Sports training camps: Why go to Mallorca when there's Manchester

Ready for my taster session at Manchester Velodrome

People tend to go on sports training camps in warm weather destinations abroad - Spain, South of France, Portugal, even Australasia. But I think that it's still possible to do and enjoy a training camp close to home, right in the UK. So I chose to go to the North-West of England. 

It's that time of year when elite athletes and amateur athletes, including some of my contemporaries head overseas to places where the sun shines a lot more than in the UK, there's less chance of rain, it's that bit warmer and folks don't have to hear stories about the latest political scandal in UK politics  [not that this sort of thing doesn't happen elsewhere, mind you!].

A large group of runners have just jetted off to Club La Santa, in Lanzarote. Some people in my cycling club went to Alicante in Spain's Costa Blanca, while a few others are preparing to go on a women's cycle training camp to Mallorca. 

I'm not averse to these sorts of trips - indeed I have done them in the past, and I've even enjoyed them. These days, I shy away from trips purely to go training because I like to get more out of my trip than each day just riding around somewhere, including a little cafe stop on a sun-kissed cafe terrace. You repeat the process every day, probably varying the café and eating a tostada instead of churros, and perhaps adding in some swimming and maybe running. 

Don't get me wrong - I love a sporty holiday. But I also like a cultural element too. When you go on these camps you are just beaming up your cycling club, or usual cycling buddy group from the UK to Spain. So you are effectively creating your own temporary British enclave in the Balearic Islands or somewhere on the coast of Spain. I must admit, that doesn't excite me. If I go to Spain, I want to be in Spain - mixing with Spanish people, soaking in Spanish culture, and vising the places that make Spain famous. 

Doing a SwimRun race while on a trip to South of France

Also, I like to give my training a bit more meaning, so with that in mind I like to take part in some sort of local sports event while there - maybe a mini cyclosportive, a running race, or as I did last Autumn in the South of France, a SwimRun race. 

Not only was there a specific focus to my trip, but I also got to mix with local-ish athletes and make new contacts.  I don't know if people would necessarily call that a training camp - I don't know what the term is. But those sorts of trips with different dimensions are what I enjoy doing when I travel abroad to do sport.

In terms of training camps in the pure sense, I am quite happy to do that nearer to home. So with that in mind, I travelled......to Manchester - well, 20 miles South, to the North-West's finest place, Macclesfield. 

It was just a case of throwing the bike and all my other sportswear in the car, heading up the M6 and less than four hours later I was at my apartment in the middle of Macc. There were no worries about dismantling the bike for the airline or paying extra to have it carried, no worries about what to take or not take through security, or keeping my luggage within the weight limit. It was all just straightforward and hassle free. I didn't even get caught up in any traffic jam on the motorway.

It was early evening on Saturday when I arrived in the East Cheshire market town at the end of a sunny day. However, sods law was that on my arrival the sky turned grey and as I set out to do a mini local spin. I felt a few drops of rain and the precipitation became heavier and heavier as I proceeded along the disused railway line, now known as the Middlewood Way. I hadn't planned on going far, and was only looking to stretch my legs after having spent a few hours in the car, so I was happy to cut short the ride.

Middlewood Way in Macclesfield

Sunday morning involved a four-mile early morning run in the sunshine along the Middlewood Way, and across to the Riverside Park through woodland between Macclesfield and its posh neighbour, Prestbury. I enjoy this area and have good memories of doing regular runs along here a decade ago when I lived in Macc. Even though its right in the town, there is a feeling of being out in the countryside, especially since livestock roam around the place in Springtime.

After breakfast I then took out my bicycle and did my training ride. This is a big area for cycling. The British Cycling talent team, based up in Manchester often come down to this area to do their training rides, and lots of local riders gather here. The equivalent of Box Hill, is a climb called the Brickworks. It's a 2.7km steady climb from the village of Pott Shrigley over moorland and past farms to near Kettleshulme, on the edge of the Goyt Valley. As I trundled along various riders past me, and said hello. I also saw a group of women on a ride. It looked like they were from the local Rapha Cycling Club. There's a cafe part way up the climb, though it would probably be better to go there on the way back down to Pott Shrigley. In fact I saw a lot of bike riders travelling down in the opposite direction, as I was winding my way up. Perhaps the cafe was their destination. I had no plans to stop there as I had a few places to visit from my itinerary and I was sure I would find an alternative place to stop if necessary.

Once over the Brickworks climb, I then climbed up the winding scenic road to be level with Blaze Hill, then took the fast descent through Rainow to return to Macclesfield and start the climb up the town's most iconic climb - the Cat and Fiddle. This is climb of  just over 10km (6.6 miles) takes you to the eponymous pub in the Peak District National Park, before dropping  6 km (4 miles) to reach Buxton. 

Despite the climbing practice I had had in South London, and earlier in February in Spain, I still felt unfit when tackling this climb. The road surface was quite rough, which didn't help. I figured that that would make me stronger. Once past the big turn in the road at Walker Barn I was officially in the Peak District, and with that the weather also became wilder, as the area seemed more desolate. There weren't that many vehicles, despite it being a main artery. There were very few cyclists too. Much fewer than I had seen on the other nearby roads.

