EMMA STEVENS
Acquiring skills and confidence in double-quick time.
ACHIEVEMENT HIGHLIGHTS
MASTERING CLEATS
Mastered cleats in two sessions.
FIRST
SPORTIVE
53km - 3 hours 18 minutes (16.7kph).
SECOND SPORTIVE
44km - 2 hours 26 minutes (19.5kph).
FIRST 100 MILES
First 100 mile in 7 hours 27 minutes only four months after getting first ever road bike.
Before Njinga
My cycling journey began with the cycle-to-work scheme. I bought a hybrid and started to get fit! For my first sportive, I signed up to Prudential Ride London-Surrey 46 miles in 2016. My sister Ali then persuaded me to sign up for Ride London 100. It was for this ride that I realised I needed a plan for a new level of training, so I booked my first cycling holiday with a friend to Sri Lanka, riding hybrids in a small group. It was at this point I caught the cycling bug and knew I needed more.
Emma started out her cycling journey in Richmond Park on her hybrid.
Emma learning to ride in cleats on her new road bike.
Emma on our end of season social to Tuscany.
Ali then convinced me to trade up my hybrid for a road bike and, with Matt (my brother in law and Njinga rider), started training in Richmond Park. At first I wasn't terribly fast and I was a bit nervy, so when Ali mentioned a couple of free intro sessions with Togo and the option to follow-up with an eight-week beginner's skills class, I decided to give it a go.
Eight-weeks of outdoor training
Andy, Debs, and Josh were great: they were super encouraging on our Tuesday evening outdoor riding sessions and I learnt lots of really important basics.
Njinga Collective
What's next?
One of the things I'm enjoying most about my cycling with Njinga is the social aspect.
It feels like you're just out for a fun few hours on the bike and you don't even notice you're piling on the miles and getting fitter to boot!
My training has continued and I've just done two laps of the Box Hill loop on my first attempt. I then targeted my first 50-mile ride which included Newlands Corner, Leith Hill, and Box Hill (all hills featured in the 100 mile Ride London sportive) and it went so well.
I'm really looking forward (although with a bit of trepidation) to Ride London, knowing that I'm stronger, fitter, and will no doubt find lots of great cyclists to chat to on the way round.
Emma at the end of Ride London having completed her first 100 miles.
Emma on our Njinga end of season social in Tuscany.
Emma with her Ride London medal after completing the 100 mile sportive.
Emma with fellow Njinga riders on our end of season social in Tuscany.
Emma learning to ride in cleats on her new road bike in Richmond Park.
Emma with her Ride London medal after completing the 46 mile sportive.
Emma celebrating her Ride London 46 mile sportive triumph.
Emma on our end of season cycling social in Tuscany.
Emma with her sister Ali on our end of season cycling social in Tuscany.
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– Togo Keynes, Head Performance Coach at Njinga Cycling Academy