A cynical sports fan...

A fan of professional cycling knows all to well about the presence of performance enhancing drugs in the sport. In the past years mainstream sports like football and baseball have been linked to the use of drugs. It seems you could watch every grand tour, just waiting for the next cyclist to get caught using some sort of banned substance.

It makes sense to be cynical about professional cycling, but does this carry over into the other professional sports you follow?

I was reading this article in The Province today and this section struck me as odd.

The Canucks got nothing from their power play or the Sedins. But what they did get was a memorable performance from Hodgson and a rejuvenated Kesler, who looked like he upgraded his horsepower kit, and tossed on a new set of tires. Kesler was playing significantly better than he has in weeks and said it was no coincidence his linemates, Chris Higgins and David Booth, were together and healthy again for really the first time in six weeks.

It seems to me, in the cycling world, if anyone pulled off a similar performance like Kesler, some serious questions would be asked. Maybe it's just the cynical cycling fan in me? I'm sure no drugs were used, it probably was the three days off between games and the return of his linemates.

I probably shouldn't allow the use of drugs in cycling ruin my enjoyment of hockey.

Indoor Cycling

Indoor cycling on a trainer is a great way to maintain fitness over the winter months when the weather is terrible. Luckily living on the west coast means I can usually ride year round without too much trouble.

Another cool benefit to owning a bike trainer is that I can ride whenever I want. It proves pretty

challenging to try and schedule riding time amognst all the other things a working father of three has to do. So I can ride after the kids are tucked away in bed.

If you have ever ridden a bike trainer indoors you probably already know it is pretty monotonous business. My wife has a definite advantage over me in the indoor cycling department. She can fire up Netflix, put on a movie and grind out a 60-90 minute session with ease. On the other hand, I'm not really into movies so I have a lot of trouble putting in solid time on the trainer.

I have a few interval sessions that keep me occupied with the changes in pace every few minutes. Put on some music and follow the prompts from my Garmin and it's easy to get a good workout.

I was reading Cycling Tips one day, and noticed they had a review of a series of videos called The Sufferfest. It sounded like a fun way to spend time indoor cycling. I still wasn't quite sure, so I thought I would try out the cheapest option, which was a 20 minute workout video called Extra Shot.



The Sufferfest - Extra Shot

I watched the video before hand, just to see what it was like. I remained skeptical until I actually watched the video and followed the instructions while on the trainer. It was a lot of fun! Definitely adds some spice to indoor cycling. The on screen instructions were easy to follow and the music was well suited to the different parts of the video. The videos cost a maximum of $11.99 so they are definitely affordable.

If you are interested in adding some excitement to your indoor cycling, you should definitely check out The Sufferfest 

Rapha Festive 500 - A Review

The Rapha Festive 500 was a perfect conclusion to my first year of road cycling.


500 kilometres in just over one week was a lofty goal, as I had mainly been aiming for 500 km per month since the spring.


It was fun to watch other people attempt the challenge as well. Successful or not, it takes a lot of dedication to get out on your bike, especially in the kind of weather that we often have in BC.


Finally meeting @1luckybiker in person, and establishing connections with Vegan Dave and Peter Eyestone were pretty cool benefits of the challenge.


I would not have been able to complete the Festive 500 without the awsome support from my family. My wife and kids were very accomodating and patient with all the cycling I was doing.


Now that the challenge of the Fesitive 500 is over, another challenge begins. The challenge to build upon the work I did cycling over Christmas and carry my fitness through until the 2012 racing season begins.