Blaze Hill, outside Bollington, close to the Goyt Valley

Soon I reached a crossroads - a de facto decision point. I could continue to the summit, some 5km (3 miles) away, turn right towards Wildboarclough, turn back and enjoy a lovely descent into Macclesfield where the monthly Treacle Market was taking place, or turn left towards the Goyt Valley. Not wanting to disappear into some sort of Bermuda triangle along the A537 road, I decided not to continue towards Buxton, and I chose to do the latter option. This involved a very technical descent past Lamaload Reservoir. It honestly felt like riding down a wall while trying to avoid pot-holes and gravel. For the first time in decades I actually had to dismount and walk down the hill! On my way down, a few motocross bike riders came up in the opposite direction and waved at me, probably wondering what the hell a road cyclist was doing on this road! 

What goes down must come up, so I then crested a series of hills on the edge of the Goyt valley that took me back to Blaze Hill. By this time my legs were quite tired and looking at my Garmin watch I could see that progress through my itinerary had been very slow. You can't fake your fitness in the Peak District. It finds you out very quickly! And I found out that I still had some way to go to reach optimal fitness.

So with that, it was a very easy decision to return to Macclesfield via the gentler roads in the Cheshire Plain. After a long downhill along Blaze Hill, my ride then took me to Bollington, then through to, Tytherington, Adlington and onwards to Prestbury where life was very leisurely and folks were displaying their Sunday best al fresco at the local cafes. Getting out of Prestbury was more challenging than I had anticipated as there were a few hills to get over before reaching Macclesfield.

Finally, I reached my lodgings at Waters Green feeling satisfied that I had had a proper work-out. Indeed I had, as Garmin showed that I had done - more than 1,000m of climbing over 51 km. That was certainly the hilliest ride I had done all year.

With the limited amount of energy left, I then enjoyed a walk around Central Macclesfield to see the popular Treacle Market.

Monday was planned as a slightly less onerous day than on the Sunday. My bike ride consisted of a loop from Alderley Edge, a popular National Trust area of outstanding natural beauty, and heading through the nearby village of the same name, and home to many a footballer's wife (and in theory their husband) or Coronation Street actor. My loop also included Mottram St Andrew, once again Prestbury, before doing a loop up a local climb in that area, Artist's Lane. Nearby is a Flandrian type hill called Swiss Hill, but I decided to leave that one until another trip. 

Time was short, and I wanted to also do a little trail run through the woodland at Alderley Edge. One way I did this was by running along a Permanent Orienteering Course and identifying checkpoints. It's often a great way to make a run more interesting, and also to discover a new area. My run ended up being just a couple of miles as my orienteering skills were good enough to find the checkpoints quickly (That's what I like to think, anyway!) 

Straight afterwards it was a case of hotfooting it to the National Cycling Centre in Manchester, where I signed up to take part in a taster session at the Velodrome. It was billed as a taster session, but in fact I just took one of the reserved hire bikes and rode around for as long as I could in the time allowed - for me it was 40 minutes as I turned up a little late. I am not sure if I could have survived the full hour going up and down the steep bankings! 

Taster session at Manchester Velodrome

Had I been a complete novice at track cycling the coach would have spent time showing me what to do, but because I had been to the Velodrome in the past (though was not yet accredited), and had become a regular rider at my local velodrome in Herne Hill, I was allowed to get in an individual training ride, under the watchful eye of the coaches, in order to increase my fitness. 

There were a handful of other riders doing a paceline, but I wasn't strong enough to join the line, so I did my own thing. The coach said that I looked fine, but I would just need to do a couple more taster sessions so that I can then gain clearance to join the Regular Riders sessions which is the stepping stone along the way to gaining Accreditation.

By the end of the day, I was feeling a little pooped and was ready to check into my new lodgings, a private room in Central Manchester YHA. There, I had a well-earned meal and an early night to prepare for an early start at the Manchester Aquatics Centre.

Early the following morning I put on my running gear, gathered my swimming kit, and did the two-mile run from Castlefields to the university district where I joined the other swimmers doing training laps in the 50m pool at the Aquatics Centre. This popular venue is a legacy facility from the Commonwealth Games, and still gets a lot of use. It was a clean modern pool, and quite swish following its refurbishment in 2021, compared with the spartan facilities at Crystal Palace. I felt quite motivated, so did one kilometre. That was as much as I could do in the time allowed, as I still had to have breakfast, check out and then make my way back down to London.

The end of my training camp in the North-West had come, and I feel that it had been fun-packed, productive, and I like to think I have increased my fitness. Who knows, I may even be feeling fitter than if I had just doing a few kilometres here and there with my cycling buddies and sitting in a sun-drenched cafe. 

It has to be said that some people do these so-called training camps just so that they can spend time away from the UK, and some coaches that advertise the trips talk more about the well-being benefits of enjoying a cafe stop on the coast while sipping some local patisserie and coffee that is better than back home. Indeed, I see more Instagram photos of what's on people's plates than where they actually rode their bikes! 

