Well over due season update!

So, time for a well over due blog post about what’s been happening over the past couple of months of bike racing.

Since my last post, I have ridden several races in the UK, achieving consistent results against tough opposition, holding my own and racing hard, trying to learn from every race to improve further. I have also moved out to the Basque Country for a summer of high level racing.

The original plan was to spend 1 month here, return home and think about my options. So, after a month of consistent results in the front third of each race and a top 20 in my last race of that month, I returned home, wanting to get back out as soon as possible, with my team; Ibaigane Opel also keen for my return, it was an easy decision.

Cos, my group up the climb. ( I'm mid shot, blue sleeve)

My first day on the bike when I got home it rained, the second day was the same, it made me really miss the great weather in the Basque Country; I couldn’t wait to get back. I spent just over a week at home, taking it easy, seeing friends and family, riding my bike and working, before I was packing for my return to País Vasco.

Cos (I'm in the middle)

When I arrived back in Bilbao airport, it felt like I hadn’t left, the hot air swamping me as I made my way outside and into the team car for the drive to the hotel in Igorre. The temperature gauge on the car measured 42 degrees centigrade, a heat I haven’t experienced since my time out here last year.  The next morning(Saturday), I had an Elite race in Amurrio, it had been described as flat, but as I have found the description of ‘flat’ races over here aren’t too accurate, with 2 main climbs each lap, of around 1km(sounds easy, it wasn’t!). I was feeling better than I thought I would, legs were a little heavy from the travelling the day before, but I expected that. In the end a group of about 25 riders finished in front of the peloton of roughly 100 riders, I managed to get through okay and rolled into the finish mid-bunch.

The next race for me would be on Monday in Lemoiz, a lumpy circuit with a tough gradual climb which was made hard by the wind we hit as we turned into it. There was plenty of climbing in this race, none of the climbs longer than 1k but there were plenty of them. I managed to recover okay from the race on Saturday and was actually feeling much better than I had done, I worked hard getting in moves mid-way through the race, trying to make an impact in my early races back. I felt I was riding strongly up until the last 20km or so, when my legs started to feel the stress of the past couple of days. I stayed in towards the front of the bunch until the last 10km or so, up the headwind climb near the finish, when I just couldn’t hold the pace of the riders in front and dropped off the back with a few others, riding the last 10km easy to the finish, coming home around 50^th. I was so disappointed, and couldn’t  understand why I wasn’t going as well as I was in July, but I thought I’d give it time and see how I went in the next race.

Lemoiz

The next couple of races were pretty similar; I wasn’t feeling any better and still couldn’t understand what was happening. I then had a couple of decent training sessions and was starting to feel a lot better, and regained some confidence for the next races a few days later.

It would be a 2 day block of under23 racing, the first day was in Elgoibar, and it was more or less flat for about 75km before we hit a couple of tough steep climbs near the finish that would  diminish what was left of the peloton. The whole race right up until about halfway up the first tough 2.5km climb I was feeling really good, coping with the speed of the bunch no problem, and getting myself in splits and breakaways. I wasn’t able to stay with the front riders up the climb, so from here about 20km to the finish I was on a chase over the top, down the tricky descent and up another tough climb of 5km then to the finish with about 12 riders. I finished 47^th.

The next day was a race in Guernica, 5 laps of 15kms with a 2km shallow climb at the start of every lap, before a bigger lap of 30km that included the short shallow climb before it turned off onto a tougher climb of about 5km. The race was largely controlled by Naturgas Energia and Bidelan ( 2 strong teams that had missed out on the break of 6). This meant the pace was pretty constant for most of the race, as the bunch kept the 6 leaders within a minute or so. I felt I was coping with the pace pretty well, and managed to get into a good rhythm up the climb. I was feeling good for the tough final lap that included a lot more climbing. We hit the shallow climb for the last time, and the bunch suddenly became more nervous and aggressive as riders tried to prepare themselves for this tough lap we were in for once we turned off and onto the steep section. Quicker than anticipated, we turned right and onto the steep stuff, with attacks going left, right and centre. All I was able to do was watch and try to stay in contact; I was no longer feeling good. I rode as hard as I could with a group of riders to get back on to what was left of the peloton, succeeding just over the top of the climb. We then hit another steep ramp of about 1km, but I was in the red and again lost contact. A fast technical descent through the cars, taking some risks and I was back on, and with only 10kms of downhill and flat remaining, I was pretty confident I would stay in and have a good chance of a top 20, as my strength on the flat seems to be a lot better at the moment than when it isn’t. Almost as soon as I got myself back into the peloton of about 25 riders, a spoke in my rear wheel gives way, so time to change the wheel and ride off in pursuit, catching riders in the process coming into the finish in 37^th, 3 minutes behind. However, there were some positives, I felt in better condition than yesterday’s race, onto the next one!

Views of the Basque Country

The next one…An elite race in Lakuntza down in Navarra. This race was pretty hard going to say the least. The first half of the 130km race was mainly held on open exposed roads and some narrow twisting lanes with gravelly corners. The pace was pretty fast from the off, with moves going and coming back until a solid break formed. There were further chase groups and I managed to get involved, making our way across the gap to the lead group of 10-15 riders. Our group got bigger and bigger until there was about 20 riders in the group and the peloton was closing in, as some teams weren’t keen on the numbers they had in the chase group. I was able to avoid working to bring the break back as I had 3 team mates in the front group, which meant Ibaigane Opel were having a pretty good race.  Throughout the 3 main climbs in the last 60km I rode at my own pace, as there was no longer a peloton, with groups of riders everywhere as the difficulty of the race took its toll. I worked with a group of about 10 others to the finish, coming home in 46^th place. Despite the result, I was satisfied that I had better ‘sensations’ than the last race, so I am confident that I can pick up some form for the last few races of the season.

The Urkiola

The next race is this weekend and it’s a big one, the Vuelta a Valencia, a 4 day stage race from Thursday to Sunday. It should be pretty hard going but I am really looking forward to it, and hopefully I can get something out of it.

The team leaves early tomorrow morning for a 6 hour drive, which should be fun…

I’ll write up a report when I get back, thanks for reading,

Taylor