Up the Palace!

Tuesday was the Queen's birthday - so what did we all do? We went to the Palace of course! Well, Crystal Palace actually.

And there was not a gun salute to be heard - just the sound of a whistle, a bell and a siren plus the whirring sound of the smooth pedalling and the odd clink from the chainging of gears. Of course there's the occasional shout of "hold your line", or "on your left", plus the regular cries of "work together, keep it going, dig in." All the while, suited and booted officials diligently make notes as a man shouts out the numbers of the riders who complete each lap of the circuit.
Thus is the routine of the Crystal Palace crit races, which started on Tuesday and will continue until the end of August.

I was in the priviledged position of not having to get involved in this merry go round of a circuit, which can be quite daunting even for some of the most seasoned road racers.

I leant my services as a marshall for the race. So it was just a case of standing at one of the entrances to Crystal Palace Park and alerting passers by and other park users of there being a cycle race in progress.

As we were quite flush with marshals there were 3 of us at this particular entrance, which is on a tricky hairpin on the circuit. It meant then that we were able to do a fair "division of labour" when it came to marshalling.

So at times I was able to just watch proceedings. On such a punishing circuit there's no where to hide. There are so many turns and corners, plus a challenging climb, thus many opportunities for you to be dropped. This course definitely finds holes in your training (or lack of it)!

Spectacting the race was very interesting. There's the guy who sets off like a lightning bolt from the gun, but then gets caught by the main group about 5 laps in and then he burns out and becomes relegated to peloton fodder. Some riders start off quite conservatively, just sitting in near the back end of the pack, and with the help of another fellow rider manage to work their way up to the main group, then contest the sprint for the line. The class act, for me is the one who just burns off the front from the gun and then manages to stay away for the whole of the race and win.

That's what Charlie Blackman (Cyclefit) did in the women's race. She did it in such style, and her victory was a very deserved one - especially as throughout the race I saw the sweat and heard the panting even from a good distance away!

My team mates from Dulwich did well. Two of them were new to the course, so were a little phased by the number and trickiness of the corners. They didn't disgrace the club by any means with their performances. Karen, the third rider finished just off the podium in fourth place.

I hope to be at Palace within the next few weeks. Watching the race has given me the motivation to have a go. I hope to race there soon.


photos by London Cyclesport

Springtime

I could've gone for a run in the park near my work at lunchtime. Instead, I decided that today would be a rest day and I decided to do something I don't normally do during my lunch hour. I went for a stroll.

I put on my jacket, didn't take any money or work papers and just walked around St James' Park at a leisurely pace. This was probably inspired by the Slow Down London festival that starts this week.

Well, the only thing I took with me was my camera phone and as I ambled along I stopped and contemplated various scenes and really marvelled at the colours, the architecture and the natural beauty in London on this lovely, sunny, Spring day.

There was no rushing around to be done, no thinking about my work, and it was something very enjoyable that I could do in Central London without needing to pay for it! I felt so much for refreshed when I returned to my desk for the afternoon session.

Here's a bit of what I saw.

Just Riding the Bike - Down South

Sometimes I get moments where I don't want to see my bikes, never mind ride them. In fact my Specialized that I used in Mallorca was sitting it's bag for 10 days after I returned to London. I couldn't bear the idea of having to ride in anger - whether to train or to race or just to do a stupid commuter race.

I definitely get a "yeuk" feeling when I think that I'll have to strap on a heart rate monitor, ride within a specified zone, do a certain number of intervals or heavens above - use a power tap.
What's wrong with just enjoying riding the bike - not counting the miles or the average speed, not needing to watch the cadence - just simply spinning the pedals as you amble through the country lanes and contemplate the pleasant landscape in the warm sunshine.

View Saturday club run in a larger map
So that's what I did last weekend. On Saturday I didn't actually start my bike ride until around 2pm, as I'd been running in the morning. As I still hadn't unpacked the road bike I chose to use my cyclo cross bike, which was ready to go and sporting nice new road tyres. The ride wasn't very long - just the Saturday club run route done in reverse - 30 miles. I had a very pleasant ride, though when done the "wrong" way round it made for a tough first half, with one climb being a proper 25% gradient. That aside, it was an enjoyable ride and I felt free. On my own, with no wheel to chase and very few people on the roads. I only saw a couple of other cyclists, the occasional car, and no horses.

