LOCKDOWN! Q&A with Andy Turner (Swift Carbon Pro Cycling)

Lockdown with Andy Turner who rides for Swift Carbon Pro Cycling and is based in Herefordshire

LOCKDOWN! Q&A with Andy Turner (Swift Carbon Pro Cycling)

Lockdown with Andy Turner who rides for Swift Carbon Pro Cycling and is based in Herefordshire. Andy is also kept busy managing a lot of the sponsorship side of the team as well as being a full-time student in his final year studying Sport & Exercise Sciences and working part time as a coach.

Your last race was?
Andy: The Betty Pharoah Road Race. It was miserable weather but still great to catch up with people after a long winter and get the racing legs turning again. Hopefully they’ll be turning again sometime this year!

With racing cancelled, what’s a typical week on the bike for you?
Andy: Shorter intense sessions during the week when I have (had) lectures and labs, with longer rides including some efforts on Wednesdays and weekends. That’s not really changed much to be honest.

Photo: Howard Goldberg

Are you having to enjoy using a turbo/rollers or avoiding it like the virus?
Andy: I use the turbo a lot anyway as it’s much more time efficient – no bike cleaning or waiting at lights and junctions. Just simple and easy so I can get the job done at a time of day that suits me, leaving time for uni work etc.

If on the turbo, what’s your favourite distraction – Zwift or some other entertainment?
Andy: I use Zwift for every session but I’ll often have a podcast or music going too. Podcasts are generally F1 related or The Science of Sport Podcast. Music could be absolutely anything! AC/DC, Kanye, Tom Zanetti, Britney, Pendulum, Muse etc etc.

What’s the hardest thing for you about the Lock Down
Andy: Not being able to go on group rides and socialise. It’s still sort of possible on Zwift with group rides but not quite the same. Can’t match the banter at the club run coffee stop.

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Besides cycling, what’s your biggest distraction as lock down continues?
Andy: Definitely finishing off my dissertation. I’m also trying to get jobs done out in the garden and a round the house to keep busy. I’ve picked up a bit of painting again just for fun, I’m not really artistic but it keeps me distracted. I also have a young Labrador who requires a lot of attention and play time!

What’s the bike that gets the most use by you and what is the best thing about it?
Andy: It’s a toss-up between my Swift Carbon Ultravox team bike on the turbo or the disc version on the road. They’re both stiff yet comfy so they ride like a dream and can deal with bad road surfaces or a bit of off road. The Hypervox is a bit more racy so potholed West Midlands roads aren’t ideal for it! That’s saved for race days.

What’s the weirdest thing you have seen since this crisis began?
Andy: Queues for the supermarket stretching out of the car parks and people buying toilet rolls like a cracked cyclist buying sugary food.

Finally, where you do you enjoy riding the most in this country or abroad?
Andy: In this country it has to be the valleys in South Wales; there are a lot of gravel routes around there I want to try as well. Also Snowdonia is stunning beyond belief! More locally to me, The Forest of Dean has some fantastic routes as well.
Abroad would have to be Girona – nice weather and better scenery than the south of Spain, which can be a bit barren and lacking in greenery.

Thanks Andy, good luck during the season and see you racing hopefully in 2020