by hattenburrow | Jul 29, 2014 | Biking Adventures
At the weekend we set off in a mini adventure, to cycle around the Isle of Wight.
Armed with our road bikes, energy drinks and Bounce Balls we set off from Shanklin and headed towards Ryde heading North East along the coastal path. This part of the Island is the most built up, travelling through Sandown, Bembridge and into St Helen the scenery changed from holiday resort to quaint English sea side village with twisty streets and white painted buildings. Sea View is the next village along the coast, which offers plenty of cute coffee shops, ice cream stalls and fish and chips, a perfect place to stop and take in the view of Portsmouth, however today we were on a mission. A mission to train for Ride London, we have two weeks until the event and so today wanted to keep stopping minimal!
The sun by this point was blazing down on us and when we reached East Cowes we had a banana stop and refilled our water bottles whilst waiting for the chain ferry. Just over a quarter of the way round we were making good time and were happy with our progress. West Cowes is a bustling sea side village which on a bike will test your slalom skills as your navigate through tourists, shoppers and buggies!
Munching on Jelly babies and Bounce Balls at intervals we were feeling strong having covered a good proportion of our ride.
From here the landscape changed from coastal road to country roads with plenty of twists and turns and a great deal of hills! We made a stop in Freshwater a beautiful little bay on the west coast which today was packed with tourists soaking up the sun.
We rode up to the Dandelion café where we got a take away sandwich and sat on the cliff to eat.
As welcoming as this rest bite was, getting going again we were hit with a long hill climb this was the start of the coastal road which weaved its way up and down the edge of the Island.
With not much wind this was a sweltering part of the journey in the mid day sun and we took on a lot of water. The open road was often the only thing we could see for miles as we kept spinning towards our destination.
Blackgang with only £1 left of our money I made our last water run to a shop in Niton luckily a 1 litre bottle was 65p which kept us going on the hilliest part of our journey so far. 
A road closed in Ventnor meant a gruelling diversion before the last climb up through the old village into Shanklin.
With tired legs and out of jelly babies Martyn and I were glad to be back and in need of a well earned cup of tea!
63.23 miles, 4 hours 47 minutes, 1,352 calories burnt.
Back on the ferry to the mainland, ready for our next adventure.
by hattenburrow | Jun 26, 2014 | Kit Reviews, Nutrition
This week my mission is to cover 100 miles so far in the last two days I have covered 55miles so well on my way to achieving my goal as its only Wednesday!
Yesterday I decided to go on a hilly 25 mile ride. The weather was hot so I used an electrolyte drink and a Protein, Nuts & Seeds bar from USN. Butser Hill is the highest point in the South Downs National Park and one of my favourite climbs, mainly for the view from the top!
I have only recently got back on my road bike and this was the first time, in a long time that I had climbed Butser Hill. When I reached the top I ate half of my USN energy bar whilst taking in the view. The first thing I noticed about this bar is even with 14g of protein it has no ‘protein bar’ taste to it. The nuts and seeds are covered in delicious honey making this a sweet nutritious treat. I really like the inclusion of pumpkin seeds which balance the sweetness.
After eating half I carried on my journey downhill and started to make my way back home. When I got home I ate the other half which was the perfect snack to keep my reaching for anything unhealthy while I cooked dinner.
The benefits of this as a snack on a longer ride is it felt substantial where a gel is a quick energy fix it does not leave you feeling nourished like the USN bar did.
At 65grams it’s a large bar which can be eaten in stages making it a handy thing to carry.
For long training rides and sportives I would highly recommend this bar and will be looking to use them as part of my nutrition plan during Ride London in August.
Check out my other USN reviews here.
by hattenburrow | Jun 23, 2014 | Biking Adventures
Swinley is one of the top spots for riding in the South. Swinley Forest stretches from Bracknell in the north to Bagshot in the south. A great location close to London, with good road links, making Swinley an ideal place for a blast on your bike after a hard days work.
Swinley used to be a great place to ride if you had local knowledge of how to find the best single track. However without this you could more often than not spend a lot of time getting lost riding up and down fire roads looking for single track. Although getting lost is a great part of mountain biking, the issue with this was that the single track didn’t flow as a course and there was always the potential to meet someone coming the other way to you down sections which was, at times a little scary!