View 269 - Edenbridge Loop in a larger map
Sunday was a longer ride. By then I had assembled my road bike so was able to take that one on it's first Spring outing in London. Again, it wasn't a long distance - 50miles of pootling through the country lanes of Kent, taking in the local cyclist haunts. I even stopped and took photos of the bluebells, which was a nice way to break things up before tackling the dreaded triple of Yorks Hill, Toys Hill and Titsey Hill on the homeward run.

By the time I got home, London was still basking in warm Spring sunshine and my legs felt like they had been well exercised but I wasn't shattered. More importantly, by the end of the two days I had re-kindled my love for my bikes and I felt ready to start cycling again. Looking forward to more pleasant cycling.

Sheer Grit!

Local cycling buddy Charlie Blackman only started road racing a few years ago, in 2006. I bumped into her at a few road races back then, and we were about the same level in those days - both 3rd category road racers. In fact, I remember her saying to me while in the bunch during a circuit race - "you go in front girl - you're stronger than me!".

I've improved a bit since then - I'm now a 2nd category road racer. But Charlie's progress has been so much more impressive. She worked hard at her training and battled her way through the ranks. She has now joined a select club, being just one of 10 women in the UK to have an Elite road racing licence. Charlie even managed this despite crashing and suffering concussion in her first season, and then a broken collarbone in her second season.

Anyway, I interviewed Charlie earlier this year for the London Cyclesport website, and found her answers very inspiring. It's interesting how reading other people's experiences motivates you into training, and just gives you that extra kick up the backside.


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Maria David, LondonCycleSport's women's correspondent, talks to Charlotte Blackman (London Dynamo).

Thanks for doing this interview, Charlie. You have had a phenomenal rise - from newbie 4th cat in 2006, to elite racer in 2008. Congratulations!

You were previously an elite rower. What made you cross over from rowing to cycling?
At the end of 2005 I was struggling to find the time to do anything other than work. I’d just moved house, was organising a wedding and trying to complete my teacher training. I kept getting ill, couldn’t make weight (I was a lightweight rower), got a telling off from my coach at GB trials for only coming 8th (!!!) and decided I’d had enough. I saw cycling as a different, unpressured way of keeping fit and as a change of scene.

What do you attribute your success to?
It’s funny to think that I’m “successful”. I just like riding my bike. I’ve always been sporty: 14 years of ballet, followed by 10 years of rowing. There is no secret: I’m not particularly gifted, I’m just happy putting the hours in. I’ve been brought up with a very strong work ethic. That probably helped.

Do you think coming from a rowing background has helped you in the cycling?
Without doubt. I think the hours I put in dancing taught me discipline but rowing taught me about bloody-minded hard training. Riding in the wind and rain by yourself is very much like being battered about in a single scull on the Thames. I sometimes think that the sculling has left me with far more of a psychological legacy than a physiological one.

You have been spotted at times, training alone on a cold, dull, rainy day. What motivates you to go out riding for hours on a miserable winter’s day?
My coach, Guy Andrew’s advice is “I don’t ride in the wind and rain, but you must!” I quite enjoy the long rides in the cold and I comfort myself with the idea that it’s all “money in the bank”. I also grew up in a mining pit village in county Durham so I’m quite used to wind and rain.

Who are your heroes?
I’m still a big kid in that my mum and dad are my heroes. They’ve both battled the Big C in the last two years and have my utmost love and respect. My sister runs marathons, I think she’s a bit of a hero too. Even when I rowed I think I found normal human beings far more “heroic” than the celebrities. My team mates like Jo Munden, Susannah Osborne and Lisa Scarlett are also my heroes. Jo and Susannah taught me a huge amount about riding my bike and Lisa taught me a great deal about courage!