Potato Wharf, close to where I stayed in Manchester

Granted, there's no contest when it comes to comparing the weather in Manchester versus Mallorca. But then again, wind, rain and snow are not entirely alien to the Balearic Islands. I have certainly been caught out without a pack-a-mac while cycling up to Puig Major. Even this year there have been weather reports of strong winds on Spanish soil. So weather is not entirely guaranteed even in traditionally warmer, sunnier countries. 

At least in Manchester, it's a case of better the devil you know. In any case, UK weather is so changeable that it is still possible to find a reasonable window in which to get out and ride a bike. Then of course swimming and track cycling aren't even weather dependent. 

So overall, I am happy to ride my bike abroad as long as I get the full cultural and social experience of being in that particular location. However, if the aim is purely about getting in a training camp and keeping fit I would rather keep the logistics simple and stay closer to home. 

But no doubt, I will at some point in the year end up getting a fix of riding my bike along sunny roads in a French, Italian, or Spanish hotspot, and I certainly won't complain about it!

Related posts

Barcelona cycle ride: Montjuic and Port Vell

Bella Italia by bike - Bergamo to Como

Cycle route: Bollington and Blaze Hill loop

One day one photo - 25: A massage ball does wonders for tight muscles

Massage ball - a key tool in injury prevention 

This is what has helped stop my legs from getting too shot after yesterday's Paris-Versailles running race. I actually bought it the day before the event from Decathlon at Place de la Madeleine, when I was making a few other last-minute purchases for the race.

I have a knobbly foam roller, but didn't bring it as I wanted to travel light. I had banked on getting in a few swimming sessions to loosen my legs, a post-race massage at the event, and maybe even a yoga class to do some deep stretching. I had managed to do all of those things apart from yoga, which was a bit tricky to fit in. 

When it comes to injury prevention I can never do too much. A significant chunk of the physical exercise I do involves keeping injuries at bay. I have had to deal with tendinitis between my legs and my ankles, over the years, including during the first part of this year when I was unable to do any sport because of a nagging problem. 

So I am very happy to have been able to run the 10 miles yesterday without any problems, and I am determined to do what I can to keep things that bay.

So when I saw this little ball, not only did I think it looked rather cute and a nice convenient size, I also saw how this could give me pleasure (well pain actually) when rubbing it up and down my illio-tibial band, my gluteus maximus, my soleus or even just under the ball of my foot.

The pleasure doesn't come from the act itself, but from the knowledge that this little ball is helping to keep me doing my favourite sporting activities like running, cycling, swimming, even the odd bit of rollerskating. 

Here's hoping I can carry on doing the sports I love.

One day one photo - 16: Swim Serpentine - it went swimmingly in the end!

All smiles after Swim Serpentine in Hyde Park

I finally got to swim in the Serpentine - and it was lovely.

It had been touch and go as to whether Swim Serpentine would take place. Just three days before the event, we still didn't have a definitive answer, much to the annoyance of those participants travelling to London specially for the event from other parts of the country. Then on Thursday, the organisers announced that tests had shown it was safe to swim in the water and the event would go ahead.

A number of people, myself included, did not feel comfortable about taking part and opted to request a refund.  

But in the end, when Saturday morning came, and I saw a sunny day plus more positive water quality test results I changed my mind. With that, I jumped on my bicycle and zoomed over to Hyde Park. 

Fortunately the organisers were able to give me a new number and I did the one-mile swim in the Serpentine that morning. 

The water was a balmy 21 degrees C and it was nice and clear. I just made sure to not let any of it get in my mouth! (You can never be sure.) In my wave there must have been around 300 people, which made it a slight challenge sighting as I had to swim round other people. turnaround points ay the buoys got a bit crowded as everyone wanted to take the same (shortest) line! I just stayed relaxed and swam round slightly slower to allow for any sudden changes in direction I might have had to make. 

In the end I did 44 minutes. I was happy with that time - it's quicker than I've done in a while, and throughout the swim I felt like I was within myself and wasn't exerting myself. The fact that I used a pull buoy and had my cross on too, will have helped me keep an optimal position and go quicker.

After my swim I couldn't resist putting on my trainers and doing a little run around the lake before cycling home. It had been a fun-packed day out, even if the start had looked decidedly dubious. 

One day one photo - 11: All ready for Swim Serpentine - But will it happen?

My gear for Swim Serpentine arrived in the post, which I was glad to see as I am actually looking forward to doing it. It is my favourite mass participation swimming event. 

I have been doing a lot of swimming this year, and for the first time ever I was out swim training consistently through the winter, including a couple of trips to the unheated lidos at Brockwell Park, in Herne Hill, and also Parliament Hill Lido. 

But alas, once again the lake, known as The Serpentine is closed due to the presence of blue-green algae blooms, so we are all in suspense as to whether or not the event will take place. When water test results on 30th August revealed high levels of cyanobacteria, The Serpentine was closed immediately. 

When a few other swim venues have fallen victim to the dreaded blue-green algae this led to the place being closed to swimming for around three or four weeks. If this is the average amount of time it takes for a lake to be rid of blue-green algae, Swim Serpentine may as well be cancelled now, given that the water won't be clear before the big day on 17th September. 

