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.

Some birthday thoughts.

As I turned 38 on Wednesday it struck me how much has changed in the past two years.

On my 36th birthday I had no desire to lose weight or ride a bike or improve my health in anyway. We went for a curry with poppadoms, starter, main course, rice, two sides and a naan nicely washed down with four pints.

For my 38th birthday I did a 50 mile ride up to and around Kendal, then had a nice beef stew and some cheese cake and birthday cake. My main treat was some red wine - my first booze since boxing day.

Here's to an even healthier next two years.

Climbing is still going well.

Well on today's training ride I expected to be dropped on the climbs as the groups poorest climber wasn't out with us, so I'm really chuffed I was second or first over most of the climbs and today we had a couple of leg testing climbs compared to the 'climb' we have done the past two weeks.

I think my weight work, diet (and associated weight loss) and roller work have all had in impact on my climbing. Yes I still sound like some grunting out of breath freak but the legs don't hurt as much - then again maybe I am riding slower than I do when I'm out on my own.

My details for the ride from my Garmin can be found here.

A mental week

Sundays training ride went really well again. I was first over Cleves Hill again - it's not much of a climb but it's nice to get one over on the whippets. This week my policy was balls out up it and at he summit my legs were burning but recovery was swift.

I was asked my opinion this week on the two bikes we have been offered for the ride from Cannondale and Dolan so my bike geekness is now out in the open so I expect I'll be ribbed over this on Sunday.

With regards to the Blazing Saddles challenge (LEJOG in 80 hours) I've been tasked with coming up with the spares list and a list of bike shops on the route - all good fun and the kind of planning I love (told you I was a geek).

Training wise during the week it hasn't been great if I'm honest. My dog hasn't been well and should have had an operation but they found issues with his liver so I've faltered somewhat but hopefully he next training ride on Sunday will sort my head out. This weekend will be my last ride with the team until 19th April as supporting the wife next weekend as she runs the Liverpool half marathon then got two weeks in Cornwall so hopefully will get a ride in every other day while I'm down there.

This weeks training run is below - a few more lumps this week but nothing more than I have on my runs around home from what I can see.

I'm a hill climbing God!

Well the first training ride has been and gone and I really enjoyed it.

A very leisurely 21 mile ride through some nice lanes and one 'hill' that I was first over the top of - tells you how small it was really.

To be honest the ride has done me the world of good as I have self belief now that I'm not heading for a spanking, yes the hills are going to be hard but if I lose more weight then they'll hurt less and I'm as good as anyone else on the flat and probably up there on the downhill side of things.

In other news I've got some new socks thanks to the guys at Prendas who never let me down on the 24 hour turn around from order to delivery.

I've also just got the route in for this Sundays ride which is a 25 route like last weekends with an extra loop added to it.