A Grand Day Out

Between my laptop charger breaking and moving house I've not had chance to write a blog for a few days but here's my latest update on what I've been up to. On Thursday I went to Manchester with Alice to watch the National Track Cycling Championships. I've always enjoyed watching the track cycling on TV but I'd never even seen a velodrome before. Seeing as I'm back in Chester and Manchester isn't too far away, we made the most of free entry and went to watch some cycling.

Budget Buys - Speedo LZR Tri Comp Shorts

Does my bum look big in this?

My latest budget buys piece is a review of my brand spanking new Speedo LZR Tri comp shorts. 

It's not every day I go into a tri shop and pick out a bit of proper tri gear (in fact this was the first time) but I was desperate. I picked them up as a last minute panic buy the day before the Derby triathlon because I had nothing to swim in. Luckily it was my birthday recently and I had a little bit of birthday money left over. Seeing as I had to dish out on new swimming shorts anyway, I decided to upgrade my kit to tri shorts. A quick look online found end of season sales meaning the budget buy was on. But was the upgrade worth it?

An Upcoming Marathon, An Unlikely Time Machine and a Random Memory of Stingray

So with 19 days to go till the Chester Marathon I'm going to start training. It's only just dawning on me that I may have left it too late.

Budget Buys - Claud Butler Criterium

A review of my bike which will hopefully explain my new system of scoring budget buys.

My Latest Brain Wave

So I've used the few braincells in my head that seem to be working today and I've come up with an idea. So here goes...

Post Race Thoughts

Well... in the end all the stressing was unecessary. I went out and bought some tri shorts (more on this to come), my knee didn't hurt when I woke up and all went smoothly. In the end I swam, cycled and ran round the Derby triathlon in 1:16:39, not the fastest time but a good 8:37 quicker than last time, therefore my new PB.

This triathlon lark is easy... erm

Pre Race Thoughts

It's the day before the Derby triathlon and all is not going to plan. For starters I've left my swimming trunks in Southport and have no way of getting them before the race.

The View From The Afternoon

I've just been out on a run and it was made much easier by these sights. Running by a beach at sunset completely distracted me from how difficult the run was. So a quip tip on how to make training easier for free... find a nice route and get lost in the scenery.

Scenery to make a run fly by

The sunset over Southport beach

P.S. I was struggling to think of a title so I shamelessly stole one from one of my favourite bands. Well done to anyone that guesses who the band is.

My Mechanic: Part Man Part Bike

My Dad out on one of our rides

I've read a lot of cliche stories about everyone from pro athletes to everyday guys that say they couldn't achieve what they have without the support of friends and family. I suppose thats true. When it comes to tinkering with bikes my knowledge is fairly limited. Luckily my dad can spend hours on end fixing any kind of problem. This is why he's become my mechanic. Whenever I'm home he finds something to fiddle with and improve on my bike that I wouldn't have the patience or know how to fix. He's been a keen cyclist for years and I was recently describing his multiple cycling injuries to my girlfriend and her brother which resulted in them describing him as part man part bike. Despite his crashes resulting in him having a partially metal elbow and hip he's still a better cyclist than me and always willing to go out on rides. The odd endurance ride has helped no end with my training and its always helpful to have someone who knows loads of local routes. My dad has possibly been the most helpful thing when it's come to money saving. While free bike repairs are pretty helpful the hand me downs are even more money saving. Recently he bought me gloves and a jersey for my birthday as well as giving me an old jersey, a pair of shorts, gloves and even a turbo trainer (the list goes on). These things have been really helpful for training and freebies are the grail for a budget triathlete like me. So I suppose really I'm just saying cheers Dad.

Cavendish, Constipation and Crashes

Not a bad way to spend a Monday, I went with my girlfriend and her brother to see stage 2 of the Tour of Britain. We couldn't get to the finish line due to logistical problems (i.e. not having a clue where we were going and a police man telling us we couldn't walk down the dual carriageway to the finish) but we got a decent view of the peloton flying by with 2km to go. Watching the pros fly past was pretty inspiring but it wasn't till I looked at the pictures afterwards that I realised just how funny the faces were. Half of the peloton pulled faces that looked somewhere between determination and constipation. After they passed us we found a way to the finish to look round as the crowds poured out. I tried to get into the background of Ned Boulting's interviews (it didn't work but I did see myself on the highlights at 2km to go), saw Wiggins signing autographs (sadly not for me) and tried to catch a bottle thrown by Cavendish (Yeah I didn't get that either). Alright, I know I was like a big kid but I was having fun and a got a freebie in the end anyway some driver chucked me a free hat! And the funniest part of the day? As we were leaving an expensive looking jag bumps into the back of another car. To a big cheer Dave Brailsford gets out the car and appologies to the driver infront ooooops not the usual kind of crash you see in cycling. O well don't worry mate, everything Dave Brailsford touches seems to turn to gold so your car will be winning the F1 soon. In the end it was a good day and great to see some of the heroes of cycling in the flesh. Who knows, maybe one day it'll be these guys turning out to see me race!

Wiggins and Cavendish in the peloton

Cavendish behind the race leader

Me and Alice at the finish line

Thanks to Thomas McCoy for the pictures.

Birthday Presents

The other day I turned 21. For some reason unkown to me that seems to be a big deal. While I don't particulalry feel any different it did mean I got some good presents. I used the opportunity to ask for a few bits of tri gear I couldn't afford to splash out on myself. For example I've stepped up from my battered old pair of nike running shows to a sparkling cushion like pair of asics. I've never owned much cycling gear other than a bike and helmet but now I've got some gloves and a jersey. I also got a book about running that I'm hoping will help motivate me through my marathon... my marathon which yesterday was a month away. I'm running regularly but only a few miles at a time. O well. On a brighter note I now have a bit of birthday money that I'm thinking of spending on a budget buy, I'll let you know what I get.