Back Trouble/Cabin Fever

So, to start of this blogging session off I would like to say I think that, In my opinion, the reigning champion of the Tour de France - Alberto Contador's suspension was harsh. All I have to say about it is, the 0.00000000005 trace of Clenbuterol (which is a drug that strips fat and turns it to muscle as far as I know) really won him the Tour de France, but I guess rules are rules and that's that then, Had to get that out of the way! I reckon he'll be back to win the Tour in 2012. Viva Alberto!

Back trouble, that's the name of this post and it speaks for itself. After a turbo session last night I was after cooling down and getting ready for the shower - normal routine, then I ran up the stairs and disaster struck. I know it sounds so stupid but I felt like a tweak in my back and just instantly thought I'll jump in the shower and it will be fine in the morning! So when I woke up it was worse, up at 7.45 for school and had to skip for today as I struggled to put on my socks. So I've been resting all day, with a hot water bottle and hoping the pain will ease out. It definitely feels better than in did this morning but tomorrows ride is looking doubtful. Hope to just rest it more and get out on the road Sunday. Better listen to the Physio. My physical health is very important and I need it 100% for the camp coming up next week so no point in doing unneeded damage.
As for tonight, in my dedication to cycling and interest in my physical health I skipped a party that I was ment to go to, how good am I! Cabin Fever..

In other news and events my stem has not arrived yet. Was waiting in anticipation all day for it to arrive so I can bring it to Jimmy to finish off. So more than likely it will be here tomorrow. Then I'll get measured and sized up and start using it a bit next week on the lead up to the camp. That's all for the moment, hope everyone is enjoying this.

Ciao for now,

Eoin

1-1/4" = Problem...

So it's been a hectic few days but I better update this oul' yoke (Keep the hundreds of fans happy, you know!)ha ha. But anyway things have been good, been tipping away with the training. I'm doing some nasty turbo sessions to try and sharpen up a bit and looking forward to a easier week next week (hopefully). Really looking forward to the weekend. Been looking for some new training routes, going to try something new if the weather is good!

Anyone ever hear of a 1-1/4" steerer tube top cap? Well neither did lot's of people, and they're, apparently, very hard to get your hands on. So, the problem is I have a stem I got off 'a' website- Not mentioning any names but the advertising was for a 1-1/8" steerer tube, then when I brought it to my local bike shop there was a situation! It was a 1-1/4" stem and they had no 1-1/4" top caps for the headset. So that left me with a problem! I searched the web over and over again for top caps, compressors whatever you like to call them and no sign of a 1-1/4" top cap anywhere. So then after hours of searching I decided I'd buy a new stem. It was probably the easiest option I had and, after all, the stem I had only cost 18 buckeroo's so it wasn't a major loss. So I went for a Ritchey stem with a 1-1/8" top cap with it! Fingers crossed its the right stuff as I plan to have the bike set up and running for Saturday week. Surely I will. No other news I can think of at the moment but when some comes in I'll be sure to post it.

So the Tour Down Under has concluded. With a very deservingly Cameron Meyer winning the GC by +2secs to Matt Goss. Great race to watch as it wasn't just the Cavendish, Greipel show. I loved seeing Michael Matthews and Ben Swift getting on really well. Also Lance's (2nd) retirement was on the headlines. The sport won't be the same without him, Living legend people. Looking forward to the 2011 ProTour season.

So now it's time to sit down and plan out my season and which races I'm doing and which I'm not.

Ciao for now,

Eoin.

Cam Meyer with David(left) and Me(Right) at the Tour of Britain 2010

2 weeks to go..

Well theres a lesson I've learned about myself in the last few weeks is that headwinds put me in a very bad mood. They raise your heart-rate and make you go slower, and I don't like that. At all. So my hatred for headwinds was yet again confronting me today. I rode up the main roads to avoid the dodge icey parts of the country roads (Again), the start of the spin was great I was convinced that there was no wind at all, looking at tree's, grass, bushes.. everything just to try and make sure there wasn't going to be a wind on the way back- Regardless if there was or not I had to ride back! And, to my pleasant surprise there was. An awful headwind the whole way home over some pretty difficult climbs and drags. By the time I got back to Fermoy I was pretty annoyed, don't really know what it is about the headwinds but they really know how to pull my strings! Apart from that, and nearly getting knocked down by some idiot who just pulled out of a junction onto a main road without even looking, things were good. Met a few groups along the way, maybe 30-40 people in the Blarney group. They were all stopped as one of them had a puncture, and people ask me why I never go on group rides, theres you answer! Why stop, wait around getting cold because someone has got a puncture, and usually in a big group it happens more than once. One of many reasons why I like to ride on my own. This week has been good got some solid endurance stuff done so now I'm looking forward to the coming week.

