I knew I was embarking on this trip since the beginning of the year. I therefore promised myself I would get super fit. I set myself a goal of 5000 miles of training before boarding the plane to the States. The reality was somewhat different. I managed only 1100 miles in 9 months. Pretty poor going. I would only be making excuses if I blamed anyone but myself.
I started out with a couple of rides in February. The weather was wet, cold and miserable. I remember a particularly awful day where it was driving snow and I was struggling to see anything in front of me.
Heavy snow leaving Edinburgh in February
Wintery but beautiful conditions.
In March, my good friend Colm Collins came over for a weekend of training. We left Edinburgh on a very cold morning at about 8am and we returned many hours and 80 miles later. We were hungry, chilled to the bone and with blocks of ice for feet. We went down south past Peebles in the hope of cycling up through Talla Reservoir but alas, the road was impassible due to snow. It did make for some nice pictures though.
End of the road at Talla Reservoir
Good times all the same
In June I decided to jump on my bike and cycle to Inverness, some 160 miles from Edinburgh. Over two days, I put in 81 and 88 miles respectively and did my fitness no harm at all. It was great to cover a decent distance and see some new countryside along the way.
Heading into wild country.
Slochd Summit – highest point on the route
Inverness
In August, I traveled to the Isle of Skye for a day’s cycing on the Saturday. Skye has some amazing scenery but we awoke on the Saturday to wet, cloudy and gale force conditions. We ploughed on regardless and did a loop of the island in around 6 hours. The wind made the final 30 miles some of the most difficult I have ever encountered on a bike. The crosswinds were particularly lethal, several times we were almost blown into the path of oncoming cars or into walls. We were absolutely drained when we got back home.
A tough day’s work ahead
Skye reminds me of South Kerry
The worst was yet to come.
Since Skye, I have done a couple of hundred miles, including trips to and from Glasgow – 50 miles each way. I also clocked-up a decent 63 miles to Innerleithen and Peebles with Stephen Le Masney.
Le Maz in the slip stream
On the way to Innerleithen
On the way to Glasgow
I have also gone spinning at LifeCycle in Edinburgh many times throughout the year which I can thoroughly recommend for fitness and enjoyment. With that said, that is about it in terms of training. The next four weeks will see 3 times more cycling than the rest of the year put together. Ouch.
With only 4 days to go until departure, I won’t get any fitter between now and then. I am in decent enough shape but will definitely need to dig deep in the first week to get through. After that I hope to start getting a bit fitter with each passing day.
That’s all for now. Don’t forget that you can do a lot of good by sending some funds the way of Marie Curie Cancer Care on my fundraising page. People have been very generous already.
Fergal and Ciaran Cycle America 