Secret Training Range Review

The secret training products are relatively new to the scene; the main man behind these intriguing new products is Tim Lawson. Tim also being the founder of the well-known nutritional products SIS (Science in Sport) has vast experience with developing the best nutrition products for over 20 years. Tim also being a fantastic athlete himself is working with athletes from all levels from beginners right through to elite athletes.

secret training The brand Secret Training have started out with The Strip System which includes:

Pins in a Tin
Sun Screen
Micro-Fibre Body Cloths
Post Race Wash
Anti-Chafing Cream
Start Oil
Lip Balm
Hygiene Wipes
Hand Sanitiser

All these products can be bought separately or as a Race Day Personal Care Kit (£49.99); this means all the products come in a tidy bag to keep them all together. Having used these products since they were first launched they have accompanied me to all my races. I definitely believe they are a worthwhile investment towards your racing and personal care, helping you to keep clean and comfortable while riding your bike. There is nothing better than products that make your cycling more enjoyable. Having one bag of essentials when you’re racing and travelling filled with all the essential bits and bobs you need (and often forget) is brilliant.

stealth_gel_selectionstealth_hydration_drink_mix_selectionMore recently the team at Secret Training have been developing nutritional products which were properly introduced on the 7th January 2015 at their open event. This presentation consisted of the riders and media getting their first taste of the Stealth Gels and Stealth Super Hydration Drinks with the Strip products also being featured. While trying the assortment of gels (Banana, Lemon & Lime, Citrus, Tropical, Berry), my personal favourite was obvious – the Banana Gel, which seemed to be a popular first choice with a lot of the cyclists present. Tim was there to talk through the science behind the Gels and how they work, unlike some other brands gels the Banana gels actually have real banana in them! The gels can be bought individually for £1.25, £17.50 for a pack of 14. The Berry Energy Gel with Caffeine & Betaine and Banana Gel cost a little more at £24.50 for 14 or £1.75 for single shots, I’m not sure why this is but I’m guessing it’s to do with the cost of the fruit and caffeine ingredients being more expensive or the process involved in integrating them into the gel. As well as trying the Gels the Super Hydration Drinks were a big hit with me coming in a wide range of flavours; Lemon & Lime, Blackcurrant & Elderflower, Mango & Passionfruit and also Lemon Tea. They retail from £15.99 for a selection pack of 20x 14g sachets; each sachet mixes with 500ml of water – to £24.99 for a 600g tub of a single flavour, so they are competitively priced. Each of the flavours are well balanced and relatively neutral, with no overpowering flavours or after taste. The gels and hydration drinks are easy to consume and enjoyable, unlike some other nutritional products I have previously used which have been hard to stomach in the quantities you need to aid your performance.

From speaking to Tim I have found out they are currently working on developing recovery drinks, so there is a lot more to come from this new brand and I can’t wait to see the results. Furthermore Tincoff-Saxo riders are being supported by all products produced by Secret Training, they will be providing valuable feedback for the brand to enable the CyclingShortsSecretTrainingProductsReviewRatingdevelopment of flavours and product ranges, the aim is to provide exactly what riders need and want.

CyclingShorts.cc give Secret Training products a Star Buy rating of 97%:

Personal Care Kit – 98/100
The Personal care kit is unique as I don’t know anything like it.
Nutrition Products – 96/100
In my opinion the nutrition products are the best, better than SIS, Tim said it was very difficult to make ones better but he thinks they have – I have to agree!

I really like the products, try them for yourself, the secret is out!

You can check out the range at: www.secret-training.cc

The Halfbike – half baked idea or genius?

 

While browsing t’internet I came across this wild idea, it’s not a lingering April fool that’s doing the rounds, it’s quite a fun idea’ if a little unstable looking…. but will it really take off?

It combines cycling with a running motion which I’m not sure would be comfortable over a long distance. With an expected $399 price tag. It was developed through Kickstarter and now they are getting ready to release a

275B14C100000578-0-image-a-19_1428448059761The designers say, ‘We took the core driving mechanism of a classical bicycle (a wheel connected to a crankset) but redesigned pretty much everything else. The result – a vehicle that trains your balance and reflexes in a new way. It brings you closer to natural walking and it’s the only way to control the vehicle with your whole body and not just your hands. Halfbike is a sort of an extension to the body that allows a smooth and intuitive ride. It’s really nothing like the experience you get when riding a bike’.

Could become the next Sinclair C5 for the hipster generation?

Tour de Yorkshire trophy unveiled

Tour de Yorkshire TrophyOne of the world’s most famous trophy makers has created the Tour de Yorkshire trophy which will be presented to the race’s overall winner.

