Archive for June, 2011

Meet the Team :: Phil “The Power” Richards

Thursday, June 30th, 2011

Don’t mistake Phil’s diminutive size for a lack of full on racing grit. Meet Bike Science – Planet X team member Phil Richards. With an age group win at Lanzarote Ironman in 2010 and a finish at the Hawaii Ironman in Kona to her name, Phil’s gunning for a top finish at this year’s 70.3 Worlds in Las Vegas.

Sporting CV to date:
1992-2004 – played rugby up to county level – at 5′1 was regularly bounced, gave me a good grounding in pain and suffering
2005 – Comrades ultra-marathon South Africa – 10th female novice in 8hr 21, painful, like properly painful
2006 – learnt to swim so I could do IMUK, wasn’t last out of the water and didn’t drown, was chuffed
2007 – Challenge Roth – awful, no further detail necessary
2009 – IM Austria – 10.55, terrible run, realised proper training was necessary as was owning a decent bike
- Helvellyn tri – 5th overall
2010 – IM Lanzarote – 1st in AG, one of favourite races to date
- IM Hawaii – had lost my mojo and couldn’t really be bothered. Was beaten out of the water by a man with one arm (I’m not even sure he had legs), and blown off the road twice on the bike, but was first Brit in AG
2011 – Mallorca 70.3 – missed out on win by 1min 47 but got a slot for Vegas anyway…will keep you posted…

New in :: REAL Bikes for Junior riders

Thursday, June 30th, 2011

At Bike Science we know the importance of good bike fit. There’s no rider group where fit is more important than juniors. We specialize in custom fitting bikes for junior riders with an eye to looking after them as they grow and develop as cyclists.

We supply REAL bikes, to suit ages from approx 7 years of age (depending on rider size). Whether these be our BRAND NEW range of  junior specific Fondriest race bikes or their move to their first adult frame (from Planet X, On-One or Van Nicholas) with smaller components to fit the riders small reach and hands. Limited gearing is available on all bikes to comply with British Cycling rules for competetive riders.

We can even supply complete custom geometry in aluminium, carbon or titanium for when only the very best will do!

CONTACT US FOR DETAILS OR TO BOOK A SIZING APPOINTMENT

Meet the Team :: “Small” Paul Horsfall

Tuesday, June 28th, 2011

Almost the smallest male triathlete on the planet, Paul’s power to weight ratio matches that of a flea allowing him to leap tall buildings in a single bound and ride up hills like they aren’t there. Improved biking in the last 12 months along with a rumored step up to long distance racing on the cards means Paul is one to watch for 2011.

Paul Horsfall is a (questionably) Elite Triathlete who up until now has mostly raced at Standard Distance Draft Legal events in the UK. After qualifying for the GB Age Group team in 2007 in  his first year in the sport,  Paul has constantly pushed the boundaries of his triathlon career from South West Champion in 2008 to nudging into the elite area of the sport in 2010. “My heart has always been in the draft legal format, ever since I watched Tim Don racing in Hamburg I have wanted to do this, now im racing the likes of Tim and the British Elite men I am living the dream, I mean yes they smash me to pieces, but to step up to the mark and race your heroes is such a buzz for me”.

Paul’s career highlights include a 4th place at Liverpool last year and a 2nd Place at the inaugural Bristol Draft Legal triathlon where he beat many of his local rivals in this format. This season working away has taken its toll on his racing but a 2nd place at Bradford upon Avon triathlon in a closely fought race against local pro Tom Room was a good start to the season, since then an illness caused a DNF at Blenheim Elite but Paul is hopeful that he will be fit again for London Elite at the end of July. “This season was all about establishing myself in the elite field and getting used to my new job, anything else is a bonus for me”.

Why not try TriBlogs? It’s FREE!

Tuesday, June 28th, 2011

At Bike Science we’re always on the lookout for great tools to help triathletes and cyclists get faster. So when a free one comes along that can help athletes of any level, we’re all for it!