Just 2 weeks now until the next development camp and preparations are looking good. Got one more week of solid training to do before a more than likely taper week on the lead up to the camp. Can't wait to get up there and ride with the guys, and after that the season is pretty much starting with my first race on the 28th of February, which I'm super exited about. Would be ideal to get out of the country for the February mid-term for a bit of pre-season training, Somewhere with nicer weather anywhere but here really. Get my head together and a nice rest after all the hard training I've put in and maybe get the milk bottle winter legs a bit of colour, but looks like that won't be happening! A day off tomorrow will be nice as the rest of the week will be anything but rest, between school and training it should be a tough week, bring on next weekend! More to come soon. Bye for now people..

Eoin

P.s. I'm leaving ye with a song I've been playing a lot recently, Great song for training and very motivating!

New tyres, No puncture!

Well guys it's finally the weekend and 1/2 sessions are finished! The freezing temperatures on the spin weren't much help but I wrapped up well and got going around 1-1.30ish. After my recent run of bad luck in the flat wheel department I ordered new Continental HardShell puncture resistant tyres which arrived the day after thanks to the amazing service of Chain Reaction Cycles and today was a flat-free spin! The plan was to stick to the main roads that weren't as dangerous as some of the country roads, which would have been crazy to ride on. So I went out the Mitchelstown direction heading out the Cahir road where I'd turn after half of the designated time I was supposed to ride for. At the start of the spin I was so cold the fingers and toes were numb but as soon as I was climbing up Glocca Maura I was over heating, turns out I had too much  clothes on! I guess it didn't take too long to warm up. So I stopped to take off one pair of gloves and my neck warmer and got going again asap to avoid waiting around so I wouldn't get cold. The roads I rode on today are perfect roads for training, Big wide main roads with very little traffic it's like having the road to yourself for most of the ride.(Except for the times its windy- There not that welcoming then). When I turned back I was riding along the middle of the road as there was no traffic around and the whole left-hand side of the road was iced over so when I felt the back wheel moving slightly I knew it was time to ride on the opposite side of the road, Safety first people. Met a lot of riders on the road which was good to see, think it was 6 or 7 and ended up riding back as far as Glocca Maura on the way back with one- Davy. Overall it was decent ride. Resting up now and looking forward to tomorrow, hopefully the weather is a bit nicer to all of us cyclists. I'm sure ye'd all agree!

So the penultimate stage of the Tour Down Under is tomorrow and should be an interesting finale. Cam Meyer lead by 8 seconds to Matt Goss so, If Matt Goss wins tomorrow and Meyer fails to finish inside the top 3 then Gossy will win the tour! Personally I'd love to see Michael "Bling" Matthews win another stage. I think it's fair to say he is definitely one of the stars of the future at only 20 years old beating some of the top sprinters in the world very impressively on Stage 3. Can't wait to see more from him I think he's a class act!

Eoin

Oh no, Not again...

Hi guys, so it's mid-week and it's been a relatively easy week so far.. Last 2 days were holidays compared to the 2 that came before them. Just took it easy and recharged a bit.Today was a nice day, the sun was out which is a rarity so last minute I decided I'd head out before it got dark, I knew I only had about an hour so I planned my route and got going as quick as possible. Yet again, the bad luck struck. As soon as you feel the rim touch the road you know your in trouble, I thought to myself-  "Nah, no way I have a puncture again. I couldn't have that much bad luck" So I just kept riding and tried to forget about it but it was still looming in the back of my mind and when I got out of the saddle I could feel the rim. So eventually when I reached a rough bit of road around 4-5km from my house it went completely flat. I was a bit angry so I said I'd try and keep riding and see how far I'd get... 200m later I stopped! Changed it as quick as I could as it was getting dark, and as it was in a village I was looking at the people in the cars laugh at me while they drove past. Glad they found it so amusing. So now, I think this is a sign I need to get some new tyres, Or just stick to the turbo. But with my luck recently I'd probably even puncture on the turbo!

The blog has reached 1'000 views today! Been enjoying it so far and really hope everyone else who has actually read it or just viewed it has too. It's only been over a week so I hope to continue updating it regularly.

