Chris has been incredibly focused, pretty much since he competed the National 24-hour TT in 2018, on having another attempt at the same event in 2019. Below he writes about his experiences, the bike and how the race went.

Another year, another crack at the National 24 hour Time Trial held in Wrexham. 2019 is my third consecutive year of competing in this race and I went into it feeling better than previous attempts of the race. My target this year was to simply go further than previous years.

We changed the strategy quite a lot this year, attempting to minimise the stoppage time down as much as possible with the hope that would help with the quest of attaining a further distance.

So some things to mention that have changed from previous attempts:

THE KIT

Image credit: Attacus Cycling

Every year, Emily and Jimmi at Attacus have designed an incredible skinsuit, this year’s kit is by far the best yet: The Flare Skinsuit.

At first glance, it's dark and stealthy, but this year’s skinsuit was engineered with a new reflective fabric to offer greater visibility during the night section of the race; when a beam of light hits it… BAM, an instant glare from all angles. 

As always a massive THANK YOU to Attacus for their continual support.

THE BIKE

This bike is bonkers. That’s a fact. My Giant Trinity has been given a unique and bold freshen up by the legends at WM Paintworks, the paint studio of WyndyMilla.

The bike has been fully 'Jammed' with a load of products we work with and some new brands we will be launching shortly. It is fitted out with Dura Ace Di2, and Parcours Chrono and Disc wheels. A Verve Infocrank (165mm) fitted out with Aerocoach 58/48 chainrings, a wend waxed chain, Kogel ceramic BB and SLF Motion oversized pulley system means everything spins super easy and works hyper efficiently. My position on the bike has been refined and tested for over half a year now thanks to some wind tunnel testing with Aerocoach.

The RACE

To sum up some thoughts from the race, I chose a very different strategy for this year. The aim was minimal stopping and to take on most food on the bike. We managed to greatly reduce the stoppage time from last year. 

I rode the first 4 hours hard, at what I would say was the pace of a 100 mile TT. The aim was to go hard whilst I was fresher and naturally let the body slow down. This tactic was tough, but worked. I felt good until maybe the last 4-6 hours. 

I suffer from knee issues, it's an aftermath of suffering from tendinitis, something that my bike fitter, Tim from Soigneur, really managed to help with, but the repetitive motion of riding a bike for 24 hours obviously takes its toll. I could deal with the pain from the knee, but unfortunately towards the end of the race, I also managed to pull something in my groin, which made the last 4 hours agony and my power greatly dropped to much lower than planned. 

I finished outside the top 10 this year. Last year I came 8th, this year 13th. That sounds bad, BUT it doesn't matter! I actually went further, faster and the competition was a lot stronger this year. Probably the strongest I have ever seen in the race. 

SO the final scores on the doors:

• Distance: 760km - Basically London to Dundee
• 50km further than last year
• 1st under 30 by just short of 160km 
• 13th overall, out of over 100 competitors
• Averaging 205 watts for 20 hours. That many watts would charged 820 iPhones!
• Normalised power: 185 watts
• TSS: 717
• Just short of 30,000 calories burnt, which is equivalent to 13.5 large cheese takeaway pizzas (something I think would be equally challenging).
• Consensus: F**KED

A few days off were needed as I was having trouble with my knee and groin during the race. Much was eaten. Little was done.

 Check out Francis Cade's videos from the event:

Strava file below: