No rain, wind of traffic to contend with here. Under the roof of Calshot Activity Centre dwells the little gem that is Cashlot Velodrome.

A 3 hour session on saturday mornings is enough to get the heart pumping, lungs burning and legs spinning.

After a warmup spin we take turns in short sprints, coming off the track after each exercise for a brief rest.

This 'game' involves a continuous hard push on the black line at the bottom of the slope (the quickest way round the track) with those taking a breather 'resting' higher up the track. In the fast bunch the leader peels off at the end of 1 lap tp allow the guy in second to take the lead. Then rested riders join the string at the back (if they can catch them!) and keep in line till it's their turn at the front.

It looks confusing but with a few basic rules in place everyone can have a good workout without any incidents.

The track is only 142 meters on the racing line and the banking at each end is about 45°.

The quick riders will get round in under 10 seconds at over 30mph while mere mortals manage somewhere between 11 and 12 seconds.

Bikes can be hired at £6.30 and the cost for the morning is usually between £9 and £12 depending on numbers riding.

The nice thing about it is that if you do have a bike to take, it doesn't get dirty!