Rider Profiles

Amy Elizabeth Hill – Cyclist

Member of Newport Velo Youth Cycling Club, Welsh School Games Team (2009 &2010) & British Cycling Talent Team (2009-10, 2010-11)
DoB: 4th July 1995
Age 15

Amy Hill

Hi there all, It’s a great honour to be asked to write the 1st rider profile for the Newport Velo web site as we all rush into the 2011 racing season. Well here goes, hopefully it will show some of the newer club riders the journey I’ve been on and the fun I’ve had!

I started cycling after Ian Jenkins from Welsh Cycling came into my school with a Go-Ride session in the summer of 2005. I really enjoyed the quick taster session on the bike and asked my mum if I could go to another session in the summer holidays. After this 2nd session I joined Newport Velo Youth Cycling Club initially completing an 8 week beginner’s course which then allowed me to ride the track at the velodrome. As I didn’t come from a cycling back ground it was a big learning curve for me and my parents having to know about bikes, racing and gears. I’ve now progressed to being a senior member of the club which is really quite scary but, it’s a club that I really enjoy going to and extremely proud of the support they have given me as I’ve matured as a cyclist.

 1st Track Race

Some of the hardest things being an Under 12(U-12) was riding against boys and girls who had been racing and riding bikes much longer than me. My first major win was the U-12s Girls Welsh Track Championship which was a fantastic achievement in my first year of racing. That year I also managed to get myself in to the National Omnium Finals in Manchester coming 10th overall making my mum and dad really proud.

1st Omnium at Newport 2006 1st DHL Sprint School

In my first year in U-14 I was no longer racing boys, it was just girls and some of the older girls were just as strong as the boys in U-12s and the Midlands Region was and still is one of the strongest in the UK. That year as a first year U-14, I managed to get myself to Manchester for the omnium finals and coming 6th and came 2nd in the Welsh Track Championship.

My second year in U-14s (2009) went better than I thought it would. That winter I had been doing more road training, doing 20-30 miles on a Sunday with the Club. We had a great group of riders going out including: Matt Cross, Zak May, Sarah Crowley, Matt Haase, Dan Marshall, Joe and Sam Anstice and Rebecca Hunt. We started just going around the levels near the velodrome and progressed to doing 40 miles to Chepstow Garden Centre and back. I still enjoy a good cake stop. That year I competed in the Isle of Man Youth Tour, which is 3 day road race for experience as loads of other people had talked about. To my surprise I won the first stage and then went on to win the next two days eventually winning the whole race outright. I also competed in the North West Youth Tour which is another 3 day stage road race eventually coming second which is was another great result. I also competed in the Omnium series again and got to Manchester for the final and came 2nd. The highlight of the year was winning both the Welsh Road and Track Championships in the same year.

    Welsh U-14 Champion IoM Youth Tour U-14 Girls Winner
  2009 2009

In 2009 I also got picked for the UK School Games which was being held in Wales. I won Bronze in the Madison and Silver in the Team Pursuit. Then came the great news that I had been selected for the British Cycling Olympic Talent Programme which I had applied for in August. The selection was extremely tough looking at you as an individual rider, as a member of a team and also looking at your goals for the future. Last year was extremely busy, being part of the Talent Team squad and travelling all over the country to compete in both track and road races. The fun part of last year was competing as part of ‘Team Slicks’ in the Revolution Series in front of capacity crowds of 3,500 people with Pro and elite riders which was great, even if a little daunting to start. It was only two years earlier that I went to watch my first Revs with a group of U-14 Velo riders and I would never have thought then that I’d be racing in the event as I sat in the stands being gob smacked at the atmosphere and noise!! The team eventually won the 2010 series and it was a privilege to be in a team with riders such as Bradley Wiggins and Craig MacLean.

Riding For Team Slicks during Revolution 2010 Series.

Last year was my first year under 16 and I raced in the Isle of Man again but, I was also representing Wales. I did quite well, coming a respectable 5th individually against all the top riders in the UK and the team winning the team prize which was great. I also got selected to ride for Wales again in the UK School Games which was a road event last year. The team won the overall title and the atmosphere of the event in Newcastle was great.

UK School Games - Newcastle

The greatest achievements for last year were winning the Welsh Cyclocross Championship and getting back onto the Talent Team. Cyclocross has been a great tool for helping my bike handling skills and downhill confidence and its something that I didn’t really enjoy to start with but have grown to really enjoy. It definitely beats endless hours on the turbo or slipping about on wet and icy roads in the winter. My recent trip to Holland and Belgium was fantastic in terms of developing me as a rider and building my confidence in a totally new race environment even if the results for the weekend weren’t great, especially the bit about crashing and ending up in hospital !!

Cyclocross – The hard work and the Bacon and Egg Rolls!!!

My dream is to go to the Olympics and ride for Great Britain on either the track or road and come home with a gold medal. My long term aspiration is to follow in the footsteps of Nicole Cooke and Victoria Pendleton but, to try and cover both disciplines. Hopefully there will be a female Tour De France in the future to aim for too! Next year I hope to get a place on the Olympic Development Programme (ODP). With good results and a positive attitude I hope to progress onto the Academy programme. In 2011 my 1st big goal is to podium in the Isle of Man and North West Youth Tours. Hopefully I can build on last years results at the Track Nationals and come away with a National jersey in an event.

My Proud Support Team – British Cycling Award Presentations 2010

Thank you

 Weekly Training

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
Rest Day Summer: Welsh Cycling Track session – 2hrs
Winter: Track League

School PE Roller or Turbo session at Home Summer: Circuit Racing, Castle Combe.
Winter: Track Session – 2hrs

School PE Roller session at Home. Summer: Racing on Track and Road.
Winter: Club session at velodrome – 3hrs Racing or Club ride (40-50 miles)

Average mileage / week = 200 miles

Yearly Racing Schedule

Track:
Local – Welsh Cycling Races

Regional- Midlands Region BC Omnium Series

National – National Finals & Revolution Series
National Omnium Final: August – Manchester
Revolution Series: - Manchester

Road:
National Youth Circuit Race Series
April – Aug

Cyclo-Cross:
Local – Welsh Cycling League

National Championship Series