2018.

2018 is here and I endorse it with open arms.

For me 2017 was not the best year for me.

Sure it defintely had one pretty bloody good upturn to it. Which was of course starting my apprenticeship with British Airways, but besides from that everything else felt pretty hard going!

But, this isn’t a blog to rant and rave about every bad scenario. No. Because 2017 has passed. Yet, More of a blog to look back and reflect, analyse, learn then send this year off with a merry f****** goodbye!

2017 certainly started well.

Working hard in training for my up-and-coming road/time-trial season, doing well (grade wise) at school and steady home life; set me on the straight and arrow for 2017.

This was evident with an early result of 8th in my first road race, of the year. Earning me 9 BC points towards my second category race licence.

2 races after I went for a week training in Majorca (within my local cycling club) mainly to replace the ‘enjoyment’ factor back into my cycling, but also as a last minute endurance builder for later in the season.

My next race, and certainly one of my seasons highlight, was the May 3-day. This is a 3 day stage race, hosted by my local Surrey cycle racing league. Gruellingly tough, whilst attracting the attention of some pretty tough local competition. Whilst I didn’t pick up any significant result here. I finished. Which I as happy with. I took away with me a plethora of valuable experience and lessons of what to do and certainly…..what not to do in stage racing!

After the May 3-day it was pretty much full-blast! Racing two times a week. A Surrey League handicap race on a Thursday night, then a 2/3 category road race at the weekend. With the occasional, evening club 10-mile time trial thrown in…just for good measure. All in all a consistent run of 16-18 hour weeks with at least a third of that racing!

I really enjoyed this aspect of the season. I loved seeing and feeling the hard work, put over winter, pay-off and watch myself get stronger in races. I certainly tried every effort to put into practise what I had learned, as I managed to come: 2nd junior overall for the year (within the Surrey League) and 5th overall in the handicap series!

Another highlight (and something a bit more of significance), of my season had to be the Orro Tour of Sussex. I really really enjoyed this: 5 days, 6 stages, 1 ITT, 1 TTT and a brutal final stage lapping round and finishing up Beachy head! Here we got to experience what stage racing was all about, as things such as: recovery, warm-ups, warm-downs and team strategising played a crucial role in a chance of gaining success. Not to mention that it was held in July. When in the final stage, the temperature reached a rather uncomfortable 32 degrees celcius. As if it wasn’t tough enough already.

Like I say. They were the good parts.

21st August 2017. That was the ‘tougher’ bit. The day I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.

But, thats all it was though….tough. I got through it. I’ve accepted my condition, I’m constantly learning about my condition and I’m adapting my condition to ensure it does not impede on my life.

End of.

So let me bring you to now.

It’s currently 21:44, January 1st 2018.

I’m an apprentice with British Airways as an aircraft engineer, 4.61 watts per kilo at my last FTP test, living away from home (happily) with some amazing people, 6.9% at my last Hba1c, blogging to an encapsulated audience of just over 9000 people and motivated like crazy to succeed this year.

I’ve got some exciting things planned for 2018. Majority of which I cannot disclose just yet. All I can say is, watch this space, because you’ll be seeing and hopefully reading A LOT more of these blogs!

Enough said. I’m out.

On a side note:

I was asked, by a reader, to include my 2017 top 3. So, here they are. Heres why; 1. Any challenge is temporary and will pass, leaving nothing but success in its wake   2. Friends and family are everything  3. Cake is life!

 

[P.S: Please click on the title of this blog. Thanks.]

 

 

 

 

Majorca – October 2017.

Majorca is a beautiful place to visit and a partial piece of heaven for cyclists.

It’s smooth roads, undulating terrain and delicious coffee have been know to attract cyclists from all over the continent, including pro teams such as the likes of Astana, Dimension Data, Trek Segafrado and even Team Sky!

While this trip was my 3rd time visiting the island (to ride of course) and the 2nd time this year. This visit came with a slightly more sentimental attachment on my behalf (for obvious reasons). Not only was it still during the early days of my diagnosis, it was also my first time away from home. Which I must admit, made me a little, ‘on edge’ about the whole situation. But, as you will read further down, the trip turned out to be a great success, not only from my physical state; but mental state also. Giving me the confidence that my diabetes is just a minor inconvenience to my everyday routine, not a boundary to my ambitions.

