Myself and a couple of other aboc'ers (Richard Grace & Nathan Larkin) piggybacked onto a Blackburn training session at DISC last night.  I'm not a real tracky, just using track as a bit of cross training and intensity work for road, but wanted to have a look at the place anyway.

First impression (I've seen track racing at Vodafone before, but never from a rider's eye perspective), wow ... that's .. um ... steep.
42 degree angle I think?  And wooden boards .. slippery? 

John Nicholson's advice - don't go slow!  Ok!

So I roll around the flat bottom of the track, looking up, work up a bit of speed and courage, and then pop up onto the track proper.  The first time around the bank I'm up on the blue line, and looking down ... it's a long way down!  I don't think I've been this tense on a bike ever?  Keep pedaling ... hold the line ... relax your hands ... ok ... made it around a lap.  I do a couple more laps up on the blue line, not daring to change lines, now, how do I get off the track?! 

On the flatter straight, I slow the bike as much as I can and drop down onto the duckboards. hoping the concrete surface will give enough grip.  It does, and I survive unscathed.  Back to the pits and relax for a few minutes.  Lucie's taking some photos, Richard is equally wired by the experience.  Nathan seems as cool as can be.

We do a few more laps, and work up a bit of speed, at one point I'm laying off the back of a rolling paceline and keeping my distance from them, HR up into high E2/low E3, and feeling the bike squat down into the banking around the corners.  This is kinda fun, but I'm not game to look around much or change lines just yet.  Next time, I think, my shot nerves are done for today.

We help the pursuit teams with timing and holding for a few of their practice runs, and that's it for the night.