Blog 16 (2017 ends on a high)

To cap off what's been a packed 2017 of highs and lows; the year is definitely coming to an end with a high. Firstly, I've just returned from a fantastic trip away to Gran Canaria with Welsh Cycling.

The trip was a great opportunity to get the first serious block of training in prior to the 2018 season. It was a great camp getting some quality kms in and plenty of climbing. The roads were ace for riding with a spaghetti like layout over the mountains. Again, it was just really enjoyable to get some serious riding in to kickstart next season. 

I personally found it to be a great experience as it was my first trip away training with Wales as a 'senior' rider. Being the youngest rider, it was quite nice to get to know the other riders on the team a bit better.  It was really good to have such great support off all of the Welsh cycling staff too. Great atmosphere to train in with such a nice bunch of people on this camp (and Stevie....haa).

We did some pretty epic rides with big elevation figures spending time in the clouds. This was character building for sure but also pretty enjoyable being a bit of a goat. I'm feeling pretty happy with my riding at the moment and I hope to build upon this form through the coming season.

In other news, I’m really happy to announce that I’m on the 2018 commie games short list of riders for the road race at the gold coast. I’m super happy with this and it provides all the more motivation to make the most of my training and end up on the start line out in Australia. 

I hope everyone has a great Christmas and New Year!

Pete

Blog 15

Finding it a bit hard to think of ideas for this blog but a few people have been nagging me (Granddad!) for the next instalment; sorry for the wait guys!

Rolling around the Vale...

 So most recently, in the last 5 weeks or so, I’ve been getting back into the routine of winter training for the build up to next season. Training wise it’s now predominantly 'strength based' including 4 and a half hours a week in the gym. At first, getting back into the gym work was a shock to the system.  The muscles felt pretty sore for the first week or so. However, I’m definitely feeling there are some solid gains to be made from the gym work throughout this winter. In fact, I’m already feeling some benefits that have translated to my riding. The staff at Sport Wales are ace and really tailor the program to suit my weaknesses. I sometimes feel a bit sorry for the staff having to deal with us weedy cyclists especially when we are in the company of Wales' top boxers!

Another foggy morning up Bwlch...

Back to the bike work, it’s been mostly steady riding and any efforts have been 'over-geared' for strength to compliment the gym program. I’ve also done a good few sessions down at the velodrome in Newport. It felt weird getting used to riding circles again as it’s been over a year and a half since I’d last been on those boards.

Are you happy now Granddad??? 

Apart from the training side of things I’ve been taking advantage of my time back at home without the constraints of racing, to catch up with mates and generally get my mind off cycling to keep my head fresh ahead of the 2018 season. I wanted to keep this blog short and sweet to just give you a brief overview of what I’m up to at the moment. In the coming month I should have something a bit more exciting to share with you. And with an upcoming trip to Gran Canaria on the horizon I'll have a few more photo opportunities.....

Pete

Porsche Experience Day

Something a bit different for you in this blog. I'm taking a step away from cycling for the day, to indulge in my second biggest passion....Cars! I was fortunate enough to get invited along to a Porsche Experience Day by a good friend.

The day started incredibly early for me having to get up at 4.30am to drive across to Silverstone to be on time for breakfast. However, getting up this early was not a problem when my day was going to unfold like this.... The first part of the day was 'Driver education'. This was to tell us firstly a bit about the day but also the most interesting part for me - learning about the human performance aspect of motor racing. We had a chance to test ourselves on the 'grip' test and also a 'reaction' test. I was fairly happy with my results but still a fair way off the incredibly quick reactions of a professional racing driver. It was really interesting to learn about the physical requirements of the top drivers, especially Le Mans drivers, who regularly have to deal with 5G in a corner. This isn't too dissimilar to a fighter pilot! They also experience losing up to 3.5 litres of sweat over a 4 hour stint in 24 hr races when in countries such as Malaysia. This is because the cabin temperature can exceed 50 degrees! I found this pretty interesting because usually you just think about the performance of the car and not the driver.

On to the next section - 'Road driving' - in a Macan turbo, Panamera 4S and a Cayenne GTS. This was quite a cool experience for me coming from a Citreon C1 to these cars of 4x the value but also way over 4x the performance! It was just an addictive feeling pressing the loud pedal down a British b road. The thing that just blew me away was how capable and composed the cars were. Exploiting the performance just left me giggling like a little kid as I got propelled down the road. The Macan turbo was definitely my favourite out of these 3 cars.

