Time to journey
Each race journey begins with a journey day, so on Thursday fifth December I packed my luggage and hit the highway, making my strategy to the Lee Valley Velodrome for Rounds 4 and 5 of the UCI Monitor Champions League. Upon arrival I checked into my lodge for the weekend, grabbed some dinner, and headed straight to mattress to get some sleep for the upcoming days of racing.
Friday sixth (Spherical 4)
The subsequent day marked the primary of the two London rounds, the racing didn’t begin till the night so I had just a few issues to do beforehand. I had breakfast on the lodge, which consisted of plenty of carbohydrates to gasoline my physique properly for the racing. I then headed into the velodrome to do some media, this concerned myself and Sophie Capewell doing an ‘various commentary problem’ while watching a match dash between Emma Finucane and Martha Bayona. As soon as that was executed, I took the time to get on monitor and get a really feel for it, this was my first time using at Lee Valley so I wished to get just a few laps in earlier than we began racing. Following this I did a brief spin on the rollers with just a few revouts, all simply to wake the physique up and get neurally switched on for the racing.
Now we have been completed on the velodrome, we determined to go for a fast espresso and I additionally grabbed a slice of banana bread, after that we then headed again to the lodge, the place I had a fast bathe earlier than having some lunch. My lunch included plenty of carbohydrates (once more), primarily rice with a little bit of pasta, some rooster breast, and a pleasant tomato sauce. As soon as I’d fuelled up, I headed as much as my room the place I might sit back for a few hours earlier than heading again to the velodrome to begin the primary night time of racing! Earlier than leaving I needed to pack my bag, this included; my skinsuit, leg heaters, a protracted sleeve jersey, sneakers, spare sneakers, coronary heart charge monitor and liquid chalk. Alongside my bag I additionally needed to take my aero helmet and monitor pack, my monitor pack is a bag full of chainrings, sprockets and instruments, which I take advantage of for altering the gear on my monitor bike. With all this baggage, I made a decision the 15 minute stroll to the velodrome was not for me, so I discovered a close-by Lime e-bike, the basket on the entrance helped with my baggage and with the help of the battery I arrived on the velodrome inside a couple of minutes.
Warming up
The stage was set, the velodrome appeared superb, it was basked in a deep blue gentle and you possibly can inform the ambiance was going to be unreal. The monitor opened up for an hour simply earlier than the racing started, with none turbo trainers our choices have been restricted so all of the sprinters adopted an analogous heat up plan. As soon as I’d squeezed into my skinsuit, acquired my bike prepared and located somebody to pin my numbers on, it was time to get on the monitor for our warm-up. We began with a 30 lap wind-up, which included sprinters from GB, Australia, France and New Zealand, it was gradual to start with however within the ultimate 10 laps or so it actually ramped up in pace. The intention of this was to get the legs transferring, get the blood flowing and lift our core physique temperature. We normally placed on a really small gear, I rode a 92” gear however there have been folks using a lot smaller than that, this promotes a very excessive cadence which helps with every little thing we have been attempting to realize throughout this a part of the warm-up.
Following this I did a leap on that very same small gear, this may normally be a rolling 3/4, that is the place you roll into the 50m line comparatively slowly after which go as arduous as you possibly can to the end line. It’s not a really lengthy effort, nevertheless it’s nice for warming up as a result of it will get you to hit a excessive peak energy and in addition switches you on neurally due to the excessive cadence. After that, I might come all the way down to the monitor centre and ensure I’m fueling properly with carbs (normally via gels or bananas) and take some caffeine to ensure I’m switched on for the racing.
Then I might change to my race gear, for the 3-up match sprints at TCL I rode a 118” gear, this gear supplied the most effective versatility for me, it was sufficiently small to have the ability to speed up rapidly and sufficiently big to maintain pushing it at high pace. As soon as this was modified, I might exit and do one other rolling 3/4 simply earlier than the monitor closed, this time on the larger gear it’s a significantly better illustration of what it’s going to really feel like throughout the race. Now the physique was primed, the group had arrived and we had lower than half-hour until we raced.
