Ade Hawk cycling

This has been a great season for me, a season littered with PB’s, some highs and a very big low! but overall I am chuffed with this season but it seems to have gone so quick, where does the time go?!

I write this blog just as my last race of the season has finished, time to take a very short breather before winter training starts in earnest again in  preparation for next season.

This season kicked off with a few local TT’s all setting early season PB’s.

Took part in a few two up TT’s which were good fun. The first was with Rick Perkins where we placed 3rd overall and both set a PB. The second two up was with Martin Russell where we won the vets class and picked up prize money for our efforts!

I raced my first 50 mile TT this year and surprised myself with a time of 1 hour 55 minutes, effectively setting two 25 mile PB’s!

My main race of the year was to qualify again at the Tour of Cambridge for the UCI world amateur champs in France this year.

I set myself the challenge of trying to qualify for both the TT and the Road race.

Now, I’m no road racer, in fact I have never raced in a long distance event, the biggest I have done is a couple of local crit races around the local track which only last an hour or so! so this was going to be a challenge.

But with the deft coaching skills of my cycle coach, Tim Ramsden of Blackcat cycle coaching. I knew that if anyone could get me ready for this he was the man!

And the man he certainly was as I set a PB of over two minutes on the TT and cruised to qualification in the road race.

A bitter twist was to follow when a week later I received a less than welcome phone call to say that I had been disqualified form the TT after an incident involving another rider. I will not go into detail of the incident but needless to say this knocked the stuffing out of me to the point that I didn’t want to go to the worlds just to do the road race as my heart was in the TT with the RR just being a nice to do. But after a lot of soul searching I decide that I would do myself an injustice if I didn’t go and do the RR.

Competed in a 4up TT before France which we came a good second place. To be honest, when you are up against a team consisting of Ollie Robinson and the Fennel brothers, second is all you are going to get!!

Our 4up team from the left: Mike Kirkness, Rick Perkins, Scott Meeks, and me with the bubbly!

Left to right: Jamie Davies Evans (Adalta) Me (Thanet RC) Mark Jeffrey (Adalta) Allan Robinson (FVC)

The race in France was the toughest race I have ever done. It was over 95 miles over 6000ft of climbing and in temperatures nudging 37 degrees.

It hurt....a lot! after surviving another early crash scare which I just managed to come away unscathed I just settled in and rode my own race, picking off groups, joining groups, pacing the climbs and smashing the descents.

I finished in a time of 4hrs 22mins finishing 124 in my Age group and 20th Brit out of 111. I was over the moon with the effort. When I crossed the line I was so exhausted it was all I could do to get myself off of the bike where I was greeted by my wife Becky who sat me down and poured water over my head. My body gave up after that!! 

After the race, I took a week off to enjoy a bit of downtime with Becky before getting back into more training to lead me up to the finale, the CTT National closed circuit TT champs at Thruxton.

I did one warm up TT in Sussex, a 25 miler a couple of weeks before Thruxton and got a seasons best on a sporting course, so happy with that.

Thruxton was a great event around the famous race circuit, one which my dad raced motorcycles around in his heyday, so it was quite nostalgic for me to be there racing on the same track albeit without an engine!

I really enjoyed the race and was really pleased with my performance, placing 8th in Age group and 79th overall from 279 starters.

I have really enjoyed this season, had some great rides with some great people and really enjoyed my first season with Thanet RC, fantastic club with a depth of talent in there.

Special thanks go to my wife Becky who follows me, stands in the cold and the heat for hours on end to support me, picks me up when I’m down and is the first to congratulate me when I cross the line. without her I wouldn’t be able to do half of what I do Love you darling.

Also the other people who make it possible, Tim Ramsden of Blackcat cycle coaching, Chris Holden of wheeleaze who keeps my bikes tip top and also to Elivarsport nutrition who help me with my race/recovery fuel.

Next year, new goals. Always aspire to improve no matter how old you are.

 Tour of Cambridge Gran Fondo race 2017

Well, after yesterdays fantastic result in the Chrono TT, today was going to be a whole new ball game for me.

To say that I have not done a road race is an understatement!! Yes I have done a few local crit races that last an hour (not much different to a TT effort for an hour) but, I have never done a race over this distance, come to think of it not even a local sportif!! What was I thinking when I decided to sign up for the double last year!! Had I bitten off more than I could chew? well, I would find out in a few hours!

I had been doing the training alongside my TT training. I have to say that Tim Ramsden of www.blackcatcyclecoaching.com does a fantastic job of structuring my training plans around my work/home life, so he had put in some long rides at varying efforts to compliment my overall fitness goals.

