HSBC UK Participation Programmes Officer, Melanie Toner provides an insight into how cycling has changed for her during lockdown and what this has meant for her mental and physical health.

I have been cycling for most of my life. I can’t remember learning to ride, it was so long ago. My mum boasts that she taught me, not my dad, and many of my childhood cycling memories involve cycling with my mum and my sister. However, it was my dad who brought me my first serious bicycle, carrying it on the walk from his mother’s house to ours, so when I received it on Christmas day in 1983 it’s tyres were still pristine, having not yet touched any tarmac or pavement.

Until January last year I had never entered a bicycle race. My cycling was commuting and recreational, however I had ambitions for 2020. This was the year I would try cyclocross for the first time, getting muddy at both Kinneal X in January and at Linlithgow Cross in February. I loved it so much I bought a bike and promised myself I would practice more and get ready for the next season. Then Covid hit and suddenly we were in lockdown, not knowing when life would be back to normal.

The Scottish Cycling events calendar has been severely affected and uncertainty remains over when racing can return. Consequently, my ambitions for cyclocross have been placed on hold.

Before lockdown I had fallen off my bike on ice to the enormous hilarity of some workmen who happened to be close by when it happened. My Strava stats indicate there was no cycling for me as I waited for my injuries to heal and my strength to return. I wasn’t able to enjoy the quieter roads that occurred at the start of lockdown and my gym was closed. I needed something to keep me active and I found it with Zwift.

I bought a smart turbo trainer and my friendly local bike shop helped me to set it up. I signed up and investigated what Zwift had to offer. I explored some of the shorter routes, enjoying the sights of Wattopia and spinning my legs indoors. I tried out some of the training sessions, pushing myself with intervals and learning about watts, heartrate zones and FTP. I completed a block of training, learning how to push myself and to hang on, even if just for a few more seconds. I gained a few followers and followed people back. I gave ‘ride ons’ to fellow Zwifters and received some in return.

I took a peek at the races on offer, puzzled by the different categories and where I would belong, should I choose to join in.

I read up on Zwift races, to understand the categories better and what to expect. It was reading comments from other Zwifters about getting fitter and stronger from simply racing on Zwift that compelled me to finally give it a go. It wouldn’t matter if I was last, no one would be watching and my fellow competitors would be happy to have beaten me. I didn’t have to worry about crashing, my bike would be stationary and my avatar seemed to be able to cope with riding in a bunch. I looked for races over shorter distances, signed up to a British Cycling Women’s Crit Race, filled up my water bottles and got on my bike.

I cannot remember anything about that first race. But I must have been hooked from the start because I did a time trial the next day. The following week I completed four Zwift races. My Zwiftpower account shows 81 events since last July. This includes events such as the Tour de Zwift, which technically aren’t races, but these are a minority. I seem to be entering races on Zwift on a fairly regular basis.

At first, I mostly crossed the line on my own. I couldn’t keep up with the bunch and most of the field seemed to be faster than me. But trying to keep up was exhilarating. Watching how fast people can go is inspiring. And seeing my own times and power outputs improving has kept me motivated. Then one day in a race I found myself keeping up with a small bunch for some of the race.

Soon I was keeping pace within a group for the entire race. As the finish line got closer, I wasn’t getting dropped. I could see it ahead and had to decide when to sprint. I had to work out a strategy that would give me the best chance to beat the people racing beside me. I was actually, properly, racing.

Since then there have been many similar moments. It’s such a thrill to beat someone in a sprint, no matter where I am in the race. And when I am beaten I’ve found it is relatively easy to take it on the chin, because the next race is never far away. And no one is watching.

I don’t know how I would be coping with lockdown if it wasn’t for Zwift. It has kept me cycling when I’ve been injured.

And since I have recovered it provides the option of cycling indoors when the weather is especially bad. No falling off on ice for me this year. But the biggest benefit for me is discovering how much I enjoy racing in Zwift. How thrilling it feels to go a wee bit faster than someone else. How rewarding it feels to push past a limit I did not think I could pass. And how much fun I am having racing against strangers from different countries across the world, in a virtual world on the internet.