The time trial experience

So ! James invites people to join him in Hillingdon for a time trial it will be fun ,he said.

How bad can it be I thought , whilst considering taking part Neil Agnew had to drop out so I

took his place and then made preparations, set my bike up checked clearances on the brakes ,don’t want to be wasting energy! Oh yeah best check the weather,that’s ok it’s

going to be warm that’s alright. Well warm doesn’t really cover it do you remember those 2 days of real summer I do. Seriously we attended a well organised club event at a venue

that was a surprise, so close to Heathrow in the middle of a business park and yet quiet

and well kept with good facilities.

At sign on you are allocated a start number, then you pick up a timing chip to match it, line up when your number is called and pedal as hard as you can for the allotted distance of 10 miles, save some for the last couple of laps and ride a cool down lap ,easier said than done on this occasion, once back in the clubhouse check your time to see how you got on as simple as that.

Not having done an event of this type before I wasn’t sure how it might contribute to my usual training but actually it can ,in as much as gauging the effort you put into the early part, so that you can finish strongly is a key element of a triathlon and this event has a simplicity about it , allowing you to concentrate on this element of our sport , and isn’t too much of an endurance event so you can repeat a number of times during the course of a training programme without needing too much recovery time.

James and I have since been to a second event along with Simon Bailey and Chris Holland,

we all enjoyed the evening and the gentle rivalry between all the riders spurs you on to get the most out of yourself , so if you see another invite from James jump in ,have a go !