CycleFit - Jules and Phil Etape Blog May 2008

MAY 2008 - JULES STORY

Link to January Blog ..more
Link to February Blog ..more
Link to March Blog ..more
Link to April Blog ..more
Link to May/June Blog .. more
Link to July Blog ..more
Link to Etape Aftermath Blog ..more

Blog 5

Any cols a goal

February, March, April…..wipeout.

As I mentioned earlier every three months I get hurt, this time 5 of us were knocked off our bikes in Mallorca and of course yours truly came off worse – at least I think I did.

Damaged wrist, road rash and a big lump on my hip, I even had chain ring marks in my back.

We were riding on the road to Can Picafort and as we maneuvered around a pot hole Dan who was on my outside was clipped by an overtaking car and we all went down without knowing what hit us. There is nothing worse than the sound of bikes scraping on the road and the slapping sound of bodies as they hit the deck. As I rolled along the road I could still here bikes coming down behind me and then they hit me and a couple of big fellas landed on top as well.

It turned out the driver was about 100 years old – he looked like Godfrey from Dad's Army.

Fortunately we had at least four doctors with us who were totally un-phased by the whole experience “It looks like we might have an evolving fracture” said Dave to no-one in particular before he remounted and rode off to join the next group; Mark patched up those of us who could continue and kept everyone nice and calm while our bevy of Doctors looked on and critiqued Mark's First Aid technique.

Dan and I went back to Club Pollensa to see the doctor (87 Euros for a splash of Iodine and to be told I might need an x-ray), and then I was off in an ambulance to the local hospital for an xray; and there I was back in casualty for the fourth time in six months.

No breaks fortunately but they decided to find the tightest bandage they could and put it over my hand, I could only keep it on for about 5 minutes and they charged me for the pleasure (380 euros).

The next day was the rest day so I didn't miss another ride and on the Thursday I went out on the big mountain day and cruised around trying to miss the bumps loaded up on Ibuprofen and Viper bars.

It took my mind off my ankle though, which I have to say felt better the more I rode throughout the week and I hardly notice it now.

The hand and wrist are still giving me trouble on the bike; and especially when our Alpha male customers shake hands with me - easy lads I know you are great - the pain is even worse on the rare occasion I have to put my hand in my pocket.

The swelling on my hip continued to grow on my return to the UK, I could feel it wobbling under my lycra, and it got to the point I had to sleep on my left side; unfortunately this meant I had to face the wife in bed which was far too intimate for my liking (and hers).

Three weeks on from the Training Camp it felt like my legs were coming back to me, so I thought I would try a race at Crystal Palace , I have never raced there so I thought I should before I get too old.

Phil has always warned me that it's a killer course, we would discuss in hushed tones how hard the hill was and of the tree that had killed a rider. My 2008 debut was an extremely brief and painful experience which lasted all of 15 minutes, I kept looking at that tree as I went around the bottom corner, whoever said trees had feelings? And that hill, oh the pain it made my eyes bleed and my heart hit a 1000bpm.

My mistakes were:

Starting at the back of the field

Not doing enough intensive training

Being 44 and racing against 20 year olds

Being chubby

Thinking that I can still ride like I used to

Forgetting how hard it was

Not having a white saddle

Etc

Back in the old days (six speed blocks and down tube shifters) I used to ride in a chain gang around Hog Hill on a Tuesday evening during the winter. It consisted of 5 cold, dark and windswept 5 mile laps, through and off and don't dare miss a turn, if you went out the back “laters” as they say in Essex . The first time I went I lasted one lap, the next one and a half laps and so on; but I kept going back for more punishment until I could make it to the final sprint up the hill to the bus stop. Then one night I looked back through the dark mist and there were just two of us there tanking along, me and a first cat….. I'd made it, what a great feeling that was to just push on the pedals and not feel like a dog and leave behind all the Essex boys with their permanent tans trailing behind.

The next week I got battered…that's cycling.

So the Etape du Tour saga continues as my mum announces my brother's wedding plans.

“When is it?” I asked

“Sometime in July” replied mother

Dear reader you already know which weekend, fortunately it is on Friday 4 th July which gives me Saturday to get there………

Anything else?

