Q. When and what made you start cycling

A. I started cycling in May 2017 as part of rehabilitation after a knee operation. The surgeon advised no running going forward if I could help it but that cycling is pretty good for knees. So I bought a road bike and off I went!

Q. What sort of riding do you enjoy

A. I am a roadie although I have ridden a mountain bike – now gifted to my son. I have to say I prefer riding in the dry and above 4 degrees. A chatty 30 – 50 miles with a coffee stop suits me down to the ground but I also enjoy pushing myself a little and sometimes going for a bit of a blast.

Q. Is cycling the only sport you do

A. I enjoy yoga, Pilates and cross-fit style gym training with body weight and weights. So much so that I qualified as a personal trainer and separately as a yoga teacher and Pilates teacher and now teach all three on a part time basis.

Q. How often do you ride

A. I ride 1-4 times per week depending on weather but in winter a lot of that might be on an indoor trainer due to wet and darker conditions.

Q. Other than cycling what are your other hobbies do you have

A. Yoga, Gym and all things fitness and nutrition related plus learning German. I’m getting in to a bit of gardening and this year started growing a few veggies during lockdown which was quite good fun. 

Q. What is your most memorable ride

A. I really enjoyed the 100 mile ride from St Neots in 2018. My longest ride ever and one and only 100. I put in some decent training and was very happy to get round in just over 6 hours which was fastest female on the day. This year I attempted San Salvador Climb in Mallorca. After going up in the car several times over the years I never thought I would get up it on a bike but I did and I was pleased as punch to get to the top without stopping. The views from the top are simply stunning and the descent was pretty hairy scary as well with all those hair-pin bends.

Q. Why did you join MDCC and what do you enjoy most about the club

A. I joined the club to ride in a group and discover new routes. I like a chatty ride and the club definitely accommodates that. I am really enjoying meeting new people and discovering new routes and new coffee stops.

Q. Does anyone else in the family cycle

A. My husband cycles and rides a hybrid bike. My younger son cycles a couple of miles to school every day on my old mountain bike and this year he got a road bike too and we trained for a 32 mile sportive. It was cancelled due to covid-19 but we did a local route to the same distance which was a fab effort from him and his longest ever ride.

Q.. If you could have any bike what would it be

A. I really love my bike (specialized Amira Comp) which has done me proud as my first and only (so far…) road bike. I would like to try a TT bike just for the hell of it to see how much speed I could get out of it but the aggressive riding position doesn’t suit my back so it wouldn’t be a regular outing. One of these days I will get myself a winter bike with mud guards and everything!

Q. How have you managed in 2020 with all of its challenges

A. Cycling has been a fabulous hobby in 2020 as even in full lockdown we were able to keep going and the empty roads were just marvellous.