CUCC President 2019-20 Alex Petter reports back from the club’s annual trip to the sunny roads of Spain…
In early January, 17 CUCC members escaped the English winter for an excellent training camp in the Costa Blanca, Spain. Rain, mud and cold were swapped for sunshine, shorts and smooth roads. The trip got off to a great start with no bike casualties mid-flight (unlike the previous 2 years), and we headed out for a sunny shakedown on the first afternoon. This set the tone for a brilliant 8 days of riding, with wall-to-wall sunshine for every mile we rode.
Miraculously, nobody crashed all camp, nobody got lost, and there were no major bike breakages. Smugly under the illusion that we were a well-functioning club rather than a bunch of choppers, we rode up mountains, down thrilling descents, along picturesque coast roads and to many great cafes. Countless tostadas and bocadillos were eaten, and an inordinate quantity of Haribos and muffins were smashed.
Famous climbs including the Col de Rates, Cumbre Del Sol and Vall d’Ebo were tackled, with CUCC’s faster members setting some seriously competitive times up them. The little-ring-only rest day brought some quality tunes, and a café stop that featured many a burger and beer. Despite all the merriment, the camp delivered a huge training hit that should help power CUCC to many impressive performances throughout the season. We returned home with heavy legs, topped-up tans, and some close friendships forged. We’re looking forward to next year!
