During lockdown I turned our laundry room into a pain cave. The first job was to paint over the massive crack in the wall. The only paint I had to hand was sage green, so I mixed it with Polyfilla, which turned it a baby-sickgreen colour. Thankfully it looked better once it had dried, though the crack was still visible, so I hung up some framed cycling jerseys from the local race team. Hey presto, the crack was gone!
I’m a lifelong cyclist – aformer mountain biker who switched to the road mostly because I hate cleaning muddy bikes! I enjoy riding and racing on Zwift over the winter, and switch to outdoor riding for the summer. I ride for six or seven hours per week.
My turbo of choice is the Wattbike Atom, and I created the Facebook group ‘Wattbike Atom Owners’ to keep in touch with others. I wanted a fully integrated bike rather than a turbo trainer, and the Atom’s tablet holder allows me to easily type messages. For racing, I switch to using an Apple TV box with a Philips Ambilight TV.
My platform of choice is Zwift, where my favourite event is the Monday SZR Joyride – two laps of London, finishing with a race up Box Hill. After a while, Zwift introduced the sweeper feature and I jumped at the chance to perform that role. I’ve since also become a ride leader. There is only one rule on my rides: If you moan, I just go faster! My rides take place on Mondays at 6pm (SZR Joyride Cat C) and Fridays at 5:35pm (SZR Funride).
PROFILE
Age: 45
Height: 5ft 10in
FTP: 280W
Rides for: Team ShaverSports
Lives: Gloucester
Occupation: Service industry professional
Proudest cycling achievements: Winning the SZR Spring series on Zwift in 2018
WALL ART
