London 2 Paris in 24 Hours - Training Update

Prudential London Ride

Well, 19 miles of it anyway! On the Thursday before the event I received an email saying that there were still places on the Pru19, which completely surprised me as the main 100 mile ride fills up almost a year out. Because the short ride was the same route as the last 19 miles of the 100 miler I assumed everyone would be tired and it would be a fairly slow meander back into London, so I to get to the start line I headed through the hills to the south of Croydon to add on an extra 40 miles. At the start I joined a colleague, Trevor Carden and his son, and we set off for the ride into London. It was anything but a slow meander! I ended up having the highest average speed ever! I've never ridden in such a fast, large group before and I was surprised how much help you got from slipstream from so many cyclists around you.

Bike Fit!

If only this meant the bike had become more fit. Instead it is a two hours session in a bike shop to fit the bike to you:

"Using 3D motion capture technology, the Retül system accurately measures every degree of movement and millimeter of distance, providing you and the fitter with data to support the choices made during the fit for your cycling equipment and personal riding experience"

I was strapped up with data dots and then had to ride my bike in front of a camera and have my every wobble and defect recorded and analysed by the Retul system in excruciating detail. Apparently my knees move in an oval when I ride, and that is probably why I am starting to get knee issues. I really didn't like hearing about all the things that were wrong. Still, this is why you do this, to find out what isn't working. So after changing the length and angle of the handlebar stem, moving the seat and seat height and adding a few degrees tilt to my left foot the computer said my position and movement was much improved. How much only time will tell. In spite of all the computing accuracy, the human body is even more complex and takes a while to settle to any changes.

Fingers crossed.

The Goal

Of course there is a reason for all this activity, The London to Paris Ride in 24 Hours in support of The Teenage Cancer trust. It would be great if you could help me reach my fundraising target (28% so far) by donating through my sponsorship page. 

To those who have already donated; THANK YOU!