If you've ever watched a Cyclefilm etape recce you'll probably recognise Mike Cotty as the guinea pig sent out to try out the parcours for you. He's a fit chap, Mike: a former cyclocross champion and record holder for the South Downs Double (the full return trip) and first British finisher in the Etape and the Marmotte. Now he's eyeing up a new challenge.

We don't know what that challenge is just yet. Whatever it is, it involves riding quite fast for quite a long time, because his current regime involves some rides like this one: 300 miles from Herne Bay in Kent back to base in Southampton. The pretty way, with over 6,000m of climbing. It's an interesting glimpse into Mike's life, which very much revolves around riding bikes fast, and it had us thinking two things. Firstly, we should never forget just how beautiful riding in the UK can be: this ride looks lovely. And secondly, why haven't we got a car following us around on our training rides? We're sure we could crack off 300 miles in 19 hours too, if we did. Ahem.