WOW its all over and I have returned back safe & sound.

Day 1 (Fri 18 July) – Left home at 3:30am to reach Crystal Palace for 6am.  Bless my little sister who knew her way around otherwise I would of been lost as was still half asleep.

Set off from Crystal Palace at 7:30 am, the route in the infamous words of the organisers was UNDULATING.  Which basically meant a few up and down hills – piece of cake.  London drivers are mad cutting the cyclists up and turning left etc.  Got to Newhaven around 4pm to catch a 4hr ferry across to Dieppe.  Upon arriving we had a short 2km cycle to the hotel for some well earned sleep.  Set myself a new record of 41.9mph.  Weather was cloudy but didn’t rain.

Day 2 (Sat 19 July) – The French roads are amazing so smooth and clear, unlike the UK roads full of litter, glass, pot holes and traffic.  A couple of small hills but mainly down hill, top speed reached was about 37mph.  Bit of rain but didn’t hurt although was very cold hence was in my windproof jacket most of the time.

Day 3 (Sun 20 July) – Some more nice descents managed to break my speed again reaching 44.7mph (was actually breaking the speed limit of 50kph and I was going at over 70kph) ssshh don’t tell anyone.  Amazing scenery.

I am sure all of you are dying to know if I managed my personal challenge?  well the answer is yes – majority of the stages I finished in the top 5, since it wasn’t a race some of the stages I cycled near the back to encourage the slower riders and show them a few techniques on how to make the most of it.

Overall the training I did was more then required but was worth it as no injuries and still got energy to go some more although a bit of sore backside.

As promised here is the link to the post event pictures so enjoy:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=63286&l=2f337&id=673371060

Thank you to everyone who showed their support by donating. What is my next challenge – I am thinking of doing Mexico or Egypt in 2009 so get saving to donate the charity I will support will see closer to the time.

All the best and I hope you enjoyed reading my blog.

Best wishes

Kaleem

Wow the time is nearly here, even though I am not sure what the fitness levels are like of the other people on the ride – I want to set myself a personal challenge of finishing in the top 5 every day.  Will let you know post the event if I managed to achieve that.

On Saturday went to the gym and did a general workout – running, rowing, weights etc..

On Sunday – went to the cycling club and did 53 miles – Maidenhead, Marlow, Henley, Twyford and back..

Started to use the energy drinks/gels and they really make a difference as by the time I got home I felt like i still had the energy to cycle another 30 miles. 

My step father was down for the weekend so took him out for a short cycle of 13 miles. (Eton, Windsor, Datchet, Langley, Iver)

On another note I have just got a job abroad in Germany, start on 4 August so the end of my cycle challenge, gym membership has all come at the right time.  Moving alone is going to be a huge challenge for me (New job, people, country, language, friends) etc just got to make sure I can deliver what I said I can.  Also hope I can find a badminton & cycling club out there otherwise I will get bored.

Well this is my last post pre event so watch this space and the next post will have my thoughts after the event and hopefully links with my pictures.

Wish me luck and until next time.

Kaleem

On Tuesday went out with the club again and this time did 67 miles in just under 4:30 hrs.  All the training seems to have paid off as I no longer feel tired after a long cycle.  Along with the cycling I been playing badminton and attended the gym a few times.

I treated myself to some more cycling clothing (tops, shorts, glasses etc) so I look and feel the part as this is something I wish to keep doing after the challenge and who knows set myself up for another challenge next year. Cuba/Egypt – time will tell.

My last weekend of training is coming up, where am hoping to go out both on Saturday & Sunday before I set off for the challenge a week on Friday.  I really hope it doesn’t rain as I have slick tyres and don’t wish to be flying all over the place due to limited road grip.

Oh well time will tell but none the less it will be a great experience and I say “BRING IT ON”!!

Final post next week, then will update it with my post challenge notes and give a link to the pictures.

Time is fast approaching, been going to my cycling club every Sunday and doing in the region of 50-55 miles per time, which takes on average 3-4 hours.

In between been going to the gym and doing a general work out – cardio, strength and classes.

Also been attending Badminton Club every Thurs and play for 2 hours which averages around 4-5 games depending on the number of people who turn up.

The weekend just gone (Sat 28, Sun 29) I went cycling both days:

Sat – Off Road – along the River Thames total 30 miles.

Sun – On Road – 55 miles, around Maidenhead, Marlow, Twyford some other areas around Berkshire which I never knew existed.

Fantastic weather, but a very sore backside.

Overall am happy with my fitness, it just depends on the soreness of my backside and power in my legs.  Should be purchasing additional cycling clothing for the event it self and need to order some energy bars/gels to keep my energy topped up.

Went cycling with Maidenhead Cycling Club and over a period of 3hrs did the following route: Maidenhead, Cookham, West Wycombe, Marlow etc.. Total 49.7 miles, avg speed of 15.3 and a max of 41.7.  Burned around 2000kcal avg hr 138 with max at 202. 

On the route there was a 1mile hill..  More fun coming down the other end though. looking forward to next week.

Busy week on the bike:

Sat 31 May – Due to other commitments only did 15 miles – around Windsor, Dorny Lake, Eton and back home.  total time 1hr.

Sun 1 June – Went to a different cycling club “Thames Velo” turned up on time but a little disappointed as only one person turned up so we went for a cycle anyway.  This is a proper racing team and I had difficulties keeping up with the pace.  In total did 55miles, in 3h15.  with an average speed of 16.1mph, max 28.5mph.

