Next seasons goals

Inspired by the lyrics of the number 2 hit from S Club 7 I have decided to ‘reach for the stars’ when setting my goals this year. With all of the support I am getting from friends, my team and the university there is no reason these goals can’t be achieved. Winter training has started well and assuming I stay fit then I will be in a fantastic position come the start of the season in March. Here are the 4 goals I have set for next year: 

·         Elite licence

·         Win a national B race
·         Top 10 in a national A race
·         5 Wins

For those of you non-cyclist I will try and put into context what this actually means. An elite licence is the top category you can achieve in the country and if I can achieve this at the age of 20 it would mean big things! A national B is the second highest ranked event which is open to riders from across the country. Finally a national A race is the top ranking event in the UK and the level below international races.

These goals are what give me direction and the thought of achieving them provides great motivation when out training. Training 6/7 times a week is made a lot easier when you know what you are trying to achieve. I find a lot of other riders just ride for the sake of it and by the time the season starts they have already lost heart with training. I feel goals are one of the most important motivators in life, not just in sport.

I thought in this post I would also talk about my inspirations and who I look up too in the sport. People would naturally assume that with the recent British success I may look up to Wiggins, Hoy or Froome. I admire them as riders and am very grateful to be in an era of amazing British cyclists but I can’t relate to them which makes it hard for me to idolize them. The corrupt nature of the sport in the last 20 years also makes it harder to find someone to look up to compared to other sports. I admire attacking racing and Alberto Contador’s break on stage 17 of the 2012 Vuelta Espana was one of the greatest pieces of riding in recent history. In modern times the favourites for the race will hardly be given a chance to race and stage 17 was a rare opportunity to see a solo attack by a favourite. It seems strange to admire a rider who has been caught doping but I genuinely believe he races clean so until another ‘shocking’ doping operation is discovered he will always be a rider I follow.

Next post will be an update on BUCS Cyclo-cross which took place yesterday so I will post once results and photos have been released!