The new trophy has been crafted in the shape of the famous letter Y for Yorkshire, and will be presented to the winner of the first ever Tour de Yorkshire which takes place on May 1 to 3.

The race’s bespoke trophy has been designed and crafted by the Yorkshire company Thomas Fattorini Ltd.

Thomas Fattorini Ltd was originally founded in Yorkshire in 1827 by Antonio Fattorini, a European immigrant who settled in the county where he then established a number of retail outlets.

Tour de Yorkshire Trophy PolishedOne part of the company, known then as Fattorini & Sons of Bradford, made the FA Cup trophy which Bradford City won that very first year in 1911. The company also made the Rugby League Challenge Cup.

The trophy was unveiled at Brudenell Primary School in Leeds, the city where Fattorini first began and children got a sneak peak of the trophy.

Tom Fattorini, Director of Sales and Marketing at Thomas Fattorini Ltd, said: “We do business internationally, supplying trophies to the likes of FIFA, and when we were invited to support the production of the Tour de Yorkshire trophy and medals we felt it was a perfect fit given our Yorkshire history. We look forward to the winner proudly showing off the new trophy to the world on May 3.”

Gary Verity, Chief Executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said: “The company’s history and Yorkshire roots make them the perfect partner for providing the inaugural race trophy and medals. We were thrilled when we saw the design and even more excited when we saw the trophy for the first time. The excitement is really building now right across the county as we move towards race weekend, when Yorkshire will once again go global.”

The race will be broadcast on ITV, Eurosport and to over 100 countries around the world with viewers seeing the race winner lift the new trophy.

The trophy will now embark on a mini-tour around the county during the next few weeks before returning for the race on May 1 – 3, with the first ever winner of the Tour de Yorkshire being presented with the trophy on Sunday May 3 in Roundhay Park in Leeds.

The Sufferfest Sponsors UCI Women’s World Cup & Introduces ‘The Suffer Prize’

INTRODUCTION OF ‘THE SUFFER PRIZE’ TELLS STORIES
OF EPIC SUFFERING IN EACH ROUND OF WORLD CUP
The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) is pleased to announce that The Sufferfest will be the Official Sponsor of the UCI Women’s Road World Cup in 2015.

A leading producer of indoor training videos, The Sufferfest has been a sponsor of the UCI since 2010 and of the UCI Women Road World Cup since 2014. It produces highly effective and engaging training videos using footage of professional races, including UCI events.

This year, the UCI and The Sufferfest will step up their collaboration by introducing a unique, new award for the UCI Women’s Road World Cup. At the end of each round of the World Cup, The Suffer Prize presented by The Sufferfest will be awarded to the rider who demonstrated particular determination, courage and suffering to help a teammate, to animate the race or simply to get to the finish line against the odds.

The judging panel will be made up of the TV production team, the Chief Commissaire, the Race Director and the UCI. The concept was extremely well received by riders and team representatives at the UCI Women’s Teams seminar in early March.

“This award is not necessarily about winning the race, but about the Sufferlandrian values of pushing yourself beyond what you thought yourself capable of,” explained The Sufferfest’s Chief Suffering Officer, David McQuillen. He added: “Women’s professional racing is incredibly difficult and tells inspiring stories of effort, sacrifice and resilience. We want to share these stories and The Suffer Prize presented by The Sufferfest is our way of showing how outstanding these athletes are.”

At the end of the season, The Sufferlandrian community will have the chance to vote for the Epic Moment of Suffering experienced by one of the winners of the Suffer Prize. The final winner will receive a $1,000 USD cash prize.

UCI President Brian Cookson commented: “The UCI Women’s Road World Cup is a magnificent showcase for women’s cycling, and I am delighted that The Sufferfest will again be supporting the series in 2015 with this incredibly unique prize. This is a demonstration of their esteem for this exciting and increasingly popular discipline.”

UCI Vice-President, Tracey Gaudry also welcomed the news: “As a former professional cyclist I have witnessed many inspiring demonstrations of courage and gritty determination within the professional women’s peloton. I am delighted that, together with The Sufferfest, we will be able to highlight some of these amazing stories.”

Winners of The Suffer Prize presented by The Sufferfest will be communicated via social media (@UCIWomenCycling & @TheSufferfest). In addition, news and highlights of the races – including an interview with The Suffer Prize presented by The Sufferfest winner – will also be available on the UCI YouTube channel (www.tv.uci.ch) throughout the season.

