Bristol University CC Hill climb, 8 Oct 2022

On 8th October I returned to my favourite hill in Bristol to take part in the Belmont hill climb race hosted by Bristol Uni Cycling Club. The last time I did this race was in 2020.

This was my first week back to formal training post Euros. My aim was to do as well as I could but also just to enjoy some type 2 lung busting fun. I went for a nice long warm up ride with my mum before picking up my numbers. I headed to the start, a little nervous but raring to go. The race was closed road, there were lots more supporters lining the hill than anticipated which surprised me!

I tried to pace myself better than the previous race 2 years ago and was relatively conservative at the start. When I knew I was around halfway up I gave it more of a kick and pushed myself as hard as possible. Yet again, the final uphill straight came quicker than expected. I tried to finish out of the saddle but wasn’t quite in the right gear (a bit too easy!) so was a little slower than hoped! I finished in 4mins 29 secs, unfortunately 8 seconds slower than last time, however still a very pleasing ride.

I came 8th out of a 19 women strong field. Following the race I went to recce my next hill climb event on 22nd October. A slightly longer hill this time which may play to my strengths, we shall see!

Megan Powell