Our flight departed from Gatwick at 14:00. So after a 09:00 wake-up, 10:30 train ride and 11:00 taxi ride, we got to the airport at 11:30, just enough time to dine at my favourite Korean restaurant of all time….Wagamama! After a 2 hour delay (courtesy of ‘sl’easyjet) and 1.5 hour flight we touched down on the Balearic island of Majorca and set off, destined for the mountains. We checked in at our hotel; ate dinner, planned our route for the next day and turned in for the night.

~

Day 1:

To avoid the inevitable, ‘hypo’. I decided to reduce my long acting Insulin dose [Levemir] down from 15 to 10 units. This meant as I exercise my blood sugars are at less of a risk of running too low, since increased temperatures increase the absorption rate, therefore efficiency, of Insulin. I also increased my Insulin to carbohydrate ratio for my bolus insulin [Novorapid], from 10g: 1unit to 15g: 1unit, meaning I am taking less insulin for more carbohydrates, again so I am at less of a risk of running too low and becoming, Hypoglaecimic.

The breakfast of; an omelette, porridge oats in yoghurt, 2 bannanas and 3 coffees was greatly received and stabilised my sugars to 9 mmol/dl. Bang on, in order to start exercising!

So we could ‘ease’ into the trip, we kept the first day pretty easy. The 118km route saw us loop round Santa Margalida. Stop in Petra for lunch and a cheeky, ‘Cafe Con leche’, then climb the 3km ascent up to a monastery, where the greeting of a 360 panoramic view of Santa Margalida, encapsulated the very reason why we do what we do! descend into Sineua, race through Lubi and cruise into Sa Pabola for a bottle refill. Before motoring the last 20km through Alcudia and back into Port de Pollenca, where we were staying. Pace for the day was kept at a steady 27.8km/h with just over 900m of elevation.

‘Boardies’ on and straight into the sea. Then hit the bar for a few drinks before overindulging at dinner. My kinda day!

Day 2:

In terms of lowering my Insulin dosage, I kept it more or less the same throughout the entire trip. 10 units of Levemir, twice a day. 15g:1unit of Novarapid at meal times. Simple.

Again a pre-plotted route (pulled from our trip back in April ,which was alot of fun!) saw us head up into the mountains in search for something abit more…’exciting’! Out of Port de Pollenca, down the coastal road to Platja de Muro. Cafe stop at Sineua, where devouring 2 almond croissants proved no problem at all! Tempo up Col de sa Batalla then lunch at the now somewhat ‘famous’ cafe/petrol station. Full gas to the top of Colle de Reis, then descend (‘like a demon!’) down Colle de Femenia, before merging back onto the coastal road into Port de Pollenca. 100km of Majorcan fun with 1,382m of climbing at an average pace of 27.2km/h.

Needless to say, we went back into the sea in order to cool off the days ‘shenanigans’!

Day 3:

Remember when I said this was my 2nd time going to Majorca this year? well, that was because we went back in April, only that time was with a small company called Sunvelo. Whom provided tailored training camp packages, with a tour guide to lead you round the famous island roads. We made some great friends on that trip (and the year before!), so this time we decided to pay them a visit and spend the day riding with them.

Slightly earlier start of 08:50, meant we could ride the 20km coastal road to Platja de Muro to the BMC concept store, the meeting place for Sunvelo, at an easy pace (or tranquilo for my Spanish amigos!). Then, it was out down Muros, ‘power planet road’ (which has a power plant on it, surprise surprise!), skirt round Inca, before stopping in Bunjola for coffee. Full-gas up Soller (managing to knock 3 mins off my previous PB!!), then descend into Fornaltux to the base of Puig Major. Tempo up Puig Major, feeling much harder on 39×28 compared to previous years of 34×28. Pictures at the top, then along the mountain top road for lunch again at the cafe at the top of Col de Batalla. Descend Femenia, again! then taking the coastal road into Muro for a quick drink, before trundling the last 20km back home to Port de Pollenca.

