Mike Simpson
stories
Salt is being rubbed firmly into open wounds at the moment; the current situation of nursing an injury after a knee operation and really feeling the onset of being in my late forties is being compounded by losing a few local Strava KOMs (King of the Mountains).Strava is a lot of fun, I started using
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Someone recently asked me - ''Why don't you start running again?''
In my mind I'm laughing and thinking - you idiot, what a ridiculous question! You have no idea you buffoon! I'm not sure what I actually said out loud but the notion was dismissed instantly.
The following happened the
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An early teenage obsession with Clint Eastwood movies planted some pretty idiotic notions into my head. Most I grew out of pretty quickly but one remained. After multiple viewings of The Eiger Sanction, I deemed it a viable idea to one day do some mountaineering. I was realisic enough to und
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The carousel is on what is probably its 15th lap, five minutes ago it was full of suitcases of varying shapes and sizes, now there are just a couple left. I am on my own, approaching 11.30 at night, in the arrivals baggage reclaim of the tiny Asturius airport in northern Spain. A old Spanish lady
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Last Saturday was almost a brilliant day. Halfway through the National Cyclocross Championships in Shrewsbury, I was in 6th place and looking good to podium in the 45-49 cat, to match my bronze medal in the 40-49 cat from 2013. The conditions were pretty epic with more running required than usual,
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The '80 mile rule' was my staple. I conjured it up a few years ago. I would never finish a ride having ridden between 80 and 100 miles. If I'd happen to go over 80 mile by even just one mile. I would have to continue and complete over 100 miles. A few occasions it has been tough. I remember a race
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When you find that things are getting wild Don't you want days like these?
I was always going to have to restrict trips to the mountains this year; a little someone at home needs me! I did however manage to escape to the Swiss Alps for a few days last month. These trips are going to
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Many times I have been asked the question or a derivative of it; which is harder road or cyclocross, running or cycling, rowing or sculling, track running or cross country? The list could go on. As far as single (or one event) moments are concerned it has to be on the road (see this blog from the
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(Click on climb name for more details)
My Favourite Climbs
1) Col D'Esischie
A delightful place. I never saw a single vehicle when riding up this. I think I will retire and live here.
2) Muro Di Sormano
A wonderful road. Very steep, permanently closed to traffic, cycling graffiti on t
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I'm awake at 1am again, damn it just like last Monday. I really need more sleep. Cyclocross races only last less than an hour, why is this all so tiring? Let's recap. So last weekend was a double with a Central League race on the Saturday and then the Inter Area Champs in Chesterfield the following
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With four kilometres to go from the top of this climb, I have a decision to make. I am in heavy fog, visibility is minimal and it's late in the day. Although I am on a supported event, I am off the designated course, for as the day has gone so well I've had time to s
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There was nothing more I could do. Less than a kilometre to go is only a few minutes of riding but this is going to last an age. My tactics employed today had left nothing for this part of the race. Don't look back, don't look back,
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I have long come to terms with the low emotions associated with sport. The disappointments and the injuries. When you are young your dreams are off the chart, such high hopes, but there is that time when it dawns on you that it’s not all going to happens as you’d planned. Walking away fr
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There is a special time early in life, just after being let loose from parental supervision and before real life starts, with it's mortgages, bills, jobs and commitments. I'm talking about the age between say 15 and 22 years old.
The adventures, scraps and antics that time in life were sp
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So the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything in Douglas Adam's wonderful world was 42. On the Stelvio Pass on the Swiss/Italian border that number represents something else. Each of the many hairpins are numbered. When you reach 42 hairpins to go you are not
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The last thing I do at the end of a Cent Cols day is to write some brief notes about the day’s events. It is usually well after 11pm and with another early start looming, I am barely awake. A tough day in the saddle, followed by washing kit, eating, attending the next day briefing and preppi
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This situation is ridiculous; an hour ago I was on my last legs long out of food and feeling very depleted. Yet I am still pedalling ferociously looking for somewhere to stop. Nowhere has been open. I've past countless villages and there has been no opportunity to buy food. After 7 hours riding I&
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I really must remember to be more-vague when answering the ‘what did you do at the weekend?’ question, especially to non-cyclists. My reply today was met with a confused reaction. I think they a) thought I was lying and b) thought I was a freak.