Got home and was physically drained and dehydrated.

This was the first time I did back to back cycling, good thing didn’t do 50 miles on Saturday as probably wouldnt of been able to cycle on the Sunday.  Nevertheless am getting into shape and happy.  As I still believe the event it self will be at a slower pace then what I am doing in my training with a lot more stops.

Am getting used to the Road Bike as my neck/shoulders don’t hurt as much now, so its just about getting saddle time and enjoying the ride..

 

Hey folks,

Well the time is quickly approaching..  Am I nervous? hell no – bring it on I say!!

Due to other commitments and rain I haven’t been cycling much but been to the gym a few times since my last post but it got boring putting those statistics up.

Today (Thursday 29 May) I thought I would cycle to my work place – that A4 is dangerous, the lorries/cars drive really close hardly leaving any room.  Managed to get there in 45 mins (12miles).  On the way back I was unfortunate and got a puncture in my rear wheel, luckily was going slow otherwise could of been a pretty nasty accident if the wheel/rubber slipped while turning.

Tried using the puncture repair kit but it wasnt working so gave up and replaced the tube.  I suppose this is a learning lesson to go and purchase extra inner tubes for the big event it self.

Total distance was around 25 miles, in  1:30hrs.  Max speed 28.2 mph with and average speed of around 15mph.  Total calaories burned 1335, Avg HR 128, Max HR 165.

The fund raising side has gone flat, not sure if still should chase people but I do wish to say a big thank you to everyone who has sponsored me to date – it is all very much appreciated.

Well the time is fast approaching until the big event it self.  So what have I been up to? where do I start…

I have been going to the gym about 3-4x per week doing CV & weights, I’m sure you don’t want to be bored with the stats on those so you will just have to take my word for it.

So far I have clocked up 110 miles on the new Road Bike and even suffered my first Road Accident when a white lorry nudged me at the traffic lights and I went crashing on to the road..  Slight injury to my left arm and damage to the pedals on the bike but nothing major.

Still trying to get used to the bike as the riding position is a lot different from a mountain bike as a result suffering from neck/shoulder pains after about 1hr.  I also had SPD pedals fitted which clip you in very useful when going up hill only problem is if your about to fall you have to learn to twist your foot to unclip otherwise you fall flat on side and can potentially injure yourself further.

So far I have done 3 rides on the bike:

3 May – 25.4 Miles, Avg 16.4mph, Max 31.2mph – (Slough – Maidenhead – Windsor – Datchet – Langley – Slough) Took 1h 35m and burned around 1250kcals,  138 Avg HR, 176 Max HR.

5 May – 13.5 Miles, Avg 14.2mph, Max 26.2mph – (Slough – Farnham Royal – Stoke Poges – A412 – Slough) Took 1h 18m, 878kcal, 132 Avg HR, 166 Max HR (day I had the accident, hence lost some time).

11 May – 50.5 Miles, Avg 15.4mph, Max 35.9mph – (Slough – Maidenhead – Cookham – Marlow – Henley – Twyford – A4 to Maidenhead – Slough)  This was with the Maidenhead Cycling club, which at times I was leading the group as I felt at times was going to slow for me hence my Avg HR 128, Max HR 165 and 1986 KCAL burned.  Total Time 3h 11m.

Felt fine going to work on the Monday but legs are a bit sore, am aiming to do two consecutive days this weekend (weather permitting) as promised a friend will visit him in Sonning and then the cycling club again on Sunday.

Overall am pretty happy with my fitness and progress considering on the event it self we will be doing approx 90km over 8-9 hours and I did close to 80km in just over 3hr.

Well until next time have a fantastic week and enjoy the weather while it lasts

Regards

Kaleem

On Sunday 27 April, I went to the gym and did “Spinning” after a long break.  Still recovering from a cough from my holiday I did well although slightly out of breath.

I also decided that its time I purchased a Road Bike, visited around 7 different shops around the Slough/Maidenhead area and eventually settled for a “Specialised Allez Sport 18″.  It had some very good reviews on the net. 

Monday 28 April, I did a 50 min work out of my own on the treadmill, rower, x-trainer and some weights.

Tuesday 29 April, had my SPD pedals fitted to my new Road Bike, so went out for a 16 mile cycle.  To try and get used to the bike.  The Road Bike flies in comparison to my Mountain bike, I can reach speeds of 25mph very easily/quickly without much effort.  Maintaining that speed is another story, but was happy with an average speed of around 18mph.

I also am trying out for a cycle club in Maidenhead this Sunday, so this will give me experience in cycling in a group and also gain more saddle/road time to allow me to get used to the new bike as well as build my fitness.

Received an email from RNID with a guide for training and I am happy to say I am already ahead of what they have suggested.  Over the coming weeks will start going for 40-50 mile cycles (which hopefully will do with the cycle club) and need to go out for 20-30 mile cycle on consecutive days.

Forgot to take my heart rate monitor so don’t have any statistics but will go spinning again tonight and will upload HR/KCAL burned etc from my next post.

For those of you who didn’t know I have just returned from a months tour of India, hence the lack of posts.  I plan on getting my training back into full swing by the weekend.  With the longer days I also hope to start going out cycling a lot more.

Watch this space and a great big thank you to all those who have shown me your kind support.

Regards

Kaleem