Until quite recently Olly would have said he was a mountain biker. Luckily he's now seen the light, and is trying day by day to become less pigeonholed. His main cycling passion these days is cyclocross - for some reason he loves the mix of speed, skill, luck (and pain) and can be found riding an inappropriate bike on unsuitable terrain whenever possible.
In a former life Olly was paid to travel the world as a mountain bike guide in exotic places like Everest base camp in Tibet; these days you're more likely to find him on his cross bike, trying to ride a steep set of concrete steps in exotic Newcastle.
2018-12-10 16:19:52 - After a bit of thought, some googling and digging through some dusty photos, I reckon that I bought my first pair of tubeless wheels and tyres way back in 2004. In the...
2018-05-08 10:19:11 - Be careful what you wish for, a wise man probably once said. As I looked out of the window at the late April rain bouncing a good 50cm off our wooden deck, I began to...
2018-01-12 11:59:41 - Sometimes when I'm testing a new piece of clothing, I know within a few seconds of putting it on what its raison d'ĂȘtre is. Those initial gut feelings are normally...
2017-04-25 12:04:13 - "Character-building" is one way of summing up our feelings after finishing the first Mod Rocker sportive, based in army training territory in the wilds of...
2017-04-10 08:00:00 - As a keen sportivista and lover of cobbles/pavé/kasseien, I've been lucky (or mad?) enough to ride the Tour of Flanders sportive four times. The mix of narrow, rural...
2016-10-28 12:33:48 - Last weekend saw the inaugural running of the Gravel Rocks weekend - a two day gravel-fest put on by the team behind the Dirty Reiver ride. The Dirty Reiver is a 200km...
2016-10-21 14:48:17 - There's an old wives' tale about departing swallows marking the end of summer, as they start their annual migration to Africa. This is of course total rubbish. While it...
2016-08-15 16:23:57 - Bank Holiday Monday 29th August 2016 will see a day of cyclocross racing in Newcastle as the Ouseburn Valley Cross welcomes everyone from beginners and families to...
2016-07-04 14:24:48 - I consider myself very lucky to live in the north-east. There's great riding right on my doorstep, Newcastle is a really brilliant city, the locals are lovely and house...
2016-03-15 17:51:36 - The ecstatic cheering as Sven takes the lead in the 2016 Cyclocross World championships is incredible. It's like a wall of sound that seems to echo and bounce, making it...
2015-11-09 17:14:47 - Cyclocross racing is quite a peculiar sport - sixty minutes of flat-out effort with a mix of riding and running, then tea and cake (or a beer) and a sit down. Your body...
2015-11-09 13:52:08 - Most bike racers (of whatever discipline) like to look good, and getting your sock choice right can be the critical factor in feeling like a pro or feeling more like...
2015-10-22 15:59:34 - I demand a podium presentation. Probably flowers. Definitely a bottle of bubbly to spray over the accumulated throng of admirers and tifosi. After all, a win is a win....
2015-05-11 15:51:50 - The problem with being a) reasonably skinny and b) living in the frozen north is that I struggle to find cycling kit that keeps me the right temperature for what seems...
2015-04-15 17:31:28 - The Ronde van Vlaanderen is an annual pilgrimage for many hardcore cycling fans. This year Oliver took his other half to Flanders to ride the sportive in classic Belgian...
2014-12-02 12:59:57 - "I reckon that would be the Sven line" said my significant other, looking at a faintly discernable line between the trees, which appeared to run roughly parallel to (but...
2014-10-14 18:25:18 - It normally happens around the middle of June. I open the garage and take a sneaky peek and make sure everything's OK. I start to get slightly twitchy. There's an...