Gary in Feb'10 at the top of a major climb with Endura Racing mechanic, Brendan Milliken (L) and Endura/PedalPower Development Team-mate David Lines (R)

I have spent many winters training in Lanzarote, which is part of the Canary Islands, off the African coast.

Lanzarote is an ideal base for early season training because of its all-year round good climate, good roads and tough terrain which includes some serious climbs of up to 35 minutes.

Gary said after his return:

"Lanzarote is one of the best pre-season training grounds you can get. It's only 3.5hrs flying time away and you are gauranteed good weather almost all of the time. In February when I was there, the whole week I spent riding in shorts and a short sleeve top. The roads really are great and I found the climbs ideal for doing different interval training. The wind, which is there almost all of the time, adds to the whole experience making it even more worthwhile. Accommodation is reasonable and there are plenty of flights from Scotland.