Zel's back!!

I had told everyone that today's Vita club ride would be a social Cafe and back to Eureka. Surprise surprise things didn't quite go to plan! After I had posted the ride details on Twitter and Facebook, and sent a text to those who don't dabble in social media, Dave (coach ) called me and offered to lead the group, on a new loop to the cafe, that in his words "had a bit of everything". We haven't had the pleasure of Zel for a while, and some of the lads haven't ridden with him before, so I thought it best to keep it as a surprise for the morning!
A lot of the usual riders are away this week, but there were still 13 of us who set off from the shop. Those who know Zel were already saying to me "what about the social easy ride?" before we had got to the end of the road, and those who don't know him were learning fast! We haven't been riding as a disciplined Peloton at weekends, we save that for the week day evening rides, and there were a few dodgy moments when Zel blew his whistle for a change at the front, and people either sprinted off or didn't move at all!! It didn't take long to get into the swing of it though and pretty soon we were spinning along at a good pace.
Once again I forgot to stop my Garmin at the shop, which means my average for the ride is showing 13.6mph, but I can assure you it was a lot faster! When we got to Eureka most of the lads Garmins were showing an average of over 18mph.

Dave (Connor) enjoying a well earned (rather large) drink at Eureka

I enjoyed the efforts we were putting in today, and I can really see a difference in my riding style. It has certainly paid off getting the miles in during the winter, I even nearly managed to beat Ross up a small climb today, If only Zel hadn't shouted an encouraging word to me and alerted Ross of my futile attempt to sneak a wheel past him! I did manage to get a PB up another climb today, Boathouse Road from Parkgate is one of my least favourite hills, and I managed to drop 30 seconds and increase my average speed by over 2mph. (It must be the Giro Shoes!)

I think the new lads in the Club who haven't ridden with Zel before enjoyed the ride too, Especially Dave (Badders) who seemed to attract more than his fair share of attention from Zel, and the words "Come on Dave" seemed to ring out loud across the Wirral lanes.

With the weather back to it's normal dampness, the bike will need a clean, I much prefer the warm dry weather! The bike almost looks like it is paying homage to the brave riders taking part in the "Hell of the North" Paris to Roubaix race tomorrow. I suggested in the shop when we got back that maybe we should ride the Paris- Roubaix sportive next year. I cant write here what most of the lads said, but it wasn't that positive!

Today's inaccurate ride details: http://app.strava.com/rides/6331944

Some Wirral loops and an introduction to Di2

Today's Vita Cycles Club ride was planned as an "easy out" route, as some of the riders had told me that they needed to get off at different times. I decided to link 3 of the loops that we do on the evening rides, which include some flat fast roads, and some climbs.
The weather didn't look too good on the iPhone Apps this morning, so I packed my new Le Col rain cape just in case.
As usual Yanto and the team came up with the goods, and even though Mrs Palefish isn't too keen on the Style, I am very happy!

And as always, if you prepare for rain, it stays dry (almost), so I will have to wait for a rainy day to do a full review on the Jacket, I'm sure it wont be long!!!

I wasn't expecting a large group today, as some of the lads are off playing in the snow, a couple are doing the half marathon tomorrow, and 3 of the Team are racing in Cockermouth (Cumbria) tomorrow.

I rode up to the shop with Paul, and was surprised to see a couple of lads waiting, including a new rider, who saw us out on Thursday night and asked if he could join us. The group is growing quickly, and we may need to split into 3 groups soon! A race group. an intermediate group, and a new member group. (more on that later)

We had planned to leave at 9.00, but as with all good plans, there was a little delay, and eventually 18 of us left the shop. A good turn out for what I thought was going to be  quiet day!

The new rider was first to have a mishap, as his phone fell from its handlebar mount, and it took a while for him to ride back on to the group. Then when faced with the Moby Dick climb up Village Road, he decided to call it a day. I think in future we may have to run the 3rd ride, for new riders who aren't used to riding in a group at pace for long distance. We may incorporate this group in the Tuesday evening ride, leaving the 12th Man in Greasby at 7.30.

We continued into West Kirby and along to Hoylake, Meols and then as we approached Moreton, Alex punctured, another unplanned but unavoidable delay eating into the time available. We rode on to New Brighton, then back through Claughton and down Ford Hill, (Max speed 42mph!)
We were now down to 10 riders, and we headed back towards West Kirby through the lanes and rode over the hill again this time via Black Horse Hill.
We were split into two groups by the temporary lights at the bottom of Telegraph Road. By the time we regrouped on the outskirts of Heswall, we were down to 8 and after a quick discussion we decided to cut the ride short, and miss out the loop to Puddington, and back through Brimstage to the shop.