As the UCI Official Sponsor of the 2015 Women Road World Cup, the Sufferfest will enjoy visibility throughout the season, having kicked off with the Boels Rental Ronde van Drenthe in Holland. The winner of The Suffer Prize on that occasion was Orica-AIS rider Lizzie Williams (pictured above), who crashed twice, chased back to the pack twice and then broke her rear derailleur and had to give up, having no further spare bike.

This initiative complements other activities resulting from the collaboration between the UCI and The Sufferfest. For example, registrations are now being received for the first week-long training camp open to the public at the UCI headquarters in Switzerland in June.

 

More information is available on The Sufferfest website. 

LIZZIE WILLIAMS OF ORICA-AIS

WINNER OF THE FIRST
SUFFER PRIZE PRESENTED BY THE SUFFERFEST
Williams crashed twice and had twomechanicals. She twice battled her way back from the caravan to the bunch before ultimately withdrawing because she was out of bikes to ride. Not only that, after she completed her interview for The Suffer Prize, she discovered that her team had left without her and shewas forced to find her own way home.”It was probably the worst day on the bike that I’ve ever had, but you have to take the good with the bad in this sport. I had a bad day and hopefully tomorrow will be sunshine and no crashes. You’ve got to get back. You can’t give up. If you’re going to give up, you might as well not be here. I’ve come all the way from Australia. I’m not going to give up just because I have a tumble. I got to the front and hit the cobbles tenth wheel, feeling really positive, and 500 metres later myderallieur broke off and snapped into my back wheel. That was the end of my day. I had no bikes left. I had two bikes and they were both broken.” 

 

Revolution Series Track Cycling Finale

Saturday 14th March 2015, Revolution 51

 

So we come to the end of another thrilling Revolution Series and what a treat it’s been, some of the worlds best sprinters and endurance riders mixing it up with top British Junior riders.

The finale of the season was held at it’s home track in Manchester at the National Cycling Centre where team Maloja Pushbikers stormed to victory in the Revolution Championship, Eleanor Dickinson and Rhys Britton took the young riders podiums in the HOY Future Stars Championships with consistent and tactical racing skills through this long season. The Championship crown didn’t go without a challenge, ORICA GreenEDGE were determined to upset the results with their bullish gutsy attacks and wins throughout the evening, Maloja Pushbikers had to work hard to remain on top. The nearest rivals to the HOY Future Stars top spot put in a fight too, Sophie Capewell and Fred Wright were in every attack with their teams.

 

Images ©chrismaher.co.uk/CyclingShorts.cc

AFTERNOON SESSION:

The afternoon got underway much to the disappointment of the crowd with the absence of headline sprinting star Jason Kenny who adorned the cover of the race programme. Jason pulled out of the meet after feeling unwell earlier in the morning. There was still a cracking line up for the sprint competitions with the likes of John Paul (Scotland), Lewis Olivia (GB) and Charlie Conord of France in the mix, all of which made it through the afternoons qualifying races to proceeding to the evenings action.

 

Elite Championship Flying Lap Men

Alex Edmondson of Orica GreenEDGE posted the best time, winning in a time of 13.487, 2nd was Achim Berkart of JLT Condor in a time of 13.858, and the rest of the riders posted above the 14 second mark with Leif Lampater (Maloja Pushbikers) posting a time of 14.014 in 3rd place.

 

Elite Championship Points Race (30km) Men
Alex Edmondson @ORICA_GreenEDGE storms to a win in the with a lead of 7 points with one laps to go, 2nd is @Maloja Pushbikes Leif Lampater starting the day off strongly,  3rd Achim Burkart.

 

UCI Mens Hour Record Attempt

Images ©chrismaher.co.uk/CyclingShorts.cc

Before the evenings Championship events got underway we saw Gustav Larsson take on the Hour Record. He was running a 58:14 schedule for his hour attempt. With 10km raced he was 13.03 seconds down and 1min 18 secs adrift at the halfway point. Unfortunately the clock worked against him and he saw the UCI Hour Record slip away from him. 50.160km gave him a new Swedish Hour Record. You can view Gustav’s times by clicking here.

Hour Record Holders under the new Unified rules set in 2014. Starting the renewed interest in the hour record, recently retired German Pro Cycling Jens Voigt set the benchmark of 51.110, the oldest holder of the record on 18th Sept 2014. He was followed by:

Matthias Brandle (Swi) managed a time of 51.852 30 in Oct 2014

Jack Bobridge (Aus), attempted the record on 31st Jan 2015 in Melbourne but fell short.