After the road driving, we had a 3 course lunch which was thoroughly enjoyable. We then swiftly moved on to the 'Track driving' which started in a Carerra S manual. Once again, I was left with a stupid cheesy grin plastered across my face after chucking the car into the bends and pinning the throttle down in the straights. The next car I jumped into was the Carrera 4S. In this, we had a play with 'launch control' which was just ridiculous, firing me down the tarmac and pinning me to the back of my seat achieving 0 to 60 in 3.5 seconds. Coming to a halt was almost as impressive, slamming on the huge carbon ceramic brakes;it was like throwing an anchor into the ground. This part of the day was definitely the most enjoyable for me.

After this, we had a 'Passenger lap' in the Cayman GT4. It was was really impressive to experience the grip of the car but also the balance when the instructor was sliding it about. One thing I had to say to him was " How did you end up with this job????"  Once we'd had the passenger laps, it was on to the 'kick plate' .The Porsche Cayman we were in, was sent into a skid which we had to correct on a surface comparable to black ice. This was a right laugh but also taught us some useful skills. We then headed to the 'Ice hill' where again we had next to no grip and we had a play sliding the car about. We managed to get told off driving this section as my friend got a bit over exuberant on the drive back down the hill! This was the last section of the day which concluded one of the most enjoyable days I can remember.

The only sad part was getting back into my Citreon C1 to head home, knowing I'm a fair few years away from being able to own a Porsche. A massive thanks has to go to my friend who made this day possible.... LEGEND!

Training has resumed and cycling blogs will resume shortly..........

Blog 13 - This chapter ends

My time in Italy has come to a premature close due to a lingering virus. I'll be sad to leave Italy but I need to get my health sorted. This simply wasn't going to happen by staying out in Italy with the hectic daily routine. I am pretty disappointed to miss out on some very cool races such as Lombardia but that's the way it goes....

Firstly, let me rewind to where I ended my last blog. Following a couple of successful races I remained at Garbelli's house in Bergamo. Flavio and the other boys arrived by mid August and the house became pretty busy. Our racing schedule was also 'full on' by the end of August, with plenty of Nationals. Gradually throughout this period I started to feel a bit 'run down'. Then one morning I woke up with a very sore throat; it was the day after Rovascala. I continued to train and race for the next 2 weeks without much choice in the matter. Unsurprisingly, I didn't manage to shift this illness and I became more and more fatigued and disappointed in my performances.  

On 2 September we travelled to Varese to race in GP Carnaghese. Weather was pretty rubbish, pouring with rain and just 11 degrees! After just one lap, the race was cancelled as there were multiple crashes due to diesel on the course. For me, this was a blessing in disguise due to my health. We immediately got on the road to Tuscany to race the Trofeo SC Corsanico the very next day. Finally, on the morning of this race the penny dropped with Flavio and he accepted that there was something not right with me so I was allowed not to start the race. I became soigneur for my teammates for this race and the following race. That day, I phoned home to discuss the situation and I made the decision to fly home. This concluded my season with Zappi's.

Dominico Garbelli offered for me to travel back with the Palazzago team and stay with him in Bergamo until my flight home on Thursday. I have to give a huge thanks to Dominico for his hospitality, accompanying me to the dentist and generally 'being there'. Although he speaks little English and my Italian is limited, we got on pretty well.

So this chapter has closed. I have had many experiences. Some which I won't be sharing in a blog but I'd happily share in person!.....Although results haven't been what I'd hoped for as a whole this year, I had a solid Nationals, a great Valle D'Aosta and I achieved a couple of Top 25's in Italian races. I have learnt a lot this year, travelled to some awesome locations and I can now 'get by ishh' in Italian.

Como

Passo San Marco

I am excited about next Year. and once recovered I'll be getting stuck into some Winter training but for now at least I am enjoying some much needed rest and home comforts. I can't yet reveal anything about next year but I can confirm that I will not be renewing my contract with Zappi RT. Good luck to the original Zappi's who started with me in January - James, Paul and Ben.

I must add a huge thanks to my supporters - Pedal Potential and the Tom Maynard Trust.

Ciao

Blog12

Picking up where I left my last blog, I've now been staying at Dominico Garbelli's house for 4 weeks. This has been a good experience, training with Palazzago and seeing how their training differs to ours. Dominico's house is situated at the foot of the mountains near Bergamo, not too far from Milan and also Lake Como. It is a great location for training with a mix of terrain and plenty of good climbs.

