Why the Accidental Cyclist?
Well you see I call myself an accidental cyclist because at no particular point did I sit myself down and decide that this is what I wanted to do or achieve.
Prior to becoming this accidental cyclist my hobbies were fairly limited. They normally included handing my hard earned money over a bar to the local bar tender and in return being supplied with copious amounts of alcohol. The skill behind this particular hobby was to test my stamina and to see how long I could endure this torture before doing it all over again the next day…. and this was before the weekend had landed 🙂
I did try a few other “hobbies” over the years, and these are things I will still dabble in from time to time; Tennis, Snooker/pool, Golf, and of course the usual Football – or Soccer if you are not in the UK (although not for a team since I was knee high to a grasshopper).
I just started to get hooked and before I knew it I was what you would call a cyclist. My wardrobe screams cyclist. Be that casual clothing that has the MTB edge to it, or the cycling specific baggies and tight lycra (MAMIL I have become).
What expendable income I have ends up being spent on nutrition, cycle clothing, or the new latest gadget that will make me quicker (Don’t believe the hype….. don’t don’t don’t believe the hype). Cycling specific house decorations start adorning the hall, walls and mantlepiece. Books relating to getting fit, to MTB skills, to cycle specific cooking fill our book shelves. We even have a cycle related pizza cutter (who knew!!!). Even gifts from friends and family members have become cycling related….
The obsession was complete when my good lady T started to join me on the road bike rides and started to get serious about long distance riding. She has now managed to complete RideLondon 100 three times, including the year of the monsoon, among many other sportives and self planned long route rides.
Holidaying now gets planned around what possible road or MTB rides I/we can do when picking a destination. Never a bad thing 🙂
But what about the Triathlon side of things?? Well this, I suppose, was a bit more calculated in my efforts. My best mate Nathan had been doing Tritahlons/Ironmans for about 10/11 years. Seeing him podium and qualify for Hawaii led me to say I would one day love to do an Ironman, and with the hope I did this before 40. I am 40 next year, so the time to do it is now. I am the fittest I have ever been on a bike so I thought how hard can the rest of it be?!?!?!
I guess this blog is going to help you and I understand how hard it can be!!
So this is me in a nutshell. An Accidental Cyclist who has decided to dabble a big toe into the triathlon world. One I hope will be the making of me and not the end of me………
Accidental Cyclist 