MY TRAINING S PACE
I started cycling as a kid, growing up in Scarborough, but my dad was very old-school and cautious. He said, “You can’t have a bike, the roads are too busy” – bear in mind, this was in 1968! Anyway, I had a part-time job, so I saved up and bought a bike regardless. Dad was good about it, in the end.
After meeting my wife, our family arrived earlier than planned, so cycling was just a social thing. I did a little bit of riding with Scarborough Paragon, but family life took precedence.
My wife passed away in 2015, and that’s when I came back to cycling properly. I was only 54 at the time, and suddenly had time on my hands, so I went out and bought a bike, and joined Velo Club Beverley. Since Covid, I haven’t done so much riding with the club, but I have carried on riding socially with my friends.
I started working with a new coach, Tom Ramsay, last autumn, and the difference is immense – though I think he’s trying to kill me sometimes! My FTP increased by 30-40 watts in six months. I’ve always had one eye on cyclo-cross, and that’s on the cards for this year.
My training room is my grown-up son’s old bedroom, and during lockdown he redecorated it for me. I invested in a Kickr smart-trainer and got set up with my laptop. I really enjoy doing turbo sessions, following the intervals on TrainingPeaks while watching a bike race to motivate me. I train five days a week, including two longer rides – more of them outdoors now the weather’s nice.
THE BIKES
My best bike is a 2016 Focus Izalco Max AG2R edition [not pictured], which I love – it’s still well above my pay grade! The bike on the turbo is a Focus Cayo 4.0, the first bike I bought after returning to cycling. My winter bike is a Focus Culebro, next to my Focus Mares CX bike. Finally, there’s my 1978 Peugeot PX10 – the same model as the first bike I ever bought, aged 16.