The Racing (spherical 4)
These final half-hour consisted of some gentle spinning on the rollers, going via completely different tactical eventualities in your head and placing on among the ultimate touches (like aero overshoes). As I used to be placing on my liquid chalk and on the brink of race, one of many GB ladies acquired their identify introduced as they headed up the road, the group roared, it was simply the loudest crowd I’d ever heard and actually acquired my coronary heart racing. A couple of minutes later I headed up the road for my match dash, it was an incredible expertise having the help of a house crowd, particularly in a packed Lee Valley Velodrome.
The race was a nervy one, it began out very cagey and half a lap in all three of us went into a really tight monitor stand, at one level I believed I used to be going to crash as I used to be sandwiched between the rider under me and the perspex across the high of the monitor, however fortunately my pedals fell into the precise place on the proper time and I managed to carry it. The following couple of laps have been quick and sadly I crossed the road in third, narrowly lacking out on 2nd.
I cooled down by spinning over on the rollers and flushing the lactate out of my legs, I then modified my gear in preparation for the keirin. For the keirin I made a decision 122” was the gear for me, barely greater than the match sprints as a result of it’s far more quick paced so that you don’t have to speed up as a lot. I had a very good chunk of time till the keirin heats, so once I was requested if I wished to fireplace a t-shirt cannon on the crowd I in fact accepted.
I had a troublesome keirin warmth, however then once more there have been no simple heats. I drew place 2, I knew an enormous transfer was going to come back from behind however I didn’t know when, sadly it got here as quickly because the bike pulled off. This caught me without warning and earlier than I knew it I’d gone from p2 to p5, however there have been nonetheless 3 laps to go. With about 2 laps to go the rider in entrance of me made his transfer, pushing up spherical the skin full fuel, I caught on his wheel and with a lap to go it appeared prefer it may work. However sadly it wasn’t to be, we didn’t handle to get spherical and each acquired caught on the skin, I crossed the road in fifth simply lacking out on 4th.
That signalled the top of my racing for the night time, I completed Spherical 4 sixteenth total, so I packed up my stuff, discovered a Lime e-bike once more and went again to the lodge to seize a bathe and get some meals. At this level it was very late, so me and a pal rapidly ordered a pizza on-line, and eagerly awaited its arrival. We scoffed the pizza down and went to mattress, and though I used to be knackered I discovered it powerful to sleep due to the caffeine nonetheless circulating round my physique.
Spherical 5 (The Finale)
I awakened very leisurely at round 10:30 am, my mother and father had come down to observe so I went to breakfast with them. I had a really carb-heavy breakfast, pancakes, maple butter and banana, with freshly-squeezed apple juice. Saturday was loads of the identical, for lunch I had plenty of rice once more after which on the way in which to trace I finished for a cheese toastie and a espresso.
The GB riders needed to get to trace a bit sooner than everybody else as a result of we had some media to do with Sir Chris Hoy, he gave us a motivational speech for the finale and it was simply superior to have the ability to chat with him. Following this it was time to begin gearing up once more, so I did the identical heat up because the day earlier than and ready in precisely the identical approach. The group was bought out for the finale, and it sounded prefer it, the roar everytime a GB rider was introduced was unbelievable. I attempted to get pleasure from each second of it, my dash warmth went properly, I managed to complete 2nd, dropping out to the Olympic Champion Harrie Lavreysen, however this acquired me some good factors and moved me as much as 14th total.
Similar to the day earlier than I used to be gearing up for the keirin earlier than an unlucky crash within the girls’s keirin noticed the occasion come to an finish early. It was an unlucky finish to an important occasion, however fortunately everybody concerned was okay. As soon as everybody was knowledgeable that there can be no extra racing, all of us packed up our stuff and headed again to the lodge, there we ordered pizza (once more) and with that the 2024 season of the UCI TCL was over.
It was an incredible expertise for me, it was such an incredible occasion and I treasured each second, having the ability to race in opposition to the most effective riders on the earth in entrance of bought out crowds.
I’m actually grateful for all of the help Yellow Jersey has given me all through the occasion, not having to fret about something occurring to my bike all through TCL was superb and relieved a lot stress, it allowed me to completely give attention to the racing and helped me obtain the most effective outcomes I may.
You possibly can observe Harry’s progress on his Instagram web page right here