Riding with Palazzago
Before actually getting out on the bike with these guys, I'd heard a lot of rumours about the team - hard core, tough, many stories floating about... However, after training with them and experiencing their set up firsthand, I believe they are talented based on the work they put in. It is definitely a tough, regimented Team. Put it this way, just a few days ago, one of the riders missed a break in a race and because of this was made to ride 5 hours the following day!!

I've done some solid days training with Palazzago, always working the hills hard. The number one rule with the Team is to train in one line with riders taking a turn on the front every 5 minutes. So you can see how they are successful. On some of the steadier rides we have had the opportunity to get to know some of riders such as Ribushenko from Belarus who is a real nice guy and a good laugh.

Racing
It's been good that me, James and Paul have had the opportunity to throw a few races into this period when we thought we'd just be training. First up we had the Bassano Monte-grappa which finished on a 26 kilometre climb - yes you heard right! I managed a top 25 here which was pleasing as the temperature was in the mid thirties and the race just exploded on the finishing climb.

Then me, Paul and James travelled with Palazzago to a couple of regional Italian races. They are called regionals but don't be fooled into thinking these are a lower standard as in general the same top teams are represented. The first of these races was in Tuscany. The race wasn't too severe but had one climb on the finishing circuit which took its' toll after a few laps and the race finished up a 1.5km climb. I was super happy with my race here; my best race of the season finishing 17th. Nice to start feeling competitive in these races whereas early season I was happy to just finish one of these Italian races.

For the next race we travelled 5 hours South. Italy is going through a crazy heatwave and it was 44 degrees in the race! Even the locals were struggling with the extreme temperature. 215 started the race and just 30 completed it. I physically just couldn't deal with the heat. I felt as if I was going to pass out and had a banging headache so pulled out after only 45km. This was a bit of a shame but my body just wouldn't let me function.

Touristy bits
Whilst we've been here we've been able to see some pretty special places such as riding across to Lecco at the edge of Como. The scenery once we get in these mountains is pretty special too. Visiting Bergamo Alta was great with the old town built up on a hill top with views overlooking Milan in the distance and the mountains on the opposite side.

I almost forgot - dentistry......
As I left the last blog I had a rather large bit of a front tooth missing that I had to get sorted urgently. I weighed up the options of returning to the UK versus visiting an Italian dentist. I looked into both and the treatment worked out a hell of a lot cheaper in Italy! The only problem being my lack of Italian and Dominico's Dentist's lack of English. It was pretty amusing having Dominico prodding around my mouth showing the dentist what had happened and laughing at my misfortune... However, after a couple of trips, the dentist did a great job and my teeth are back to normal. I'm now being ultra careful as I don't want this to happen again!

Next up I have a UCI race. 34 teams are racing including 14 foreign teams (i.e. non Italian). I'll let you know how I get on in my next blog

Ciao

Blog 11- 'Back out to Europe and Valle D'Aosta'

It's hard to remember where I'm starting off with this blog..... I've been all over Europe and I can just about remember where this journey began and where I am now!

We started off with a long drive across France with me and Scott taking turns to drive the van down to Samoens in the French Alps. This was an amazing place at the foot of the Col de Joux Plane. We had a few days based here acclimatising and getting used to the longer European style climbs ahead of Valle d'Aosta Stage Race. Being so close to the first stage of the Race, we took the opportunity to recce the Prologue. This was an 8km hill climb starting steep before levelling out. The Prologue started at St Gervais right at the foot of Mont Blanc which was pretty special. It was nice to have these few days to chill and prepare well for the race. This was a change to our usual hectic travel day pre-race. My legs and head were definitely up for the race........

Valle d'Aosta

A bit of background on the race:

Its arguably up there as one of the toughest stage races on the U23 calendar. Riders who perform well here usually go on to professional teams. For instance most of last years top 10 are now professionals. So the level is real high to begin with. Then throw in the terrain which is just bonkers! I mean I'm usually someone who looks forward to a tough parcours but the Queen stage of this race trumped the Tour de France queen stage in elevation!

So back to my race. For me realistically, my goal as a first year U23 was to just get round the race and last as long as I could. I knew I was pretty well prepared for the race so it was just for me to go out and leave my legs on the road. And this is what I did.

Stage 1 (Prologue)
This was a good course for me just an uphill time trial and I was pretty happy with my ride getting 53rd out of 135 riders and 8th young rider (U20).

