Les Ferdinand's Blog by Les_Ferdinand

Hello again! It's been a busy last week in the run up to the Dallaglio Cycle Slam and I've been trying to fit in some last minute training and getting some little niggles sorted before I leave. In training last week I thought I'd tweaked my hamstring and so I’ve been seeing my physio Kevin Lidlow - he seems to think the issue is with my adductor. I have a long-standing groin problem and after the bike ride, I think I will have to finally go under the knife to get it sorted, which is going to affect my golf and tennis plans!

I did still manage to get out on the bike a couple of times though. Marcel at my local Specialized store was going to come out with me to give me some tips, as he is a pro rider, but he was busy, so I did an hour and half's hard ride on my own. I made sure my bike got the once over before it was packed off to Rome after the Grand Slam launch party last week. I got roped into a 500m race against Lawrence that I didn't want to do at all because of my hammy - but I won anyway :) Did I mention it was by 3 seconds?!

So last weekend I had to go out on my old bike. On Saturday we just did a 20-mile ride around St. Albans. I didn’t push it too hard because all the experts said we should just be doing some light work before setting off. I stayed on the small cog the whole way so it wasn't too heavy on my legs. Then it was off to the Lane for our match against Villa. I thought we were very unlucky not to win – we had all the possession and most of the chances, but we just couldn’t get the goal we needed.

I didn't manage to get a ride in on Sunday and so I’ve just done a bit of training at work instead. I joined in with the boys on Monday and Tuesday, but it was only light session as my groin was sore and I didn't want to aggravate it any further before the ride. I packed up my bag on Wednesday and then went to the game at Wolves – which was our worst performance of the season so far. It was even more disappointing because other results had gone our way again.

But anyway now it's off to Rome. It’s come around really quickly and I’m just ready to get going now - I can’t wait. The bags are all packed, I've got all my Lucozade bars and gels and my carbo drinks. I'll send you an update from the Rome to Nice leg and let you know how we're getting on. Wish me luck and if you can spare a couple of quid, sponsor Dicko and I! We will definitely earn every penny! www.justgiving.com/Mel-Ferdi-Nicky