The difference here was that although I had planned in plenty of TT races to build towards TOC, I had no road races planned. All I had done were a few local Tuesday night circuit training sessions to get comfortable in group racing with fast boys.

Well, Sunday morning arrived, got there with plenty of time again as usual and immediately felt out of my comfort zone! I haven’t felt this nervous for a long time, felt inadequate and ill prepared ( even though I had prepared more than ever) I kitted up, filled my drinks bottles up to the rim with  www.elivar.com

final check I had enough tubes,pump etc. As I lined up to go into the age group race pens I had a pang of nerves and suddenly wondered what on earth I was doing here?! Sat in the race pen I got talking to a few other riders which took my mind off things, and then the music ramped up and the race was on. We moved forward as each age group wave were set off in three minute intervals. One big deep breath and sigh, and I clipped in and off we set. Immediately it went off and I was determined to give myself a good start, so I got close to the front of the pack which was busy, bustling and hustling as everyone jostled for a place in the pack. The first few miles went well (way too early to tell how it would pan out) I was just going to take it mile by mile, don’t do anything stupid! Mile 5 and the first crash, which happened right in front of me as someone clipped a wheel and went down taking several others with him. Luckily I avoided it but it made a split making a pack off the front go down the road. I set off to chase them to get back in, I thought that I could burn a match to get back on this early. Unfortunately I had 5 other riders around me who either seemed unwilling to work with me or were already stretched, and with a few short climbs and the headwind I was unable to latch back on. I seemed to be in no mans land for about 10 miles until a second bunch caught us. I jumped into this bunch and settld into a good rythm. I felt good at was sat at the front doing my fair share which surprised me. I kept having to say to myself think smart don’t overcook it there’s still a long way to go.

As the miles ticked by the more I was in alien territory, constantly thinking, Am I going to get dropped? are my legs going to give in? but every mile and I was still in there, every now and then dropping into the pack for a rest then going back up front. All the while making sure I was drinking enough and had a few snacks to stoke the fire downing a  www.nudestfoods.com sachet which was great and much needed by 50 miles.

The head and crosswinds were quite savage in places where it became open and flat, everyone in the pack trying to find cover behind each other which led to a few close moments! This was mixed with a few tailwind sections as we twisted and turned, and I have to say, there is no better feeling than sitting in a pack with a tailwind scooting along at 35+ mph and you look down at your power and you are hardly working!

As we got closer to the finish, 55, 60 miles I started to believe I could do this. I knew that we were the second pack from the lead group in our age group and we were overtaking a lot of other age groups that had been split. I even had a small go off the front at about 60 miles with a few others to see if we could brak away from this group but we couldn’t make it stick so I decided this is where I am going to stay, I am not risking anything at this late in the race.

The last 5 miles back to the finish became hectic, people were getting tired and with a few short climbs it started to split the pack.

Now, I am no climber and my legs were very tired so I struggled up the short climbs but dug in and managed to hang on and catch up on the flat.

The last two miles were quick as we had the wind on our backs and the pack had split apart completely and every man was for himself, so I just kept jumping wheels to hang in there. As we got into the showground it had broken up into 0nes and twos drifting across the line. I took a quick look behind me and saw no one and I knew I couldn’t catch those in front now so just kept spinning until I crossed the line, very tired, very heavy legs but very happy with my time. I had clocked up 79.2 miles at an average speed of 24.13 mph in a time of 3hrs 16mins!! I was overwhelmed and felt quite emotional that I had completed my first road race in such a fashion. And to top it all I had easily qualified in my age group with the leaders coming in at 3hrs 8mins, only 8 minutes behind the winners in my age group and we were one of the faster age groups! 

Two qualifying medals in two days, I was stoked, euphoric and totally drained!!

So now a few days rest and an easy week then back on it for the lead up to the World championship in Albi and some steep climbs!!!!

I would like to say a massive thanks to my coach Tim Ramsden, top bloke and great coach who has always managed to ring the best out of me and also to Elivar sport nutrition for helping me with all my nutritional needs.

To Chris Holden at  www.wheeleaze.com for keeping the bikes in tip top working order.

And  to my wife Becky who has to put up with my stress head before and during the lead up to these things and basically the whole time with training racing etc. Without her constant reassurance and patience and I couldn’t do half of this, love you x.

And finally to all the others out there, friends, competitors etc who all give their bit with encouragement, advice, help etc, thank you.