Nick Dinsdale's biggest battle final part
IN this week’s edition of Cycle Clips, we have the concluding instalment of our contributor Nick Dinsdale’s detailed account of his battle with prostate cancer.
In April 2018 Nick was diagnosed with stage 4 (aggressive) prostate cancer and, whilst undergoing extensive treatment, still managed to continue racing duathlons, including some iconic European events.
Following vast amounts of treatment and having developed his own ‘coping plan’ for dealing with the side effects - both physical and mental - this last instalment sees Nick taking his battle to Europe:
European Cross Duathlon
Championships
July 2019 – after being diagnosed, I chose the European Cross Duathlon Championship, along with the iconic Alpe D’Huez road duathlon as my major 2019 objectives. Originally the challenge was simply to get to the start lines. I had been progressively building-up to these two key events by using low-key events as stepping stones.
There is no better way to get race fit than by racing itself, which must be by controlled strategically planned racing. After finishing 37 days of radiotherapy I only had three months to recover and re-build some kind of race fitness.
Meanwhile, Carol had just been through surgery and was awaiting radiotherapy. Unfortunately, this prevented her from travelling to both Transylvania and Alpe D’Huez with me.
The European Cross Duathlon Championship was held in Transylvania, Romania on July 3. The off-road race involved a 7km run, 20km MTB, followed by 3.5km run.
On paper the distances appeared reasonably manageable and user friendly. After recceing the course several days earlier and suffering a subsequent nightmare, I quickly realised that as a minimum I needed lower gearing.
The combined runs involved 335 metres of elevation and the MTB ride 701 metres. The MTB route was almost all exposed to direct sun with temperatures reaching 34C. Racing elevations as above are completely different when off-road compared to on-road. Efforts tend to be greater, less controllable and speed is much lower – leading to overheating and dehydration. The risk of serious dehydration was further exacerbated owing to there being no water stations on the ridiculously tough MTB route.
I managed to change my front ring from 34 to 32 teeth at a cost of €85. This now meant I was running a 32 front x 50 rear – which in my case still proved to be inadequate as I tired towards the end of the ride section.
When I eventually crossed the finishing line I was totally exhausted and seriously dehydrated - but absolutely ecstatic. I believe I consumed over seven litres of fluid over the remainder of the day. Although a long way behind the winner, I managed to finish 5th out of 8 in my age-group (65-69) and be the second GB athlete.
At mid-point on the MTB route I was alongside one of my GB colleagues who eventually went on to win the bronze medal. I just didn’t have sufficient background strength or endurance reserves to compete for the full distance with these guys.
To race and compete with these guys necessitates a minimum requirement of consistent hard training and racing over several years with no serious interruptions. Knowing how ridiculously tough the route was from the recce, I had already resigned myself to probably finishing last and would be more than happy to simply survive and finish the event. To have represented GB and finish 5th was a fantastic achievement – much more than I realistically expected.
There was more incredulous delight to follow, my daughter (Nicola) and son-in-law (Garth) won bronze medals in their respective age-groups. To be able to race abroad, represent GB (age-group) in a European
Championship… and to race alongside your daughter and son-in-law was absolutely unique and a lifetime experience. What an absolute and unbelievable contrast to 12 months ago!
Alpe D’Huez road duathlon July 2019 – after the race in Transylvania I had exactly three weeks to recover and prepare for the Alpe D’Huez road duathlon in France.
The duathlon involves a 7km hilly run, 15km cycle up the Alpe D’Huez followed by 3km run at the top. The iconic climb, used many times in the Tour de France, involves 21 hairpin bends, approximately 1,067 metres of climbing over 15km at an average gradient of 8.1%.
Considering my health constraints, on return from Transylvania I knew I was in reasonable race condition. In all three planned preparation races (5km park run, 10 and 25 mile road cycle time trials) – I managed to record post cancer personal bests. This gave me a real confidence boost for Alpe D’huez.
I had tremendous family support whilst there, which promoted a great atmosphere and family togetherness – two daughters and sons-in-law. However, only Garth and I were there to race.
During the winter months Garth and I had been riding Alpe D’huez on our computerised Turbo simulator, which proved to be very comparative – apart from the dreaded difference in temperature, which we had not allowed for. The simulator had enabled me to establish correct gearing and a realistic feel for the unforgiving climb. We had long realised that body weight (body composition), which influences power/weight, was a key factor in climbing the Alpe. Crucially, we recced the climb two days before the race and as a result we modified our race strategy.
Not being used to the severe climbs and high temperatures of 35C, we believed that avoiding over-heating and severe dehydration became priority simply to guarantee finishing the race. I normally wear a small-sized top, however I went out and bought a white sleeveless XL top which fully unzipped – the purpose was to promote air movement and effective heat dissipation.
We adopted a simple but effective strategy of drinking and soaking our clothing in water at every opportunity. For two days prior and throughout the race we concentrated on a high electrolyte intake to counter sweat losses. The actual race was incredibly tough, as expected - but went unbelievably smoothly.
I felt very strong on the upper parts of the unrelenting climb. There were quite a high number of athletes who failed to finish, poor preparation no doubt, however we believe we got our overall preparation and race strategy spot-on.
To finish the event, feel so strong and receive a finishers medal - surrounded by your family - was another unbelievable mile-stone and exhilarating experience, especially at the end of such a traumatic 18month period. I then discovered I had won my 65-69 agegroup. Mission completed – very successfully.
What is next?
From us here at Cycle Clips we would like to wish Nick all the best in his recovery. We would also like to thank him for taking the time to write this fascinating, but more importantly, essential piece, highlighting the fact that there is life after cancer, although sometimes you have to go out and grab it by the handlebars.