BUCS 25 mile TT, 12 Apr 2026
BUCS 25 was Cambridge University Cycling Club’s home BUCS event, which also doubles as our Varsity with Oxford. I’m one of the race captains this year, and, although no one else was particularly bothered about my result, I put a fair bit of pressure on myself to perform.
The race was held on the same course as last year - twice round a fairly challenging, exposed, and at times lumpy triangle. The home advantage was that I could give the course a go a few times in the week before the race, figuring out for myself a sensible pacing plan. I knew sub hour was possible - I’d done it before, albeit on a less dodgy course. I also knew from looking at previous years’ results that sub hour might be enough to be competitive; the best I’d managed at an individual BUCS TT before was an 8th, so I was secretly hopeful for a bit of a result.
Tim came out and gave me some pep talks and I crawled off the line into the wind with a pretty clear pacing strategy; first lap as close to the half hour mark as possible, so I neither left myself too much to do nor blew up. Unfortunately, my power meter dropped out a bit, but my course recceing paid off and I stuck to the plan. I came through the halfway point in about 29 minutes, perfectly on target and feeling great. I was perhaps slightly too conservative for the next few kms; I had blown up massively at this point the year before and had had a horrid last 20 minutes. But I kept it aero and smooth, and hit the last corner with 7km to go, and a tailwind, averaging a little under 41kph. I knew as long as I didn’t do anything silly I was on for my goal, so lifted it and pushed over the last hills to the line for 59:27.
I was so happy to have paced it well; I pushed hard, but didn’t hit my limit and got faster as the race progressed. Immediately after the race, I wondered if I’d left too much out there - I’d averaged a fair bit less power than in my practice laps, and the nervous wait for the other results to come in had me doubting my pacing plan. But keeping my head on had paid off - I won by a minute, bringing home an Individual Gold, the team Gold with my friend Lucy, the varsity trophy against Oxford with Lucy and teammate Nina, and myself a full blue (Cambridge’s highest sporting honours).
I was so happy to see the hard work pay off. I took over 5 minutes out of my own time last year too, for a lot less trauma!
I feel like it’s natural to always wonder the what-ifs in a time trial like that. But I’d rather be sat with a medal wondering if I could gave gone slightly faster than with cramp in every muscle in my legs and a gnarly positive split like last year. Overall, chuffed. Maybe I don’t hate time trials!
Freya Taylor