About bikes, cycling and cycle to work - Tredz Blog

Dirty Weekend review

A month late (thanks again e-mail gremlins!), but better late than never and a chance for us to relive the what must have been both the wettest weekend of and most aptly named event of the year: Mens Fitness Dirty Weekend.

Over to Ryan Evans. Course designer, Tredz sponsored rider and one of the fastest men we know on a mountain bike (especially in galoshes and walking boots...).

Dragon Ride tickets

Sold out in record time! Thanks to Cycling Weekly readers for naming it their favourite Sportive event for the second year running and the likes of the Independent writing glowing reports, everbody wants a piece of the Welsh 'cols'.

Easy to get to, staggering scenery, perfect weather (well, possibly), this sportive has it all. The 2010 route is sticking very closely to that followed in 2009. The biggest change is the inclusion of a 40 km "Corto" route.

Best of all, it's not completely sold out! The 18th Jan will see 300 extra tickets being released on a first come, first served basis. Check the official site for more details. 

Megavalanche tickets on sale!

One of the most extreme MTB races on the planet, the Megavalanche, has opened it's doors for another year.

This downhill/endurance race has to be seen to be believed. If you're thinking about entering, you'll have to be fit, technically excellent and yes. A little insane.

Chris, our resident MTB expert swears by the event, but suggests you really make sure you take the right bike. 

Bearing in mind the event throws it's 400-odd participants down a black run piste at 40mph over some incredibly demanding terrain, it might be suprising to some that it's so popular, but this race sells out every year.

Now is the time to book the tickets and your holidays (the event is in July).

Team Sky

Team Sky has finally been officially launched. Everything is in place (apart of course from the pending Tour de France invite...), so is it time to just focus on the racing?

Course not!

This is all about the anticipation. How often do we get the chance to build ourselves up into a state of rabid excitement about a British team/rider? Team Sky are of course aware of this and their newly launched site has all the blogs, videos and explanations of what 'aggregation of marginal gains'  actually means to satisfy anyone.

Too early to start getting excited? Well, the Tour Down Under is in a couple of weeks and Wiggins is back in action in early February. Let the hype begin! 

2009 in pictures

Joolze Dymond is a name synonymous with the British racing scene. Her photographs are the record for many of the participants in all sorts of disciplines. So what better way to relive 2009 than through her favourite pictures.

Whether you raced or not in 2009, her favourite shots are either the perfect way to relive the year or the ideal kick in behind to get involved in the new year. 

 

Vote for Cav!

It's the BBC Sports Personality of the year tonight.

We'd like to humbly remind you that, as a cyclist you are duty bound to vote for Cavendish!

Don't worry, you don't have to watch the entire Lineker/Barker/Chiles cringe fest - just make a mental note to tune in at the start of the show (7 BBC1) when they'll announce the numbers to call.

Wiggins rides for Sky

We got over excited enough about last year's (I mean this year's) Tour. And that was without a British team with a genuine GC contender. The news that broke a day ago that Bradley Wiggins is to ride for Team Sky has got us bouncing up and down in anticipation a record 7 months early. 

Now all they've got to do is figure out a way to beat Contador. And Armstrong. And Schleck. And Evans...

Roll on 2010. 

Cavendish for SPOTY

After his spectacular year on the road which saw him take 6 Tour stage wins and the Milan-San Remo classic, Mark Cavendish is on the final shortlist for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

Here's the full lineup:

Jenson Button

Mark Cavendish

Tom Daley

Jessica Ennis

Ryan Giggs

David Haye

Phillips Idowu

Andy Murray

Andrew Strauss

Beth Tweddle

If I was a betting corporate blogger, I would put money on Haye, Murray or Button. Cavendish doesn't really endear himself to people. His supreme confidence (or out and out cockiness depending on your view) isn't a problem for the average world beating sprinter. In fact it's probably an advantage. But for a SPOTY voting audience, a 'nice' personality (see Chris Hoy) is as important as being the best in the world at your sport.  

Still, it's nice to see him getting the recognition he undoubtedly deserves. Now what about Steve Peat and Bradley Wiggins? Didn't those sports personalities do something worth recognising this year?

Dirty weekend, this weekend

Men's Fitness 'Dirty Weekend' event is taking place this weekend. The races include an off-road duathlon, a 50k mountain bike enduro, a 10k run and a 5k run. 

We're more than a bit interested in this event. First, we're locals. Half of us grew up mountain biking around Margam. It's a great place to ride, easy to get to and after the weather we've had recently, we can confirm it will certainly live up to it's name. In fact stinking weekend might be more accurate.

Second, our sponsored rider Ryan Evans designed the course. The perfect candidate, Ryan is an Xterra triathlete and knows Margam as well as anyone. He's set himself the task of making the course both accessible and tough enough to test experienced competitors. 

Whether you're into off road running, mountain biking or both, you'll love this event. All the necessary info can be found here.

 

Real Ale Wobble

Beer and bikes is are, as anyone who's ever tried cycling home from a pub will testify, a pretty bad combination.

Bad, but fun obviously.  

If you're the sort of rider who eschews proper mountain bike races for their seriousness and disconcerting lack of beer at the checkpoints, the Real Ale Wobble is for you.

Speaking from experience, we guarantee good riding and, if so inclined, great beer if you take the trip to Llanwrtyd Wells this weekend. 

We cannot however guarantee great weather (it will rain!) or much actual competition.