Frustratingly for many people, the organisers have not put out any official statement about the situation, and they are unable to say if the event will take place. While it is slightly annoying for me, as someone who lives in London and can just go and swim in another open water venue if Swim Serpentine is cancelled, for many people who don't live in London, there is more at stake. Many people will be travelling in from other parts of the country and will have booked travel and accommodation. They stand to lose a lot of money if they are only informed of the cancellation at a couple of days' notice.

I guess these things are beyond the control of the organisers, and it must be a real challenge for them too. In fact the last couple of years have been a challenge. The 2020 event was cancelled during the Covid-19 pandemic; 2021 also had an issue with blue-green algae. Thankfully, that went ahead when the lake was declared bacteria free on the Tuesday before the event. Sadly, due to the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, which involved the use of the Royal Parks, Swim Serpentine was cancelled. And now here we are once again, in limbo. 

I can only keep my fingers crossed that the event can go ahead.

One day one photo - 8: Swimming in Canary Wharf

Swimming in Middle Dock, Canary Wharf

Happy Friday! And what better way to start the day than by having a dip in the Middle Dock at Canary Wharf. I got there a little later than planned after having had issues with the battery in my motorcycle - more specifically it was the tracker which was draining an inordinate amount of energy from my battery, so there was a delay while the battery was getting charged.

Once I arrived at that familiar stretch of water among the tall glassy buildings and the suits of the Docklands financial district, I felt a sigh of relief at the knowledge that I couold don my wetsuit and be in the cool relaxing water.

And cool it was! It's worth noting that the water in Middle Dock is generally colder than that in other nearby open water venues like the Royal Victoria Docks and the Docklands Sailing and Water Sports Centre. It is generally two or three degrees see colder. I am not entirely sure of the reason why; it may be to do with the depth. In any case, as we are currently enjoying a mini heatwave this was not an issue as the water was still 19 degrees Celsius. 

Now in its second season of open-water swimming, Canary Wharf is the newest London venues for this pursuit. I must say it's my favourite. It's easy to get to by motorcycle, bicycle or public transport - the tube station is right at the venue, as is the Docklands Light Railway. There are lots of cafes and bars nearby, and you are guaranteed an audience from the bemused al fresco diners! the venue handily has benches where you can change outdoors, plus there's a basic changing room for those who want to change in privacy, and there are indoor public toilets where you can also get changed. Plus, the folks are very friendly - not that folks in other venues are less friendly. I just like the folks here because last year they gave me extra credits for free. I had done a mini SwimRun challenge, in which I swam at all the local venues in one morning and ran between them, and Canary Wharf was my final venue. The staff there were so impressed at what I'd done that they gave me three or four free swims. So all the last few swims I have done in Middle Dock have been free of charge. 

Today I opted to wear my SwimRun wetsuit with calf guards, meaning that my legs had extra buoyancy, so I didn't have to do much work to keep in the optimum position in the water and I didn't have to do much kicking either. Just gliding along with gentle arm strokes of front crawl put me in the sweetspot. 

There is a 400m and a 200m loop and this morning they were only operating the 200m loop - which I think was more like 350m! No worries. The water was very clear, making it really easy to see other swimmers just by noting their legs when I had my face in the water. Given the weather, all the swimming slots were fully booked, so there were many of us in the water and we all went around visible as a clutch (or whatever the collective noun is) of tow floats. Some, myself included, were doing front crawl, while others bobbed along doing breast stroke. It's all pretty democratic as regardless of speed or stroke, skins or wetsuit, we all come out refreshed and having had a relaxing time in the water. 

   

One day one photo - 6: Swimming training

I was really glad to be able to to get an evening swimming slot at Crystal Palace Sports Centre on the hottest day of the year! Swimming is an activity I have done for many years, though it's something that I have tended to not talk about much or pay much attention to as a sport in the same way I do with cycling or running. While I will watch professional cycle races or running races, and discuss it with fellow fans, I never do the same with swimming. It's just been something that I get on with quietly in an unassuming way.

It's been more of a Cinderella activity for me. When I do triathlons, swimming is my weakest discipline, and is more like something to just get through before I do the "proper" sport of riding my bike and running. I have still stuck with swimming over the years though, because it is great for soothing sore legs after hard exercise - be it running, cycling. I even like to do it when I go skiing as it certainly helps my knees after a day on the pistes.

So it has tended to be a sport I did for functional reasons and I am sure it has benefited me. In more recent times I have come to really appreciate what swimming does for me. Not only are there the musculoskeletal benefits, but it's also an activity I can do for relaxation. Being in the water can help lower blood pressure too. 

With the significant growth in open water swimming I have found myself visiting lots of venues around the London area - Beckenham Place Park, Middle Dock at Canary Wharf, Docklands Sailing and Watersports Centre, Divers Cove, Royal Victoria Docks. I also enjoy visiting the lidos at Brockwell Park, London Fields, and Parliament Hill in Hampstead Heath. I also like to do open water swimming whenever I travel out of town. Recently I swam in Loch Lomond and on Portobello Beach while on a visit to Scotland. I also swam in the Bassin de la Villette, and the Ourcq Canal when I visited Paris

According to the Strava app, for the first time ever, my stats showed that I spent more time swimming than cycling or running during the month of August. 