I remember the photo of you crossing the finish line when you had your first victory in a National Series race at the Sid Standard Memorial RR last year. You looked quite emotional. What was going through your mind at that moment?
The absolute relief of not being caught by the bunch! I was desperate not to be caught. I’d attacked from about 4km out and kept thinking “Charlie! What have you done?”

So last year you raced the Women’s National Team Series as part of the Surrey League team. This year you are racing in a dedicated London Dynamo women’s team. How different will that be for you?
I think it is going to be a very different experience. There are familiar faces on the Dynamo team and there are other experienced riders. It is also good to have young riders like Claire Beaumont and Emma Patterson as they will get so much out of this season and it will be exciting to see how they go. There is already a colossal amount of team spirit and enthusiasm and in that respect we are very like the Surrey League team.

London Dynamo has a sizeable women’s squad. What does the club do to attract so many women? Your club seems to have achieved something that many clubs can only dream of.
There are lots of girls but we are racing across different disciplines. That can be frustrating. (I wanted to hide Jenny Lloyd-Jones’ TT bike last year and just have her come and road race!) But this is also a real strength and it means that there is always a more experienced female rider for them to talk to. We have also run winter skills sessions for the last three years and that’s helped to increase numbers. I think the visibility of the club within SW London helps draw women in and the fact that the club supports us and has a healthy social scene, makes sure that they stay."

And for the 2009 season what are your racing goals?
To have fun and not to fall off the bike!

Do you plan to race in Europe?
I’m going to Belgium in a couple of weeks to race. The very thought of it fills me with a mixture of fear and excitement.

Best of Luck with the coming road racing season.

photos by John Mullineaux at londoncyclesport.com

Primavera Travels - Over....for now

So now I'm back in London on a typically grey damp bank holiday weekend - not the best weather to come home to, but it's always nice to get back to your trusty old home comforts and sleep in a familiar bed.

My journey to France and Italy ended well. I even had a tentative foray into off-road riding in Liguria with our friends at Riviera Bike, Jo and Ady. We returned to London nicely refreshed and I felt good about our long weekend away.

Sadly, our second spring-time trip, to Mallorca, was a non-event by comparison. Usually I really enjoy going there and there's some great cycling to be had. But I think a combination of being greeted with unseasonably cold wet weather, and my luggage not arriving at the same time as me (which thus prevented me from riding my bike), plus a couple of other hitches put a dampener on things - literally.

Also as a general rule, I like to take in the culture of the place I'm in when I travel. Somehow, being in Mallorca where you get lots of Brits who aren't interested in the culture or the language doesn't really give much scope for that. Travelling there with Spanish people might have made it feel less like a Costa del London experience!



On the plus side, I did get to ride a nice carbon fibre Orbea, care of the good people at the Mallorca Mar i Terra bike shop in Santa Ponsa - a very comfortable ride.

We didn't get round to riding the classic Sa Calobra climb, but we experienced a few other interesting roads that I hadn't ridden before -



For example, the coll de Sa Creu, a back road that climbs only for 5km but has numerous switchbacks and is quite steep in places. It's a very scenic way of getting from Palma to Calvia.

Of course, I couldn't go to Mallorca without taking in the breathtaking coast road from Andratx through Estellencs, Banyalbufar to Valledemossa.

Once our rides were done for each day we relished our post race refreshments of wine and savouries while admiring the view from the balcony of our lovely hilltop apartment. So it wasn't too bad.

I think the next time I go, I will probably combine it with a trip to the Spanish mainland - maybe ride around the Catalunya or Valencia regions first, and then get a ferry across to Palma. That would definitely spice up the trip and give things a more Spanish feel.


pics by Fred

Primavera Travels - Milan - San Remo

What had spurred me to go on our trip to Italy had been the prospect of riding the San Remo cyclosportive the day after watching the pros in the Milan - San Remo event. So the Saturday and Sunday of our trip was pretty much focused on that.