I was glad to have some time to get better acquainted with the Cervelo S5 that the shop have built with Ultegra Di2 groupset.

No need for words!

 And just for those of you who have not seen the electronic changing system in action, a little video of the magic of Di2!



As a gadget fan I think this is a great piece of equipment, especially the way the front mech automatically trues itself as it moves the chain between the big and small Chain rings. But as a cyclist I struggle with the automation of gear changing. I sort of miss the simplicity of the shifters on the down tube, and the fact that you could feel when the gear was in! But, if Vita or Shimano want to donate a Di2 groupset to the Palefish fund I wouldn't say no!!!

Another week and another club ride done, I wonder what the next one will bring us?

Today's ride details

Lost in Ellesmere!

I am on holiday this week, and it would have been rude not to get out and get some more miles in the bank, especially as the weather isn't too bad at the moment either.
I also took advantage of joining up with Ken, the person responsible for my obsession with Carbon, who rides most Wednesdays.
We started out later than planned, for those of you who follow Ken on Twitter, if I mention his dog you will know why he was a little late!!!
It had been a while since we last went out for a ride, and as usual, we had no plan other than to get to Eureka for lunch.
We headed out through the lanes to Hooton, then thinking I could remember one of Zel's routes I managed to get us a bit lost in Ellesmere! To say we were lost is a bit of an understatement, as we were on the wrong side of the M53, trying to find a path round the Vauxhall plant!!
We eventually found our way through the Town and down to the Boat Museum and familiar ground. I may have to invest in a new Garmin 800 with maps, second ride in a row to not be where we needed to be!

After a quick Photo stop, I showed Ken the delights of the Oil Sites road, and we even managed to avoided any altercations with the security team!

We rode on to Elton, and then had to make a decision. Left over Helsby towards Delamere, or right to Eureka. Neither of us liking hills much, we decided to head to Eureka, with a stop at Cheshire Oaks Cycles to see Phil, who wasn't there!!

It always amazes me how quickly hunger sets in when you know you are on your way to a cafe! The good thing about Eureka is that they have healthy options. 

 The Next Photo opportunity came as we came out of Capenhurst. I'm not sure why they are there but they are, along with a couple of Emu's!

We arrived at Eureka and settled in for lunch. I decided on poached egg on toast (brown bread) and a healthy slice of Christmas Cake!!! ( the cafe rules applied as we were over 2/3 of the way into our ride)

The cycling world is a small place, especially on the Wirral. We sat with a guy called Dave today who when I mentioned Vita Cycles asked If I knew Carla and Ian ( My Tunnel training partners) Good luck to Dave when he rides the "Cheshire Cat sportive" and battles up Mow Cop climb on the 25th March

To work off the Toast, we rode through the lanes via Puddington, Burton and Ness, including the infamous Denhall Lane. When we got to Parkgate the sun was out, and seeing as it was Ken;s first visit we treated ourselves to an ice cream. 

Ken was quite impressed with the view, and using his new camera captured this great panorama.

We now had to work off the ice cream, so Boathouse lane was attacked, rather than ridden up. ( I was 1 second off my best time up it too!)

We then rode through Lower Heswall and climbed up Thurstaston Road and along Telegraph Road in to Irby to see the lads at the Vita Cycles. They had some new Expensive French frames in the shop. The Cyfac frames are Custom built to order. Phil took one out for a spin, kited out with Ultegra Di2 electronic shifters. A bizarre but not nasty experience apparently.  Frank was also there picking up some new kit, expect an interesting Blog update from him soon.

After wasting time talking bikes in the second shop of the day, I rode to Birkenhead with Ken, then headed back home Via Moreton.

It was a nice change to go out and not have to "Lead" a ride, and to take our time stopping to take Photo's, eat ice cream and have a laugh, not that I don't enjoy the club riding, but sometimes it's good just to have a change.

Vita Cycles Team at Pimbo Road Race

There was a big representation by the Vita Cycle Team at the CDNW Pimbo race today.
We had 8 riders on the start line of 74, ready to face a wet and windy 64km race!
I Didn't manage to get over to see the race, but our Very own Mr Vita Cycles (Team/ shop Boss, Barry) was there to support the lads, and snap some shots for the Blog, along with Coach Zel, who was a Marshal.

And they are off

Steve off the front of the race.

In the thick of it!

6 of the lads finished, and were placed well throughout the field. The race lasted for 1hour 50 mins with an average speed of 25mph and a top speed of 37.3!
Unfortunately Gav was taken out 500m from the end of the race, just as he was winding up to sprint for the line. Luckily he is ok, and the bike didn't get damaged either!

Here is a link to more Photos from the race.