Stage 2 170km with Scalaro Finish
This stage was mega hot with temperatures recorded at 35degrees. It started with a climb of about 8km which was rode fairly hard to establish the break, then the pace eased off. I don't think Ive ever consumed so much water as I did on this stage; it was just a long zapping day. And then to finish there was a 10km climb averaging 10.7%. I honestly think this was the toughest climb I've ever ridden. To tackle it, I just sat into my own rhythm instead of risking holding onto the heels of the big boys and then blowing up. It seemed to work, as I moved up a few places on GC and ended up 5th in the young riders comp.

Stage 3 138 km 'the Liege Bastogne Liege style stage'
I mean it was titled this but I'm not quite sure if the organiser of the race had ever watched the LBL...... It finished up an 8km climb with a 5km immediately before that! And the stage was just up and down all day with no flat whatsoever. It also started straight into a 3.2km climb which was ridden HARD. To top it off, around mid way through the stage we had a climb which was around 20% and lasted for 1.3km on a road which is usually closed off to cars. Also have I not mentioned that the penultimate climb had a 2km gravel section at the top!!

All in all, I found this the hardest stage for me personally. I got dropped on the penultimate climb and was really feeling it. By the end of the stage I had slipped back to around 60th on GC and 8th in young riders. That was a tough day.

Stage 4 - 170km Queen Stage with 4390 metres elevation
I was very tired the morning of this stage so much so that 50 minutes before the Stage I was still asleep in the team car!

However, when I got on the bike my legs felt pretty good; I was relieved about this. The day was made up of a 15km fast 90+kph descent (sorry Mum...) to start, which was mad. Then a 3rd category climb, a 2nd category climb, then 3 1st category climbs to finish. The end of the Stage was at 2000 metres.

I ended up getting dropped on the penultimate climb with my team mate James but together with a few others we worked together up the long 17km climb to try to close the gap on the Group in front. Then on the descent me and James attacked and gained 1 minute on the group we were in. We then caught the next group on the road in the valley. We stayed with this group to the line. This was one tough old day out - 5hours 50 minutes long but I was happy with my day.

Stage 5 - Final Day only 108km
Don't be fooled as this had a tough penultimate climb and an 18km uphill slog to the line. The race was controlled by the GC leaders, BMC today with a controlled pace all day. But they turned on the gas up the penultimate climb shelling a lot of people. I managed to stick in until the last climb where I ended up getting dropped but the weirdest thing happened on this final climb.... Flavio gave me a gel from the car and I ripped the top off with my teeth. I then realised that it had ripped off my front capped tooth... I couldn't believe it and I was gutted about this. But anyway back to the race. I ended up 53rd on GC and 8th young rider in the race. I am pretty pleased with this result as a first year U23.

Currently I'm at Flavio's old coach Garbelli's house in Bergamo. We are going to be living here for at least 3 weeks now as there isn't a lot of racing. We are training with the notorious Palazzago Team.

This is the team that Fabio Aru rode for when he was an U23. This will be an interesting opportunity and certainly an eye opener to be training with these guys for a few weeks as its incredibly different from how I'm used to training. Currently they have the European champion from Belarus - Ribushenko riding for them. He has won countless Italian UCI races over the last 2 seasons and is real nice.

I'll keep you updated on how it's all going (and whether or not I'd recommend Italian dentists...) in the next few weeks.

Ciao

Blog 10 - Senior Nationals

I have just returned home from my first senior National Championships on the Isle of Man. I had a great week on the Rock. A massive thanks has to go out to my teammate Owen and his Aunts for putting me up in their house. Also another big thanks goes out to my Supporters Pedal Potential and The Tom Maynard Trust. Without their help this trip would not have been possible. So here's my Diary of my week at the Nationals.

Monday (Travel day)
Monday consisted of leaving my house mid morning and driving up to Liverpool to get the evening Ferry. It wasn't the most exciting day; a bit of a slog especially with my car's black box......

Liverpool

Somehow everything fitted in including my two bikes!!!!!

Tuesday
We got settled into our base for the week at Karen's house in Port St Mary. For me personally I had an awesome morning because Owen took me to check out his sponsor's Ferrari collection; this made my jaw drop slightly... After this, we went out on the bikes for a recce of the National Time Trial Course. It was good to get a look at this as it was a very challenging course and definitely suited to my tastes (lumpy). Next we went exploring travelling down to the very picturesque Calf of Man. Evening meal was in Douglas at La Piazza. I've been to this Italian restaurant many times before on my visits to Douglas and it never disappoints!