Swinley Forest has recently been turned into a trail centre with blue, red and green graded routes, so there is something for everyone. The blue and red routes can be linked together to create around a 15 mile loop linking together a lot of the great old singletrack like labyrinth, a sweet section which drops from the top of the old ‘expert mountain bike’ zone into a sandy downhill section through the trees and spits you out into a clearing in the forest where you then begin to climb a steady incline, weaving through the trees. Just as you think you have reached the top the trail turns down hill, before yet another bit of up and then finally a long downhill section with plenty of berms, roots and tree gaps to play with, before you leave the forest and end up on a fire road at the bottom of the hill, ready to make the climb back to the top. The new trail sections were built by Rowan Sorrell and the ‘Back On Track’ team and add a new variety to the trail.
Now that the trail is graded more people can enjoy the trails safely and it encourages the less bike savvy to stick to the green and blue routes, leaving the red route for the more advanced biker. Its also a relief to all be going in the same direction which makes the obstacles you have to dodge of the tree kind instead of the two legged on wheels kind!
Arriving at Swinley you are greeted by “The Look Out Discovery Centre” which is great place for refreshments to replenish those calories burnt off biking the trails, I would highly recommend the lemon cake!
Leaving the car park you ride onto the first section of blue graded trail which meanders up through the trees. The incline is slight and this section is a great warm up to get the blood pumping and legs warmed up. Crossing the first fire road the track continues onwards and upwards showing you a peep of what is to come, in the form of a downhill switch back section, which leaves your heart pumping and you eager for more.
Swinley is great for all year round riding and the new trail sections have been built to withstand the British weather, draining quickly when its wet, which is a real bonus.
Swinley is great for beginner riders who want to develop confidence and bike handling skills on the blue and green routes. The green one mile loop is also a brilliant place for kids to get their first taste of single track its a flowing loop which they can really gain confidence on, before heading out onto the blue trail.
Intermediate and advanced riders will also enjoy Swinley as it has a little bit of everything. From heart pumping hills, fast and twisting flats and of course, the best bit is the downhill, which is varied from sandy and stony to compact and rooty, with lots of table tops, berms and switch backs giving every rider the opportunity to push their skills to the next level.
The blue and red trails link together to make a ‘blue, red, blue’ trail with the red starting about half way through the blue, this loop is around 15 miles long and is the best way to get the most out of riding at Swinley.
My favourite thing about this spot is the variety. You enter a forest of Scots pine and can loose yourself in the trail. It flows effortlessly through the forest linked together by a couple of fire roads but 80% is single track, this makes it one of my favourite places to train as it offers a good selection of terrains and features to make the riding different and enjoyable. Swinley’s location and variety make it a brilliant place for mountain bikers in the South East to get their single track fix without having to travel too far.
With more potential expansion of the red trail I am really looking forward to what Swinley could offer in the future, the Coed Y Brenin of the South East, Perhaps?
by hattenburrow | Jun 10, 2014 | Racing
Today I raced at the Southern cross country series round five at QE Park. Racing so close to home was great! The alarm went off at 07.00 which was still early for a Sunday but no way near as bad as the usual 5.30 starts on a race day. The race start was at Head Down near to QE Park in Buriton, 10 minutes from our house. We left at 8.20 to give plenty of time to ride the course and warm up before the race start at 10.00. I was excited and nervous about riding my new bike as I hadn’t had a proper opportunity to test it out on single track yet.
We arrived at the venue in the middle of the woods. My practise lap went well and I was happy with my choice of tyre leaving a Maxxis Ardent on the front and putting on a gripper Mavic Roam on the back.
The course was good, although starting with a long slog up a fire track onto uphill single track was a tough way to start! The trail meandered through the woods mainly off camber, switch backs and roots where the obstacles in this part of the course. It then led out onto a fire road ascent which seemed to go on forever!
Getting off this track and back onto the wood single track was a relief, as it soon turned back down hill crossing another fire road onto the last descent of the course, which was a triple arrow down, with a tight right hand bend and a jump at the bottom. I tried going to the right as it was dry and less sloppy, this was not the right line, as I could not make the corner. I went back to the top and tried staying high on the bank to the left which meant having to pop over a ledge, this worked a lot better as the angle into the corner was easy from here and although the jump/step was big my new Silverback with its 130mm of travel seemed to make light work of popping down it.