This weekend has been a  great start to the season for the Team, which we hope continues next week when the racing goes to Saighton

The full race results can be found here

Vita at the 51st Eddie Soens Memorial Race

Instead of riding myself this morning, I decided to take the boys to a real bike race. Paul joined me with his two lads, and we met Ian and Carla and their lads there. The Future of Team Vita all together!!

If they don't like cycling there is always base jumping!

The Weather wasn't too kind at the beginning of the day. When we arrived at Aintree the rain was getting harder, and it was pretty cold. I felt for the 260 riders as they lined up at the start line.

Vita were represented by Andy and Steve today. It was Andy's first ever race, a big one to chalk up as the field included some of the country's top teams and riders. 

Andy (220) on the start line

Steve however is a seasoned rider and had a real race face on when we saw him lining up.

Start of the first group

The riders were split into 4 Groups and were set off at minute intervals. Starting with Cat4 and juniors and finishing with the Elite riders.

First group are off

And the rest are off.

The first few laps were pretty grim!

As the race went on the conditions started to clear

The pace was furious, Steve has told me that his average was 28mph and he reached a top speed of 38mph, on a flat course! I think this video shows the pace of the pack well.

Andy did fantastically to last just over an hour into the race.

Steve riding well in the pack. (Black helmet and top with 3/4 bibs.)

After 1 hour and 40minutes and 57 seconds the suffering was over and Russ Downing, Endura Racing, crossed the line as the winner with his team mates Scott Thwaites and local rider Jonathan McEvoy in second and third giving Endura Racing a clean sweep.

Russ Downing

After a warm down and a quick clean up, the Three team mates stepped up to the podium.

The Boys were made up to have their photo taken with Russ.

It was a great race, and a good start to the season for Endura, and Vita with Steve finishing 118th. 

Here is a link to a much more comprehensive report from British Cycling.

I have put these photo's in to show that cycling isn't an easy sport. The faces of these riders show how much determination and effort go into riding "an easy bike!"

Dan Whelen of Omnipex Bio Racer Team and his Onix Aurious

There was a lot of talk about the possibility of either Paul or Me entering the race next year! The good thing about riding a bike is that you can live the dream and have a chance to give it a go against the Pro's, but if any of us are going to give the 52nd Eddie Soens race a go we need to start training now!!

Full Photo album here.

A great "lumpy" loop of Cheshire!

Today was the first time in 6 weeks that the club riders joined the Team lads for a Saturday morning ride. The group was impressive with 20 of us blocking the pavement outside the shop before the off. It was great to have a chance to catch up with everyone after last weeks Ten Minutes of Hell. The agreement of everybody there was that it was a great event, and next year the field will be much bigger, and some of us may try some Ten mile TT's this season!

Before we left Dave, the coach, explained that as there were lots of abilities in the group, we would ride in pairs and take turns on the front, riding at the pace of the lead pair. This way everybody would have a chance to set the pace, but also have to put some effort in to keep up if the pace got faster. It was also agreed that we would not leave anyone stranded in Cheshire somewhere!

We headed out along familiar lanes, chatting and spinning the legs to get them warm, We were riding towards Elsmere Port through Little Sutton when the only incident of the day happened.
Riding in a big group is great, as you put in less effort when in the middle of the Peloton (the name used to describe a group of cyclists in a bunch!) and the miles seem to fly by. But there are some down sides, one is when you get dropped it is hard to get back on as you are on your own in no man's land, and secondly, you can not see any obstacles in the road. If you are following behind a peloton and see the riders frantically gesturing, pointing to the road, waving at the tarmac, or putting their hand behind their back they are telling each other what the road conditions are like. You may also hear shouts of  "HOLE" or "GRAVEL" or "S**T" if you are in a country lane near a stable.
Today one of the riders came upon a raised grid in the road which he tried to avoid, by bunny hopping, lifting both wheels off the ground and jumping over the obstacle. Unfortunately he landed awkwardly and fell, sliding along the road as we were at quite a pace. He decided that his ride for today was over and headed home, with another rider for support. I can report that he got home safely, a little battered and bruised, but should be ready to race next week.

The remaining 18 continued to the Shell Oil road, and managed to get all the way down it without seeing the infamous security guard! We continued on to Helsby, then Delemere, Tarporley, Beeston, Tattenhall, Waverton, Christleton and the outskirts of Chester, finding every hill along the way! We split from the Team riders here as one of the lads had to be back for work and they could ride fast together to drag each other home at pace.The remaining Club riders rode on to Eureka for a well deserved Coffee, and a Banana for me, and cake for every one else!  After the pit stop we headed up the Chester High road and back to the shop.

Regrouping at Beeston Castle

We didn't hang around at the shop today, as the ride took a bit longer than expected, and I had an excited son at home waiting to go and get his new Cycling Helmet!