Calf of Man

Wednesday
We went for a second recce of the Time Trial Course but today, in a bit of anger' to get a feel for how it would ride the following day. I was enjoying the Course a lot with its fast swooping corners but also grippy rises. Definitely more of a road mans course. I spent the rest of the day pretty chilled ahead of the following days Time Trial.

Thursday (Race Day)
I woke up pretty early, had a large bowl of granola and was on the rollers by 7.50am much to the other boys amusement as they were waking up. I always like to spin my legs pre TT. I then got my kit sorted and headed across to the race nice and early to make sure that all my equipment was okay for the race. The UCI bike checks are very strict. Once my bike had been checked I needed to move my handlebars back by 1cm. This wasn't so bad compared to my teammate Paul who had to completely change his setup including having to borrow a stem off Madison to be able to ride! After all this rigmarole, it was time to get warmed up and head to the Start.

Nationals Time Trial

I was really happy with my ride feeling like I was pretty smooth but also able to attack the climbs. I ended up in 24th place which I was pretty pleased with considering the stacked, quality field competing.

Friday
We just headed out on a steady 2 hour spin post TT just to flush the legs out. In the afternoon, I headed over to Douglas to catch up with a few people which was nice. Friday evening was spent at Owen's Aunt Nikki's for 'Fajita Friday' which was a really good laugh. Such a fun bunch of people.

Saturday
First thing in the morning we had a meeting with Flavio Zappi. we then headed out on a recce of the Road Race finishing circuit. This wasn't as testing as I'd imagined but would definitely take it out of the legs. In the afternoon I headed out in my car with Marcus of Spirit Tifosi who has been a friend of mine for years now. We went for a bit of a recce of the big IOM TT loop that the Road Race would be going round twice. Me being obsessed with cars ended up chasing a Lamborghini Aventador SU up the mountain ( well at least trying to keep it in sight!!!) which was pretty cool. Yet again I ended up at La Piazza for a pasta meal ahead of the Road Race. During the evening I found out that at the Team Manager's meeting Flavio had drawn car number 1 in the convoy! Brilliant as Flavio would have a birds eye view of the race.

Sunday (the big one!!)
I woke up pretty nervous of the race ahead, knowing I'd be lining up with such big names as Mark Cavendish, Pete Kennaugh and last years winner, Adam Blythe. The morning felt endless waiting for our race to kick off at 2pm. I spent most of it trying to chill out in Paul's dad Len's campervan, which was a Godsend.

The race started neutralised down Bray Hill which was pretty surreal after watching the televised motorbike TT races for many years.  It must have been cool for the spectators to watch the 165 riders through this area.The race was underway with plenty of attacks from the get go.  Four Zappi boys got in the early moves - Scott, Owen, Ben and James. The boys were in a pretty big group which ended up splitting. Most of the World Tour riders were in my Group and they really lit it up going over the mountain. I managed to make the second split over the mountain which came back going down it. Then on the back of one circuit, some of the world tour riders rode away from us with a real display of power. Going up the mountain again, lots of remnants of the early breakaway were now caught. We descended the mountain as a select Group of 30/40 UK domestic Pro riders with about 12 riders away off the front (including eventual winner, Steve Cummings). The finishing circuit was about 4 miles long and our group completed 6 laps out of the 10. We were black flagged and pulled off the circuit because the leaders were close to catching us. This was a shame as we weren't able to sprint for our final positions. Places were just recorded where we were in the Group when we were 'black flagged'. (I was recorded 42nd overall and 13th U23 out of 165 starters). Only 12 riders actually completed the whole 120 Mile Course.

My Group on one of the finishing circuit laps

However, I was very happy with my ride and how I felt during the race and also compared to other U23 riders. This topped off a good week for me. In the evening, I celebrated with my teammates but also with riders from many other teams which was pretty cool.

In summary, I had an ace week on The Rock and was very happy with how both races went. The Isle of Man certainly knows how to host an Event and the atmosphere was fantastic thanks to the enthusiastic crowds spectating. Next step for me is Val D'aosta - a 5 Stage race in the Italian Alps. This will be gruelling but I'm really looking forward to the experience.

Ciao!

Blog 9

I have just a few days left before I travel to the Isle of Man for my first Senior nationals. I'm excited and nervous in equal measure! I have been making the annual pilgrimage to the IOM for the Youth and then Junior National Series races since 2012 and have always really enjoyed my visits.