TriBlogs is a way to plan, record, discuss and share all your sporting experiences. The site is free to join and all the features that you have access to now will always be free. By signing up to TriBlogs you will be able to:
• Plan training sessions and races
• Record your training stats – Time, Distance, HR, Power…
• Chart your progress with graphs and tables
• Create your own Triathlon blog
• Use the Forum to talk to other Triathletes
Keeping a record of your training will help you to track your own improvements, keep you motivated and stop you over training! You can use your ‘public blog’ to share information about your training or use the forum to ask questions or share ideas with other triathletes. There is also a premium service for a small subscription (less than £2 a month) which entitles you to even more features, including a Garmin plugin, iCalendar sync, unlimited storage for charts, kit items and fitness tests, and an option to generate revenue from your blog using AdSense.

What are you waiting for? Give TriBlogs a try today!

Meet the Team :: Sam Hayward

Tuesday, June 28th, 2011

Rapid runner Sam is a relative newcomer to triathlon, but her early results show, she’s got the potential to do something pretty special this season. Here’s something about Sam in her own words…

“I’m very new to triathlon, with my addiction only beginning at the end of the tri season in 2009, when I decided I’d become bored of just racing marathons, halves and 10ks and needed a new challenge. After much help and advice I purchased my first road bike and foolishly went straight in at the deep end with spd pedals….I still have the scars from my comedy falls but not deterred I persevered! Swimming was also an alien activity I could barely swim 50m front crawl when I started and was known as “windmill arms” when I joined BADTri but with some great coaching I’m no longer sinking in the pool. 2010 saw my first full season, I think the best parts included representing GB at the ITU World Championships in Budapest and finishing the year with my first Ironman in Western Australia which has provided me with qualification to the ITU Long Course World Championships in Nevada latter this year.

My job as a Obstetrics and Gynaecology trainee leaves me pretty sleep deprived and limited with time, so I find myself fitting in training at some unearthly hours (hence the profile picture with bags under the eyes taken following a 5am training ride). However, I love the challenge and my impatience to succeed in everything I do spurs me on. My race season this year has been pretty empty as work had to take precedence with some post-graduate exams needing to be passed but now that box is ticked I back stronger than last year and extremely excited about my forth coming races as a new member of the Bike Science team. So 2011 sees me racing Challenge Roth, where I’m aiming to improve on my full distance PB, and as a GB age grouper in the World Long Course Championships. This is the most I’ve pushed my body to do and as long as it holds up to the challenge I’ll also be competing in a middle distance race in September, most likely the Full Boar.”

WIN A RETUL BIKE FIT in our Fantasy Tour de France Mini League!

Sunday, June 26th, 2011

Join in with this years Velogames Fantasy Tour de France Bike Science mini league to be in with a chance of winning a Retul Level 2 bike fit worth £185. Sign up online HERE to play “directeur sportif” and create your own ultimate Tour team. Follow your team’s progress throughout the race with daily updates on our FACEBOOK PAGE.

It’s FREE. Here’s how to play…

1. Sign up and create a team on the Velogames Fantasy Tour website.

2. Edit your team roster to create your ultimate tour dream team

3. Join the Bike Science mini league by pressing the “enter a mini league” button and entering our league code : 24090718

4. Follow your teams progress throughout the Tour with daily updates on the Bike Science FACEBOOK PAGE

Check out the super cool Bike Science jersey in the custom team jersey selection section!!

Meet the Team :: Ruth Bradbrook

Sunday, June 26th, 2011


Here’s Ruth. The latest recruit to Team Bike Science – Planet X for 2011. Ruth’s a STRONG biker with eyes on beating as much of the pro field (and all of the age groupers!) at this years Ironman Wales. A few words from Ruth…

“I’ve been doing triathlon for roughly 10 years. Was a swimmer as a child and then started to do some running, then about 10 years ago had a go at triathlon for a few years, had a bit of a gap doing other sports including kayaking when I did an open sea crossing from scotland to ireland and back in a weekend to see my uncle and for a pint or 2 of guiness :-) I then got back into it with more of a focus from 2009

Main achievements to date:
2007 world bog snorkelling triathlon ladies winner and world record holder!
2009 silver at european long distance champs, 3rd in age group at ironman lanzarotte
2010 qualified for hawaii at Ironman UK where I was also fastest ‘non pro’ and beat a couple of the back end of the pro field :-) in a time of 10:38
2010 7th in age group at kona in 10:29! And loved every minute of it
2011 2nd at weymouth middle distance; 1st at west wales 100 mile TT

Aims for 2011:
Win age group at national 100 mile TT champs
Win age group and be fastest ‘non pro’ women at Ironman Wales. Aiming to do a 3.30 marathon run, would love to get close to 10 hrs but I think the bike course might be a bit too hilly for this.