The current Record Holder is Rohan Dennis (Aus), who set his time on 8th Feb 2015 in Switzerland, WR 52.491

Alex Dowsett, was meant to ride the hour on 29th Feb 2015, but it was postponed with a possible April date rumoured. Alex is on the mend since his collarbone break and is back in training to tackle the record. Suggestions estimate a 17.1s lap average to beat Rohan Dennis’s time, around 53Kmph.

Other possible contenders this year include:

Thomas Deker

Bradley Wiggins – June 07th London

Fabian Cancellara

Images ©chrismaher.co.uk/CyclingShorts.cc

EVENING SESSION:

Elimination Race Women

Elimination womens race Brit Tate was first out. The race continued to drop riders off the back with 5 riders left in the womens elimination race Laura Trott appeared to be comfortable in her favoured style of riding (dangling off the back until she’s required to move to save her skin). After dropping some of the big names (Kay, Rowsell, Curtis & Barker) the final sprint for the line was between Laura Trott & Leire Olaberria of Spain, Laura won comfortably, it seems sitting on the devils tail suits Laura just fine.

 

Elite Championship Scratch Race (15km)Men

22 riders lined up for the mens Scratch race with vital Championship point up for grabs it was a two team race with Orica and Maloja fighting over the last few scraps of the championships spoils, Maloja Pushbikes lead the competition with 243 points. The Orica boys really needed Christian and Leif to struggle but there was no sign of that, there appeared to be tactics at play from Maloja, only making an effort when required and often sitting near the back and moving forward when there was a danger of Orica getting away. A change of tactics with 25 laps to go 11 riders broke off the front and gained half a lap. 4 riders break free from this lead group with Christian Grasmann leading them. At the 20 lap to go mark Joel Partington retires. Christian’s team mate Leif Lampater takes control on the front for a period with every move being watched by the Orica GreenEDGE boys who appear to have blistering speed to react to manoeuvres. At the 9 lap mark Trodden & De Ketele breakaway but to no avail.

The menace of Orica GreenEDGE’s Alex Edmondson & Miles Scotson force riders to react, along with Maloja’s Christian Grasmann they force all the riders to the top of the track as they get ready for the final sprint.

The form of Alex Edmondson is apparent as he looks like a pure sprinter as he attacks, Leif Lampater responds but has to settle for 2nd in what was a thrilling finish to the Scratch Race, unfortunately Orica didn’t really want to take Leif to the finish line with them as they just offset the valuable Orica points for the Championship, this was going to be a hard fought night of cycling and the Aussies meant business!

 

HOY Future Stars Scratch Race (5km) Boys

Going into the boys competition Rhys Britton was leading the championship with 400 points with 2nd placed rider Fred Wright on 354 points so it was all to play for. It was a high octane race, with 6 laps to go Anthony Anderson went off the front followed by Jamie Ridehalgh in a bid to win from the front, unfortunately the tactic didn’t work and the pack came back together with Fred Wright winning ahead of Matthew Draper and 3rd place was mopped up by Tom Piddock.

 

HOY Future Stars Scratch Race (5km) Girls

It appeared it was going to be an attacking evening of racing in all competition levels, but with 14 laps to go Sophie Capewell was striking out the peloton but the pack were carefully watching each other. It was a twitchy race. At 9 laps to go Monica Dew Hope took to the front for team Ignitr. In the closing laps of the race Esme Niblett for Madison Genesis held the front with the most active riders of the race sat on her wheel. When it came to the sprint for the line Sophie Capewell crossed the line first with Anna Docherty and Jess Roberts on her wheel taking 2nd and 3rd respectively.

 

Revolution Longest Lap (24 riders) Men 

Joel Partington of Madison Genesis decided he wanted to hug the start line at the top of the track and take the risk of being close to it until the gun went, it was a tactic that paid off, he managed to use his position and height to comfortably sprint to the finish with 2nd and 3rd placed riders breaking away with him. Joe Holt 2nd for Team USN and 3rd pace was Alex Edmondson of Orica GreenEDGE who was fast becoming the elite rider of the evening, he made sure he was in the mix in every one of his races.

 

UCI Scratch Race (10km) Women

The 40 lap race was all set to be a zinger, Jo Rowsell attacked 10 laps in and with a small group following her broke away. Jo managed to shake of the riders with her and went on to gain half to three quarters of a lap but she couldn’t break the elastic between her and the chasing pack. Laura Trott was sat in the wheels for the majority of the race as the crowd waited for her to attack, unfortunately for Jo she was drawn back into the peloton and the attack was left late by the riders and the race was taken by Ellie Coster, Laura only managed 3rd place with Katie Curtis taking 2nd, certainly not what the crowd expected but it was a brilliant tactical ride by Ellie Coster.

