Sitting in my house, snowed in again for the second time in a matter of weeks – it's easy to forget that 2010 is very nearly over and it's time to be thinking about challenges for the coming year.
One of the things I really like about where I live (not the snow that's for sure) are the hills – there are some pretty challenging ones all within riding distance of where I live. The kind of hills that Sportive organisers like to string together to hurt you with and the kind of ones you can build into some pretty punishing training loops.
The folks at the GS Avanti cycling club (http://www.gsavanti.co.uk/) are also very well acquainted with many of the "best" hills in the area too and have used this knowledge to create the "Kentish Killer" which will run on February 20th 2011. This is not that far off now and could be an ideal early season challenge for you. There is a 47 mile and a 73 mile route depending on how much suffering you're looking to do that early in the year. I have to say that I'm very tempted by the 47 mile route as I build up to the Puncheur in March.
Both the short and long route start from Brands Hatch, which should be an easy place to get to and to get organised at. Every entry includes a donation to the Kent Air Ambulance service which I think is a great cause and the fee also includes food and drinks at the finish as well as out on the course – so I think it's good value.
Places are limited to 500 – so you might want to get your entry booked soon if you're interested. The Kentish Killer may not be as famous (yet) as the Hell of Ashdown (http://hell.gb.com/ – but it sells out within a day) and the there is one big advantage of that – you can probably get an entry …. and you'll ride a similarly challenging course. In fact in 2011, the Kentish Killer will be run first too – so it's the first really tough sportive on the hillier parts of Kent. That's something to consider.
If you're looking for your first challenge of 2011 – do check out the Kentish Killer (http://kentishkiller.ning.com/) it could be just the sort of early season punishment your legs need to get them focussed on cycling again after a snowy winter. I might even see you there!
Thanks for reading
