Yellow

Look at the stars, look how they shine for you and everything that you do, and they are all YELLOW!!!!

He's only gone and blinkin done it!

Arise Sir Bradley Wiggins - 2012 Tour de France champion!

Rewind to my pre-race predictions, I picked both Yellow (Brad) and Green (Sagan) ,and had Van Garderen on my shortlist for White.

BUT, quite apart from the awesome display by Brad (not forgetting Froome's faithful lieutenant duties), what about Cav - what a team player, and then when the reins were relaxed, Team Sky unleashed a monster - 3 stage wins in this edition of the tour for him, 6 for the team, 4th in a row on the Champs makes Cav still undefeated there.

In other news I managed 305miles last week, in 17hrs 18mins and 41 secs, climbing 8386ft in the process.

Weight is dropping off too, last weekend I was down to 11st 6lbs, today I have lost another 2lbs and based on recent rides no speed / power loss either - Good to have the posh bike firmly installed and loving this weather - Hot Hot Hot!

FW Training Update Week 3

Another week gone by and a further 300 miles under the wheels and in the legs, time on the bike 17hrs 31mins & 48secs, with 7428ft of climbing. FW is just 3 and a bit weeks away, and the nervous excitement (tension) is building!

The 7000 mile barrier has now been broken and if possible I would like to be on 8000 by the time the Fred is done. (or even before?)

2 uncharacteristically sunny days have seen the posh bike emerge from a premature hibernation, rain is now forecast for a couple of days but a promise of more sun to come, towards the weekend so I guess short term pain, long term gain?

TDF still bodes well for a Brit winner and even a Brit 1-2, just need to get the two Pyranean days over with and Team Sky have to manage the attacks that are sure to come.

Imagine Brad in yellow and then Cav winning on the Champs? - perfect!!!!

FW Training Update Week 2

In a word - WET!

Felt sure the tide had come in today as I cycled near the coast!

Anyway 299 miles covered, in 17hrs, 18mins and 6 secs, with 6880 ft of climbing.

Memo to self - Need to book B & B for Lake District though as don't fancy camping or indeed roughing it in a doorway somewhere!

Meanwhile - looking at the map above, trying to work out what the outline reminds me of?
Answers on a postcard (Normal Competition rules apply!)

FW Training Update Week 1

Countdown to "The Fred" is on, so how am I doing?
Well last week I completed 316miles, in 18 1/4ish hours with 8800ft of climbing.
Strangely my weight has increased by a pound to 11st 9lb? - Room to lose some?


Looking ahead, it is likely to be a wet week but aiming for another 300miles - we'll see?

Le Tour 2012 - Predictions

The eagerly awaited Grand Depart is in 3 days time, and starts with a prologue Time Trial.
Despite form, I still believe that the overall is not a foregone conclusion, although Wiggo is on fire this season so far and looking at the route etc, it will be a great travesty if he does not at least make the podium

Beyond the competition predictions below, there are those who deserve mentions for just being darned good bike riders.
Voeckler & Hoogerland will still be ones to watch, but I suspect that anything other than short term glory will not be theirs? Publish and be damned so they say so here goes:

Yellow
Wiggo
Evans
Nibali
Outside bet - Froome / Valverde?

Green
(Assuming that Cav is playing for the team)
Sagan
Renshaw
Farrar?
KOM
Dan Martin
S Sanchez
Vanendert
White
Sagan
EBH
Van Garderen
Team
Got to be Team Sky hasn't it?

Looking forward to 23 days of unadulterated pleasurable TV!

Fred

After much procrastination, the summer cycling excursion has been decided!

Fred Whitton it is. 112 miles around the Lake District.

Starting and finishing in Coniston, the route covers 6 of the major passes in the Lakes, plus other (minor?!) hills in between.

Leg breaking, sinew snapping, lung bursting, and generally tough - 10th August is the day for it, here's hoping for good weather?! Under 7 weeks to go and training has begun - now where did Norfolk put those hills I wonder...?

Halfway...?

Another week, and another milestone. 6000 miles ytd.

Plenty more to come, hopefully will double this figure by 31/12/2012 - there I've said it I now have a target!

And here's the proof!

People's Grand Tour

So the 2nd People's Grand Tour of the year has ended, and ...I only went and won it!

For the uninitiated amongst you, the People's Grand Tour is the brainchild of Lionel Birnie, Journalist & Author (Cycle Sport, Cycling Weekly et al) and is a virtual competition, where cyclists are encouraged to ride their bikes for at least 10 and up to all 23 of the designated days for that particular tour. Results are then submitted and winners are awarded prestigious certificates for placing in overall distance, King / Queen of the Mountains, Young rider, Team  etc.

I managed 1,758Km, and the full results can be viewed here. Encouragingly I spent almost as much time on my bike as one Mr Marco Pinotti of BMC Racing, however he did squeeze out 500km more!!!

The next People's Grand Tour will be from August 11th to September 2nd - A jersey to be defended...maybe, or even a tilt at the KOM (a challenge indeed in Norfolk!)

Wiggins / Team Sky Mania

Don't get me wrong, I would love to see Wiggins extend his more than proven, week long stage race wins (Paris-Nice, 2 x Dauphine) into a grand tour win this July, but I don't want to do that British thing of building my hopes up too much either!

I truly believe Team Sky have a great chance through Wiggins of a podium, with all the TT miles this year, plus assuming they can walk the balance of providing a team equal to the challenge of Green + Yellow (GC) then the dream could well be reality.

With the Olympics looming the following week after the finish in Paris it could be a great Summer after all?
(Not holding out much hope for our footballers though...!)