Last post was about Energicer and I said we’d report on its efficacy in a spinning environment.  It can get pretty hot in the spinning studio and I finally remembered to take some Energicer with me last week.  Lisa took the session on Friday, which I knew was therefore going to be a tough one.  She likes to push us, and because I said it was hard work she seems set on taking all the sessions I book in for!

So, wearing the Zym jersey (which shows up really bright under the black UV light!) and 2 Energicer bands I thought I was ready for it.  I made sure I was near the aircon vents so that hopefully there would be some air movement.  When the Energicer bands went on, there was an instant feeling of coolness, like having a cold can of drink touch the skin.  It seems to work best when there is some air movement, to help evaporation, and it turned out that the spin class was not nearly as good as being in the open air (like I was in Maui!).  It did work a bit, and it smelled nice (nicer than me anyway!).

Hey ho, the sun is out and although it is cold, I think today I need an injection of the open roads and some sunlight to counter the SAD feeling.  Back to the spin studio tomorrow though.

Anyway, apart from loving to ride in the Panache 11 jerseys and bibshorts when it is hot, I discovered a new cooling system.  I used it for the first time in Maui, where it was about 30 Celsius.  With Energicer you have a tin of cool looling blue liquid into which you dip a pair of sweatbands.  You then put the bands on your forearms just below the elbow, where there is a plentiful blood supply.

The initial feeling is very refreshing, as there is menthol or somesuch in the liquid, along with denature alcohol.  I found that the cooling was really good and lasted for a surprisingly long time.

The next test is to use it in a spinning class!  Watch this space …

Coach lady said that as it was my first time I could just see how it went.  Well I couldn’t see anything really, as the only light was a black light (I always think that is an odd name for a light – red, green, blue are all lights, but black?).  The logo on my shorts was obviously moving well to the beat, but I could not see my HRM at all.  Maybe that was a good thing, as I was actually working in my 80% zone for a significant part of the session.  I certainly tried to keep well hydrated and I am sure that the Zym helped me yet again.

I promised to go again, and I will, if only to try out the different and various styles of this new form of torture through which I seem to like putting myself!

“Les Woodland never managed to trouble the judges as a racer, other than by making them hang about in the cold when they wanted to go home.  But he has spent a lifetime in cycling as an organiser, coach and writer – in Britain, in Flanders and now in France.  That, and a passion for the history of the sport, have given him an unusual insight into the dusty corners of British and world cycling.  His books have been published across the world and in numerous languages.”

If you’re looking for a good Christmas present for your cycling friend or just a good read during the colder days of Christmas in front of the fire then this is it.  Only 204 pages but full of facts about the NCU, the BCF, the BLRC, RTTC, UCI, FSGT and the A-Z of cycle racing up and down the country.

Did you know George Holland?  He was the first Briton to ride in the Tour de France.  Did you know about Ray Booty who brok the 4 hour 100 mile record – he did the first sub 4-hour 100mile ride ever and did it in the same year as Roger Bannister.  Or did you know that the first man to break the hour record for 25 miles was an Irishman called Alo Donegan something I’m proud of as a fellow Irishman.  I bet that like me in my naivety you also didn’t know about such things as Neovite colostrum to keep the body healthy nor about safe hydration from Zym ! I only learned about those things after I started my charity endurance events.  Ho hum.

So get yourself a good read this Christmas and learn what made and what didn’t make the British cycle scene so great, or as Les Woodland might say, not so great.  Despite it all the scene today is one where British cycling is heading upwards and has winners both male and female that inspire youngsters to get cycling and get racing.

Enjoy the ride

Now that the rain has eased off for a while, get out there on the bike.  I have been a gym bunny recently, and even tried some Body Balance yoga!  Last weekend though, just getting on a real bike and going out on the roads again was a blast.  It is SOOOO different to a gym bike thing.

The wind in the ears, the spray in the eyes, the mud everywhere, and the plain freedom a bike gives you to escape from other things.

Just do it but make sure you keep fed and watered – too many people are getting headaches from not being adequately energised and hydrated.

My training plan didn’t really begin until the last mince pie was downed on boxing day and I realised I needed to lose about 15 kilograms to make a weight that would be managable up the hills and up the country.  At the time I didn’t know about such things as energy bars not to mention the likes of organic energy fuel such as Mule.  Nor was I aware of the real need for maintaining hydration to higher levels to reduce the chances of cramp.

So it was to my surprise and delight that I found a company called Zym that made a tablet to boost hydration levels by replenishing the elements lost thought sweat.  Yes, Zym hydration tablets have been a saviour ever since and as I am more prone to getting cramp than the next guy I love the fact that Zym staves it off neraly completely.

Mule bars came to me later, in fact only last year.  I finally found that the use of energy bars in training and on endurance rides made things easier and allowed me to be more adventurous in going for a day at a time in training.  Mule bar is organic and more importantly to me the ingredients are also Fairtrade sourced.  So here you have a cycling energy bar which is Energy Organic Fairtrade ! how great is that.

So now the end to end ride is called The Race Against Time and sometimes abbreviated to TRAT.  The event is a 6 day challenge through the length of the UK and Zym helps the riders along the way to get there without cramp and feeling properly hydrated.

One day I’ll tell you about how I bonked on the downhill after Beef Tub Summit in Scotland at 30mph heading straight for the ditch !  Oh what fun you can have on a bicycle cycling end to end.

 The reason I ask is that I wonder if products like Neovite can help you in a slightly older age to get an edge over others and to get yourself up some of those mountains.

 Russell Williams, 41, took neovite daily for three months leading up to the 2002 British Track Cycling Championships and won the National 30km Derney title, beating athletes half his age.

He has had over 30 other track victories this season, his best results in 10 years.

Neovite is available in powder form in the following sizes from Cycling Paradise:

100gram pack
300gram pack
1000gram pack

Neovite is best taken mixed as a drink with milk, water, yoghurt or juice, just plain or with your favourite flavour.

Read the report here and then buy Neovite Collostrum from www.CyclingParadise.com

Do you wear a helmet she asks? and do you wear bright clothing?  both of those I got smiles for answering yes.

Do you ride on the pavement – well this is where it all started to go very wrong indeed.  You see, although I’m not a promoter of riding on pavements I firmly believe that it’s the right thing to do in certain circumstances, after all cars mount the pavement and drive along them regularly – didn’t you ever see a car parked half on the pavement and half on the road?   I do worry about the so-called nanny state that people say governments bring but I worry more about people allowing it to happen in front of them without challenging it.  We don’t say anything about the 8yr old cycling on the pavement on their way to school nor the granny at 6mph carrying her shopping home – because it’s safe.  What is not safe should be stopped.  So dangerous cycling and dangerous car or lorry driving on the pavement should be stopped.  I wonder if she would approve of this sort of story? Perhaps it’s too middle of the road

In my provocative way, though, I did provoke my new conservative friend to consider what it would be like to introduce mandatory indicators on bicycles – this she thought was an excellent idea.  So if you want to get ahead of the game take a look at wonderful Winkku or Bicygnal products we have on offer – they would be a great stocking filler for a cyclists Christmas !