RETURNING from the European Championships I've unpacked my Great Britain kit for the final time this season. Since I was at primary school I've always had a big competition in August, whether it was swimming or Pony Club tetrathlon nationals. This is the first time in my career that I have a daunting three free months ahead of me until official training resumes.

My biggest concern was that I might get bored and unfit but five days into my break there has certainly been no chance of that. I have ran in two track races, swam with two triathlon squads, ridden a BMX for the first time, and visited various friends in various cities along the way including a stop in London to watch the athletics grand prix.

It's now time to pay back a little to my sponsors — however I wasn't expecting a physical challenge when heading up to the British Cycling centre in Manchester for an appearance with Adidas. After a short Q and A and a bite to eat whilst watching the likes of Sir Hoy spinning around the velodrome it was our turn to head over to a different track. I was quite nervous after being kitted out with a motorbike style helmet, knee/shin pads, gloves and elbow pads. I looked ready to star in a futuristic action movie when actually I was prepared to ride a BMX.

Having passed the basic riding test we were apparently of sufficient standard to attempt the actual track. I've watched a few televised clips and thought it looked fun and relatively easy, but oh, how a camera can flatten out a landscape! Not only was the course steeper than I expected, it was also made of concrete as one participant discovered after being knocked unconscious. But even though I may have underestimated the difficulty of this sport, I was certainly correct on the enjoyment level!