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London based couple Dave & Vikki travelled with us to the 100 th  Giro on our Bergamo and the Italian Alps trip. Dave proposed to Vikki at the top of “Europe’s hardest climb” – the Mortirolo pass.  Find out why and more importantly if she said yes!   Q: Was it a surprise Vikki? And why Dave, did you chose to propose on what Lance Armstrong called the hardest climb he had ever ridden? Vikki: “It was a complete surprise, completely unexpected. About a third of the way up I had a mechanical which had previously rendered me unable to cycle. Dave was extremely frustrated, uncharacteristically so. I now understand why But we managed to fix the bike and after a couple of falls trying to get back on (its so blinking steep) we continued. At the top he throws an Ocado bag at me saying he has a present for me. I thought he was asking me to carry some of his stuff for him given him being a bit tired from the climb but upon opening the bag I discovered a tell-tale small square box. I said ye

With less than 4 weeks to go until the Etape du Tour – 178km in the French Alps on 16 th July which follows the route of stage 18 of the Tour de France… …I’ve been continuing to mix up my riding with a combination of road riding, mountain biking and some leisurely group rides, including the HSBC UK City Ride in Birmingham. Enjoying closed roads during HSBC City Ride in Birmingham. The longest ride I’ve done is 4.5 hours (114km). It had probably been over a year since I’d last ridden for that long, as in the build up to the Olympics I was spending most of my time on the track. I have always loved riding my bike in the sun so the current warm weather hasn’t been putting me off. I also decided it is good heat acclimation ahead of the trip to France, so I’ve been trying to make the most of it when I can! Recent high UK temperatures have hopefully helped me acclimatise for the alps. The heat has also got me thinking about my nutrition and hydration planning ahead of the event, so

1000 runners, which is a record breaking number, took to the streets of Tameside last week for the annual Tour of Tameside. This iconic event attracted it’s usual mix of club-class competitors, social runners and charity fundraisers. Since being reintroduced three years ago, the Tour has continued to grow in success, this year runners have traveled from China, Australia, United States, Scotland and Ireland to compete in the event. Reflecting on a momentous four days, Sports Tours International CEO, Chris Bird said: “This event as everybody knows started many, many years ago. “We had a short break but decided to bring it back, thanks largely to Ron Hill; he was the person who inspired us to take it onto the next level. “It takes a whole year to put this event together, and to do that you need a dedicated team, but you also need great sponsors.” A number of local businesses lent their support to this year’s Tour, including Kerry Foods, Active Tameside, New Charter, Davies Sports a

Is your Dad a runner or cyclist? We can help you. If your Dad is a runner. Did he start running this year, bought all the gear but his motivation has dropped a little? Give him a race entry to a local 10k, that will give him a target. All our race are in the North West. UKFAST we love Manchester 10k City of Salford 10k Alder Hey 10k Whichever race you choose, just promise him that you’ll be there when he crosses the finish line so he receives the full finish line hero experience. Is your dad the first up when the dancing starts? Does he always enjoy a good party and is the life and soul? Give him race entry to Holland’s biggest running party “the Dam tot Damloop” , it will be right up his street. Big party at Dam to Damloop   Race entry to Disney Paris Half marathon. By promising to buy your Dad the race entry for this fun-filled affair, this could be a perfect plan to get the holiday you always dreamed of to Euro Disney. View travel packages options here: Can you

Gavin Bayliss has very kindly allowed us to use his very informative blog regarding riding this year’s Etape. Gavin has lived in Serre Chevalier since 2011 and is a veteran of three previous Etape Du Tours. You can find his full version here at the Style Altitude website. Etape du Tour Sunday 16th July – Briancon Col D’Izoard I have ridden much of this route over the years, both sides of the Izoard, a fair few ascents of Col de Vars (from Guillestre), around Lac Serre Poncon, but I have never ridden from Lac Serre Poncon on to Barcelonnette and ascend the Col de Vars from the south side from Saint-Paul-sur-Ubaye. While out this autumn, on All Saints Day, 1st November, I rode 126km of the 178km stage. Parking up at Mont Dauphin, I cycled down to Embrun and on to Savins de Lac then around the lake, where you climb up to the highest point at Le Sauze-du-Lac at 1,020m, and stunning views with the backdrop of the lake. Photo credit: Gary Bayliss From Sauze du Lac you descend down a

Final month This final training block is about sharpening up for your key event.  The hard miles are in the bank and you are ready to enjoy all this fitness you have worked so hard to achieve.  Believe in yourself!  Look at the taper section then work back from there to plan the next 3-6 weeks of training before your taper starts. Goals: Continue to address any areas highlighted by your technical planning review Get 2 more simulation events completed (sportives or self supported rides) Plan your taper into your key event From your technical planning review last month you should have a list (hopefully not a long one) of areas which needed addressing during this final phase of training.  These will carry over into this month to ensure you are in the best possible shape to perform on your big day.  These may be psychological, physiological, technological or even knowledge gaps; make sure you are fully prepared. Whichever event you’re targeting you want to get at least two more bi

The clock is ticking towards my longest bike ride ever on 16 th July – the 178km Etape du Tour in the French Alps. For this blog I thought I would talk about motivation. As a full time athlete I often got asked about how I stayed motivated, but the answer was relatively simple. I was training for the Olympics, the biggest sporting competition in the World, and I was completely focused on winning a gold medal. Of course there were bad days, but in general the huge goal of the Olympics always got me out of bed and on my bike. In my retirement, however, motivation is very different. I am now exercising for health and need to maintain motivation during a busy lifestyle where it is so easy to put things off til tomorrow, or next week, or next month. So here are some of my top tips for how I am keeping motivated. Set a goal My goal is to complete the Etape in July. This is keeping me motivated to go out on my bike as there is an event coming up. A solid goal with a date is far better