(2012 in my first leaders jersey with my now team mate Owen Dudley in 3rd wheel) 

                                          

It's always been one of my favourite destinations on the Calendar due to its lumpy terrain and changeable weather....... I also have a number of good Manx friends including Zappi team mate Owen Dudley.  I've always had a good run of GC races in the IOM:

In 2012 as a 2nd year under 14, I finished second overall to Dan Tulett. I was chuffed in this race to wear my first ever leader's yellow jersey.
In 2013 I rode my first time for Wales and finished 12th on GC in a support role for Joe Holt
In 2014 I narrowly missed out on the win - by just 1 second to Matty Walls who was to become my teammate the following season.
In 2015 I endured some of worst conditions I'd ever raced in and was happy to end up in 4th overall without hypothermia!
In 2016 another tough race but finished in 5th overall

(2016 during y last IOM junior tour)

This Year will be different, racing the likes of Mark Cavendish, Pete Kennaugh, Luke Rowe, Adam Blythe etc..... My aim is to produce a respectable result in the Time Trial and to get stuck in to the road race. Basically I'm looking forward to the whole experience at my first senior Nationals.

During the last couple of weeks leading up the nationals I've been putting the hours in but also had a dabble in a few circuit races and a road race. I've been pretty happy with how the legs have felt riding these races aggressively and trying to make each race.

My next blog will have a run down of how the 2017 Nationals went for me.

Blog 8

So a quick update. Unexpectedly I'm still at home! I should have been on a flight to Bologna, Italy last week - flight booked, online check-in complete. Just 36 hours before I was due to fly, my team informed me that plans had changed. I was asked could I get to Nice from Bologna. This would have meant getting a train from Bologna to Milan. Then a train from Milan to Nice....... Just one problem here - my team bike, shoes and kit, are all in the Team House in Northern Italy and the house is locked! I had two options:

1. Fly to Nice. Race on a team mate's spare bike and borrow some kit.

2. Cancel my Bologna flight and stay at home to concentrate on preparing for the Nationals (Road and TT)

I chose option 2. I was initially pretty disappointed. As I said in my last blog, I was looking forward to getting stuck in to the Italian races. My form has improved a fair bit and I was interested to see how well I went in the these races. However, I'm not one to dwell. Since I've been home I've thoroughly enjoyed getting stuck into some consistent quality training and also doing some TTs. I broke the Course record on my local club 10 and have improved my personal best for a 25 mile TT. My legs are coming along nicely and I hope to build upon this form ahead of the June Nationals.

Aside from the 'on the bike' stuff, the weather on the whole has been fantastic. This had made the hours in the saddle a lot more enjoyable. It has also been nice to take some time to chill and get down to the local beach to make the most of this weather in Wales.

Ciao

Blog 7

I am currently back in Wales for some family time and quality training on Wales' finest roads. It was a bit of whirlwind of a trip home. My race finished at 5:15pm and my flight left at 6:40pm. The airport was a 30minute drive from the race. To say I was a bit stressed about catching this was an understatement... luckily I made the flight with a bit of time to spare!!

I only realised once I'd touched down on home soil, how much I needed some time at home. As fantastic as it is in Italy, I needed to see my family and spend some time away from the Zappi house in order to regain my focus and find some form.

Whilst being home, I've capitalised on the opportunity to see close family and friends which has been really nice. I've also enjoyed jumping back on my Time Trial bike after wayyyyy too long. People that know me well, will know I like to spend plenty of time on my TT bike. Since I've been back I've done a few Time Trials to gauge my form. The first TT was a shock to the system I can tell you, after doing lots of long slow miles in Italy. It was a refreshing change to come from the razzmatazz of Italian UCI races to the humble UK TT scene. In all honesty, it was great to be back doing welsh TTs surrounded by people that have been with me for years. I enjoyed catching up with the long standing officials such as the legend that is - Tudor Thomas "e huh, e huh!"(those in the know will understand...). I've missed hearing the excuses of club riders back at the clubhouse too - explaining why they didn't go so well whilst scoffing slabs of cake! This is such a contrast to the aftermath of an Italian race when I'm left puzzling how some of the top Italian riders are consistently dominant?!

It's been a boost to my morale with a 3rd in an open TT on Saturday and breaking the Course record for the local club TT on Thursday evening. I have to say I've loved every minute of riding at home. The weather has been particularly kind and I've been reminded of how awesome Wales is.

I'll be returning to Italy shortly and I now can't wait to get stuck in to the next Italian UCI and National races on my Race Calendar before returning home ahead of the British National champs at the end of June.

Ciao