The Milan - San Remo pro race does what it says on the tin. It goes from Milan to San Remo in 298km, taking in lots of short climbs especially towards the end of the race. The Miilan - San Remo cyclosportive (also known as the Milan San Remo Cicloamatoriale) starts and finishes in San Remo and lasts 120km taking in the well known climbs that feature in the pro race plus a big climb in the middle of our route. It may have looked like I was taking the lightweight option by only doing less than half the distance of the pros, but this event, for me was not a piece of cake to get through! (More on that later.)


Saturday

Ady dropped us off at San Remo and we made our way to the Lungomare Calvino where all the stands and gazebos were set up for the big bike event. We headed to the registration tent, where I had to confirm my details and pick up my goody bag prior to racing on the Sunday. I needed to produce my racing licence to show that I was "tesserata", otherwise show a medical certificate. Luckily I'd remembered my British Cycling Licence so that was all pretty straight forward. While there, I caught sight of Barbara Lancioni, the number one female cyclosportive rider in Italy, with her Renofin Sintesi team. Her team was basically a posse of about 8 guys from the same team. They would be responsible for pacing her around the course and ensuring that she won - as they have done for her on many other occasions. Barbara certainly came across as popular and many riders were only too happy to stop and chat to her.

We looked around the area contemplating all the scaffolds and advertising hoardings, as well as the TV cameras that had been set up to capture the all important finish line drama.


The site of the Livestrong banners, as well as the buzz all around the area underlined the excitement in anticipation of the arrival of "The Boss". Apparently Lance Armstrong's appearance in the Milan-San Remo had triggered off a record number of press accreditation pass applications for the occasion.

We headed over to Cipressa which was the nearest interesting part of the course to our base at Molini di Triora. As it's a pleasant hilltop village we also figured that we would have a better chance of seeing the peloton here than on the crowded Poggio di San Remo.

At Cipressa village alot of fans were already out on the road, but it wasn't crowded.

At around 3.30pm we watched a 15-minute procession of official vehicles and police passing through. The appearance of the low flying helicopter signified the arrival of the peloton. The crowd clapped and cheered as the various groups of riders passed.

I could have done the same, but I was too busy trying to snap half decent pictures. I therefore failed to identify anyone in the peloton at the moment they were passing. Nevertheless, this specatacle was by no means an anticlimax.

The Cipressa climb seemed to cause damage to the peloton as there were around 6 or 7 groups of riders that went past, and apart from the 2 front groups they weren't riding so fast. In fact, I was caught out when I put my camera away, thinking that all the riders had passed, but then a gruppetto of around 10 riders bringing up the rear, suddenly came through. Surprisingly, Mr Armstrong was in this group. He was finding things a little tough be this point, and it showed.

Once the group had passed, everyone then filed into the cafe in the village. It was pretty crowded with mainly men. Everyone was focused on the TV screen and everyone watched in complete silence as the riders attacked the Poggio. The sound of people taking sharp intakes of breath echoed around the room as the commentators became excited for Fillipo Pozzatto and Davide Rebellin as they tried to break away. When Mark Cavendish shot out from nowhere to take the victory the commentators were extremely animated - as much with surprise that an Italian hadn't won, as with admiration for the pace that the young British guy had turned.

I have never seen a room empty so quickly as when the largely Italian audience saw Mark Cavendish cross the finish line first. There was no interest shown whatsoever, and the remaining old Italian guys in the bar immediately resumed their game of cards/dominoes and descended into a state of nonchalance. It was just down to me, Fred, and a South African bloke to toast the victory!

Sunday


Ady gave me an early morning lift to San Remo again. This time I was on my own. The sun was bright and gave me a vigour to want to get going - even if it was 7.45 on a Sunday morning. The sight of loads of Italians at the start of a bike race is always pleasing to the eye - tanned legs, neatly combed hair, brightly coloured lycra enveloping well toned bodies. It doesn't matter which region you come from, how old you are, whether you are tall or small, fat or thin. As long as you're Italian you just look chic! That's my opinion anyway!