Always great to catch up with old friends, even better whist being able to top 163km and 1,804m of climbing for the day.

Day 4:

Conscious that this was going to be our last ride for the trip and that we had to wake at 03:00 the next day to get to the airport! the last ride was your typical cafe ride. The 73km route took us out to the main town of Pollenca, down through Sa Pobla, then into Santa Margalida for coffee, 20km west into the graceful Son Serra de Marina for lunch, finishing up with 30km of open tarmaced throughfare to our hotel.

One last dip into the sea, one last visit to the bar. Then straight back to the hotel to box up the bikes, pack up our kit, over-indulge (again!) on food, check out of our room and ‘hit the hay’ ready for the dreaded 3am alarm! grreeeaaaatttt.

~

In my mind, Majorca never fails to deliver an opportunity to get some great riding in and every time (…so far) we have been extraordinarily lucky with the weather. It’s a place I have become extremely fond of and a place that I will definitely be returning to next year….twice!

For ride stats from the trip, check out my Strava right here

and whilst your at it, why not follow me on Instagram!?!

Head in the game.

Does life get any better?!?

nom! nom! nom! nom! nom!

Wagamama baby!

#lit

#needbrighterglasses

U wot m8

Why we do what we do!

Socks ‘n’ Boats.

fishy. fishy.

Unpacked, serviced and cleaned.

 

Like what you see? then be sure to follow me on all social media platforms for more of the same.

Adios amigo!

 

 

Oakley Jawbreaker

Every once in a while you come across a product that amazes you in just about every single way. It can be as simple as a can opener, or as complex as that new Iphone Apple have just released.

Either way it grabs your attention. For me that was the Oakley jawbreaker, by Oakley.

Now I must confess, the thought of actually owning a pair of Oakleys (instead of a cheap copy off the back of a tuk tuk, on Zantes seafront for 1 euro 99) is something that’s satisfied my mind for a while.

Here’s what I like about them:

Oakley have seemed to have focused their attention on improving, not just preferential vision, but medial vision also.

The large, ‘wrap round’ lens design, means you are able to have a clear view above the nose, rather than it being blocked by a conventional frame design, which comes in handy when you want to put your head down, but not rear-end your club mate at the same time!

In all their glory.

The lens, nose piece and ‘arms’; are all, extremely easily, interchangeable or adjustable. Meaning different lenses can be used dependent upon alternating weather conditions (which is all the time in the UK), the nose piece can be changed if you…well…have a bigger nose and the arms can be adjusted so there is no conflict if you are running a lower profile helmet.

But. Above all else. The lenses. Oakley have truly nailed the ‘perfect’ pair of cycling glasses, thanks to their new Prizm road technology lenses. Prizm road lenses, not only enhance low-light conditions, but dull high-light conditions also. This means changing road texture and the inevitable pot hole, are much much easier to spot. They also include patened high definition and ballistics tested optics, that are honestly, pin-sharp allowing all objects to be seen with 100% clarity with absolutely no distortion (but if you require ballistic proof glasses, I’d probably suggest not riding down that road)

That said. Their are a couple of drawbacks.

Stand out from the crowd.

First of all the price, standing at an exotic £175.00, they’re not exactly the kind of item you would by as your, ‘first-off’ pair. They come at premium, which in my view, turning a negative into a positive, is why they sell themselves so well and why they are the [paid] ‘choice’ of so many professional teams and riders: Sky, Astana, Bora-Hansgrohe, Dimension Data, Wiggins and BMC pro racing, are just some of the examples that Oakley chooses sponsor.

They are literally, the face of the peloton!

Secondly, whilst they are vented. They do occasionally ‘fog up’, meaning frequent cleaning of the lens is necessary to maintain optimal vision – and that’s when you risk scratching them. Even the smallest piece of dirt, grit or mud rubbed against the lens may leave a mark and with spare lenses costing £80 a go, its an expensive proposition!

That said they are a remarkable pair of glasses, a truly class act by Oakley, and definitely ones I would purchase again as a consumer!

Tempted?

2 minutes is a long time.

