I've had a really solid week's training with five sessions all told with the aim of getting a solid three week block of sessions in before my first 25 tt in March. These consisted of three sweetspot trainerroad sessions, a chingang ride with KPRC and then a 50 miler today with Simon. The sweetspot sessions were all fine, if a little dull, being long intervals of between 12-20 minutes at 85% of ftp. The chaingang ride was hard with three of us out for the first time and had me well over threshold for a significant proportion and included the an enormous wood screw leaving the most enormous hole in my tyre on the warm down loop. Lee and Gavin were kind enough to wait while I changed it but the temperature dropped rapidly and obviously that meant I completely ballsed- up getting the new tube in.

An early start this morning to meet Simon and the plan was to go out and ride most of the G25/47 route which we will be racing on in two weeks' time. As we headed out to the A 29 and down to Broadbridge Heath, all was good and we were clipping along at a really good tempo effort and I have to say Iwas feeling really strong in the cold and windy conditions.  When we got back on to the A24 for the last five miles of the tt course I just ran out of gas and Simon pulled away effortlessly into the strengthening headwind, so I took the decision to knock it back, rather than going into the red to try to stay with him. It is dawning on me that I am getting older, and whether I like it or not I need to rest more and these relatively big weeks will take their toll. I can't keep burning my matches all the time.