STEPPING UP THE PACE FOR 2010..
Welcome..
Thanks for visiting my website. I hope you enjoy reading my racing adventures, or if you are just discovering bikes hopefully it acts as a motivator and doesn’t scare you off.
I am a NZ cyclist and I have been on the racing scene since I was 21. I’ve dabbled on the mountain bike, cyclocross arena and more recently the road. In 2007 I made the decision to switch to the road fully after 5 years of mountain bike racing at an elite level. So far I have had a blast racing the skinny wheels and experiencing the ‘dark side’. 2010 will see me focusing again on the road but there is also a possibility that I’ll be mixing it up with a bit more off road – I love the dirt too much to sell my soul completely…
This year I will be racing in NZ followed by Europe and then on to the States. It’s a big year with some major goals in mind and these should keep me motivated to pedal faster! I feel extremly lucky to have so many opportunities to see the world and meet so many great people along the way, especially since it has all come to fruition through cycling.
Riding and racing has taken me to some of the most incredible and remote areas in the world. I am quite sure I would have never seen half these places had it not been for the love affair that formed with bikes back in 1998. I have also formed some life long friendships along the way. To anyone reading this that is new to cycling, or wondering if they should give it a go, my advice would be to get out there..
Back in NZ after a record long journey...
Finally after 49 hours on planes and in transit at airports I have made it back to NZ pretty shattered from a nasty journey that I wouldn't want to repeat in a hurry. I ended up going via Dubai, Bangkok, Sydney and Brisbane before finally touching down in Wellington by which point I was ready to jump from the plane...
I ended up with a 10 hour stop over in Bangkok and then another 8hrs in Sydney and I would definitely NOT recommend this. Unfortunately this was the only route I could take due to seeing family in Sydney on the way back. Oh well..these things happen.
Merrell off-road Wildman – Discovering a new pain threshold….
A few weekends back I re-entered the world of duathlons after a 10 year break by taking part in the Merrell Off Road Wildman. Little did I know what I was getting myself in for….
I do a bit of running to keep the lungs alive and I can do a respectable time for half marathon, but both of these seem very mild in comparison to the Merrell event that was so hard and so full on that I couldn’t walk down staircases for three days afterwards. Thank goodness we have lifts at work…pity we don’t at my flat : (
UK National Cyclocross Trophy, round 6 – 4th place again…
I had kind of mixed emotions after the final round of the UK Cyclocross National trophy last weekend. I was pleased with a solid ride and managing to stay upright for the entire race which seemed to be the biggest challenge, but I was disappointed to miss the podium again by a small margin. I am getting a little too well acquainted with the number 4, it’s not a bad number, it’s just that it isn’t a number that usually features on the podium. So I am just going to have to be patient and put my hopes on next season.