Hill climbs. Love them or loathe them, they’re fast approaching!

Bottom to top as fast as you can, person with the quickest time wins. Simple. But, agonisingly painful. Riding on your absolute limit, heart rate close to 200 bpm, gasping for every last breath, all the time trying to ignore the burning in your legs!

Why do it? I hear you ask.

Truth be hold, I don’t know. For me it’s just the ultimate sensation I feel when I post a fast time, even more so when I smash a previous years PB!

Lets not forget the crowds though. Coming out in there hundreds, just to cheer you and your rivals on! The atmosphere is truly incredible, you definitely feel like a pro; ahead of the peloton ripping up Alpe’du Huez on a solo break in bid for glory!

Last year I contested both of my local, annual, hill climbs.

The legendary ‘Catford CC’ hill climb. Held on Yorks hill, only 0.6km long, but boasting a final 100m average gradient of 18% and a max gradient of 23%. It’s

30m from the finish. Allez! Allez! Allez!

a fucker of a climb!

Also, the ‘Bec CC’ hill climb on White Lane, 100m longer at 0.7km with a peak gradient of 18%. Whilst not as steep as Yorks, the gradient only starts to kick up at the last 200m, right where you are already on your limit and just praying for the finish line!

Nowadays it’s ‘tradition’ to compete in both hill climbs as they are held on the same day. The Catford HC (that’s hill climb to you) is held in the morning. The Bec HC in the afternoon. Making it a game of ‘natural selection’, as to who can go ‘full-gas’ in both HC’s and who burns out, right where it matters most!

Last year (2016), I posted a time of 2:22 on the Catford HC, good enough to put me 51st out of 127 and secure 3rd overall in the junior prize! At 82kgs I was pretty bloody pleased with this time, having beaten espoirs in their 20’s; half my weight, riding £4k bikes weighing at least a third of mine!

I later smashed my previous years PB on the Bec HC by 14 seconds, by riding to a 2:17 by the time I crossed the line! Which came as a surprise as I more or less couldn’t feel my legs after the mornings excitement 🙂

Fortunately for you, I managed to capture just some of the madness! You can check this out right here

You’ll be pleased to know I’ve entered for both hill climbs again this year. So expect more of the same, only this time a little quicker!

 

 

 

Back in the hot seat.

Good to be back!

10 days ago I was lying in a hospital bed, being fed fluids via an IV drip and Insulin through a canular. Listening to the hustle and bustle of doctors running around, tending to the sick.

Today I was out on my bike. For the first time in 4 weeks. It felt amazing. I loved it. Riding just for the joy of riding.

Early rise at 6:30 meant I could get some work done before mounting the upgraded steed for the first time. This also meant I could be sure I had everything I needed to cover all bases, whilst out on the bike; phone, check. Money, check. Energy bars, check. Emergency jelly babies and banana, check. Blood testing machine, check and Insulin pen….no….F****! right, shoes off and back upstairs it is then!

Emergency jelly babies and Banana, why’s that?

Well, since exercising uses up the glucose, in your bloodstream. I am put at risk of letting my glucose levels drop too low meaning I could slip into a ‘hypo’ (below 4 m/mol). So, if I do start to have a ‘hypo’, the jelly babies are the quick acting carbohydrate that will bring my glucose levels back into the normal range (4-7 m/mol), usually within 5-10 minutes and the Banana is the long acting carbohydrate, that will hold my glucose levels steady until my next meal…or the next, ‘hypo’

But, before I delve into how my plan for an ‘easy’ ride went out the window within the space of the first 15 minutes. Let’s talk Insulin.

After calculating my bowl of porridge; two slices of toast and banana to contain 86 grams of carbohydrate in it, I tested my blood sugar. 6.4 m/mol, Perfect. I then (using the Aviva Expert) entered the carbohydrate amount, selected the pre-meal option followed up most importantly by the ‘exercise 1’ function I have. This automatically deducts 20% of my Insulin dose to make sure I don’t have so much Insulin on board, that I am at risk of dropping to low.

1) Blood sample given. Select Pre or Post meal. Add your carb amount, then open ‘Health’.