All this waterbaby activity has led me to actually work on my technique and do some proper training. I haven't joined a swimming club, but I have bought a few training aids which I use to incorporate drills when I swim at my local pool at Crystal Palace. The kickboard and the flippers have been great for improving my leg technique, the hand paddles have helped improve my arm pull through the water and strengthen my pectoral muscles, while the pull buoy is a nice swimming aid to put my legs in the best position in the water.

I definitely feel that my swimming has improved. I am not necessarily swimming much faster, but I find that for the same speed I don't feel as tired as I used to, and I feel a lot more relaxed during a race. Who knows, this may be the beginning of me channelling my inner Michael Phelps!  

The Monkey Motorbike Diaries - Episode 2

On Farthing Downs

Having this new type of two-wheeler has been great for getting out and about around London. I feel good about going out to other places. It's true that I can cycle to places, and that's something that I still do. But it's good to have that extra option of being able to ride to somewhere relatively quickly. For example, I can go into central London in half an hour, totally bypassing traffic jams that hold me up when in the car. Also, there's no congestion charge to worry about, and parking is generally free (apart from Westminster where you pay £1 for the day).  

Another use I have found with the motorbike is to get me to other parts of London in order to go running. I have aimed to get to different places each week to do runs. As well as it involving the fun of riding my motorbike, it also gives variety to my runs and keeps them interesting. I have been to Brockwell Park, Tooting Bec Common, Docklands, Peckham Rye, and on this day Farthing Down in South Croydon. It was an early morning start to get over to Coulsdon, and then I did a long run through the woods and was home by 9am in time to start my working day.

I have also used the bike to go to different outdoor swimming venues - to Canary Wharf, Royal Victoria Docks, London Fields, and then to Divers Cove in Surrey as well. 

I really enjoy the combination of getting in the practice on my motorbike, riding on different types of roads, as well as keeping fit.

I am not sure if I am a proper biker type though because it seems that real motorbikers get on their bikes and ride out to a cafe - maybe have a fry-up and then ride on to somewhere else and do another cafe stop. It has to be said that there are quite a lot of riders who are of a larger size. I wonder if all these rides to cafes are a contributory factor. Whether or not that is the case for them, I know for sure that I would definitely be twice the size that I am now if I used my bike to ride out to cafes every weekend. With that in mind it makes me wonder if I should join a motorcycle club if I am reluctant to do these types of cafe ride. Surely a motorbike rideout can be mixed in with say swimming, running or hiking and then the sausages and bacon afterwards, right? I would gladly welcome any suggestions of clubs that focus a little on other outdoor activities aside from motorbike riding. Or maybe that's an unreasonable expectation to think that these sets of lifestyles are not mutually exclusive. I hope that's not the case.

Related posts 

The Monkey Motorbike Diaries - Episode 1

Photo of the day - 26: Final SwimRun of the year, at Bewl Water

 

Exiting the water after the first of six swims

The second part of my final weekend of multi-sport races for this year was the As Keen As Mustard SwimRun at Bewl Water, near Tunbridge Wells. There was a choice of three distances - a 5km, 10km, or 21km. I chose to do the middle option, which consists of a total of 1800m swim split over six swims and interspersed with seven runs which totalled 8.2km.

Nowadays I feel comfortable with the swim, especially after all the training I've done and having swum two miles in the Serpentine last week. The run was something to just get around, because I haven't done a lot of training due to me trying to learn to run in minimalist shoes. Because I haven't fully mastered that, I have to take it easy during the SwimRun races to avoid injury as I am running without my usual orthotics - something I wouldn't advise if you're jumping in and out of the water!

It was a very pleasant event, running around the woodland and country trails and then at intervals wading into the water to swim, getting out and running again. I ended up right at the back during the first run as I stopped to properly tie my shoe laces and adjust my pull buoy. But I managed to catch a few women, and we formed a little group at the back. I gnerally feel quite relaxed in these events because they usually start with a run, and by the time you reach the water you have warmed up a bit and so when you get in the water it's quite refreshing. There's no need to take time acclimatising or warming up; you just get on with it. When swimming you need to keep your eye on where you're meant to be going as there aren't any buoys in the water. There's just a flag and a marshal at the other end of the lake, so it's up to you to pick the shortest line. Be mindful that the swimmer in front of you may not be very good at sighting, so it's always good to check for yourself where you're going. I finished fifth from the back, but it was nice to see the women at the finish line, and we congratulated each other as well as talking about our exploits during the race.

I do like these events. There's no argy bargy in the water and people do them at various paces - some people are competitive, especially those intent on qualifying for the major events in Sweden. But then there are other folks who tootle round. I'd say SwimRun is in the same vein as orienteering, where some people are mighty fast and then others just trot round and enjoy the scenery. But whichever level you are everyone feels like they've had a workout and there's a friendly atmosphere. I look forward to doing more of these events next year.

Photo of the day - 25: Castle Series Aquathlon at Hever Castle

For the first part of my season-closer weekend of multi-sports I took part in an Aquabike race. I'd not heard that such a thing existed. Aquathlons (swim and then run) are common-place, but an aquabike (swim and then cycle) is almost unheardof. It was organised by the Castle Series crew, and that's the only place where I have seen it organised. 