Beyond:
Sub 10hr Ironman”

Meet the Team :: Iron Bar Bending Double Ironman Hywel Davies

Saturday, June 25th, 2011

Known as the “Big Ring King”, Bike Science – Planet X Hardman, Hywel Davies made his name in gym based fitness decathlons, indoor rowing and adventure racing. After doing the Southern Traverse 5 day adventure race in New Zealand in 1999 as well as winning National Fitness titles in the same year, Hywel discovered his missing link was Ironman Triathlon. He did his first in 2000 in Almere, Holland in a time of 10.28 after a 1.18 swim filled with panic attacks and holding on to the rescue boat.

2 more visits to Almere, including a revist after a career threatening leg break in 2002, got the time down to 9.18 and then Ironman UK from 2005 to 2007 put Hywel in the ranks of one of the top Age Group long distance triathletes. Hywel raced in Hawaii in 2006 but suffered from lack of acclimatisation and a jellyfish sting but still battled onto a 9.45 finish.

Hywel won the UK Double Ironman in 2008 in 21 hours and 30 minutes and went on to set an Iron distance PB in Roth with 8.44, in 2009. Hywel has won race at every distance from sprint to Double Iron including rowathlons, duathlons, 3 iron distance wins and 7 middle distance win.

He has promised that in 2011, he will improve his swimming to get out with a group of pros rather than the driftwood.

Bike Science Bristol :: Closed Saturday the 25th for Summer Break

Saturday, June 25th, 2011

Bike Science Bristol branch will be closed for a short summer break on Saturday the 25th of June. Re-open again 10am on Tuesday the 28th. Have a good weekend’s riding everyone.

Meet the Team :: Dan (the fish) Phillips

Thursday, June 23rd, 2011

Meet Dan, Team Bike Science – Planet X’s resident uber swimmer. He’s getting faster on the bike and run every year too. Despite an addiction to cookies and cold beer he’s gunning for a scorching fast time at Ironman Austria in two weekends time.

Here’s Dan’s own take on his tri career to date…

“My route into triathlon was through a swimming background having spent 15 years as a child swimming, both in Bristol and in Cardiff whilst in University. I spent 3 years training under Dave Haller who is one of the best swim coaches in the UK having coached; David Davies, Mark Foster, Duncan Goodhew, Adrian Moorhouse and David Wilkie – not a bad resume! I still use many of the training principles today from my 3 years with him as I always have been and always will be self coached. My best event used to be the 200m Breastroke where my pb used to be 2.25 and my 100m pb 1.07 (These days I struggle to do that frontcrawl which is worrying!)

Having quit swimming in 2003 I had a couple of years in the wilderness, with drinking, partying and playing football my main priorities. As a dare on new years eve in 2005 I entered the London Triathlon and have never looked back. My running was pretty shocking at the start being a typical “fish out of water”, but after teaming up with local run coach Steve Hollier my run splits these days aren’t quite so shocking and my half marathon pb is now down to 1.18 which means I can at least stay with most on the run.

In 2008 I raced for the GB age group team but became disillusioned by it all after racing a Duathlon in Vancouver because the swim was cancelled, pretty frustrating when you are in the shape of your life. After this setback and a pretty low key season in 2009 (didn’t quite break 2 hours for an Olympic but got very close on a number of occasions) I thought I would move up to long distance in 2010.

The main focus this season is IM Austria where I hope to break the pb I set last season in my first Iron Distance race, The Outlaw – I crossing the line in 9.43. This winter has gone well, with a bike science team training camp in France, some injury setbacks (medial plica) but I am in pretty good shape and should be on for a good time if I nail my race plan and don’t get sidetracked! A top 3 for my age would be nice but looking at previous results most of the guys in the 25-29 age are pretty much full time and I would need to cross the line in about 8.45 so that’s out of the question. I won’t be taking a Hawaii slot either if I did get one, I will leave that for another day as I want to tick some other boxes first before I go and race that.

Longer term plans are not set having recently found out I am going to be dad for the first time in spring 2012. Next season will more than likely be some smaller races in the UK, potentially Wimbleball or another 70.3 race along with some local races around Bristol.”