This Christmas was going to be quiet as I hadn’t planned on going anywhere. Just thought I wasn’t going to see Josh for 10days as he was going away with the world triathlon champs, the Brownlee’s. Luckily there was room for 1 more in Josh’s apartment so I took the opportunity up, booked my flights days before, packed my cases and before you know it I was very grateful to be stood in Leeds airport off to Lanzarote.
Unfortunately nothing ever seems to be simple, trouble always follows. So what was supposed to be a 4hr flight ended up being 12hrs!! We were unable to land because the winds were so strong and ended up landing in Gran Canaria instead. So after a looonnggg wait we made it to Lanzarote, though I can’t complain too much as our friend flying from London had to stay the night till he could fly in the morning.
Once there, after being ripped off by taxi drivers, we made it to a place called Club la Santa. I’ve never been before but this place was ideal for any tri-athlete. It had proper running and swimming facilities, lakes, gym and quiet roads to cycle on. Not forgetting the all year round awesome weather which averaged about 25oc. However, on the Friday we were told a rare storm was due.. some storm! It rained during the night for about 3hrs and by time I’d woken up the roads were dry again. I can’t say the same for my kit though which got blown off the washing line down 3stories into someone else’s balcony!
The island looked a lot like the moon, and it wasn’t particularly hilly or flat, it wasn’t even that big. It was just known for being very windy so riding on your own wasn’t much fun. Luckily there were some great athletes among the two Brownlee’s, the women’s triathlon performance squad who were so strong on bikes and great company to ride with.
Away from the training we managed to fit in some sunbathing, volley ball, go-karting, boxing, kayaking, and even some karaoke!!
During one of the many nights were the lads went for the odd drink down the bar, I noticed a picture of one of our very own riders.. the lovely Sarah Storey and her partner Barney on the wall of fame, along with such riders as Jan Ullrich and Eddie Merckx. So although it felt like I was on a totally different planet it still didn’t mean I wasn’t thinking about you guys!
Talking about famous cyclists.. believe it or not we met Thomas Dekker – ex Rabobank rider and Johan Van Summeren – of team Garmin, who were happy to take the lads on a massive smash fest and gave us some advice about our future careers in cycling.
It was a great to be there so thanks to everyone for making it so fun. Glad to be back in England for Christmas though as it wouldn’t have been the same with palm trees, beaches, and sangria. It’s very cold here and snow is on its way, but I suppose I’ll just have to man-up and get on with some turbo. There’s also room for a good old cafe ride to Cav Pav on Christmas Eve, as its free refills day it’s going to be a long stop.
Merry Christmas!