It was great to ride with the whole group today, and also good to see that we are not that far off the Team pace, kind of!!

Dave gave us some great quotes today:
"Bunny Hops.....Just don't do them" discussing Alex's incident
"Loads of pot holes, this road is bad. Deal with it!" when he got fed up pointing out the obstacles

If I can get enough I may start a new "Zel says" page!

Today's ride details

As you can see from the widget at the top of the side bar, I am taking part in another charity bike ride this year. This time it is a  longer Challenge, From Loch Lomond to Loch Leven, 150 miles in 2 days. The ride is in aid of Asthma UK.
Asthma UK is the charity dedicated to improving the health and well-being of the 5.4 million people in the UK whose lives are affected by asthma. Please support us in our vision of "Control over asthma today, freedom from asthma tomorrow". www.asthma.org.uk

The Phenomenom of "The Ten Minutes of Hell"

Phil and Barry (Vita Cycles) must be really happy with the response and media coverage the Ten Minutes of Hell is receiving from some big hitting cycling media sites and competitors from the event.

                        

Today people have been posting links to sites and forums where there was nothing but praise for the event so I thought that I would put some of the links on here.

road.cc

Cycling Weekly.

velouk.net

merseysidermagazine

maxgearettes

Also here are some links to Photo Albums of the Day,

Phil Gale flickr

Sport Pictures Cymru

Jonathan Fairhurst

Here is a video from inside hell,

And here is my Album, which I will update with more photo's as they become available.

picasaweb TenMinutesOfHell

To top off a great weekend, I received a message from a friend who works at the Liverpool Echo, asking me if I would like to write a report for the paper on the event. 

I am very proud to have been able to do this, and apparently got a "good Job" from the Sports Editor!

It certainly is amazing how cycling and this Blog have affected my life. And a big thanks to James for the opportunity.

Here is the Piece I wrote for the Liverpool Echo, Sorry the text isn't too clear, but if you want to read the report, please check out this link: Liverpool Echo

I  have also been given the Photo's the Echo photographer took on the day.
Pictures are Courtesy of Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo

It was nice to see Vita riders, Carla and Dave's photos used in the Paper.




Tonight I was back out on the bike, with 6 other lads from the Club, training for the next TT, wether that will be this season or next years Ten Minutes of hell, I don't know!

"Ten Minutes of Hell" Mersey Tunnel Time Trial

Phew! What a day. The morning seemed to drag from when I got up to when I left to pick up Paul and Dave to go to the Tunnel. I had a healthy breakfast of cereal and then Scrambled egg and grilled tomatoes, even though the nerves were making my stomach do somersaults!! I took the bike out for a shakedown to make sure everything was still working, why it wouldn't be I'm not sure but it seemed to be the right thing to do and wasted some time!
Eventually Dave and I loaded our bikes in the car and headed off, twice as I forgot the parking permit, to pick up Paul.
We arrived in Birkenhead way too early, so we went for a coffee at the golden arches!

After a caffeine injection, and confirmation the tunnel was shut, we headed off to park up sign in and get ready.

It was great to have all our families there to support us, and take photo's! (thanks Mrs Palefish)
After the bikes were set up we headed up to the start area to warm up. Vita Cycles had done a great job in organising the event, even providing turbo's for us to use before we set off.

It didn't take long for our start times to come round. and we were off!

And not too long after, we were back.

and received a warm welcome from our boys.

That was it! For me it was 12minutes 19seconds of hell, and I am very happy with the result. The full finishing times haven't been released yet but with 10 still to go I was sitting in 29th, out of a field of 63. I think the last 10 will have beaten my time so that puts me 39th, not bad for a first time trial attempt!

After a quick warm down we watched the rest of the Team Vita lads lay down some impressive times, and then it was the time for the big boys and Girls. The field was filled with Current national TT Champions, Junior Champion and GB Triathletes. It was humbling to see the effort they put in to just warming up!

Alex Dowsett, current National TT Champion and rider for Team Sky, was last off. He certainly looked focused as he waited on the line to go.

Alex was the eventual winner, in a time of 8minutes 28seconds, only 4 minutes faster than me!

After the awards ceremony I managed to catch a quick chat with Alex, he is a really down to earth guy, who was happy to chat and sign autographs, and even have his photo taken with a fellow competitor (never thought I would write that in a sentence!)

The day was a massive success, and Phil and Barry from Vita Cycles should be proud of their achievement. Not only did they put on a great Time Trial, attracting some of the best riders in the country, they have also been very influential in getting me involved in the sport, and the Club.

When I started writing this blog in August 2011 I said that one day I may enter a race, I just didn't think that day would come so soon!!!