall. I avoided a big crash in the sprint to take 8th. Full write-up to follow on Monday...

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comment by tri-boy (U10659364)

posted Dec 14, 2007

Hi Phil, Brilliant article. I have just started cycling. I have sailed competitively for years, and completed the Dublin City Marathon this year. So now I want to try a few triathlons. I bought a trek 1.2 bike, following advice from a friend who has completed the amateur tour de france. I have been out a couple of times and really enjoy it, maximum time is 1.5hrs on the bike. But I am afraid to race or join a club, beginner syndrome I suppose!!! Have you any advice to help me prepare from group cycling etc. I will keep updated on your progress. Great post again. Thanks

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