We started in the same wave as those doing the aquathlon, meaning that we all swam 750m in the lake at Hever Castle and then in transition half of the field ran 5km and the other half of us cycled 20km through the country lanes of the Kent Weald. It was a fairly lumpy course that went out towards Cowden, Penshurst and Chiddingstone. I was familiar with those places from doing training rides, though it's been a while since I rode those lanes at any fast pace. 

The race was enjoyable, but I must say it was a strange day out. I had originally planned on driving there, but given that all the queues at the filling stations were spilling out onto the roads I was worried about getting stuck in a traffic jam, and arriving late to the event. So I managed to get on a train at East Croydon make the half-hour journey to Hever, followed by a 10-minute ride to Hever Castle. I thought I got there in good time for the start of the race, but the event was quite big, with about five or six races going on concurrently. There was a lack of signposts on the site indicating where people had to go, so it was easy to get lost. 

I couldn't see how to get to the start line at the lake and when I asked a volunteer he didn't know either! So he had to look for another volunteer to ask and then when he found out, although he was nice enough to accompany me to the lake, he kept saying I had plenty of time even though my race was starting in 10 minutes and it was a long walk to the start line. I arrived at the start line with about 2 minutes to spare, and missed the pre-race briefing.

When racing, the marshal in the swim to bike transition didn't give any instructions on where I could mount my bike and start riding, so I had to stop and ask her. Then when I finished my bike ride the marshals didn't give any instruction on what I should do next, given that it was effectively the end of the race. It seemed weird that there was no finish gantry to go to, and my race would just finish abruptly in the bike funnel. Then a marshal in transition gave me a medal. So it was a bit of an meh kind of end to the race. In fact, it was only when I asked to go into the finish area to pick up some refreshments and saw a marshal collecting timing chips that I remembered to remove my timing chip. If I hadn't asked to go into that area I would have gone home with my timing chip still on.

Then to cap it all, when I got home and looked at the results my name didn't feature as I had been classed as a DNF! Eventually, my result was added to the list, and I apparently came about 14th or 15th out of 20. I don't know how accurate that was, as my Garmin had recorded a faster time. 

So, it was all a bit of a non-event in the end. I am not sure that an aquabike works because you need a finish line for cyclists. It's reasonable for competitors in an aquabike to expect a finish gantry where they can power through, give it that final spurt and even a victory/achievement salute. The way the course was set up, it would have been dangerous for us to do that while a triathlon or aquathlon or running race were taking place. But then to not have a finish gantry for cyclists does feel like you are being short changed, and potentially lead to you being accidentally classed as a non-finisher. It was a different experience, but I probably won't do it again - especially as it cost £70!

Photo of the day - 14: Blue-green algae in the Serpentine - blurgh!

Photo: Roland Turner

This little gem in central London is The Serpentine, the main lake in Hyde Park. My running club is named after this place, as Hyde Park is our home area for running. Also, I regularly come and ride laps of the park now that there is a lovely smooth cycle path all the way round. 

Folks do various other activities there like horseriding and roller skating too. And then there's swimming. There's a lido, which is a cordonned-off part of the lake where there is organised swimming, and then big events are held there where folks can swim the whole of the lake. That was the case at the London 2012 Olympics for the triathlon and the open-water swimming event. Every year there is also Swim Serpentine, which is swimming's answer to the London Marathon or Ride London. It's a mass participation event where thousands of people can swim half a mile, one mile, two miles or even six miles. 

It's meant to be taking place this Saturday, except that I have just learned that the lake has been closed to swimming since the end of August due to blue-green algae. That's quite a surprise. I have certainly heard of it affecting other swimming events I've done. But I have not heard of it in The Serpentine before. I just thought something about it being in a Royal Park meant that the maintenance would be top notch and therefore that wouldn't be allowed to happen.

There's been no official word from the organisers, except to say that they are pumping fresh water into the lake. Hopefully this will work. When I have seen places closed because of blue-green algae they didn't reopen for many months. 

It would be great to be able to swim there this Saturday, especially because if I complete the two mile-swim I will receive a special London Classics medal. These are awarded to those dedicated hard-core souls who have completed the London Marathon, Ride London 100-mile and Swim Serpentine 2-mile events. Fingers crossed that the Royal Parks Authority can resolve it and things go swimmingly on Saturday!

Photo of the day - 12: First sea swim of the year - at Eastbourne

The concert band I play in were due to do a gig at the Eastbourne Bandstand. Given that it is right on the seafront, I decided to get there early enough to go for a quick dip in the sea. I had been wanting to go for an open water swim all week, and with Swim Serpentine less than a week away I was keen to take whatever opportunities I could. It was quite an easy thing to do. I parked on a side road off the seafront road and walked to the sea front to start my swim. Given that it wasn't very warm, I wore a wetsuit - in this case my swimrun wetsuit with calf sleeves. 