The Elephant in My Blogs

If a ‘blog' has any purpose at all in this world then it at least should reflect the truth as the writer sees it at that time. And in this I have been remiss and am therefore deeply sorry. The elephant in the blogs has been the situation with my man-parts, under-carriage, tackle, bollocks…etc. As well as the de-nervation (sic?) in my right hip from a crash at Hillingdon in 2003 and multiple fractures in my thoracic spine from my forks snapping going down a hill in 1996 (don't think about it, it will never happen to you), I do have some ongoing problems ‘down there'. And every now and then I get sore testicles and then go on to feel quite sensitive around my lower-lumbar, abdomen area – unfortunately it has a habit of flaring up at the most inappropriate moments.

No Train No Spain
I have now missed two successive training camps because of flare-ups that almost correspond to the hour from 2007 to 2008? Riding is of course impossible and the present treatment regime is massive doses of antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs. I generally miss about 5-6 weeks riding each time I get a ‘dose'. Too much detail? At least I have purged myself with unflattering and unswerving honesty that probably has many of you groaning to yourselves and maybe squirming from buttock to buttock? Well I live vicariously through you most of the time.
So the SNS (Sore Nuts Syndrome), moving house and trip to Serotta has lost me about seven weeks off the bike in total since March. And it was this that made me take the decision to pull from the 2008 Etape. All of those are excuses of course. The simple inelegant truth is that I have not done enough training because I lack the discipline to structure my life sufficiently. You all do and that is why you will succeed. I really should take sodium pentathol more often before writing my blogs, it is quite liberating.

Another re-birth - This time its The Alps
And I was happy with the decision to pull from Etape until I went to the Alps last week on special GPM trip that had been organised by a CycleFit customer, Warren. Without going into too much detail it was my job to try and help Warren ride with more smoothness, souplesse and efficiency. It was magnificent to be in the Alps with Mark Neep, GPM and Warren 's group. I loved being part of the bike for hours at a time. Okay my strength and fitness were low but the feeling of connectedness to the terrain and my own body (such as it is) was wonderful. Working with Warren was also very satisfying and he was able to take massive strides forwards with his descending, climbing and general living on a bike(ness). He has asked me to ride the Etape as his shadow and helper, which brings me full circle. I am in a dilemma – to ride, not to ride or ride for Warren (is that a thrilemma?)? I can't decide but rest assured that when I do you will be the first to know in my new mood of glasnost.

The training camp sounded wonderful from my perch on an inflatable cushion behind my laptop at home feeling wretched and pathetically sorry for myself. I look forward to the training camp because surprisingly it is one of the few times that Jules and I get to ride each with each other in the busy working year. The accident however sounded horrible and I spoke to Jules the evening that it happened. We have been very lucky over the last seven years with all our training holidays in both Mallorca and the Alps that nobody has been injured. And Jules despite what he says in his blog was grateful that he sustained the worst injuries of the incident.
Reluctantly I have to give Jules some credit for riding Crystal Palace. It is a bit like that scene in Apocalypse Now when Martin Sheen reads Kurtz's file on the boat and reflects that 'Airborne almost killed [him] when [he] was 19. And Kurtz was doing it at 40'. I have not ridden The Palace since 1995 and I remember it as hell. Jules doing at it 44 and not as in shape as he could be is heroic. He will return next week and stay in for the full duration. Give the boy a few weeks and a whiff of the line and my money is on him. His speed over the last 50 metres is like nothing else out there at the moment. Having served my time as both of their lead-outs an on-form Jules would certainly beat Warrick in a very short all-out sprint. Contraversial?

