MADDI ALDAM- GATES - ‘NEW BIKE, NEW LIFE!'

New bike day! I’ve just taken delivery of the Ribble Endurance SL that I described getting measured up for last month – and as you can see, it’s a thing of beauty.

I’m delighted with it and can’t wait for the chance to race on it – but wait I must, since I’m heading away to Durham University to begin my degree.

September was a mixed month for me, on and off the bike, with some great training and high-profile race spectating followed by a week of feeling groggy with a cold. On 9 September, I went with the rest of the Škoda Academy and our mentor Dame Sarah Storey to watch stage five of the Tour of Britain (Alderley Park to Warrington), which was an incredible day out.