Velodrome

Day one of our weekend break was a bit of a drizzly one, so we spent the morning in the Imperial War Museum. There were some incredible displays and some really moving exhibits. After spending time inside we climbed up to the top of the tower for some pretty views of the peak district in the distance. We sheltered from the rain over lunch and had a wander round the Lowry before checking out the new BBC Media City. After driving past Old Trafford and Sarah Storey's gold postbox, we arrived at the velodrome, feeling pretty damn nervous. Walking out under the track and surfacing in the middle was quite an experience; the shock of seeing just how steep the corners slope didn't help with the nerves. We got kitted up and strapped in to our fixed-gear bikes and had a couple of laps on the flat to get used to having no breaks. The coach told us we'd need to get up to at least 18 mph as we cycled round the côte d'azur before we could ride up onto the wooden banks. It was absolutely terrifying! It took ages to get the courage to take the plunge, and the first few times I screamed everytime I went round the corners. It feels completely wrong to actively speed up, but that's what you have to do or the momentum wont get you round and you'll come crashing down. It took the whole lesson for me to feel more confident, and I gradually made my way up to the blue line. It definitely is a bit easier the higher up you go on the track, but definitely no less scary! The hour was up so quickly, and I felt really wobbly at the end.. I'd been so tense throughout the whole lesson! We'll be making our return to the velodrome when Stratford opens next year. (In this photo, I'm in the blue t-shirt between the black and red lines!).
The evening was way more relaxed, we were definitely ready for some booze to have while we all got ready, and then head into Manchester for dinner, cocktails and two hours of karaoke. All in all, it was a pretty ace day.