2) Then select either ‘exercise 1 or 2’, depending on the intensity. Done.

Insulin is deducted before exercise, as being ‘active’ encourages the Insulin to work more efficiently within the body. So if less is in the system, your blood sugars should remain stable, without dropping too drastically.

It came as little surprise to me when I turned up to the meeting point and was greeted by the ‘heavy hitters’, putting my plan of an ‘easy’ ride into jeopardy.

The ride itself was great, back in the saddle where I’m most comfortable, talking shit with my mates and stopping every hour or so to stab needles in myself. 75km in the sun on quite country roads, what more can you ask for!

Whilst we only averaged 164 watts for the ride, we were jumping one another constantly. Sprinting for anything; town signs, railway bridges, car parks you name it. This was shown in my max power of 1,154 watts. The 1,100m of elevation included our local stomping ground, ‘Chuck Hatch’ and ‘Colemans Hatch’, both good climbs in amongst the beauty of the Ashdown forest.

Personally, I’m prone to love a good downhill, tuck yourself together and get low as possible, so letting the brakes go and descending at 78 km/h definitely fulfilled my appetite!

All in all it was an awesome ride and all topped off with a lovely Latte when we finished.

A great ride with great people!

Why not check my ride out here?

Now if you’d excuse me, I’m off to find a beer!

 

 

 

 

S-works Power saddle.

I’ve struggled for a while to find the ‘right’ saddle. Saddles are a touchy subject among cyclists as we all have one that works for us and one that we may find ‘perfect’ may be equivalent of a concrete slab to somebody else, so I’ll try my best not to upset too many people!

That said. Here is the Specialized Power saddle. Literally the holy grail of all saddles, used and favoured by 2x world road race champion, Peter Sagan!

I’ve been lucky enough to run one of these for about 6 months now and honestly it’s perfect (for me!). Here are a few reasons why:

• Reduced length, of 3cm allows me to slide it sightly further forward on the rails so my body-weight is shifted more onto the drops were I feel more powerful
• Cut-away channel, down the middle relieves ‘undercarriage’ fatigue, meaning longer rides/races are possible without having to stop every now and then too….uhhhh….stretch?
• Fact 11 carbon fibre body shell, gives me optimal compliance when it comes to road use.
• The, super-tough, oversized carbon rails means I can actually reach the specified torque readings (12Nm) without them cracking (unlike some other brands!).
• Extra-wide body, means my sit-bones are properly supported allowing free-movement of my hips resulting in more smoother/pain-free pedalling dynamics.(which has been proven through pressure mapping!)

Specialized have developed this saddle for both men and women, so it is not gender specific. Which is great as it is more versatile on the market (or if your wife is jealous of your bike and uses it on the schhol run!)

Whilst I bit the bullet and purchased the ,all singing all dancing, S-works Pro model (£219.99 at my LBS), Specialized do offer the same Power saddle shape, for as lower price as £69.99. Difference being (other than cost) weight! The S-works Power saddle comes in at a stealthy 159 grams, whilst the standard Specialized Expert is a mere 233 grams. This is not to say the Power saddle-expert is anything to be snarled at! No, it’s practically the same. I’ve purchased the Expert(s) to cover both my winter training bike and my time trial bike. Thats my commitment to show just how good this saddle works for me.

Get yours now!

But, before you buy make sure you get the right size. Or, width as it’s referred to in ‘saddle terms’. This is done by measuring your sit bone width.

I got mine done at my LBS, Westerham Cyclery.

They offer a fantastic free service that comes free when you purchase a saddle there, where they will measure your sit-bones using a high-tech digital pad that you sit on with your feet raised so your thighs are at a 45 degree angle, momentarily putting maximal pressure through your sit-bones directly onto the pad below. The sit-bone reading will then correspond your sit-bone measurement to a best-suited width of saddle…aanndd… voila! your width of saddle is given. Clever eh?

 

Don’t just take my word for it. See what the experts have to say about it: here

Available from all good bike shops. For the best deal, check this place out right here!

