It's that time of year again. The road racing season has diminished and focus turns towards next year and the challenges on offer. In certain ways, this is a cyclist's easiest time of the year - you can start all over again and lay out a structured plan to achieve your goals, knowing you have the time to get there. On the other hand, it's sub zero outside, there are no significant upcoming races to motivate you and your initial instinct is to sit by the wood burner watching T.V. comedies back to back until the spring. However, after a bike ride I know I will always return home feeling better than I did before I left.
Next year will be different, for those of you who don't know I'm going over to Italy to race for Zappi's Racing Team for the season. This means more races, more opportunities and most importantly some of the biggest Under 23 races on the international calendar. Another change this year is that I'm not at school so I can get more training done in the day. I'm still doing a few part time jobs to raise funds for next year, but I've got enough time to train properly. My typical week at the moment involves endurance rides, strength work in the gym, swimming and yoga. At this time of year I'm trying to stay as mentally fresh as possible because there is a lot of hard work to come! Physical health is so often talked about, but it is the mental state of a rider that allows them to unlock their physical fitness. I'm still getting in many miles on the bike, but I'm focusing on enjoying myself whenever possible, visiting new places and playing with my band.
I shall be based in Devon until early January, when our training camp begins in Calpe. We then travel to Italy for the race season in March. Recently, it has dawned on me that I don't have much longer left until I go on my travels, so I'm trying to make time to catch up with friends and family while I'm still here. I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has helped me this year, especially Team PB Performance and my parents.
