How much cycling have you done in the last 12 months? Be honest. Why do you ride? For the camaraderie of being on the road with your mates, for fitness, for weight loss/management, for down time, for solo time, to get out the city, a bit of all of the above?

How disciplined are you/could you be when it comes to training?

Assess your current fitness level and weigh up your work, family and social commitments for the next few months and make a realistic call whether you can commit to knuckling down.

Are you able to commit every week to a certain number of hours building up your base, your endurance, your strength and your core and body?

If the answer is anything above a “probably” then proceed to Stage 3.