So here goes…

Right then, my first ‘blog’.

hopefully by now you’ve read the ‘about me’ (if not go and read it!). As you can imagine, condensing 18 years of ‘life’, within the 500 word limit can be a challenge, so that’s just a little bit ‘about me’.

Ok then, I need a topic to talk about…hmm…got it! Diabetes.

So I have type 1 diabetes.

This is an auto-immune disease. Normally when you have a cold, flu or infection your body recognises the bacteria which causes said cold and destroys it. But, in my case the beta cells, that are based in your pancreas, whose job is to produce insulin (don’t worry we’ll get to what insulin is!) are targeted by my immune system and destroyed.

Whilst it is unknown what triggers this auto-immune attack it has been known factors such as: poor diet, high levels of stress; both physically and mentally, genetics and infections can play a big contributor.

Consequently, my body is unable to produce insulin for the rest of my life. As the beta cells that produce this hormone Insulin are gone! So, in order to stay alive, I have to inject myself with Insulin, instead of my body doing it automatically. That’s it…simple.

How? what? when? whoa, whoa, whoa, steady! So, I take two types of Insulin. The first is called Levemir, this is known as your ‘long acting’ Insulin. I take an injection of this 2 times a day. This is because it only lasts for 12 hours in your body; one shot at 08:30, the other at 20:30. done.

The second is slightly trickier.

Novarapid, is known as your bolus Insulin and is the one you take before you eat a meal or have a snack that contains over a certain amount of carbohydrates (15g for me, this is decided on bodyweight etc).

How much you take of this depends on how many grams of carbohydrates are in said meal/snack as you work to a carbohydrate:insulin ratio, mine is 1 unit of Insulin to every 10 grams of carbohydrate, so that Chicken, Bacon and egg club sandwich I had for lunch contained 60grams of Carbohydrate, meaning I took 6 units of Insulin as 60 divided by 10 is 6. Simple.

Now, that ratio is calculated by my dietitian (don’t ask me how!), taking; height, weight, age, metabolism and many other factors into account and can change overtime. If we find the ratio is too weak then I will experience hyperglycaemia. This is where there is too much glucose/sugar in your blood and not enough Insulin.

Insulin, (see, told you we’d get there) is the hormone that ‘opens’ up the cell to let the glucose in so it can do many cell things. So without Insulin, glucose cannot enter the cells leaving you with Hyperglycaemia as a result (think of it as lorry’s carrying large quantities of petrol, driving round the country, but not delivering to any petrol stations) , cells switch to fat stores in order to get their energy.

As fat stores are broken down a substance known as Ketones are produced. Now Ketones are bad. Very bad. This is because they are acidic, too many ketones in your blood can cause organ failure, heart disease, blindness, strokes and eventually…death! so it’s important to get it right.

But, what happens if we go the other way. Too stronger ratio. Well, this causes hypoglycaemia or ‘hypo’s’ for short. This is where there is not enough glucose in your blood and too much insulin. So, your cells are ‘open’, but there’s noting going in! this is like running a car on no petrol…it shuts down. Your muscles, brain have no energy. Knowing the symptoms of a ‘hypo’, is essential to good diabetes control. This could include: fatigue, sweating, shaking, confused or even being more irritable than usual. But, knowing how to treat one is more important (I’ll leave that to later!)

Essentially all of this is controlled by how much Insulin you give yourself and what your blood sugar levels are. I test my blood sugar level 4 times-a-day; before breakfast/lunch/dinner and before bed. A ‘normal’ reading is anywhere between 4 and 7 mmol (below 4 mmol is considered to be in a ‘hypo’ state, above 10 mmol is ‘hyper’) I do this by using a ‘lancet’ (finger pricking thing!) to draw a tiny drop of blood onto a neat little test strip that goes into a swish little machine (no bigger that a Garmin. Garmin edge 810 if your picky), taking 4 seconds to give me a reading. Ta daaaa.

I think that’s enough for, ‘my first blog’, certainly enough to explain the basics! how I go about adjusting the ratio, deciding how to treat a hypo, how I change the ratio in accordance to the level of exercise I do will all be combined with what is most important. The cycling. But, for now, watch this space!

Cheers,

Chris.