So after 5 years I have finally finished University and since I have decided to try and avoid the real world for at least one more year I am now training full time. Sadly cycling in the rain is still as miserable- especially when it’s May.

My final race as a student/athlete was in Monterrey, Mexico for the latest round of the ITU World Cup Series. 38 degrees, swim in a man made canal which was only 1 metre deep (swim/run through the water anyone?), bike round an old racing car circuit and 10k run with no shade made for an eventful day. I ended up 19th which was an average showing.

Mexico as a whole meant a lot of travel/ a lot of jetlag/ having to change your training routes to avoid the closed of streets from the gun fight the night before/ being at the breakfast table sharing the buffet with armed policeman (there was no arguing over who was next in line)/ eating out for £3 a go and not having to wear anything else apart from shorts and vests for 5 days.

Next up is the lesser tropical Belgium next week- the only thing I know of the course is that cobbles make an appearance.

Race Season

By the start of the 3rd race in 3 weeks I toed the start line pretty tired mentally and physically. 1hour and 50minutes later I crossed the line satisfied with 7th place but looking forward to a weekend off.

With a victory at the Scottish Uni Champs, an 8th place in a European Cup Event in Turkey followed by a 7th place finished in the next leg of the European Cup Series in Portugal it has been a good start to the year.

After a weekend of, where I attempted to catch up with uni work this weekend is the first leg of the French Grand Prix Series in Nice. With some of the best triathletes in the world racing it should provide a good challenge to see how things are looking for the rest of the year.

Things I have learned so far this race year:
• In Turkey they will accept any form of money (Pound/Euro/Turkish Lira/Gold Coins/etc)

• When you fly home at 2am in the morning there will probably only be 15 people on your flight so spending £30 for the extra leg room seats is a waste of money.

• Racing and travelling every weekend means you spend a lot of time tired and grumpy.

Looking forward to getting back to action this weekend in France though.

Winter Legs

It has been 5 months since I last raced a triathlon- the winter break drags on a lot when you live in Britain. I have to say I miss it. I miss the adrenaline, the fear that kicks in as you walk onto the pontoon and the joy of success even if it doesn’t happen all the time.

However in 4 weeks time it all kicks off and with 3 races in 3 weekends I’m sure I’ll be back in the swim/bike/running racing rhythm in no time.
With all the xc races though the competitive instinct is never too far away and today I raced my first 10k road race of the year in Garscube, Glasgow. It’s the first time I`ve did a road race with a king of the mountains prize. Sadly my dash for the top of the hill left me in 3rd but I managed to place 2nd overall in 31.39. Not too shabby with my winter legs still on.

So for now it`s all about getting my head down for another last block of hard training before the big season kick off. That and there` s the little thing of my uni dissertation needing completed.

Here, There and Everywhere

Its been a busy few months of Winter training spread between Scotland and Spain. Apart from the snow its been going well with the occasional cross country run race thrown into the mix to keep me sharp. The big cross country of the year takes place with the Scottish National 12k at Falkirk. The aim is a top 15 however having never raced over the distance before its a bit of a venture into the unknown.

With a 12k cross country on the Saturday and the 3rd Reliability ride of the ride on the Sunday its looking to be a hard weekend of work. The local Reliability rides/races are always a shock to me especially when a few of the local Endura riders turn up to stretch their legs and to make the rest of us suffer. I spent a great deal of time last weekend just trying to hold the wheel. The rain and the muddy roads never lightens my mood either and it was a miserable few hours in the hurt box. Getting fit though and and looking forward to some sun.

Mull

Well, the final two races of the SCX season were crackers. I'd never been to Mull before, and wish that there had been more time to take in the island, and do the races - monday off work next year (and maybe get a weekend babysitter?)

I wouldn't recommend an overnight stay in the carpark in Tobermory though - you can't escape the boy racers, even on a small island!

The car park at Glengorm Castle was much better, if darker!

Although the field was small, it was high quality, as were the courses. Saturday had some tough muddy sections - a long run up to the castle, and climbs which became runs as the bikes got progressively clogged. My top 3 place overall was never going to last long, as JFM, Dan Whitehead and Davie Lines added more races to their tally, but I knew if I could beat Greig Walker both days (not an easy proposition), that 5th place was possible. As expected Greig and myself were locked together in the early laps, before a couple of mistakes and clogged gears allowed me to open up a gap, and press on to the finish - 1 down, 1 to go!

Sunday was a much faster affair, no running except the hurdles (unless your name is Hardie or Lines), but a long, tough climb up to the top of the course. The frozen mud and patchy ice kept you on your toes though (and had me on my backside on lap 1). After a strong 1st half lap, I was sitting 3rd or 4th, and feeling comfortable with the leaders, when I got on the power a bit early on joining to tarmac, and came down. Although I was back up quickly, that put me back in Greig's reach - and Santa soon overhauled me, and built up a 15 second lead. Keeping him in sight helped the motivation, and a wardrobe incident for Greig (cue rapid removal and discarding of Santa over trousers) put us back together. I attacked with 3 to go, and managed to build the magic 10 seconds gap straight away, and hang on to 5th place. Job done. And I beat all the guys in fancy dress - what a hero!

I'm probably not going to ride the Cyclists - v - Harriers this year, think I've used up my competitive credits! The conditions look great for cyclists again this year though, so hopefully Gareth can snatch the win.

So, some time to take it easy, and have fun riding bikes again before thinking about racing again.

Neil Walker

End of Season Blues

Its been an up and down season of Cyclocross this year. A huge up in numbers, quality of races and courses and general good fun, and some downs with cancelled races due to construction, councils and the weather.

Walkers Cycling Club have had superb representation, and excellent results this year, with up to 15 riders at some rounds, and never fewer than 8, and podiums for established riders, and points scores for newbies!

Having to cancel the Championships at Irvine was a blow to the end of season, and has left me struggling with motivation as the final two races on Mull rapidly approach. Getting out on the MTB in the snow has been a good antidote to that though, and hopefully pulling on a skinsuit, pinning on a number, and being called to the starting grid will get me back in the mood on Saturday!

CXross Country - It Hurts

So with the triathlon season being over (at least in this hemisphere) it's time to put string up the spikes and hit the cross country scene. The last two weekends has been the east district relay champs and an east district league event.

The two key things of cross country- no matter what the weather is one must only wear shorts and vest; any other attire will be met with chuckles and murmurs of you being soft. That and when the gun goes you run as fast as you can, too hard, but everyone does it so you go along with it, the winner is the one who slows down the most and makes it round without their legs collapsing charging down the hills; all in shorts and a vest.

However it's all good fun and it gives me something to focus on until the temperature reaches an acceptable weather to dawn a tri suit again.