Road Cycling Events

Adele Mitchell meets with Victoria Pendleton at Macmillan Cycletta!

Adele Mitchell meets Great Britain’s most successful female Olympic cyclist at the Macmillan Cycletta launch.

Macmillan Cycletta, the UK’s leading women only cycle series, returns this year following its most successful year ever in 2013 when almost 4000 women took part. Olympic champion Victoria Pendleton is ambassador for the series and, this year, will be joining both the Surrey and Bedfordshire rides.

We have two place available for you and a friend to ride with Victoria Pendleton in her wave and enjoy a VIP breakfast at the event. Scroll down to find out more!

I went along to the Macmillan Cycletta launch event to meet Victoria (who is, basically, lovely). We were soon sharing our experiences of road cycling – and I discovered that even our most successful female Olympic cyclist gets chased down sometimes!

“Men often try and overtake me when I’m out on the road bike” she says with a smile. “It’s not because they know it’s me – they usually don’t, in fact. It’s just that they see a ponytail and they have to get past” (sound familiar?)

“But,” she adds, “it’s no use them overtaking if they can’t maintain the pace – and usually they soon slow down so its not long before I get past again!”

It’s good to hear that the famous Victoria Pendleton competitive spirit is still going strong!

Here she shares some reassuring tips for anyone preparing to enter their first Sportive – or just thinking about taking their cycling to the next level:

“Don’t be afraid of the distance. Most people of average fitness can manage a 40km bike ride quite easily without lots of training. It isn’t a marathon so don’t worry, just enjoy it!”
Get a pair of padded cycling shorts “essential for comfort – without them you risk getting sore which will ruin your ride!”
“It’s best to layer clothes so you can remove them as you warm up, and take a wind proof top and sunglasses.”
“Cycling gloves are essential for comfort and protection: if you fall off and injure the palm of your hand you can’t cycle again until it’s healed because it’s too painful. When I was younger my dad wouldn’t let me ride my bike if I wasn’t wearing them.”
“Wear sunscreen on all exposed skin and be aware that areas like your fingers (in fingerless gloves), and shins are particularly vulnerable when you cycle.”
“Its important to drink regularly and eat during a sportive. However you only need to carry one bottle as events like Macmillan Cycletta have complementary refreshment stops en route where you can refill your bottle and get something to eat. The amount you need to drink will depend upon how fit you are as well as the weather: I can ride for an hour or so and only take a few sips but most people will need more than that!”

About Macmillan Cycletta:

Macmillan Cycletta is a women-only series of sportives that cater for cyclists of all ages and abilities. This year the events will feature Novice (20km), Classic (40km), and Challenge (60-70km) distances as well as the new Macmillan Cycletta 100km distances at the New Forest and Scotland events.

All routes wind through sensational surroundings on quiet, safe and well-managed roads. The events are open to girls as young as 12 years old (there is no upper age limit!) and feature regular and well -stocked refreshment stops along the route, goodie bags, friendly and knowledgeable marshalls and event villages. The Macmillan Cycletta Spa by Unlisted will also be providing a complimentary spa experience where you can relax, refresh and rejuvenate after your ride