We got going to a shower of confetti, the sound of a loud klaxon set off by the Cannibal himself, Eddie Merckx, and lots of applause. We whizzed our way through the twisty streets of San Remo before hitting the main coast road out of town. It was windy and undulating, and I was glad to have the shelter from a peloton of around 50 riders. I didn't see any women in my group - just blokes - mainly Italians plus a few French guys. As ever, people like to talk. Whether it's just to say "ciao", or to ask where you are from.

A French guy kept using the "I've seen you somewhere before" line. I didn't mind speaking to him, but it got on my nerves a little when he spent about 3 miles running through every possible cyclosportive where he could have seen me previously -Were you at the Time Megeve? Les Bosses du treize? Les Beaumes de Venise? La Maratona? Le Daytona?? The One man and his dog??? Le Bla Bla Bla !! I politely replied "non" to all of his questions (which was true) but deep down I just wanted to say "fous moi la paix!" (bloody leave me in peace!). If he had enough energy to ask all these questions he should have been in a peloton a mile up the road from me. And anyway why did he just randomly start speaking to me in French when we were clearly in Italy and I was wearing a jersey that said London Cyclesport? That's what happens when you're just one of a handful of women in a cyclosportive abroad, I suppose.


I was really enjoying the landscape - the sea, the sun, the blue sky. The road was fast and we covered speed very quickly. I was amazed at how quickly we reached Taggia and Imperia, near where we were staying.

Shortly after Imperia the road began to climb significantly and I could feel myself slowing down. We went through a series of tunnels that were taking us upwards. At the other end we saw a sign indicating the start of the climb up to the Passo di Ginestro - 13km at an average of 4.5%. At the same time, many people slowed down to say ciao to a young guy at the side of the road. It was Ivan Basso climbing off his bike and getting into the Liquigas team car! Oh, well having ridden the big one the previous day he had every excuse to stop now! The climb was ok, but I couldn't keep with the pace of the main group and I ended up riding in a gruppetto of about 8 riders. The guys were nice and did what they could to keep us together. One guy who knew the course kept urging us not to go too fast as we would pay for it later on the Poggio di San Remo. The last couple of kilometres of the Passo Ginestro were tough as they steepened to 10%. We were rewarded with some beautiful views though. The descent was really fun and I was glad to have skilful wheels to follow to get back down to the coast.

We found ourselves back in Imperia and on the coast road again. The wind was tougher for us as we were a much smaller group. Also we no longer had vehicles to escort us as we were towards the back of the field. That meant having to ride through all the Sunday morning traffic. Thankfully, Italian drivers show more deference to cyclists than they do to other vehicles!

Cipressa seemed tougher to me than when I rode it the previous day. Probably because I was riding faster and had more miles and more climbing in my legs by the time I reached it. In addition, I had only just recovered from riding up Capo Cervo, and a toughie called Capo Berta. This climb is not well known or even infamous. But for me, it was hard work. Capo Berta was short - only around 3km, but it averaged about 8%. I hadn't anticipated that climb and it was hurting my legs. Cipressa was 5.6km at 4.1% (max 9%) and twisted it's way up to the village where I'd been the previous day. Now I understand why many pros rode up this climb quite slowly. I only had 100km in my legs compared with the 278 they'd have endured, but I was still crawling up the hill!

The descent was lovely - the views were truly wonderful. Even the Italians around me marvelled over the view of the coast and the clear blue sea. Back at Taggia I began to get tired, and struggled to keep with my group. So in Lance Armstrong style, I drifted off the back and took it easy. I would have to get up the Poggio somehow. It was 3.7km long with a 3.7% climb (max 8%).

Not a massively challenging climb, but I was getting the hunger knock and so any effort seemed too much for me at that point. I sauntered up the hill, willing myself to get to the summit before getting some food.

Once at the summit I definitely needed something, as I was sweaty and dizzy - not the best state to be in when you have the sharp hairpins of the technical descent to negotiate. The fruit cake definitely hit the spot and I was able to forge ahead and rejoin a group at the bottom of the descent. I'd been thinking I was in last place as I hadn't seen anyone at all on the Poggio climb. But then, on the run in to San Remo I was caught by a group of around 20 riders - some of whom I had last seen earlier on the Passo Ginestro climb. It was good to meet up with them again, and we crossed the line together. All in all, it had been a fairly sociable event, even if it had been challenging for us at times.