 

UCI Sprint 

With no Jason Kenny in the line up the competition wasn’t as spicy but the riders present put on a real show for the crowds. the Semi final was a match up of Lewis Oliva vs Jonathan Mitchell, Lewis knocked Jonathan out in two rounds after Mitchell was relegated for not holding his race line, no need for a decider. The face off between Charlie Conord of France and John Paul, went to just two rounds with Charlie being the victor in both to take him through to the race for gold with Lewis Olivia. In the end John Paul beat Jonathan Mitchell to the bronze without too much fuss.

The final ended up with Conord and Olivia taking a race each, it came to a decider. Not to be outdone the sprinters decided to show the crowd their track stand, it led to a frantic finish and the Frenchman won by a slim margin of 9cms on the line, it was confirmed on the velodrome screen to cheers from the crowd.

 

HOY Future Stars 6 Lap Dash Boys

The boys didn’t hold back with the race living up to it’s name, Rhys Britton and Fred Wright winding up the last few laps to fight for their valuable championship points, Rhys Britton won with Fred Wright 2nd and Matthew Draper 3rd, there seemed to be a group of usual suspects heading the peloton in the boys races for the evening.

 

HOY Future Stars 6 Lap Dash Girls

The 6 lap Dash was won by the consistently great Sophie Capewell ahead of Eve Jefferies and Megan Chard, Ellie Dickinson came in a close 4th.

 

Elite Championship Madison Time Trial Men

The mens Madison is always a favourite of mine and it didn’t disappoint.  Alex Edmondson actually struck quite an intimidating figure with his very strong riding style throughout the evening, he was like the Terminator on a bike, he and team mate Miles Scotson didn’t disappoint with their unbeatable time in the Madison TT, posting a time of 56.181, Team Maloja Pushbikers came in 2nd place but over one second down (57.862) JLT Condor were a whole second off their place (58.817) with the rest of the teams scattered between 58.896 and 1:00.840.

 

HOY Future Stars Points Race (5km) Boys

20 laps of the track and Fred Wright managed to get himself into every sprint earning valuable points. Rhys Britton managed to contest some points too stopping Fred from running away with all the goodies. Other riders who put in strong rides were Turnbull, Walls, Longstaff and Stewart, all contesting more than one of the sprints. The final race results where: 10 points to Fred Wright, 8 to Britton and 5 each for Longstaff and Stewart.

 

HOY Future Stars Points Race (5km) Girls

Another triumphant win for Sophie Capewell, the cherry on her championship cake, she won the first and final sprints of the race giving her an unassailable win of 10 points. Eleanor Dickinson came 2nd with 6 points and 3rd was Rebecca Raybould with 5 points, a close 4th was taken by Emily Tillett who also got 5 points but on count back hadn’t featured in the more than one sprint which was in the middle of the race to earn her points. Raybould.

 

Elite Championship Team Elimination Men

The elimination came down to the two teams of the evening and series, Maloja Pushbikers and Orica GreenEDGE. Int the final sprint Orica had more fuel left in the tank, no idea how since Alex Edmondson seemed to be over every move in every race of the day. A great win for Orica GreenEDGE who came away with the most points on the evening but sadly not enough for them to topple the consistency high scoring Maloja Pushbikers team of Christian Grasmann and Leif Lampater.

 

UCI Keirin

The last final of the 2014/15 Revolution Series was the UCI Keirin. It appeared the earlier racing had taken it’s toll on Charlie Conords legs as he came in 6th. The Czech rider Tomas Babek won with GB riders Lewis Olivia and John Paul jostling for position, coming in 2nd & 3rd respectively.

 

You can view the full Revolution 51 and final Championship results here.

 

The Revolution returns back to Freeview Television this series. The highlights will be shown the Saturday morning after the event on Channel 4. Then on 4OD catch-up on line.

Catch up with the highlights on Saturday 21st March at 7.00am. Presenting the one hour show will be Matt Barbet, Sian Welby, & Rebecca Charlton with Guest Presenter

The next round of Revolution, Season 13, will be back later in 2015 with Race 52.

 

It looks like there will be some changes to the Revolution Series for the 2015/16 season as it continues to evolve and dominate the track season in the UK, so watch this space for more information as it’s released!

NEXT SEASON TICKETS
A reminder that tickets for next season will go on sale on Monday 13th April exclusively to past customers – these will be available at a special discounted price to say thank you for your support again this season. Tickets will then go on sale a week later to British Cycling members and customers who pre-register for tickets here . Tickets will be on general release on 1st May.

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