It’s a very different me who is sitting down to evaluate my 2022 cycling season. Read my personal 2021 review here.
Work, travel and things opening back up post covid 19 mean that I have attached a number to my jersey and bike only once in the whole year.
That’s still a bigger total than some campaigns when I had tiny children or was moving house. But’s its still less than both of the lockdown seasons where I at least managed to get five or six socially distanced club 10s in (see below in April 2021)
The training has been the same, if not harder and better. But the time to make it just 6 miles down the road to join up with Fenland Clarion on a Wednesday just hasn’t been there.
That might change in 2023. We will just have to see.
The positive news for this year came back in May.
Knowing that my midweek trips to Leeds would last most if not all of the midweek racing season I took the plunge and entered the ‘Rutland Border Epique’ sportive.
This is neither the time, nor the place, to debate the definition of sportive. For me though its a mass participation timed event.
So for some the time matters and, like me on the day, riders will look to get around the course as quickly as possible.
That I did, as you can see from the picture above closing in on the 100km mark.
Rutland is not terrain you can just go hard at from the first metre although I sure as hell tried. The suffering you can see above is the manifestation of that after over three and a quarter hours in the saddle.
I loved it though. It was a proper days riding in proper hills and with great riders round me pushing my level up.
I blew spectacularly on a 20% climb just after this picture was taken and coasted in (but with the 11th fastest time ;0) ) before heading home for a well earned pint of something Belgian.
I have written on my website in the past about how my riding should be best targeted. This is the chart that I keep coming back to..
Ride what you want when you want and somewhere in the middle of the mix you will find your cycling self!
So in short 2022…
Weather – Glorious
Riding – Brilliant and challenging
Competitive events- not enough but the one I did was great
Outlook – More time trials and sportives to come
Can’t wait.
Fendrien 