We are co-presenting with Rapha an Etape Preview Evening at The Charlotte Street Hotel on June 5th - There are still a few tickets left ..more

Link to January Blog ..more
Link to February Blog ..more
Link to March Blog ..more
Link to April Blog ..more
Link to May/June Blog .. more
Link to July Blog ..more
Link to Etape Aftermath Blog ..more

info@cyclefit.co.uk

www.cyclefit.co.uk



	No Hope and Bob Hope The Odd Couple - Warren and Phil Looking good Jules. For 15 minutes... It was only a matter of time wasn't it? False dawn at dawn? The Gemini Man Dolly recovers from wrestling with Jules Van the pedigree Poo Eating Terrier Jules and Scott compare crutches Fatty eyes up the '99 Barolo at SICI Top Table	JULES AND PHIL'S 2008 ETAPE BLOG MAY 2008 - JULES STORY Link to January Blog ..more Link to February Blog ..more Link to March Blog ..more Link to April Blog ..more Link to May/June Blog .. more Link to July Blog ..more Link to Etape Aftermath Blog ..more Blog 5 Any cols a goal February, March, April…..wipeout. As I mentioned earlier every three months I get hurt, this time 5 of us were knocked off our bikes in Mallorca and of course yours truly came off worse – at least I think I did. Damaged wrist, road rash and a big lump on my hip, I even had chain ring marks in my back. We were riding on the road to Can Picafort and as we maneuvered around a pot hole Dan who was on my outside was clipped by an overtaking car and we all went down without knowing what hit us. There is nothing worse than the sound of bikes scraping on the road and the slapping sound of bodies as they hit the deck. As I rolled along the road I could still here bikes coming down behind me and then they hit me and a couple of big fellas landed on top as well. It turned out the driver was about 100 years old – he looked like Godfrey from Dad's Army. Fortunately we had at least four doctors with us who were totally un-phased by the whole experience “It looks like we might have an evolving fracture” said Dave to no-one in particular before he remounted and rode off to join the next group; Mark patched up those of us who could continue and kept everyone nice and calm while our bevy of Doctors looked on and critiqued Mark's First Aid technique. Dan and I went back to Club Pollensa to see the doctor (87 Euros for a splash of Iodine and to be told I might need an x-ray), and then I was off in an ambulance to the local hospital for an xray; and there I was back in casualty for the fourth time in six months. No breaks fortunately but they decided to find the tightest bandage they could and put it over my hand, I could only keep it on for about 5 minutes and they charged me for the pleasure (380 euros). The next day was the rest day so I didn't miss another ride and on the Thursday I went out on the big mountain day and cruised around trying to miss the bumps loaded up on Ibuprofen and Viper bars. It took my mind off my ankle though, which I have to say felt better the more I rode throughout the week and I hardly notice it now. The hand and wrist are still giving me trouble on the bike; and especially when our Alpha male customers shake hands with me - easy lads I know you are great - the pain is even worse on the rare occasion I have to put my hand in my pocket. The swelling on my hip continued to grow on my return to the UK, I could feel it wobbling under my lycra, and it got to the point I had to sleep on my left side; unfortunately this meant I had to face the wife in bed which was far too intimate for my liking (and hers). Three weeks on from the Training Camp it felt like my legs were coming back to me, so I thought I would try a race at Crystal Palace , I have never raced there so I thought I should before I get too old. Phil has always warned me that it's a killer course, we would discuss in hushed tones how hard the hill was and of the tree that had killed a rider. My 2008 debut was an extremely brief and painful experience which lasted all of 15 minutes, I kept looking at that tree as I went around the bottom corner, whoever said trees had feelings? And that hill, oh the pain it made my eyes bleed and my heart hit a 1000bpm. My mistakes were: Starting at the back of the field Not doing enough intensive training Being 44 and racing against 20 year olds Being chubby Thinking that I can still ride like I used to Forgetting how hard it was Not having a white saddle Etc Back in the old days (six speed blocks and down tube shifters) I used to ride in a chain gang around Hog Hill on a Tuesday evening during the winter. It consisted of 5 cold, dark and windswept 5 mile laps, through and off and don't dare miss a turn, if you went out the back “laters” as they say in Essex . The first time I went I lasted one lap, the next one and a half laps and so on; but I kept going back for more punishment until I could make it to the final sprint up the hill to the bus stop. Then one night I looked back through the dark mist and there were just two of us there tanking along, me and a first cat….. I'd made it, what a great feeling that was to just push on the pedals and not feel like a