Back In Ireland

Having just arrived back in ireland after a 1 month period of racing in Belgium with my team I have decided to continue updating my progress towards suir valley 3 day next weekend. In my final 2 weeks in belgium I managed to put away 6 races with finishes and prize money in them all. The last 3 races I rode in a 3day block which was a race each day in order to simulate suir valley and how it will feel racing day on day. It showed good signs and I felt just as strong on the last day as I did the first which is a good indication that my form is good. My results in all the races were good and Im happy with how I recovered each day.

I arrived back in Ireland on saturday and since then I have been completing a combination of 3-4hr spins with some specific work mixed inbetween, My intention is to keep my body primed for the upcoming race but at the same time ensure that I am well tapered for the weekend.

I will give one final update on friday with how I am feeling before the race, I intend on putting away a turbo session today as the weather is horrific, A 4hr ride tommorow, a rest day thurday and a 1hr pre race ride on friday.

15 days until Suir Valley!!

As promised Im going to keep everyone up to date with my progress towards Suir Valley. With only 15 days remaining to the first stage I have been putting a lot of prep into getting my legs ready for the race, Since returning to Belgium I have been racing quite a lot to bring out the form. I have raced 6 times in the past 2 weeks and intend to put away another 6 races before returning to Ireland.

In the races that I have completed so far I have been achieving some solid results taking some top 20's. At first when I returned from Ireland post Nationals I felt that my legs were slightly sluggish and it took me a race or two for them to really come good. But eventually they came round and riding race after race will hopefully get my legs ready to preform during the 3day stage race.

After completing the next block of races I will once again drop a small post and let you know how Im coming along, so keep an eye out for my next update.

Suir Valley Prep!!

Since the 2012 Ras I have not updated my blog so this will be a nice read for anyone interested in how things have developed since then.

I was relatively happy with my Ras result but to be honest I would have liked more from it regarding the stage results, some top 10''s would have not gone astray but 3rd county rider and 33rd on GC is nothing to complain about.

After the Ras I swiftly returned to Belgium staying focused on bringing my form on more for the up and coming national champs in Clonmel  Co. Tipperary. Once back in Belgium I began racing again finishing without to much issue, but I could still feel fatigue in my legs from the Ras, it left me slightly sluggish and lacking when I was forced to react to moves that were going clear. I rode all these races with the intention that they were preparation for the champs making the most of every km of racing pushing myself to the max at all times. I placed good in the races achieving nothing massive but at the same time been able to last the distance and attempt to get into break aways.

I returned to Ireland a week before the national champs in Clonmel, a routine of steady training and a phase of tapering prepared me for the race ahead. The Race itself did not go entirely to plan, I went there with the tactic of racing very aggressive in the initial phase and try and get into the lead group which was bound to go clear early. The course was a challenging one, a tough climb mid way made the lap tough and it was on the climb first lap that the split happened, I crossed the summit in the front but on the decent gaps opened and I was left in a chase group on the road, we were later joined from behind by the remains of the main bunch and all I could do was watch as the break vanished from sight. Lap after lap I rode hard trying to form another chase group but it was in vain and I decided to hold back and allow the tough course to dwindle the bunch down, I made a number of good moves, and at one point was going for a top 15 but unfortunately dehydration killed me, the heat on the day was freakish and I feel I didn’t take on enough fluids, but in the end all was not lost as I dug deep and managed to get 19th place as I attacked away from the remains of the main bunch with 3km to go.

After the Nationals I took a small break to recharge the batteries for the second part of the season and for my campaign towards my final goal which is to attain a solid result in Suir Valley. Last year I Managed a 3rd on GC so this year Id like to be in around the same if not better. 

I returned to Belgium on the 4th of July and since then have done some good training and raced 3 times, my intention is to put away a minimum of 10 races before Suir Valley and some solid training along with it. for the period between now and then I’m going to make more consistent blog posts to keep everyone up to date on my progress towards the race. So keep an eye on my Twitter and Facebook for links.