The race was won by ex-pro Sergio Barbero in a sprint finish. The winning woman, as ever was Barbera Lancioni, who apparently only finished 15 minutes behind the winning men - astonishing !!

The San Remo cicloamatoriale was organised by Gazetta dello Sport newspaper. It was well organised and I'd recommend it to any club cyclist who can comfortably ride 100km. They will be organising the Giro di Lombardia cyclosportive in the Autumn, and so I will try and get to that one.

Primavera Travels - Menton and Ventimiglia

Menton is such a quaint town. I can definitely see why artists were inspired by this delightful place.

We stayed over at Claridges - well, Menton's answer to it, which was a fairly bog standard b&b along one of the principal roads through Menton. It seemed like a family run affair with all the goings on between the staff that reminded me of the cafe in that French film, Amelie (Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amelie Poulain). There was a young attractive laid back receptionist, and an older woman who appeared to get all stressed out and neurotic when the machines didn't work. There was a man who spoke like he smoked 80 cigarettes a day. I didn't notice anyone eyeballing me and taping my movements, or any strange goings on in the stock cupboard though!

Anyway, the service was good and the rooms were neat enough.

We walked along the main drag that had all the restaurants and shops, rue St Michel. We also walked along the coast, which looked really idyllic - even nicer than Nice.

Dinner was at La Coupole, which I'd recommend as it was very French - so that meant good quality food. Alot of the other places were doing pizzas - probably to cater to the prominent Italian community.

So we left Menton on Friday morning under the beautiful morning sunshine. We continued up the road our hotel was on to start the climb up towards the Col de Castillon. It was pretty easy to find. Our intention was to wend our way up to the mountain village of Sospel.

The scenery changed from semi-urban to village like, then it became deserted and only the dramatic rocky mountains became our friends. Unfortunately the sky turned grim as dark clouds began to emerge. By the time we arrived at Castillon the atmosphere was seriously threatening as it looked like a heavy shower was imminent.

Even though there were other cyclists still heading up the road towards Sospel we made the decision to turn back and return to Menton, as we did not fancy being stranded up at 1200m in what would probably have been snow. We were lucky, as the rain began to fall from about half way down the decent. Even there at 500m altitude it was snowing. I had to take alot of care on the switchbacks as I was on racing tyres and the bike was laden with panniers.

So half an hour later we were back at Claridges in Menton. The reception staff made a lot of fuss about our return: the weather is normally lovely here, they said, what a shame you got wet etc., would you like to sit down and dry off, sorry there's no more breakfast but have a nice cup of coffee to warm you up.
One of the guys there said he'd seen us on the road and was glad we'd made it back safely. When I told him we had been hoping to get to Olivetta San Michele across the border in Italy, he said we did the right thing not to go there. The roads are not brilliant on the Italian side, he said, not like on the French side. It's really narrow, poorly maintained, loads of gravel and you would definitely have got a puncture. No, you're better off staying on the French side!

Once we'd dried off we made our way into Italy on the low road, following the coast line. After about 8 miles we were in Ventimiglia and got there just in time to catch the municipal market. Great place for bargains - clothes, food, household items etc. We figured we wouldn't really need pots, pans or picture frames though, so we just stuck to getting a nice salami tramezzini.
Ventimiglia does not get a good press as many people just pass through the part of the town near the main road.

True, that's nothing to write home about. But the old town of Ventimiglia Alta is very quaint, and definitely worth stopping at if you have the time.

Sadly, we didn't have the time, so just admired it from the distance before pressing on towards Bordighera, Ospedaletti, San Remo, Taggia, Badalucco and our final destination, Molini di Triora.

We were glad see to our friends, Jo and Ady - it had been a long day, what with the hills and the wind we'd had to contend with along the coast. But it was worth it and we'd seen some amazing views.