My aim for Saturday was to ride a lap o
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Not all adventures need to be epic, some don’t need much planning or even need a weekend. Microadventures seems to be very popular now, in the past I’ve used a bivi bag a lot during hikes, it’s so much more fun than a tent and means you have so much less to carry. A bivi bag was
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On the face of it 8th place in this season's climax, The National Championships at Derby may seem a disappointment, especially having reached the dizzy heights of 3rd last year. But as soon as I heard the event was to be held at Derby I knew that it would be an uphill struggle. My skills had impr
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The real heroes of cyclocross are the band of helpers that are stuck in ankle deep water for the duration of the race, unable to see the majority of the racing, just pinned into an enclosed quagmire. For those not familiar to cyclocross, a rider’s pit crew have the unenviable task of having
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Despite having been going to races in one sport or other since 1987, the enjoyment has never diminished. The nerves, the joy of racing well and the essential lessons learnt from racing badly all contribute to the day. In my running days though the Saturday night after a cross country race was dee
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It’s Friday evening and the first day of a cheeky last minute weekend trip to the Alps, I find myself out of energy on the final few kilometres of a climb. Maybe it was the travelling, the previous few climbs, the poor lunch on the flight or just old age but I was feeling tired. Now gadgets
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CCC2013 Stage Ten
Moustiers Ste Marie to Nice
172km with 3032m of climbing
What a start to the day through the Gorges du Verdon. The route is called the 'Corniche Sublime'. We are all in CCC kit except for Lothar.. It looks like we are his bodyguards protecting him. At the 10km timed climb of t
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CCC2013 Stage Nine
Bedoin to Moustiers Ste Marie
221km with 3939m of climbing
Each Cent Col Challenge has a stage that is deemed slightly easier than the others, although it rarely works out like that. Over the years we've had atrocious weather that turned our easy day into another epic and eve
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CCC2013 Stage Eight
Vassieux en Vercors to Bedoin
206km with 4554m of climbing
There may not have been any elephants in the room but there certainly was one on today's profile. An averagely lumpy route but with one massive hurdle at the end......Mont Ventoux. Like the Zoncolan in the Dolomites,
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CCC2013 Stage Seven
Montmeian to Vassieux en Vercors
212km with 5090m of climbing
The most famous rider on this trip is Lothar Leder, the first man to complete an Ironman in under 8 hours. I was chatting with him up the first climb today, the Col de Granier. He has kept the mood fun with his gr
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CCC2013 Stage Six
Annecy to Montmeilian
203km with 4118m of climbing
Riding these roads is such a privilege, beauty is everywhere, we are lucky to be here and for most it really is a selfish indulgence. However for a few it has a different perspective. In 2011 I met Kelvin who despite proclaimi
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CCC2013 Rest Day
"I write this alone on my bed, I've poisoned every room in the house, the place is quiet and so alone, pretend there's something worth waiting for. There's nothing nice in my head, the adult world took it all away, wake up with same spit in my mouth, cannot tell if it is re
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CCC2013 Stage Five
Albertville to Annecy
201km with 5942m of climbing
Yesterday may have been hailed as the queen stage but today's profile was monumental and involved even more climbing, although saying the stage is from Alberville to Annecy does not really give much away as directly that is o
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CCC2013 Stage Four
Briancon to Albertville
233km with 5317m of climbing
A pretty big day ahead, there was uncertainty about the route but the mood was set early as while putting on his bibs, Dave smeared a load of chamois cream to the wrong side of this shorts. Laughing and riding with great ch
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CCC2013 Stage Three
Sisteron to Briancon
192km 4421m of climbing
I'd been looking forward to this stage, hopefully to finally climb the Col D'Izoard. It had to be missed on the 2009 CCC due to snow and I had been worried that again weather might curtail the stage. However there would be other
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CCC2013 Stage Two
Valberg to Sisteron
202km 3400m of climbing
Seven days before starting this event, on the last rep, of the last climb on the last day's training in the Italian Alps my knee gave out on me. I had hoped it would be ok but it was not at all happy when I tried to up the pace on
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CCC2013 Stage One
Carros-Nice to Valberg
203km 5770m of climbing
To gain access to fraternities and exclusive clubs you need to go through a certain level of discomfort and pain. The Cent Cols Challenge always throws up moments of intensity that, if endured, produces a truly accomplished rider.
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The freak weather had made the Giro organisers modify stage 19 the night before, the Gavia that we climbed a few days ago was deemed unsafe. Our plan initially remained the same............Ride the Stelvio and then watch on the mountain finish in the Val Martello. However on route we hear of -14
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Many times I have been asked what I think is the hardest mountain to climb. My answer has previously always been the same. It depends on two things, the weather conditions, and where the climbs is on the stage. Even the toughest climb is comfortable at the start of the day. However that same clim
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A 70mile ride, two climbs with a drive before and after from our hotel. I had mapped out a ride which included the Gavia and the Motirolo, simple.....we told the girls we should be back by late afternoon. The drive over took an hour longer than I thought it would, these mountain roads take ages i
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Today's plan was to ride the Giro's mountain TT course that the pros would contest in 2 days time at La Polsa. At 19km averaging 6% it would be a gentler test than yesterday crazy climb, and with a few kms of downhill in the middle it should be a fast effort. The highlight of the day however, was th
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4.30 alarm at home and by lunchtime we arrived at Lake Garda. Within 15 minutes four other friends arrive, time to sample some Italian pizza. Just 30 miles planned today. But this includes a climb I stumbled upon a few days earlier. I saw a Strava section entitled 'The worst 4kms in the world' We
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Keen to continue the adventure, I felt surprisingly fresh and awake at 3am. I start with Chris and at 4am we leave the campsite and start our journey to Scotland. Davina now has the luxury of sleeping in til 6am and packing up all my kit!
We ride out of York, past nightclubs as the young and
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