Dolan Mythos

I now have my challenge bike which is a Dolan Mythos and I really love it.

It's a 12K carbon frame and fork with the new SRAM Apex groupset.

So what do I think?

Good points:

• Shifting is very slick and considering it's a lower groupset than on the Fuji I think this is down to the cable routing.
• Braking performance is fantastic - it slows 17 stone of me from 50 mph very well.
• It is fast - it seems to shoot forwards with the slightest pedal inputs and is very good in headwinds too.

Bad Points:

• The saddle - that's the only thing I've had an issue with. After the first 36 mile ride I was a bit tender but half way through a 60 miler I was in agony and ended up with a sore on each buttock. Measuring the saddle compared to the one on the Fuji showed it was 15mm narrower than the Fuji saddle so the Fuji saddle is now on it. After LEJOG I'll be looking for a matching pair of saddles for both bikes.

End of April progress report.

Well it has been a while since my last post so got a fair bit to mention so this may be a long post so bear with me.

Firstly the fantastic news is that I've made the cycling team for Blazing Saddles Challenge - the only person who really seems to be shocked by this is me so I suppose the main thing is that I need to work on my self belief as much as anything else.

We retuned from our two week holiday in Cornwall to discover that the village had become the place that time forgot as the internet and a number of phone lines were down and BT didn't have anyone with the right skills to fix it (honestly). After nearly four weeks things got repaired on Wednesday this week so this is the reason for the long post (and the poor connectivity in our Cornish cottage).

Cornwall was great as my legs came back to me after the first less than inspiring ride down there. I did a number of long rides with nice 15% gradients being the norm on most of them. I think I have now discovered the best way for me to climb and that is by using my HR monitor to make sure I don't go into the red too soon and burn out half way up the climb. I also used Cornwall to work on my feeding for the long rides and have discovered that along with SIS Electrolyte fig rolls and peanut butter sandwiches work well for me. I was taking SIS Go Bars and gels with me but only used these when I really felt like I was on the edge of bonking.

I did a fair amount of walking in Cornwall and discovered that my legs are now very attuned to cycling as after 6 or so miles I'd suffer from soreness but I really enjoyed the coastal paths and the stunning views. I came home 6lbs heavier than when I went but I did my fair share of eating and drinking and have now lost the excess weight.

I've now had two rides back with the Twenty Club in from Lancaster and have noticed amazing improvements with my climbing. Two climbs that I'd really fancied doing but had thought too difficult have been completed over the past two weeks - I won't say they were easy but I didn't have to dig too deep into my arsenal of mind tricks to get through them so I'm really happy and it's been great for the self belief.

I'll do a separate post about the new arrival of my new bike.

Cornwall internet and leg woes.

Well I'm currently down in Cornwall on holiday (and missing 5 LEJOG training rides) and the internet is pretty hit and miss on a 3G signal so not many updates for the next fortnight.

I tried to go out and do 40 miles the day after we arrived and struggled to do 13 miles - my legs felt awful after the 7 hour drive. I've rested the legs but done a fair bit of walking the past few days but have done a roller session this morning so will see how tomorrow goes as really need to get the miles in asap.