Ely Hardriders 25 mile TT, 8 Feb 2026

Having convinced my boyfriend to let me nick his TT bike, and seeing as they’d change the course from the abomination they’d used previously, I thought I’d give Ely Hardriders 25m TT another go this year. I hadn’t recced the course, but it looked pretty flat, an out and back and out and back again with few oppurtinities to go the wrong way or crash (other than the 7 roundabouts)

I’ve done next to no training on a TT bike this year, let alone this one, so I decided to pick a conservative power to try and hold after some disastrously paced TTs last year. The aero gains compared to an old TT bike I was riding must have been significant, because at around the halfway point I realised I’d averaged just over 40kph. I knew from that point I’d be very close to cracking the hour if I stuck with my power and stayed low, so I locked in on just doing the same again - not trying to get cocky or ride too close to the red. In the last five minutes, I realised I had some left in the tank, so raised it a little, crossing the finish line in 59.38.

I was really pleased to have improved so much on my performance last year, particularly since it was a cold February day and I hadn’t exactly tapered or trained on the bike! Hoping that a little more time on the bike and even more careful pacing might yield some better TT results this season.

Freya Taylor