As I have gotten into the sport of swimrun I have found that the kit you use for this sport is really handy for swimming in general. The calf sleeves and pull buoy (which is strapped to my thigh) give extra buoyancy to the point that you don't really need to kick your legs when swimming front crawl. The hand paddles also make your stroke efficient and you go that bit quicker than if you had none of these items. 

The other things I have that really make life easier are a pair of swimrun shoes. They are basically minimalist running shoes that are light and don't weigh your legs down in the water, and then they drain quickly when you get out of the water. The ones I wear are Vivobarefoot Tempest. Other brands exist like Salomon or Inov8. They were great because I could walk down the road with them and then just get straight into and out of the water while wearing them. 

This was my first sea swim of the year. I don't know why I'd left it so long. I had made a previous attempt a few months ago in Brighton, after cycling there from London. But I didn't have my wetsuit with me, and even though it had been a hot day the water just wasn't hot enough for me. So I only succeeded in getting knee deep into the water before I called it a day! 

This time I had the gear and that gave me a lot more confidence to have a go and deal with "the challenge". The water was a bit choppy, and that made sighting a tricky as I kept being wafted off the path I was trying to follow; but thankfully The Wish Tower when swimming one way, and Eastbourne Pier when swimming the other way, made life a lot easier. I had a big tow float with me, which is necessary, particularly for visibility among the various paddleboarders and other swimmers. So all in all I felt safe during my one-mile swim. 

When I got out, quite a few people stopped and asked me how my swim had gone and admired the fact that I had been in, given the temperature. That gave me an even greater sense of achievement. I highly recommend a little dip like this, particularly before something like a concert, as I came out feeling quite relaxed, refreshed and ready to jam.

Photo of the day - 8: Open water swimming in the Thames

 

photo: Eirian Evans

This is where I should have been today - swimming round and round in the River Thames at Richmond. However, finishing off a number of writing projects meant that I couldn't get the time out to go there. The Thames Young Mariners have regular open water swimming sessions there, and given that it is within the London area it is well worth getting along and having a swim. The coordinator is allowing extended sessions too, for those of us who need to do long swims. I love the idea of swimming in that area - especially in Richmond, one of my favourite areas of London. Hopefully I will get to swim there soon. Apparently, there will be sessions through the autumn and winter too, but I must say I would rather do my first swims there now. I'm not quite ready for really cold water just yet. I'll leave that to the hard core fanatics!

Photo of the day - 4: Getting ready for Swim Serpentine, London

It was quite a surprise to see this photo of me on the Swim Serpentine weekly newsletter. It's actually a photo the organisers took of me just after I finished my one-mile swim at Swim Serpentine about two or three years ago. I was really buzzing from the enjoyment of the event, and the fact that I had had a good swim over one mile. It's not always the case. Sometimes the water is choppy, or you bump into other competitors. Sometimes I get tense in the water, particularly if I can't see the buoys and I lose sight of where I'm going. But this was a good swim, with lots of buoys to help with sighting, loads of crowd support in Hyde Park and on the Serpentine Bridge, and even swans for company! 

The photo is also a reminder to train, and the fact that the event is just a couple of weeks away. I have signed up for the two-mile event, which is a stretch target, though I have done lots of swimming this year. Swimming was the first organised sports we could do when lock-down measures were eased. However, it hasn't always been easy for me to fit in the time to swim two miles. A mixture of my busy schedule, and some venues only allowing you to swim for an hour has meant that it's quite hard to go the full distance.

The good thing is that when I aired this issue on the Open Water Swimming Facebook group I had lots of replies from people naming venues where it is possible to swim for longer than an hour - including one of my local open-water swimming venues at the Royal Victoria Docks. So now, I just need to take myself to those venues. Not long to go until the big day - 18th September.

One day one photo - 5: Save Crystal Palace Sports Centre

Over the 21 years I have lived in Crystal Palace there have been regular debates around the future and threat of closure of the local sports centre (aka the National Sports Centre).

I remember in 1999, the local triathlon club discussing whether or not to plan for a triathlon there, given the likelihood of its closure.

But here we are in 2018 with a whole raft of events taking place at the sports complex - swimming (in one of the few 50m pools in London), diving, squash, badminton, trampolining, weight lifting in the sports centre. There's also a gym and a programme of various fitness classes. Then outdoors people do hockey, football, athletics, tennis and even beach volleyball.

Beach Volleyball at Crystal Palace Sports Centre

The sports centre and the surrounding park is also host to various external events - The London Youth Games, Southern Athletics Championships, The Fire fighters Championships, a triathlon, and the regular Tuesday night cycle road racing series. Next week I will be doing a cyclocross race in the park, and the week after that will be running the Southern Road relays championships.

I love going to the sports  centre for my fitness classes, swimming, or for hockey training. Seeing various people out doing some sort of activity has a feeling of being part of an academy for sport. Who says the UK doesn't have an Olympics legacy!

But yet there are talks about what will happen after 2020. The Mayor of London has commissioned a public consultation to "rationalise" the existing and future facilities. That basically means cut-backs to the services.

That could spell the loss of sports facilities that we know and love and which have existed since 1964, when the centre was first opened, and considered state of the art. Of course, we now have the Lee Valley Sports facilities and Queen Elizabeth Olympic park, from the 2012 Olympics, and funds have been diverted in that direction to Crystal Palace's detriment.