Ciao,

Eoin 

Sunday Spin

Today was a completely different day than yesterday, today was nice, barely any wind and the sun was out tho yesterday brought no problems except for the wind and rain, but I had a run of bad luck. 45km's in I punctured just at the top of probably the hardest climb I had to do, that took 5-10mins to change and I was freezing by the time I got going again, and I was still riding on a tyre that only had maybe 50 psi. Was pretty annoyed! And what makes this all worse is that it wasn't even 10 o clock yet.

Then, things got worse. I cut the spin short as I knew I'd be lucky to get home without puncturing on the same wheel, but no, The front wheel punctured this time. Happy days! I knew I had no more tubes so I took the pressure off the bars and rode as fast as I could to try gain some ground before stopping to ring mammy to collect me! 20 or more cars passed me including the Gardai and no-one even stopped to ask was I ok? What kind of country are we living in! But even with these runs of bad luck I still got a bit of training done.

Good solid week of training put in, Now looking forward to a rest day tomorrow. Back to work again Tuesday. Bye for now!

Solid training day!

Hi guys, been a 2-3 days now since I updated last. Haven't been up to much really, just been in school and doing a bit on the bike! During the week I did some nasty turbo sessions throwing in a bit of Z4 stuff which was pretty tough, but I'm really enjoying the turbo at the moment!

Last night I decided whatever kind of weather there was tomorrow I was definitely going out after all I'm not made of salt but the weather wasn't the way I would have liked it, At all! Raining and very windy. The first half of the spin I was flying, not a worry in the world and a lovely tailwind bringing me along at 35km/h+ with no real effort at all. Then when I swung around on the road and straight away I knew I was in for a tough time! My heart-rate went from Z2 to Z4 very quickly and didn't drop much for the rest of the spin. Was horrible, these gale force-like winds were hitting me knocking me back 3-4km/h at a time. It's days like these that I really wish we had hot sunny weather in Ireland. Today was one of the days that really tested my dedication and I'm really pleased that I got off my ass and did the session! Tough, tough day on the bike. Now it's time to rest, another day of fun tomorrow!

Eoin

Mid-Week

When I set up this blog, I never thought it would be hard to update it a lot, but believe me it's more difficult than you'd think. Especially during the winter as there are no races, but I'm sure when the season comes back around and there's more happening I should be posting a lot more.

The 2011 season isn't too far away now and with the development camp in February I'm more motivated than ever. Now I'm back to school, the turbo sessions are coming in a lot more as I cannot get out on the road after or before school. I think they will be beneficial when it comes to the WattBike test thats coming up soon and the tests should be a vital part when it comes to picking of the squads. 

Another thing that's been on my mind this week is the iPad I've ordered. I'm waiting in anticipation for it to arrive, and I really hope it comes before the weekend so I can spend some time with it! haha..

I've nothing else to post for now, but I better be off to bed and rest up. Early morning tomorrow.

Eoin

Sickness Shaking

With the last 2 weeks I've had a minor chest infection and bad cough. I've taken Antibiotics for one week but they didn't seem to work at all.. I could still train as usual according to my GP so I was delighted, A chunk out of my training at this time of year could be worrying! But not to worry I seem to be shaking it away slowly. nearly gone at this stage.

Anyway, yesterday I rode around for a few hours in the Ice and snow, was very dodgy and nearly had a few tumbles but was a nice scenic ride, I guess it beats staying in the house. Had a solid week but now I'm back to school so I'll probably be introducing the rollers and turbo a lot more from now onwards, As I've said before I don't mind them and for anyone reading this who finds them boring I suggest buy "Chasing Legends" great DVD for the indoor sessions!

Now the plan is to rest for the night throw the legs up and watch "Law Abiding Citizen" have heard lot's about it so I hope it's good.. Back to the work tomorrow ;)

Ciao,

Eoin

Welcome back Turbo!

Woke up this morning to a pleasant surprise of frost and ice. Was looking forward to getting out on the road today but I'm not taking any unnecessary risks. So instead I welcomed back my friend who I have managed to steer clear of for a week (Wow a week). By saying the turbo is my friend I am not being a bit sarcastic, I've actually grown to quite like the sessions. So I cranked up the TV, threw on a movie and relaxed (Now that's sarcasm). I think the massage I got Thursday payed off even tho she nearly tore the hairs off my legs, who would have knew it would be so sore! Never again am I going without my legs silky smooth haha!

So now I'm off to get my newly custom painted bike put together. Can't wait to see what it turns out like!

Eoin.

First Post

Hi guys, this is my first post as you can see. From now on I'm going to try my best to update this as much as possible. The whole concept of this blog is for people to follow my journey on trying to become a professional cyclist, And hopefully someday it might happen.

I'm going to be posting up my experiences throughout the season and hopefully it will interest some people.