Returning back to the arena it was time to grid. I felt so nervous as I lined up with Jenny and Flo in my category, two very competent riders. We were set off in a mass start and I soon found myself stuck as we entered the single track behind people I needed to be in front of. I worked hard to get to the front of them, and soon found myself, where I wanted to be, on the back of Flo’s wheel who was on the back of Jenny’s wheel. I kept looking to over take but the track was tight and this made it hard. Going into the downhill part of the single track Jenny clipped a root which took her off and Flo went into her, I took the opportunity to zip round the side and pushed the pace to get some space between myself and them. I was happy with the way my bike seemed to hold its own on twisty single track and I soon passed others. On the fire road I pushed as hard as I could to keep the gap. Frustratingly Flo got in front of me and I couldn’t stick with her pace on my 27.5 against her 29″ wheels. (and the fact she is a very strong climber as I found out)
The next bit of single track I worked hard to pull back the gap and had Flo is my site, but annoyingly a guy on his practise lap came off in front of me on the big descent which left me no choice but to hop off and run down. This lost me precious time and although I gave it my all I couldn’t regain the group.
Coming back into the arena after the last climb I felt pretty shattered I pushed on and as I disappeared into the trees caught sight of Jenny behind me. I knew I had to get a large gap between us before the fire road as this would be where she would be able to catch me.
I had a couple of silly errors as I battled to keep second place but lucky by the time I went into my third and final lap I couldn’t see Jenny any more. I knew she wasn’t too far behind so I kept pushing on and gave it 110%, I was relieved when I crossed the finish line in second and felt proud to of kept going even when I felt so tired.
My new Silverback bike performed brilliantly and I can’t wait to race it again next week at the Nationals! Bring it on!
Lap times:
Lap 1: 27:17
Lap 2: 29:06
Lap 3: 29:32
by hattenburrow | May 24, 2014 | Kit Reviews
Trail 42 Bamboo Tee
Having never owned or worn a bamboo technical t-shirt before I wasn’t sure what to expect from my Trail 42 bamboo tee.
Slipping on the t-shirt the first thing I noticed was the soft texture unlike any cotton t-shirt I had it seemed smooth on my skin. The tee is made from 70% bamboo and 30% organic cotton. With no inside labels it means no annoying irritation which is great.
Taking part in mountain biking and being a girl some times throws up wardrobe issues! Like most girls I enjoy shopping and like to wear clothes that look good and I feel comfortable in (heels not included). This is sometimes a challenge when I go to buy clothing for mountain biking. As your usually faced with two options, lycra all the way in which case you can get nice comfortable women fitting, or baggy grungy looking ‘mountain biking’ clothing which has no style or thought for who its customer is and what they want.
Trail 42’s women specific cut tees, including the classic bamboo tee, are cut flatteringly for women and include that all important longer length to keep your back covered when out riding.
The style is classic with a round neckline. The colour is a brilliant deep purple which I love, its just the right amount of girl power without being in your face ‘girly’.
The ultimate test!
Earlier on in the year I was fortunate enough to visit Switzerland to shoot an advert, during this time I was going to ride my bike as part of it, I packed my tee thinking this would be the ultimate test of versatility.
I wore my bamboo tee as a base layer to visit The Top of Europe to do some filming, the temperature was down at -5 at 3,454 metres above sea level.
We were filming a ski shoot and I was having to be quite active walking up and down a ski run, building kickers and riding a ski bike, which was great fun. I then had some time waiting and watching the skiers I was worried about getting cold but my bamboo tee kept me warm and comfortable.
The Friday was my day in the spot light the weather was beautiful but rain was forecast and as with any mountains you can’t rely on the weather forecast apart from the one you get when you look out the window. With this in mind I put on my bamboo tee under my jersey.
The filming was done in different locations on a trail half way up a mountain. There was short bursts of activity mixed with standing around talking over the shots. I felt comfortable in my bamboo tee, it kept me warm but also kept wicking the sweat away from my skin so I could remain focused on my biking instead of thinking about having to add on extra layers.
This Trail 42 bamboo tee is very versatile it is great as a base layer but also works well as a top to ride in on a daily basis. It has a classic stylish look which can be worn on and off the trail.
Munching on Jelly babies and Bounce Balls at intervals we were feeling strong having covered a good proportion of our ride.
