Peter Pugh - Athlete Ambassador

Peter is an athlete who loves everything about bikes and cycling. He speaks to Sundried about training and racing.

Have you always been into sport?

Since a young age I have always been in to any sports including football, tennis, basketball etc. I always enjoyed the outdoors and would much rather be outside active then indoors bored. And I still love it, I’ll try any new sports as I enjoy 9/10 of them.

How did you first get into cycling?

I’ve always been into cycling, had bikes before I could walk but what made me so interested in road cycling was the 2017 Tour de France, I can remember being amazed of the speed they were climbing and then even more impressed with the descents. My first ever road bike was a Merida ride 77 second hand from a shop and that afternoon after buying it I was just caught by the bug. I even enjoyed the pain and the feeling of bonking.

As well as riding bikes I’ve always been working on my own or customers since I’ve started working for one of my Local Bike shops, Puffing Billy Cycles.

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What has been your favourite race to date and why?

My favourite 'race' isn’t a traditional race as such it was a virtual race on the Zwift platform. It was a stage race for Tour of all. It was 17.5km long on the dreaded course of the Alpe du Zwift. It was my first ever win on virtual racing and also winning out of over 300 people was an achievement for myself. I think that Zwift and other virtual platforms are going to be a big thing in the future.

What is your proudest achievement?

My proudest achievement would have to be buying my first proper race bike all on my own. At 16 I brought my cube agree DI2. This is an absolute beast on the roads and I can’t wait to break it in on some big races. I think my proudest achievement might change if I complete my vEveresting attempt.

Have you ever had any racing disasters?

My worse racing disaster wasn’t actually in road cycling. I did a local cross country race with one of my mates and it couldn’t have gone any worse for me. Overall I don’t think I was prepared for what was to come. We had to complete 6 laps of this course which was probably around 5km in distance but I had done no training beforehand. I quickly learned that I was no mountain biker. I quickly picked up 2 punctures within the first couple of laps and then received a 3rd which made me leave the race due to no more tubes left. That was a couple years ago now so with my improved fitness I would love to take another shot at a cross country race.

How do you overcome setbacks?

I think that setbacks are not always bad, when things go wrong I try and use it as a positive. Yes it’s annoying if a race gets cancelled or I injure myself before a race. But it means I train even harder to accomplish my goals. Last year was a major setback for me where nearly a whole years worth of racing got scrapped due to the pandemic of covid-19 but it meant that I could have the year just to train and enjoy being out on my bike. It means that now hopefully I can come back to racing even stronger and faster then I would have been. 

What advice do you wish you'd been given when you first started out?

I think the best advice I wish I'd be given from day one was get a good quality pair of bib-shorts with good padding because riding for 50km with a sore ass feels like you have been riding for ages. When I got my first good pair of shorts Which was actually the Sundried Peloton Men’s Training Bib-shorts. I felt automatically the difference and I can now ride my long distance rides without a sore ass annoying me.

What are your goals?

My main goal is to complete vEveresting which I will be attempting on Sunday the 14th February on Zwift. I want to take the under 18 record as well . My other goal is to get some race wins (obviously everyone wants them) but also to just enjoy training and have fun doing what I love.

Who inspires you?

Cycling wise I think that my biggest inspiration is Tom Pidcock. I think what he has achieved in his career is amazing. He has been dominating the cycling field since junior level. On a personal level it would have to be my mum she has always helped me with cycling and is always my 'support car' when something goes wrong.

Why work with Sundried?

Sundried is one of the first sets of quality kit I got for my training when I first started. It’s good quality and is at a good price. Not only is the cycling kit amazing so is the casual wear. I personally love the Sundried pursuits jumper it’s really comfy and is nice to wear around before and after races.

To hear more from our ambassadors and get free tips on workout plans and more, connect with the Sundried Personal Trainers on our app.