What a strange year. As the clocks take us into 2021, I am still not sure if I have the words to process what 2020 held for us. But here is my attempt atleast:
2020 started out like any other year. With so much hope and ambition, especially in the realms of cycling. I had entered the British Track champs in January and was so excited to get stuck in at such a high level and have fun racing and learning from the experience. Unfortunately, I felt really unwell the night before and spent the next week in bed rather than racing the boards. I was upset about missing the opportunity, but quickly recovered and got my head back in the game and focused on getting back to full health, training hard and working hard at my new job to save money for future competitions.
However, i couldn't even consider racing again for a few months after my sickness. I went through a couple of weeks of being unable to keep much food down. I was feeling really unwell, lost all my strength and even the smallest meals seemed to make me feel nauseous. I was about to seek medical advice when suddenly my appetite returned and after taking a short spell off the bike to regain my strength I was able to refocus and begin to start planning and training for the summer racing season. My fire for competition had returned! However, little did i know, another huge setback was put in motion. But this time it wasn't a setback I alone had to suffer, no. Not even just the cycling community; this time the whole world had suffered a setback. The corona virus pandemic had hit the UK. The months that followed were a blur. I was once a competitive cyclist but suddenly I had apparently become so much more. I was working in a grocery store where we were called local heroes; but we were just dedicated workers trying to earn an income to keep a roof on our heads and our families safe while risking catching this virus in the process - just to keep the world turning. It was a crazy time. In March, shortly before the big lock down, panic buying hit stores all over. The work involved was challenging, but the emotional impact of keeping ourselves going through abuse after abuse was something else completely. One abiding memory is of a group of cyclist who were still out on the roads coming into our store, completely disregarding distancing advice at the time, and putting my customers at risk. Cyclists! I remember feeling a great deal of off-track anger in those days! It still seems like an unreal dream right now. Even though it was horrible to go through, I know that we were all suffering and scared in some way and it taught me so much while also making me a much tougher and stronger individual. Which is something I've always needed to personally develop in relation to my ambitions of being a top-level cyclist. Nothing is easy but if you work for it anything is possible!
At that time, I pulled back hugely on my cycling. Like many cyclists at my level, we were all worried about the long-term effects of Covid, and the early advice was to keep fit – but not to push things so as to risk the lung problems we had begun to hear about in athletes. So outdoor training stopped. Racing stopped. My support system and my cycling group seemed to disintegrate, and my cycling life was put on hold.
Later in the summer and through to winter, I felt more at ease about going out on my bike, and undertook many solo hours out on the roads, working at maintaining and improving form, hoping to find again that thrill of the chase; progress and Oh! - that joy of speeding round a track when stadium cycling would restart. For months we believed that the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome would reopen for training and racing, but twice I remember the searing disappointment when indoor cycling was forbidden in Scotland due to Covid concerns. I continued putting in some road hours, however, I have to admit that now, without formal and informal competitive rides or races, I can only guess as to how I might compare in an event.
Meanwhile, I was finding a new outlook on my work/life/cycling balance. I missed my friends and family, like many, I suffered losses during last year. I turned 21. An adult at last, and with much more confidence and courage as a result of the years of cycling. I started planning to become more self sufficient in cycling (my sponsors will love to hear this!) But as a result of Covid, and how that has affected me and the world around me, I realise I may have to reassess my immediate cycling goals.
Like many cyclists at my level, I know I will have to wait until the world returns to some degree of normality before I know how my lockdown decisions have affected my form and my position in the world of cycling. I can’t wait for the thrust of busy races, or for the velodrome to reopen to race on the boards again. But what I do know is that I have the bikes and the experience to take advantage of any opportunity whenever it presents itself. And that is down to the support I’ve been so lucky to benefit from, from my sponsors. Thank you so much Central Investment, Main Motors, many many individuals from Moray – especially the Moray Wheelers who believed in me so early! I’d also like to thank one special and generous foundation who supported me, and a special individual who regularly supported me through donations to my JustGiving page – you know who you are Mr S! You all helped me through difficult times, and keeping the hope alive which i'm incredibly grateful for. And an equally heartfelt thank you to Sheila Scott who has been by my side from the start and invested so much of her own time in helping me. Your a star Sheila!
Anyway, here we are. 2021. That certainly snuck up on us. But with a new year, comes new hope. And while some of us will be taking with us great pain, there is also much joy. Who knows what this year will bring for us all but I am wishing for you and yours to all have a happy and healthy new year. I’m sorry I can not provide a more positive update in these troubling times...... until I get myself back on track and when we see the world resemble some sort of normality. But when things improve I will readjust my goals and future endeavours and let you all know what I hope my near future will entail. But for now we keep moving forward and appreciate every moment we have and together we can all get through this. To better times, keep safe - Georgia X