Crystal Palace Sports Partnership have set up a website with the latest information. You can sign and on-line petition to save athleteics and sports at Crystal Palace Sports Centre, as well as complete a survey to let them know what sports you do in order for them to understand which activities are a priority in the community.

I really hope that money can be invested in our beloved local sports centre. It's great for the wellbeing of the local community, as well as it being a place that could train tomorrow's world class athletes.

One day one photo - 7: Swim Serpentine

I have decided to take the plunge, literally! Earlier on this summer I took part in the Great London Swim in Royal Victoria docks. It was a well organised event, and I quite enjoyed the experience. There was a choice of distances and I opted to do 800m (half a mile), as that was a distance I knew I'd be able to get through without too much difficulty. My main issue would be how long I would take. In the end I took around 22 minutes, and I wasn't last - a big improvement on what I did at the Crystal Palace triathlon, where I took almost half an hour to do 750m and I had the slowest swim split out of all 1,000 competitors in the race!

After that I decided to do more open water swimming events. So the Swim Serpentine at Hyde Park, London was the next on my list. (I had hoped to do the Great Scottish Swim in Loch Lomond, but I was actually in France at that time.) I would have like to have done the 800m category at Swim Serpentine, but I was a bit late getting my entry in, so I am doing the one-mile option. It's going to be a challenge. I swam 1200m last Wednesday at the open water swim session in Victoria Docks a few days ago.



It was in the early evening and initially the sun was shining and I felt good. But later on, the sun went down and I had difficulty sighting the buoys in the water. There weren't many people left swimming as many had finished and gone home, so I had no reference. Then I got quite cold, it became windy and I could feel myself being tossed around in the wind. My lungs were just rasping as I was breathing and although I made a lot of effort to stay calm, I was subconsciously panicking. In the end I found my way back to the start/finish gantry, and a life-guard in a boat was there to help with the sighting in the semi-darkness. It was only after I got out of the water that I was aware of how difficult I had found the experience. In fact I was quite chesty when I got out and had to use my asthma inhaler - the first time I've had to do so in a long time.

I like to think that the conditions in the Serpentine will be a lot more clement - at least it will be daylight! I will also wear an extra hat and gilet just to protect against the cold.

Some may say I'm mad for doing this, but I just love the challenge - and hey, the Serpentine is just around the corner from where I work. It would be rude not to do it!

Biking, running and swimming too!

My blog is about cycling, but some of you may know that I also run - something I have done since childhood. I am a member of the Serpentine Running Club, and also run second claim for South London Harriers. Earlier this year I did a 10k race around London, and hope to get out and do a few more running events (as well as the informal Park runs).

Many people don't know that I even swim, albeit not massively well!

My sporting story goes like this - I got into cycling when I realised I needed to know how to ride a bike to get through a triathlon, back when I was doing them in the early noughties.

Once I had a taste of cycling through multi-sports I got lured away by all that the two-wheeled sport has to offer, and now I do more cycling than anything else.

I found the training for the three disciplines of a triathlon difficult to juggle with a normal life. I don;t know how people do it. In fact the people that I have met who do well in age group triathlons just don't live a normal life. Call me boring, but maybe I like just doing normal!

So regular triathloning went out of the window about 12 years ago, and as much as I like watching the exploits of the Brownlee brothers and Non Stanford, I don't really miss doing it myself! However, I still do get a wobble and do one or two cheap, local triathlons a year.

What I do like enjoy though is doing the individual disciplines one at a time. So I do cycling races (which you, dear reader, may already know about), I take part in running races, and now I've discovered swimming races in the open water.

There is something quite refreshing about swimming in the open water. I am not a particularly strong swimmer. In fact I was regularly one of the last  people out of the pool in a triathlon!

But putting on a wetsuit and being in the open air just feels fun. I am not confident enough to just swim anywhere, like the folks from the Outdoor Swimming Society, so I go to one of the various organised sessions and races that take place around London and the home counties - or wherever I happen to be.

There are lots of places to go to. Recently I was at Shepperton, in South-West London, and on a trip to Cheshire I went to Boundary Park, near Joddrell Bank. In all cases the atmosphere was nice and relaxed with changing area, cafe/lounge area, music, and because there were a lot of regulars it was a good place to meet people. I hope to get to other venues in London - West Reservoir in Stoke Newington, Hampstead Ponds, Divers Cove near Redhill, Surrey. I have swum in the Serpentine in Hyde Park as part of an Aquathlon, but hope to go there at a more leisurely pace.

A couple of weeks ago I did the Great London Swim at Royal Victoria docks. I swam 800m and it was fun, if a little salty! The great thing about these swims is the level is so varied, and has ordinary people, not just hard core triathletes, so my result didn't look that bad! I took more than 20 minutes to complete the distance, but I still finished mid-pack! In a triathlon I would have been one of the slowest swimmers!

So that has given me the motivation to carry on with open water swimming events. I hope to do the Great Scottish Swim in Loch Lomond at the end of August, and then Swim Serpentine in September.

And of course I will carry on cycling and running too.