dog and leave behind all the Essex boys with their permanent tans trailing behind. The next week I got battered…that's cycling. So the Etape du Tour saga continues as my mum announces my brother's wedding plans. “When is it?” I asked “Sometime in July” replied mother Dear reader you already know which weekend, fortunately it is on Friday 4 th July which gives me Saturday to get there……… Anything else? The Elephant in My Blogs If a ‘blog' has any purpose at all in this world then it at least should reflect the truth as the writer sees it at that time. And in this I have been remiss and am therefore deeply sorry. The elephant in the blogs has been the situation with my man-parts, under-carriage, tackle, bollocks…etc. As well as the de-nervation (sic?) in my right hip from a crash at Hillingdon in 2003 and multiple fractures in my thoracic spine from my forks snapping going down a hill in 1996 (don't think about it, it will never happen to you), I do have some ongoing problems ‘down there'. And every now and then I get sore testicles and then go on to feel quite sensitive around my lower-lumbar, abdomen area – unfortunately it has a habit of flaring up at the most inappropriate moments. No Train No Spain I have now missed two successive training camps because of flare-ups that almost correspond to the hour from 2007 to 2008? Riding is of course impossible and the present treatment regime is massive doses of antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs. I generally miss about 5-6 weeks riding each time I get a ‘dose'. Too much detail? At least I have purged myself with unflattering and unswerving honesty that probably has many of you groaning to yourselves and maybe squirming from buttock to buttock? Well I live vicariously through you most of the time. So the SNS (Sore Nuts Syndrome), moving house and trip to Serotta has lost me about seven weeks off the bike in total since March. And it was this that made me take the decision to pull from the 2008 Etape. All of those are excuses of course. The simple inelegant truth is that I have not done enough training because I lack the discipline to structure my life sufficiently. You all do and that is why you will succeed. I really should take sodium pentathol more often before writing my blogs, it is quite liberating. Another re-birth - This time its The Alps And I was happy with the decision to pull from Etape until I went to the Alps last week on special GPM trip that had been organised by a CycleFit customer, Warren. Without going into too much detail it was my job to try and help Warren ride with more smoothness, souplesse and efficiency. It was magnificent to be in the Alps with Mark Neep, GPM and Warren 's group. I loved being part of the bike for hours at a time. Okay my strength and fitness were low but the feeling of connectedness to the terrain and my own body (such as it is) was wonderful. Working with Warren was also very satisfying and he was able to take massive strides forwards with his descending, climbing and general living on a bike(ness). He has asked me to ride the Etape as his shadow and helper, which brings me full circle. I am in a dilemma – to ride, not to ride or ride for Warren (is that a thrilemma?)? I can't decide but rest assured that when I do you will be the first to know in my new mood of glasnost. The training camp sounded wonderful from my perch on an inflatable cushion behind my laptop at home feeling wretched and pathetically sorry for myself. I look forward to the training camp because surprisingly it is one of the few times that Jules and I get to ride each with each other in the busy working year. The accident however sounded horrible and I spoke to Jules the evening that it happened. We have been very lucky over the last seven years with all our training holidays in both Mallorca and the Alps that nobody has been injured. And Jules despite what he says in his blog was grateful that he sustained the worst injuries of the incident. Reluctantly I have to give Jules some credit for riding Crystal Palace. It is a bit like that scene in Apocalypse Now when Martin Sheen reads Kurtz's file on the boat and reflects that 'Airborne almost killed [him] when [he] was 19. And Kurtz was doing it at 40'. I have not ridden The Palace since 1995 and I remember it as hell. Jules doing at it 44 and not as in shape as he could be is heroic. He will return next week and stay in for the full duration. Give the boy a few weeks and a whiff of the line and my money is on him. His speed over the last 50 metres is like nothing else out there at the moment. Having served my time as both of their lead-outs an on-form Jules would certainly beat Warrick in a very short all-out sprint. Contraversial? We are co-presenting with Rapha an Etape Preview Evening at The Charlotte Street Hotel on June 5th - There are still a few tickets left ..more Link to January Blog ..more Link to February Blog ..more Link to March Blog ..more Link to April Blog ..more Link to May/June Blog .. more Link to July Blog ..more Link to Etape Aftermath Blog ..more info@cyclefit.co.uk www.cyclefit.co.uk