Diaries of an Aspiring Ultra-Distance Cyclist: The Beginning

Welcome to the diaries of an aspiring ultra-cyclist, a first-hand documentary of my journey towards becoming an ultra-cyclist – or should I say, attempting to! It’s a bold statement to call yourself any kind of athlete, let along an ultra-distance athlete. That status is reserved exclusively for those who have successfully completed an ultra-event. Period.

The turn of the year brings with it fresh optimism, a chance to wipe the slate clean & establish some new goals. Sure, it’s an arbitrary point in time, but given my injury riddled end to 2020, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to reset & go again.

I had thought I should keep my plans to myself this year – last year I had a plan in place to take an 18-month career break and cycle around the world… well, that plan went to shit. That said, putting plans & goals into words means accountability, even if only to myself. Either way, who knows what may or may not happen this year, so I figure I may as well share – I’m planning to enter the world of ultra-distance bike racing.

Why? Why indeed. Everybody needs a purpose, the reasoning behind any decision is a personal choice & can often be difficult to explain. Transitioning from hobbyist to competition level is about the process of dedicating myself towards a goal; giving me something to focus on an work towards each day in the pursuit of improvement & progression. I think now more than ever routine is key. Ordinarily I associate routine with boring & mundane, but having lost a little direction in 2020, having ‘that something’ to work towards will provide the motivation & drive i’ve been lacking lately.

Diaries of an aspiring ultra-cyclist is intended to be an honest first-hand account of what the journey is like & what I’m learning along the way, from the perspective of a ‘newbie’. My bike riding has always been recreational. I had a focus on cycling around the world, an ambition which consumed me for 18 months. That was supposed to be a ‘big trip’, one that required commitment to get unpaid leave from work & consumed a lot of time in terms of research, planning, logistics etc. It kept me occupied & focussed. The only way the pandemic really affected me was taking this away – taking that end goal away and with it, my motivation & drive each day. Any task is profoundly easier when you know what you’re working towards. This year I want accountability & goals. Bike riding and bikepacking was very much on my terms last year, when & where I wanted (if I wanted). This year, organised races & events will require discipline to train, to be meticulously organised, to be efficient & most importantly, turn up!

Even as I write this, I accept that I feel out of my depth – a natural part of any new undertaking. It’s easy to talk about an ultra-cycling aspiration from the comfort of home. Even the smallest amount of research shows that ultra’s in any sport are far from easy – they are the epitome of focus, dedication, meticulous planning & no small amount of luck. That said, a piece of advice I was given that’s stuck with me over the years ‘if you’re considering it, you’re ready’.

Those who follow my social channels will know all too well my obsession with bikes & will have followed my bikepacking escapades over the last couple of years. This has all been ad-hoc; doing what I want & when I fancy it kind of thing. Truth is, I’ve really enjoy dot-watching and following ultra-cycling & bikepacking events – it was inevitable that curiosity would get the better of me one day. The self-supported, non-stop format of the races & events appeals to me in almost every way.

Races tend to last anything from a long weekend, to one or even two full weeks depending on distance and ride type. Plus logistics of getting to and from an event. So this is achievable on annual leave unlike cycling some 18000km down the length of the Andes! That dream is on hold, for now. The pandemic has forced a shift in mindset from ‘the big trip’, to lots of ‘smaller trips’ – and I don’t have a problem with that at all. Either way, I get to ride my bike!

Me… an ultra-cyclist. Shit the bed. 2 years ago I was still finding my way around a mountain bike and using my old bone shaker of a road bike simply as a way of saving fuel money on getting to work. 3 years ago I was in New Zealand with a broken back. Nowadays my riding mates hate it when I plan a route, I love a big distance slog with plenty of uphill – I’m an earn your turns kind of person, so it goes without saying I’m banned from route planning. It probably comes as no surprise to them that this is my plan for the year.

The idea of long distance, self-supported riding resonates with my personality. I’m an introvert, I like to do things myself – quite often the difficult way too. I always wondered what it would be like to be one of those dots, moving as fast as possible across a ridiculous distance, over some god-forsaken mountain range, covering vast mileage each day. Dealing with problems, physical & mental fatigue, pushing myself beyond all limits, all in the name of riding my bike from point A to B.

Why race & make it so much harder than it needs to be? Good question. These are the kind of things I’ll be talking about in diaries of an aspiring ultra-cyclist – everybody needs a reason why. I had wanted to enter this world of bikepacking & ultra-racing after I had taken the opportunity to first see the world on my own terms, at my own pace. Racing means going fast, no tourist or holiday stuff. No enjoying a nice spot. It’s a non-stop event – the clock doesn’t stop because I want a swim or an ice-cream. Time not moving forward is time wasted. Obviously sleeping & refuelling etc. is essential, but still, the clock doesn’t stop. Completing any kind of ultra-event requires a lot of things. My research so far would suggest luck! You can have the best route, be the strongest rider, able to ride the farthest with minimal rest, have the lightest kit, be in phenomenal form… but if something breaks, or happens outside of your control, it can be game over just like that. Of course, by preparing for & mitigating for a lot of eventualities, you can reduce the amount of luck you need. But ultimately, there is a degree of luck.

So yeah, welcome to the diaries of an aspiring ultra-cyclist. I’ll be posting a new diary each week, simply journaling my thoughts & progression on this journey. This first post was simply to explain what & why. Next week I’ll touch a bit more on adapting into a training routine – what that routine looks like for someone relatively new to the world of training.

If there’s any topics or info you’d like to know more about, let me know. Thanks!